Serving the Electronic Design Community Since 1956
Video game group files lawsuit over CTA ad rule
July 23, 2009 5:09 am | by MIKE ROBINSON, AP Legal Affairs Writer | News | CommentsA trade group that represents software and video game publishers sued the Chicago Transit Authority on Wednesday, saying a rule barring ads on trains and buses for "mature" and "adults only" games violates the right to freedom of speech. "The CTA's ordinance constitutes a clear violation of the constitutional rights of the entertainment software industry," said Michael D. Gallagher, chief executive officer of the Washington-based Entertainment Software Association.
Microsoft says Windows 7 is ready for PC companies
July 23, 2009 5:05 am | by JESSICA MINTZ, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsMicrosoft Corp. says Windows 7 is complete. The software maker sent the final code for its next computer operating system to manufacturers Wednesday, and said it's still on track for an Oct. 22 launch. Mike Angiulo, a general manager in the Windows group, said in an interview that getting up and running on a Windows computer will be "a lot smoother" than it was when Windows Vista launched in 2007.
Astronauts cut spacewalk short due to suit trouble
July 23, 2009 5:00 am | News | CommentsTwo astronauts cut short their spacewalk and hurried back to the safety of the international space station on Wednesday after a suit problem resulted in rising carbon dioxide levels for one of the men. NASA officials stressed that spacewalker Christopher Cassidy was never in any danger and experienced no symptoms of carbon dioxide buildup. The trouble cropped up late in Wednesday's spacewalk, the third for shuttle Endeavour's crew.
Micro ATX Motherboard Includes PCI, PCIe and ISA Slots
July 23, 2009 4:51 am | 3M Electronics Solutions Division | Product Releases | CommentsWell-suited as a platform for high-performance systems, the 244mm2 P4ELA Micro ATX quad-core industrial motherboard from BVM offers 1 x ISA, 2 x PCI Slots, 1 x mini-PCI socket, 1 x PCI-e 16X and 1 x PCI-e 4X. In addition, 8 x USB2.0 ports, 5 x RS232, 1 x RS232/422/485 port and 2 x GigaLAN ports are provided, as are 6 x SATA interfaces supporting RAID and Intel MST.
QCW Arrays Include Stack Divergence as Low as 6 mrad
July 22, 2009 11:01 am | Product Releases | CommentsAvailable in wavelengths ranging from 808 nm to 9xx nm, QCW vertical diode laser stacked arrays from Dilas offer fast-axis stack divergence as low as 6mrad. Power ranges up to 300 W QCW per bar with optional fast-axis collimation. The conduction-cooled vertical stacks are available in one-bar, seven-bar, or eight-bar configurations with up to 4 percent duty cycle at 200 W per bar.
Boost Converter Delivers 42 V from a 0.9-V Input
July 22, 2009 10:39 am | Product Releases | CommentsOperating from a single 0.9 V to 3.6 V supply, the AS1344 high voltage DC-DC boost converter from austriamicrosystems provides adjustable output voltages in the range of 5.5 V to 42 V. The boost converter features a 1 MHz fixed switching frequency and supply current of 22 µA. The AS1344 offers 2% output voltage
Brushless DC Motors Offer up to 1700 W
July 22, 2009 10:33 am | Product Releases | CommentsDesigned for commercial and light-industrial OEM applications, the Pittman ‘I Series’ brushless DC servo motors from Ametek offer performance capability from 40 W to 1700 W continuous. The winding system allows for operation on machine bus voltages from 12 VDC to 325 VDC.
Interface Modules Accept Hands-On or Remote Programming
July 22, 2009 9:32 am | Product Releases | CommentsSimplifying device set-up and installation time, TURCK’s interface module family takes programming input via a PC or on-board push buttons using FDT/DTM software, along with PACTware. The devices can monitor motor speed, shaft speed and conveyors, as well as the temperature of RTDs and thermocouples.
PXI Digital I/O Modules Accept Dual-Threshold Voltage Inputs
July 22, 2009 8:11 am | Product Releases | CommentsAddressing military, aerospace and automotive function test, has dual-threshold voltage inputs from 0.3 V to 50.0 V with nominally 12.5-mV resolution. The 40-413-001 has 32 high-side 2-A output drivers, the 40-413-002 has 32 low-side 2-A drivers, and the 40-413-003 includes both high- and low-side drivers.
Report: Shortage of cyber experts may hinder govt
July 22, 2009 7:25 am | by LOLITA C. BALDOR, AP writer | News | CommentsFederal agencies are facing a severe shortage of computer specialists, even as a growing wave of coordinated cyberattacks against the government poses potential national security risks, a private study found. The study describes a fragmented federal cyber force, where no one is in charge of overall planning and government agencies are "on their own and sometimes working at cross purposes or in competition with one another."
World's largest telescope to be built in Hawaii
July 22, 2009 6:35 am | by by AUDREY McAVOY | News | CommentsHawaii was chosen Tuesday as the site for the world's biggest telescope, a device so powerful that it will allow scientists to see some 13 billion light years away and get a glimpse into the early years of the universe. The telescope's mirror — stretching almost 100 feet in diameter, or nearly the length of a Boeing 737's wingspan — will be so large that it should be able to gather light that will have spent 13 billion years traveling to earth.
North Carolina Town Going Green With LED Technology
July 22, 2009 5:58 am | Blogs | CommentsPhilips Lumec has been chosen by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of western North Carolina to light their downtown streetscapes with their environmentally responsible LED lighting solutions. In doing so, they clearly place this town of 14,500 residents, located on the South end of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in the vanguard of communities choosing environmentally responsible LED lighting technologies.
LED Controller Features 'In-Situ' Temperature Compensation
July 22, 2009 5:42 am | Blogs | CommentsLeadis Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: LDIS), an analog and mixed-signal semiconductor developer of LED drivers for consumer electronic devices, today announced sample availability of the LDS9001 and LDS9003, two new LED controllers featuring Leadis' patent pending LED-Sense(TM) Temperature Compensation engine. This innovative feature allows for direct in-situ monitoring of the LED junction temperature without the need for an external temperature sensor
Even in space, batteries need to be replaced
July 22, 2009 4:51 am | News | CommentsEven in space, batteries need to be replaced. The primary task of a spacewalk Wednesday will be to replace four batteries on one of the international space station's solar arrays. Astronauts David Wolf and Christopher Cassidy's spacewalk is scheduled be the third of Endeavour's 16-day mission to the orbiting outpost.
Russia Still Blue Over Moon Landing 40 Years Later
July 21, 2009 10:54 am | News | CommentsWhen Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon, it was a first for the Soviet Union - the first time the U.S. had beaten the U.S.S.R in the space race. Forty years later, the memory of that loss of primacy still seems to sting the Russian soul. When state TV channel Rossiya reported last week on the restoration of video footage of the Apollo 11 moon landing, the account gave a lot of attention to dubious conspiracy theories that the landing was faked.
