November 29, 2004 Magazine Archive

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ISSUE DATE: NOVEMBER 29, 2004

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SiP technology, RoboNexus wrapup, Low-voltage generation for FPGA-based boards, Efficient step-up converter

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Browse Archived Articles By: Issue | Author | Department | Topic

November 29, 2004 - In This Issue

[Technology Report]
SiP Really Packs It In
Shorter development times and and cost-effective miniaturization make for an unbeatable combination. Those just happen to be the attributes of the quickly rising system-in-a-package (SiP) technology. In a straightforward manner, SiPs can also... — Roger Allan

[Leapfrog: First Look]
Platforms Get Extreme For Storage, High-Speed I/O
Novel platform ASICs meet storage and communications system demands by delivering plenty of memory and multigigabit I/O ports. Embedded applications in storage and communications crave sizable amounts of memory, and speed is always a... — Dave Bursky

[Leapfrog: First Look]
Java 5.0 Perks Up With New Language Constructs
Java 5.0 promises exciting and significant changes to the Java community (see "Java 5.0 Enhancements," below). It will be a while, though, before version 5.0 features make their way to embedded developers. Among the expected changes are new... — William Wong

[Design View / Design Solution]
Generate Those Low Voltages Needed For FPGA-Based Boards
It's now common for FPGA-based boards to require as many as four or five different low-voltage supplies to power the various components. First it was 3.3 V, then 2.5 V, 1.8 V, 1.5 V, and now 1.2 V. Each new FPGA generation seems to... — John Krehbiel , et al.

[Ideas For Design]
Efficient Step-Up Converter Steals Power From Parallel Port
The circuit shown in Figure 1 steals energy from a PC's parallel port or from any limited-energy source. To use the available energy, such power-conversion applications usually require very high... — Thierry Rahban

[Ideas For Design]
Flexible Power Amplifier Doubles As Process Controller
Using integrated drivers and controllers with flexible architectures to satisfy multiple applications can reduce design time. The LMD18201 motor driver is billed as a 3-A full-bridge type. But scrutiny of the data sheet reveals that it can also... — David Caldwell

[Ideas For Design]
EEMBC Adds A Metric
A whole segment of the power industry is dedicated to supplying the fluctuating needs of microprocessors and ASICs at the point of load. Yet to date, there has been no consistent way of defining how those loads vary under real-life conditions.... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
"Zero-Drop," 0.5-A Voltage Regulator Costs Under $1
Low-drop voltage regulators get wide application soon after they appear on the semiconductor market, mainly because of power savings in ac-dc supplies. Proceeding in the same direction to minimize the losses, we developed a "zero-drop" linear... — Oleg Ayranov

[Ideas For Design]
Simple Circuit Maintains Water Level Between Two Preset Limits
Here's an extremely simple water-level maintainer that keeps the water level between two predefined levels (see the figure). Due to the high input impedance of the LM311 IC (U1), practically no... — Ejaz ur Rehman

[Ideas For Design]
Single-Supply Circuit Handles Bipolar Sensor Signals
I recently had the task of designing an analog front-end circuit for a microcontroller application. A full-bridge sensor in a standard configuration produced the input signal. An instrumentation amplifier then amplified the low-level signal and... — Lazaros Pavlidis

[Ideas For Design]
Op Amp Idles To Save Power In Smoke Detectors, Other Sensors
With its power-saving mode, the LMV422 operational amplifier lets designers reduce power consumption while maintaining an active circuit. Thus, there's faster turn-on times in smoke detectors and other sensor interface applications where... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Smart Dual-Channel DC Motor Controller Drives Mobile Robots
It's now possible to directly drive up to 60 continuous amps on each channel of a dual-channel dc motor controller at up to 40 V. The microcomputer-based AX3500 provides optical-encoder input for automatic guided vehicles, underwater remotely... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Power Supplies Kick Out Rated Power Times Two For 10-Second Bursts
Where 24-V peak-current demand is needed for a short duration, the 5- and 24-V ZWD family of dual-output power supplies can deliver 200% of the nominal current rating for up to 10 seconds. These supplies are available with a 5-V, 5-A output for... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Fan-Free 1U Supply Reaches 400 W
The Series 1720 1U-high rackmount dc-dc converters provide 400 W without the need for fans. Input voltages include 24, 48, and 130 V dc. Standard isolated and regulated output voltages are 12, 24, and 48 V dc. Other combinations are available. The... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Two- And Four-Channel Audio ADCs Target Professional Production Gear
Professional and broadcast audio boards, which typically process many audio channels, are the target application for two high-performance, 24-bit audio analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The PCM4202 and PCM4204 offer a 118-dB dynamic range,... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Pin-Strapping Selects Internal Resistors To Set Gain
While traditional amplifiers use external resistors to set gain, a new amplifier family integrates on-board thin-film precision resistors that can be selected by pin-strapping. Users can configure the LT1991 and LT1995 as difference, summing,... — Don Tuite

[Ideas For Design]
Temperature-Sensor IC Monitors Seven Channels Simultaneously
A small-footprint (8.5 by 6 mm), seven-channel temperature-sensor IC reads thermal diodes or thermistors to 1°C accuracy. The MAX6697 measures its own temperature as well as the temperature of up to six external locations, such as CPUs, GPUs,... — Don Tuite

[Editorial]
Electronica Looks Ahead To MEMS And Wireless Sensors
I'm just back from Electronica in Munich— truly the gathering of the worldwide electronics marketplace. While exhibitors came from every corner of the globe, most of the design engineers attending naturally came from Europe, mainly Germany.... — Mark David

[POV: Point Of View]
21st Century Technology Extends Life Of 8-Bit MCUs
Many designers using 8-bit 8051 microcontrollers as the core of their systems face a challenge when updating the performance of their designs. Historically, performance upgrades have often required a transition to a 16-bit MCU or a digital signal... — Derrell Coker

[Pease Porridge]
Bob's Mailbox
Dear Bob: I was just looking through Electronic Design and noticed something in "Bob's Mailbox"* about the 555. Interestingly enough, I did an improved version of the then NEC555, or ICM555. The TI TLC555 all-CMOS timer was designed... — Bob Pease

[TechView: The Industry]
Robots Strut Their Stuff At RoboNexus
It was a robot love fest at the Santa Clara Convention Center, home of RoboNexus, the largest annual robotics show. The October conference hosted a number of robotics events, including the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and... — William Wong

[TechView: The Industry]
Operating Systems Promise Revolution In Power Management
Digitally controlled power (DCP) has the potential to bring flexibility and programmability to power supplies. This could lead to increased performance and reliability while reducing complexity and time-to-market. Yet DCP is only a precursor to... — Derek Lidow

[TechView: Analog & Power]
Woofers Run With The Big Dogs With Motor-Driven Mini Voice Coils
Driving a multitude of small diaphragms with motors instead of speaker coils promises big bass-audio response in small volumes. Supported by three papers, Tymphany Corp. demonstrated this concept at the Audio Engineering Society (AES) conference... — Don Tuite

[TechView: Analog & Power]
Half-Bricks Pump Out 450 W
MOVE OVER, 450-W full-brick amplifiers. The Veta iHA48016A280V 28-V half-brick amplifier offers the identical power output, saving space and lowering cost. This makes the TDK Innoveta amp a natural fit for next-generation, high-speed... — Don Tuite

[TechView: Analog & Power]
FPAAs Offer Twice The Analog Bang For Nearly The Same Buck
Two new Anadigm field-programmable analog arrays (FPAAs) for programmable analog implementations in high-volume audio, indus- trial, and medical systems offer twice the processing capability of the company's entry-level devices. However, the... — Don Tuite

[TechView: Communications]
Single-Chip 802.11a/b/g Modem Opens Up WLAN Applications
Putting a complete 802.11 physical layer, media-access controller (MAC), and baseband on one chip isn't an earth-shattering feat these days. But put 802.11b/g 2.4-GHz and 802.11a 5-GHz radios on the same chip and keep interference from compromising... — Louis E. Frenzel

[TechView: Communications]
Shipshape Traffic Manager/Fabric Interface Scales To 1.28 Tbits/s
High-end and mid-range layer 2 through 4 packet routing and switching systems can look forward to a new level of performance, scalability, and quality of service (QoS). Sandburst's QE-2000 integrated traffic manager and fabric interface device is... — Louis E. Frenzel

[TechView: Embedded]
AdvancedTCA Platform Delivers Blade-Server Modularity
AdvancedTCA is shifting into high gear as more hardware becomes available. The SYS-6000 Promentum-Blade Server Platform created by Radisys is a complete solution with a modular blade-server architecture with ATCA-4000 processor blades and ATCA-1000... — William Wong

[TechView: Embedded]
Software Solution Streamlines Interactive Gateway Design
The StreamEngine software development kit takes advantage of Ubicom's multithreaded IP3023 microprocessor to implement gateways for highly interactive applications like Voice over IP (VoIP). The StreamEngine software employs a patented... — William Wong

[TechView: Embedded]
Embedded News
The 150-MHz, 24-bit DSP56374 from Freescale Semiconductor is designed for low-cost, small-footprint automotive applications. It offers smart audio services to deliver sound equalization and audio delays, enabling vehicle occupants to customize... — William Wong

[TechView: Embedded]
RTOS Mixes DSP And General Applications On DSP Architecture
The Blackfin DSP architecture from Analog Devices targets DSP and general-purpose applications where dual processor cores often are the only alternative. Meanwhile, Quadros' RTXC/dm dual-mode real-time operating system (RTOS) takes advantage of... — William Wong

[TechView: Embedded]
Full-Speed USB Support Surfaces In The PIC Realm
PIC developers don't have to wait for USB support in microchip's product line any longer. The Full-Speed USB PIC family, which comprises four chips so far, is topped by the 48-MHz PIC18F4550. This chip has 32 kbytes of flash, 2 kbytes of... — William Wong

[TechView: Components & Test]
PC Controls 14 Instruments Via USB-To-GPIB Adapter
The KUSB-488 transforms any computer with a USB port into a full-function, IEEE 488.2 controller that can control up to 14 programmable GPIB instruments. Designed by Keithley Instruments, the adapter's small size (4.2 by 2.6 by 1.0 in.) and light... — Roger Allan

[TechView: Components & Test]
Auto Apps Welcome Shock-, Vibration-Resistant Aluminum Electrolytic Caps
New aluminum electrolytic capacitors in Epcos AG's B41605 and B41607 large-size series have their sights on automotive applications. They're distinguished by high vibrational strength that conforms to the IEC 60068-2-6 Test Fc standard. They also... — Roger Allan

[TechView: Components & Test]
Reconfigurable CompactPCI Cards Process At 2 Gsamples/s In Real Time
Two CompactPCI plug-in card analyzers, which come in a 6U form factor, perform real-time synchronous signal processing at up to 2 Gsamples/s. The AC240 dual-channel and AC210 single-channel analyzers offer a reconfigurable data-processing unit (a... — Roger Allan

[TechView: Digital]
Test Scheme Drops FPGA Cost Below Structured ASICs
ASICs have always put the price pressure on FPGAs. Traditionally, ASICs are more cost effective in large volumes. Over the last few years, though, the winds have begun to change. Xilinx hopes to continue this trend with its EasyPath series of... — Dave Bursky

[TechView: Digital]
Network Processor/Framer Combo Pursues Multiprotocol Termination
Headaches can ensue when dealing with the complex multiprotocol termination and interworking functions required to interconnect the existing access technologies to the converged intellectual-property/multiprotocol-label-switching (IP/MPLS) service... — Dave Bursky

[TechView: Digital]
High-Performance Clock Buffers Yield Noise-Immune Clock Signals
Next-generation unbuffered memory modules have a new weapon in their arsenal: Zero-Buffer DDR (ZB-DDR) technology. Using discreet zero-delay clock buffers, patent-pending ZB-DDR combines the robustness of server class memory with the low latency... — Dave Bursky

[TechView: EDA]
First Commercial Parser Ships For System Verilog
A sure sign that a design language is making its way into the mainstream is the appearance of a spate of tools supporting it. For SystemVerilog devotees, the latest good news is the commercial availability of a parser for the language.... — David Maliniak

[TechView: EDA]
RTL Closure Tool Helps Clean Up Designs
Arriving at RTL code that's really ready for synthesis to gate level is often painful. Between legacy IP, undocumented testbenches, and the unavailability of original design-team members, the code that makes up a design project can be difficult to... — David Maliniak

[TechView: EDA]
EDA Roundup
A free web download of a PC-board design suite comes with an advanced place-and-route editor for quick, accurate routing. Cadstar Express with P.R. Editor XR 2000 is a fully functional version of Zuken's Cadstar 7.0 pc-board design suite with a... — David Maliniak

[TechScope]
Researchers Go Wi-Fi To Study Gentle Giants
The giant panda is in peril, and Wi-Fi technology is coming to the rescue. Intel Corp. recently deployed a campus-wide broadband and wireless communications network in China's Wolong Nature Reserve, home to nearly 300 of the world's 1500 remaining... — Richard Gawel

[TechScope]
Investigators “See” Crimes On Audiotape With Magnetic Imaging
Even in the 21st century, old-fashioned audiotape can be critical evidence in criminal investigations. But determining a tape's authenticity has required painstaking manual work and a sharp pair of ears—until now. The National Institute of... — Richard Gawel

[Basics Of Design]
Designing IEEE 802.3af Powered Devices
Sponsored by: NATIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR
Power ever Ethernet (PoE), or IEEE Standard 802.3af, defines a method for powering Ethernetconnected "powered devices" (PDs) over the same cable that's used for data. The actual circuitry that takes the power off the cable and delivers it to the power... — Don Tuite

[Design FAQs]
Automotive/Convergence
Sponsored by: MAXIM INTEGRATED PRODUCTS
How will the move from 12-V auto battery systems to 42 V affect the design of automotive electronic circuits? ICs operate from 1.5 to 3.5 V, and they will operate from 1 V or less in the near future. The ideal... — Roger Allan

[Ahead Of The Curve]
Waking up to a specifications nightmare
An expert viewpoint brought to Electronic Design by Agilent Technologies, Inc. Here's the scenario: Engineering just designed a high-speed serial interface for your flagship product. The VP of... — Paul G. Schreier

[New Products]

• Test & Measurement: GNU Remote Protocol Sparks High-Speed Debugging Tool — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: IEEE-488 Controllers Eye USB And PCMCIA Applications — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: USB Digital Test Pod Turns A PC Into An Analyzer/Signal Generator — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: Handheld Analyzer Helps Test Cellular GSM/CDMA Basestations — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: Compact Module Analyzes Network, Impedance, Frequency Response — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: ETS Driver Gives PowerDAQ Cards Real-Time Embedded Development — Roger Allan

• Test & Measurement: High-Speed DAQ Card Races Along At 1 Gsample/s — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: Right-Angle Copper Connector Fits Coplanar/Perpendicular Layouts — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: Card System Interconnects Legacy, Present, And Future Technologies — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: Plastic DIN Rail Enclosures Suit Industrial Control Applications — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: Universal Adapter Board Kit Works With Most SMT Quad ICs — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: D-Subminiature Connectors Boost Environmental Performance — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: Ultra-Low-Profile Battery Connector Targets Mobile Applications — Roger Allan

• Packaging & Interconnects: 5-Gbit/s Cable Assemblies Save PC-Board Space — Roger Allan

• Embedded: Process-Control-Module Series Adds Serial Communications — William Wong

• Embedded: PC/104 Board Packs Dual-Ethernet And Digital I/O — William Wong

• Component Specifier: Discrete Semiconductors — Richard Gawel

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