Bisinfotech Magazine August Issue 2021

AUGUST 2021 80.00

R.N.I. No: DELENG/2019/77352 l VOL 3 l ISSUE 08 l TOTAL PAGES 64 l PUBLISHED ON 1ST OF EVERY MONTH |WWW.BISINFOTECH.COM

AI

REMODELING HEALTHCARE

Taking Stock of Industrial Automation Demystifying EMC - Why EMI Debugging?

How to Design Modular DC DC Systems?

How To Design Robust Smart Locks?

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Sanjay Bisen CoFounder & CTO

AMANTYA TECHNOLOGIES

Robots - From automated to Autonomous

Smart Times Ahead for Lighting

Innovative Power Solutions in Legacy AC/DC Market

OFC - Backbone of the Network, Today & Tomorrow

BEST B2B Magazine Converging Technology

Impulse Past and Embed Future of Tech With BISinfotech!

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The Future Stows Here!

Editorial The COVID-19 outbreak has upended many lives and businesses on an unprecedented scale. The pandemic is going to negatively impact the medical robots market as well. The pandemic has led to a temporary ban on elective surgeries across the globe, which resulted in cancellations of elective surgeries worldwide.

The emerging markets are expected to offer significant opportunities for players in the medical robots market, mainly due to the rising adoption of surgical robots in surgeries. The emerging countries have registered a sustained increase in the number of surgical procedures during the past decade, driven by the growing target patient population and rising medical tourism. As of 2017, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa were among the fastest-growing economies in the world and are expected to account for one-third of the total global healthcare expenditure by 2022 (Source: World Economic Forum).

Emerging countries such as India offer radiotherapy treatment options at a lesser price as compared to developed countries. Thus, the growing healthcare expenditure and surgical procedures, coupled with business expansions of major players in the emerging markets, are likely to present high growth opportunities for the medical robots market.

The India surgical robotics market was valued at INR 7.02 billion in 2017 and is anticipated to reach INR 26.01 billion in 2024, expanding at a CAGR of 19.8%.

The Indian healthcare industry started embracing surgical robotics during the mid-2000s. Increase in the number of surgical robots from six in 2009 to around 100 in 2019 has helped to shape up the domestic market for surgical robotics.

The adoption of robotics in surgical intervention has provided enormous impetus to the Indian healthcare sector. Healthcare facilities in Indian cities like Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, and Kolkata are offering robot-assisted surgical services.

Opportunities are there and all we need is to reach for it. In a world that is evolving very fast, the only plan that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.

Happy Reading!!!

ManasNandi

MANAS NANDI EDITOR manas@bisinfotech.com CONSULTANT EDITOR & External Communication NILOY BANERJEE niloy@bisinfotech.com SENIOR SUB-EDITOR NITISHA DUBEY nitisha@bisinfotech.com CORRESPONDENT AISHWARYA SAXENA editorial@bisinfotech.com WEB DEVELOPMENT MANAGER JITENDER KUMAR

DESIGN HEAD DEEPAK SHARMA

Bisinfotech is printed, published, edited and owned by Manas Nandi and published from 303, 2nd floor, Neelkanth Palace, Plot No- 190, Sant Nagar,East of Kailash, New Delhi- 110065 (INDIA), Printed at Swastika Creation 19 DSIDC Shed, Scheme No. 3, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-II, New Delhi- 110020

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Editor, Publisher, Printer and Owner make every effort to ensure high quality and accuracy of the content published. However he cannot accept any responsibility for any effects from errors or omissions.

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Editor and publisher. The information in the content and advertisement published in the magazine are just for reference of the readers. However, readers are cautioned to make inquiries and take their decision on purchase or investment after consulting experts on the subject. BisInfotech holds no responsibility for any decision taken by readers on the basis of the information provided herein. Any unauthorised reproduction of Bisinfotech magazine content is strictly forbidden. Subject to Delhi Jurisdiction.

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Contents 08

COVER STORY AI EXPERTS & INDIAN HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY

12 INDUSTRY 4.0 - COLUMN TAKING STOCK OF INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION – 2020 & MOVING FORWARD

14 WHITE PAPER LOW NOISE AND LOW POWER DAQ SOLUTION FOR SEISMOLOGY AND ENERGY EXPLORATION APPLICATIONS 20 BIG PICTURE - EXCLUSIVE A PRODUCT ENGINEERING & SYSTEMS INTEGRATION COMPANY LEADING IN 5G, IOT, AI ML, EDGE & CLOUD SECTORS

Anil Kumar

Director of Inovance, Technology India – An Industrial, Automation Group

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T&M - EXCLUSIVE DEMYSTIFYING EMC – WHY EMI DEBUGGING?

12

Sanjay Bisen

CoFounder & CTO AMANTYA TECHNOLOGIES

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26 POWER - FEATURE

NEW INNOVATIVE POWER SOLUTIONS IN LEGACY AC/DCMARKET

28 ELECTRONICS - FUTURE

HOW TO DESIGN ROBUST SMART LOCKS, WINDOW, AND DOOR POSITION SENSORS

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T&M - COLUMN OFC – BACKBONE OF THE NETWORK, TODAY AND TOMORROW

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WHITE PAPER HOW TO DESIGN MODULAR DC DC SYSTEMS, PART 3:STABILITY ANALYSIS AND DECOUPLING

Rahul Gautam

Director Market Development- Automotive, EMC, Rohde & Schwarz India

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Ryan Sheahen

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Rajeev Khushu

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Global Strategic Marketing Manager Electronics Business, Littelfuse

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POWER - DESIGN MICROBRICKTM: A SIMPLE SOLUTION TO BUILDING EFFICIENT HIGH DENSITY DC/DC CONVERTERS WITH A WIDE INPUT VOLTAGE RANGE

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BIG PICTURE HOW SEMICONDUCTORS WILL POWER WILL POWER THE DATA -DRIVEN CAR IN NEXT 30 YEARS?

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ROBOTIC - FEATURE ROBOTS: FROM AUTOMATED TO AUTONOMOUS

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BIG PICTURE RAJEEV KHUSHU, DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS & GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, TEXAS INSTRUMENTS AND THE CHAIRMAN OF IESA

Rajesh Gupta

Director, Country Manager-India Sales, Micron

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Director of Corporate Affairs & Government Relations, Texas Instruments & the Chairman of IESA

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> COVER

STORY

AI EXPERTS &

Indian Health Dr.Manjiri Bakre

CEO & Founder, OncoStem Diagnostics Pvt Ltd

Chaith Kondragunta CEO, AIRA Matrix

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Sigal Atzmon Founder & CEO, Medix Global

Raktim Chattopadhay

Founder and CEO, Esperer Nutrition (EON)

Raj Janapareddy Founder & CSO, Healpha

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hcare Industry

- Nitisha Dubey

The potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to transform every sector is no more a myth. Alike every industry churning to unearth the best out of this novel technology, healthcare industry is said to be the earliest industry taking benefits of AI. From the last few years, AI has showcased major growth, and due to the pandemic we have seen a major boom in this segment. Overall, the growth of AI in healthcare industry has marked an unbelievable growth. Today doctors have been solving cases and even diagnosing major diseases through the vital power of AI. Technology and specifically AI has made everything possible, handling patients while following the social distancing or taking doctor prescription remotely is only a few steps ahead. The acceptance of AI in healthcare industry is slowly catching the pace.

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According to a report by ResearchandMarkets, the applications of artificial intelligence in the healthcare space will be worth Rs.431.97 Bn by 2021.

The market condition says that the healthcare industry will see tremendous growth in coming time. There are few major challenges, like: handling medical procedures, high-quality services, training doctors, etc. which are going to be sorted soon. While focusing on the same we catch-up with Chaith Kondragunta, CEO, AIRA Matrix; Dr.Manjiri Bakre, CEO and Founder, OncoStem Diagnostics Pvt Ltd; Raj Janapareddy, Founder & CSO, Healpha; Raktim Chattopadhay, Founder and CEO, Esperer Nutrition (EON) and Sigal Atzmon, Founder & CEO, Medix Global.

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Importance of AI in HeaIthcare Industry

While highlighting the importance of artificial intelligence in healthcare industry, Chaith says AI technologies are transforming from being evolutionary to becoming more revolutionary. AI is now able to identify patterns in healthcare data that are not apparent to the human observer, and can predict outcomes that surpass the computational ability of the human brain. This has already opened new paradigms in precision diagnostics and personalised medicine.

“Deep/Machine Learning-based solutions are now being increasingly applied in screening and triaging for effective primary care, in decision support systems for disease diagnosis and prognostication, for prediction of disease progression, to enable personalised therapy regimens, assist in robotic surgeries and as virtual nursing assistants to help post-operative care.

Artificial Intelligence is helping make delivery more efficient and personalised with improved healthcare outcomes”, he added.

AI has been successfully and effectively used in area of radiology which has its implications in diagnosis/detection/ prediction of diseases related to neurology, cardiology, cancer etc. The role of AI is significant and far-reaching for a complex disease like cancer. This technology has found its place in different domains of cancer like screening, detection, diagnosis, and prognosis, explained Manjiri.

Raj shared the usages’ of AI in healthcare industry. He says, I personally see artificial intelligence being used in the entire healthcare life cycle management. Some of the key areas Dx, Tx, Rx and in discovery of tests, medicines, vaccines and treatments.

AI is becoming more sophisticated at doing what humans do, but more efficiently, faster, and for less money. Both AI and robotics have enormous potential in healthcare. AI and robotics are increasingly a component of our healthcare eco-system, just as they are in our daily lives, said Raktim.

Whereas Sigal says that AI is effective in areas of early detection, diagnosis, treatment, prediction and prognosis evaluation in diseases such as cancer, neurology and cardiology. Through application of big data analytics, one can gather relevant information from piles of healthcare data, such insight can assist in clinical decisions. For e.g. Zebra-Med’s AI1™platform is integrated with Apollo Radiology International’s dedicated COVID Reporting Center that reviews and analyzes all CT scans received across Apollo Hospitals around India.

Challenges & Scopes

The digital transformation in healthcare sector is not as easy as another sector. The main issue is with the processing data and analysis. All clinics or hospitals have a numerous amount of data and for handling those data, we should have robust AI systems.

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Chaith agrees with our point, he says Deep Learning-based solutions typically need to train on vast amounts of annotated data. Availability of such data sets for training is a huge challenge in the development of Artificial Intelligence solutions.

Ensuring heterogeneity in patient data in terms of age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, geography, genetics, etc. in the training data is essential to develop an algorithm that gives unbiased outputs and is universally applicable. Collating this kind of variable data can prove to be a daunting task.

While focusing on security issues, Manjiri explained that accessing personal medical records of patients is strictly protected. In recent years data sharing between hospitals and AI companies has generated controversy, highlighting several ethical questions. Patient privacy and the ethics of data ownership is a major challenge for AI in healthcare.

There is another challenge of software bugs, while testing the patients quality assurance going to play huge role.

So, introducing a website for medical products that is negatively affect than the image of companies that produce them as well as the medical professionals, hospitals, and patients are going to be ruined.

Raktim clarified it and said, the pressure is going to be double on healthcare systems and equipments. Integration and legal challenges can be taken.

While sharing the scope of AI in healthcare industry, Sigal shared that at present, India faces many challenges when it comes to the distribution of healthcare. A dearth of clinicians, inadequate infrastructure, insufficient government investment, high-treatment costs, weak doctor-patient ratio, late diagnosis, overworked doctors and ailment unawareness are some of the problems. According to World Bank, nearly two-thirds of India’s population lives in rural areas but is served by one-third of the country’s doctors. This statistic has further encouraged innovative companies to use AI to remedy the shortfall by helping low-skilled health workers diagnose medical conditions.

Raj also agreed with Sigal, he says artificial intelligence is already being embraced and I foresee that it will be an integral component of healthcare. This will enable us to provide universal healthcare to all, especially the underserved and unreached.

Sigal adds,the government is also trying to create a national digital health infrastructure, which has introduced multiple entities for specific functions. Some of these include a ‘Healthlocker’ – an electronic national health registry and cloud-based data storage system that would serve as a single source of health data for the nation. Also introduced was a federated personal health records (PHR) framework that would allow data to be available both to citizens and for medical research. There is also a coverage and claims platform that would support large health protection schemes, a national health analytics platform and a unique digital health ID for each citizen.

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Future of AI in Healthcare Industry

The transformation of healthcare industry can be seen widely by us as it has drastically improved. The advance machine, applications and other technologies have made our each medication work quite easier.

While explaining the transformation Chaith says, AI holds the promise of playing a significant role in disease prevention – by predicting disease and its progression path, before the symptoms fully manifest. This opens a proactive approach to disease prevention and healthcare. In the near future, AI applications can also help translate intelligence gained from the ‘gold standard’ but invasive diagnostic procedures like histopathological examination of biopsies to improve performance of less accurate but non-invasive procedures like radiology imaging. This type of AI applications provides the promise of easing the procedural burden on the patient, reducing patient morbidity and making healthcare diagnostics cost effective.

Manjiri says, the best opportunities for AI in healthcare over the next few years are hybrid models, where clinicians are supported in diagnosis, treatment planning, and identifying risk factors, but retain ultimate responsibility for the patient’s care. This will result in faster adoption by healthcare providers by mitigating perceived risk and start to deliver measurable improvements in patient outcomes and operational efficiency at scale.

AI can transform healthcare and health delivery completely.

It will be virtual, real-time, on-line and most importantly frictionless. Thereby, providing universal healthcare accessible and affordable to anyone, anywhere, anytime. Patients would consume healthcare like OTT channels i.e. at their own time, own space, own pace, own language, own preference, clarified Raj. In the complex and evolving field of medical science, doctors would have the last word, not AI. It’s a value-add, an enabler and an assistive guide to medical doctors to efficiently run the healthcare system and achieve better patient outcomes.

Considering the healthcare demands of a young population, aging demography and the Indian middle class, AI portends a healthy prognosis, added Sigal.

AI offerings for Healthcare Industry

AIRA Matrix provides AI-driven solutions that aid predictive medicine, precision diagnostics and personalised healthcare.

These solutions are focused on two areas: Cancer Diagnostics and Ophthalmology. In the Cancer diagnostics space, the solutions aid screening, diagnosis, risk stratification and prediction, in prostate and lung cancer. As an example, AIRA Matrix’s solution for prostate cancer helps in effective risk stratification of patients at the outset, ensuring that morbidity and mortality due to over and under diagnosis of prostate cancer are reduced. This helps physicians visualise the course of the disease and effectively tailor treatment, in line with the projected trajectory. In the Ophthalmology space, they

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provide solutions for screening and point of care diagnosis of common blindness causing diseases, also grading and monitoring them. Its predictive analytics project in this area, is aimed at developing a solution for predicting the onset of neuro-degenerative disorders (Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinsonism, etc.) based on non- invasive modalities like retinal scans.

OncoStem’s mission is to provide precise prognostic solutions to cancer patients minimizing the serious side-effects of unnecessary therapies like chemotherapy. Towards this goal they have launched its flagship product ‘CanAssist Breast’ (CAB) that helps to personalize treatment for woman diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. CAB uses immunohistochemistry technique and artificial intelligence to assess the need of chemotherapy in HR+ HER2-ve early breast cancer patients.

CAB predicts the ‘risk of cancer recurrence’ in 5 years from diagnosis for eligible patient, based on which treatment is planned, if the risk is ‘low’ patient can ‘avoid’ chemotherapy and if risk is ‘high’ patients will ‘need/benefit from’ chemotherapy.

CAB is an advanced biomarker-based test performed on patient’s tumor samples in OncoStem’s central NABL, CAP accredited laboratory in Bangalore. CAB helps to reduce ‘overtreatment’ in hormone receptor positive early-stage breast cancer patients with chemotherapy.

Healpha is a connected healthcare solution providing 360 degree care encompassing Preventive, Curative and Managed care. They use AI for various applications such as: Detection and diagnosis, Treatment, Prescription, Voice / Speech, Virtual assistants and Bots in health delivery. AI has enabled Healpha to save 10s of thousands of people from overcoming blindness, deafness, ENT and other ailments.

Esperer is evaluating research based scientific nutrition on an ongoing basis and aspires to become the pioneer in customised, personalised nutrition which can be made available to the person with entry of a few data points and at the click of a button.

The focus at Medix is that we see AI and data driven healthcare as an important element of the eco-system which will enable to tailor solutions while streamlining processes and making healthcare provision more efficient.

The biggest issue of patients in countries like India is where to go for and get in touch with the best available doctor and services.

Medix has a global network of over 4,000 specialists and 2,000 leading hospitals, besides 400 plus in-house doctors alongside nurses, medical admin and research teams. It’s AI and digital health tools can connect a patient to the best doctor across the globe. Medix service offerings slightly depend upon the market, but its range of services includes: personal medical case management; disease prevention management services; medical concierge & medical tourism, digital health & AI driven solutions; services for high mobility employees; home care, clinical strategy and medical governance services.

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> INDUSTRY

4.0 - COLUMN

Taking Stock Of Industrial Automation – 2020 & Moving Forward It’s fair to say that the last year was not easy for anyone in India, but here at Inovance Technology India we’ve benefited from an incredible effort on the part of our staff who have kept our company going. Our teams have worked incredibly hard to ensure operations have run smoothly.

Their recent achievements have included getting our Chennai HQ certified ISO 9001 by TUV SUD. While, like everyone, our business has struggled in the pandemic, we have been aided by the wide breadth of our industrial automation portfolio – which extends from AC drives to PLCs, and also includes a range of industry specific products.

Growth in industrial automation is a global trend – and India is along for the ride Despite severe troubles in the short run, in the long run, we see a future of global growth in industrial automation. Many Anil Kumar manufacturers have sped up Director of Inovance their existing automation plans Technology India – An Industrial Automation Group in order to accommodate the likely ongoing need for social distancing. And, once they have implemented automation, they will see the long term benefits and will not be returning to their old labour-intensive ways.

For us at Inovance Technology India, when this is over, we expect strong growth in the Indian market for all sectors of industrial automation, even including more sophisticated kit, such as the IS810 multi-axes servo drive platform, which offers maximum performance in the most demanding applications, and is newly launched on the Indian market. IS810N is a modular, scalable servo drive platform designed for the most complex and demanding multi-axes applications.

The Inovance product range includes AC drives, servo drives and motors, as well as PLCs, HMIs, CNCs and industrial robots

Such breadth has enabled us to focus on specific industry verticals such as plastic injection molding machines. To take this segment as an example, Inovance offers the IS580 – a dedicated servo drive for energy saving servo pumps in plastic injection molding machines, as well as the ISMG high response servo motor, which is also designed specifically for plastic injection molding machinery.

Inovance’s IS580 is a dedicated servo drive for plastic injection machines

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The IS810N servo drive is designed for high-performance multi-axes applications such as advanced printing machines

Supply chain resilience has a new resonance

The pandemic is changing attitudes toward supply chains: and supply chain managers are starting to think as much about resilience as they are about efficiency. The implication of this is that there will be a major boost for the concept of ‘Make in India’, and I see a likelihood of significant growth in Indian domestic manufacturing – and therefore of Indian OEMs also – as a result.

To learn more visit us online: www.inovance.eu/india

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R&S®CMP180 Radio Communication Tester

THE FUTURE INTEGRATED. Enhanced frequency and bandwidth for advanced wireless technology testing from R&D to production.

The R&S®CMP180 radio communication tester is a future-proof, non-signaling testing solution for wireless devices in research and development, validation and production. Together with advanced frequency, bandwidth and RF capabilities, it enables testing of new wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi 6E, Wi-Fi 7, 5G NR FR1 and many more. Additionally, the doubled number of analyzers (2xVSA), generators (2xVSG) and RF ports (2x8) enable simultaneous measurements of technologies and devices in a VSA / VSG single-box tester. ► Frequency up to 8 GHz and bandwidth of 500 MHz ► Two independent RF channels (2x VSA / 2x VSG) ► Increased number of RF ports (2x8) ► Self-alignment function - on-site calibration ► Compact design of 2 HU and 19”

Find out more: www.rohde-schwarz.com/product/CMP180

> WHITE

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Low Noise and Low Power DAQ Solution for Seismology and Energy Exploration Applications Precision data acquisition (DAQ) systems are popular in industrial applications. In some DAQ applications, low power and ultralow noise are required. One example is seismic sensor-related applications, where a lot of information can be extracted from seismic data that is useful for a wide range of applications such as structural health monitoring, geophysical research, oil exploration, and even industrial and household safety.1

DAQ Signal Chain Requirements

Seismic geophones are electromechanical conversion devices that convert ground vibration signals into electrical signals. They are suitable for high resolution seismic exploration. They are implanted in the ground along arrays to measure the time of returns of seismic waves as they are reflected off discontinuity surfaces such as bedding planes, as shown in Figure 1.

This article introduces two signal chain solutions to achieve the following targeted requirements: ► Gain of PGIA: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 ► ADC with integrated programmable wideband filter ► RTI noise at gain = 1 (300 Hz to ~400 Hz with –3 dB bandwidth) with 1.0 μV rms ► THD: –120 dB at gain = 1 ► CMRR at gain = 1 with >100 dB ► Power consumption (PGIA plus ADC): 33 mW ► Secondary channel for self-test

DAQ Signal Chain Solution

There is no single precision ADC that has all the features and that can achieve such low noise and THD on the ADI website, nor is there a PGIA that can provide such low noise and low power. However, ADI provides great precision amplifiers and precision ADCs to build signal chains to achieve the target.

To build a low noise, low distortion, and low power consumption PGIA, the ultralow noise ADA4084-2 or zero-drift amplifier ADA4522-2 are good candidates. For very high precision ADCs, the 24-bit sigma-delta ADC AD7768-1 or 32-bit SAR ADC LTC2500-32 can be the best options. They provide configurable ODR with an integrated flat low-pass FIR filter for different DAQ applications.

Seismic Signal Chain Solution: ADA4084-2 PGIA and AD7768-1 Figure 1. Seismic source and geophone array.

To capture the small output signal from the geophones, a high sensitivity DAQ signal chain must be built for data analysis. The total rms noise should be = 1.0 μV rms with a limited flat lowpass bandwidth range of 300 Hz to ~400 Hz, while the signal chain should achieve a THD of around –120 dB. Since the seismic instrument is battery-supplied, the power dissipation should be balanced around 30 mW.

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The total signal chain is shown in Figure 2. The ADA4084-2, the ADG658, and 0.1% resistors can build a low noise and low THD PGIA for up to eight different selectable gain options.

The AD7768-1 is a single-channel low power, –120 dB THD platform. It has a low ripple programmable FIR, DC to 110.8 kHz digital filter, and it uses the LT6657 as its reference device.

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A high impedance source should be buffered to minimize settling time during acquisition and to optimize the switch cap input SAR ADC linearity. For best performance, a buffer amplifier should be used to drive the analog inputs of the LTC2500-32. A discrete PGIA circuit must be designed to drive LTC2500-32 for both low noise and low THD, which is introduced in the PGIA section.

PGIA Implementation

The key specifications of a PGIA circuit include: ► Power supply: 5 V minimum ► Since the AD7768-1 has 19.7 mW, the PGIA circuit should be <13.3 mW to meet the 33 mW power consumption target Figure 2. ADA4084-2 PGIA and AD7768-1 plus MCU filtering ► Noise: the noise at gain = 1 is 0.178 μV rms, about 1/10 of signal chain solution.

AD7768-1’s 1.78 μV rms AD7768-1 can get 1.76 μV rms noise running at an ODR of 1 There are three types of PGIA topologies: kSPS with power consumption of 10 mW in low power mode. ► An integrated PGIA To achieve a final 1.0 μV rms noise, it can run at higher ODR, ► A discrete PGIA with an integrated instrumentation amplifier such as 16 kSPS in median mode. When AD7768-1 runs at higher ► A discrete PGIA with an operational amplifier modulator frequency, it has a lower noise floor, as shown in Figure 3, with higher power consumption. A flat low-pass FIR Table 1 lists ADI’s digital PGIAs. The LTC6915 has the lowest filter algorithm can be implemented in the MCU software to IQ. With 50 nV/√Hz noise density, the integrated noise within remove the higher bandwidth noise and decimate the final the 430 Hz BW is 1.036 μV rms, which exceeds the 0.178 μV ODR to 1 kSPS. The final rms noise will be ar ound one fourth rms target. Because of this, an integrated PGIA is not a good of 3.55 μV, which is 0.9 μV. choice.

Table 2 lists several instrumentation amplifiers, including the 300 μA IQ AD8422. The integrated noise within 430 Hz BW is 1.645 μV rms, so it is not a good choice, either.

Figure 3. Balancing the AD7768-1’s ODR for targeted noise with MCU postfiltering.

As one example, the MCU software FIR filter can be made as shown in Figure 4 to balance performance and group delay.

Figure 5. ADA4084-2 PGIA and LTC2500-32 signal chain solution.

Seismic Signal Chain Solution: ADA4084-2 PGIA and LTC2500-32 The LTC2500-32 is a low noise, low power, high performance 32-bit SAR ADC with an integrated configurable digital filter.

With 32-bit digitally filtered low noise and low INL output, it is targeted for seismology and energy exploration.

Figure 4. MCU post-FIR filter stages.

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Figure 6. LTC2500-32 flat pass-band filter noise for different downsampling factors.

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Figure 7. Block diagram of a discrete PGIA.

Discrete PGIA by Operational Amplifiers

The article, “Programmable Gain Instrumentation Amplifiers: Finding One that Works for You” discusses the various integrated PGIAs and supplies good guidelines for building a discrete PGIA when trying to meet a specific requirement.2 Figure 7 shows the block diagram of a discrete PGIA circuit.

ADG659/ADG658 can be chosen with lo w capacitance and 5 V po wer supply.

For op amps, IQ (<1 mA per channel) and noise (<6 nV/√ Hz voltage noise density) are key specifications. The precision op amps ADA4522-2 and ADA4084-2 are good choices, with their features listed in Table 3.

For gain resistors, 1.2 kΩ/300 Ω/75 Ω/25 Ω resistors are chosen to achieve 1/4/16/64 gain. With greater resistance, noise may increase, and with lesser resistance, more power consumption is needed. If another gain configuration is needed, resistors must be carefully chosen to ensure the gain accuracy.

A differential input ADC plays the role of subtractor. The CMRR of the ADC is >100 dB, which can meet the system requirement.

Noise Simulation

LTspice® can be used to simulate the noise performance of a discrete PGIA. The integral noise BW is 430 Hz. Table 4 shows the noise simulation result of two different PGIAs and the AD7768-1. The ADA4084 solution has better noise performance, especially at high gain.

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SDP-H1. Thus, the EVAL-AD7768FMCZ software GUI can be used to gather and analyze data.

WVThe ADA4084-2 PGIA and LTC2500-32 board is designed as an alternative total solution. The board interfaces to the SDP-H1 controller board, which is controlled by the LTC250032FMCZ software GUI. In both boards, the PGIA’s gain is designed as 1/2/4/8/16, which is different from what’s shown in Figure 8. Table 5 shows the evaluation results for these two boards.

In-Loop Compensation Circuit to Drive LTC2500-32

The AD7768-1 has an integrated precharge amplifier to ease the driving requirement. For SAR ADCs, such as the LTC2500-32, high speed amplifiers are normally suggested for use as the driver. In this DAQ application, the bandwidth requirement is low. For driving LTC2500-32, an in-loop compensation circuit using the precision amplifier (ADA4084-2) is suggested. Figure 8 shows the in-loop compensation PGIA used to drive the LTC2500-32. The PGIA has the following features: ► R22/C14/R30/C5 and R27/C6/R31/C3 are key components to better stability for in-loop compensation circuitry. ► With ADG659, A1/A0 = 00, gain = 1, and the feedback path of the upper amplifier is amplifier out → R22 → R30 → S1A → DA → R6 → AMP —IN. ► With ADG659, A1/A0 = 11, gain = 64, and the feedback path of the upper amplifier is amplifier out → R22 → R8 → R10 → R12 → S4A → DA → R6 → AMP —IN.

Figure 9. ADA4084-2 PGIA and AD7768-1 evaluation board solution.

Table 5. Signal Chain Solution Test Results

The PGIA is connected to LTC2500-32EVB to verify the performance. Different passive component (R22/C14/R30/ C5 and R27/C6/R31/C3) values are tried to reach better THD and noise performance at different gain (1/4/16/64). The final components values are: R22/R27 = 100 Ω, C14/C6 = 1 nF, R30/ R31 = 1.2 kΩ, C3/C5 = 0.22 μF. The measured 3 dB BW at gain = 1 below PGIA is about 16 kHz.

Figure 8. A PGIA to drive the LTC2500-32.

Bench Evaluation Setup

To test the noise, THD, and CMRR performance, a discrete ADA4084-2 PGIA and AD7768-1 board were made as a total solution. This solution is compatible with the EVAL-AD7768-1 evaluation board, so it can interface with the control board

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PAPER better noise specifications than the ADA4522-2 and LTC2500-32. ► Lowest bias current: the ADA4625-1 is recommended if the sensor’s output resistance is high. ► Higher BW: The ADA4807, LTC6226, and LTC6228 are good solutions when building high BW, low noise PGIAs in high BW DAQ applications.

Figure 10. ADA4084-2 PGIA and LTC2500-32 board FFT for gain 1.

In DAQ applications where noise and power are not important but a small PCB area and high integrity are required, ADI’s new integrated PGIAs, ADA4254 and LTC6373, are also good choices. ADA4254 is a zero-drift, high voltage, 1/16 to ~176 gain robust PGIA, and LTC6373 is a 25 pA IBIAS, 36 V, 0.25 to ~16 gain, low THD PGIA.

About the Author

Table 6. Precision Op Amp Selection Table

Conclusion

To design a very low noise and low power DAQ solution for seismology and energy exploration, a discrete PGIA can be designed with low noise and THD precision amplifiers to drive a high resolution precision ADC. This solution is flexible to balance the noise, THD, and ODR against its power consumption requirements. ► Benefits from LTC2500-32’s low noise performance, as well as the ADA4084-2 and LTC2500-32, show the best noise performance without an MCU’s further filtering processing. ► Both the ADA4522-2 and ADA4084-2 have good noise performance at PGIA gain = 1. The noise performance is about 0.8 μV rms. ► ADA4084-2 has better noise performance at high gain. At gain = 16, ADA4084-2 and LTC2500-32’s noise is 0.19 μV rms, which is better than the 0.25 μV rms of the ADA4522-2. ► For the AD7768-1, with MCU’s filtering, the ADA4084-2 and AD7768-1 solution shows noise performance similar to the ADA4084-2 and LTC2500-32 solution.

David Guo is a product applications engineer for ADI’s linear products. He started working in the China Central Application Center of ADI as an applications engineer in 2007, and transferred to the Precision Amplifier Group as an applications engineer in June, 2011. Since January, 2013, David has worked as an application engineer in ADI’s linear product department. He is responsible for technical support of products including precision amplifiers, instrumentation amplifiers, high speed amplifiers, current sense amplifiers, multipliers, references, and rms-DC products. David earned his bachelor’s and master’s degree in mechanoelectronic engineering from Beijing institute of Technology.

He can be reached at david.guo@analog.com.

Steven Xie has worked as a

product applications engineer with the China Design Center in ADI Beijing since March 2011. He provides technical support for SAR ADC products across China. Prior to that, he worked as a hardware designer in wireless communication base stations for four years. In 2007, Steven graduated from Beihang University with a master’s degree in communications and information systems. He can be reached at steven.xie@analog.com.

This article gives a solution to data acquisition that requires both low noise and low power with limited bandwidth. There are other DAQ applications that require different performance.

If low power consumption is not a must, then the following operational amplifiers can be used to build the PGIA: ► Lowest noise: the LT1124 and LT1128 can be considered to have the best noise performance. ► Lowest drift: the ADA4523, a new zero-drift amplifier, has

> AUGUST 2021

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•Vol - 03 / 08

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> BIG

PICTURE - EXCLUSIVE

A Product Engineering & Systems Integration Company Leading in 5G, IoT, AI ML, Edge & Cloud Sectors Sanjay Bisen

CoFounder & CTO AMANTYA TECHNOLOGIES

INTRODUCTION

This month’s biggest interview features Amantya - A Leading Product Engineering & Systems Integration Company. Amantya has expertise in next-generation technologies like 5G, IoT, AI ML, edge, and cloud. Irrespective of the business type or industry, Amnatya provides customized solutions to our clients to holistically accelerate their digital transformation.

In this exclusive interview of the month, Niloy gets alongside Sanjay Bisen | CoFounder and CTO where the veteran explains how the company has been helping customers build 5G based solutions that span across Radio Access Network (RAN), Core, Management, and Orchestration to simplify functions across hybrid and multivendor environments. A lot more about this leading company and its ahead plans to empower 5G, IoT, AI ML, Digital Services sectors. Edited Excerpts Below.

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Tell us about Amantya’s core areas of expertise. How is the company looking to make a difference in the growing and increasingly diverse 5G ecosystem?

As a product engineering and systems integration company, Amantya has expertise in next-generation technologies like 5G, IoT, AI ML, edge, and cloud. Irrespective of the business type or industry, we provide customized solutions to our clients to holistically accelerate their digital transformation.

> AUGUST 2021

We specialize in building 5G based solutions for our customers that span across Radio Access Network (RAN), Core, Management, and Orchestration to simplify functions across hybrid and multivendor environments. We do that by leveraging solution accelerators, partner solutions, and deep domain expertise in wireless protocols, integration, testing, and hardware design and development. These capabilities allow us to address customer-specific requirements to customize solutions accordingly and help get the customer to market faster. While we can address end-to-end requirements in the RAN and MANO domain as well, one of our most prominent accelerators is Amantya’s 5G SA Core. Our 5G Core has been developed from the ground up using open web-scale architecture and helps create highly scalable networks that can run on any cloud environment – public, private, or hybrid. 3GPP-Rel 15 compliant, with Rel 16 in the roadmap, it is built using microservices methodologies and has a highperforming User Plane. Fully virtualized, containerized, and optimized for plug-n-play installation, Amantya’s 5G Core is ideal for private 5G deployments and can be enabled for ‘pay-as-you-go' use as well.

Our 5G portfolio is primarily focused on:

• Building private 5G networks • Developing standards-based RAN solutions, customizable to customer requirements • Deploying ORAN based solutions for E2E cross-domain integration and accelerating O-RAN deployments • Creating a live test environment in our fully loaded 5G lab where our customers can validate and integrate 5G network solutions while also enabling interoperability across vendors

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• Enabling use cases that can run on 5G MEC infrastructure, including V2X, CDN, AR VR, robotics, and remote healthcare, etc.

time-to-market while improving cost and process efficiencies.

Our IoT services and solutions benefit businesses across verticals like automotive, telecom, retail, enterprise, and healthcare, with more on the horizon. We have a proven presence in both 5G is being touted to be a disruptive technology with Industrial IoT and Consumer IoT segments, having successfully new use cases and business models. How is Amantya deployed solutions in both domains. planning to leverage the opportunities that come with 5G? Being one of the leaders in (5G, IoT, AI ML, Digital Services), 5G isn’t simply the next generation of mobile communications. what it’s like a day inside Amantya Technologies and the It’s a complete ecosystem. While 4G impacted only the telecom sector, 5G is evolving holistically, transforming all industry work culture to keep up excellence and innovation beguiling verticals. In our view, forging new alliances and collaborating holistic growth of the company. to share and enhance technological competencies is the way A typical day at Amantya is full of exciting experiences while forward to stay relevant in this disruptive and fast-evolving working on next-gen technologies revamping the digital landscape and collaborating with colleagues equally passionate landscape. about technology and its implications. Our commitment to Amantya is focusing on building a robust partner ecosystem. delivering excellence to our clients is fueled by our people.

Such an ecosystem will enable us to successfully integrate ‘People First’ isn’t just a mantra for us, but a way of life. Our customized solutions for our clients, building a relationship of team is a bunch of diverse individuals at different stages of trust and shared value. We collaborate with leading silicon their learning curve – experienced and quick learners, united players to build hardware platforms for our customers. In line by their commitment to keep upgrading their skills and bring with our prime focus of being a 5G solution integrator for our their best selves to the table. The pandemic has forced us all clients, our software partners support us with solutions based to reimagine workspaces. Though we are currently working on MANO, and Intelligent RAN that can be plugged into our remotely, yet we ensure the enthusiasm and spirit for learning, in-house solutions, allowing us to create an integrated offering disrupting, and excelling stays high. for our customers. In addition, we are partnered with AWS, Talking specifically about India, what trends do you where we are using the AWS platform to offer SaaS-based foresee in the 5G space, and also if you can highlight a Core to our customers. We are members of open forums like ORAN, Linux Foundation, and TIP who provide a comprehensive flagship offering simplifying India’s 5G dream? platform for us to leverage their expertise and skills through a 5G is going to be a huge story for India. Hailed as the catalyst that will drive India's digital transformation and achieve GOI's globally shared architecture.

'Digital India' vision, 5G is already making inroads in India.

We envision these partnerships to keep growing, both in Prominent MNOs have already started 5G network trials numbers and expertise, and look forward to building an and are expected to pick up steam as we go along. Many ecosystem where we collaborate with leading players in the leading educational institutes are poised to jump in as well, industry to not only fast-track our customers’ 5G journey but with research and development initiatives to encourage Indian startups and the industry to take an early lead in 5G. also together build a more connected future.

Going by these exciting updates on 5G's evolution in India, As IoT shares a handsome market share today it we believe three predominant trends will shape the 5G space equally derives newer complex challenges, (flexibility, in the country. security, and privacy foremost connectivity). How is Amantya 1. There will be a driving focus on indigenous 5G software Technologies, being a world-class design and engineering and hardware solutions and products, giving predominance Services Company, helping clients in their product development to the Indian vendor. It will provide impetus to the ‘Make to end solution journey? in India’ initiative by the Government of India.

Irrespective of the industry, Amantya Technologies can 2. With 5G trials already in advanced stages, the IT industry seamlessly and securely incorporate IoT devices and capabilities and IT solutions integrators will have a big play in India to into a business. Being technically competent, across domains set up the networks. and technologies, our solutions are customizable to business 3. India has always been a cost-sensitive market, and we need(s) and business models. believe O-RAN related initiatives will pick up in the country sooner rather than later.

In the current complex and challenging digital landscape, Which key sectors have been promising markets for with so many moving parts in a solution, we provide complete Amantya Technologies?

Product Lifecycle Management, from ideation, road map, to development and launch, to help build a secure While we have the capabilities, both deep domain expertise and dynamic IoT ecosystem for our clients. Amantya’s IoT and industry knowledge, to add value across verticals. capabilities include end-to-end Hardware, Firmware, and However, three segments stand out for us. These are telecom, Software development services. Also, our ready-to-deploy automotive, and consumer IoT. solutions, or ‘IoT Accelerators’ as we call them, are powered In telecom, our standards-based 5G SA Core enables telcos by technologies like 3G, 4G, NB-IoT, Wi-Fi, BLE, and accelerate to build highly agile private 5G networks. It also doubles

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> BIG

PICTURE - EXCLUSIVE

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up as a network simulator, mimicking all elements of a 5G Any comments on the challenges & solutions for above 6 network, allowing telco players to create varied network GHz Radio Access Network Integration for Future Mobile topologies. We also run end-to-end integration projects for Communication Systems?

5G based solutions and build MEC applications. We do all Above 6 GHz frequency for RAN integration are the mmWave this and more (using solution accelerators and services), frequency deployments. helping telecom customers get to market faster with new 1. Low penetrative power - mmWave deployments can products and solutions, gaining the first-mover advantage, only be successfully implemented in restricted scenarios – and generating new revenue streams. e.g., closed environments like a mall or a sports stadium.

This deployment model is used majorly in urban settings In automotive, our MEC-based V2X framework improves traffic where support infrastructure is available. efficiency, enhances safety, and reduces operational costs.

2. Requires densification – to truly leverage a mmWave It also helps auto manufacturers utilize their data to establish RAN solution, multiple base stations have to be deployed telematics capabilities and deploy connected car cloud as the cell size is very small. This leads to an increased platforms. We also provide end-to-end fleet management CAPEX for the operators. solutions, including OBD devices, fleet trackers, mobile The challenges faced by mmWave solutions are well known. applications, cloud infrastructure, data processing, and Going forward, RAN solution deployments will have to be use case-based, and the newer networks displayed in the future service management to automotive OEMs. Amantya’s end-to-end IoT solutions offer businesses smarter will be a mix of both mmWave and sub6. ways to connect the entire value chain. Right from evaluation Moreover, with Open RAN in the picture, one will also have of organizational IoT readiness, roadmap creation, use case a scenario where one would have a common CU or DU with definition to solution mapping, go-to-market strategy, and multiple RUs running, with mmWave or sub6 frequency bands implementation, we support our clients through every stage. being spread out.

We do hardware and software designing for sensors and other Any other market-ready deployable solutions that have IoT peripherals (across various IoT technologies). We work been developed by Amantya over and above those through the entire IoT implementation chain, from sensors, connectivity, gateways, and backend cloud solutions to discussed above? deliver end-to-end solutions deploying NB-IoT, CAT-M, and Yes, there are two recent additions to our fast-growing portfolio Cellular-IoT. From smart homes, personal healthcare to asset of next-generation solutions. tracking, and beyond, we leverage IoT to help companies in 1. iSmartCell: an Android OS based real-time device modem the consumer sector move from traditional products to those diagnostic tool, ideal for operators and silicon OEMs. A standards-based end-to-end testing solution, iSmartCell employs with embedded intelligence. a client-server architecture with a cloud-based backend for Automotive bids a billion-dollar opportunity in India with the post-processing of data and offers extensive support of connected cars driving the new market trends. Your 650+ 5G and 4G KPIs. Its intuitive dashboard provides a drillexpertise wooing the automotive market? down analysis that allows the user to get to the heart of KPI V2X is the prime technology driving the wireless automotive degradation issues fast. market. The key components of the V2X technology are - 2. Proxima: an innovative remote device testing tool that infrastructure (OBDs & RSUs), stack (V2X application, messaging enables application testing across devices and networks. An & lower layers), and connectivity (URLLC support in the core). ideal app testing solution for MNOs, CDNs, and developers, In line with our vision of becoming a leading solution integrator, it works on both iOS and Android applications. One can we have all the prime elements of the V2X ecosystem in simply plug-n-play Proxima on any pre-selected device or a place, which allow us to provide end-to-end solutions to the cloud-based device farm as-a-service to identify and fix app automotive industry. performance ahead of go-live. Furthermore, its powerful APIs Our expertise involves amalgamating three elements while support integration to third-part IDEs/Testing systems. developing stacks for cellular V2X use cases and applications. In addition, we are also enhancing and positioning some 1. Developing V2X applications which realize end-to-end of our existing solutions for different verticals and use cases: use cases such as V2V communication, Vehicle to roadside 3. iCell - our portfolio of accelerators coupled with our unit communication, traffic monitoring, driver behavior, professional services in integration, stack porting, and testing help build end-to-end RAN solutions for customers in the enterprise and traffic monitoring, etc 2. Implementing V2X stacks that involve standard messaging segment, primarily for private network deployments. These, together with our Core network, position us uniquely to offer layers over 3GPP and non 3GPP (WAVE) layers 3. End-to-end connectivity and integration expertise to building blocks for enterprise private network deployments. provide complete solutions for use cases across vehicles 4. Core as a Service - We are enabling our 5G Core on the public cloud. This will allow the usage of the Core for pay-asand roadside units you-go use cases. It will be ideal for customers that want to use it for simulation test cases to determine the interoperability of their network products and have infrequent and nonvoluminous usage patterns.

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> AUGUST 2021

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Discover a new experience in fiber testing

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> T&M

- EXCLUSIVE

Demystifying EMC – Why EMI Debugging?

Today, R&D engineers face challenging time-to-market goals.

Extending the product development schedule and delaying the product launch will be extremely costly with the fear of lost opportunity and lost market share. Debugging, isolating and correcting the EMI problem at every design stage reduces the risk of EMC failures during the final EMC test.

Rahul Gautam

Director Market Development- Automotive, EMC, Rohde & Schwarz India

To ensure a product can operate appropriately in its intended environment, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) test is vital and is performed only at the preproduction stage. If there happens to be any failure, the product will have to go through re-design, re-prototype and re-test. Comparing to a few decades ago, engineers back then have long product development time and thus the re-designing and re-prototyping when is a norm. Today, with the pressure to capture-the-market, the race for fast cycle time shorten the schedule to almost half leaving no buffer at every product stage. To reduce the chances of EMC failures, one way is to perform more checking during every design stage and this is usually term as electromagnetic interference (EMI) debugging.

As illustrated in Figure 1, it is more cost-effective to perform all necessary preventive measures at the early design stage such as during R&D and prototype phase. The later the problem is found, the cost incurred will be higher and this increment is exponential. EMC is part of compliance test.

Prior to this, it is a good practice to perform pre-compliance test for higher confidence of pass test during compliance test and compliance test usually needs certification labs which is costly and have only limited slots. EMI debugging is best to be performed before pre-compliance phase.

> AUGUST 2021

Figure 1: Testing during product development

Selecting the right tool

To perform EMI debugging, selecting the right instrument is important. EMI receiver, spectrum analyzer and oscilloscopes are shortlisted for this task. EMI receiver comes complete with the full EMC test receiver features with best performance.

However, due to its high investment cost, EMI receiver is most of the time available only in EMC test lab.

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Spectrum analyzer is the next instrument that can perform almost similar task as EMI receiver and it has wide range of cost. One interesting feature is the EMI detectors or quasi peak detector, some may call it CISPR detector).

Comparing to peak detector, quasipeak detector is a better choice to indicate the subjective annoyance level according to the signal repetition rate. To fit in for compliance test, most spectrum analyzers are equipped with EMI/ CISPR bandwidths: 9 kHz, 10 kHz, 100 kHz, 120 kHz and 1 MHz. Coupled with low noise floor, spectrum analyzer, the more economical choice as compare to EMI receiver is a typical choice for pre-compliance test.

Without auto-ranging and EMI detectors feature, the oscilloscope cannot not fit for compliance or pre-compliance test. However, since oscilloscope is easily accessible instruments in most of the engineering lab, it would be perfect for EMI debugging.

The introduction of FFT gating function makes EMI debugging more efficient with oscilloscope.

Figure 2: Comparison between EMI receiver, spectrum analyzer and oscilloscope for EMI debugging Near-field probes are used as diagnostic tools for locating EMC problems on circuit boards, integrated circuits, cables and shielding. It is ideal for emission measurements from 30 MHz to 3 GHz. The H-field probes, typically loop shape can detect fast changes of current (high di/dt). E-field probe detects area of fast changes of voltage (high dv/dt). Starts with bigger probes to locate the general problematic area more easily, and then uses smaller ones to locate the exact source of the noise. .

EMI debugging with oscilloscope

Just three simple steps for EMI debugging: locate, capture and analyze.

First, locate the EMI problem, use the intensity grading on oscilloscope to differentiate the commonly occurring frequency components in a different color and distinguish them from

•Vol - 03 / 08

rare frequency components. Start locating with a larger loop near field probe and move around the circuitry and then change to smaller loop probe concentrating in a smaller area trying to locate the highest power with higher resolution. Use the H-field or E-field probe to check on the different signals.

Next, to capture unintended emission efficiently, the trigger event on oscilloscope will ease the job. The trigger function commonly used for debugging are time domain trigger, zone trigger and serial, parallel and protocol trigger. It is extremely useful if the oscilloscope is capable of defining multiple and different types of trigger for time, frequency and digital signals to determine the cause and effect relationship of all captured signals. The final step is to analyze the interference behavior.

To analyze narrowband signals, it is necessary to check on the sidebands with kHz span to identify possible modulations.

Otherwise, use FFT gating to analyze broadband signals. With FFT gating, oscilloscope will show spectra changes over time and this makes isolating spurious spectral components in time domain an easy task.

EMI debugging with spectrum analyzer

With built-in quasi-peak detector, spectrum analyzer have added advantage for EMI debugging. The typical measurements performed are radiated emission and conducted emission. Radiated emission is a measurement of electromagnetic field strength from the product with the idea of capturing the unintentional emissions. Use the near field probe with spectrum analyzer’s frequency range sets to 30MHz to 1000 MHz focusing on critical frequencies, measure the frequency interference. Conducted emission uses a line impedance stabilization network (LISN) to separate the RF signals from main supply. In most cases, a reference ground plane is required.

ADDITIONAL: Some higher end spectrum analyzer offers real time spectral analysis. Real time analyzer uses multiple narrowband FFT concatenated to a trace in a selected frequency span.

The computing time for FFT is way faster as compared to narrow RBW filters on transitional sweep analyzer. The speed can be 50 times faster. The real time analyzer is outstanding when trying to debug the source of EMI transient or multiple sources at the same frequency. The spectrum trace can clearly show how the signal changes over time.

Summary

Similar to medical checkup for preventive health care, we need to diagnose the circuits early to avoid issues in the later stage, which can be expensive. EMI debugging requires instruments, oscilloscope or spectrum analyzer, to locate, capture and analyze to help in deciding on component change or circuit redesign. The oscilloscope enables correlation of interfering signal with time domain. In addition, the synchronized time domain and frequency domain analysis with advanced triggers allows oscilloscope to get quick insight for EMI problems.

Built-in EMI detectors in spectrum analyzer enables easier pre-compliance test. The real time spectral analysis makes EMI debugging way simpler!

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> POWER

- FEATURE

New Innovative

Power Solutions in Legacy

AC/DCMarket AC/DC switch-mode power supplies have been used to power white goods and other plug-in systems since the 1990s. Many power management ICs have been introduced over the years to build those power supplies and Renesas just released the new high-performance 700V RAA2230xx regulator family.

For anyone wondering why our team would enter an established market now, the answer is simple. It makes sense for us to invest in innovation even in a legacy market because our close customer engagements have allowed us to understand the challenges faced with current designs and our power team has the technological know-how and ability to help solve them. We have strong MCU leadership in many of these key application areas and are focused on working with our customers to optimize power solutions to help them improve their systems.

Because of these close relationships, we have been able to address customer requirements from the outset in the product definition process and create great products that are innovative, easy-to-use, free of legacy design issues, as well as lower cost. Now all customers with systems across many application areas can benefit from this investment with market-proven products.

Zhihong Yu

Principal Product Marketing Manager, Renesas Electronics Corporation

the European Commission Code of Conduct (COC) and US Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Star • Implementing new ICs typically require re-qualifying for safety compliance if PCB changes are made but that process is simplified with pin-to-pin or BOM-to-BOM replacements

Figure 1: A basic AC/DC conversion topology (buck)

Addressing these challenges became requirements for our product definition and are key features of the new RAA223011, RAA223012 and RAA223021 700V buck regulators. The schematic for the non-isolated buck configuration is shown in figure 2.

The devices also support isolated flyback topologies.

AC/DC Conversion

Most home appliances, power adapters, and sensor devices like smoke alarms are powered by AC wall sockets. As most loads require a constant DC voltage to function, we need AC/DC conversion between the AC source and the loads.

This conversion can be accomplished with a non-isolated buck-converter, as shown in figure 1, or through isolated topologies like flyback converters.

Key Challenges Resolved

Some critical common challenges emerged as we talked with customers about their requirements: • During the design phase, sometimes audible noise issues are found and often result in hours of extended troubleshooting and extra cost to fix them.

• Standby power consumption has become increasingly important to meet regional regulatory requirements including

> AUGUST 2021

Figure 2: RAA2230xx 700V regulator family schematic

Our new and growing portfolio of low-power AC/DC solutions are certainly optimized for IoT and sensor applications, home appliances, water pumps and any MCU system that plugs into the wall for power. Clearly, these new R&D investments aren’t late to the market at all. In fact, they are perfectly aligned with the growing demand for IoT devices and sensing systems, as well as requirements for more power efficient systems all of kinds.

Visit Renesas’ non-isolated AC/DC buck converters page to learn more about the portfolio and get samples, evaluation boards and other development tools.

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> ELECTRONICS

- FUTURE

How to Design Robust Smart Locks,

Window, and Door Position Sensors with Robust Circuit Protection and Sensing Smart home products and advanced building automation products give families and building occupants and the owners more convenience and the comfort of greater safety. These products are enabled by the advancements in smartphone, networking, and internet-of-things (IoT) technologies. The incorporation of these technologies into locks and position sensors gives the occupants peace of mind as they can view the status of their door locks and windows on internetconnected devices.

The market for smart home and building access controls is a young and growing market. The smart lock market is expected to grow by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25 percent. That represents a unit growth from 7 million in 2019 to 23 million in 20241. About 70 percent of this growth will come from the residential market. As with smart locks, the demand for security from both consumers and commercial/industrial

> AUGUST 2021

establishments will result in the global growth of window and door sensors, particularly in developing economies. The CAGR for these sensors is projected to be about 9 percent with unit shipments increasing from about 300 million in 2019 to 465 million in 20242. There is a significant opportunity for innovation and financial success in this market.

To be successful in this market, it is essential that home and building security products such as smart locks and window and door sensors have high reliability and do not fail in a manner that would create a false sense of security for their owners.

To achieve high reliability, designers should be aware of the external phenomena that can damage electronic circuitry.

Examples include current overloads and transients induced on the power line from lightning and large loads turning on and off. Also, electrostatic discharge (ESD) from human contact is another example of a potential cause of damage. This

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article will give designers recommendations for components that protect circuits from damage due to overloads and transients, provide efficient control, and compact sensing.

Designers will also be made aware of the applicable safety standards with which these products must be compliant. The objective is to assist designers with developing robust, reliable, and safe products in a cost-effective manner.

Protecting smart lock circuits A smart lock consists of a manual access keypad, wireless protocol link for internet-connected devices access through a software application, sensor to monitor the position of the door handle, actuators to lock or unlock the door, and sensing to detect any effort to circumvent the lock. An example smart door lock with suggested protection and sensing components to ensure reliable operation is shown in Figure 1. A detailed block diagram of a smart lock is provided in Figure 2. The diagram provides the recommended placement for the suggested protection and sensing components.

Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is a prime danger to smart lock electronics. Both the user interface and the wireless interface are susceptible to ESD from a person accessing the door. The User Interface contains the keypad which a person contacts to enter the pre-programmed access code. People are a source of ESD, particularly in a dry environment. Designers should protect the User Interface circuit block from ESD to avoid damage to sensitive electronics.

Figure 1. A smart lock system

with silicon avalanche technology and can offer a minimum protection level of ±15 kV of ESD voltage. A TVS diode array can house six Zener diodes to protect five signal lines and provide a ground reference (Figure 3). The advantage of an array is that one space-saving component in an 0402 surface-mount package can protect up to five lines. The impact on the circuit block is minimal; a TVS diode array can have a leakage current of only 1 µA. If a higher level of ESD protection is desired, an individual diode can provide ESD protection for each signal line. A single TVS diode (Figure 4) can withstand a ±30 kV ESD strike. Whichever configuration is used, place the TVS diodes as close to the circuit input as possible to prevent an ESD transient from penetrating into the circuitry.

Figure 3. Example 5-line TVS diode array

Figure 4. A single TVS diode

The Wireless Interface links to the cellular network or a wireless LAN (Wi-Fi) network, to communicate with a smartphone or another networked device. Since it is exposed to the external environment, the Wireless Interface should have ESD protection.

The recommended component is a polymer ESD suppressor.

The value of a polymer ESD suppressor is its ability to respond to and absorb ESD transients while having a negligible impact on the characteristic impedance of the Wireless Interface output. Polymer ESD suppressors can withstand a ±8 kV direct contact ESD and a ±15 kV air strike. Typical capacitance for the component is a low 0.06 pF. Response time to a transient is extremely fast, under 1 ns. Placement should be as close to the input antenna connector as possible. Figure 5 shows two configurations for polymer ESD suppressors, bi-directional components.

Figure 5. Configurations for polymer ESD suppressors, bidirectional components

Sensor recommendations for smart locks

Figure 2. Smart lock block diagram For ESD protection, consider a transient voltage suppressor (TVS) diode or a diode array. TVS diodes are Zener diodes built

•Vol - 03 / 08

Detection to ensure the door is completely seated in the door frame requires a sensor. A reed switch with a magnetic actuator is a low-power sensing solution for a battery-operated smart

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> ELECTRONICS

- FUTURE

lock. Reed switches do not require any drive power and are hermetically sealed for long life in any environment. Versions can switch 10 W with ratings up to 0.5 A or up to 200 V. The switches are very well-suited for use in low voltage controller circuits. In addition, surface mount versions are available for automated circuit board assembly.

Designers should consider a cylindrical magnetic actuator designed for mounting on a frame such as a door frame. An AlNiCo magnet is the recommended material; and, the size can be as small as 5 mm x 25 mm.

The Tamper Detection circuit block also requires a sensor to alert the user if the lock has been compromised and the door has been opened. Again, a reed switch and an actuator are recommended. The reed switch-actuator combination consumes a minimal amount of power to maximize battery life. Designers can consider a reed switch-actuator pair with adjustable sensitivity to ensure fast response to a tampered lock.

It takes only four components to provide both protection and sensing for a smart lock. These components consume a minimum of circuit board space and ensure a safe and reliable product.

Protecting wireless door and window sensors

Wireless door and window sensors provide information on the state of windows and doors. The user can obtain information on whether windows and doors are open or closed from any location. In Figure 6, a hardware configuration is illustrated for both a wireless door and wireless window sensors.

Recommended protection and sensing components for each of the hardware elements are also provided.

Figure 6. Wireless window and door sensing system The block diagram of the two main elements of the system is shown in Figure 7. The sensor circuitry detects the window or door position and reports the information to a controller that is also the interface for the user and the transmitter of information to any location. The sensing circuitry is on the door and window and must allow for movement; thus, the circuitry must be battery-operated. The User Interface Controller with the keypad is in a fixed location so it can be AC line powered. AC line power is a typical application for commercial installations.

> AUGUST 2021

Figure 7. Block diagram of a window and door sensor system As with smart locks, consider a reed switch-magnetic actuator for proximity detection. With no activation power required, the reed switch extends the battery life of the sensor system.

The Wireless Interface circuit blocks in the sensor assembly and the user interface controller can use polymer ESD suppressors to ensure protection from ESD while maintaining the integrity of the RF transmission. The User Interface circuit block, like the smart lock with its keypad, should have ESD protection from human contact. A TVS diode array can protect the sensitive signal lines from ESD transients.

Where AC power and an AC-DC power supply energize the User Interface Controller, designers need to protect the controller from potential threats from the AC line. Potential damage to the electronics can come from lightning strikes, overcurrent conditions, other voltage transients, and ESD transients. Electronics engineers can protect their designs from these conditions with fusing and voltage transient protection devices.

There are numerous options for fuses including the fuse’s operating characteristics and the case style to meet a wide range of design objectives. Designers should consider time-delay or slo-blo fuses to avoid nuisance shutdowns. In addition, designers should select the fuse current rating to accommodate short-term overloads such as in-rush currents where applicable. Other considerations include the interrupting rating which defines the maximum overload current the fuse can interrupt. This parameter trades off with fuse size. If a small fuse is needed, make sure that the fuse can withstand the available short circuit current supplied by the AC line.

A final consideration is the fuses’ cold resistance. If power consumption is a prime concern, then designers should look for a fuse with low cold resistance.

To safely absorb the energy from a voltage transient on the AC line from lightning or motor turn-on and turn-off spikes, designers should consider employing a metal oxide varistor (MOV). MOVs can absorb a current surge as high as 10,000 A from an 8/20 µs transient pulse. A 20mm MOV can also absorb as much as 530 J of energy.

An alternative component to an MOV is a TVS diode. Models developed for protecting circuits from lightning and other

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transients can withstand as much as 1500 W of power from a 10/1000 µs pulse. To minimize power consumption, a TVS diode draws less than 1 µA under normal operating conditions.

Furthermore, a TVS diode can respond quickly to a transient in less than 1 ps. Surface mount versions are available to minimize assembly labor. Designers can select either a bi-directional diode or a uni-directional diode as shown in Figure 8.

maximize battery life to minimize the frequency of battery replacement. One final recommendation for achieving an optimal design is to take advantage of the expertise of the component manufacturers and seek their advice. The manufacturers’ experts can both recommend appropriate components and provide guidance on complying with appropriate safety standards. Their help will save design time and save on safety certification costs.

Attention to circuit protection will lead to robust designs. This will result in a reputation for quality and reliability. This reputation creates a strong competitive advantage for manufacturers of smart locks and window and door sensing products.

Figure 8. Configurations for a bi-directional and a uni-directional TVS diode As with a smart lock, it does not take many components to protect window and door sensing circuits. Designers have a number of options to select the most suitable versions for their products.

For more information on circuit protection, sensing devices, and component selection criteria, see the Circuit Protection Selection Guide and the Sensing Products Selection Guide courtesy of Littelfuse.

References:

1 Smart Lock Market Size. Grandview Research. February 2020.

2 Window Sensors Market Outlook. Outlook Market Research.

May 2019.

Complying with the applicable industry standards for electronic security products Designers should be knowledgeable of the standards that apply to the products they are developing so that they can incorporate safety requirements in the product definition phase of their project. Failure to accommodate the standards can lead to potentially expensive design modification work and delays in product introduction. In addition to general product safety standards such as the IEC 61000 series which define requirements for withstanding ESD, electrically fast transients, and lightning, specific standards exist for electronic locking and related products. Table 1 lists these standards. They cover the North American market and China. The documents are essential reference materials for designers of smart locks and window and door sensors.

About the author Ryan Sheahen is the Global Strategic Marketing Manager for the Electronics Business Unit.

Ryan joined Littelfuse in 2011 as an inside sales specialist. He was previously the Global Product Manager for the magnetic sensing product portfolio. His current responsibilities include the development of marketing collateral, management of marketing activities for new product launches, and performing marketing studies and feasibility analysis for new product ideas. Ryan earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering Technology from Purdue University.

Table 1. Standards for electronic locking and related products (applicable in North America and China) Value of a robust design Incorporating the appropriate protection and sensing components will contribute to achieving safe and robust products. Fortunately, designers only need a small number of components to fully protect their products and comply with safety standards. With low-energy sensors, designers can

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AUGUST 2021 <

> T&M

- COLUMN

OFC – Backbone of the Network, Today and Tomorrow

As networks continue to expand and transform to meet tomorrow’s demands, new processes, tools and solutions are needed to address rapidly changing businesses and network needs. The potential of fiber as a communication medium seems unlimited, with new breakthroughs and possibilities. Fiber optics has emerged as the world’s leading communication transport medium and the increasing diversity of fiber optic applications has highlighted the need for technician training and versatile, user-friendly test solutions.

Since their inception, fiber optic networks have continually evolved and expanded. With the emergence of 5G and FTTH, service providers are under pressure to increase their fiber footprint, completing massive deployments – to homes, businesses, data canters, towers and 5G cell sites – while striving to maintain quality of experience and reduce operational expenses.

The demand for optical fiber communications (OFC) in India is fuelled by backhaul network up-grade, growth of fixed broadband, surging datacentres and a rising number of mobile devices. The pandemic in 2020, remote working and disruptive

> AUGUST 2021

growth of 5G has created an unprecedented demand for digital networks, making digital transformation a key priority for CIOs, while creating tremendous scope for faster fiber deployment and delivery of critical ICT infrastructure.

Fiber Optic Tools For Every Technician

Fiber optic cleaning, inspection, testing and monitoring require diverse tool sets and capabilities to remain effective in today’s diverse communications technology landscape. Advanced fiber optic tools enable expedient certification, troubleshooting and maintenance, while monitoring equipment and cutting-edge OTDR devices support the uninterrupted integrity of sensitive fiber optic networks. Together, these tools provide the means to deploy and sustain vital fiber optic networks and keep them performing optimally.

Fiber Optic Testing

Network performance demands precision testing of equipment from the lab and production environment to the field. The size and complexity of today’s fiber networks have highlighted the importance of robust fiber testing and monitoring and the

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A robust fiber optic monitoring system should be capable of accurately detecting fiber faults from the source all the way to the subscriber, leading to earlier detection and precise fault location in order to reduce reaction and repair times.

An integrated fiber monitoring and management system is key to facilitating the detection of faults, fiber degradation, security intrusions, alerting the system administrator in real-time when threats to fiber optic network integrity are detected.

Monitoring systems can also be used for demarcation and isolation of issues arising due to faults in network elements, and to proactively analyse depletion and other fiber optic performance metrics over time, enabling higher bandwidth with improved data integrity and efficient spend on infrastructure.

Impact of Fiber on 5G

For communication service providers the preferred transport medium is fiber. This is because it’s scalable, secure and cost-effective, as well as being a familiar technology that’s easily understood by network engineers, which cuts time for installation, deployment and maintenance. Fiber is important for 5G front-haul, particularly for small cell deployment, as it achieves the speed, latency and bandwidth requirements.

By using fiber in the front-haul and access networks, telecom operators can significantly reduce the cost of backhaul, helping them generate higher revenues and improve overall quality of experience (QoE).

OFC Networks and Smart Cities

Monojit Samaddar

Country Director, VIAVI Solutions, India next generation of fiber optic test tools are faster, easy-to-use and more powerful than ever before.

Testing OFC networks is an essential part of fiber optic installation, as well as on-going maintenance and following some fundamental fiber testing best practices will lead to safer, more efficient and reliable fiber deployments and network activation. It’s estimated that 250,000 technicians will be tasked with new fiber installation and maintenance over the next three years, in order to keep up with the demand for broadband deployments. This rapid growth is driving the need for fiber certification tools that are extremely easy to use to ensure successful service turn-up, thereby avoiding activation delays, increased churn and excessive installation costs.

Fiber Monitoring

Optical cabling supports the communication infrastructure of the connected world, yet it is susceptible to frequent cuts, misplaced construction digs, rodent infestations, water ingress, security intrusions and many other potential hazards.

Maintaining optimal fiber condition and performance requires advanced fiber monitoring practices to identify and react to problems quickly.

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With the aim of leveraging digital solutions to build sustainable cities the government has emerged as a key contributor to OFC demand In India. Programmes initiated by the government; such as Digital India and Smart Cities rely on strong fiber connectivity to function seamlessly. An extensive, robust and scalable communications infrastructure lies at the core of smart city development, and an enduring ICT backbone is imperative for the sustainable development of smart cities.

Optical fiber networks and next-generation infrastructure is essential for applications like; - transportation, public safety, security, infrastructure connected to the IoT, machine to machine communication and utilities services.

Optical fiber networks are the backbone of bandwidthintensive applications in a smart city. In shaping the cities of tomorrow the telecom industry stakeholders are making collaborative efforts to deploy and accelerate technology penetration under the Smart Cities Mission.

OFC in Avionics

Fibre is the transmission medium of choice for high-speed and high-performance networks, hence optical fiber is viewed to be the next generation network in flight control systems, defence aircrafts and commercial aviation. A big transformation is expected in aircraft design, as several companies are using more optical fiber in avionics applications due to its light weight, supporting high-speed operations, better signal integrity and immunity from EMI.

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AUGUST 2021 <

> WHITE

PAPER

How to design modular DC DC systems,

part 3: Stability analysis and decoupling

The previous tutorials in this series showed first how a modular design strategy makes building reliable, adaptable, and highperforming power delivery networks (PDNs) possible when speed is a priority, and second how to design appropriate filtering to meet the needs of DC-DC systems based on switching power modules. This third tutorial will address stability issues that originate from the interconnection between the power source and power module through the filtering components and distribution line impedances.

The source and load subsystems can be considered inherently stable on their own. But when the two are interconnected (at VBUS), they can interact in ways that produce oscillations, leading to unstable operation of the system.

Complete system design based around a modular DC-DC converter requires filtering; filtering impacts some stability concerns that must be addressed by decoupling the source and the converter (blue elements of the system diagram).

The ratio is defined here as the minor loop gain of the system: the source impedance, which is looking back into the source subsystem — including the input filter, any interconnect impedance, as well as the power source output impedance itself — to the load input impedance looking into the DC-DC converter.

Principles of stability analysis

To analyze overall stability of a DC-DC converter system, first break it down into two subsystems of source and load. In this representation, the “load” subsystem is the DC-DC converter itself. Source impedance, input line impedance and the input filter are part of the source subsystem.

To analyze this type of system for stability, consider the frequency-dependent finite source impedance that the input filter and other upstream components presents to the DCDC converter. The source subsystem, having a finite output impedance, supplies power to the load subsystem that has its own finite input impedance. The ratio of these impedances is the key to analyzing system stability as characterized by the Middlebrook stability criterion, which states that a system is stable if the magnitude of the load subsystem’s input impedance is larger than the magnitude of the source subsystem’s output impedance.

VOUT KSOURCE + KLOAD + I KSOURCE + KLOAD + ZLOAD = = VIN ( ZSOURCE + ZLOAD ) ( I + TMLG ) Based on this relationship, what we define is a ratio (TMLG) wherein the source impedance must be less than the load impedance for the system to be stable.

TMLG =

To analyze stability, idealize the system as a block diagram representation of interacting source and load subsystems.

> AUGUST 2021

ZSOURCE ZLOAD

<< 1

If this ratio is not maintained, the result will be an improperly damped system that will exhibit erratic operation and possibly serious instability. Effectively, the system can form a negative-resistance oscillator between the source and the

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DC-DC converter. This can allow some system dynamics to cause an oscillation. Clearly, this is not what a well-designed system should do.

Decoupling the source impedance from the input of the converter Decoupling the source impedance from the load impedance is required to ensure oscillations do not destabilize the system.

A decoupling capacitor placed at th input side of the DCDC module is an effective way to accomplish this. To see it clearly, consider the example of a power source simplified into its Thévenin equivalent circuit, an ideal voltage source, and its impedance shown as a discrete impedance block, as in the complete system design figure above. Additionally, the distribution line impedance, which includes the inductance and resistance of the cabling to the DC-DC converter, also forms part of the source subsystem.

Partition the system at the bus between the DC-DC converter and the system’s source to clearly differentiate the two impedances: the output impedance looking back into the source and the input impedance going in to the DC-DC converter. Assume for simplicity that the DC-DC converter’s input impedance is resistive only and therefore fixed for all frequencies, while the source impedance has a characteristic of resistance at low frequency and inductance at high frequency.

It is at the point of transition into high-frequency operation that this stability analysis is most critical due to the increasing output impedance of the inductive source subsystem.

Insertion of capacitance with ESR to keep input impedance to the DC-DC converter above the source impedance at high frequency, ensuring overall system stability.

To maintain stability at high frequency, the system must provide an additional impedance element to modify the source impedance that the DC-DC converter encounters to prevent instability. This is fairly simple to accomplish with the addition of a capacitance and its equivalent series resistance (ESR), which forms part of a damping network.

The capacitive impedance (green trace) placed as a shunt between the source output impedance and the input impedance of the DC-DC converter decreases as frequency increases, bypassing the inductance of the source and creating an overall low equivalent output impedance from low frequency up to high frequency for the DC-DC converter to operate from.

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Input filter addition and system stability

The addition of an input filter to a regulated DC-DC system can modify the apparent source output impedance in such a way as to create an unstable system. The filter components can produce interactions that violate the Middlebook stability criterion and lead to unstable system operation and oscillations.

In an unstable system, load steps also cause perturbation, resulting in undesirable transients on the input voltage bus.

Define the input impedance of the regulated DC-DC converter at the minimum input voltage and maximum input power for which the system will operate. This yields a resistive approximation of the input impedance to the DC-DC converter, just as in the previous example. The system stability can now be evaluated by comparing the resistive approximation of the regulated DC-DC converter input impedance with the source’s output impedance (which includes additional filtering components).

In the example analysis in the following figure, the initial design of the input filter indicates that some interaction of the source and load impedances occurs due to a resonant peak in the total source impedance between 10kHz and 11kHz; this is caused by lack of damping in the composite source and input filter frequency response. In this frequency range, the ratio of source impedance and load impedance is greater than unity; this system’s instability can be expected.

With proper damping, however, the resonant peak magnitude can be reduced to ensure that the input impedance of the DC-DC converter and the source’s output impedance are properly decoupled, satisfying the Middlebrook stability criterion. With the filter appropriately damped, this system achieves good overall performance and avoids undesirable oscillations and instability.

The addition of an input filter to the system requires additional impedance analysis and adjustment to the damping network to ensure stability with worst-case input impedance to the DC-DC converter.

Basic system design is complete. Now what?

At this point, the DC-DC system’s design meets the application’s needs: the architecture and DC-DC module(s) have been chosen, appropriate filtering to mitigate module noise effects has been added, and now overall system stability at high frequency and worst-case conditions has been addressed.

With a stable and effective system in place, protecting the system from destructive transient events and protecting neighboring systems from the effects of catastrophic failure are the next area of system design. We will consider those factors in the next tutorial.

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AUGUST 2021 <

> POWER

- DESIGN

microBRICK

: A Simple Solution

TM

to Building Efficient High Density DC/DC Converters with a Wide Input Voltage Range Roy Shoshani

| VP | Power and Linear IC division | Vishay One of the biggest challenges in system design is powering the next generation of microprocessors, DSPs, FGPAs, and ASICs used in servers, telecom equipment, and IoT systems.

Maximizing performance and high power delivery becomes even more difficult as processors get faster, space availability diminishes, and power requirements increase – such as in 5G small cells, radio units, and robots. Consequently, these emerging applications demand high efficiency, high power density DC/DC conversion solutions. System designers need these DC/DC solutions to be simple to work with, even while delivering features such as a wide input voltage range and ultrafast transient response. For maximum performance, the best solution will integrate multiple functions into a single, compact package.

Designers have many options today to choose from, varying not only by supplier but also by the level of integration. At one end of the spectrum are traditional solutions that combine an IC controller, discrete MOSFETs, and numerous passive components. This “discrete” approach provides a high level of flexibility and potential lower bill of materials cost, but on the other hand requires a longer design and validation time. It is a riskier strategy too, given the high level of technical expertise it requires. More recently, solutions combining integrating the IC controller and power MOSFETs into a single package have emerged. This approach provides higher efficiencies while enabling faster switching frequencies and more features and protections in compact packages. On the far end of the integration spectrum are various module solutions in which both active and passive devices are combined into a single package. Until now, however, they have often remained out of reach due to higher prices. This mainly because the large component size and low production volumes tend to increase manufacturing costs.

up, since most of the component heat is dissipated through the PCB even if a heat sink is available. This approach might be acceptable for a given design but poses an obstacle to scaling in future products.

With this challenge in mind, Vishay engineers have developed a new type of DC/DC converter module, microBRICKTM, in which the package size is almost coequal to just the inductor, with the same respective dimensions. In other words, the real estate area occupied by the IC and power MOSFET has been shrunk to nearly zero size, yet they still provide improved performance over typical solutions.

Figure 1. DC/DC integration evolution As an innovative packaging solution, microBRICK offers several advantages, both thermal and electrical. It addresses the problem of heat dissipation in two ways. In the first, the highest temperature component (typically the power MOSFETs) is thermally coupled to a larger cooler component (the inductor).

This thermal structure provides a superior thermal solution as the inductor acts like a built-in heatsink.

Semiconductor manufacturers are working to improve product performance and lower costs with innovations in silicon and new wide band gap materials. This same process is resulting in smaller and smaller package sizes.

The second advantage, which is also thermal, is to better utilize the large area available under the inductor for improved MOSFET power dissipation purposes. Placing the MOSFET underneath the inductor allows a much larger effective cross section to the PCB without any additional area penalty.

A smaller package comes at a cost, however. One of the main challenges in DC/DC converters is how to dissipate the heat caused by a much higher level of power density. As the component cross section gets smaller and smaller, component density is pushed higher and thus the PCB temperature goes

From an electrical perspective, the 3D structure of the Vishay module eliminates the PCB interconnect resistance between the inductor and the switching node. This parasitic resistance is governed by the PCB’s top Cu layer thickness (typically less than 2 oz) and as a part of total losses is of the same

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magnitude as the MOSFET’s RDS(on) and the inductor’s DCR. This unique structure provides lower conduction losses and superior thermal performance which results in a lower junction temperature.

Meanwhile, the lower temperature of the high efficiency microBRICK module enables improved reliability and a wider safe operating area to support higher ambient temperatures or to compensate for smaller board space.

Measuring only 10.6 mm by 6.5 mm with an industry-low 3 mm profile, Vishay’s microBRICK modular solution offers a < 30 % smaller area and > 50 % smaller volume when compared to the closest competing module. Unlike BGA and LGA packages, the device’s wettable flank power QFN package improves the board level reliability (BLR) capability and simplifies assembly and testing while providing production with automatic inspection (AOI) capability.

Figure 3. microBRICK SiC931 efficiency The efficiency performance of the SiC931, as shown in Figure 3, was measured at room temperature on a 2 in. x 2 in. 6-layer PCB with no airflow.

Building a high efficiency DC/DC converter with a wide input voltage range is greatly simplified with microBRICK, which integrates the controller, power stage, and inductor in a single compact package. Just a few off-the-shelf resistors and capacitors are required in order to complete the design using a microBRICK module.

The overall smaller solution size enabled by the microBRICK products provides a more affordable total solution compared to other modules while still improving the DC/DC performance such as efficiency and transient response.

The SiC931 is the first member of the microBRICK family. Other members, sharing the same form factor, include the SiC967 and SiC951. The SiC967 features a 4.5 V to 60 V input voltage range with 6 A output current. The SiC951 offers a 4.5 V to 20 V input voltage range and 20 A output current supporting a PMBUS 1.3 compliant digital interface with full configuration and telemetry capabilities.

Author

Figure 2. microBRICK package Perhaps most impressively, the SiC931 is capable of delivering 20 A continuous current at an up to 2 MHz switching frequency, while providing an adjustable output voltage down to 0.6 V from an input rail of 4.5 V to 24 V. Additionally, the architecture supports ultrafast transient response with minimal output capacitance and tight ripple regulation at very light loads.

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Roy Shoshani is vice president of the Power and Linear IC division of Vishay, a role he has held for more than eight years. He started his tenure at Vishay as a design manager 14 years ago, and since then has held a series of senior management positions in the power IC space. Shoshani earned his electrical engineering degree from Technion Israel Institute of Technology and has also worked for both Siliconix and Harmonic.

AUGUST 2021 <

> BIG

PICTURE

How

Semiconductors will Power the Data Driven Car in Next 30 Years?

A leading global semiconductor player, Micron Technology has recently completed 30 years in the Automotive Industry.

Today, Micron is one of the top memory suppliers in the industry globally, with over 40% global market shares. Through various ecosystem collaborations, Micron has established a view of how semiconductors will fuel the data-driven car today and for the next 30 years. Whether the focus is on safety, security, performance, quality, longevity, innovation or customer support, Micron’s robust and extensive portfolio of innovative, auto-qualified DRAM-, NAND- and NOR-based solutions are addressing today’s and tomorrow’s requirements. While talking with Nitisha from BISinfotech; Rajesh Gupta, Director, Country Manager-India Sales, Micron has highlighted the role of semiconductor in automobile industry and its ahead strategies.

Q

Congratulations on completing 30 years in the automotive industry! Kindly elaborate on the changes and developments you have seen so far in this industry?

Today, cars do more than just go fast. They store and process massive amounts of data which must be processed quickly. Car manufacturers are re-architecting traditional discrete compute within various automotive systems towards more powerful, integrated computing that enables better control of new capabilities including auto safety systems and enhanced in-vehicle infotainment while paving a path towards full ADAS implementation. This move requires low latency data management to drive automotive analytics, improved thermal tolerances, extended product lifespan, and increased data capacity to manage data flowing from growing numbers of computers and sensors within the car.

Micron automotive memory is the solution to address today’s and tomorrow’s extreme memory requirements.

Rajesh Gupta

Director, Country Manager-India Sales, Micron Our memory and storage solutions have transformed the car from transportation to a center of computing capable of self-driving starting with a qualification of 16-Kbit EEPROM for a powertrain. The automotive industry has shifted its emphasis from horsepower to brainpower. The amount of data generated and the complexity of software in automobiles has grown exponentially; a high-end luxury vehicle today contains approximately 100 million lines of code.

As the technology moves toward fully autonomous vehicles, this figure is projected to grow to more than 300 million lines.

Connected vehicles can generate up to 25GB of data per hour. Depending on the vehicle’s architectural design, advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) and autonomous vehicle (AV) sensors can generate anywhere from 4TB to 20TB per day. The amount of memory and storage required to power these data-intensive systems has resulted in a $2.5 billion automotive memory industry, making it one of the semiconductor market’s fastest-growing sections.

Q

What will be your latest project for the safety of automotive applications?

The average vehicle nowadays has 4GB of DRAM and 256GB of storage. However, the realization of this perspective involves massive data processing from a wide range of sensors used for the detection, recognition, monitoring, and prediction of the actions of objects along the path. Ensuring the security and dependability of hardware and software has necessitated a keen focus on both security and functional safety. This complex, high-performance wheel calculation platform requires the utmost reliability and undergoes a 123 Street Address, NY 239 complete overhaul of the underlying vehicle architecture.

We recognize the partnerships and collaboration we have We’re currently observing the transition from distributed to had here as we celebrate Micron’s 30 years in the automobile.

Contact Us : info@email.com Web : www.info.com

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centralized/zonal designs, which will bring together infotainment, ADAS, and other technologies into a unified design. In these increasingly sophisticated embedded software platforms, achieving the required functional safety (FuSa) standards necessitates a greater focus on the influence and role of memory Meeting these FuSa levels will necessitate the use of ISO 26262-evaluated solutions for both traditional systems on chips (SoCs) and memory. All of this, of course, is based on a mindset that wants to reach and deliver a quality level of zero defects.

emergency braking, lane-keeping/changing, driver monitoring systems, and C-V2X vehicle-to-vehicle communications will all see increased focus (in some cases, due to governmental mandates) — driving growth in adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping/changing, driver monitoring systems, and C-V2X vehicle-to-vehicle communications. The market for these technologies will be quite robust in 2021. These approaches will work together to assist the industry get toward full autonomy in the long run.

We anticipate that autonomous vehicles will initially join the enterprise, in sectors such as robo-taxis via Mobility-as-a-Service Please share the future marketing strategy of Micron providers, as well as haulage and delivery solutions – industries technology and how are you planning to enhance market that can afford the price of fully autonomous vehicles and conditions in the automotive industry? gain enough ROI to justify the economics.

Micron has had the privilege of being at the forefront of the automobile industry’s evolution for the past few decades. Although the full potential of autonomous factories has yet Consistent focus, investment, and collaboration helped the to be realized, a trend toward micro-factories is expected to company become the top memory supplier to the automotive intensify in 2021. The COVID-19 epidemic has put unprecedented industry, with over 40% global market share. We’ve developed strain on production and the supply chain. Micro-factories a vision for how semiconductors will power the data-driven will be constructed on the foundation of industrial IoT (IIoT) car now and in the next 30 years as a result of our tight and automation, allowing them to be nimbler and more collaboration. Micron’s innovative technology is executed responsive to demand closer to the source. Edge-to-cloud with high quality, low cost, and a shorter time to scale thanks solutions will be in high demand to manage, connect, and to an efficient design cycle. We are at the forefront of the secure smart devices, factories, and infrastructure as a result auto industry, prepared to be measured not by horsepower of this intelligence-at-the-edge trend. or acceleration, but by computing performance and inAny key announcements we can expect from Micron in vehicle experience, with many trillions of kilometers covered the coming months? on Micron memory.

Micron’s FQ3 results demonstrate the strength of our business, We are committed to maintaining the automotive memory and we expect to achieve continued strong results in the leaders for the next 30 years, delivering the industry’s leading future. Demand for memory and storage is solid across market portfolio of innovative, auto-qualified DRAM-, NAND-, and segments, and industry trends like artificial intelligence, edge NOR-based solutions addressing today’s and tomorrow’s computing and 5G continue to create new opportunities for requirements, whether the focus is on safety, security, Micron. Our team is building on our technology leadership to performance, quality, longevity, innovation, or customer deliver bold new solutions that offer valuable differentiation for support. We are pleased to be the first company to mass- our customers. Micron’s business is healthier and more robust produce DRAM in the 1znm class and to have the world’s than ever, and we are energized to seize the opportunities smallest die size NAND in production. We are the first business ahead at a truly exciting time in the semiconductor industry. in the world to launch our 2nd generation QLC NAND in bulk, We are also leveraging our success to deliver results for all making it the most cost-effective NAND ever supplied. We also our stakeholders. delivered the world’s first 176-Layer NAND, which represents a significant advancement in flash memory performance In April, we released our sixth annual sustainability report, highlighting progress toward our environmental, social and and density. governance goals. We are pleased to report that we are on The situation of ADAS and autonomous vehicles in today’s track to achieve the environmental and sustainability goals we era. Explain. set last year, despite the challenges posed by the pandemic.

In the next couple of years, the upgraded in-cabin experience In fact, our ESG risk scores have improved to the top 10% of and advanced driver-assistance (ADAS) systems will be the semiconductor industry according to the third-party rating widely used, although a pause in the transition to completely agency Sustainalytics. We are also making good progress on autonomous vehicles is expected. COVID has slowed down achieving 100% renewable energy consumption in the U.S. the aggressive adoption of autonomous vehicles that we by the end of 2025. might otherwise see; people are wary about public transit and ride sharing.

In CY21, we continue to focus on emissions abatement, transition to renewable sources, water restoration and increased efforts Enriched features such as better connectivity, larger digital to reduce, reuse or recycle waste. We will pursue these goals displays, and full digitalization of the cabin will become more with the same focus with which we have created sustained prevalent, and these will serve as important purchasing momentum in the business, and we look forward to providing differentiators for consumers. Adaptive cruise control, automatic updates on our progress in future.

Q

Q

Q

•Vol - 03 / 08

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AUGUST 2021 <

> ROBOTIC

- FEATURE

Robots: from Automated

to Autonomous

Eddie Liu

Product Manager for AMR, ADLINK

How an integrated hardware and software approach can simplify the development and deployment of robotics applications

The world is quickly changing for modern warehouses.

E-commerce companies, retailers, hospitals, and other thirdparty logistics businesses view autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) as a critical technology to rein in high labor costs and increase throughput to reduce fulfillment time. Factory owners and managers want quick AMRs that are easy to deploy with the ability to be modified on the fly. Unlike its predecessor, the

> AUGUST 2021

automated guided vehicle (AGV), an AMR can understand commands and dynamically detect and avoid obstacles to navigate through different work environments without being on a direct path or having an operator control its movement.

This article describes developing and deploying AMRs with integrated hardware and software technology, and includes use cases for factories, smart cities, and hospitals.

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Sophisticated warehouse demands drive the megatrend from AGV to AMR

The AMR market is booming. In 2020, the market size was $356 million. MarketWatch predicts that it will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.9% to $1011 million by 2026. Manufacturing and logistics enterprises' demand high throughput, quick and easy robot deployment, and flexible production lines. This trend, accompanied by the emergence of new applications, is driving a major movement from automated guided vehicles (AGVs) to AMRs. To understand the megatrend from AGVs to AMRs, let’s examine the two technologies.

Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) vs. Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) - Key Differentiators

Until recently, AGVs represented the latest advanced technology – capable of transporting raw materials, worksin-process, and finished goods to manufacturing production lines or storing and retrieving goods in warehouses and logistics centers. AGVs use a combination of software and sensor-based guidance systems to direct their movement.

They are safe and reliable at moving loads because they follow a fixed path with precisely controlled acceleration and deceleration and obstacle detection bumpers.

However, AGVs lack flexibility, (see figure 1). If a production line layout changes, for example, this means that the guidance track infrastructure will need rerouting, which often involves time and money. When an AGV detects an obstacle, it stops until someone manually removes the item. Furthermore, AGVs cannot interact with humans because the fleet management system is centralized without peer-to-peer communication.

A new direction: the migration from ROS 1 to ROS 2 enables swarm robotics autonomy

The Robotic Operating System (ROS) is an open-source framework for robot software development that is neither a robot nor an operating system. ROS was created in 2007 by Eric Berger and Keenan Wyrobek, two Stanford Ph.D. students who wanted software developers with minimal robotics hardware knowledge to write software for robots.

Today, ROS Classic, now referred to as ROS 1, has abundant stable packages, tools, and tutorials that encapsulate the hardware for developing different robotic applications. ROS building blocks include sensor fusion, navigation, visualization, and motion planning.

Originally developed for academic use, ROS 1 assumes perfect communication. In the real world, communication is less than perfect, especially in an industrial setting. Variable factors, such as bandwidth, networking possibility and communication range, as well as transceiver power consumption for battery powered mobile robots add additional complication.

Furthermore, ROS 1 was only intended for use with a single robot. To make factories more intelligent when there are multiple robots, they need collaboration. Based on the DDS communications framework, ROS 2 decentralizes the fleet management system by enabling AMRs to communicate in real-time in a peer-to-peer way, called swarm autonomy.

Figure 2. A new direction – the migration from ROS 1 to ROS 2 enables swarm robotics autonomy

Figure 1. Comparison between AVGs and AMRs AMRs are far more flexible. If an operational layout changes, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) let the robot explore the unknown space to create a map automatically without extra effort or cost to the operator. AMRs can use an array of sensor technologies to detect and avoid obstacles dynamically, including people. These robots use sensors and a combination of camera detection and real-time communication technologies, enabling real-time collaboration with humans.

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The shift from AGV to AMR and the transition from ROS 1 to ROS 2 is likely partially caused or driven by factory manager priorities. In modern smart factories and warehouse and logistics centers, factory managers want higher throughput.

They want AMRs that are efficient and capable of performing additional tasks. Owners also want quick and easy deployment, meaning they need an AMR to upscale operations fast without the need to pre-install infrastructure. They also need the flexibility to modify the production line, adjust settings in real-time, and perform these tasks easily. For these reasons, while many developers use ROS 1 for AMR prototyping, there is a trend to migrate to ROS 2.

Challenges when building next-generation, ROS 2 AMRs The future of AMRs is swarm autonomy. A swarm of autonomous mobile robots can carry out their jobs with little to no oversight by human operators. To achieve this, the industry must move from ROS 1 to ROS 2.

AUGUST 2021 <

> ROBOTIC

- FEATURE

However, migrating to ROS 2 is challenging, especially when developing and deploying a swarm of AMRs. For developers already using ROS 1, there are three main challenges: complexity, scalability, and upgradability.

● To achieve high accuracy with sensor fusion, time synchronization from multiple integrated sensors e.g.

GMSL (Gigabit Multimedia Serial Link) images, IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) is vital.

The design for AMRs is complex. To build a robotics system, you need to select and buy the hardware from computing platforms to sensors, motion controllers, mechanical design, and install the software (the operating system (OS), drivers, and packages). If you are unfamiliar with a system, it might take up to a month to complete system integration. If you need advanced capabilities such as real-time capability or dedicated quality of service (QoS), the developer has to develop the coding by themselves. Once a robot is built for proof-of-concept, scalability and deployment become bigger concerns.

● To optimize the internal processing of data, consider whether the system features a shared memory mechanism, (see figure 3). In traditional implementations, processes in the system need to pass messages through the OS network layer, which incurs latency. Accessing shared memory and performing the transmission directly is an optimized approach and lowers latency significantly. ● Find a solution that can provide decentralized communications, which would support swarm autonomy while ensuring fault tolerance and redundancy.

ROS 1 wasn’t built with the intention of being used for communication across multiple AMRs; doing so increases the risk of accuracy issues, failures or damages to the fleet system. Operators need to be able to rely on large-scale AMR deployment without exorbitant costs to execute.

Support for ROS 1 is expected to End of Life (EOL) by 2025, meaning more companies will need to determine how to migrate from ROS 1 to ROS 2. To do so, developers need to familiarize themselves with the migration process.

Considerations when implementing AMRs with ROS 2

ROS 2 is the update that takes ROS 1 out of academia and into the industrial realm. ROS 2 permits industrial use through multi-robot collaboration and reliable, fault-tolerant real-time communication. ROS 2, using DDS as a backbone, provides a uniform data exchange environment, like a data river, so a swarm of AMRs can communicate with each other.

Additional equipment that adopts Distributed Data Service (DDS) technology can also use the data river to share data collectively.

DDS is one key component to ROS 2. The core of its technology is the Data-Centric Publish-Subscribe (DCPS) standard, which provides a Global Data Space that all independent applications can access. The United States Navy used ROS 2 to solve the compatibility issues with large-scale software upgrades in the complex network environment of ships. Since its release by the Object Management Group (OMG) in 2004, DDS is widely adopted as the standard solution for data publishing and subscription for distributed real-time communication within autonomous and demanding systems.

There are several considerations when looking for the right ROS 2-based AMR solution. ● First, you must determine whether systems are optimized for AMR navigation—including hardware and software integration – to avoid time-consuming dependencies, versioning issues and compile errors.

> AUGUST 2021

Figure 3. Inter-process communication optimization using a shared memory mechanism Finally, consider if the solution is easy to implement. Some vendors provide software development kits (SDKs) with optimized DDS performance to support a swarm architecture and ensure reliable communication. Eclipse Cyclone DDS is a fast and reliable DDS implementation selected by the ROS 2 Technical Steering Committee (TSC) as the default ROS middleware (RMW) for the ROS 2 Galactic Geochelone release. This default configuration works for most developers; however, they can also use non-default RMW configurations.

For easier implementation and faster deployment, search for vendors that offer an integrated development environment (IDE), apps with tested and verified packages, and sample code for reference designs. To help the developer move from ROS 1 to ROS 2 easily, some vendors provide a migration guide that includes different approaches and describes the benefits and issues associated with the migration process.

ADLINK and Foxconn form FARobot® for swarm autonomy ADLINK is currently working with global manufacturing giant, Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn). Foxconn used AGVs in their production facilities but they wanted to improve the flexibility of their production lines. Foxconn formed a joint

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venture with ADLINK, called FARobot®, to develop advanced swarm robot system (SRS) and autonomous mobile robot (AMR) solutions using ROS 2, (see figure 4).

to multiple inspection divisions for enhanced productivity, (see figure 5).

Figure 4. The FARobot AMR robot can boost industrial efficiency and productivity

Figure 5: Real-time integration with production line information and connection with AMRs for transportation.

As AMRs communicate with each other in real-time, they can perform task scheduling and assignment and use peerto-peer communication to determine the location path for each ARM. If there is a fault in one of the AMRs, the fleet will initiate a backup immediately and automatically send the most suitable robot to assist.

The implementation includes three significant technology applications: an AMR solution, automated optical inspection (AOI), and augmented reality (AR) smart glasses. The combination increased the factory’s yield rate by 15% and reduced production costs by 20%.

FARobot’s unique AMR solution features swarm collaboration, task failover, and performance optimization. By adopting the latest swarm autonomy technology, a FARobot AMR robot can boost industrial efficiency and productivity - for example, delivering the right raw material or components to the right place at the right time to reduce unnecessary hold-ups.

As the demand for swarm autonomy with peer-to-peer communication increases, industries will continue the trend to move from AGVs to AMRs and from ROS 1 to ROS 2. ROS 2 is a breakthrough aiding AMR development and deployment, covering a wide range of applications beyond industrial settings.

The recent pandemic introduced AMRs into the healthcare sector to automate the disinfection of wards and intensive care units. AMRs can also provide patient support and mobility assistance. There are AMRs in the retail industry, in-store and restaurant service robots, and autonomous last-mile delivery services for smart order fulfilment. Other applications include autonomous farming and smart harvesting, construction, industrial cleaning, and disaster recovery.

Factory of the future: private 5G with DDS for real-time integration The Fair Friend Group (FFG), one of the largest machine tool manufacturers globally, realized that labor shortages and changes in demands required an urgent need for logistics upgrades, inspection improvements, and enhanced technical services. While the company used AGVs, they wanted to improve flexibility for greater efficiency and to reduce costs.

FFG teamed up with ADLINK and the Institute for Information Industry (III) to plan construction for smart factories.

When deploying smart factory solutions, you must account for manufacturing flexibility, factory expansion, and speedy line switches. In those environments, communication is key; DDS can act as middleware for both wired and wireless manufacturing environments and those with multiple wireless technologies. Featuring high reliability, DDS combined with private 5G low-latency and high-speed transmission enhances the sensitivity and response speed of AGVs

The future of AMRs

The development and deployment of AMRs take more effort than can be completed by a single company. It takes an ecosystem of collaborating partners with real-time software and hardware platform suppliers, sensor and system integration providers, and applications end-users. ADLINK supports developers by integrating hardware and software with communication technologies to enable them to build and deploy AMRs, quickly, flexibly and more cost-effectively in private 5G environments.

The first implementation of swarm autonomy was on industrialgrade spray gun production lines at the factory of FFGmember Anest Iwata, located in the Hukou Township, Hsinchu County, Taiwan. The Production Equipment and Operations Surveillance Center incorporated private 5G with DDS for real-time integration with production line information and to connect with AMRs to transport parts and components

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> BIG

PICTURE

Rajeev Khushu

Director of Corporate Affairs & Government Relations, Texas Instruments and the Chairman of IESA

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Rajeev Khushu, Director of Corporate Affairs & Government Relations, Texas Instruments and the Chairman of IESA Today, we are the world’s second largest manufacturer of cell phones, only next to China. Through policies like SPECS, PLI and cascading of incentives in the ESDM value chain, we could expect to become the world’s largest manufacturer of cell phones in the next 4 to 5 years. As far as the ESDM sector is concerned, the PLI scheme is definitely a game changer and would greatly help to increase the GDP contribution of the industry cites Rajeev Khushu, Director of Corporate Affairs & Government Relations, Texas Instruments and the Chairman of IESA. During this exclusive interview with Niloy – Rajeev elaborates about his new role, IESA’s policies to boost the ESDM sector, highlights on PLI Scheme and also extends his views on ‘Design in India’ or ‘Make in India’ and much more in this edited excerpt below.

> AUGUST 2021

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Holding the chair as the Vice Chairman of IESA, what will be your pivotal focus empowering the Indian ESDM sector.

As the Chairman of IESA, my focus is on boosting the semiconductor ecosystem in the country to be at par with Silicon Valley. Today, IESA is in talks with the Government of India to envision and execute a holistic approach towards the semiconductor space, that places equal weightage to manufacturing, employment generation and providing the right atmosphere for fabless startups in the country. India is a country with tremendous engineering and R&D talent, and we should leverage this talent to build a strong startup ecosystem and generate employment opportunities in the ESDM space.

Currently we have IESA members mentoring startups across segments in our Bangalore, NCR and Hyderabad chapters,

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and soon we will be announcing our Silicon Valley chapter as well with several prospective initiatives in our pipeline and constant support from the government, we are on our mission to make India the fabless capital of the world.

collaborative initiative between IESA and the Government of Karnataka to drive innovation, create fabless companies in the semiconductor domain and promote a fabless ecosystem in the State, KDEM focuses on promoting the ‘Silicon City’ brand identity for Bangalore and aims to make Karnataka a go-to Major schemes initiated by the Govt. of India include the destination for ESDM. With KDEM, we are also working toward PLI scheme, as a leading association and a backbone strengthening the growth of electronics and semiconductor for electronics. What are your views on this initiative and the manufacturing, designing and R&D in the state. Such game future market for manufacturing hardware in India? changing policies in place are enabling us to inch closer to Let us first look at the electronics industry in India. A Frost & the broader goal of both Make in India and Design in India.

Sullivan analysis reveals that the electronics sector in India is Challenges and prospects for India stating itself a giant expected to grow at 16.6% between 2019 and 2025 and the in ‘Semiconductors’? demand for electronic products would grow at 14.9% between 2019 and 2025. With this increase in demand, electronics In order to strengthen India as a semiconductor giant, we need exports were also expected to grow at 30.8%. We could also to work towards utilizing and shaping up the ecosystem and expect generation of over 1 crore employment opportunities, market conditions in the country. We need access to three key elements to set up fabrication units in India - clean water, both through directly and indirectly. uninterrupted power supply and availability of specialized While there are other schemes and policies in India that aim chemicals and gases. We should incentivize industry to process to boost the electronics manufacturing ecosystem in the raw material for fab and ATMPs. This will create the ecosystem country, the PLI scheme stands out as it helps provide the right to set up semiconductor manufacturing plants. ecosystem required to set up manufacturing units in the country.

It also plays a pivotal role in terms of better leveraging the Over the last few years, the Government of India has worked prospect and growth of the industry. If we include the impact towards ensuring availability of adequate clean water and of the PLI scheme as a factor to the Frost & Sullivan analysis, uninterrupted power supply which is important for ESDM we will see the figures and percentiles drastically going up. industry to prosper. This will help to support the fabs as well.

Today, we are the world’s second largest manufacturer of In terms of infrastructural development too, we have come cell phones, only next to China. Through policies like SPECS, a long way and are continuing to improve the facilities in the PLI and cascading of incentives in the ESDM value chain, we country. Now, in order to make India a semiconductor giant, could expect to become the world’s largest manufacturer of availability of the required environment must be conveyed to cell phones in the next 4 to 5 years. As far as the ESDM sector global companies. To succeed in the same, we need support is concerned, the PLI scheme is definitely a game changer from the government in the form of customized initiatives and and would greatly help to increase the GDP contribution schemes like PLI and SPECS. of the industry. In terms of expanding the policy, IESA has IESA policies and frameworks in the pipeline? been suggesting to the Government of India to extend the IESA aims to boost the semiconductor ecosystem, attract scheme to Smart LED Display drivers and power supplies for aircons to better leverage the PLI policy. We are also coming companies to set up fab units, leverage the engineering and up with the whitepaper on “How India can become part of R&D talent and generate direct and indirect employment global fab and ATMP supply chain even before having one opportunities. in the country” With progression and correct implementation of policies, India could become a part of the global supply To promote fabless units in the country, it is essential to remove chain of semiconductors even before setting up the first Fab any bottlenecks that might slow down the process or restrict the entrepreneurs from scaling up their business expansions, or ATMP in the country. and IESA is working towards addressing these challenges.

Is silicon or say advanced material such GaN or SiC a One of the most common and challenging issues faced by reality for India? Hence how do you define the future of startup units is the lack of adequate funds for access to tools Make in India, or it will be Design in India. Your key initiatives. and Electronic Design Automation (EDA). This is where our The Gallium Nitride (GaN) or Silicon Carbide (SiC) fabs are framework on budgeting needs for startups comes helpful. We specialty fabs that are still taking shape in global semiconductor have proposed to split the startup budget into four buckets, ecosystem, with prospects for opportunities and growth. namely pre-incubation, incubation, acceleration and scale However, currently a few devices are produced in these up. This helps to allocate funds more wisely with ease, apart specialty fabs. from mentoring the startups to our full capacity. We are also proposing changes in the engineering curriculum so that we IESA in association with the Ministry of Electronics and are able to match the requirements of this industry. Apart from Information Technology (MeitY) and state governments these, we are also closely working with various government of India has planned and executed key initiatives such as bodies to ensure cascading of incentives are passed into the Semiconductor Fabless Accelerator Lab (SFAL) and the ESDM ecosystem. We are also planning to expand the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM). While SFAL is a Electropreneur Parks (EP) across India to leverage the diversity

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AUGUST 2021 <

> POWER of skills and needs of the regions after seeing the success of EP Delhi and EP Bhubaneshwar and HEX Hubli and IOT lab in Bangalore. We have formed the ESDM advocacy team based out of Delhi to work closely with GoI to ensure the sector gets proper attention.

avail limited financial support for prototype silicon product development and gain access to EDA tools at nominal costs.

So far, 18 companies have been selected for this scheme, out of which 5 are executing active projects and 10 other projects have reached various engagement stages. Currently, 17 more companies are being scrutinized and mentored to IESA’s 1K-10K-100K-1000K Program - an initiative to create avail benefits under this scheme. KDEM is another initiative that Fabless startups and ESDM jobs in India. focuses on strengthening the semiconductor ecosystem. The Our 1K-10K-100K-1000K program is an ambitious program initiative strives to promote Bangalore as the ‘Silicon City’ and aimed at strengthening fabless units and ESDM jobs in the Karnataka as the go-to destination for setting up of fabrication country. It stands for creating 1K electronics and fabless units with ESDM employment opportunities. Another key startups, 10K IPs (patents), 100K crore of business value and initiative that provides incubation services is the Electropreneur 1000K employment generation.

Park (EP) initiative. This is essentially an incubation center for startups and provides access to IPs, samples and access to This program is a key initiative that nurtures engineering talent, tools for startup units. Electropreneur Park is a collaborative promotes fab units and aims to create more ESDM jobs by initiative of MeitY, IESA and the Software Technology Parks of setting up fabrication units in the country. This program also India (STPI). The initiative facilitates regular virtual mentoring, supports our ‘Design in India’ and ‘Make in India’ objectives, training sessions and monthly virtual workshops to startup units. through a subset of key initiatives that provide a strong Currently, the scheme has on-boarded 44 startups, incubated ecosystem for fabless startups in the country.

26 startups and has listed 10 startups in the pre-incubation stage. So far, 18 startups have graduated under the scheme How is IESA providing a strong ecosystem for electronics and 11 of them have reached the revenue stage. and fabless startups in India?

The 1K-10K-100K-1000K program in itself brings together a EP also adds value to the ‘Design in India’ objective with over subset of initiatives that strengthen the startup ecosystem in the 36 IPs, 17 trademarks and 7 patents, and plays an important country. To start with, the Semiconductor Fabless Accelerator role in contributing to the ‘Make in India’ objective through Lab (SFAL) is focused on promoting the semiconductor sector programs such as E-Playground, Med Technovation, Indiathon, within the state of Karnataka. Currently, the model is being Agri Tech and EV & Charging. The above initiatives are considered for pan India execution, with support from MeitY. instrumental in building a strong semiconductor ecosystem SFAL as an initiative offers fundraising support, business in India, and also to boost developments within the defense, connections and company support services. The scheme has EV, medical technology and electronic innovation space. helped raise funding in the form of 1.6mn USD for four companies from five VC funds. Through this initiative, the startups can also

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> INDUSTRY

UPDATES

ST Plans to Become Carbon Infineon, IDEX Biometrics’ New Design for Biometric Smart Cards Neutral by 2027 Infineon Technologies and IDEX STMicroelectronics has reported that its Bouskoura site in Morocco will procure 50% of its energy from renewable sources by 2022 compared to 1 % in 2020.

A project that advances STMicroelectronics’ commitment to sourcing renewable energy and becoming carbon-neutral by 2027.

STMicroelectronics has been present in Bouskoura for over 20 years with a back-end plant that employs 2,800 people.

The site has developed several programs over the last few years to reduce its indirect greenhouse gas emissions (Scope 2) and augment the use of renewable energy sources: • The purchase of electrical power generated by wind farm: the electricity of 12 wind turbines produced by InnoVent in North Morocco will be fed into Morocco’s national power grid and then, purchased by ST. With annual output expected to reach more than 80 gigawatt-hours of green energy, the wind farm should contribute to reducing the Bouskoura facility’s CO2 emissions by about 60,000 metric tons per year – or the amount of carbon captured by planting 1,100,000 trees. will reduce the site’s annual power consumption by 1.3 GWh.

Renesas Expands its R-Car SoCs Family with R-Car Gen3e Renesas Electronics Corporation added a new family to its popular series of R-Car systemon-chips (SoCs) with the R-Car Gen3e.

Featuring six new members, the new R-Car Gen3e series of SoCs offers a scalable lineup for entry- to mid-range automotive applications that require highquality graphics rendering, such as integrated cockpit domain controllers, in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), digital instrument cluster, driver monitoring systems, and LED matrix light.

“With the growing popularity of applications such as augmented reality navigation and AI-based digital automotive assistants, OEMs and Tier 1s need to balance the skyrocketing demand for larger, higher-resolution displays and high-performance chips with rising BOM costs and longer development times,” said Naoki Yoshida, Vice President Automotive Digital Products Marketing at Renesas. “The new R-Car Gen3e devices and reference solutions offer a seamless and cost-effective migration path, providing full compatibility and easy integration with Renesas’ current R-Car Gen3 SoCs to make it quicker and easier for customers to bring their automotive-grade applications to market.”

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Biometrics have introduced a reference design for the next generation biometric smart card architecture.

The reference design leverages the combination of Infineon’s new SLC38BML800 security controller with additional GPIOinterfaces and the latest generation of the TrustedBio solution from IDEX Biometrics.

“This new design provides significant improvements at the card system level, which allow easy integration into existing hot lamination card manufacturing processes. Therefore, the architecture increases card performance, while reducing manufacturing complexity at the same time,” said Tolgahan Yildiz, Head of the Payment and Ticketing Solutions product line at Infineon. “The additional interfaces and the energy efficiency of our security controller allow industrialization of high performance biometric smart cards. This fingerprint solution is yet another proof point for our continuous innovation to enable easy to use, easy to integrate, highly accurate and cost-effective biometric smart cards.”

“Strong demand drivers for card-based fingerprint authentication are in place for both issuers and users of payment cards,” said Vince Graziani, Chief Executive Officer of IDEX Biometrics. “However, to date, the relatively high cost of manufacturing biometrically enabled smart cards has inhibited mass-market adoption. With TrustedBio, IDEX Biometrics has integrated a patented, highly differentiated polymer sensor into a single device delivering proprietary image capture, processing, and matching capabilities, as well as power management functions. No other biometric solution on the market offers this level of integration.”

This enables fingerprint authentication with low latency, high accuracy, and power efficiency. The integration of the fingerprint sensor, the secure element, power management and communications reduce the complexity of card manufacturing which shortens time to market and lowers costs.

TrustedBio delivers fingerprint images with high accurate authentication results (FRR/FAR and PAD performance) for payment applications.

With the performance of the SLC38BML800, biometrically authenticated transactions are accomplished at a marketleading speed of fewer than 500 milliseconds.

An internal clock frequency of up to 100 MHz not only enables biometric fingerprint card applications, but the SLC38BML800 is also very well adaptable for payment, ID, and logical and physical access. Customers using this reference design can easily address these and other authenticated applications with rapid time to market.

AUGUST 2021 <

> 5G

- COLUMN

The

4G/5G Interworking -

Breaking Vendor Lock-In 4G and 5G will continue to co-exist for a long time to come and 4G would still account for more than half of all connections for the next few years, as consumers and businesses continue to use LTE, while service providers advance transition from 4G to 5G by bridging the two major networks. It is evident that 5G will dominate the mobile landscape in the future but then, 4G is not going away anytime soon.

Breaking vendor lock-in

While transition from 4G to 5G is a substantial shift, this coexistence creates a host of challenges and considerations and vendor lock-in is one of the key highlight. For telecom operators, proprietary technologies with little scope for manoeuvre did not meet their expectations, slowed innovation and caused higher operational expenditure.

By separating 5G functions and data, operators immediately gain more control, freeing them from the vendor lock-ins. The path telecom operators can choose is: either remain locked with their incumbent vendor for the foreseeable future or break-free from the shackles of vendor lock-in and get a neutral, open vendor and start Ammar Hamdan leveraging best-of-breed functions for Head of sales for MEA and 5G. Operators will have the freedom to Indian subcontinent, Enea pick and choose individual components and gain the ability to differentiate and monetize service offerings.

Alongside 5G architecture, 4G networks will continue to operate requiring interworking between the systems to provide service for all types of subscribers. Most telecom operators have a 4G core from a major vendor that makes it almost impossible to deploy a different 5G SA solution. Service providers also may not find much help in 3GPP standards, which were late to define 4G-5G interworking.

In this scenario, Tier 1 operators are best positioned to break free. Due to their size and resources, they’re in an advantage position to handle the challenges and risks of switching vendors. Their capacity and extent also gives them more power to command their incumbent vendors to co-operate.

The key considerations

Subscriber data management shows just how daunting interworking can be. During the 5G core build out, intelligent interworking with existing systems must include subscriber data. Otherwise, operators can’t provide seamless service delivery both within their own networks and when customers are roaming.

In 3GPP Release 16, the home subscriber server (HSS) is replaced by unified data management (UDM). This change clarifies the core subscriber data management systems that must be reconciled for a successful network transformation. The

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process of breaking vendor lock-in applies to the HSS/UDM, as well as large parts of the core network due to dependencies on front-end modules and the unified data repository (UDR).

Cloud-native UDM technology provides a centralized way to control network user data designed specifically for 5G. There are three major options for enabling HSS-UDM interworking:

within their solution, often in a proprietary format. However, thanks to a cloud-native environment combined with REST API-based interfaces, it is now possible to separate data from applications by using an independent network data layer (NDL), including both the UDR and unstructured data storage function (UDSF) functionality.

Selecting the right partner

Although Enea provides both front ends and back ends for 5G, it supports interoperability with all major vendors.

It’s 5G product portfolio stores and manages data across all 5G core and edge functions, and supports multi-vendor 4G/5G interworking. The cloud-native suite spans the NDL and scales the control plane with critical 3GPP functions including the UDR, UDSF, AUSF, PCF, EIR and the UDM. The UDM provides robust authentication for 4G/5G interworking to support all subscriber and device data. Along with full 3GPP compliance and implementation of the latest standards, it also provides: • UDM-HSS interworking via a service-based architecture (SBA) requires changes to the legacy HSS but enables seamless interworking, including with 3G. It lets operators create a flexible new architecture by disaggregating legacy network elements. This is the best option for operators as it allows them to leverage the full potential of agile 5G architecture by managing various access technology networks with their own level of operations or administration. In other words, it helps them build a solution that evolves at its own pace while introducing disruptive edge services with shorter deployment time • UDM-HSS diameter interaction leaves the legacy HSS untouched. Instead, it uses diameter interfaces already available in the HSS, with the UDM acting as a gateway and sole access point to the 5G core and evolved packet core/ IP multimedia subsystem (EPC/IMS). This option is a good fit for operators that want the benefits of a new 5G core and UDM, without changing the HSS. • UDM with basic EPC HSS functionality has the UDM support Nudm interfaces for 5G core procedures. It also introduces basic EPC HSS support with the S6a interface handling EPS procedures between the mobility management entity (MME) and HSS. This option is suitable for operators introducing 5G subscriber data without affecting or migrating legacy subscriber data already provisioned on a legacy HSS.

The UDM is cloud-based and it can be combined with REST API-based interfaces to separate data from applications by using a NDL. The NDL enables a clear separation between the data layer, control plane and user plane, which creates • Support for 1 to 10 billion data entries at a rate of 1 to 500,000 transactions per second • Efficient scaling and handles demanding network sizes and use cases • Seamless interworking options for operators • Zero-touch operation using self-management features and standard management tools • An ultra-powerful rules engine to differentiate 5G offerings, including DevOps for faster integration unique flexibility. And it is this unprecedented level of agility that makes the Stratum NDL solution essential for 4G/5G interworking.

The advantages: Eliminates lock-in by collapsing all vendor data silos into one common NDL, provides 100% ownership of schema and virtual schemas for application-specific data views, delivering 4G and 5G interface support with built-in protocol translation, shares data across network slices and ensures 99.9999% availability in the cloud, with configurable redundancy, dynamic scaling and self-healing.

In a cloud-native 5G solution, applications must be allowed to be stateless and separated from the data processing.

Separating application logic from data avoids both vendor lock-in and situations where large vendors maintain control over applications (and the network) by embedding data

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> SEMICONDUCTOR

- EXCLUSIVE

3W cost-effective and ultra-compact

AC-DC Converter

Introduction

The LD-R2 series, compact and high-performance AC/ DC module power supplies, launched in 2020-2021 has gained well market recognition.

Based on the change of market demand, we are pleased to launch a more cost-effective and ultra-thin LD03-23BxxR2P series with 3W. These 3W products have the advantages of a wide operating temperature range of -40° C to +85° C, low power consumption, and their dimensions is only 37.5*18.5*13.6mm.

LD03-23BxxR2P AC DC converters are part of the 305RAC (reliable under all conditions) family. They can be used not only in normal operating conditions but also in applications with requirements for higher

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input voltage, temperature, humidity, altitude, and EMI (electromagnetic interference).

Advantages

1) Small-size and Ultra-thin High power density, the dimensions is only 37.5*18.5*13.6mm, ultra-thin profile is suitable for applications with space limitation.

2) Wide input voltage range: 85 - 305VAC/100 - 430VDC These modules comply with the global universal voltage requirements, 110/220/277VAC, and other standard voltages are applicable.

3) High reliability a. High withstand voltage of 3600VAC/5mA b. Output short-circuit, over-current protections c. Over-current protection: ≥140%Io @220VAC input d. Plastic case meets UL94V-0 flammability 4) Wide operating temperature, ultra-low power consumption a. Operating temperature range: -40° C to +85° C b. Operated @-25~70° C without derating c. No-load power consumption as low as 0.1W

•Vol - 03 / 08

5) Simple peripheral circuit for EMC a. Satisfy EMI Class B standards with a simple peripheral circuit b. Satisfy surge of IEC/EN61000-4-5 line to line ±2KV and EFT of IEC/EN61000-4-4 ±4KV with a simple peripheral circuit

Applications

It can be widely used in industrial control system, smart homes, smart building, smart agriculture, household appliance and other fields, especially for the high requirements of size and EMI.

Features ● Ultra-wide input voltage range: 85 - 305VAC/100 - 430VDC ● Operating temperature: -40° C to +85° C ● Efficiency up to 78% efficiency ● High power density ● No-load power consumption as low as 0.1W ● Output short circuit, over-current protections ● Plastic case meets UL94V-0 flammability ● Meets IEC62368/UL62368/EN62368 standards

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> SMART

LIGHT - FEATURE

SMART TIMES AHEAD FOR LIGHTING ON Semiconductor Since the late 1800s, apart from minor improvements in filament materials, the basic technology in the incandescent lightbulb has remained relatively unchanged. Although there is a fog surrounding claims between Joseph Swan and Thomas Edison on who invented it, it was Edison’s patented design that became commercially successful. As a side note, Edison’s screw base, which became the worldwide standard, was sized on the fashionable candlestick holder at the time.

Throughout the 1900s, incandescent bulbs lifted our homes out of darkness, providing low-cost, high-quality and safe light. However, in commercial building such as offices and factories, the use of fluorescent strip lighting became more popular in the 1940s. It was never really used in residential buildings as the light it produces is very harsh by comparison.

The technological advances of the fluorescent lamp, however, have been relatively rapid. During this time there was a global push for a more efficient alternative to the incandescent technology. Lighting engineers eventually managed to make fluorescent lights much smaller and more stable. Also, with innovative electronics, they were able to create more appealing colors. And, briefly, the fluorescent lightbulb hit the shelves in a bid to displace the incandescent forever.

LED there be light

LED lights have been around since the 1960s. They were mainly used in TV remote controls or to indicate whether a piece of electronics equipment is switched on or off. It was

> AUGUST 2021

only in the 1990s with the invention of blue LEDs that white LED light was possible.

LEDs last much longer than incandescent lightbulbs because they generate less heat and therefore use less power. A typical LED lightbulb has an efficiency of more than 90 lumens of light for each Watt of energy they consume (lm/W). Some of the newer ones claim efficiencies of 200 lm/W or more . By comparison, a conventional light bulb has an efficiency of just 15 lm/W. LEDs also use less power than most fluorescents, which are typically around 55-60 lm/W, but their overwhelming advantage is that they reach full brightness immediately.

The main driver for changing over to LED technology is government-led policies, such as the banning inefficient lighting by the EU, the US and Canada. In some regions, such as India, governments have accelerated the changeover to LED lighting through tax and tariff relief for local manufacturers.

However, it is expected that government decisions will play a decreasing role in phasing out conventional lightbulbs as manufacturing costs decline and prices fall. In 2018, worldwide residential sales of LED lightbulbs overtook fluorescents reaching a 40% market share and mutters from our children complaining about ‘slow’ electricity are now a thing of the past. For businesses too, where fluorescent lighting was the technology of choice, LEDs are now being used.

The low power consumption of LEDs is enabling electric light to shine where there is no mains electricity grid. In some parts

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Africa and Asia, solar-powered LEDs now provide clean, safe lighting after sunset, improving quality of life for both young and old.

Driving efficiency down further

LEDs cannot be powered directly from the alternating current’s (AC) mains supply. Instead, they need a much lower, direct current (DC) voltage. This is achieved using appropriate drivers and other power management devices, which inevitably introduce inefficiencies.

The forward voltage of the LED might vary from 2 V to 4.5 V, depending on the current and color. By using their expertise in power management to develop reliable and efficient LED drivers, companies such as ON Semiconductor have been enablers of LED adoption.

Figure 2: LED bypass shunt minimizes impact of failed LEDs

Smart lighting

Further power savings, beyond the efficiency of using LEDs, are possible through automation and user control. Adding sensors that detect the ambient light level adjust the brightness of the light automatically. Motion sensors will turn a light on when movement is detected in an office, and, more importantly, turn off when no one is there.

Figure 1: NCL30082 internal circuit architecture The NCL30082 LED driver from ON® Semiconductor converts main AC power into a low DC voltage with a constant current.

It includes a PWM current-mode controller that provides high efficiency and supports dimming. Also, its novel control method reduces the number of external components required. To complete the power conversion circuit an input bridge rectifier and a superjunction MOSFET are added, also available from ON Semiconductor (see figure 1).

But it is not just about LED drivers; lighting applications need other components too.

An LED bypass shunt, such as the NUD4700 from ON Semiconductor, ensures that if one LED fails in a string, the remaining LEDs of that string remains lit.

•Vol - 03 / 08

Light fixture engineers are also becoming adept at controlling LEDs more intelligently, often referred to as ‘smart lighting’.

This is achieved using powerline networking, such as the industry-standard KNX® network, or wireless technologies, such as Zigbee® or Bluetooth®. Lights can be adjusted to be vibrant during the day, for example, and softened in evenings. To help get engineers up and running with smart lighting designs and test various LED power solutions paired with the standard wireless technologies, ON Semiconductor’s Connected Lighting Platform is a useful resource.

As well as LED prices falling due to declining manufacturing costs, these networking technologies are a lot cheaper.

This has enabled the emergence of smart LED lightbulbs for residential use at a ‘fairly’ affordable price. LED technology has developed exponentially over its relatively short life. There will be further reductions in power consumption, for sure, and economies of scale will drive prices down further leading to a greener and brighter future.

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Prashanth M

Chief Operating Officer, WhistleDrive

&

Rakesh Munnanooru Founder & CEO, WhistleDrive

TECHNOVATORS Electric Vehicles Will Bring More Value to the Ecosystem WhistleDrive, India’s Leading Urban Mobility Company that provides Technology Enabled Fleet (Cabs, Bus Shuttles, Trucks) for corporates and enterprises makes the transport operations seamless using technology as an enabler. WhistleDrive offers fully managed employee transportation and enterprise logistics services. With footprints in 12 Cities, WhistleDrive is operating with 75+ Clients with more than 8000 DCOs on their platform.

Four years since inception, they are now building an Eco System of Connected Transportation Solutions to enable smart mobility of people and goods. During an exclusive interaction with Nitisha from BISinfotech; Rakesh Munnanooru, Founder & CEO, WhistleDrive shares his ahead plans and the benefits of EV in logistics industry.

> AUGUST 2021

Q

Kindly explain WhistleDrive and its special offerings?

WhistleDrive is an Urban Mobility Company. We provide Employee Transportation and Enterprise Logistics for corporates and businesses. We offer a suite of solutions for the enterprises for their Mobility needs, Whistle Cab, an industry compliant fleet managed by an expert team to handle operational complexities in the employee journey. Whistle Bus is a shuttle service for last-mile connectivity from Metros and other access points across the city. Whistle 360° is a tailored and fully managed solution, which we call “Transportation As A Service (TaaS) Model. We take complete responsibility for the whole transportation processes

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of a company right from Rostering to Billings i.e., an End-toEnd Solution. Whistle Tech is a comprehensive transportation management software solution, a SaaS Model. The Technology that is built for extensive usability, automating the most of manual processes involved in the ground operations. Whistle Truck is an inter & intra-city logistics solution for the enterprises.

Providing trucks enabled with technology for moving goods across the city. Four years since inception, we are now building an Eco System of Connected Transportation Solutions to enable smart mobility of people and goods.

And as we see immense market interest for Electric Vehicles, a well-planned electric charging infrastructure in the metro cities would at least drive the electric vehicle adoption in the country.

Q

What are the pros and cons of the industry?

Though being an industry whose history dates back to decades, Logistics Industry is highly a fragmented market.

Both Supply and Demand are scattered creating huge discrepancies in the transportation operations. Also adding to chaos, the technology usage in the industry is less than 10% How is WhistleDrive different from other urban mobility making it even more difficult to bring in the teams together. companies?

Technology Innovation: Our technology platform is celebrated Worry not! across the industry because of its comprehensiveness The industry is shifting gears now. With growing e-commerce of automating most of the crucial processes involved in and digitization across the functions, the technology usage transportation. From rostering to billing, no-human intervention in logistics is increasing day-by-day. We could say Covid-19 is required. Our technology has been recognized as “The Next is the catalyst of this change, with country-wide lockdowns Global Tech 50” at the World Innovators Meet 2019, and we and limited resources, the businesses witnessed the value are now an official member of the Forbes Technology Council. technology-backed supply chain could bring in and are keen on using technology going further.

Backed with years of ground operations expertise, we built a How electric vehicles can benefit the logistics industry? robust technology platform, which is capable of automating As per the reports, e-commerce deliveries will increase more than 80% of processes in the Corporate Logistics. by 36% by 2030, which in turn creates the need for more no.

We Strongly believe that technology is an enabler to make of delivery vehicles and the air pollution. So, it is high time that processes more efficient and also, we also go that extra-mile we add Electric Vehicles in our systems. Also, on the other hand, we could save a lot of costs instead of struggling with for our customers. ever-rising fuel prices. The running cost of a 3-Wheeler EV is less What are your expectations from the Indian government? than Rs.1/km, but the IC engine vehicle costs about Rs.3.4/ It is a known fact that for a country to thrive, we need Km. Also, the cost of ownership for an Electric Vehicle is as low better transportation models. So, an Improved infrastructure as 27% than an ICE vehicle. Be it in terms of cost-optimization and optimized fuel prices would add a lot more value to the or environmentally friendly, Electric Vehicles will bring more mobility ecosystem, as well as to the economy. value to the ecosystem.

Q

Q

Q

SPACE Now

Book THIS

Today, we see fuel prices going up almost once in every week, leaving us with no choice but to struggle. The sudden price surges are a burden for the transporters and drivers, as we couldn’t go back and negotiate with the clients on it due to beforehand commitments and in many cases, we had to work with bare minimum margins, which again brings in lot of inefficiencies in whole system.

Q

What will be your upcoming plans?

We are looking to scale PAN India in the next two years.

In the last-mile urban logistics, we see a great potential for introducing Electric 3W Vehicles be it in terms of CostOptimization or Environmentally friendly, hence we are working with the relevant manufacturers and driver partners to drive the Electric Vehicles adoption in the logistics industry, we shall share more details on this front very soon.

> WHAT

IF?

Hidden Technology – Was History Way Ahead than the Future We’re Blinking?

“In a famous saying Oracle told Neo, the problem is not in the answers, the problem is that we are asking the wrong questions.”

Niloy Banerjee

Consultant Editor & External Communication, BISinfotech

> AUGUST 2021

What If? You travelled the world just from your home by just sitting back at your couch popping your butter-spiced popcorn.

Or maybe binge watching 'Dark' on my refrigerator enabling entertainment and

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storing food at the same time. In a case imagine, the things we worship can talk to us, but is it possible? In this piece of “What If?” I will share my research and findings unveiling few astonishing theories that commemorate and spell the well existence of ‘Hidden Technology’.

•Vol - 03 / 08

Hidden Technology States We’re Still Technologically be intuitively modern. From many of the best-selling books Lame? of @MartyEttington he writes a jaw-dropping book named Our ancestors and their architectures depicts many truths of Hidden Technology which they were using discreetly. But Why? What If it did flash innovations in front of every people at that time?

- Few Questions?

• Did a highly advanced civilization exist in prehistory?

• Is the Giza Pyramid a remnant of their technology?

From the pyramids in the north to the temples in the south, ancient artisans left their marks all over Egypt, unique marks that reveals the very existence of technology and moreover not even be invented till today, yes, more than smartphones or air-drones.

Ancient or ‘Anci-net?’

“Aliens and Secret Technology: A Theory of the Hidden Truth (The Aliens and UFO Secrets Series Book 1)”. This book is an overview of both the history of aliens and UFOS, as well as a review of hidden aerospace and propulsive technologies.

Where did these technologies come from? And how have they developed in the intervening years? How about the CARET program to reverse engineer anti-gravity technology which uses diagrams and intelligent materials to implement it. Do we know how to travel to other stars? Yes--This is part of what the US government has learned from alien ships over the years.

Quoting from almost a three-decade old entirely digital media outlet, Salon, where in an article it reads, According to self-appointed “UFOlogist” Steven Greer, aliens have come to the Earth many times over — and even had a meeting with President Dwight Eisenhower in the 1950s! — but most people are unaware because of a government conspiracy to hide the truth. And he has a new documentary out, titled “Unacknowledged,” that promises to blow the lid off the whole thing. “The evidence for interstellar civilizations will be presented,” his website reads, “along with evidence of an illegal cartel hiding from the public and Presidents alike the truth that we are not alone and that we now know how they get here.”

Technology of Information

According to modern technocrats, the future everybody desires is when machines are more cognitive and connected.

Hundreds of billions has been divulged to make this future enable a new system of sustainability for humans. But what if somewhere in distant past few theorists reveal that they used similar wavelengths and ‘networks’ to connect and communicate with eachother. While researching across the modern internet I got few evidences of ‘Anci-net’. Even, when one tumbles few words from ‘Ancient’ you get the word I soberly discovered ‘Anci-net’. So as stating according to Quora, “British archeologists found traces of copper wire dating back 1000 years and came to the conclusion that their ancestors already had a telephone network one thousand years ago. Not to be outdone in the weeks that followed, Russian archaeologists dug 200 meters and headlines in the Russian papers read: "Scientists have found traces of 2000 year old optical fibers and have concluded that their ancestors already had advanced high-tech digital communications 1000 years earlier than other Europeans. "One week later, Israeli newspapers reported the following: "After digging as deep as 800 meters, our scientists have found absolutely nothing."

They have concluded that 3000 years ago, Hebrew tribes were already using wireless technology.

‘Governments and Aliens’ Together Using Hidden Technology?

From anti-gravity, FTL drives, and teleportation, these technologies bring much old legacy then we identify it to

•Vol - 03 / 08

In a strive to make people more smarter technology handed over the modern society to ‘Information’. Hence one well informed or ill-informed the bazooka of information is here and now undeniable and more accessible.

Few Examples of Information You Never thought Changed The Modern world: y This vertical control structure held until Gutenberg. Printing’s relatively inexpensive distribution was the original information revolution. Its effect was, once again, to horizontalize the flow of information. y In 1545, almost 100 years after Gutenberg’s breakthrough, Swiss scholar Conrad Gesner attempted to put his arms around the cacophony of conflicting information by cataloging all the books that had ever been published. The preface of his collection eerily sounds like what we hear today. y In 1848, in order to share the costs of telegraphic reporting from afar, the major newspapers of New York City founded the Associated Press (AP). y Hicky's Bengal Gazette was the first English-language newspaper published on the Indian subcontinent. It was founded in Calcutta, capital of British India at the time, by Irishman James Augustus Hicky in 1779.

Wrapping up this issue of ‘What If’ I would like to conclude stating that decisions are made by the release of technology and the creativity of early adapters, which change the social landscape before opponents even have a chance to express their opinion.

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>

LAUNCH

Analog Devices New 10Gbps iCoupler Digital Isolator Analog Devices has released the first in a new series of iCoupler digital isolators that offers a total bandwidth of 10 Gigabits per second.

Features: Applications: • Provides four channels at 2.5Gbps Digital health, • Allows data to transfer seamlessly in the electrical domain instrumentation, • The new digital isolator streamlines design and easily integrates isolation and smart industry. for safety or data integrity.

• Meets medical standards and reliably isolates high fidelity video and imaging links.

Availability: Available Now

Infineon’s Radiation-Tolerant NOR Flash Memory Infineon Technologies has released the industry’s first high-density radiation-tolerant (RadTol) NOR Flash memory products qualified to MIL-PRF-38535’s QML-V flow (QML-V Equivalent). The QML-V flow is the highest quality and reliability standard certification for aerospace-grade ICs. Features: • Superior, low-pin count, single-chip solutions.

• When used at higher clock rates, the data transfer supported by the devices matches or exceeds traditional parallel asynchronous NOR Flash memories while dramatically reducing pin count.

• The devices are radiation-tolerant up to 30 krad (Si) biased and 125 krad (Si) unbiased.

Applications: FPGA configuration, image storage, microcontroller data and boot code storage.

Availability: Available Now

Maxim’s Automotive LED Backlight Driver Maxim Integrated has released the four-channel, low-voltage MAX25512 automotive LED backlight driver with an integrated boost converter.

Features: • Integrated solution that retains the full, constant brightness of in-car displays even during extreme cold crank conditions down to 3V input voltage.

• The single-chip LED driver eliminates an external MOSFET and current sense resistor and integrates I2C communication.

• Lowers the bill of material cost and reduce board space by 30 percent.

• Four 120mA channels with the industry’s highest efficiency at 2.2MHz operation.

Applications: Automotive

Availability: Available Now

MediaTek Releases Kompanio 1300T SoC MediaTek released its Kompanio 1300T, an SoC designed to power incredible experiences across computing devices.

Features: • Built on the leading 6nm process technology • Chip is built on TSMC's 6nm process technology • Integrates an octa-core CPU with high-performance Arm Cortex-A78 cores and power-efficient Arm Cortex-A55 cores.

• The platform can automatically adjust power consumption and other configurations based on a device’s network and data transmission quality to extend battery life.

> AUGUST 2021

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Applications: Tablets with advanced 5G, multimedia, AI and gaming technologies.

Availability: Available Now

•Vol - 03 / 08

ST Unveils Automotive LED Driver STMicroelectronics rolls out ALED6000 single-chip automotive LED driver with integrated DC/DC converter that is a low-BoM (Bill of Materials) solution.

Features: • Allows design flexibility • Keeps the lighting intensity consistent with electrical conditions within the vehicle fluctuate.

• A single string of LEDs at up to 3A and has a wide inputvoltage range of 4.5V to 61V. • There is also an Enable pin and a Sync pin that ensures low noise in multi-device applications.

Applications: Suitable for exterior lighting such as daytime running lights, headlights, rear lights, stop lights, and turn signals, as well as interior lighting.

Availability: Available Now

ROHM’s DC/DC Converter ICs with Built-In MOSFET ROHM releases buck DC/DC converter ICs with built-in MOSFET, BD9G500EFJ-LA and BD9F500QUZ. Features: • Non-isolated DC/DC converter ICs developed by utilizing proprietary analog design technology based on high voltage BiCDMOS power processes.

• Provide the power supply functionality required by increasingly sophisticated industrial equipment.

• Best-in-class 80V withstand voltage for 48V power supply systems.

Applications: Support high voltages and currents in factory automation equipment such as PLCs/inverters, and 5G base stations that handle high power.

Availability: Available Now

ON Semiconductor 16 Mp XGS Series Sensor ON Semiconductor has released the latest addition to the XGS series of CMOS image sensors.

Features: • The XGS 16000 is a 16 Megapixel (Mp) sensor.

• Provides high-quality, global shutter imaging.

• Consuming only 1 Watt at 65 frames per second (fps).

• The XGS 16000 delivers exceptional performance at low power.

• The XGS 16000 shares a common architecture and footprint with other XGS CMOS image sensors.

• To simplify new camera designs, ON Semiconductor offers color and mono versions of the XGS 16000 X-Cube and X-Celerator developer kits.

Applications: Factory automation applications including robotics and inspection systems.

Availability: Available Now

Microchip Launches RT FPGA Microchip Technology introduces the first Radiation Tolerant (RT) FPGA that offers the low cost of a JEDEC-qualified plastic package plus the proven reliability of RTG4 FPGA technology and decades of spaceflight heritage so that small satellite constellations and other systems do not need to be screened to full Qualified Manufacturers List (QML) procedures.

Features: • Microchip’s RTG4 Sub-QML FPGA has been qualified to JEDEC standards in a flip-chip 1657 ball grid array (BGA) plastic package, with a 1.0 mm ball pitch.

• It is pin-compatible with the company’s QML Class V-qualified RTG4 FPGAs in ceramic packages.

• Easy for developers to migrate their designs between New Space and more rigorous Class-1 missions.

•Vol - 03 / 08

59

Applications: Spaceflight systems

Availability: Available Now

AUGUST 2021 <

>T

&M

Anritsu Now Certified for GCF FR2 Performance Test TPAC

Anritsu Corporation reported that its New Radio RF Conformance Test System ME7873NR is now being certified as the industry’s first system to meet the GCF Test Platform Approval Criteria (TPAC) for 5G NR RF conformance performance tests for the FR2 (mmWave) band.

The ME7873NR successfully passed 5G NR FR2 NSA TPACcompliant performance tests at the July 2021 CAG meeting and is now a GCF-approved test system for terminal certification.

Before achieving this GCF certification, Anritsu has helped develop 5G FR2 RF Conformance Test standards at 3GPP RAN5 meetings.

For the future, Anritsu intends to play a key role in the deployment of widespread commercial 5G services by obtaining further certifications for 5G RF/RRM tests.

The ME7873NR is an automated system for 3GPP TS 38.521/ TS 38.533 5G NR RF and RRM tests.

It supports both 5G NR Standalone (SA) and Non-Standalone (NSA) modes. In addition, combination with the CATR Anechoic Chamber MA8172A for 5G OTA (CATR) tests covers all 5G frequency bands, including not only the 3GPP FR1 (Sub-6 GHz) band but also the FR2 (mmWave) band.

The ME7873NR flexible system configuration can be customized easily to match customers’ required test measurement conditions.

VIAVI Submits New Binding Proposal to Acquire EXFO

Viavi Solutions has put forward an increased binding proposal to acquire all of the outstanding subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares of EXFO from US$7.50 to US$8.00 in cash

per share.

VIAVI has submitted a binding proposal to the EXFO board of directors, including a definitive form of Arrangement Agreement based substantially on the form agreed in connection with the proposed going-private transaction between EXFO and its chairman and majority shareholder, Germain Lamonde.

The increased binding proposal from VIAVI reflects EXFO's recently announced fiscal third-quarter 2021 financial results in which bookings increased 47.2% year-on-year to US$87 million with a book-to-bill ratio at 1.20.

EXFO's business strength reflects both a macroeconomic recovery and secular industry growth demand driven by 5G wireless and fiber network deployment.

Additionally, VIAVI's Proposal is higher than the US$5.75 to US$7.50 formal valuation range of EXFO's subordinate voting shares prepared by TD Securities Inc., acting as the EXFO Special Committee's valuator in connection with the Going Private Transaction.

Rohde & Schwarz, Quectel Yokogawa Takes Part in Lunar Work on Cellular-V2X Test Case Industry Vision Council Rohde & Schwarz has collaborated with Quectel to verify selected 3GPP test cases based on a system with its R&S CMW500 wideband radio communication tester against a Quectel AG15 C-V2X module.

Cellular-V2X (C-V2X) is a key technology that will improve road safety and accelerate autonomous driving in the coming years.

Specifically, the C-V2X PC5 interface, operating in the 5.9 GHz frequency enables direct, reliable, low latency communication between vehicles (V2V), vehicles and infrastructure (V2I) and vehicles and pedestrians (V2P).

For the automotive industry to deploy this technology on time, cooperation between suppliers in this industry becomes increasingly important.

The test cases performed by Rohde & Schwarz and Quectel are ideal for automotive companies looking to pre-validate 3GPP system performance in an automated and timely manner before entering OMNIAIR or CATARC certification process.

The test system provides a high degree of automation and flexible instrument configuration, which meets the requirements of the automotive industry for C-V2X testing.

> AUGUST 2021

Yokogawa has reported that as a participant of the Lunar Industry Vision Council, it has worked with other members from government, academia, and industry to formulate a vision for a lunar industry, prepare many recommendations, and jointly submit them for the consideration of Inoue Shinji, Japan's Minister of State for Space Policy.

Over the years, Yokogawa has utilized its strengths in measurement, control, and information to support industries and the infrastructure that society depends on.

Examples of relevant Yokogawa strengths include a strong lineup of equipment that measures physical quantities such as power, voltage, current, light, and pressure with high accuracy, and advanced sensing technology with high performance and network capabilities. Yokogawa will engage in cocreation with a range of partners to introduce self-sustaining, resource-saving technologies and comprehensive recycling solutions to enable a circular economy in space, where the air, water, food, and power needed to sustain human life are in extremely short supply, while also aiming to improve the global environment in line with the SDGs.

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> INDUSTRY

UPDATES

Infineon Launches USB PD 3.1 High-Voltage MCU

Intel Shows Interest in Acquiring GlobalFoundries

Infineon Technologies has released the industry’s first high-voltage microcontroller (MCU) with USB Power Delivery (USB PD) 3.1 support.

The EZ-PD PMG1 (Power Delivery Microcontroller Gen1) is Infineon’s first generation of USB PD MCUs targeting any embedded system that provides or consumes power with a high voltage up to 28 V (140 W).

“As a leader in power semiconductors, we are excited to bring the new PMG1 family to market. It will enable OEMs to further differentiate their consumer, industrial and commercial applications,” said Ajay Srikrishna, Senior Vice President of the Wired Connectivity Solutions Product Line at Infineon.

“Following our mission, this MCU is enabling our customers to bring new products to market that will help to make consumers’ everyday lives easier, safer and greener.” The device supports higher power capabilities defined in the USB PD 3.1 specification and leverages the MCU to provide additional control capability. The new products are ideal for consumer, industrial and communications markets for applications such as smart speakers, routers, power and garden tools.

The PMG1 family integrates a market-proven USB PD stack to enable reliable performance and interoperability. It features an ARM® Cortex M0/M0+ processor with up to 256 KB Flash memory and 32 KB SRAM, USB full-speed device, programmable general-purpose input/output (GPIO) pins, gate drivers, low drop out (LDO) regulators and high-voltage protection circuits.

Murata Science Foundation Awards Annual Grants The Murata Science Foundation has finally declared the names of the 207 recipients who will receive 448 million yen in funding, the company’s largest annual grant endowment to date.

Grants fall into one of three categories: Research, Conference, and Overseas Research and focus on fostering the work of budding young researchers.

A highlight from this year is that the foundation offered 10 grants to four universities totalling 16 million yen.

Established in 1985 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Murata's founding, the Murata Science Foundation aims to contribute to the development of Japanese science and culture through grants that promote research in the areas of natural sciences, electronics, and humanities and social sciences.

•Vol - 03 / 08

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Intel Corp has reported an interest in buying GlobalFoundries, in a move that would turbocharge the semiconductor giant’s plans to make more chips for other tech companies and rate as its largest acquisition ever.

A deal could value GlobalFoundries at around $30 billion, the people said. It isn’t guaranteed one will come together, and GlobalFoundries could proceed with a planned initial public offering.

GlobalFoundries is owned by Mubadala Investment Co., an investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government, but based in the U.S. Any talks don’t appear to include GlobalFoundries executives, as a spokeswoman for the company said it isn’t in discussions with Intel.

Intel’s new Chief Executive, Pat Gelsinger, said the company would launch a major push to become a chip manufacturer for others, a market dominated by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Intel, with a market value of around $225 billion, this year pledged more than $20 billion in investments to expand chipmaking facilities in the U.S., and Mr. Gelsinger has said more commitments domestically and abroad are in the works.

AMD remains a big customer for GlobalFoundries—agreeing to a multiyear, roughly $1.6 billion chip-component supply deal this year—and that could complicate a takeover by Intel. GlobalFoundries is relocating its corporate headquarters to Malta, N.Y., from Santa Clara, Calif.

GlobalFoundries has about 7% of the foundry market share by revenue, according to Taiwan-based research firm TrendForce.

Some of the largest chip companies, including Qualcomm Inc. and Nvidia Corp., rely on third-party producers to make their products, preferring to focus on design and without the hassle of running their factories. Nvidia last year overtook Intel as America’s biggest semiconductor company by value.

Like Intel and TSMC, GlobalFoundries is expanding its manufacturing footprint amid a global shortage of semiconductors. GlobalFoundries last month said it broke ground on a new chip-production facility, called a fab, in Singapore, investing more than $4 billion in the site.

President Biden has promised to take steps to help mitigate the chip shortage, pledging to spend billions of dollars to boost capacity. Governments overseas have signaled similar commitments.

Gelsinger, who was Intel’s chief technology officer before leaving to run VMware Inc., returned to the chip giant to be its Chief Executive this year, following major delays in chipmaking advances under his predecessor, Bob Swan.

Gelsinger has vowed to make Intel more reliable in producing new chips.

AUGUST 2021 <

> INDUSTRY

KART

Mouser Adds 62 New Manufacturers Digi-Key Launches Factory in First Half of 2021 Tomorrow Video Series Mouser Electronics has reported to be expanding its line card by adding 62 new manufacturers to date in 2021.

With more than 1,100 manufacturer brands, Mouser now offers an even wider range of product options for its global customer base of design engineers, component buyers, procurement agents, educators and students.

Among the new manufacturer partners Mouser has added in 2021 are: • Acconeer, a leading supplier of 3D sensors and pulsed, short-range radar technologies.

• CITEL, providing surge protectors that keep sensitive electronics safe and operations uninterrupted.

• LORD, a leader in the management of vibration, noise, and motion control.

• MultiTech, a leading global supplier of IoT devices and services, including sensor, authentication, and communications solutions.

• Quectel, supplier of 5G, LTE, LTE-A, LPWA, Automotive, Android Smart, UMTS/HSPA(+), GSM/GPRS, and GNSS modules.

• QuickLogic, a developer of embedded FPGA IP; ultra-lowpower, multi-core, voice-enabled systems-on-chips (SoCs); and endpoint artificial intelligence (AI) solutions.

• Telink Semiconductor, a fabless IC design company that develops low-power radio frequency and mixed-signal system chips for IoT applications.

Digi-Key Electronics has released “Factory Tomorrow,” a new video series focused on advancements in industrial automation.

Sponsored by Banner Engineering and Weidmüller, the three-part video series showcases the latest innovations in robotics, automation and connectivity, as well as cutting-edge manufacturing technologies.

element14 Expands its Cable and Wire Management Solutions

Future Electronics Features ProxFusion Sensors from Azoteq

element14 has broadened its marketleading portfolio of cabling and wire management solutions with the addition of 88,000 new products from 370 of the world’s most trusted brands.

The increased range of products from 3M, TE Connectivity, AlphaWire, Belden, Lapp Kabel, Multicomp-pro, ABB, Brandrex, Hellermann Tyton, Panduit and Huber & Suhner give customers security, flexibility, and support when buying high-quality cable and wire management solutions.

Farnell has upgraded its inventory and services to support customers with all their cable and wiring needs and connectivity solutions across a broad range of applications and markets, all in one place.

The legacy cabling and wire management products available from Farnell include: • The Metric EcoWire series from Alpha Wire is an eco-friendly, recyclable, high-performance cable and wire in a smaller package. Available in standard reel sizes of 50m, 100m and 500m, the series is up to 45 per cent smaller in diameter and up to 40 percent lighter than competitive products

Future Electronics has reported to be featuring a tiny trackpad controller from Azoteq in the latest edition of Sense Connect Control.

The IQS7211A is part of Azoteq’s latest range of ProxFusion combination sensors, a multi-sensor technology that offers combinations of capacitive sensing, Hall-effect, inductive and temperature sensing on a single IC. The IQS7211A allows users to control a trackpad of up to 32-channels. With its low power consumption, small package size and long-term activation supported by environmental tracking, this IC are ideal for the wearable and hearable markets. Future Electronics is a global leader in electronics distribution, recognized for providing customers with global supply chain solutions, custom-tailored engineering services and a very extensive variety of electronic components.

Future Electronics is globally integrated, with a unified IT infrastructure that delivers real-time inventory availability and access to customers. With the highest level of service, the most advanced engineering capabilities, and the largest available-to-sell inventory in the world, Future’s mission is always to Delight the Customer.

> AUGUST 2021

Andrew Barco, Weidmüller’s Director of Automation Products & Solutions, stresses the importance of not only making these connections but also of controlling and optimizing them.

“Edge computing, which brings computation and data storage closer to where it is needed, is perfect for small, stand-alone applications where our AI/ML can help improve decision-making, add value, increase efficiency and boost production.”

The first of three videos in the series, “Manufacturing at the Edge,” is now live on Digi-Key’s website, and available in all local languages served.

The second video, entitled “The Rise of Robotics,” will be released in August, and the third video, “The Intersection of AI and IoT,” will be available in September.

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