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Cover Story: Design Tips Cut FPGA Power Use
July 24, 2008 12:10 pm | Articles | CommentsOverall, the latest generations of FPGAs provide the performance engineers need for new designs. And FPGA vendors complement performance with power-saving techniques. In many cases, FPGA design tools consistently aim to implement low-power circuits, but engineers can select performance vs. power tradeoffs as well. Most of those low-power changes occur within the design tools and do not cause engineers to rework their code. But before anyone tries to reduce power, they must understand where the power gets burned. It makes no sense to reduce power consumption in an area that doesn’t burn that much power to begin with.
AC/DC Supplies Possess High Efficiency
July 24, 2008 12:06 pm | Product Releases | CommentsOffering a typical efficiency of over 90%, ROAL Electronics’ SFA160 Series of AC/DC power supplies deliver 160 W of regulated DC power with standard output variants of 5, 12, 24 and 48 V. The 2” × 4” × 1” devices use an auxiliary fan output of 12 V for system stand-by control voltage or to supply voltage for
Connector System Uses a Microsite
July 24, 2008 10:15 am | Product Releases | CommentsUtilizing a dedicated microsite, FCI’s HCI Power Distribution Connector System has contacts that accommodate over 82 A based on a 30°C temperature rise with zero airflow. The modularly-tooled design contains a molded-in guidance
DC/DC Converters Deliver up to 30 A
July 23, 2008 11:10 am | Product Releases | CommentsDelivering up to 30 A, the FPMR05T and FPLR05T DC/DC converters from FDK, are part of an addition of products expanding the Senpai Series of non-isolated point of load (POL) converters. The SIP converters operate from
SMT Fuse Provides High Operating Temperature
July 23, 2008 10:54 am | Product Releases | CommentsProviding protection at working temperatures from -55ºC up to 150ºC without nuisance tripping, the 437 Series from Littlefuse is a 1206-size surface-mount fuse that has the ablility to respond to overcurrents caused by
Oscillators Achieve High Accuracy
July 23, 2008 10:16 am | Product Releases | CommentsOffering accuracy at 99.910%, Linear Technology’s LTC6930 Series of precision silicon micropower oscillators operate in fixed frequencies from 32.768 kHz to 8.192 MHz with maximum frequency error of less than
6U SBC Operates at 2.16 GHz
July 23, 2008 7:56 am | Product Releases | CommentsPerforming at 1.50 or 2.16 GHz, Dynatem’s CPD CompactPCI/PICMG 2.16 6U SBC comes with the Intel low-power L7400 or T7400 Core2 Duo processor with BGA-based components. The device uses the E7520 Memory Control Hub and 6300ESB I/O Controller Hub for 2- or 4-GB DDR2-400 memory and support for PCIe, ECC and PCI-X expansion. The computer utilizes 4 on-board Gb Ethernet ports, 2 from the front panel and 2 PICMG 2.16-compliant ports
Sensor ICs Offer Low Linearity
July 23, 2008 6:55 am | Product Releases | CommentsExhibiting a typical nonlinearity of ±0.4% from -20°C to 80°C, Seiko Instruments’ S-58LM20A Series of temperature sensor ICs yield a typical linear output voltage of -11.77 mV/°C. The Pb-free devices offer ±2.50°C accuracy against temperature in the temperature range from -55°C to 130°C and consist of a temperature
Test Points Accommodate PCBs
July 22, 2008 1:10 pm | Product Releases | CommentsTargeting 0.062” thick mountable PCBs, Components Corporation’s TP-104, TP-105, and TP-106 Series of color-coded test points are made of phosphor #510 alloy and 100% matte tin over nickel underplate with a 15% glass-filled polyester collar. The loop-style TP-104 Series and oval-loop style TP-106 Series have 0.063” mounting holes, are precut to any of 30 positions, and offered on breakaway strips with 0.125” centers. The TP-105
Power Supplies Target Rugged Environments
July 22, 2008 11:40 am | Product Releases | CommentsMeeting IEC 61373 Categories 1 A or B shock and vibration standards, EN 60950 and related standards, and EN 50155 Class B EMI standards, Absopulse Electronics’ HBC 5KC Series of fan-cooled AC/DC power supplies yield 5 kW of output power in heavy-duty industrial environments. The 291 × 57 × 457-mm devices have ratings for
Plug-In Cards Offer Broad Support For Switching
July 22, 2008 8:57 am | Keithley Instruments | Product Releases | CommentsOffering broader support for switching configurations the Model 3724 Dual 1X30 Solid State FET Relay Multiplexer Card and the Model 3750 Multifunction I/O card from Keithley Instruments, are the addition of plug-in cards for the Series 3700 System Switch/Multimeter and
Benchtop Controllers Are Small In Size
July 22, 2008 8:35 am | Product Releases | CommentsDesigned and Manufactured by Omega, the CSi32 Series is a series of miniature benchtop controllers and is the lastest to be built aroung the iSeries controllers. The controllers made witha metal enclosure feature a 4-digit display, full autotune heat-cool control, single ramp and soak capability, as well as
DC-DC Converters Exhibit 3,000-VDC I/O Isolation
July 22, 2008 7:50 am | Product Releases | CommentsYielding I/O isolation from 1,600 to 3,000 VDC, Aimtec’s AM3G-Z Series of single and dual output DC-DC converters have output ranges of 3.3, 5, 12, and 15 VDC and output power choices of 1, 2, or 3 W. The 22 × 9.5 × 12-mm SIP8-packaged devices have 2:1 input ranges from 9 to 18 VDC, 18 to 36 VDC, and 36 to 72 VDC with
EPA Creates Bedlam With Amendment for Residential Light Fixtures
July 22, 2008 5:17 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsAyn Rand, one of capitalism’s greatest proponents, once said, “I am an innovator. This is a term of distinction, a term of honor, rather than something to hide or apologize for. Anyone who has new or valuable ideas to offer stands outside the intellectual status quo.” Governmental interference in private enterprise is always disastrous. What’s worse is when innovation is stifled by bureaucratic finagling and pc notions of impartiality (or as some would say, preventing a “competitive disadvantage”). You can’t give a chimp a skateboard and call him Tony Hawk.
Pocket-Sized USB Datalogger Tracks Temperatures
July 22, 2008 5:12 am | Product Releases | CommentsProviding both a USB output for data readout and an onboard numeric LCD for real-time monitoring, the OM-Microlite portable data logger from Omega Engineering records temperature over time for applications such as the warehousing and transport of sensitive materials or employee exposure management in industrial environments.
