Articles
Capnography for the masses
October 8, 2012 9:20 am | by Jeff Shiner, Sales and Business Development Manager at Spansion | CommentsAlmost every patient who enters a hospital can benefit from capnography. It’s a technology that has enabled better patient care through consistent monitoring, with measurement of carbon dioxide output, and feedback on ventilation, metabolism and circulation. Industry recognition of capnography is causing it to spread rapidly throughout the medical world.
Low-voltage ICs in power-hungry data centers benefit from high-voltage DC supply path
October 5, 2012 10:10 am | by Stephen Oliver, VP VI Chip Product Line, Vicor Corp., www.vicorpower.com | CommentsThere's a "back to the future" aspect to power distribution for datacenters in the 21st century. At the beginning of the 20th century, Thomas Edison was a proponent of distributing power to homes and businesses using higher-voltage DC, while Nikola Tesla’s backer George Westinghouse supported distribution via AC.
Kits for Kids
October 4, 2012 3:46 pm | by Jon Titus, Technical Contributor | CommentsElectronics, computer, and science kits can help kindle technical interests in kids of all ages. Each year the holidays seem to arrive sooner than expected and parents of young people interested in science and technology search for gift ideas. This column provides some suggestions. Some projects require adult help or supervision.
Emergence of environmentally friendly piezoelectric material
October 4, 2012 12:14 pm | by Adnan Mousharraf, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka, Bangladesh | CommentsPiezoelectricity is a reversible property possessed by a selected group of materials that does not have a center of symmetry. When a dimensional change is imposed on the dielectric, polarization occurs and a voltage or field is created which is known as direct effect.
Protection against counterfeit product issues for military programs
October 3, 2012 3:22 pm | by Michael Sarpa, e2v | CommentsCounterfeit material in the semiconductor supply chain is increasingly problematic for the military and aerospace community. With the immense costs and significant program delays inherent in a system redesign, military program managers search high and low for parts to meet the original specification requirements...
Reliable, accurate motion control is critical in large patient scanners
October 3, 2012 1:49 pm | by Art Gaines of Artec Imaging and Don Labriola of QuickSilver Controls | CommentsIt takes a strong and sophisticated device to position a patient for a CT scan, but what if that patient has four legs, a long neck, a tail and weighs well over 1,000 pounds? In the world of equine healthcare, getting a large horse into position for accurate imaging is a heavy-duty effort that requires a scanning table that up for the challenge.
High-powered medical devices present power-supply design challenges
October 3, 2012 12:41 pm | by Frank Rene, Protek Power, www.protekpowerna.com | CommentsThe medical industry prides itself on designing leading edge medical electronic devices capable of offering solutions where, historically, electronic devices have not previously been available for use. For example, mechanical/chemical devices are now being replaced by electrical/mechanical/chemical devices...
Unmanned aerial vehicles define and challenge new interconnect requirements
October 3, 2012 12:21 pm | by Stephen Johnson, Hypertronics Corporation, www.hypertronics.com | CommentsIn recent years, unmanned vehicles, be they the Predator Drones that we watch on the evening news letting loose with pinpoint-precision Hellfire Missiles that take out enemy targets from high above the earth, a bomb-detecting/disposal ground vehicle that keeps soldiers and law enforcement people out of harm's way...
Controller area network (CAN): Teaching an old dog new tricks
October 3, 2012 12:06 pm | by Scott Monroe, Texas Instruments | CommentsThere is a saying that you cannot teach an old dog new tricks. While CAN is 25 years old, it continues to grow and gain new capabilities. It has been adapted into widely varying applications starting with its roots in simple automotive multiplexing to the current automotive networks, transportation, and industrial applications.
Impact and mitigation of counterfeit ICs in the aerospace and defense market
October 3, 2012 11:45 am | by Brad Little, Texas Instruments | CommentsOver the years, the relative stability of the defense and aerospace industry has served as a stable and reliable revenue pool. This market has attracted a variety of manufacturers to help offset the cyclical changes in the commercial and industrial markets. Aerospace and defense (A&D) companies continuously search for the latest and best commercial technologies...
Brainstorm: Software tools
October 3, 2012 10:54 am | CommentsTraditional embedded development tools assist engineers as they implement their applications. Innovative tools assist engineers as they implement their ideas, without imposing a predetermined solution or outcome. Such solutions abstract the implementation and accelerate the “idea to product” process.
Why you should support improvements in electric car chargers
October 3, 2012 8:55 am | CommentsPeople simply don’t think of electric cars as long-distance vehicles. It’s a car to run down the street and grab some groceries, make the 15 miles commute to work or—like one of my friends—if you live in Hawaii and can’t really drive that far. It’s not an option most people think about for a regular car.
Medical device software: Why is it in critical condition?
October 2, 2012 1:42 pm | by Jim McElroy, LDRA | CommentsWhen it comes to medical devices, manufacturers face conflicting demands. Devices need to provide the expected performance. They need to be quick to market and cost effective. Above all, however, when human health and safety are at stake, they need to be reliable.
Projected-capacitive touch panels: Coming to a hospital near you
October 2, 2012 9:06 am | by Michael Harris, Product Manager, Ocular LCD | CommentsFrom automated patient check-in systems to diagnostic equipment in operating theaters, touch interfaces are becoming pervasive in the healthcare industry and have the potential to radically improve efficiency and reduce cost. Projected capacitive touch panels, the dominant touch technology today thanks to the popularity of smartphones and tablets...
10 must-see posts from September
October 1, 2012 12:28 pm | by The ECN Editors | CommentsHere’s a rundown of the most read, most popular, most awesome articles for September. They all come with a witty, engaging summary just in case you missed them the first time or want to check up on an old favorite. Keep checking out the Lead and follow us on twitter @ecnmagazine for our most up-to-date articles.
