Newsletters
Energy Harvesting for a Greener Environment
May 5, 2010 9:07 am | by Michele Kinman, Energy Harvesting, www.energyharvesting.net | Articles | CommentsEnergy harvesting is the process of capturing and accumulating byproduct energy as the energy becomes available, storing the energy for a period of time and conditioning it into a form that can be used later – such as operating a microprocessor with in its limits.
Distribution Trends in 2010
May 5, 2010 8:50 am | by Mark Larson, President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Digi-Key Corporation | Articles | CommentsThe electronics industry is enjoying what appears to be a generally strong recovery from the brutal business conditions with which we were confronted in 2009. It is interesting to note that although the economic meltdown traumatized almost all sectors of our industry and caused a sharp drop in sales, several basic industry trends continued unabated.
Wireless energy transfer for UAVs
May 5, 2010 8:34 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsLasers have been described as the “holy grail” of weapons—who wouldn't want to be like Luke Skywalker? But while researchers have pondered everything from “pain rays” to the “Zeus” anti-IED system, the folks over at LaserMotive are pushing something else entirely—power beaming for UAVs.
Retainer Clip for CompactFlash Provides Reliable Retention
May 5, 2010 7:26 am | 3M Electronics Solutions Division | Product Releases | CommentsA new device from the 3M Electronic Solutions Division provides reliable retention of CompactFlash Type I (CF I) and Type II (CF II) removable memory cards mated with 3M CF II card headers, helping to
6.5-inch Panel PC Operates In Extended Temperature Applications
May 5, 2010 7:07 am | Product Releases | CommentsWinSystems’ PPC3-G-6.5 is a 6.5-inch open frame, color flat panel PC based upon a PC-104-Plus single board computer (SBC) that operates from -20° to +70°C. The ready-to-mount flat panel display subsystem also includes a resistive touch screen integrated into a chassis approximately 2 inches thick. The open frame chassis (without a front bezel) permits
iPad in Car - Scosche iKit in a Subaru STi
May 5, 2010 5:25 am | Videos | CommentsDoug Broadhurst and Ted Lopez demonstrate the new iKit from Scosche in a Subaru STi.
Future Design Needs for Next-Generation Radar and EW Systems
May 5, 2010 4:54 am | Articles | CommentsNext-generation FPGA-based processing platforms for radar and electronic warfare (EW) systems provide a substantial increase in computational resources, as well as greatly easing the implementation effort in a floating-point datapath.
SoC Empowers Smart-Grid Devices
May 5, 2010 4:52 am | Product Releases | CommentsDedicated to energy savings and optimization, the ASMgrid Smart Grid System-on-Chip addresses the emerging Smart Meter and Home Area Network (HAN) market.
Photovoltaic Encapsulant Touts Desirable Power Delivery
May 4, 2010 11:57 am | Product Releases | CommentsOerlikon Solar and DuPont have collaborated on a new thin white reflective solar PV encapsulant sheet, called DuPont PV5223. This latest addition to the DuPont PV5200 Series of PVB sheets enables easy manufacturing of next-generation thin film PV modules that are said to not only
Thermoharvester Provides Infinite Life for Industrial Sensor Apps
May 4, 2010 11:15 am | Product Releases | CommentsMicropelt launched a commercial energy harvester for wireless applications. The TE-Power PROBE can is suited for use with modern WirelessHART, ISA100 and similar transmitters, according to the company. Mounting the device to a hot side of 20°C above ambient is
LED with Integrated Lens Improves Vision System Operation
May 4, 2010 9:48 am | Osram Opto Semiconductors | Product Releases | CommentsOSRAM Opto Semiconductors’ infrared DRAGON SFH 4236 adds depth to the IR DRAGON family by maximizing radiant intensity from a small form factor. The new infrared DRAGON is designed for applications that require narrow radiation characteristics from limited board space...
ESC 2010 Update
May 4, 2010 8:41 am | by Jon Titus, Senior Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsIn late April I visited the exhibits at the annual Embedded Systems Conference in San Jose, CA. For the most part, people I met with discussed microcontrollers, communication, and development kits. The short descriptions below represent only a snapshot of the interesting products announced or unveiled at ESC.
eMPUs Suit Apps Requiring Secure Encryption, Authentication
May 4, 2010 7:34 am | Atmel Corporation | Product Releases | CommentsAtmel Corporation introduced the next generation of its SAM9M11 and SAM9G46 general-purpose ARM-based embedded microprocessors (eMPUs) for use in industrial embedded systems that require secured connectivity and authentication of applications via
GUI Design Tool Enables Smartphone-like Graphics
May 4, 2010 7:06 am | Product Releases | CommentsAmulet Technologies announced the availability of GEMstudio, a drag-and-drop GUI development environment for creating high-end, color touchscreen human-machine-interfaces (HMI), with smartphone-like graphics, for 8-, 16-, and 32-bit bit embedded systems. This GUI development environment can
Kit Helps Integrate Control of Multiple LEDs, Power With Single MCU
May 4, 2010 6:12 am | Product Releases | CommentsTexas Instruments today announced its new TMS320C2000 Piccolo microcontroller (MCU) DC/DC LED Developer's Kit. The kit enables developers to incorporate Piccolo MCUs to differentiate LED designs with features such as dimming, color tone adjustment, power line communication and fault detection. Additionally, developers can
Through-wall radar aids in urban operations
May 4, 2010 6:05 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsIn 2007, SSG David Bellavia released the most poignant memoir of the Iraq War, “House to House.” The title is significant, because house-to-house fighting is among the most dangerous forms of urban warfare. Camero may have a solution with the Xaver 400, a compact through-wall radar.
Efficient Transformers Made of Flame Retardant Material
May 3, 2010 10:48 am | Product Releases | CommentsEnsign Corporation announces flame retardant, compact, single and dual primary transformers for printed circuit board (PCB) mount, solder/quick connect terminals and lead wires. The Ener-G-Star transformers are designed for optimal efficiency and made of flame retardant materials (UL 94V0).
Panel PC Series for HMI Apps Includes 6.5- and 15-inch Touch Screens
May 3, 2010 7:35 am | Product Releases | CommentsVIA Technologies announced additions to its VIA VIPRO range of fanless touch screen panel PCs with the 6.5-inch VIA VIPRO VP7806 and 15-inch VIA VIPRO VP7815. Created using the flexible and modular Em-ITX form factor, these VIA VIPRO panel PCs are suitable for
PXI, cPCI Backplanes Suit Embedded Test and Control Apps
May 3, 2010 7:09 am | Product Releases | CommentsNational Instruments offers board-level backplanes from all of its PXI/CompactPCI and PXI Express chassis for OEMs to use in applications ranging from aerospace/defense to industrial embedded control. Engineers and scientists can use the PXI/CompactPCI backplanes to create
Everything is Going Digital – Including Reference Books
May 3, 2010 7:05 am | by Diana Bittern, director of product management at Knovel (www.knovel.com) | Blogs | CommentsSimply put, static print has seen its hay-day and the general population is hungry for ways to find and absorb information faster, and on-the-go.
Holiday in Ghana - the Impact of Cellular in Developing Countries
May 3, 2010 6:40 am | Blogs | CommentsAccording to the OECD, adding an extra ten mobile phones per 100 people in a typical developing country boosts growth in GDP per person by 0.8 percentage points. That is just staggering.
Driver Powers Multiple Strings of LEDs for LCD Backlighting
May 3, 2010 6:07 am | Endicott Research Group | Product Releases | CommentsLCD backlight power specialist Endicott Research Group (ERG) has introduced a new LED driver that can simultaneously and efficiently power up to 8 strings of high brightness LEDs (HBLEDs). The new Smart Force SFD2C Series is a full-function LED driver board that features a dual output that provides a total maximum current of 1200 mA -- 600 mA per side...
DC to DC Converter Accepts Input from 6V to 70V
May 3, 2010 5:56 am | Product Releases | CommentsTech9 Corporation’s new 1 amp buck-boost DC to DC power converter accepts input ranging from 6V to 70V while output remains constant. The power converter can be ordered in 3V, 5V, 9V, 12V and 15V output models. Other outputs are available on request.
Pressure Sensors Offer 3 V Supply Versions for Battery Powered Apps
May 3, 2010 5:48 am | Product Releases | CommentsSensortechnics’ HDI sensors measure absolute, differential or gage pressures in various ranges from 10 mbar up to 5 bar (4 inch H2O up to 150 psi). The HDI series features 3 V supply versions which are suitable for battery powered applications
Photonics Control Devices Connect Via USB
May 3, 2010 5:43 am | Product Releases | CommentsNewport Corporation introduced the CONEX family of compact, photonics control instruments. The product family features three devices that connect via USB plug-and-play technology and allow simple, functional PC-computer control solutions. Multiple units can
