Serving the Electronic Design Community Since 1956
Analog Front End Enhances Ultrasound System Performance
March 24, 2008 9:47 am | Product Releases | CommentsPresenting a complete analog signal chain solution designed for portable ultrasound systems, Texas Instruments' AFE5805 integrated analog front end (AFE) delivers as much as a 50 percent space savings with up to 20 percent lower power consumption and 40 percent less noise than existing integrated solutions. Presented as the smallest device of its type and the first in the AFE58xx family of devices, the AFE reduces component count to decrease power consumption by up to 20 percent and offers 40 percent less noise than similar devices
Speed Controllers Utilize Built-in Digital Display
March 24, 2008 7:49 am | Product Releases | CommentsOriental Motor Corp. announced a RoHS compliant speed controller that enables the speed control to be set by using the built-in digital display. The FE100/FE200 drives and controls a wide range of the company’s 3 phase fractional horsepower AC induction motors. As the speed controller parameters have been set for motors in advance, the motor performance can be maximized at both low and high speeds. It has a 200 rpm to 2400 rpm (12:1) speed range that can be set through the speed knob on the front of the speed controller box.
Side Bar: Get a Trusted Security Certificate
March 24, 2008 6:46 am | by Jon Titus, Senior Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsJon Titus exlains that you can buy digital certificates to identify your products and provide a public/private key for each.
Mini Switchers Target Point-of-Load Applications
March 24, 2008 5:49 am | Product Releases | CommentsDesigned to replace linear regulators in board-level power applications, the SR7805 Series of SIP miniature point-of-load (POL) switching regulators have an output of up to 7.5W. The devices are available in six models operating from inputs of 4.75V DC to 32V DC and delivering a regulated output of 3.3, 5, 6.5, 9, 12, or 15V DC. packaged in a miniature, The 0.45" x 0.3" x 0.4" SIP convection-cooled UL94-VO-rated devices can operate at temperatures from -40°C to +85°C with no derating
Synchronized, Portable USB Module for Sound and Vibration
March 24, 2008 5:45 am | Product Releases | CommentsData Translation announced the DT9837A, a high performance USB module for sound and vibration analysis. It has four independent 24-bit IEPE (Integrated Electronics Piezo Electric) sensor inputs that are synchronized with a tachometer input to provide data streams matched in time for field or laboratory use. A read-back channel from the analog output guarantees perfect correlation of all signals with the input stream, the output stream, and the tachometer.
X PRIZE Group Offers $10 Million Challenge to Auto Industry for 100-MPG Car
March 21, 2008 10:54 am | Blogs | CommentsThe goal is to inspire a new generation of viable, super fuel-efficient vehicles that offer more consumer choices.
5W Ultra-Wide Input Range SMD, Single and Dual Output DC/DC Converters
March 21, 2008 10:17 am | Product Releases | CommentsMinmax's MSKW3000 Series 5W SMD DC/DC's are in “gull-wing” SMT package and meet IPC/JEDEC J-STD-020C 4th and 5th chapter in solder-reflow for lead free process. The series consists of 14 models with input voltage ranges of 9V DC to 36V DC and 18V DC to 75V DC, which provide precisely regulated output voltages of 3.3V, 5V, 12V, 15V, ±5V, ±12V and ±15V DC. The -25°C to +60°C operating temperature range
Brushless-Motor Driver Serves Constant-Velocity Applications
March 21, 2008 7:33 am | Product Releases | CommentsUsing Hall sensors for feedback, the TA223 brushless-motor drive can be programmed to ramp up at a preset rate and maintain a constant velocity regardless of changes in load. The RS232-capable 9.3" × 3.5" × 5.7" driver can be set via an off- or on-board 10K potentiometer, or via software and has features such as soft start control, integral AC line filtering, enable input level, fault output level, coast input level, target velocity, Hall active level, and Current limit.
Battery Authentication ICs Provide Device Security
March 21, 2008 5:53 am | Product Releases | CommentsIntersil introduced flexible battery authentication ICs for cell phones. The ISL9206 and ISL9206A are incorporate the company's FlexiHash+ engine. It provides high levels of security using a basic challenge/response scheme based on 32-bit challenge code and 8-bit response code. The engine employs
High Performance EMI Filtered D-Sub Connectors
March 21, 2008 5:35 am | Product Releases | CommentsSpectrum Control offers high performance series 700 D-subminiature filtered connectors. The connectors are available with feed thru capacitors and Pi filters offering desirable insertion loss, with capacitance ranges to 5,000 pF for feed-thru caps and 4,000 pF for Pi filters. These connectors have the ability to selectively filter lines allowing signals of various rates to pass without degrading signal integrity. The connectors are available in
Brainstorm - Communication Buses
March 20, 2008 10:26 am | Articles | CommentsAs electronic networks become more data-intensive and intelligent subsystems increase in number and complexity, bandwidth limits, signal interference, and device compatibility issues become important concerns. What are some ways that an electronic circuit designer can address these challenges?
Bonding/sealing Polymer Allows UV or Heat curing
March 20, 2008 9:56 am | Product Releases | CommentsProving an optically clear, non-yellowing bonding, sealing, or coating material for substrates auch as glass, metals, plastics, polyester films, and polycarbonates, the UV15-7DC polymer from Master Bond can cure using UV light or heat. Typical UV cure times range from 5 seconds to 2-3 minutes depending upon the wave length, intensity of the UV light, and the thickness being cured, with typical heat curing schedules of 10-30 minutes at 250°-260°F.
Security Goes Beyond Cryptography
March 20, 2008 9:45 am | by Jon Titus, Senior Technical Editor | Articles | Comments“When engineers start to network devices, security becomes a top design requirement,” said Tim Stapko, lead software engineer at Digi International. “But many designers of embedded systems just don’t think about security. When they do, they might consider security as an add-in option or think of security as simply encrypting communications.”
GPS Modules put Products on the Map
March 20, 2008 9:42 am | by Jon Titus, Senior Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsWhen a product such as a child locator, surveying instrument, or autonomous vehicle requires position information, a GPS module can provide it. Prices for devices that provide this information range from less than a dollar for chips used in cell phones to hundreds of dollars for modules and boards that offer high accuracy. Cell-phone GPS receivers might get you “close enough,” but higher-end modules can offer centimeter accuracy. “At its simplest, a GPS receiver acquires satellite signals, decodes their information, and calculates a position, time, and velocity,” explained Joel Avey, director of marketing at Trimble for the company’s advanced devices.
Physical Layer Package Expands FlexRay Testing Capability
March 20, 2008 8:00 am | Product Releases | CommentsProviding eye diagram mask test and physical layer measurement parameters to LeCroy’s WaveRunner Xi oscilloscope for FlexRay testing, a physical layer test package combines with existing protocol triggers and decode tools to create a single instrument that can conduct advanced FlexRay triggering, protocol decoding and physical layer test. Allowing automotive engineers to effectively debug the FlexRay protocol and efficiently verify signal integrity, the solution includes tools such as trigger and decode for CAN, LIN, I2C, SPI UART with mixed-signal oscilloscope options make the package well suited for embedded controller design and debug with support for 10 Mb/s, 5 Mb/s and 2.5 Mb/s standard data rates.
