Electronic Design UPDATE: July 27, 2005

==================================

Electronic Design UPDATE e-Newsletter
Electronic Design Magazine
PlanetEE ==> www.planetee.com
July 27, 2005
=============================


*************************ADVERTISEMENT**************************

NEW--Try LabVIEW Add-On Software Online 

Following the success of the LabVIEW Online Evaluation, the NEW 
LabVIEW Add-Ons Online Evaluation enables you to test drive LabVIEW 
add-on toolkits and modules in an easy-to-use online environment. 
With the LabVIEW Add-Ons Online Evaluation, you can learn about and 
explore select LabVIEW software add-ons through your web browser 
without downloading or installing any software. 

Click here to test drive LabVIEW software add-ons now!

http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66D:1001CD 

****************************************************************

Today's Table Of Contents:
1. Editor's View
  *Useful Work From Wasted Energy, MEMS Style
2. Focus On Embedded
  *Kit Teaches Microcontroller-Based Mechatronic Design
3. News From The Editors
  *HDMI Switch Chip Supports Four 1.65-Gbit/s Channels
  *Power-Management IC Combines Five Programmable Regulators
  *Subminiature Switch Exceeds Sealing And Load Standards
4. Magazine Highlights: July 21, 2005
  *Cover Story: Engineering Feature -- U.S. Military Embraces 
   Commercial Technology
  *Technology Report -- High-Speed Interfaces Supercharge Micros
  *Technology Report -- Wireless Sensors Land Anywhere And 
   Everywhere
  *Leapfrog: Industry First -- Uncooled Thermal Imaging Has 
   Mass-Market Appeal
  *Design View/Design Solution -- Get More Power For Less By Using 
   Class D Amplifiers

Electronic Design UPDATE edited by Lisa Maliniak, eMedia Editor
mailto:[email protected]
****************************************************************

2005 Engineering Hall of Fame

The members of Electronic Design's Engineering Hall of Fame are 
those men and women whose accomplishments have shaped the 
electronics industry and, by extension, our world. It's time to vote 
for the 2005 slate of inductees. Give us a few minutes of your time 
to browse through our list of nominees and tell us who you think 
should be honored this year. Your vote counts!

Go to http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F670:1001CD

****************************************************************

**********************
1. Editor's View -- Exclusive to Electronic Design UPDATE
**********************

Useful Work From Wasted Energy, MEMS Style

By John Novellino, Senior Technology Editor

People have been trying to design a perpetual motion machine for 
ages. That's not going to happen, and most people now realize that. 
They would have to rewrite the laws of physics. But maybe the next 
best thing is a system that performs useful work using energy that 
otherwise would be wasted. That's not new. Today's fashionable 
hybrid cars recharge batteries in part by using energy that is 
dissipated in braking systems. How about a similar device on a micro 
scale? Researchers are reporting success on a self-powered wireless 
sensor system that sounds an awful lot like an electrical analogy to 
the old-fashioned self-winding watch.
   A team at the University of Florida in Gainesville is generating 
electricity, admittedly in very small amounts right now, by 
"harvesting" the vibrational energy created by rotating 
machinery. The goal is to eventually use the electrical power to 
run wireless sensors that would monitor the machinery for 
condition-based maintenance. The researchers have built a 
mesoscale version already. "We're now in the process of 
fabricating a version using micromachining," said Toshi Nishida, 
a professor in the university's Department of Electrical and 
Computer Engineering. "The current version is in the order of 
inches." In fact, the university is seeking companies interested 
in commercializing the new technology.
   The vibration energy harvester consists of three main parts. A 
piezoelectric transducer (PZT) serves as the energy conversion 
device, a specialized power converter rectifies the resulting 
voltage, and a capacitor or battery stores the power. The PZT 
takes the form of an aluminum cantilever with a piezoelectric 
patch. The vibration-induced strain in the PZT produces an ac 
voltage. An ASIC-based IC designed by the team converts the 
voltage to dc that's stored in a rechargeable battery or 
capacitor. 
   Of course, one of the main challenges is to design a practical 
system as small as possible. But the smaller the system, the less 
power available. Right now, the mesoscale harvester prototype, 
which is about 2 in. long, generates on the order of 10 
microwatts for a 1-g vibration at 100 Hz. The frequency is 
important because the cantilever operates best at its resonant 
frequency. So the harvester will be best suited for applications 
like rotating machinery, where the vibration frequency is well 
known and fairly constant. 
   Since traditional power converters just wouldn't work with such 
low power levels, the team designed a custom power processor IC 
that could be run by a 1.2-V energy harvester putting out less 
that 100 microwatts. "One of the challenges is that the 
piezoelectric material has a highly reactive output impedance," 
said Nishida. "To maximize the power output requires you to match 
the impedance as much as possible." But a passive matching scheme 
would require too large an inductance. The team then came up with 
a pulsed-resonant micropower converter topology that uses a low 
switching speed to reduce switching losses and requires an 
inductance only in the tens of microhenries range. The prototype 
device was fabricated on an ASIC using a commercial 0.5-micron 
CMOS process.
   Power consumption was minimized by operating the analog blocks in 
the subthreshold region and activating the blocks only as needed. 
Thus, total dissipation was only about 0.6 microwatt. An 
efficiency just over 70 percent was measured using a large inductor made 
by the researchers. Using an experimental package and smaller 
commercial inductors with higher dc resistances offered average 
efficiencies of 60 percent. In fact, Nishida said better packaging is 
one of the important issues yet to be resolved.
   With such low power levels, the system couldn't run the sensors 
and transmitter continuously. Instead, it would repeatedly charge 
a battery or capacitor, which would operate the measurement 
system at a relatively low duty cycle.
   The team is working on creating a MEMS version of the vibration 
energy harvester using fabrication processes at a MEMS foundry 
and the University of Florida's Nanofabrication Facility. Other 
members of the interdisciplinary team at UF include Professors K. 
Ngo, also of the Department of Electrical and Computer 
Engineering, and L. Cattafesta and M. Sheplak in the Department 
of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Companies interested in 
working on commercializing this technology should contact Karl R. 
Zawoy of the university's Office of Technology Licensing at 
mailto:[email protected].
   
   To comment on this Editor's View, go to Reader Comments at the 
foot of the Web page:
   Electronic Design UPDATE ==> 
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66A:1001CD

****************************************************************

*************************ADVERTISEMENT**************************

Add Networking Capability to Your Products

Imagine providing the ability to access, control, even diagnose and 
repair your products from virtually anywhere...at any time over a 
network or the Internet. XPort(tm) and WiPort(tm) device servers 
enable you to quickly build Ethernet or 802.11b connectivity into 
your designs.

WiPort is even FCC-certified, so you don't need separate certification.
Best of all, design changes are usually minimal or unnecessary.

http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F664:1001CD

****************************************************************

**********************
2. Focus On Embedded
**********************

***Kit Teaches Microcontroller-Based Mechatronic Design
The PICDEM Mechatronics Demonstration Kit helps engineers learn to 
design PIC microcontrollers into electromechanical systems. 
Microchip Technology's new kit comes with nine projects that teach 
users how to read sensors, drive a brush dc or stepper motor, and 
display a value on LEDs or an LCD. In addition, the company's 
Mechatronics Workshop In-a-Box series of hands-on seminars, planned 
to begin in August, will further instruct potential users on how to 
utilize Microchip's semiconductors in electromechanical 
applications. The PICDEM Mechatronics board is very flexible, 
enabling users to experiment with the many peripherals on a typical 
PIC microcontroller and rapidly prototype a design. It has a 40-pin 
and a 20-pin socket, which are compatible with eight-, 14-, and 
20-pin PIC microcontrollers. The board works with other Microchip 
tools for programming and/or debugging the onboard PIC 
microcontroller. The PICDEM Mechatronics Demonstration Kit (part 
number DM163029) is available now for $149.99.
     Microchip Technology Inc. ==> http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F673:1001CD

**********************
3. News -- From The Editors
**********************

***HDMI Switch Chip Supports Four 1.65-Gbit/s Channels
The PI3HDMI412 high-definitition multimedia interface (HDMI) 
supports the transmission of digital television audio-visual signals 
from DVD players, set-top boxes, and additional audio-visual sources 
to television sets, projectors, and other video displays. Developed 
by Pericom, the interface incorporates four differential-channel, 
2:1 multiplexers/demultiplexers. The DVI/HDMI switch was designed 
using high-speed differential broadband switching technology that 
delivers data at rates of up to 1.65 Gbits/s. This enables the 
PI3HDMI412 to provide the resolution (1920 by 1080 pixels) required 
by next-generation HDTV and PC graphics applications. The 
differential switch chip operates from a single 3-V supply. It's 
housed in a 42-contact TDFN leadless package. Samples of the chip 
are immediately available. In 10,000-unit quantities, it costs 
$1.50. Datasheets, application notes, and IBIS models also are 
available.
     Pericom Semiconductor Corp. ==> http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F674:1001CD

***Power-Management IC Combines Five Programmable Regulators
Targeted at low-power portable applications, the SC900 
software-controlled power-management IC incorporates five individual 
ultra-low-dropout (ULDO) regulators in one 4- by 4-mm package. Using 
I2C bus control, designers can quickly modify up to five regulator 
requirements that are often present in battery-operated designs, 
including reset logic, power-good indication, output voltage, and 
active shutdown. All five ULDOs are I2C programmable in 50-mV 
increments from 1.45 to 3.0 V with an accuracy of +/-3 percent, and each 
LDO can be independently enabled/disabled. Output noise is 45 
microvolts (RMS), power-supply rejection ratio is 60 dB at 50 mA, 
and current drawn in sleep mode is approximately 215 microamps for 
all five ULDOs in total operation. The SC900 IC provides 
undervoltage lockout protection, overtemperature protection, and 
short-circuit protection. It's available immediately in an MLPQ-20 
package, and it costs $1.05 in 1000-piece lots. An evaluation kit is 
also available.
     Semtech Corp. ==> http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F675:1001CD

***Subminiature Switch Exceeds Sealing And Load Standards
The D2SW-P sealed subminiature snap-action switch from Omron exceeds 
the sealing requirements of International Electrotechnical 
Commission (IEC) standard IP67. It's available in two ratings: a 2-A 
version for power-switching applications, and a logic switching 
version for use with data circuits that are rated as low as 1 mA. 
The lower rating is achieved by the use of gold-alloy crossbar 
contacts that deliver long operating life even at low logic loads. 
Designers have the choice of four different actuators, three contact 
arrangements, and five types of terminals. This variety of available 
combinations makes the switch adaptable to a wide range of 
applications for moisture-prone environments, including medical 
diagnostic equipment and snowmobiles. The D2SW-P switch ships from 
stock. Prices range from $0.60 to $0.90 for the pc-board and 
solder-terminal versions and from $0.80 to $1.10 for the 
wire-harnessed versions.
     Omron Electronic Components ==> http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F672:1001CD

****************************************************************

Submit Photos And Get Paid! 

Grab some photos showing the "guts and glory" of you (and your team) 
at work. We need them for our "Day in the Life of an Electronic 
Designer" photo essay, which will appear in Electronic Design's Oct. 
20 special issue. There's a $500 Grand Prize for best photo series 
and $250 prize for best photo, and we pay $50 if we use any of your 
photos in the issue. Please include the names and titles of all 
photo subjects, as well as company name and the type of 
work-in-process illustrated by the photo. Digital photos should be 
in .tif or .jpg formats and must have resolution of at least 300 
dpi. Deadline for submission is Sept. 15.

E-mail digital photos to Rich Gawel at mailto:[email protected]

Mail hard-copy photos to:
 
Roger Engelke
Electronic Design
Special Issues Editor
45 Eisenhower Dr., 5th Floor
Paramus, NJ 07652 

****************************************************************

**********************
4. Magazine Highlights
**********************
In case you missed them, here are some of the high points of our 
most recent issue.

July 21, 2005:

* Cover Story: Engineering Feature -- U.S. Military Embraces 
Commercial Technology
A flying, unmanned washing machine? No, but enhanced COTS technology 
designed for white goods is now finding a home in military apps, 
too.
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F665:1001CD

* Technology Report: High-Speed Interfaces Supercharge Micros
High-performance, on-chip interconnects have become a necessity for 
the latest speed-merchant MCUs.
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F667:1001CD

* Technology Report: Wireless Sensors Land Anywhere And Everywhere
They may be modules. Or motes. Or even smart dust. Whatever the 
form, wireless "sensor nets" will make a heavy imprint on the 
industry.
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F668:1001CD

* Leapfrog: Industry First -- Uncooled Thermal Imaging Has 
Mass-Market Appeal
With these temperature-tuned thin-film filters, inexpensive CCD/CMOS 
cameras can sense thermal radiation wavelengths of 8 to 15 microns. 
  
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66B:1001CD

* Design View/Design Solution -- Get More Power For Less By Using 
Class D Amplifiers
Improve the price/performance ratio of your audio amplifiers by 
combining Class D's efficiency with digital signal processing to 
enhance perceived audio quality
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F666:1001CD

For the complete Table of Contents, go to Electronic Design ==>
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66C:1001CD

****************************************************************

Embedded in Electronic Design (EiED) Online is your source for 
technical insight and hands-on reviews. Read one of Bill Wong's 
latest EiED Online columns: Virtual Embedding -- Virtualization has 
its place in mainframes and embedded applications. See why. Bill 
also takes a look at Slick Edit.
http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F669:1001CD

**********************

TAKE A POLL!

Where do you find the most useful information about new products and 
technology?

-- Print magazines
-- E-mail newsletters
-- Google searches
-- Trade shows
-- Fellow designers

Vote at Electronic Design ==> http://www.elecdesign.com

****************************************************************

Designing With Video Signals

Dealing with digital video signals in the analog world can be 
tricky. Arm yourself with knowledge and download our eBook, 
"Analog/Mixed-Signal Components For 21st Century Video," by 
Analog/Power Editor Don Tuite. Chapter 1 covers the basics, Chapter 
2 discusses interfacing video amps to digital-to-analog converters, 
and the recently added Chapter 3 deals with video multiplexing and 
driving unshielded twisted pairs.

http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66E:1001CD

****************************************************************
Need To Go Green? We Can Help!

The European Union, as well as Japan and China, are about to 
restrict the use of environmentally hazardous materials in 
electronic components and systems through the Restrictions on 
Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive. Electronic Design's RoHS 
Reference Center has the information you need to make the shift to 
green designs. The third chapter of our eBook, "Electronic Design's 
Guide To New International Environmental Laws," is now available for 
download. And don't miss our comprehensive list of industry and 
government Web sites and contacts.

http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F671:1001CD

****************************************************************
SUBSCRIBE ONLINE TO ELECTRONIC DESIGN
If you're reading this e-newsletter, then you are either a current 
Electronic Design subscriber, or should be (145,000 of your peers 
are). To apply for or renew a subscription to Electronic Design 
absolutely FREE and without paperwork or hassle, click on the link 
below.

http://nls.planetee.com/t?ctl=F66F:1001CD
****************************************************************

==================================

CONTACTS: Electronic Design UPDATE e-NEWSLETTER
==================================

Editorial: Mark David, Editor-in-Chief
mailto:[email protected]

Advertising/Sponsorship Opportunities: Bill Baumann, Publisher:
mailto:[email protected]
=======================================

You've received this e-newsletter for one of two reasons:
1) you subscribe to Electronic Design magazine
2) you've signed up for it at
http://www.planetee.com/Index.cfm?Action=Email

Please see below for unsubscribe and address-change instructions.

To subscribe visit our e-newsletter subscription center at 
http://www.planetee.com/Index.cfm?Action=Email

To unsubscribe click here 
http://nls.planetee.com/u?id=DAC10E05C26BA8729DA2052301F69A34