Applications
‘Internet Of Things’: An opportunity for intelligent device manufacturers
April 29, 2013 3:25 pm | by Steve Schmidt, Vice President of Corporate Development & Strategy, Flexera Software | Blogs | CommentsThe “Internet of Things” is a phrase used to describe how the internet will link traditional smart devices, and a wide range of additional physical assets to allow these endpoints to generate and share data. Nearly every product will have an IP address and communication capability — not just networking and telecommunications devices...
HotSpot Episode 10: Numi, The King of Toilets
April 29, 2013 2:09 pm | Videos | CommentsThis week on WDD's HotSpot: Kohler announces Numi, a feature-packed toilet that makes the bathroom the place to be. With a Bluetooth receiver that allows users to directly stream their music from a smartphone, the porcelain throne also features an SD card....
Computer scientists suggest new spin on origins of evolvability
April 29, 2013 10:54 am | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsScientists have long observed that species seem to have become increasingly capable of evolving in response to changes in the environment. But computer science researchers now say that the popular explanation of competition to survive in nature may not actually be necessary for evolvability to increase.
Germ-zapping 'robots': Hospitals combat superbugs
April 29, 2013 10:39 am | by MIKE STOBBE, AP Medical Writer | News | CommentsThe rise of superbugs, along with increased pressure from government and insurers, is driving hospitals to try all sorts of new approaches to stop their spread: Machines that resemble "Star Wars" robots and emit ultraviolet light or hydrogen peroxide vapors. Germ-resistant copper bed rails, call buttons and IV poles...
B787 1st test flight in Japan since battery fire
April 29, 2013 10:29 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsJapan's All Nippon Airways has successfully conducted its first test flight of the Boeing 787 aircraft since battery problems grounded the planes earlier this year. Ray Conner, president of Boeing's consumer airline division, and ANA President Shinichiro Ito were aboard the flight Sunday.
Guns are only as ‘smart’ as we are
April 29, 2013 9:48 am | by Stephanie Carmichael, Contributor | Blogs | CommentsI’m uncomfortable with the phrase "smart gun." Maybe that’s because the words make me think of Skynet in Terminator, or the great lesson to man about the dangers of artificial intelligence gussied up in a blockbuster action-movie franchise. While it’s probably not going to rebel and nearly exterminate all of mankind, in the wrong hands, real-world technology can become a tool for evil.
A look back at Lightfair 2013
April 26, 2013 4:54 pm | by Chris Warner, Executive Editor | Articles | CommentsCold weather has been hanging on well into April here in the northeast. But if you were in Philadelphia this week, you would be forgiven for walking around wearing sunglasses – especially indoors at the Pennsylvania Convention Center – a sure sign that Lightfair is in town.
AT&T to sell home automation, security packages
April 26, 2013 11:48 am | by PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsAT&T Inc. is launching its home security and automation service in 15 cities Friday, with an eye toward getting customers hooked on security cameras, thermostats and locks they can control from phones and tablets. AT&T's "Digital Life" packages will be sold in cellphone stores in markets including Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and Miami.
Samsung profit at record high on smartphone boost
April 26, 2013 11:46 am | by YOUKYUNG LEE, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsSamsung Electronics said Friday its first quarter profit jumped to a record high as smartphone sales remained strong despite the April launch of an updated version of its flagship Galaxy phone. Sales of consumer electronics usually slow in the first three months of the year after the holiday shopping season...
Constant-current power supply achieves efficiencies up to 91%
April 26, 2013 11:16 am | Product Releases | CommentsThe series of constant current (CC) models of the high-voltage output (maximum output voltage up to 280VDC) with IP65/67 design for customers’ choices and with the efficiency up to 91%. This series are built-in two-stage PFC circuit to achieve the EU harmonic interference limited of lighting products requirements....
Regulators feature constant on-time control architecture
April 26, 2013 10:16 am | Product Releases | CommentsAlpha and Omega Semiconductor Limited released AOZ1237, the latest addition to a family of high efficiency, easy-to-use synchronous EZBuck regulators featuring a proprietary Constant On-Time (COT) control architecture that enables smaller solutions and simplifies designs.
Sensor provides solution for crystal oscillators, sensors requiring temperature compensation
April 26, 2013 9:50 am | Heraeus Sensor Technology | Product Releases | CommentsThe Heraeus Sensor Technology SMD Platinum RTD temperature sensor element provides an ideal solution for crystal oscillators, sensors, and other components requiring temperature compensation. The 0805 SMD package RTD offers the stability of a thin film Pt RTD in a standard surface mount package.
Fabric-enabled networking solutions include multi-service edge device
April 26, 2013 9:32 am | Product Releases | CommentsAvaya unveiled what it asserts is the industry’s first fabric-enabled multi-service edge device. Avaya VENA Fabric Connect transforms the entire network from data center to desktop into a more agile one that is easier to configure, manage and maintain. Based on an
Computers are sorcery! Kill them with fire!
April 25, 2013 4:13 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsIt's hard to believe we were ever this dumb. And it's hard to believe the '90s ever happened. This wacky decade — when we were all still finding our digital bearings — spawned gems like "Komputer Tutor", a VHS series from "America's Digital Goddess", Kim Komando, that takes simple computer concepts and dumbs them down even further ... and further and further. It's comedy gold.
The newest storybook: Scannable pjs
April 25, 2013 1:49 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsIt was really only a matter of time before QR codes invaded bedtime, but at least they made it interesting. Smart PJs (patent-pending) are a new kind of clothing complete with QR code-like scannable patches that could make bedtime a little more fun.
Driving RGB LEDs for interior lighting applications
April 25, 2013 1:42 pm | by Wim Van de Maele, ASSP Marketing Manager at ON Semiconductor | Articles | CommentsRGB LEDs are becoming increasingly popular for applications inside vehicles. For reasons of style and personalisation, as well as driver comfort and safety, they present an exciting opportunity for interior designers at major car makers. As multiple light points are required inside the vehicle in order to achieve the implementation of an effective solution....
With wave of the hand, researchers create touch-based interfaces
April 25, 2013 11:34 am | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsResearchers previously have shown that a depth camera system, such as Kinect, can be combined with a projector to turn almost any surface into a touchscreen. But now researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have demonstrated how these touch-based interfaces can be created almost at will, with the wave of a hand.
US device will screen for fake medicines overseas
April 25, 2013 10:34 am | by MATTHEW PERRONE, AP Health Writer | News | CommentsU.S. health officials are making a high-tech screening device available in Africa to help spot counterfeit malaria pills in hopes that the technology may eventually be used to combat the fake drug trade worldwide. The Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday that U.S. partners in Ghana will begin using a U.S.-developed handheld device...
Going through smartphone withdrawal
April 25, 2013 9:34 am | by Meaghan Ziemba, Editor, WDD | Blogs | CommentsI recently attended a concert in Madison, WI. I placed my phone in my back pocket to avoid carrying a purse and to have it easily accessible when I wanted to update my status and snap a few photos. Unfortunately, after a visit to the facilities and a horrifying plop, I knew that I was in trouble.
LED drivers promise enhanced dimming performance, color rendering in indoor and outdoor lighting
April 24, 2013 5:15 pm | Texas Instruments | Product Releases | CommentsTexas introduced three new DC/DC LED drivers that simplify white color tuning for high-color rendering and ultra-low dimming in professional-grade indoor and outdoor LED lighting applications. The TPS92660 two-string LED driver and TPS92640/1 synchronous buck controllers address
Oscillator boasts stability 1,000 times more accurate than typical OCXO
April 24, 2013 5:03 pm | IQD Frequency Products, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsIQD’s latest high performance oscillator, the IQRB-1, offers a stability around a 1,000 times more accurate than a typical Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO). This means it can be used as a free run frequency source in applications such as LTE (Long Term Evolution) systems that require exceptional timing accuracy.
LEDs present small size, novel light distribution and high reliability
April 24, 2013 3:45 pm | Product Releases | CommentsCree, Inc. announced the availability of XLamp XQ LEDs, featuring a combination of small size, novel light distribution and high reliability design to suit applications that require broader light distribution such as omni-directional lamps and fixtures. The XQ LEDs are Cree’s smallest lighting-class LEDs at
Single board computer simplifies instrument control
April 24, 2013 3:24 pm | Mosaic Industries | Product Releases | CommentsThe PDQ Lite is a low cost single board computer and development board that hosts the Freescale HCS12/9S12 MCU and an embedded RTOS. This GNU C-programmable instrument controller is well suited for data acquisition and control, PWM drive, I2C sensor interfacing, laboratory automation, scientific instruments, SCADA, instrumentation and automation.
Chevy Spark EV can go 82 miles per charge
April 24, 2013 2:49 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsGeneral Motors said Wednesday that the battery-powered version of its Chevrolet Spark mini-car can travel up to 82 miles (132 kilometers) on a single charge, putting it among the leaders in mass-market electric vehicles sold in the U.S. The Spark EV also gets the equivalent of 119 miles per gallon (50 kilometers per liter)....
VPX processor blade provides up to 8GB DDR3-1333/1600 dual channel ECC memory
April 24, 2013 2:17 pm | Adlink Technology | Product Releases | CommentsADLINK Technology announced its flagship VPX product line, the VPX3000 Series rugged 3U VPX processor blade. The VPX3000 Series is ideal for system integrators who have a need for an advanced VPX board with VPX REDI and OpenVPX compliance in order to deploy high performance military and aerospace applications requiring quick time-to-market.
