Serving the Electronic Design Community Since 1956
Sensor Uses Thermoelectric Cooling
June 16, 2008 11:18 am | Product Releases | CommentsUtilizing thin-film thermoelectric coolers, Nextreme Thermal Solutions’ and Princeton Lightwave’s SWIR (short wave infrared) focal plane sensor features Indium Gallium Arsenide (InGaAs) 2-D focal plane arrays. The eye-safe device senses nightglow radiation at 1.6 um wavelengths. The imaging sensor
Storage Drive Offers Up to 1 TB
June 16, 2008 7:26 am | Product Releases | CommentsDelivering up to 1.0 TB, Newer Technology’s Guardian MAXimus eMAX external RAID-1 Mirror plug-and-play storage drive has 5400 rpm and up to 64 MB of drive cache with a transfer rate up to 100 MB/s. The US/International 90 V to 240 V, 4.2 A, UL-listed power supply comes with a USB 2.0 “B” port
Connector Performs at High Temperatures
June 16, 2008 6:01 am | Product Releases | CommentsPerforming at temperatures from -40°C to +175°C, Cinch Connectors’ Dura-Con Micro-D connector family has an insulator in tooled sizes in 9-15-25-50-100-120 positions and a seven-point twist-pin design. The interconnects in these devices can handle over 50 G of shock (Mil-Std 1344, Method 2004, Condition E) and 20 G of vibration (Mil-Std 1344, Method 2005, Condition IV). The connectors are appropriate
Design Talk: Elegant Design
June 16, 2008 5:04 am | Articles | CommentsDesign is a balance struck between style, functionality, technology, and construction (often as a compromise). But what makes a design “elegant”? The iPod is inarguably an elegant design, but then again so is the standard wooden mousetrap. This month we’re running some articles on design and comments on “elegant” design. Let us know if you agree with the authors or add comments of your own at www.ecnmag.com/designtalk-elegant-design.aspx
Solderless Contact Switch Survives 3,000 Cycles
June 13, 2008 9:57 am | Product Releases | CommentsWith a life cycle of 3,000 operations, ITT Interconnect Solutions' Universal Contact stamped contact uses pre-loading and anti-lift designs and comes with dome contact points and “side wings”. Addressing solderless component interconnection applications
Measuring Software Supports Multiple .NET Frameworks
June 13, 2008 8:07 am | Product Releases | CommentsCapable of running in many .NET frameworks, National Instruments’ Measurement Studio 8.5 software includes user interface controls, such as ASP.NET Web Forms, ASP.NET scientific, and ASP.NET AJAX server. The ASP.NET AJAX-compatible programming comes with NI-DAQmx and NI-SCOPE .NET driver support, as well as advanced network variable communication functions and memory-optimized analog waveform read operations. The Microsoft Visual Studio 2008
8-Axis Motion Controller Incorporates Servo Drive
June 13, 2008 6:59 am | Product Releases | CommentsDesigned to address advanced automation applications, Technosoft’s TMC-3D 8-axis motion controller includes a digital servo drive to control up to 8 Technosoft intelligent drives (including itself) via CAN-bus
Design Talk: Technology Applied
June 13, 2008 5:13 am | Articles | CommentsOne issue facing design engineers is echnology selection. Choosing a device today is more than just an exercise in packaging and pin out, there are often multiple technologies and/or methodologies to choose from. Here is a collection of viewpoints from a group of engineers on how they select tech.
Researchers demonstrate 'avalanche effect' in solar cells
June 12, 2008 10:55 am | Blogs | CommentsResearchers at TU Delft (Netherlands) and the FOM Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter have found irrefutable proof that the so-called avalanche effect by electrons occurs in specific, very small semiconducting crystals.
Fan Controller Accepts I2C Commands
June 12, 2008 8:25 am | Product Releases | CommentsAble to drive 4-wire DC fans and blowers, Control Resources’ SmartFan Cirrus-6 fan speed controller accepts commands from a custom or an I2C interface. The controller handles tach pulses from 6, 12, 24, or 48 VDC fans
MEMS Sensor Provides 3D Orientation Info
June 12, 2008 7:32 am | Stmicroelectronics | Product Releases | CommentsConsolidating multiple sensor functions in a single 14-pin LGA ECOPACK SMT package, STMicroelectronics’ FC30 sensor provides 3D orientation as well as click detection to recognize mouse-button controls. Accepting a nominal 2.5V at 0.3 mA, the 3.0 × 5.0 × 0.9-mm device exhibits an accuracy of ±3 degrees with a max acceleration of 10,000 g for 0.1 ms. Features of the RoHS-compliant
2.4 GHz IEEE 802.15.4 RF Transceiver Module Is FCC-Certified
June 12, 2008 4:48 am | Microchip Technology Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsMicrochip Technology announced the MRF24J40MA FCC-certified Radio-Frequency (RF) transceiver module which services the 2.4 GHz unlicensed Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) short-range wireless frequency band for the IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee specification or proprietary wireless-protocol
Hall Effect Switches are Smallest Available
June 11, 2008 12:15 pm | Product Releases | CommentsProvided in a BGA package with a footprint 1.1 mm² and a height of 0.5 mm, a family of Hall Effect ICs from ROHM Electronics are presented as the smallest devices of their type (a 1.6 × 1.6 × 0.6-mm package is also available). Features include compensation and push-pull CMOS logic output circuitry , as well as integrated dynamic-offset cancellation.
Drum Heaters Include Thermostat
June 11, 2008 9:51 am | Product Releases | CommentsGiving off even heat to the contents within, Omega Engineering’s DRUM-DHW-55 Series of OMEGALUX drum heaters wrap around a 55-gallon drum and have a built in thermostat calibrated from 10 to 218°C. The spring-and-hook devices are resistant to mechanical damage and attack from many chemical substances. The drum heaters have a built-in electrically electrically-grounded metal screen and
SBC Operates at Voltages as Low as 0.9 V
June 11, 2008 6:58 am | Product Releases | CommentsPopulated with the NXP LPC3250 microcontroller, the phyCORE-LPC3250 ARM9 based Single Board Computer (SBC) can operate in ultra-low-power mode down to 0.9V. Targeting demanding embedded applications, the 70 × 58-mm device includes power management, an FPU, and SD/SDIO, USB OTG, and Ethernet connectivity
