February 23, 2012
The new SIPLACE Line Monitor presents the status of an individual SMT placement machine in a clear and easy-to-grasp manner with ‘traffic light’ indicators, colorful graphics and lists – all on a single screen. With the SIPLACE Line Monitor, the operating staff can keep everything under control even in high-mix production environments and prevent material-related production stops – still one of the most effective efficiency killers in modern electronics production. Splicing requirements, how many units of a product have already been produced, which MSD reels are due to be returned to the cabinet – the SIPLACE Line Monitor tells you all this and a whole lot more at a single glance. All this information makes it easy for the operating and warehouse staff to properly prioritize their activities. Installed in one or more central locations on the production floor, the SIPLACE Line Monitor prevents lots of trips between machines, frees up time and creates transparency for a trouble-free production flow. With SIPLACE Line Monitor everything under control at a single glance: Splicing requirements, how many units of a product have already been produced, which MSD reels are due to be returned to the cabinet.“The SIPLACE Line Monitor supports the opera
Stefan Skarin, Trygve Angell, Linda OrtstadIAR Systems® announces that Embedded Norway AS is the new distributor of IAR Systems products for the Norwegian market as of December 5, 2011. Embedded Norway AS is founded by Gerd Aida Refvik and Trygve Angell who both has extensive background and experience from application development. Trygve Angell has also been Chairman of the Board for IAR Systems AB from 2006 to 2010. Embedded Norway AS will sell and support all of IAR Systems products, including the very popular compiler and debugger tool suite IAR Embedded Workbench®. IAR Embedded Workbench is a high-performance C/C++ compiler and debugger tool suite for applications based on 8-, 16-, and 32-bit microcontrollers. IAR Systems collaborates with all leading silicon vendors worldwide to ensure that the software supports more devices in more processor architectures than any other tool on the market. The market for embedded systems is growing rapidly and reaches into new market and industry segments. Application vendors need to get new products rapidly to the market place, keeping track of quality in all major parts of the development cycle. IAR Systems with its world class products and services is the leading independent vendor of embedded develop
The system specialist ELMA Electronic GmbH, based in Pforzheim Germany, enriches its product range by two very useful improvements. From now on, all type 39 series systems are serially equipped with a new fan controller and optionally with a new system monitor. The new system monitor can process protocols such as TCP/IP, HTTP, TFTP, SNMP V2, DHCP and Telnet what enables the user to control the system via remote access. Voltage, temperature and fan speed values can be retrieved from the system or special “events” can be set. With the new fan controller, many system settings that so far had to be taken statically can now be preset. Thanks to the integrated micro controller, the user can define temperature regulation and time of ventilation autostart function via serial interface. Values to be controlled are easily accessible via I2C or serial interface. Furthermore, it is possible to activate digital temperature sensors at the fan controller or to connect a LCD display and visualize current temperature and fan speed of the system. In parallel to these upgrades, the company starts a special sales campaign, where various CompactPCI systems of the type 39 series are offered
ODU develops reliable solutions in the connector area for many well-known companies. The result? High quality innovative products for the global market. These connector systems offer clear benefits: • Very large number of mating cycles for profitable demands • Absolute contact stability for reliable action • Easy condition for quick action • Unmistakable connector position for reliable work • High visibility for faultless handling. ODU MINI- SNAP Connectors ODU offers five different series of cylindrical miniature connectors. * Series L and F are compatible with the connectors produced by companies with the same field of application. This is the optimal solution by custom specific developments.Cable assembly using ODU MINI-SNAP Two of the options of connecting the strands to
Adding bootloading capabilities to embedded applications provides the framework to update firmware running on a microcontroller (MCU) at any time. This capability is beneficial if the final firmware image contains a bug, if the firmware image needs to be programmed into an MCU after the final product is assembled, or if an application’s firmware needs to be updated in the field. Any communication protocol can be used for bootloading as long as the MCU has a means of communicating using the chosen protocol and enough free code space to store the bootloader firmware. By Evan Schulz, Applications Engineer, Embedded Mixed-Signal Products, Silicon Labs The Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) or System Management Bus (SMBus) protocols are commonly used by MCUs, require only two wires for communication, and can be implemented in a small amount of firmware, making these protocols ideal candidates to use in a bootloader. Updated bootloader-ready firmware images can be sent to the target device by a separate MCU or a fixed-function communication bridge connected to a PC. Let’s examine general bootloader design considerations, as well as I2C/SMBus-specific implementation techniques for embedded MCU applications. First, we will cover some basic information of the I2C protocol, including hardware and firmware considerations. The I2C protocol requires two signals – serial data (SDA) and serial clock (SCL) -- for communication with other integrated circuits in
The level of performance called for in medical imaging and simulation is often so high that even the latest multicore processors find it difficult to keep up. An efficient alternative to the supercomputers otherwise needed to meet the kind of requirements presented by medical diagnostics and therapy can be found in today’s extremely high-performing general purpose graphics processing unit (GPGPU) technology and tools with which the massive parallel computing power of modern graphics cards is easily channeled. AMD now makes this technology available long-term for the embedded market in the form of the ATI Radeon™ HD 5770 and the new AMD Radeon E6760 GPGPU. The thirst for more performance has been driving processor developments from one extreme to the next — faster clocking, more bit width and ever smaller fabrication volumes are meant to further optimize the performance rewards. The next step in the x86 market was the introduction of multicore technology, consuming about the same power but multiplying performance. Nevertheless, even the new multicore processors are often no match for applications in which you want to process large quantities of data as fast as possible. Because in imaging diagnostics such as MRT and CT, for in-stance, using solutions set up on multicore technology may still mean having to wait severa
Melexis extends its family of smart LIN slave IC's with a new Generation of reconfigurable LIN switch slave. The LIN bus standard, and it’s SAE version, J2602 experience rapid growth in automotive networking due to the cost effective and robust nature of the protocol and its compatibility to CAN bus. The MLX80105 connects any door, roof, seat, steering wheel, dashboard, HVAC, light control or similar switch module requiring easy access via LIN. The integration of LIN physical layer, voltage regulator and integrated application IO’s result in a reduction in component cost. The integration of LIN controller and approved LIN driver make switch modules speak LIN in no time. Incorporating the Melexis LIN transceiver physical layer, Melexis LIN ASSPs (Application Specific Standard Products) guarantee world leading integrated ESD protection results. The LIN protocol handler meets all LIN standards like LIN2.0, LIN2.1 as well as SAE J2602. The MLX80105 is a fully integrated LIN slave on a single chip. All of the necessary components; physical layer LIN transceiver, LIN controller, voltage regulator, application controller are integrated along with the supporting functions ADC, PWM generation and high voltage capable IOs. This high integration level reduces the BOM dramatically and enables the development of very compact a
New techniques are pushing embedded power management beyond Sleep mode, as Jason Tollefson of Microchip Technology Inc., explains With sleep modes no longer able to deliver the energy economies which can support a new generation of products with decade-long battery life-times, or keep pace with the surge in ‘green’ demands, microcontroller manufacturers are turning to new techniques to take embedded power management beyond the conventional Sleep mode. Recently, for example, microcontroller (MCU) manufacturers have begun to use electronic ‘switches’ to completely remove power from some parts of the chip when they are not in use; voltage supervisory circuits have also advanced so that they can deliver continuous control whilst drawing the most minimal amount of battery power. By exploring these emerging technologies, some insight can be gained into how they can be implemented for maximum effect. Sleep shows its age Traditionally, the MCU’s Sleep mode has been the embedded designer’s most useful power-management tool. But Sleep mode has been around for many years and its age is beginning to Figure 1: The PIC24F16KA XLP uses Deep Sleep to reduce power consumptionshow: It can no longer be relied on to reach the continuously moving be
The majority of users of brand-name measuring equipment probably think that top-class instruments are purchased by means of manufacturer’s trade representatives. Evolution of sales forms has also reached this group of products. Nowadays, to become an owner of a top class oscilloscope it is enough to click few times on a Website. At present LeCroy appliances can be purchased in TME online shop (www.tme.eu). The offer comprises of models belonging to several families differing by functional features, technical parameters, screen size and price. This simple form of a purchase does not deprive customers of technical support. Engineers dealing exclusively with measuring devices are always willing to help. WaveAce The first group comprises of WaveAce oscilloscopes that is exemplified by the WaveAce 224 model (TME symbol: LC-ACE224). WaveAce oscilloscopes represent a popular class, however, they are characterized by performance quality and multiple measuring functions. They are designed to perform basic measurements in construction laboratories and service stations. The maximum length of the record is equal to 20 kpoints/channel helps intercept in one release 2 or even 3 times more data than in cheaper oscilloscopes. The WaveAce 224A model is equipped with a colored LCD display with a 320 x 240 pixel matrix. This is
Heliatek GmbH, a global leader in high-end solar PV technology, has once again set a new world record for organic solar cells after Fraunhofer ISE CalLab certified a cell efficiency of 9.8 % for a 1.1 cm² tandem cell manufactured with a low temperature deposition process. This new record makes the third time in a row that Heliatek has set a world record for efficiency in the field of organic photovoltaic and demonstrates its continuous technology leadership in organic solar. One year ago, Heliatek GmbH set a world record for efficiency of 8.3 % for an active surface of 1.1 cm². Thanks to its most recent developments, Heliatek has now been able to make a remarkable 1.5 % leap in cell efficiency, to 9.8 %. This new record was measured and certified by the independent Fraunhofer ISE CalLab (Freiburg, Germany) under standard test conditions. Dr. Martin Pfeiffer, co-founder and CTO of Heliatek, explains: “Heliatek is the only solar company in the world focused on the deposition of small molecules with low temperature processes, a method that has already been widely adopted by the market for use with organic LEDs (OLEDs). Heliatek develops and synthesizes in-house the molecules responsible for capturing light in solar cells and converting this light into electricity. The new world record is a clear indication that Heliatek is headed in the right direction. Organic solar cells from Heliatek have now reached the level of efficiency of conventional solar cells made from
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