Application Solutions
Collin's Lab: Infrared heart sensor
December 2, 2009 4:34 am | Videos | CommentsThe beating of the heart is often recorded via sound or simply with touch - but there's also another interesting and somewhat lesser known option - light. An infrared emitter/detector pair can be used along with a programmable microcontroller, to effectively visualize the effects of the human body's hardest-working muscle
Optimizing Touch Panels for the Industrial Environment
December 2, 2009 4:33 am | by Bruce DeVisser, Fujitsu Components America, http://us.fujitsu.com/touchpanels/ | Articles | CommentsIn the industrial environment, touch panels, or touchscreens, facilitate operator input in a very simple, yet reliable, way. As touch input-based handheld and mobile devices enter more industrial applications – such as portable flow controls and handheld terminals for field testing – companies need to protect and extend their investment.
Industrial-Strength Features Make a Difference in Embedded Processing
December 2, 2009 4:20 am | by David Katz and Rick Gentile, Analog Devices, Inc. | Articles | CommentsMany general-purpose signal processors are acceptable for industrial applications based on their computing performance and baseline connectivity features. However, there are important peripheral enhancements that can significantly upgrade the processor’s capabilities for more demanding industrial systems.
Build Entertainment-Grade Consumer Home Networks for Simplicity
November 19, 2009 8:25 am | by David Sorensen, Vice President of Marketing, Gigle Networks | Articles | CommentsIncreasingly, the biggest challenges designers of consumer electronics products face have less to do with performance or feature-richness, and more to do with ease of use and simplicity. This is especially true in entertainment networking, where multiple technologies currently vie for adoption, and consumers have made it clear they want a simple solution, right out of the box.
Thin-Film Piezoelectric Film Technology in Medical Device Applications
November 16, 2009 5:27 am | by Jon Dent, Product Manager, Digi-Key Corporation & Pete Smith, Senior Application Specialist, Measurement Specialties, Inc. | Articles | CommentsA growing need for sensors within the medical device market has illustrated renewed OEM focus on design efficiencies, patient comfort and enhanced quality of life. The application environment itself is uniquely stringent, with regulatory compliance standards, such as FDA approvals on Class III implantable medical devices...
What Automotive Engineers are Missing When it Comes to Power Sources
October 16, 2009 7:41 am | by Chad Hall, COO of Ioxus | Articles | CommentsThe demand for better and more efficient power sources in the automotive industry has been a driving force behind research in battery technology, capacitor technology, and electronic power supply design. In order to utilize energy as efficiently as possible, automotive engineers began by reducing the gross weight of an automobile
Designing an EMC-Compliant Automotive Switching Buck Regulator
October 12, 2009 6:31 am | by John Rice and Sanmukh Patel, Texas Instruments | Articles | CommentsThe automobile is changing and so, too, are the electronics that make them run. The most radical example is the plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) where a 300-400V Lithium-Ion (Li-Ion) battery replaces the gas tank
RF Thin film Passive Devices
October 6, 2009 5:16 am | by Bharat Rawal and Chris Reynolds, AVX | Articles | CommentsAn RF designer’s wish list for an ideal high frequency capacitor would include extremely high temperature stability, a sharp self resonance (high Q) free from harmonics, extremely tight capacitance tolerance, low ESR (equivalent S\series R\resistance), low ESL (equivalent series inductance), complete reproducibility
PID Loops in Software applications
October 5, 2009 5:34 am | by M. Simon, retired Aerospace electronics consultant | Articles | CommentsI want to take a look at PID loops and how they are typically handled in software. I'm going to contrast how the motor control folks do things vs. how the chemical industry folks do things. Now there are all kinds of things you can control with such a loop (in a motor control context).
Low-Energy Wireless: Just what the doctor ordered
October 2, 2009 12:40 pm | by Raman Sharma, Freescale Semiconductor | Articles | CommentsThe medical market, while on the frontier of human sciences, has always been conservative and cautious when it comes to analyzing the market’s technology adoption rate. While the rest of the industrial and consumer markets were immersed in the potential of wireless connectivity, networking and the Internet, the medical market continued to build devices with tried and tested technology.
Software Fault Management for Medical Devices
September 29, 2009 12:01 pm | by John Greenland, LDRA Technology | Articles | CommentsFrom hearing aids to Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging equipment, medical devices are increasingly impacting (and hopefully improving) our quality of life. Because we now rely on medical devices so heavily and because the devices’ software is so critical to their operation, software fault management and the ability to reduce faults throughout the development lifecycle have become hot-button issues.
The Wireless Power Consortium Releases the 0.95 Specification
September 11, 2009 6:05 am | by Camille Tang, Co-Chair, Wireless Power Consortium | Articles | CommentsWireless power interoperability marked an important milestone with the 31 July 2009 release of 0.95 specifications of Qi, the Wireless Power Consortium’s “WPC” international standard in wireless power. This interoperability means that all Qi power receivers can be powered and charged with all Qi transmitters.
Battery and Charge Management: Choices and Tradeoffs
September 8, 2009 6:30 am | by Masoud Beheshti, Director, Product Line Manager, Texas Instruments | Articles | CommentsDesigners of portable electronic devices have a variety of choices on types of chemistries, charger topologies and charge management solutions. Selecting the most suitable solution should be a simple task, but in most cases, it is a more complicated process. The designer needs to reach an optimal balance between performance, cost, form factor and other key requirements.
Supercapacitors Replace Batteries with Help of 3mm × 3mm Charger
September 8, 2009 5:51 am | by Jim Drew, Sr. Applications Engineer, Linear Technology | Articles | CommentsSupercapacitors are finding their way into an increasing number of applications for short-term energy storage. One such application is a power ride-through circuit, in which a backup energy source cuts in and powers the load when main power supply fails for a short time. This type of application has been dominated by batteries in the past
Constant Current Regulation delivers HB-LED advances
September 4, 2009 8:23 am | by Tim Kaske & Paul Decloedt, On Semiconductor | Articles | CommentsIn recent years significant advances in high-brightness LEDs (HB-LEDs) have given designers the opportunity to replace conventional incandescent, fluorescent and halogen technologies with more reliable and energy-efficient LED-based alternatives. As a result, solid-state lighting has seen considerable uptake in automotive, digital signage, and architectural applications, as well as the illumination of our city streets.
Selecting the Right Rapid Prototyping System
August 21, 2009 6:01 am | by Scot Thompson, Solid Concepts, www.solidconcepts.com | Articles | CommentsWhen I started in the rapid prototyping industry with 3D Systems in March of 1989 it was just months after the very first SLA system, the SLA-1, was introduced at the Autofact Show in Detroit in 1988. This first rapid prototyping system was invented by Chuck Hull, an engineer trained in photosensitive polymers.
Nickel-Zinc: Recharging Battery Performance and OEM Design Opportunities
July 23, 2009 10:02 am | by Joseph Carcone, Vice President, Business Development, PowerGenix | Articles | CommentsTechnology is driven by many factors, and the reinvention of existing technology products to new higher levels of performance requires innovations in materials and science. Critical components in the design of portable electronics, batteries, in the eyes of many, have not kept pace with innovations in their electronic counterparts. Is it time for the reinvention of one of electrochemistry’s oldest technologies to fulfill the needs of a new power market
Why MAX? – The purpose of WiMAX
June 2, 2009 9:40 am | by John Schwartz, Digi International | Articles | CommentsWhenever a new standard is adopted or starts to gain some ubiquity in the marketplace, I always have to ask, “So what? What does this new stuff give me that I don’t already have?” It’s an important question. If there is not any difference, then there is no reason not to just keep on using known and proven technologies. If there are differences, then knowing what these differences consist of can enable the appropriate business and design decisions.
DSPs in Medical Imaging
May 18, 2009 11:55 am | Product Releases | CommentsJust as they have played a key role in advancing industries such as PCs, cellular telecommunications and automotive, digital signal processors (DSPs) are playing an increasingly important role in advancing medical imaging to provide faster, more accurate diagnoses and treatment.
Reliable Power is the Key to Mechatronics Systems Reliability
May 4, 2009 1:14 pm | Product Releases | CommentsMechatronics is a relatively new field of complex systems design that encompasses the disciplines of Physics, Mechanical Engineering, Electronic Engineering and Computer Engineering.
Industry Focus: Interaction in Consumer Devices
March 10, 2009 10:34 am | by Christopher Keuling, Associate Editor | Articles | CommentsIt’s a fact that consumers want end products that give them the most user interaction. Two of the most popular examples on the market are Apple’s iPhone and Nintendo’s Wii. These end products serve very different purposes to their desired consumers, but share electronic advances that make these products, amongst others, an interactive experience for the user. In this month's Industry Focus, we talked to six different companies
Industry Focus: Automotive Electronics
January 20, 2009 5:14 am | by Akio Nezu, Fujitsu Microelectronics America | Articles | CommentsDespite recent economic challenges facing the auto industry, many leaders are moving forward with new and innovative systems for in-vehicle entertainment, and sophisticated audio-video capabilities. Industry analysts such as iSuppli Corporation have cited significant consumer demand for audio-video connectivity and networking in the vehicle, noting that the industry is at a point where A/V connectivity clearly influences sales.
Industry Focus: Planning for End-of-Life in Mil-Aero Markets
December 23, 2008 6:06 am | by George Karalias, Rochester Electronics, LLC | Articles | CommentsAlthough the ramifications of end of life (EOL) announcements have long been an issue for OEMs in the mil/aero marketplace, many still fail to put a workable plan in place to face this reality. As a result of the increase in end-product programs for these industries, long-term support requirements can sometimes extend for decades, leaving customers in a difficult position as they source components for ongoing production, maintenance and repair.
When Electronics Go Green, Everybody Wins
December 8, 2008 6:25 am | by Jeff Ittel, senior vice president of semiconductors, Avnet Electronics Marketing | Articles | CommentsFor members of the electronics supply chain, going “green” is not just a short-term marketing scheme rife with buzzwords but short on substance. Granted, the tech sector has jumped on its share of bandwagons, but this movement is different. It’s not just about pioneering technologies, building a positive public image, padding the bottom line or even “doing the right thing.” It’s all of the above. When state-of-the-art electronic products are energy efficient, environmentally sustainable, and cost effective, everyone wins.
Industry Focus: When Electronics Go Green, Everybody Wins
December 4, 2008 11:45 am | by Jeff Ittel, senior vice president of semiconductors, Avnet Electronics Marketing | Articles | CommentsFor members of the electronics supply chain, going “green” is not just a short-term marketing scheme rife with buzzwords but short on substance. Granted, the tech sector has jumped on its share of bandwagons, but this movement is different. It’s not just about pioneering technologies, building a positive public image, padding the bottom line or even “doing the right thing.” It’s all of the above. When state-of-the-art electronic products are energy efficient, environmentally sustainable, and cost effective, everyone wins.
