Electronics Weekly articles from March 2002

Electronics Weekly archives from March 2002

Embedded Risc firm debuts SH-5 family.
March 6, 2002... SuperH, the company spun out of Hitachi and STMicroelectronics to commercialise the SH embedded Risc processor architecture, has released the first member of its SH-5 family for licensing. The SH5-100 is a 64-bit superscalar core with...

That interoperability problem...
March 6, 2002... Interoperability could have killed off Bluetooth, but it didn't. richard wilson writes Bluetooth devices, wireless headsets and LAN cards, had severe interoperability problems. That is there was little or no chance of a transceiver from...

Not mass market, but Bluetooth is here to stay.
March 6, 2002... Dick Clarke Everyone in the wireless world has heard about Bluetooth by now, but with the slow take-up and list of concerns, one might ask if it's worth bothering with Bluetooth at all. If Bluetooth takes off, it could spread to virtually...

A band looking for harmony.
March 6, 2002... The Radiocommunications Agency is the police force of the airwaves, but it also decides how the radio spectrum is used. Melanie Reynolds goes live on air Over ten years ago the UK Government decided there was a need for a regulatory body...

Cutting edge consoles target TV.
March 6, 2002... Think a brand new computer is the most powerful high-tech gadget you can buy? Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony hope to change your opinion of what the word computer means. BRIAN DIPERT, technical editor of EDN reports One bright spot in an...

Verisity speeds verification tools.
March 6, 2002... Richard Ball Verisity has developed a technique for using hardware emulation systems to speed up its testbench verification tools. Software called eCelerator takes the most time-consuming parts of a testbench and synthesises them to...

Hands-on skills.
March 6, 2002... Commercial sponsorship of university engineering departments is going some way to tackling the perennial issue of students getting the industry exposure they need. RICHARD WILSON takes a look at the partnership forged at Aston University ...

Cyberspace campus.
March 6, 2002... A Master's degree in system level integration is available over the web. RICHARD BALL takes a tutorial The proliferation of the Web and Internet into society has implications for distance learning, a fact which has not escaped Scotland's...

Receiving you loud and clear.
March 6, 2002... Choosing an aerial for mobile products can be a confusing business because antenna firms have come up with all sorts of devious ways to make them invisible, you could even build one yourself. STEVE BUSH explores the options While most...

Brush up on digital TV.
March 6, 2002... The Government's deadline for switch over to digital terrestrial TV means engineers working in the industry will need a working knowledge of the subject. BARBARA STEEL says the University of Surrey is on hand to teach you all about it In...

PowerPC and fast serial I/O blocks make Xilinx FPGAs go like a rocket.
March 6, 2002... Richard Ball FPGA maker Xilinx has started production of programmable chips that integrate PowerPC processors and high speed serial I/O blocks. "Virtex-II Pro is an extension to Virtex-II plus 'Rocket I/O' serial transceivers and up to...

EEMBC announces 8- and 16-bit device benchmarks.
March 6, 2002... EEMBC, the embedded benchmarking forum, has announced its first suite of benchmarks for 8- and 16-bit embedded microcontrollers. Until now, EEMBC standards were best suited for DSPs and 32- or 64-bit devices. The new benchmarks have...

A Scottish strategy.
March 6, 2002... The Scottish Executive is shouting about how important it is for the country to build on its success in the electronics industry, backing this up with a series of initiatives. Gary deans finds a strategy to encourage the new bravehearts ...

Programmable logic and PowerPC in Xilinx FPGAs.
March 6, 2002... Xilinx has started shipping FPGAs that combine programmable logic with embedded PowerPC processors. "For Xilinx this is the most significant change in its product portfolio in 15 years," Giles Peckham, European marketing manager at Xilinx,...

Gyro to run on atoms.
March 6, 2002... An inertial guidance system using atoms could be 1000 times more sensitive than the optical instruments used in today's aircraft. An optical gyroscope splits a beam of light in two and sends them in opposite directions around a loop....

Cadence launches SPW upgrade for multimedia.
March 6, 2002... Cadence has unveiled what it describes as "a substantial upgrade" to SPW, its Signal Processing Worksystem aimed at communications and multimedia designs. SPW 4.8 adds links to Cadence's analogue design flow, the SystemC language, and the...

Keep technical edge to survive slump, says CML.
March 6, 2002... Maintaining a technical edge through the continued launch of new products is the key to getting through the downturn, according to CML Microsystems. Kevin Swann, sales director at CML, told Electronics Weekly: "We are going ahead with...

The face of the semiconductor phoenix.
March 6, 2002... When the chip industry finally shakes off the shackles of this draining downturn will it be the same? asks david manners When the semiconductor upturn comes, what will the industry look like? Things look likely now which would have been...

Siemens to use CPS technology.
March 6, 2002... Cambridge Positioning Systems (CPS) has licensed its location technology to Siemens in a five-year multi-million pound deal. "This is a major development for CPS. The licensing agreement is hugely significant for the profile of E-OTD...

Camera X-rays in microseconds.
March 6, 2002... A one-of-a-kind X-ray camera capable of capturing a succession of microsecond images has been made by researchers at Cornell University in New York. At the heart of the camera is a 9,200 pixel two-layer custom chip. The 150?m X-ray...

Telemetrix perseveres with UK manufacturing.
March 6, 2002... Alex Mayhew-Smith Telemetrix insists it is viable to continue manufacturing in the UK, after the firm reported a pre-tax loss of ?1.8m for 2001. The firm, parent company of Zetex and Trend, will continue to invest in manufacturing,...

Amstrad flies the flag with e-mailer plus TV campaign.
March 6, 2002... Amstrad is spending ?8m to promote its e-mailer plus Internet phone in a TV advertising campaign starting this week and running until May. It is the firm's first TV advertising campaign for five years and will cover terrestrial and...

Rambus edged out of PC memory as suppliers act.
March 6, 2002... David Manners Rambus' memory is facing an uncertain future as a PC memory option because major DRAM manufacturers are planning to give up making it over the next few months. At Toshiba, the first licensee of Rambus memory, Helmut...

Cavendish Kinetics takes commercial route with MEMS-switch technology.
March 6, 2002... Harry Yeates Fabless semiconductor firm Cavendish Kinetics is gearing up to take its technology to the product stage. The firm - which has been developing a CMOS-compatible MEMS-switch since 1994 - claims the technology has a number of...

Three RF engineers put heads together to set up firm.
March 6, 2002... Three RF engineers have set up their own design and consultancy partnership, after being laid off by big firms. Southampton-based Coherence RF was founded in January this year by Eric Dillon, Steve Walker and Dr Ingo Boese. Between them...

Multi-processor DSP cores target comms.
March 6, 2002... Adelante Technologies has developed a comprehensive series of DSP cores aimed at multi-processor system-on-chip designs. The 'Galaxic' technology comprises the DSP cores, supporting intellectual property, sub-systems such as memory, buses,...

'Bluetooth interoperability much better' say suppliers.
March 6, 2002... Richard Wilson Bluetooth interoperability problems are largely solved now, according to suppliers of the technology. "Interoperability is good, it has certainly improved and is now better than 95 per cent," said Charles Sturman,...

Wristwatch telephone fantasy to be realised mimic to Dick Tracey.
March 6, 2002... A 70- year-old dream could be fulfilled this year with the introduction of the first wristwatch telephones, first seen being used in the 1930s by detective Dick Tracey. There are at least two manufacturers: Swatch, and an unnamed firm...

Broadband subscribers give hope to Telewest.
March 6, 2002... Cable comms firm Telewest grew its number of broadband subscribers in the space of a year by 1,135 per cent to over 100,000. However, the firm posted a net loss for 2001 of ?801m, compared to a loss of ?706m in 2000. The firm claimed...

ARC Cores ; to take on Siroyan in DSP IP war.
March 6, 2002... David Manners ARC Cores is positioning itself as a DSP intellectual property (IP) provider under its new CEO Michael Gulett. "We see DSP IP as a big opportunity," Gulett told EW. Although Gulett sees Texas Instruments, the number...

IndigoVision reaches Milestone.
March 6, 2002... Edinburgh-based networked video technology firm IndigoVision has partnered with Milestone Systems to add software designed for TCP/IP-based network cameras and video servers to its systems. The deal will see IndigoVision integrate the...

Telecoms market slump sees for sale signs at two UK firms.
March 6, 2002... Harry Yeates The current state of the telecoms market has hit two UK firms, Cambridge-based radio technology firm Simoco and fabless telecoms chip firm Power X Networks. Simoco, which includes Simoco Digital Systems (SDS) and Simoco...

Xilinx makes historic $100m manufacturing deal with IBM.
March 6, 2002... Chris Druce Xilinx has announced a two-year $100m (?70m) agreement that will see its Virtex-II-Pro semiconductor products manufactured by IBM, marking the first time the computer-giant has agreed to manufacture high-volume parts for an...

Semiconductor sales down 40%.
March 6, 2002... European semiconductor sales in January were 40.4 per cent down on the same month a year ago, according to the latest figures from market watcher WSTS. With sales of $2.1bn in January, this marked a 3 per cent decline on December 2001. ...

Manufacturing survey shows hint of recovery.
March 6, 2002... The first tentative signs that the worst may be over for UK manufacturers have appeared in a business survey carried out in February. The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply's latest monthly survey of the manufacturing sector has...

Forecasts revised as DRAM price goes higher.
March 6, 2002... As the DRAM price continues to rise, semiconductor industry forecasts could be in for considerable revision. As the price of a 128Mbit DRAM approaches $4 on the spot market, and as the contract price approaches $5, the calculation of...

IBM v-p contests SiGe price claims.
March 6, 2002... An IBM scientist has questioned the claims of Communicant, the joint venture SiGe fab being built in Frankfurt-Oder and backed by Intel and the Dubai Airport Free Zone. Communicant said it would democratise mixed signal and RF...

In a digital world the analogue engineer ; is king...
March 13, 2002... Lou DiNardo It's ironic that, in an overwhelmingly digital world, analogue engineering talent should be so valuable. Today's analogue guy can practically pick the environment he wants to work in. He can join any one of the premier...

Distributor warns UK firms about phoney components.
March 13, 2002... Chris Druce The UK electronics industry needs to be less naive about component fraud, according to Paul Chinery, managing director of independent distributor Dionics. Despite work carried out by the Component Obsolescence Group (COG),...

Nickel-zinc batteries click with digital cameras for Panasonic.
March 13, 2002... The consumer battery market is about to get a new non-rechargeable battery chemistry. Nickel-zinc batteries are only available in AA size and are specifically aimed at power-hungry digital cameras, but could easily find application in...

The new faces.
March 13, 2002... First there were 53 and now there are 80. Our start-up map keeps on growing. alex.mayhew-smith@rbi.co.uk It is over a year since Electronics Weekly updated its start-up map. It last appeared on September 13, 2000. Since then the number of...

Backing Britain.
March 13, 2002... The Government has given a showcase to UK technology being developed in universities with its UK@CeBIT initiative. STEVE BUSH looks at some of the projects that will be aired at this week's CeBIT show in Hanover UK@CeBIT is a UK...

Aerospace firm inches up turnover as operating profits slide to ?9.5m.
March 13, 2002... Meggitt Systems, the electronic sensor, aerospace and defence company, has reported a marginal increase in turnover for its electronics business in the year ending December 31, 2001. Turnover increased by three per cent in the company's...

Qinetiq eyes partnerships as flotation plans sink.
March 13, 2002... The Government has shelved its plans to float QinetiQ and is currently looking for business partners for the firm that made up the majority of the now defunct DERA. "Although flotation has always been our preferred route... the priority is...

Chip leaders tussle for the 90s.
March 13, 2002... The race to be the first with a 90nm CMOS semiconductor production process is hotting up, says DAVID MANNERS gh facturing fab and will be the first manufacturing fab at 90nm," says Bohr, "the process will then be transferred to other...

Wireless firm launches ; synthesisable PulseDSP architecture.
March 13, 2002... RadioScape has released a synthesisable version of its PulseDSP architecture. "The synthesisable core means you're no longer bound to having hand-crafted implementations of the switches," said Andrew Dewhurst, engineering director for...

Leeds look to cash in on THz imaging device.
March 13, 2002... Harry Yeates A hand-held, solid-state terahertz imaging device is the eventual aim of a research project at the University of Leeds. Terahertz radiation (300GHz up to around 20THz) gives high resolution, high quality images, and does...

1 Limited sends digital sound around the room with a single speaker.
March 13, 2002... Electronics Weekly has heard the Digital Sound Projector from Cambridge-based 1 Limited and can confirm that it works - and is really rather impressive. As the company claims, a single front-mounted Projector can make sound come from all...

Amplitude-locking snatches tiny FM signals from atmospheric swamp.
March 13, 2002... Radio broadcasting using FM has advantages. Firstly, FM is almost as easy to demodulate as AM, so receivers can be simple. Secondly, FM demodulators exhibit something called 'capture effect' which cleanly, or fairly cleanly, extracts...

Stadium expands sensor contract manufacturing after plastics sale.
March 13, 2002... Stadium Group claimed it will continue to grow its electronic sensors contract manufacturing business, following disposals worth ?13.2m in 2001. Following the ?7m sale of its plastics division to a management buy-in earlier this month,...

Going out of fashion.
March 13, 2002... The National Obsolescence Centre (NOC) has joined efforts with QinetiQ to extend its services, which now include support for passive and electromechanical parts from the commercial, industrial and military sectors. ROY ATTERBURY writes The...

I've got a feeling... for growth.
March 13, 2002... Are those the green shoots of regeneration in the chip market? david manners writes tion of recovery has been in the DRAM price. Languishing at $1.20 last November, the 128Mbit DRAM contract price is nudging up towards $5, and the spot...

Privates on parade.
March 13, 2002... The Government's plans for QinetiQ have been changed somewhat as the MoD has put the flotation on ice and labelled the file private. chris druce explores their options QinetiQ just the victim of circumstance and the continuing downward...

Commtag finds UK partner to create the wireless office.
March 13, 2002... Commtag, a wireless applications developer, and wireless office company Norwood Systems are working together to integrate their technologies. Development is initially focusing on combining Commtag's Duality, an always-on mail application,...

IMEC researcher tells designers to adopt novel architectures in a nanoscale world.
March 13, 2002... Chris Evans-Pughe in Paris As Moore's Law pushes silicon towards nanoscale integration, designers must embrace novel software-programmable chip architectures in order to cope with the complexity, according to a senior research fellow...

Intel is frontrunner in race for first 90nm chip process.
March 13, 2002... David Manners Intel has unveiled a 90nm process which has delivered fully functioning 52Mbit SRAMs based on six-transistor memory cells measuring one square micron, taking a lead in introducing next generation processing technology. ...

UK fabless chip firm set for ?2m funding.
March 13, 2002... Harry Yeates Newmarket-based fabless chip firm Global Silicon expects to close a further ?2m funding round this week as it expands its range of audio-specific designs. The company's Dart digital chip, a CD controller system-on-chip...

French start-up provides IP for ST FPGA.
March 13, 2002... Chris Evans-Pughe in Paris Embedded FPGA IP blocks from French start-up M2000 will be the basis of STMicroelectronics' first programmable-logic-based chips. "We're working with STMicroelectronics and they will present a paper on...

Software synthesises models to create development tools.
March 13, 2002... LISATek, a start-up using technology from the University of Aachen, demonstrated a tool at DATE that automatically synthesises architecture models and generates development tools for any embedded processor in minutes. "We are generating...

Govt pushes industry on environmental agenda.
March 13, 2002... The Government has urged the electronics industry to promote more environmentally friendly products and design out inefficient energy features. "Energy efficiency is vital to maintain a sustainable future," said environment minister...

Cambridge start-up to ship 16-bit micro across Europe.
March 13, 2002... Chris Druce Cambridge-based Cyan Technologies will announce two major pan-European distribution deals for its recently launched 16-bit microcontroller eCOG1, at the end of this month. "It's nice to have people beating a path to our...

ARM combines with foundries to market single-use licence.
March 13, 2002... David Manners ARM is getting together with foundries to offer a business model to Asic houses and OEMs. "We've signed up 25 companies for what we call a single-use design licence which allows them to go to one of our three approved...

Mobile standards war is 'bad for business'.
March 13, 2002... The fight for supremacy between mobile wireless standards such as UMTS and CDMA is having a negative effect on business, according to a survey by venture capital firm 3i. Its 'Wireless Untangled' white paper, produced with Economist...

Taiwan firm creates 150 jobs in Omagh.
March 13, 2002... Taiwanese company Ritek will create 150 jobs in Omagh over the next three years with a new ?28m facility to produce optical storage disks. Rixell, the company set up to run the plant, will receive ?3.5m from the Industrial Development Board...

UK electronic chip not to be sniffed at.
March 13, 2002... Steve Bush A single electronic chip that mimics biological noses is the aim of a three-year research project split between three UK universities. The aim is to combine odour sensors together with signal processing components on a 1cm2...

National and Intel signal change in troubled semiconductor market.
March 13, 2002... Announcements from two US semiconductor firms have suggested a slightly improved market. National Semiconductor reported a third-quarter net loss of $37.8m, or 21 cents per share, on revenue of $369.5m. The company's net loss narrowed from...

CDT sees logic in IPlink up deal.
March 13, 2002... Cambridge Display Technology (CDT) is to take a shareholding in UK neighbour Plastic Logic as part of a deal for the two companies to share intellectual property (IP). Plastic Logic is developing polymer-based logic devices. CDT has...

Govt opts for radio auctions.
March 13, 2002... Spectrum will be allocated using auctions as the preferred method if a recommendation in the Independent Review of Spectrum Management is implemented by the Government. The DTI and Treasury commissioned review, announced in March 2001 and...

ARM user saved by merger.
March 13, 2002... The takeover of NetSilicon by Digi last week saved one of the ARM-based networking chip companies. NetSilicon, which had annual revenues of $22m last year, was bought for $35m. When it had its initial public offering last year, it raised...

Synopsys in ST link up.
March 13, 2002... Synopsys and STMicroelectronics (ST) have entered into a two-year partnership to reduce the cost of manufacturing test development. "The rapidly increasing complexity of ST's products leads us to believe that manufacturing test challenges...

Manufacturing heads for strong second half.
March 13, 2002... Richard Wilson UK manufacturing is heading for "significant" growth in the second half of the year, according to industry representative body, the FEI. According to Peter Maguire, components and manufacturing director at the...

Pond opens up fund to technology developed by UKspin-out.
March 13, 2002... Pond Venture Partners is poised to make its fifth investment from its second fund, Pond 2. The venture capital firm has lined up technology from an as-yet unnamed UK university, which will spin out to form a new electronics start-up....

Terahertz Photonics claims sol-gel first.
March 13, 2002... UK planar lightwave circuit developer Terahertz Photonics claims it is the first company to perfect the use of sol-gel as a method of depositing silica on silicon. The company calls its technology Solica, which it claimed is the first...

Infineon signs DRAM deals for 20,000 wafers a month.
March 13, 2002... Infineon technologies has completed talks with two Taiwanese DRAM manufacturers, Mosel Vitelic and Winbond, and signed agreements to help the company in 'the upcoming market recovery'. The two agreements will give Infineon an extra 20,000...

Taiwan foundry TSMC scores 300mm double.
March 13, 2002... TSMC will be the first company in the world to have two 300mm production fabs up and running when it starts running production wafers at its Fab 14. The foundry said it will start hooking up equipment at Fab 14, its second 300mm fab in the...

Scottish start-up puts 100Gbit/s serial comms PC technology in shop window.
March 13, 2002... Steve Bush Scottish start-up Acuid has revealed its 100Gbit/s serial communications technology, in the form of Terabit Hub, a 10 port serial 'north bridge' chip for PCs. "Silicon is due in the next 12 months," said Stewart Goudie,...

Swiss opto firm receives E20m.
March 13, 2002... Opto Speed, a Switzerland-based indium phosphide (InP) optoelectronic device firm, has secured E20m in a second round of funding led by investment company The Carlyle Group. The company will use the funds to expand manufacturing capacity at...

Shock funding shortfall hits university research.
March 13, 2002... Melanie Reynolds Almost half of the higher education establishments in England will see their research funding drop next year. Fifty five out of 115 higher education establishments will suffer a decrease in funding for the 2002-2003...

Investing in a downcycle has benefits.
March 20, 2002... Dave Cheesman Almost three months into 2002 and we are still experiencing a severe hangover, following the tremendous increase in the venture capital available to new companies in 2000. According to British Venture Capital Association...

BT incubator unit changes strategy.
March 20, 2002... Falling interest in high tech venture investment has prompted BT's Brightstar incubator unit to change its start-up strategy. Brightstar has adopted a business accelerator model which will build revenue-generating businesses instead of...

Cardboard speakers pass sound test at EW offices.
March 20, 2002... Electronics Weekly has managed to get hold of a pair of flat-panel technology cardboard loudspeakers from Huntingdon-based NXT. Called SoundPax, the speakers are made by DS Smith Packaging in Bristol. And they really are made of...

Pilotless aeroplanes and coffee plantations are key to NASA's latest project in Hawaii.
March 20, 2002... NASA is planning to photograph coffee plants on a plantation in Hawaii this year using a pilotless solar-powered aeroplane. The idea is to direct harvesters to areas with the large amounts of ripe coffee using high-resolution images. "The...

Smiths sheds a further 500 jobs as US air travel slumps.
March 20, 2002... Chris Druce and Alex Mayhew-Smith Smiths Group will cut a further 500 jobs across the UK by the end of the year, having shed 700 UK jobs since August last year. The cuts will be made at a number of sites and includes the closure...

Farnell tackles obsolescence.
March 20, 2002... Farnell has launched its obsolescence service, Product Watch, in the UK with a global rollout due for later in the year. Product Watch is an obsolescence notification service designed to give customers advanced warning of obsolete, end of...