EDN articles from September 2008

EDN archives from September 2008

Transimpedance-amplifier stability is key.
September 4, 2008... by Bonnie Baker A variety of precision applications sense light and convert that information into a useful digital word. At the system's front end, a preamplifier converts the photodiode's current-output signal to a usable voltage level....

Handcrafted analog gets automated assist.
September 4, 2008... by Rick Nelson, Editor-in-Chief EDA tools address simulation, verification, and layout for mixed-signal designs. Analog simulators and design-capture tools have a venerable history in the EDA market, having long added some Spice to...

Shedding light on embedded debugging.
September 4, 2008... by Robert Cravotta, Technical Editor Embedded debugging gets a lot of attention for being a schedule and resource hog, but there may be more to it than just fixing bad software. For each year of Embedded Systems Design 's annual market...

Platinum-RTD-based circuit provides high performance with few components.
September 4, 2008... Jordan Dimitrov, Toronto, ON, Canada Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville The standard way of using an RTD (resistance-temperature-detector) sensor is to include it in a bridge followed by a differential amplifier. The problem is...

Proportional-ac-power controller doles out whole cycles of ac line.
September 4, 2008... Richard Rice, Oconomowoc, WI Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville In industrial and process control, it is often necessary to accurately control the temperature of a process. You control most heating elements using the "bang-bang"...

Extend monolithic programmable-resistor-adjustment range with active negative resistance.(Microbridge )(Brief article)
September 4, 2008... W Stephen Woodward, Chapel Hill, NC Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville A variety of solid-state, in-circuit-programmable replacements exist for the traditional electromechanical trimmer potentiometer. These replacements have many...

1-Wire network controls remote SPI peripherals.
September 4, 2008... Michael Petersen, Maxim Integrated Products, Colorado Springs, CO Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville Many 1-Wire-compatible peripherals are available, but, for those that lack the 1-Wire capability, the circuit in Figure 1 , pg...

Oil prices, technology, and the cost of ignorance.
September 4, 2008... by Ron Wilson, Executive Editor The world has just had a graphic demonstration of the workings of supply and demand in the oil industry. Supply of sweet, light crude became insufficient for the demand, and its price shot up. In response to...

Prying apart a portable audio player.
September 4, 2008... by Brian Dipert, Senior Technical Editor Free after $65 rebate with free shipping. That's the deal that routed a refurbished Sandisk Sansa M250 from Newegg to my front door last summer. I suspected it would make a fine Prying Eyes patient,...

Optimize memory-system design for multimedia applications.
September 4, 2008... by David Lautzenheiser and Agha Hussain, Silistix The convergence of video and communications in inexpensive unified-memory architectures has made DRAM the most important and the highest-performance target in any system. DRAM...

Using FPGAs in consumer electronics.
September 4, 2008... by Phuttachad Thiencharoenwong, SingMai Electronics In cost-sensitive consumer-electronics products, customization is a highly desirable feature for differentiating your product from competitors' offerings. The inclusion of FPGAs can be...

Video, graphics module drives dual displays.
September 4, 2008... by Warren Webb With advanced-sensor-fusion, image-manipulation, and tactical-moving-map applications in mind, Aitech Defense Systems recently introduced the M590 graphics and video PMC (peripheral-component-interconnect-mezzanine-card)...

AMD updates Stream software-development kit.
September 4, 2008... by Ann Steffora Mutschler To help increase the ease and efficiency of software development using its Stream-processing approach, microprocessor challenger AMD (Advanced Micro Devices) recently announced an extensive set of upgrades for...

Touch-panel controller targets media-device interfaces.
September 4, 2008... by Graham Prophet Atmel, in the form of its recently acquired subsidiary, Quantum Research Group, has introduced a touch controller that combines a slider control with buttons, an integrated LED controller, and GPIO...

Module targets embedded-system design.
September 4, 2008... by Warren Webb Building on its popular FPGA-based PXI (PCI extensions for instrumentation), PC, and CompactRIO (reconfigurable-input/output) platforms, National Instruments has announced a new line of single-board RIO modules that offers a...

Power-supervision IC measures regulator-input current, differential-output voltage.
September 4, 2008... by Paul Rako Summit Microelectronics' new SMM151 power-supervision IC allows digital control and monitoring of any voltage regulator. The device monitors input current to the target regulator so there is no added impedance to the output...

Beagle Board opens embedded development.(Brief article)
September 4, 2008... by Warren Webb Offering designers and hobbyists a low-cost starting point for device development, Digi-Key, Texas Instruments, and a group of volunteers have joined forces to create an open, single-board-computer design that can be adapted...

Integrated ORing controller and MOSFETs run fast and cool for redundant supplies.
September 4, 2008... by Margery Conner In their quest for near-100% uptime, designers of high-availability-system applications, such as telecom and datacom servers, employ redundant-power systems: If one power supply fails, a redundant supply can pick up the...

HDD (and SSD) capacities: up, up, and away.
September 4, 2008... by Brian Dipert It seems like just yesterday that I was first writing to you about the world's first 1-Tbyte, 3.5-in. HDD (hard-disk drive). Hitachi's accomplishment didn't remain sole-sourced long, of course, given the...

Pentek's Rodger Hosking: next-generation-radio architect.(Interview)
September 4, 2008... by Warren Webb Rodger Hosking is vice president and co-founder of Pentek Inc, where he is responsible for new-product definition, technology development, and strategic alliances. With more than 30 years' experience in the electronics...

The case of the stolen capacitor.
September 4, 2008... by Glen Chenier, Teeter Totter Tree Stuff It was the usual team project: a group leader with overall responsibility for the end product, with assistant designers working on specialized subsystems. I was designing the...

DisplayPort versus HDMI: Do we really need two digital-display-interface standards?
September 18, 2008... by Ann R Thryft, contributing technical editor DisplayPort proponents bill this digital-video-I/O standard as a no-royalties, scalable, extensible, open-standard interface that reduces connector footprint and cable clutter, lowers power...

Silicon germanium: fast, quiet, and powerful.
September 18, 2008... by Paul Rako, technical editor SiGe processes can give analog-circuit designers fast, high-voltage transistors with low noise, whereas BiCMOS SiGe fits into CMOS process flows. CMOS (complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor) processes...

Add margining capability to a dc/dc converter.
September 18, 2008... Brian Vasquez, Maxim Integrated Products, Dallas, TX Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville You can easily add margining capability--that is, the ability to digitally adjust the output voltage--to a dc/dc converter by making a single...

A better approach to designing an RTD interface with a spreadsheet.
September 18, 2008... Aubrey Kagan, Emphatec, Markham, ON, Canada Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville An earlier Design Idea described how to linearize the output of an RTD (resistance-temperature-detector) sensor and how to calculate the resistor...

Shunt regulator monitors battery voltage.(TL431 )(Brief article)
September 18, 2008... Vladimir Rentyuk, Modul-98 Ltd, Zaporozhye, Ukraine Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville A TL431 shunt regulator is a perfect choice for many applications. You can use it as a comparator with hysteresis by taking advantage of its...

Power supply meets automotive-transient-voltage specs.
September 18, 2008... Francesc Casanellas, Aiguafreda, Spain Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville Figure 1 shows a power supply that delivers 5V from a 12V battery. With only a few components, the supply copes with all the automotive transients that ISO...

Locked-sync sine generator covers three decades with low distortion.
September 18, 2008... Alfredo H Saab and Tina Alikahi, Maxim Integrated Products, Sunnyvale, CA Edited by Martin Rowe and Fran Granville Analog applications, such as testing, calibration, and general system operation, often require a sine waveform of...

The turn of Apple's worm: Success accelerates its stumbles.
September 18, 2008... by Brian Dipert, Senior Technical Editor When the news of Apple's move to Intel became official three-plus years ago, I remember that two sequential thoughts rapidly flew through my head: (1) Wow, this is going to really improve Apple's...

Twisted impedance.
September 18, 2008... by Howard Johnson, PhD Oliver Kent of Muirhead Aerospace Ltd recently commented on my formula for twisted-pair line impedance (Figure 1 ). "I am using coated wire with 1.3-mm outer diameter and 0.95-mm inner diameter," Kent wrote. "The...

Know your ceramic capacitor, part one.
September 18, 2008... by Joshua Israelsohn, Contributing Technical Editor Although advancements in dielectric materials and fabrication processes have improved integrated capacitors, chip designers still depend on board-level devices to support virtually all...

Making the transition from bit banger to gigabit guru.
September 18, 2008... by Eric Bogatin, PhD, Bogatin Enterprises, Bill Hargin, Mentor Graphics As high-speed serial interconnections infiltrate technology, system designers face a series of new signal-integrity problems to manage. Interconnects are not...

External power adapter combines USB power with interchangeable ac plugs.
September 18, 2008... by Margery Conner Portable consumer products increasingly rely on the USB port as a dc-power port. The ubiquitous port obviates the need for designers to use that annoying external-power-supply "wall wart" to charge a device's internal...

Innovation-aid software gets infusion of 1.3 million IEEE documents.
September 18, 2008... by Matthew Miller Invention Machine has announced the addition of 1.3 million technical documents from the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) to its Goldfire Innovator software tool, which helps engineers and...

LabView 8.6 adds wireless, enhances multicore and FPGA features.
September 18, 2008... by Martin Rowe National Instruments continues to expand the horizons for LabView, its popular graphical programming language. With the introduction of Version 8.6, LabView can now control the company's wireless data-acquisition products,...

24-bit delta-sigma ADC includes PGA.(Brief article)
September 18, 2008... by Paul Rako Analog Devices' AD7190 delta-sigma converter includes the functions to make a complete precision-measurement front end. In addition to the 24-bit converter, the part features a PGA (programmable-gain amplifier) configurable...

PicoChip optimizes processor-array chips for femtocells.(Brief article)
September 18, 2008... by Graham Prophet PicoChip's second-generation PC3xx family devices integrate the company's modem architecture in a form that will increase performance and reduce the bill-of-materials cost for femtocell manufacturers. The first of...

Lithium-polymer accumulator provides hybrid vehicles with staying power.
September 18, 2008... by Ron Wilson Now that hybrid passenger cars have scored an enormous marketing success in North America, the struggle has begun to make them competitive with comparable gasoline-powered and diesel vehicles in delivered fuel efficiency and...

Self-assembling polymers may create tools for patterning storage media.
September 18, 2008... by Ron Wilson Researchers at the Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center at the University of Wisconsin--Madison, working in collaboration with researchers at Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, have demonstrated the use of...

Gaining design-chain traction.
September 18, 2008... Edited by Suzanne Deffree Avnet Inc (www.avnet.com ) continues to use demand creation--the use of distributor-supplied suites of engineering services to encourage product training and guidance--as an active tool in weathering the stormy...

Industry not prepared for REACH.(Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals)(Brief article)
September 18, 2008... Edited by Suzanne Deffree According to recent data from the IPC (www.IPC.org ), the electronics supply chain is not prepared for the EU REACH (European Union Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals) regulation...

Contract manufacturing shrinks.
September 18, 2008... Edited by Suzanne Deffree The electronics CM (contract-manufacturing) industry is undergoing a transformation, according to iSuppli Corp (www.isuppli.com ). The CM industry, made up of EMS (electronics-manufacturing-services) and ODM...

Passive part becomes aggressive.
September 18, 2008... by Craig Hermann, Engineer In 1981, I landed a job maintaining a computerized telephone-answering service. The system comprised a 16-bit minicomputer, disk drives, a paper-tape reader, a card reader, and a Teletype. The computer had...

Letter from the editor: Power Industry Overview.(Industry overview)(Editorial)
September 18, 2008... by Margery Conner, Technical Editor, Power Systems and Components, EDN EDN's Power issue last May, "Best of Power," focused on EDN 's most popular power content for 2007 based on visits by EDN.com viewers. This issue, "Power Leaders,"...

Power Transistors.
September 18, 2008... by Staff Reflecting high demand in computer and industrial power supplies, the market for power transistors in 2007 grew 5.8%. Power transistor revenue, particularly MOSFETs, grew well (11%) in switching power supplies and direct current...

Power Management IC's.
September 18, 2008... by Staff The voltage regulator market is poised to grow at a compound annual rate of 7.2% from 2006 to 2011, a slightly higher rate than the 6.4% CAGR Gartner projects for the analog IC market in general -- but significantly more than the...

Solar Energy: Photovoltaics.
September 18, 2008... by Staff The market drivers for photovoltaic energy are in place: Global energy requirements will increase by 3 to 4 times in the next 50 years while fossil fuel prices continue to rise. In addition, the EU countries are mandated to reduce...

Solar Energy: Emerging Technologies.
September 18, 2008... by Staff Photovoltaic cells are not the only way to harness the sun's energy. Solar thermal energy uses focused sunlight to heat water which then powers an electricity-generating turbine. Companies such as eSolar (www.esolar.com ) and...

Photovoltaic Application.
September 18, 2008... by Staff Camel Fridge : A novel, mobile, solar-powered refrigerator. One of the monumental health projects of our time has to be the effort to bring vaccines into remote, rural regions of the world. Vaccines must be kept cool, and in...

Digital Power.
September 18, 2008... by Staff Digital power comprises two different capabilities: The first and relatively simple, capability, digital communication, allows a system host to monitor and control the power subsystem. The second, and much more complex capability,...