Electronic Design articles from June 2007

Electronic Design archives from June 2007

Happy days are here again for fiber-optical communications.(Feature)(National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... This year's Optical Fiber Communications Conference was a happy affair. Jointly held with the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference, attendance was well up over last year, with more than 14,000 on site. With an upbeat and positive attitude,...

Episode 37: researching the robotic leg.(ENGINEERING)(Carnegie Mellon University)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... Using servo motors, magnetic encoders for monitoring, and differential force on springs to create torque, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University are creating robotic legs that can walk, run, and jump--actions that we don't even need to think...

Meeting consumer demands for portable applications.(semiconductor industry viewpoint)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... Consumer market and manufacturing trends have pushed the semiconductor industry to higher levels of integration. Of course, recent achievements have required significant innovations in EDA software. ED ONLINE 15545 FrancoisClement, CTO and...

Comparing all the ways you receive technical training, which do you prefer?(Poll)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... In-person FAE training at my location: 18% On-demand webcasts: 34% Live webcasts: 3% Hands-on seminars: 34% Manufacturer's conference with technical sessions: 11% Express yourself through our new poll. To vote, go to...

UMPCs take different tacks.(EiEDonline)(ultra-mobile computers)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... Ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs) have been available for some time, but the latest crop is garnering more interest due to improved capability and costs. They'reimproved capability and costs. They're also finding their way into more embedded...

"The U.S. is less competitive because of policy and poor leadership.(Sound off)(Letter to the editor)
June 7, 2007... This includes Pac Rim currency manipulation and the drive by overpaid CEOs to remove all national tech assets and transfer them overseas. Furthermore, students shun technology degrees because they are hard and the rewards are systematically...

Following engineering passions earns admission to the lunatic fringe.(Editorial)
June 7, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At a Texas Instruments media and analyst event last month, I found myself sitting in a suburban Dallas movie theater wearing 3D glasses and eating tortillas with TI's Principal Fellow Gene Frantz, the "father of the...

Bob's Mailbox.(PeasePorridge)(Letter to the editor)
June 7, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Hi Bob: Just read Bob's Mailbox from the April 12 issue with great interest--in particular, the letter from Terry Hosking about audio capacitors and your reply. It seems to me that the audio field above all others is...

Yes,you can easily shift from 8-Bit to 32-Bit MCUs.(PointOfView)(microcontroller units)
June 7, 2007... Designers and programmers face several obstacles when an 8-bit microcontroller (MCU) no longer meets the performance needs of their application and a change in architecture is required. At the top of the list of problems are power consumption,...

OLED TVs get ready to hit The Japanese Market.(TechView)(organic light emitting diodes)
June 7, 2007... Major players in the electronics market have long been exploring ways to turn organic LED (OLED) displays into a potential successor to LCD screens for TVs. Last month, Sony became the first company to announce plans to start selling the...

Bridge the gap between design capability and market demand at logic NVM 2007.(TechView)(Nonvolatile Memory)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... As more and more electronic design professionals turn to logic nonvolatile memory (NVM), the Logic NVM 2007 conference in Santa Clara, Calif., will examine the critical issues associated with the implementation of this new technology. The June...

Arc-detecting circuit breakers will see wider use.(Analog & Power)
June 7, 2007... The 2008 National Electrical Code (NEC) will require arcfault circuit interrupters (AFCIs) throughout new homes in the U.S. So, your new construction should now incorporate ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs) that trip on an unbalance...

FPGAs boot in a flash.(Digital)
June 7, 2007... According to Lattice Semiconductor, the company's LatticeXP2 family represents the industry's first line of single-die, 90-nm, nonvolatile FPGAs. Based on the previous generation, these devices offer up to 40k lookup tables, up to 885k of...

Small mixed-signal memory chief packs a large punch.(Digital)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... Dallas Semiconductor/Maxim brings the memory shopping mall to you. With a 2-kbit (256 by 8) EEPROM, 12 user-programmable I/O channels, a real-time clock/calendar/alarm, CPU resetmonitor, 64-bit factory-programmed ROM ID, battery monitor, and...

Design fingerprint authentication: FAQs frequently asked questions.
June 7, 2007... How does fingerprint sensor (authentication) technology work? Fingerprint authentication is one of many biometric forms of human identification. A fingerprint sensor captures a digital image of a fingerprint pattern, normally at 500dpi...

Productivity gains eliminate verification bottlenecks.(EDA)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... It's now the rule rather than the exception: Logic designers must accept responsibility for verification. But time is short, so it behooves EDA vendors to enhance verification productivity. In the latest improvements to its Logic Design Team...

Instrumentation 2.0: How Software-Defined Instrumentation Is Changing T&M.(Test)
June 7, 2007... Coined by National Instruments, Instrumentation 2.0 refers to a software-based approach to instrumentation that lets users create their own end measurement outcomes from raw measurement data. Instrumentation 2.0 is virtual instrumentation (VI),...

Software Probes Monitor And Repair Applications: The SensorPoint technology puts new code in existing applications for debugging and patch delivery.(LeapFrog)
June 7, 2007... A program that never needs changing or fixing is a rare one. That's why debugging, monitoring, and patching tools are in every programmer's toolbox. While some of these tools are akin to rope and stone knives, more advanced development...

New 'GIG' becomes more of a reality.(EngineeringFeature)(Global Information Grid and Challenges Facing Its Implementation)
June 7, 2007... The Global Information Grid (GIG), an open-yet-secure mega-Internet in which all soldiers may have their own IPv6 address, is moving from the concept phase and into the hardware/software development phase (see the figure). In a sense, it's...

MEMS on the move: motion sensors for the masses: Applications reap the benefits of steady advances in low-cost, low-power, and small-size advances in a maturing MEMS sensor technology.(TechnologyReport)(Microelectromechanical systems)
June 7, 2007... The MEMS motion sensor is no longer the bastion of just the automotive and industrial markets. Thanks to the maturation of design and manufacturing methods, these accelerators and gyroscopes are meeting the price points for mass-market...

Put high-speed communications to the test: faster serial-data links push test and measurement technology to its limits in the battle against skew, noise, and jitter.(ENGINEERINGESSENTIALS)
June 7, 2007... Need speed? These days, what designer doesn't? It seems that your job primarily revolves around making everything go faster. Of course, faster often equates to increasing difficulty and complexity. The impact of this craze has probably...

Flex circuits offer high-density capability.(ComponentView)(Brief article)
June 7, 2007... Stratos Optical Technologies now offers increased packaging density as a custom manufacturing option for its optical flex circuit products. The new optical flex circuit design is called the Shuffle because fiber channels can criss-cross each...

Optoelectronics Briefs.
June 7, 2007... The latest optical isolators from TT electronics Optek Technology transfer data through a flexible plastic cable, using a visible red LED and either a phototransistor or Photologic sensor. The OPI1270, OPI1280, and OPI1290 employ a heavy-duty...

Innovative designs from readers: high-speed full-wave rectifier requires no diodes, few parts.(IdeasForDesign)
June 7, 2007... Systems requiring power conversion and level detection employ full-wave rectification, traditionally provided by a diode bridge. But diode bridges consume a significant amount of board space and reduce signal amplitude. An alternative solution...

Use current-mirror biasing to avoid squegging in RF oscillators.
June 7, 2007... If you've ever designed an RF oscillator, you've probably encountered squegging. Sometimes called "motor boating," squegging causes oscillators to start and stop at frequencies much lower than the frequency of interest. Viewed on an...

Can gaming's powerful pull get kids into engineering?(Editorial)
June 21, 2007... It may seem ironic that today's most advanced chips are designed for what some might say is our most trivial of pursuits--gaming (see "Games Flourish In A Parallel Universe," p. 33). Yet video games exert a powerful force, not only in the world...

What's all this [V.sub.BE] stuff, Anyhow? (Part 2).(transistor operation)(Column)
June 21, 2007... I've been debating with a guy who argues that a transistor won't work as a transistor unless its [V.sub.CE] is bigger than its [V.sub.BE]. He keeps reading this in books. Also, he points out that if the base and collector are nominally tied...

The explosion of multicores: use software to level the playing field.(processor design)
June 21, 2007... As CPUs and graphics processors (GPUs) evolve, many of their design features are beginning to look remarkably similar. As a result, many of today's most common workloads will soon have a choice about where to execute. All the major hardware...

Researchers take silicon out for a spin.(TechView)(University of Delaware is establishing Center for Spintronics and Biodetection)
June 21, 2007... Over the last decade, spintronic technology has found its way into consumer electronics, used in devices like cell phones, hard drives, and RAM. Now, researchers at the University of Delaware have opened a door to making spintronics even more...

Technology keeps your cycles on time and accurate.(Intrinsity FastCores)(Editorial)
June 21, 2007... Imagine that the earth's rotation became unpredictable and varied between one and 100 hours. What effects would this have on life as we know it? Utter chaos would ensue, and many species would cease to exist. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Zombies and energy harvesting.(Analog & Power)(Perpetuum Ltd.'s microgenerators power systems)(Darnell Group's first annual nanoPower Forum)
June 21, 2007... Suppose someone were to design a way to power a heart pacemaker by scavenging some of the energy of the beating heart itself, doing away with batteries. Could your heart continue beating after your death in some sort of perpetual-motion...

Third UWB method solves the home networking problem.(Wireless)(Ultra-Wideband)(Pulse-Link PL3100 CWave)
June 21, 2007... Ultra-Wideband (UWB) is that weird wireless technology that spreads the signal over at least 500 MHz of bandwidth between 3.1 and 10.6 GHz, achieving blazing data rates at a range up to 10 m. Fully blessed by the FCC in February 2002, it has...

IP-metadata standard gains automatic register mapping.(EDA)(internet protocol)(SPIRIT Consortium's IP-XACT specification)
June 21, 2007... One of the hallmarks of the SPIRIT Consortium, a standards organization focused on IP/tool integration, is its IP-XACT specification. IP-XACT provides a unique way to describe IP metadata in an XML format, enabling the exchange of architectural...

Cortex M3-based micros add speed, memory, and other features; Assembler need not apply. C/C++ handlers allow the entire code base to be in a high-level language.(LeapFrog)(Luminary Micro Stellaris LM3S6xx and LM3S8xx, ARM Cortex M3)
June 21, 2007... The industry enjoyed some financial relief when Luminary Micro announced its ARM Cortex M3 platforms priced under $1 (see "32-Bit ARM MCU Hits One-Dollar Mark" at www.electronicdesign.com, ED Online 12358). Now, the company's latest efforts...

Games flourish in a parallel universe.(EngineeringFeature)(mmultiple core processors)
June 21, 2007... Multicore processors accelerate games if developers can take advantage of the features and live with the limitations. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Gaming platforms like Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 push the envelope when it...

Design reuse comes down to collaboration: four experts portray an industry rallying around emerging IP standards and formats.(TechnologyReport)(Gary Delp, Ian Mackintosh, John Swanson)(intellectual property)(SPIRIT Consortium, and the VSI Alliance)(Interview)
June 21, 2007... Of all the areas in which the EDA industry has forged standardization efforts, perhaps none has seen more success than those in promoting intellectual-property (IP) reuse. Whereas other standards efforts in EDA have fragmented the industry...

Architecting new dimensions of medical imaging.(EngineeringESSENTIALS)
June 21, 2007... Several technologies--like 4D (3D over time) ultrasound imaging (Fig. 1)--have taken the medical-imaging market by storm. The medical field will continue to benefit from Moore's Law as speed and resolution continue to improve. Take for example...

Clamping circuit lowers distortion, improves overdrive recovery time.(INNOVATIVE DESIGNS FROM READERS)(using Analog Devices AD8099's amplifier)
June 21, 2007... Some amplifier applications require clamping or limiting due to large, sporadic signals appearing at the amplifier input. Clamping these errant signals protects the amplifier and other sensitive downstream circuitry. It also improves overdrive...

Create RS-485 adapter to convert data lines from full-to half-duplex.(INNOVATIVE DESIGNS FROM READERS)
June 21, 2007... Multiprotocol interface ICs can be used to connect a UART to an RS-485 bus architecture called point-to-point full-duplex (PTP-FD). The PTP connection usually requires drivers and receivers to be constantly enabled, and therefore "present" on...

Are today's distributors up to the task?(DistributionSurvey)
June 21, 2007... Don't miss the opportunity to participate in our upcoming report exploring the relationship between electronic engineering and electronics distribution. It's your chance to influence the supply chain by sharing your input on how you currently...

Upgrade to high-speed USB handsets without a complete redesign.(DesignView)(universal serial bus)
June 21, 2007... Cellular-service providers continually strive to give more features to their subscribers, features that will increase the average revenue per user (ARPU) in a market reaching saturation. Handset OEMs reacted to the increase in competition to...

My little RTOS.(Embedded)(real-time operating system)
June 21, 2007... Still rolling your own small-footprint real-time operating system (RTOS) for low-end micros? You're in a minority that's shrinking fast. Even if you're moving to 32-bit platforms, getting an RTOS is easier than ever. So why build your own?...

Microformats: people first, machines second.(EmbeddedInElectronicDesign)(Representational State Transfer)
June 21, 2007... It's amazing what you can find bouncing around the Internet. I stumbled across microformats while looking for something else. Microformats are a way of embedding semantic information on a Web page. They're designed to augment human-readable...

Touch-sensitive switches have no moving parts.(ComponentView)(Buyers guide)
June 21, 2007... With no moving parts and insensitivity to liquid spills and other contaminants, the rugged, touch-sensitive switches in ITW Switches' ActiveMetal series have a virtually unlimited life span. Based on ITW's Active Touch technology, these...

Supercapacitors provide new power options.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... The new DLR series of radial-leaded capacitors from Illinois Capacitor offers capacitance values up to 220 Farads with up to 2.5 WVDC. Custom packs are also available, combining multiple capacitors for higher voltage ratings. Applications...

Socket 0.4mm pitch AD6546 QFN packages.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... New high performance QFN socket for 0.4mm pitch devices. The SG-MLF-7019 socket is designed for 6mm package size, bandwidths to 10 GHz. The sockets are designed to dissipate up to several watts without extra heat sinking and can handle up to...

Precision high voltage DC/DC.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... The "A" Family of DC/DC converters are enclosed in 1"x2"x0.4" metal cases. They are capable of producing up to 200Vdc with voltage accuracy greater than 1%, load regulation greater than 0.2%, and are available in 5, 10, and 15 Watt models, with...

New series of low-cost PC/104 digital boards provides 48 isolated digital inputs.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... ACCES I/O Products Inc., is pleased to release its newest series of PC/104 isolated digital I/O boards, the 104-IDI-48 Series. These 48-channel PC/104 utility boards feature 48 individually optically isolated digital inputs. The boards are...

Spray down protection for less than the cost of drip.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... Bud Industries announced its SN Series NEMA-rated sheet-metal boxes - the newest addition to Bud's complete line of environmentally sealed enclosures. Because of economies in manufacturing, now engineers can get an SN Series steel box rated for...

Available from Digi-Key.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... Microchip MRF24J40 is an IEEE transceiver targeted for the ZigBe[e.sup.TM] protocol and proprietary wireless protocols such as MiW[i.sup.TM] in RF applications requiring low power and excellent RF performance. The MRF24J40 also offers low power...

The lowest noise and fastest Power Control IC for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.(PRODUCT ALERT)
June 21, 2007... Melexis introduces the lowest noise Photo Detector IC and the fastest Automatic Power Control IC supporting both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray applications. Respectively, the MLX75010 and the MLX75013 provide enabling disk storage technology,...

LabVIEW State Diagram Toolkit.(Catalog Literature Review)
June 21, 2007... Create state machines that reflect complex decision-making logic while simultaneously auto-generating the necessary implementation code with the National Instruments LabVIEW State Diagram Toolkit. Automatically generate state diagrams, add...

High performance sockets & adapters.(Catalog Literature Review)
June 21, 2007... Includes GHz bandwidth sockets for BGA and QFN, only slightly larger than IC with integral heatsink for medium power and optional heatsinking to over 100 watts. Up to 500k insertions. Adapters for prototype, test, and more. Quick turn volume...

Free 2007 national instruments measurement and automation catalog.(Catalog Literature Review)(National Instruments Corp.)(Brief article)
June 21, 2007... Featuring new product information, comparison charts, key specifications, and information on: * NI LabVIEW 8.20 Twentieth Anniversary Edition Graphical System Design Software * Isolated M Series, PXI Express M Series, and USB M Series...

Inconvenient or not, environmental awareness will drive the industry.(IssueOverview)
June 29, 2007... While the scientific community has moved toward a consensus on global warming, some Electronic Design readers remain dubious. I know this because each time I've written something on the subject, I've gotten an e-mail earful from the skeptics....

Consumer electronics lead the way: while consumer electronics and wireless dominate the market, other technologies and trends will play a key role in the future of the industry.
June 29, 2007... Where would the electronics industry be today without consumer electronics (CE) and wireless technology? Shawn G. DuBravac, staff economist for the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), has the answer. He says that the CE sector accounts for...

Keeping e-tabs on health, location & information; Medical electronics are going wireless. Location technologies will soon be ubiquitous. And, voice recognition no longer stutters.(HotMarkets)
June 29, 2007... Every year in this industry, some market segments seem to attract more attention and move faster than others. One of the sectors that reached hot market status this year is medical electronics. By itself, medical imaging is an $18 billion...

Low-Dropout (LDO) linear regulators.(Editorial)
June 29, 2007... FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What are the typical applications for a low-dropout (LDO) linear regulator? LDO linear regulators usually are employed in systems that require a low-noise power source instead of a switching regulator that...

In today's military, more than just fatigues are green; The world's mightiest fighting force also is a leading sponsor of environmentally friendly power systems.(MilitarySolutions)(Defense Life Sciences in alliance with Purdue University developing a trash-to-electricity generator)
June 29, 2007... Garbage is power. At least that's true for Jerry B. Warner, president of Defense Life Sciences, which is developing a trash-to-electricity generator. The fact that the company is working on a "green" energy technology isn't unusual. What's out...

Leading the charge; The popularity of electric vehicles rises as battery and fuel-cell technologies improve.(AlternativeAutomobiles)(Product/service evaluation)
June 29, 2007... Forget about those old gas guzzlers. Electric and hybrid vehicles are hitting the streets. A driving factor is consumer environmental concern, but improved technology has really made the difference-especially in motors, motor control,...

$ell Phones: The unstoppable market: advances in style and substance continue to raise stakes and sales in the handset industry.(CellPhones)
June 29, 2007... Communication and entertainment are two undeniable facets of popular culture. Thus, the extreme integration of the cell phone into our everyday lives comes as no surprise. They've become security blankets for baby boomers, pacifiers for...

Can greens and nukes coexist? The future probably involves a mix of energy-generating technologies.(AlternativeEnergy)(Editorial)
June 29, 2007... I'm going to assume that any non-dystopian future will involve a great deal of large-and small-scale wind, solar, geothermal, and tidal power generation. But I'm not sure we're simply going to transition easily from smokestacks to sunshine. The...

LEDs lighten the energy load: move over, fluorescent bulb. See ya later, halogen lamp. Solid-state lighting's longer life and greater efficiency are making it the lighting option of choice.(GreenLighting)(light emitting diodes)
June 29, 2007... Forgive the pun, but the future looks bright for solidstate lighting. Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) lead the way, while organic LEDs (OLEDs) promise even greater lighting efficiency and more energy savings in the years ahead. In fact, we'll soon...

Where has all the talent gone? The industry is struggling to fill new positions, especially in groundbreaking technologies and fields that require security clearance.(Careers)(ClearanceJobs.com survey of electronic engineers)(Editorial)
June 29, 2007... Is there a shortage of EEs and other technical professionals in the U.S.? Bill Gates thinks so. In March, he told members of one of the U.S. Senate committees on labor and education that Microsoft hasn't been able to fill 3000 technical jobs in...

Navigation systems to go beyond turn-by-turn directions: RFID tags and cell-phone GPS will steer consumers directly to their products.(LocationAwareness)(global positioning systems, radio frequency identification equipment)
June 29, 2007... Picture a husband and wife back in the good old days before digital technology. The wife would ask the husband to get her something at the mall. The husband would grumble but go off on his quest, possibly getting lost on the way there and...

Energy harvesting gets big--and small: people have harvested energy since the first water wheel. Today, though, it's all about scaling.(EnergyIndependence)(Department of Energy's Sandia National Laboratories' power plants)
June 29, 2007... Large-scale energy harvesting isn't new. The Swiss have run their whole country on melted snow-water running downhill for more than a century. Nearly half a million Hollanders live in a province called Flevoland, which was completely under...

Robotic cars get street smart: designers of driverless vehicles learn the rules of the robotic road for the DARPA Urban Challenge.(AutomatedDriving)(Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)
June 29, 2007... This November, Mike Montemerlo's Volkswagen Passat wagon will drive a 60-mile trek through an urban landscape located somewhere in the western U.S. But Montemerlo won't be sitting behind the wheel, nor will anyone else. That's because...

When small gets big: nanotechnology promises a new generation of microscopic power-saving and performance-boosting electronic devices. But will reality live up to the hype?(NanoTechnology)
June 29, 2007... George Malliaras and his colleagues recently had a bright idea--literally. As director of the Cornell University NanoScale Facility, he is among several researchers working on nanolamps--light-emitting microfibers no larger than a virus. The...

Implants bring hope to the toughest medical handicaps; The latest biomedical implants hold the promise of sight for the blind, motor functions for the paralyzed, and an artificial heart for those awaiting transplants.(Medical)(using wireless communications and microelectromechanical systems)
June 29, 2007... Imagine implants that detect cancer and deliver the appropriate drugs. Or read the brain's electrical signals and control motor functions affected by diseases like epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. Or restore sight to the blind. Actually, you...