[Technology Report]
electronica 2008: The Industry’s Tech Extravaganza
Nearly 3000 electronics companies will congregate at the Munich International Trade Fair, Nov. 11-14, to participate in the 23rd electronica Exhibition and Conference.
Paul Whytock
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ED Online ID #19966 |
November 5, 2008
William C. Ramsay, deputy director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris, will chair the CEO Round Table (Fig. 4). Back in the 1990s, he was responsible for U.S. policy on international trade, energy generation, and industrial and agricultural products. The IEA is supported by 27 industrial nations.
Micronano Systems Forum A separate platform for miniature electronic components, the “Electronica Micronano-Systems Forum” will also be staged in Hall A2. The German Association for Electrical, Electronic and Information Technologies has published market figures that illuminate the greater import of micronano systems. In 2007, the worldwide sales of miniature electronic components and systems rose by 3.2% to $255.6 billion.
Hybridica—A new type of Component Hybridica will make its debut at electronica 2008. This new field combines metal and plastic to create a hybrid component that allows designers to exploit the properties of both materials. Such benefits include easy assembly of individual parts, greater functionality, size reduction, and improved efficiency, including thermal efficiency, which leads to extended component lifetime and reliability. According to industry pundits, all of these advantages can potentially reduce manufacturing costs by up to 80%.
Bright Lights There’s no doubt that 2007 marked a turning point for the worldwide displays market. At the end of last year, more LCD TVs had been sold than traditional CRT sets. Market research institute DisplaySearch estimates that by 2015, around 90% of all display elements sold will be LCDs. And let’s not forget that many LCDs need background illumination from LEDs or organic LEDs (OLEDs). West Coast analyst iSuppli expects the current LED market volume in this application alone will increase from $6 billion to $12.3 billion by 2012.
The display boom is creating, in particular, demand for high-brightness (HB) LEDs. Here, iSuppli predicts the $3.7 billion market for HB-LEDs in 2006 to double to more than $7 billion by 2010. This in turn is fueling demand for HB LED driver products that can simultaneously control several LEDs. Hall A3 will be the place to find out more about the technological trends for displays and LEDs/OLEDs and their power-supply technologies.
Product Technology Whereas electronica’s Forums and Conferences offer erudite insight into current and future electronics, technologies that satisfy the needs of here-and-now designers populate the exhibition halls. A vast number of new products will debut at the show, though a few companies offered a peek at their latest developments ahead of time.
First up in Hall A5, Booth 221, power solutions company On Semiconductor will show a new product derivative of its AMIS 49200 Media Attachment Unit (MAU). The AMIS 49250 provides added circuitboard space savings of up to 66% compared to the AMIS 49200 (Fig. 5).
It’s part of On Semiconductor’s line of processing automation transceivers for safety-critical applications, such as oil refineries, chemical processing, and water treatment plants. The AMIS 49200 has served well as a replacement solution for the Yokogawa µSAA22Q MAU device, which is no longer in production.
For new designs that can’t accommodate the printed-circuit board (PCB) space required by the µSAA22Q (or AMIS-49200) but require the same functionality, On Semiconductor developed the AMIS-49250, packaged in a small, 44-lead NQFP (7- by 7-mm) (aka MLF, QFN). Similar to the AMIS 49200, the AMIS 49250 complies with the specifications of the IEC-61158-2, H1 (ISASP50.02- 1992), and EN 50170 physicallayer standard, including Foundation Fieldbus H1 and Profibus PA protocols.
Vicor Corp. will unveil a dc front-end module that provides electromagneticinterference (EMI) filtering and transient protection (Fig. 6). The M-FIAM9 (Military Filter Input Attenuator Module) should allow designers using Vicor’s Maxi, Mini, Micro Series 24 V, and Maxi Series 28 V dc-dc converters to meet conducted emission/susceptibility per MIL-STD- 461E and input transients per MIL-STD- 704A/E/F and MIL-STD-1275A/B/D.
The module will accept an input voltage of 10 to 36 V dc and deliver output power up to 500 W. It’s housed in an industrystandard half-brick module measuring 57.9 by 55.9 by 12.7 mm. Depending on the model, it may be mounted onboard or inboard for height-critical applications.
National Semiconductor will demonstrate three operational amplifiers with integrated EMI filters that maintain the accuracy of analog systems by reducing the effects of RF interference. The LMV83x op amps deliver an EMI rejection ratio (EMIRR) of 120 dB, which means they eliminate EMI-induced errors. Also, these devices have 3-MHz unity-gain bandwidth while operating on only 240 µA of supply current. This yields a power-to-performance ratio of 80 µA per MHz (Fig. 7).
The LMV831 single, LMV832 dual, and LMV834 quad EMI-hardened op amps cut board size by minimizing the need for metal shielding, filters, and extra components. These devices will find homes in phone accessories, medical instruments, precision weigh scales, and other industrial electronic equipment that’s sensitive to electromagnetic disturbances in noisy environments.
The number of favorably priced RF components that operate at extremely high frequencies is on the rise. In addition, new higher-end applications for imaging and video transmission are emerging and therefore creating a demand for T&M equipment in the millimeter-wave range.
Consequently, Rohde & Schwarz (RS) developed high-end network analyzers and millimeter-wave converters from a single source (Fig. 8). Following its launch of converters for the 75- to 110-GHz range, the company now offers converters for the 50- to 75-GHz and 220- to 325-GHz ranges. The converters connect directly to analyzers of the RS ZVA series, and multiport measurements up to 325 GHz can be implemented for the first time.
In Hall 4, Stand 159, Analog Devices (ADI) will unveil a family of high-speed converters and discuss additions to its Blackfin and Sharc families. The company is also expected to introduce its latest iSensor and iMEMS intelligent sensor products. ADI will display new online simulation and evaluation tools as well.
Digital Power Corp. will show its latest high-density power converters, the HD 365 series, at the Gresham Power booth in Hall C3, stand 447 (Fig. 9). These devices deliver 365 W of output power and are up to 90% efficient. A wholly owned subsidiary of Digital Power, Gresham provides European sales and support in addition to designing and manufacturing global defense systems.
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