[Engineering Feature] Military And Avionics Applications Demand Rugged Hardware
Not all military and avionic electronics need to be ruggedized, but unprotected systems would last only minutes in many of these environments. Thus, solutions such as rugged cases, conduction cooling, and highreliability connectors become mandatory design elements. Elma’s air transport rack (ATR) 6U VPX is a good example of the starting point for military rugged designs (Fig. 1). The...
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William Wong
[Technology Report] Tool Up For The FPGA Blitz
FPGA usage divides into two primary segments. Historically, the foremost role of FPGAs has been to verify an ASIC, system-on-achip (SoC), or application-specific standard part (ASSP). Designers now will use FPGAs to prototype a portion or all of their design, to tweak the same, or as a platform to get ahead on developing system software. According to some industry experts, as many as 90% to 100% of ASICs today are prototyped on FPGAs. For many years, a main...
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David Maliniak
[Design View / Design Solution] Deeply Embedded Devices: The Internet Of Things
T he “Internet of things” is about connecting products that create, store, and consume data via the Internet. This allows processing to provide results that people can more easily use. The basic technical requirements to enable it are vastly different from the current treadmill of mainstream Internet-connectivity technology. Mainstream connectivity strives to constantly increase bandwidth, range, and features to counter dwindling margins and prepare for...
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Rodger Richey
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[Ideas For Design] Buck Converter Powers 5-V Circuits From 12-V Solar-Cell Array
The circuit described here is a 12-V dc to 5-V dc (±5%) switched-mode power supply (SMPS). The supply uses a 12-V input from an array of four 3-V dc, 40-mA solar cells connected in series. (The cells are available for $3.75 each from www.Allelectronics.com.) At the array’s maximum output of 12 V dc, its maximum output power is 12 × 40 mA = 480 mW. The supply’s efficiency is 83% ±1%....
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Paul Florian
[TechView: Analog & Power] Transformer-Isolated RS-485/422 MEMS Transceivers Integrate DC-DC Converters, Terminations
There are other RS-485/422 transceivers with inductive isolation available, but Linear Technology has taken a step forward. Its LTM2881 µModule includes its own complete, isolated dc-dc power supply, including the transformer, eliminating the need for any external components. The integrated power supply powers the transceiver and provides an isolated 5-V supply output for powering any supporting external components. (ADI’s ADM2485 has an on-chip...
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Don Tuite
[TechView: Communications] Cable TV Tuners Deliver Higher Performance WIth Ultra-Low Power Consumption
MaxLinear developed its MxL20xRF family of silicon tuners for the global digital cable market. These devices target set-top-boxes (STBs), digital video recorders (DVRs), cable modems, embedded multimedia terminal adapters (EMTAs), cable gateways, and cable-enabled televisions. The MxL20xRF family uses MaxLinear’s proprietary digital CMOS process to deliver the highest performance in accordance with the ANSI/ SCTE40, DOCSIS/EURODOCSIS, and ITU-T...
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Louis E. Frenzel
[TechView: Communications] Dual RF Tuner Brings Flexibility To Satellite Set-Top Boxes
Satellite TV installations use a set-top box (STB) that works with a remote low-noise block (LNB) converter at the antenna so the Ku band signals (10.95 to 14.5 GHz) are downconverted to the 950- to 2150-MHz range, making them more friendly to the coax connection between the LNB and STB. But this creates compromises in multi-set installations, as extra wiring is often needed. Any other special arrangement typically results in a more complex and...
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Louis E. Frenzel
[Engineering Essentials] The ABCs Of ADCs
Real-world applications require real-world connections. Generally, that means an analog signal is being digitized somewhere in the system so a microprocessor, ASIC, or FPGA can gather data and make some decision. If you’re new to data converter concepts or if it’s been a long time since your last analog class, the datasheet and design specifications and considerations can seem alien or even outright confusing. So what do all of those acronyms mean, and why should you...
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Martin Mason
[Electronic Design Products] The Five Building Blocks Of An Efficient, High-Brightness LED Driver
As high-brightness LEDs (HBLEDs) penetrate all avenues of the lighting market, various semiconductor manufacturers are offering constant-current drivers. Only by choosing a driver IC capable of meeting the flexibility and control required by today’s applications can the true potential of HBLEDs be unleashed. Theatrical lighting, for example, often requires high dimming resolution while dynamically adjusting the current to account for fluctuating power...
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Rakesh Reddy
[Lab Bench] Unmanned Systems North America 2009: Where The Robots Are
It was hot and muggy at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station’s Webster Field, where Curtis Ellezy of Engineering TV and I went to keep an eye out for robots that may have their eyes on you. The demonstrations were part of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International’s Unmanned Systems North America 2009 show in Washington, D.C. ROLLING ROBOTS There were lots of robots on wheels and tracks, and most were custom...
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William Wong
