Consumer
The Facebook "phone" that no one wants
April 8, 2013 2:56 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Articles | CommentsWell, well, well. It looks like Facebook has finally decided to join the big boys and create their own phone. It’s the phone that absolutely no one was waiting for. To quote the parody video below, “Stop. Don’t do that. Nobody wants it.”
Race to build driverless cars is in full throttle
April 8, 2013 10:41 am | by Rick Montgomery, The Kansas City Star | News | CommentsTo call Tim Sylvester a road builder misses the point. The streets he intends to build are embedded with electronic sensors that may keep cars of the future from speeding, veering and crashing. Doctoral candidate Amol Khedkar is toiling on his own prototype for a software system that would let cars talk to one other....
Should a computer grade your essay?
April 8, 2013 10:09 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsOne should never swap quality for instant gratification. Yet that’s exactly what EdX, a nonprofit educational organization founded by Harvard and MIT, is doing with their automated grading software that promises “instant feedback” on students’ essays. Creativity need not apply.
An engineer's wishlist for car infotainment systems
April 5, 2013 2:51 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsWith Google's self-driving car hitting the road and all sorts of driver-assistance features hitting the showroom, it's a crazy time for drivers and designers alike. Cars are practically overflowing with (good and bad) attempts to integrate outside technology (smartphones, weather apps, virtual assistants) into vehicles interfaces.
HotSpot Episode 6: Phantom Quadcopter
April 5, 2013 9:30 am | Videos | CommentsThis week on WDD's HotSpot: DJI's new GPS equipped Phantom is an aerial platform for the FOPRO HERO action cam. Featuring a lithium polymer battery, an RGB LED indicator, an Enhanced fail-safe feature, and an Intelligent Orientation Control, this quad-copter makes one nifty little radio-controlled aircraft.
Engineering Newswire 32: Ben Heck, and the iWorm straps to your back
April 4, 2013 12:48 pm | Videos | CommentsToday on Engineering Newswire, brought to you by Interpower, we're building an internal suspension system for your brain, designing an endoscope as thin as a hair, and using a worm to go hands free. This week we welcome Ben Heck to the Engineering Newswire as we feature...
Television's next big thing: Smell-O-Vision (again)
April 3, 2013 3:44 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsNow that 3D television has failed to take off the way designers were hoping, companies have moved on to a newer, better, greater, bound-for-failure idea: Smell-O-Vision. Haruka Matsukura and a team from the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology have designed an olfactory display system that can work in conjunction with a 2D display.
One-resistor-tunable timer ICs operate over wide supply voltage range
April 3, 2013 11:09 am | Product Releases | CommentsTouchstone Semiconductor added four, high-accuracy, micropower timer ICs to its rapidly expanding family of “NanoWatt Analog” timer integrated circuits. These higher-single-supply voltage, second-generation timer ICs operate over a wide supply voltage range
Top 10 must-read posts from March
April 3, 2013 10:47 am | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor | Blogs | CommentsHere’s a rundown of the most read, most popular, most awesome articles on the web. Take a look at what you missed the first time around or check up on an old favorite to see the conversation in the comments. Keep checking out the Lead at www.ecnmag.com and follow us on Twitter @ecnonline for our most up-to-date articles.
Switch series features bifurcated contact for increased electrical reliability and consistent performance
April 2, 2013 1:33 pm | C&K Components | Product Releases | CommentsC&K Components has expanded its surface-mount DIP switch series to include an ultra-miniature 1-position version for hand-held and portable electronic devices. Featuring a bifurcated contact for increased electrical reliability and consistent performance, the half-pitch TDA Series DIP switches are process-sealed for surface-mount soldering and washable-processing.
Mouser now stocking Atmel SAMA5D3 Cortex-A5 eMPUs
April 2, 2013 10:52 am | Mouser Electronics | Product Releases | CommentsMouser Electronics announces immediate availability of the new SAMA5D3 series of embedded microprocessor units from Atmel. These high-performance eMPUs are based on the ARM Cortex-A5 processor and feature market-leading low power consumption.
Virtual reality, goggles and all, attempts comeback at Game Developers Conference
April 1, 2013 8:47 am | by DERRIK J. LANG AP Entertainment Writer | News | CommentsIt's back. The virtual reality headset, the gizmo that was supposed to seamlessly transport wearers to three-dimensional virtual worlds, has made a remarkable return at this year's Game Developers Conference, an annual gathering of video game makers in San Francisco.
Apple patents iPhone with wraparound display, no physical buttons
April 1, 2013 8:45 am | by PETER SVENSSON AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsApple is seeking a patent for an iPhone that has a display that wraps around the edges of the device, expanding the viewable area and eliminating all physical buttons. The patent application reveals that Apple has put some thought into a device that takes advantage of a new generation of displays, which don't have to be flat and rigid like today's liquid-crystal displays, or LCDs.
New Silicon Valley headquarters offer more perks than ever to recruit, retain talent
April 1, 2013 8:41 am | by MARTHA MENDOZA AP National Writer | News | CommentsCUPERTINO, Calif. (AP) -- Apple's ring-shaped, gleaming "Spaceship Headquarters" will include a world class auditorium and an orchard for engineers to wander. Google's new Bay View campus will feature walkways angled to force accidental encounters. Facebook, while putting final touches on a Disney-inspired campus including a Main Street with a B-B-Q shack, sushi house and bike shop, is already planning an even larger, more exciting new campus.
Engineering Newswire 31: Superdome fiasco, relay to blame
March 29, 2013 6:00 am | by Eric Sorensen, Coordinator of Multimedia Development | Videos | CommentsToday on Engineering Newswire, we're talking to virtual heads, firing sexists in Silicon Valley, investigating a super-sized power outage, and fishing far flung space garbage from the bottom of the ocean. This episode features....
Engineering Update #7: Self-healing, laser-resistant chips and NYC's new touchscreen subway maps
March 28, 2013 10:24 am | Videos | CommentsIn this episode of Engineering Update, brought to you by Mouser Electronics www.mouser.com, we're talking about self-healing, laser resistant chips, New York City's new interactive, touchscreen subway maps, and BMW and Continental's new project into developing "co-pilot" driving technology.
Demand for 3D optical film rises as passive 3D TV competes with shutter glass
March 28, 2013 10:12 am | News | CommentsAs 3D TV continues to grow, competition between the main two 3D technologies is heating up. Film patterned retarder is finally catching up to the more established shutter glass approach. According to the NPD DisplaySearch Quarterly Display Optical Film Report, demand for 3D patterned retarder (3D PR) film is forecast to grow 104% Y/Y in Q4’12....
Multi-component force plates support clinical gait, running, and balance analyses
March 27, 2013 4:13 pm | Product Releases | CommentsKistler has announced the Type 9260AA, a portable multi-component force plate, designed to make high-accuracy measurements of ground reaction force, moment and center of pressure, in support of clinical gait, running and balance analysis applications.
MEMS oscillator presents small size, power savings for mobile applications
March 27, 2013 3:31 pm | SiTime Corp. | Product Releases | CommentsSiTime introduced the SiT15xx family of 32 kHz MEMS oscillators that are positioned to replace legacy quartz crystal resonators. This family is targeted at mobile applications such as smart phones and tablets, which require small size and low power. The family rivals quartz-based devices and
Internet sales tax will only benefit the state
March 25, 2013 3:34 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsGet ready to pony up more dollars for online purchases. On Friday, the U.S. Senate passed the innocuously-titled "Marketplace Fairness Act" through the upper chamber on a 75-24 vote. The bill would require e-tailers to collect and remit sales tax on interstate commerce, even when the business has no physical presence in the state.
Visual design tool supports PIC MCU-based GUI creation on Windows, Linux or Mac computers
March 22, 2013 4:21 pm | Microchip Technology Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsMicrochip Technology Inc. announced the release of Graphics Display Designer X (GDD X), an enhanced visual design tool that provides a quick and easy way of creating Graphical User Interface (GUI) screens for applications using Microchip’s 16-or 32-bit PIC MCUs. With GDD X, developers may
Engineering Newswire 30: Augmented reality recognizes your friends
March 22, 2013 9:32 am | Videos | CommentsToday on Engineering Newswire, brought to you by Interpower, the premier supplier of power system components for worldwide markets, we're testing experimental grasshopper rockets, making smooth jazz on the seaboard, and making the Sphero do everything.
Magnalight handheld spotlight featured on HBO's True Blood
March 21, 2013 4:07 pm | Larson Electronics Llc | Product Releases | CommentsUnder the name of Fangbanger Productions, the hit TV show True Blood selected yet another Magnalight spotlight for an episode in the upcoming season. The GL-8130-M handheld spotlight offers a uniquely convertible configuration for use as a handheld lantern or traditional spotlight form factor.
Level the playing field between retailers and e-tailers
March 20, 2013 9:38 am | by Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring | Blogs | CommentsAs a former local elected official, I know that tax revenues need to come from somewhere and that they should be levied on as fair a basis as possible. It’s a delicate balance, one that does not come easily. Government must be responsible in its spending and should not abuse its authority to effect change in the marketplace....
LLC transformer promises up to 99 percent efficiency, 50 percent real estate savings
March 19, 2013 11:37 am | Precision, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsPrecision, Inc. announced the global launch of its new LLC transformer which is asserted to provide up to 99 percent efficiency and extremely low power loss. The technology combines two discrete components – a resonant inductor and transformer – into a single package reducing real estate up to
