EP&Dee no 11 by Electronica Azi

DECEMBER, 2013 足 ISSUE NO. 11, VOL. 11

DESIGN & MANUFACTURING

EP&Dee ELECTRONICS

PRODUCTS

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EASTERN

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DECEMBER 2013 Table of Contents

Win a Microchip Bluetooth® Evaluation Kit

DESIGN FEATURES 7 Microchip expands Arduino™ compatible chipKIT™ ecosystem with Wi-Fi® development board, IoT cloud software and motor-control shield 8 MOST® Cooperation Celebrates More than 150 Car Models with MOST Inside 10 An A to Z of components for industrial PCs Whether for use in the open air, in machinery which experiences powerful vibrations or for continuous operation – PCs for industrial applications must satisfy requirements which differ from those for the consumer market. This is frequently a problem, particularly with respect to their memory components.

14 Analog IC Enables Automotive ODB-II Remote Diagnostics from Cell Phones New Automotive Diagnostics Communications Chip Integrates Multiple Configurable Automotive Buses, MOSFET Switch Array and Power Management Functions.

18 Tantalum Solid Electrolytic Chip Capacitors with Conductive Polymer Electrode

EP&Dee is offering you the chance to win a Microchip Bluetooth® Evaluation Kit (DM183036). The kit provides an easy, cost-effective and flexible add-on for embedded evaluation and development using many 16/32-bit PIC® microcontrollers or dsPIC® digital signal controllers (DSCs), using existing Microchip development tools. The kit includes the Microchip Bluetooth PICtail™ Plus daughter-board with the 16-bit USB PIC24FJ256GB110 and 32-bit CAN/USB PIC32MX795F512L microcontroller plug-in modules, both of which are pre-programmed with CandleDragon’s dotstack Bluetooth demonstration stack and SPP profile. This kit is designed for use with Microchip’s existing Explorer 16 Development Board (DM240001), which is available separately, at $129.99.

The tantalum capacitor is a product present in the electronics industry for over 30 years. It is often used in power systems as a filtering element, eliminating pulsating voltage. Its advantages compared to the other parameters of electrolytic or ceramic capacitors are known since long.

24 Kontron launches the new control cabinet IPC product family for automation 30 Check the presence and position of workpiece carriers 32 Leading the way in Power and Energy monitoring 43 Continuous Color Measurement of Multicolor Surfaces

Current Bluetooth wireless modules are costly and inflexible because they force developers to use a predetermined baseband radio and microcontroller. The new Microchip and CandleDragon Bluetooth solution enables designers to pair a wide range of radio ICs for Bluetooth connectivity with many of Microchip’s 16/32-bit PIC microcontrollers or dsPIC DSCs. Additionally, CandleDragon’s dotstack is Bluetooth SIG compliant and supports multiple profiles in a single microcontroller, including SPP, HFP and HID, with more profiles planned for Microchip MCUs in the near future.

PRODUCT NEWS 5

Embedded Systems (p 4 - 8) (p 13, 15, 16, 17) (p 20 - 29)

Lighting (p 34) 24

Active Components (p 35 - 37) (p 39 - 1)

For your chance to win a Microchip Bluetooth® Evaluation Kit, please visit: http://www.microchip-comps.com/epdee-bluetooth and enter your details in the entry form.

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

Contributing editors Radu Andrei Ross Bannatyne Consulting Marian Blejan Bogdan Grămescu Mihai Savu Asian Reprezentative Taiwan Charles Yang Tel: +88643223633 charles@medianet.com.tw

EP&Dee Web page: www.epdee.eu EP&Dee Subscriptions: office@epdee.eu

EUROSTANDARD PRESS 2000 Tel.: +40 31 805 9955 Fax: +40 31 805 9887 office@esp2000.ro www.esp2000.ro VAT Registration: RO3998003 Company number: J03/1371/1993

EP&Dee (Electronics Products & Design Eastern Europe) is published 11 times per year in 2013 by Euro Standard Press 2000 s.r.l. It is a free to qualified electronics engineers and managers involved in engineering decisions. Starting on 2010, this magazine is published only in digital format. Copyright 2013 by Euro Standard Press 2000 s.r.l. All rights reserved.

INDUSTRY NEWS Factories Turn to Integrated System Designs to Improve Operation, Save Power and Time Maxim Integrated’s subsystem reference designs accelerate and simplify factory automation with end-to-end integration of the signal chain. Never before have engineers been able to get their industrial designs to market so fast. Three new low-power reference designs from Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. provide end-to-end integration of the signal chain, simplifying factory automation.

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS Microsemi Announces New Executive and Board Positions Microsemi Corporation announced James J. Peterson has been named chairman of the board in addition to his role as CEO. Dennis Leibel, who has served Microsemi as its chairman of the board since July 2004, will assume the role of lead independent director. “The board is delighted Jim will continue to drive the company with his unique blend of experience and leadership,” said Leibel. “His ability to bring together the many parts of Microsemi’s business against a clear and proven strategy, while instilling a culture of innovation, collaboration and discipline, will continue to serve the long-term interests of shareholders.” Microsemi also announced Paul Pickle has been promoted to president and chief operating officer (COO) to facilitate the company’s continuing growth plan. Ralph Brandi, who has served as COO since 2002, will continue with Microsemi as executive vice president with a focus on optimizing the company’s manufacturing resources. Since joining Microsemi in 1998, Pickle has held positions of increasing responsibility,

including corporate vice president of Field Applications Engineering, sales and marketing, and product development. In his most recent position as executive vice president of Microsemi’s Integrated Circuits Group, he played an integral role in the planning and execution of Microsemi’s transformation to a high valueadd integrated circuit supplier. In his new position as president and COO, Pickle will be responsible for overseeing all company operations, marketing and Paul Pickle sales, as well as its research and development efforts. He will continue reporting to Peterson, who will maintain his leadership role in defining the strategic direction of Microsemi. The executive and board positions are all effective immediately. MICROSEMI www.microsemi.com

Exar Announces Improved Replacements for Analog Devices High-Speed Operational Amplifier Family The Carmel, Monterey, and Fremont industrial reference designs are fully tested subsystems, complete with schematics, layout files and firmware, and are available for immediate use and customization. Each reference design integrates multiple functions to provide a highly accurate solution for an automated factory task. Available for purchase, each board ensures rapid prototyping, early software development, and speed of design. The Carmel (MAXREFDES18#) subsystem provides a high-accuracy, low-noise analog output. Carmel is ideal for programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and distributed control systems (DCS). The Monterey (MAXREFDES15#) subsystem is a high-accuracy, industrial loop-powered sensor transmitter that converts a standard temperature sensor input (RTD PT1000) to a 4–20mA signal that is immune to noise and is constant over long distances. It is ideal for distributed industrial sensor systems. The Fremont (MAXREFDES6#) subsystem is a low-power analog front-end (AFE) that accepts inputs of 0mV to 100mV. It is ideal for low-voltage output sensors, and process control and medical applications. MAXIM INTEGRATED

www.maximintegrated.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

Exar Corporation announced three industry-leading operational amplifiers the XR8051, XR8052 and XR8054. The devices are pin compatible replacements for the 110MHz Analog Devices AD8051, AD8052 and 150MHz AD8054 single, dual and quad devices, respectively. The XR805x family of high-speed operational amplifiers is well suited for applications such as video distribution and surveillance systems to achieve optimal performance and lower overall system power consumption. The XR805x family offers the best available combination of power consumption and performance: • 175MHz -3dB Unity Gain Bandwidth • Rail-to-rail Output • Inputs extend 300mV beyond the Negative Supply Voltage • 50MHz Full Power Bandwidth (VO=2Vpp), • 190V/μs Slew Rate, • 0.03%/0.03 degree Differential Gain/Phase • 2.6mA per Channel • ±100mA Output Current • 92dB Open Loop Gain • 102dB Power Supply Rejection Ratio (PSRR) • 100dB Common Mode Rejection Ratio (CMRR) The new XR805x family of devices is targeted at applications including video surveil-

lance and distribution systems, professional and IPC cameras, active filter circuits, coaxial cable drivers, and electronic white boards. The amplifiers can drive four video

loads and operate from a wide supply voltage range to accommodate general purpose, high-speed applications where dual supplies of up to ±6V or single supplies from +2.7V to +12V are required. EXAR www.exar.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Silicon Labs adds Alf-Egil Bogen to Board of Directors Silicon Labs, a leader in high-per- director of the AVR business unit formance, analog-intensive, mixed as well as vice president of corpo-signal integrated circuits (ICs), rate marketing and chief markettoday announced ing officer. He began that Alf-Egil Bogen his career at Nordic has been appointed VLSI in Norway. to the company’s Mr. Bogen holds a board of directors. Master of Science Mr. Bogen is a 20degree in electrical year semiconductor engineering and veteran and one of computer science the inventors of the from Norwegian highly successful AVR University of Science microcontroller. He is and Technology and currently the chief Alf-Egil Bogen a Bachelor of Science executive officer and degree in electrical a member of the board of direc- and computing engineering from tors of Novelda AS, a privately Trondheim University College. held semiconductor company based in Norway specializing in “We are pleased to welcome Alf to nanoscale wireless low-power our board of directors,” said Tyson technology for ultra-high-resolu- Tuttle, CEO of Silicon Labs. “His tion impulse radar. expertise with microcontrollers, corPrior to Novelda, he was chief porate marketing and branding will marketing officer of Energy Micro be extremely valuable to Silicon AS until it was acquired by Silicon Labs as we continue to focus on Labs in July 2013. Mr. Bogen also driving high-quality revenue growth held various management posi- and market leadership.” tions during his 17 years at Atmel SILICON LABS Corporation, including managing www.silabs.com

Silicon Labs Gecko MCU Keeps Misfit Shine Wearable Fitness Tracker “Energy Friendly” Silicon Labs announced that Misfit Wearables, a designer and manufacturer of wearable computing products, has chosen Silicon Labs’ EFM32™ Leopard Gecko 32-bit microcontroller (MCU) as the energy-friendly controller for the Misfit Shine™, the world’s most elegant physical activity monitor. The Gecko MCU communicates with the Shine’s 3-axis accelerometer, drives user interface LEDs and hosts a Wicentric Bluetooth® low energy software stack, enabling connectivity with the Shine App running on Apple iOS devices such as iPhones and iPads – all with the utmost energy efficiency. The Misfit Shine is tapping into today’s burgeoning market for wearable computing devices. According to IMS Research (a part of IHS Electronic Media), sports and fitness monitors, running and cycling computers, and other physical activity trackers will reach

56.2 million unit shipments globally in 2017, up from 43.8 million units in 2013. IMS predicts that a total of 252 million units will ship over the next five years. In a relat-

ed survey conducted by IMS last year, 62.3 percent of smartphone owners who exercise regularly expressed an interest in mobile health and fitness apps and fitness sensors such as the Misfit Shine that connect to smartphone apps. SILICON LABS www.silabs.com

Microsemi Successfully Completes Acquisition of Symmetricom Microsemi Corporation (“Microsemi”), a leading provider of semiconductor solutions differentiated by power, security, reliability and performance, announced that PETT Acquisition Corp. a wholly-owned subsidiary of Microsemi, successfully merged into Symmetricom, Inc. (“Symmetricom”) completing Microsemi’s acquisition of Symmetricom under Section 251(h) of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”), with no stockholder vote required to consummate the merger. At the effective time of the merger, each outstanding share of Symmetricom (other than shares directly owned by Symmetricom and its subsidiaries, Microsemi or PETT Acquisition Corp. and shares held by stockholders that are entitled to and properly demand appraisal of such shares under Delaware law) was converted into the right to receive $7.18 per share in cash, without interest and less any applicable withholding taxes, the same price that was paid in the tender offer. Symmetricom shares will cease to be traded on NASDAQ. “We look forward to integrating the talented Symmetricom team and leveraging our product and technology synergies to develop solutions that contribute to our customers’ success,” said James J. Peterson, chairman of the board and CEO of Microsemi. “We are eager to drive the business forward for our stakeholders as we continue to execute Microsemi’s growth strategy.” Symmetricom is the world’s leading source of highly precise timekeeping technologies and solutions that enable next generation data, voice, mobile and video networks and services. It provides timekeeping in GPS satellites, national time references, and national power grids as well as in critical military and civilian networks. The acquisition aligns with Microsemi’s strategy to gain share by providing ‘total system’ solutions to high value, high barrier to entry markets where it holds leadership positions. In addition, Microsemi gains a strong footprint in IT infrastructure and metrology applications and has the opportunity to capitalize on growth opportunities for Symmetricom’s chip scale atomic clock (CSAC) technology, amongst other leadingedge products. As a result of the acquisition, Microsemi now offers the industry’s largest and most complete timing product offering. From the core of the network to the edge, Microsemi now delivers the source, synchronization and distribution of end-to-end timing solutions. MICROSEMI

www.microsemi.com

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

INDUSTRY NEWS Microsemi Unveils Low-cost miSLIC Line Circuits for Broadband Gateways The World Leader in Voice Line Circuit Shipments Continues to Strengthen Product Portfolio Microsemi Corporation unveiled its new miSLIC™ Series line circuits in booths E21-E22 at the Broadband World Forum tradeshow in Amsterdam. The new fifth-generation telephone line interface solution provides worldwide network operators with the industry’s most economical solution for adding two channels of voice to broadband products including residential gateways, DSL integrated access devices (IADs), cable embedded multimedia terminal adapters (eMTAs) and fiber-to-thepremise (FTTX) solutions.

The new Le9662 and Le9672 are designed for applications requiring shared or individual power supplies. Both miSLIC Series line circuits support ringing and system power management, enabling energy efficient control of two telephone lines for meeting the European Code of Conduct on Energy Consumption of Broadband Equipment specifications. The new solutions are also compatible with processors developed by leading system-on-chip (SoC) vendors for residential gateway applications. Microsemi’s residential gateway solutions allow customers to add voice capabilities to customer premises equipment (CPE) easily and cost-effectively. These products deliver the highest levels of integration available today and are optimized for short loop, power-sensitive applications. Microsemi also offers an extensive application toolset to complement these devices, including software development tools, reference designs and development platforms, to speed time-to-market. The new Le9662 features a patent-pending shared power supply design that rivals the most efficient power supplies available today, only consuming approximately 51 milliwatts of power per channel in the low power standby state. The unique design also enables cost-savings of approximately 30 percent over alternative power supply configurations. To further reduce development costs, it is provided as an economical two-layer reference design board. MICROSEMI

www.microsemi.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Mouser Expands its Applications & Technologies Sites for Engineers Mouser Electronics, Inc. announced that it has added a new site for Computing Applications to its expanding library of Applications & Technologies sites on Mouser.com. This new Computing Applications site offers educational sections on Server Motherboard, Network Attached Storage and Ethernet Switch that provide easy-touse information on today’s data centers with block diagrams, reference articles, products and resources. Reference articles on innovations in data storage and cloud computing provide valuable insight on the newest advancements. The arrival of cloud computing has made faster processing, faster data retrieval, larger capacity storage, and faster machine-to-machine communications more important than ever, driving innovations in hardware technology. Engineers can learn about featured products in major categories of memory, power supply, embedded, inter-

connects, etc. A featured products guide and user-friendly graphical interface are designed to speed navigation. Which means engineers can quickly navigate to products and information based on defined parameters and design requirements – helping engineers design in certain advantages in product features and lifecycles. MOUSER ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

IAR Systems and Renesas Electronics Europe announce safety-compliant development tools for RX IAR Systems®, the leading provider of embedded development tools, and Renesas Electronics Europe have teamed up to offer a development toolchain for Renesas’ 32-bit RX microcontroller platform that facilitates compliance with the international umbrella standard for functional safety IEC 61508. Functional safety is one of the most important features in industrial automation systems today. To ensure functional safety, system developers have to consider development tools as an integral part of the system certification in addition to the normal development. The proof of compliance for the tools increases cost and time of development. To solve this problem, IAR Systems now provides a certified version of the complete compiler and debugger toolchain IAR Embedded Workbench® for RX. The build chain of IAR Embedded Workbench for RX has been tested and approved according to the requirements on support tools put forth in IEC 61508, as well as the standard for automotive safety-

related systems ISO 26262. The quality assurance measures applied by IAR Systems and the included Safety Manual allow application developers to use IAR Embedded Workbench for RX in safety-related software development for each Safety Integrity Level (SIL) according to IEC 61508 and each

Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) of ISO 26262 without further tool qualification. IAR Embedded Workbench for RX is certified by TÜV SÜD. RENESAS ELECTRONICS EUROPE www.renesas.eu IAR SYSTEMS www.iar.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Microchip expands Arduino™ compatible chipKIT™ ecosystem with Wi-Fi® development board, IoT cloud software and motor-control shield Microchip announces the expansion of its Arduino™ compatible chipKIT™ ecosystem, with two new development tools from Digilent, Inc., and an embedded cloud software framework. Digilent’s chipKIT WF32 board minimises the need for users to purchase additional hardware or shields, by integrating Microchip’s 32-bit PIC32MX695F512L MCU with Full Speed USB 2.0 Host/Device/OTG, its agency-certified MRF24WG0MA Wi-Fi® module and an energy-saving switch-mode power supply that employs Microchip’s MCP16301 DC-DC converter, in addition to a microSD card - all while main-

taining an Arduino hardwarecompatible form factor. Digilent’s chipKIT Motor Control Shield enables the development of applications using a wide variety of motor types, including servos, steppers and DCs, while allowing users to take advantage of the extra I/O pins found on many of the chipKIT development boards. This additional I/O provides added connectivity and more features than traditional,

lower pin-count Arduino shields. On the software side, an embedded cloud software framework enables designers to easily create “Internet of Things” (IoT) applications with the chipKIT WF32. Additionally, Digilent facilitates the rapid development of wireless HTTP server applications, via its comprehensive sample application that supports static pages loaded from the chipKIT WF32’s microSD card, as well as dynamically generated Web pages. The combination of Digilent’s chipKIT WF32 base board and its HTTP server example application provides hobbyists, students and academics with an easy way

to add wireless connectivity to their Arduino projects. This board also provides professional engineers with a rapid method for evaluating Wi-Fi in their embedded designs, and for creating embedded cloud computing services using Exosite. Additionally, as with all chipKIT base boards, the chipKIT WF32 can be connected to Microchip’s PICkit™ 3 programmer/debugger, allowing users to seamlessly move into Microchip’s professional MPLAB® X IDE and XC32 C and C++ compilers. Robotics applications are particularly popular with hobbyists, students and academics, and their

robots are driven by the motor types that the chipKIT Motor Control Shield is designed to support. Microchip’s PIC32 MCUs enable a high level of integrated features and capabilities onto a single board, reducing development costs and complexity for hobbyists, academics and professional engineers. Digilent’s chipKIT WF32 (TDGL021) priced at $69.99, and chipKIT Motor Shield (TDGL020) priced at $29.95, are both available today. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/2T2W

Key Facts: • chipKIT WF32 board integrates Microchip’s agency-certified Wi-Fi module, 32-bit PIC32 MCU with Full-Speed USB, and microSD card • Motor-control Shield supports servo, stepper and DC motors for robotics or other designs • Additional I/O provides more connectivity and features than lower pin-count Arduino shields • Embedded cloud software framework enables Internet of Things (IoT) applications The chipKIT WF32-compatible embedded cloud computing framework, including source code and quick-start information, can be downloaded today from www.microchip.com/get/LS3W. Digilent’s HTTP server example application can also be downloaded today from: www.microchip.com/get/1V8L www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

MOST® Cooperation Celebrates More than 150 Car Models with MOST Inside The MOST® Cooperation (MOSTCO) - the standardization organization for the leading automotive multimedia network Media Oriented Systems Transport (MOST) - proudly announces that there are now over 150 vehicle models on the road with the MOST network. “The MOST Cooperation celebrates the success of the leading automotive network standard, reflected by the fast implementation growth rate,” stated Henry Muyshondt, Executive Director of the MOST Cooperation. “Amongst the various carmakers that rely on MOST Technology are the three leading international car manufacturers Toyota, General Motors and Volkswagen Group, representing the continents of Asia, North America and Europe.” With more than 133 million MOST nodes, MOST Technology is spreading throughout the mass market of all vehicle classes. It is an open technology supported by the majority of carmakers in the world and their premier suppliers.

motive electromagnetic compatibility requirements at a very attractive cost. Recently, Daimler and Volkswagen have started implementing the latest MOST Technology, MOST150, into the first car models: Audi A3, Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Volkswagen Golf. MOST150 enables the use of a higher bandwidth of 150 Mbit/s, an isochronous transport mechanism to support extensive video applications, and an embedded Ethernet channel for efficient transport of

MOST Acceptance Ramping Up Within just three years of the founding of MOSTCO in 1998, the first MOST car was introduced in 2001. The following year, 13 more models implemented the MOST infotainment backbone. In 2007, the leading network technology had found its way into 50 car models, increasing to 100 models in 2010 and now reaching 153 models in 2013. After its initial start in Europe, Asian carmakers presented their first MOST vehicles in 2007, followed by the first US carmaker in 2012. Today there are 120 European models, 25 Asian models, and 8 US models available. Three MOST Generations on the Road The first generation, MOST25, was based on optical data transmission using plastic optical fibers (POF). It quickly established itself in the European and Korean markets and is now implemented in 122 car models. The Japanese and US markets implemented the second generation, MOST50, which provides the infotainment backbone in 28 car models. The most significant new feature of MOST50 is that it allows electrical data transmission over an unshielded twisted pair (UTP) of copper wires while meeting stringent auto-

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

MOST® Cooperation celebrates more than 150 car models with MOST inside (Copyright: MOST Cooperation)

IP-based packet data. With the MOST Ethernet channel now on the road to transmit IP data within the vehicle, there is no need to force all data into a particular format to fit a single transmission protocol. MOST transports in parallel many different types of data such as audio, video, and control information, as well as Ethernet and IP frames. MOST COOPERATION www.mostcooperation.com

DESIGN

INDUSTRIAL PCs

An A to Z of components for industrial PCs Whether for use in the open air, in machinery which experiences powerful vibrations or for continuous operation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; PCs for industrial applications must satisfy requirements which differ from those for the consumer market. This is frequently a problem, particularly with respect to their memory components.

Author: Frank Bittigkoffer, Director Storage, Displays & Boards at Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH

The majority of memory manufacturers produce their products for the end-user market, as this is considerably larger and less fragmented than the industrial market. The prevailing price pressure here, especially on hard disks and flash memory, ensures that memory is cheaper, but also that there is a steady decline in quality and ever shorter product life cycles with sudden product discontinuations. Therefore, for all its components for industrial PCs, Rutronik relies exclusively on partners and products which explicitly address the industrial market. In this way, the customer can be sure of receiving components with long-term availability, sufficient strength and durability. If necessary, they can be supplemented by an expanded temperature range, 24x7 continuous operation, protection against aggressive gases or others. All Rutronik partners have comprehen10

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

sive, clearly defined PCN (Product Change Notification) and EOL (End of Life) processes and universal RMA (Return Material Authorisation) handling. The industrial memories are available in all technologies and sizes, offering the perfect solution for every application. Hard disks are still a preferred medium on which to store data safely and for long periods of time. An interesting portfolio of products with high shock and vibration tolerances, an expanded temperature range, 24x7 operation and long data preservation is available from Toshiba, for instance. Flash-based memory solutions are the first choice for applications which are exposed to stronger vibrations or shocks. However, intensive, knowledgeable advice is essential when considering these. For in able to

remain competitive, the manufacturers must continuously lower their product costs. They use die shrinks and new flash technology to do this. However, these have a negative effect on the quality and longevity of the memory. For instance, TLC (Triple Level Cell) chips are increasingly being used in flash cards and USB sticks. It is only possible for data to be deleted from or written to these a maximum of 500 times. In comparison, MLC (Multi Level Cell) chips are able to accommodate 1000 to 10,000 write/delete cycles and SLC (Single Level Cell) chips approximately 100,000 cycles. There are also serious differences with respect to data preservation: While TLCs do not even store data reliably for one year, MLCs do so for a maximum of one year and SLC solutions for up to ten years. Even in industrial applications, customers frequently do not know exactly how large the data volumes are

DESIGN

which are written to the card. However, the duration of the data preservation depends on this. Because corrupted data or even the failure of a memory may have fatal consequences, it is better to use at least an MLCbased or, even better, an SLC-based flash memory. Firmware changes often bring unwanted surprises The die shrinks also have another negative effect: Usually the shrinkage means that another controller must be used in the flash memory. This firmware change may have a major impact on the customer application. The memory may unexpectedly no longer function correctly or fail completely. According to manufacturer specifications, the new models are indeed frequently backward compatible, but this statement is based primarily on tests using boards from the major manufacturers and standard software. Customer using their own board or software should not rely on such statements.

INDUSTRIAL PCs

ers, computer on modules (COM), PC104, blade computers, PICMG and backplanes, IPC and servers to box and panel PCs and HMI applications from manufacturers Advantech, DFI, emtrion, F&S, Fujitsu and Supermicro. Rutronik also has TFT displays and passive LCDs from Alpha Display, Displaytech, NLT Technologies, Sharp, Tianma and U.R.T. in its portfolio as well as touch surfaces from DMC and Hantouch. They also fulfil all the more stringent requirements of the industrial market. There are no generally applicable rules for the selection, the applications are much too

specific. The distributor provides comprehensive, manufacturer-neutral support here, contributing its experience gained from many customer projects. Initially, the selection focuses primarily on the available space, which determines the size of the board and display. When selecting the board, the required performance is also crucial. In addition, specific interfaces are available and other factors must be taken into account such as whether the PC must withstand very high or low temperatures or vibrations and whether it is designed for outside use.

However, the Rutronik manufacturers Apacer, Swissbit, Toshiba and Transcend do not just guarantee long-term availability of several years for their products but also a fixed bill of materials (BOM). This means that all flash memories are identical to the sample and each other. In the event of necessary changes to the firmware, the distributor receives a PCN, enabling it to inform all customers which are using the affected memory model. This gives the customer sufficient time to carry out tests using a sample of the changed component or the successor model to determine whether it will function correctly in its application. If this is not the case, the customer can reorder the outgoing component and evaluate alternatives in the meantime. Should the customer not find a replacement model, some manufacturers will even go so far as to test the relevant component in the customer application and adapt the firmware to it. Individual kit solutions for industrial PCs The Rutronik portfolio does not just include all industry-quality memory solutions but also all other components required for an industrial PC: Mainboards, displays, controllers, inverters, connection solutions, adapters, cables and power supplies. From these, the broadliner is able to put together individual kits to meet specific customer requirements within a short time. The selection of boards ranges from industrial mainboards and single board computwww.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

DESIGN

Optimising cost and quality The more requirements the component must fulfil, the more expensive it becomes. The objective here is to achieve the optimum compromise of costs and quality for the customer. For instance, sometimes it is evident that the requirements of the board are not as high as specified and a more cost-effective alternative will be sufficient. Or that by utilising a slightly more expensive component, it is possible to do away with another completely, thereby reducing the overall costs. As Rutronik stocks all components itself, the distributor can completely build and test the customer-specific system. To this end, Rutronik keeps small quantities

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

INDUSTRIAL PCs

of around 90% of components in stock. Depending on customer requirements, the customerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s software is used in the tests or the hardware is test-

ed at operating system level. Based on the test results, Rutronik is able to make any necessary alterations to the design. Consequently, the customer can be sure that the solution will function smoothly in practice, simultaneously saving a great deal of development time. n www.rutronik.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Ericsson adds simulation to DC/DC Power Designer software, reducing time-to-market Ericsson has announced the latest version of its DC/DC Digital Power Designer software tool, including a number of important new features that enable board power designers and system architects to simulate either simple or complex power schemes, reducing time-toimplementation and time-tomarket. Ericsson Power Designer (version 1.4) features advanced loop compensation functionality that makes it easy to simulate output capacitors and filtering networks such as PI filters on the output of 3E* Point-Of-Load (POL) DC/DC converters, and to optimize loop response without hardware modification for the end application. Using the tool’s Loop Compensator, it is possible to enter values provided by system designers to optimize loop response to match specific profiles such as that required by fast transient conditions, which are often seen when powering processors that are switching from low to high traffic load. The Loop Compensator tool is based on mathematical algorithms using switched-Hamiltonian

differential-equation models, adding in the results from simulation, all presented through an intuitive graphic user interface. The Loop Compensator includes: PID control optimization, capacitance optimization and load transient

IAR Systems® launches a complete starter kit for the low-power RX111 microcontrollers from Renesas Electronics. Based on the Renesas Promotion Board (RPB), IAR KickStart Kit™ for RX111 includes evaluation versions of the world-leading embedded development toolchain IAR Embedded Workbench® for RX. The kit can be used to evaluate the tools and the microcontroller, as well as to design, start develop, integrate and test applications. The RX111 group features a combination of ultra-low power consumption, on-chip connectivity and high performance. It is designed to support a broad range of applications where energy efficiency and low power consumption are critical, within markets such as mobile healthcare, smart meters and sensors.

response, in addition to the ability to enter values for the power module and load capacitor, as well as the inductor to simulate a PI filter. Silicon process geometry is now reaching the 20-nanometer node with processors increasingly requiring ultra-low voltages of 1V and below, with the consequence that some processors will draw currents in excess of 100A. ERICSSON POWER MODULES www.ericsson.com/powermodules

Mouser Announces New Wireless Charging Technology Site Mouser Electronics, Inc. announces the launch of its new Wireless Charging Technology site. The new site offers a detailed overview of this rapidly evolving technology and helps designers identify the ideal wireless charging semiconductor and passive components – as well as development tools – to put a charge into their next design project. Wireless inductive charging devices follow the Qi (pronounced “Chee”) global wireless charging standard, developed and licensed by the Wireless Power Consortium. Products that carry the Qi logo on their packaging are interoperable, allowing consumers the freedom to charge any Qi compliant device in wireless charging range of any Qi charger. The adoption of the Qi wireless charging standard enables both OEMs and third party developers alike to design and manufacturer Qi-compliant devices and

IAR Systems releases complete starter kit for evaluation of Renesas low-power 32-bit RX111 MCUs

accessories. Mouser’s new site features technical articles detailing the latest developments in Qi-compliant devices and chargers, and explores the latest trends in the wireless charging industry. Mouser's Wireless Charging Technology site also provides a variety of videos and other technical resources to educate and facili-

tate advancement in support of this emerging technology. MOUSER ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

The powerful optimization technology of IAR Embedded Workbench will enable users to achieve the fastest performing code and thereby make full use of the ultra-low-power and high performance of the microcontrollers. Included with the kit are a 64KB-limited license as well as a timelimited license of IAR Embedded Workbench for RX. The toolchain includes powerful build tools and a feature-rich debugger integrated in a user-friendly development environment. Also included is a migration guide and project converter for easily transferring projects from Renesas e2 studio to IAR Embedded Workbench. IAR KickStart Kit for RX111 includes a number of example applications as well as a low-power demo with a graphical user interface (GUI) from Renesas that allows developers to measure the power consumption of the target board in each of its low-power modes. In addition to integrated power measurement capabilities, the board features on-chip J-Link debug functionality, an on-chip USB interface, PMOD and Energy Harvesting connectors and a wide range of digital and analogue peripherals. The kit is priced at $15 / €12 and available for purchase from IAR Systems’ e-shop. IAR Embedded Workbench for RX is available in several editions, including a Baseline edition tailored for developers working with the smaller memory RX microcontrollers. The Baseline edition is limited to a code size of 256 KB but provides full compiler and debugger functionality. More information is available at www.iar.com/ewrx IAR SYSTEMS

www.iar.com

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

DESIGN

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Analog IC Enables Automotive ODB-II Remote Diagnostics from Cell Phones

New Automotive Diagnostics Communications Chip Integrates Multiple Configurable Automotive Buses, MOSFET Switch Array and Power Management Functions Fabless Analog ASIC Company, JVD Inc., a leader in Custom Analog ICs, has announced the volume production of its newest automotive integrated circuit, the JV700, an ODB-II Diagnostics Interface/Controller. Designed and produced for Launch Tech Co., Ltd, a leader in professional automotive diagnostics equipment, the JV700 is a custom Analog ASIC that resides in a small dongle that plugs into the vehicle’s ODB-II connector (typically located under the dash). The JV700 incorporates all the critical analog functions required to interface and communicate through the ODB-II connector with all major automotive buses. The chip receives instructions to configure a complex array of low RDS(on) MOSFET switches that properly align the chip’s five bus transceivers to the correct ODB-II pins based on the vehicle’s make, model, year and VIN. The JV700 then communicates the vehicle information via a serial bus to a nearby microcontroller where the data is processed and communicated via Bluetooth to a cell phone or mobile computer for viewing. The JV700 communicates with all of the standard ODB-II accessible Bus Protocols and can manage any three simultaneously: ISO15765-4 (CAN) ISO14230-4 (KWP2000) ISO9141-2 J1850 VPW J1850 PWM The JV700 is packaged in a standard 48 pin QFN package. In addition to the switch matrix and five automotive bus transceivers, the chip also includes several power management elements (dc-dc converters and LDOs). Launch Tech CTO, Oliver Zhang, cited, “Without the JV700 Analog ASIC, we would not have been able to create this state of the art diagnosis system. Consumers can now check

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

their own vehicles for DTC errors and clear the codes themselves.” Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTCs) are how ODB-II identifies and communicates to technicians where and what on-board problems exist. The first number in the DTC indicates whether the code is an SAE generic code (applies to all ODB-II systems) or is specific to the vehicle manufacturer. The remaining three numbers provide information regarding the specific vehicle system and circuit. An analysis of a typical ODBII code is shown below.

While these communication protocol standards are universal, not every make and model uses the same pins on the ODB-II connector to access the information, making universal diagnosis all but impossible without the circuitry found in the JV700. To further complicate diagnostic testing, there remain several pins in the ODB-II connector that are unspecified and their use is left to the vehicle manufacturer's discretion. These unassigned pins are available for use by the manufacturer for things such as airbags, alarms, remotes, and more and their use varies widely among the world’s car manufacturers and even among different models produced by a single manufacturer.

The JV700 can connect and communicate with the unassigned pins to read and manage the peripheral information as well. Once the JV700 orients its configuration for the appropriate make, model, year vehicle, the information it accesses is communication across a serial bus to a microcontroller and the results are then communicated wirelessly to be viewed on a cell phone or mobile computer via Bluetooth. A typical mobile phone display will look something like this:

Automotive environments require that additional protection, not typically required in more mainstream applications be designed into the IC. The JV700 incorporates all required protection features typically found in automotive semiconductors, including Reverse Battery Protection, Double-Battery Jump Start, which occurs when a tow truck or other service personnel use 24V to jump-start a disabled vehicle or otherwise charge a dead battery, and high ESD Protection. JVD, Inc. www.jvdinc.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Renesas Electronics Introduces a Functional Safety Solution for Industrial Automation Renesas Electronics announced the development of a functional safety software package for its 32bit RX631 and RX63N microcontroller (MCU) Groups. The new solution provides diagnostic software for the industry-leading RX CPU core, and its internal memory, and a detailed safety manual to significantly reduce development time for designs that need to conform to stringent safety directives for industrial equipment, such as safety controllers, programmable logic controllers, industrial motor drives and safety sensors. With the demand to improve safety in the workplace and reduce operating costs, the industry has initiated the need to implement functional safety standards according to IEC61508 to design inherent safety for control systems and equipment. To conform to functional safety, system manufacturers need to perform safety analysis not just at the system level, but also down to the device level. Safety analysis includes failure mode analysis,

considering diagnostic methods, and assessment of its diagnostic coverage. Doing these tests and trying to get detailed test analysis from the device manufacturer is a significant burden.

Renesas’ safety solution for the RX631 and RX63N Group of MCUs has removed this burden by providing a self-test diagnostic software library, and a complete safety manual. Key features of the new functional safety solution: • Safety manual • Self-test diagnostic software library • Compliant with the RX631/63N Group of MCUs RENESAS ELECTRONICS www.renesas.eu

Low-power COM Express module family with powerful graphics MSC Vertriebs GmbH, manufacturer of highly integrated standard board level products and customer-specific boards and systems, announces its new COM Express™ Type 6 MSC C6C-GX module family based on the AMD Embedded G-Series SOC (system-on-chip) platform. The computer-on-modules offer a powerful graphics and multimedia performance with low power dissipation. The MSC C6C-GX module family will be available with four different quad-core and dual-core processors: AMD GX-420CA (2.0GHz, 25W TDP) and AMD GX-415GA (1.5GHz, 15W TDP) with four CPU cores each and dualcore variants with AMD GX-217GA (1.65GHz, 15W TDP) and AMD GX-210HA (1.0GHz, 9W TDP).

The processors support AMD64 64-bit ISA technology. The chipset is integrated into the SOC. Furthermore the SOC contains the on-chip Radeon HD 8000 Series GPU including a hardware video decoder (H.264, MPEG4, VC-1, WMV) and the VCE 2.0 video compression engine (H.264, SVC). The innovative graphics controller sup-

ports DirectX® 11.1, OpenGL 4.2 and OpenCL™ 1.2. MSC VERTRIEBS www.msc-ge.com

Quickly and Reliably Charge Any Portable Device over USB in a Car with a Single IC Recognizing and then charging any portable device (PD) directly from a vehicle battery can now be done over USB with a single IC, the MAX16984 automotive DC-DC converter with USB charge emulator from Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. (NASDAQ: MXIM). Previously, PDs like smartphones and tablets could not charge reliably from OEM stock USB ports in vehicles. Long embedded USB cables cause a voltage drop and reduce charging current, resulting in a PD to not properly charge. Low-cost portable USB car chargers introduce RF interference. Now, the MAX16984 brings intelligent USB charging into an automobile and solves these problems. This single-chip solution integrates all the functions of the traditional three-chip solution. The MAX16984 combines a low EMI 5V automotive-grade DCDC converter capable of driving up to 2.5 A with dynamic voltage adjustment, which is essential for charging contemporary PDs over long automotive embedded cables; a USB Battery Charging Specification v1.2-compliant charge emulator, which conducts the necessary handshake between the PD and upstream host instructing the PD to increase its charge current; and integrated ESD diodes and USB over voltage protection switches, which provide robust industry-le ading fault protection. The result is the fastest and most reliable PD charging with the smallest solution size. The MAX16984 is ideal for automotive radios and navigation modules, embedded telematics and connectivity modules, and USB-dedicated charging ports. Key Advantages • High integration: the MAX16984 combines the functions of the standard three-chip solution: a 5 V automotive-grade DCDC converter capable of driving up to 2.5A, a USB BC1.2 charge adapter emulator, and USB protection switches for automotive USB host applications. • Higher performance: the MAX16984 operates from a voltage up to 28V and is protected from load dump transients up to 42V; integrated output adjustment eliminates cable voltage drop. • Reduced power: the MAX16984’s automotive USB function communicates with a connected PD and switches to low-power mode when not in use, thus reducing power consumption. • Safe charging: the MAX16984 is the only USB protection IC with integrated ESD diodes, which prevent damage to the vehicle’s radio or peripheral components MAXIM INTEGRATED

www.maximintegrated.com

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

INDUSTRY NEWS Kontron extends distribution agreement with Arrow to include Communication Servers Enhanced sales channel to improve penetration of high-availability Kontron telecom and cloud infrastructure COTS equipment in EMEA Kontron announced the extension of its European distribution agreement with Arrow (NYSE:ARW) to include the Kontron portfolio of Communication Servers, dedicated to high availability and massively scalable applications deployed in telecom and cloud networks.

The carrier grade rackmount portion of Kontron Communication Servers have a long history of deployment for high-availability applications that include unified messaging, SoIP, call control, streaming media or signaling gateways, and BSS/OSS servers used in carrier central offices for various broadband and 4G LTE wireless services. Also supported in the agreement extension will be Kontron Communication Servers designed for media, web and Internet of Things (IoT) applications provisioned for cloud and data center network environments. Regarding the new agreement with Arrow, Cees Koetsier, Head of Indirect Channel at Kontron, comments: By extending our relationship with Arrow, we are strengthening our sales channels for infrastructure and edge servers for networked high-availability applications across the whole of Europe. The agreement aims at expanding the reach of our communication servers and the improvement of designwin rates in the areas of carrier grade telecom networks, governmental computing, medical IT, as well as any infrastructure that requires long-term availability and the high reliability for heterogeneous 'Internet of Things' applications. The combination of our carrier-grade and cloud hardware design expertise and customization flexibility with our superior customer reach via Arrow, generates an excellent eco-system for innovative applications. KONTRON www.kontron.com ARROW ELECTRONICS www.arrow.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Compact embedded system with an Intel® Core™ processor 4th generation DSM Computer presented at the SPS IPC Drives in Hall 7, Booth 150, its high-performance NanoServer® N2-QM87 embedded system that integrates a 4th generation Intel® Core™ processor and the Intel® QM87 chipset. The compact industrial computer offers highest computing, graphical and video performance in a compact 204 × 226 × 109 mm housing. As standard, the highend NanoServer® N2-QM87 is equipped with the 4th generation Intel® Core™ i54400E processor with two cores (2.7 GHz, 3 MB). For high-end applications, a model with quad-core Intel® Core™ i7-4700EQ (2.4 GHz, 6 MB) is available as option. The Intel® HD4600 graphic controller integrated in the processor is characterized with its high video and graphic performance. The fast DDR3 RAM main memory can be expanded to a maximum capacity of 16 GB. Despite its high performance, thanks to an innovative ventilation concept, the robust

Core™ i5 processor is designed for an operating temperature range of 0° - 50° C. The Box IPC with Core™ i7 operates reliably at temperatures as high as 45° C.

For system expansions, the NanoServer® N2-QM87 provides two PCI Express™ x8 slots for short cards. A PCI Express™ x16 and a PCI Express™ x1 slot are offered as option. The embedded system integrates two Mini PCI Express™ x1 slots (internal), one of which is designed to provide mSATA support. A 60 GB mSATA SSD (Solid State Drive) or larger is installed as standard. DSM COMPUTER www.dsm-computer.com

High-performance 2-U industrial PC with an Intel® Core™ processor 4th generation With the 2-U 96I2380-MBQ87 computer, DSM Computer presented at the SPS IPC Drives its first 19-inch system based on the highest-performance 4th generation Intel® Core™ processors i7, i5, i3. In addition to the processor, the Intel® Q87 chipset is integrated on the industrial Micro-ATX board. As result, the robust industrial computer from the Infinity® family rises into a new performance class with regard to computing, graphic and video power. For system expansions, the 19-inch system provides four slots: 1 × PCI Express™ 3.0 x16, 1 × PCI Express™ 2.0 x16 (four lanes), 1 × PCI Express™ 2.0 x8 (one lane) and 1 × PCI (32-bit, 33 MHz). In addition to four USB 3.0 (two at the rear and two internal) and eight USB 2.0 (two at the front and six at the rear) ports, an internal USB 2.0 stick socket is present. Furthermore, the computer is equipped with two Gigabit LAN connections, 1 × COM (RS232), 2 × PS/2, audio, SATA for six SATA III 600 drives (with support for RAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5) and a socket for mSATA III. In addition to an external DVI-I interface, two DisplayPort 1.2 interfaces are provided for the connection of modern displays. The slim IPC provides a 5.25 inch slimline

bay and two 3.5 inch bays installed at the front. A removable frame allows as many as four 2.5 inch hard disks to be installed in the two 3.5 inch bays. A 1000 GB 3.5 inch SATA II 600 hard disk (or larger) is integrated in the housing. A DVD-RW drive (slimline), a 2.5 inch SSD or an mSATA III SSD can be installed as option.

The robust 96I2380-MBQ87 industrial computer with an installation depth of only 380 mm is designed for installation in 19 inch cabinets or can be used as stand-alone device. An easily-changed air filter for dust protection in harsh industrial environments is mounted on the front side of the functional, grey industrial housing. DSM COMPUTER www.dsm-computer.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Dependable, protected wireless solution for remote access and data transfer Amplicon has introduced the new EBW H100 3G cellular router, a cost effective and safe method for remote access and data transfer. Designed for reliable, remote access and secure routing, the EBW H100 features an industrial-grade design, integrated firewall and VPN functionality to ensure access to your data is both dependable and protected. The fast mobile wireless EBW H100 router uses both HSPA (3G) and GPRS roll-back for data transfer. The device has an integrated 2port switch for direct interfacing with an application or network. For installation into demanding environments, the EBW H100 has a built in DIN Rail mounting bracket, a wide ranging DC power input of 10 to 48 VDC via terminal block and a wide operating temperature range of -30 to 55°C.

The EBW H100 router provides a reliable and economic solution for remote access and data transfer applications, such as remote access to control devices (PLC’s HMI’s etc.) or networks for OEM’s and

System Integrators, video monitoring in security systems for asset protection on rail or road, distributed power generation, SCADA/ RTU systems, water and wastewater utilities, agriculture for the monitoring of feed and water, and many other industrial projects.

Microchip announces the industry’s most comprehensive 32-bit microcontroller firmware development framework: MPLAB® Harmony. This framework is the first to integrate the licensing, resale and support of both Microchip and third-party middleware, drivers, libraries and real-time operating systems. Currently, Harmony includes third-party offerings from Express Logic, FreeRTOS, InterNiche, WITTENSTEIN High Integrity Systems and wolfSSL, with many more on the way. The result is that developers can greatly simplify their PIC32 MCU code development process by reducing common integration bugs, thus accelerating time to market. With the growing complexity of embedded systems, industry studies have shown that software development accounts for 60% of the average design cycle. At the same time, designers are using a variety of software with untested compatibility and multiple sources of purchasing and support. This causes increased verification and debug time after the design is completed, which can cost 10-30 times more than defects found during the design phase.

AMPLICON www.amplicon.com

Kontron next-generation COBALT system gives OEMs additional I/O options to meet specific edge application requirements Kontron announced at the MILCOM conference the availability of its next-generation Kontron highperformance embedded computer COBALT (Computer Brick Alternative) system. Kontron's nextgeneration COBALT offers a complete, rugged small form factor system that leverages the company's hardened COM Express Computer-on-Modules (COMs) and optimizes the latest Intel x86 architecture. The Kontron COBALT provides additional tightly-coupled mezzanine features, a ruggedized compact carrier board and System Interface Board (SIB) that give customers increased I/O options to meet specific edge application requirements. This proven modular and flexible platform matches ongoing development demands in applications such

Microchip announces first embedded firmware development framework with internal and third-party support, licensing and resale

as rail transportation, military (ground, ship, avionics, unmanned), commercial avionics, oil & gas, outdoor communications or any where small high-compute platforms are required. Meeting severe environment operational demands in many industries, Kontron designed the

IP67 chassis to operate reliably in a multitude of conditions including extreme temperatures, shock, vibration and EMI. KONTRON www.kontron.com

Microchip’s new MPLAB Harmony framework reduces development time and costs by providing a single integrated, abstracted and flexible source for Microchip-tested, debugged and interoperable code. In addition, Harmony provides a modular architecture that enables the efficient integration of multiple drivers, middleware and libraries, while offering an RTOS-independent environment. Not only does this pre-verification and integration speed development, it also increases reuse. On the hardware side, the Harmony framework makes it even easier to port code and migrate among all of Microchip’s 32-bit PIC32 microcontrollers. Also, by using this single source for in-house and third-party code (both free and premium) that is supported by Microchip, designers can greatly increase their reaction times to their ever-changing end-market requirements. Key Advantages • MPLAB® Harmony integrates expanding set of middleware, drivers, libraries and RTOSs • Simplifies 32-bit MCU code development, reduces integration bugs & speeds designs • Modular architecture enables efficient integration in an RTOS-independent platform • Provides downloads and support for a broad range of pre-tested, interoperable software MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY

www.microchip.com/get/V2PJ

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

DESIGN

PASSIVE COMPONENTS

Tantalum Solid Electrolytic Chip Capacitors with Conductive Polymer Electrode The tantalum capacitor is a product present in the electronics industry for over 30 years. It is often used in power systems as a filtering element, eliminating pulsating voltage. Its advantages compared to the other parameters of electrolytic or ceramic capacitors are known since long. The major advantages include: • stability of parameters over time; • good capacity-to-size ratio; • good electrical parameters. Due to constant technological development, the requirements in relation to the parameters of discrete components, particularly for capacitors, are still growing. The continuing miniaturization and digitization of equipment imposes stringent requirements, especially for electrical parameters on these components. The capacitors must now often operate at very high pulse currents. Colloquially, tantalum capacitors are understood as capacitors with one electrode usually made from powdered, sintered tantalum. On this electrode, a dielectric film – insulating material – tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) is formed. The second electrode is manganese dioxide (MnO2) as solid filling of the porous surface of dielectric material.

Figure1: Structure of a tantalum capacitor. A key element negatively affecting the performance of this capacitor is the material 18

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

constituting the second electrode. Unfortunately, it is necessary to use a substance that fills the porous surface of the dielectric material. So far, the best compromise was to use just MnO2.

In AVX TJC series capacitors, this electrode has been replaced with a new material - an organic conductive polymer instead of manganese dioxide as cathode. This significantly improved primarily so-called Equivalent Series Resistance – ESR – one of the key parameters defining the behaviour of a capacitor in electrical circuits. Please note that a real capacitor is an appropriate combination of three elements: – an ideal capacitor;

– an ideal resistor; – an ideal coil. Both the resistance and inductance are the parasitic and undesirable components that negatively influence the current response of the capacitor in electrical circuits. Undesirable series resistance of tantalum capacitors is introduced primarily by poor conductivity of MnO2, the material, from which one of capacitor electrodes (negative – cathode) is made.

Figure2: Electric model of a tantalum capacitor. In the tantalum capacitor model, the placement of the resistance created by the cathode can be seen (Figure 2). In total, an RC ladder is formed, in which individual resistors reflect electrode resistance that grows with the depth of the electrode and capacitors reflect parallel capaci-

DESIGN

tance elements formed on the porous surface of the dielectric material. The result is that with increasing frequency, the current flows mainly through the capacitors directly on the component surface of the anode (silver). Capacitors that are located deeper, closer to the dielectric material and away from the anode, are powered by the sum of the series resistors. Then they have a marginal effect on the overall response of the capacitor element. Use of a polymer significantly reduced series resistance value which was present in a previous generation of capacitors due to the relatively low conductivity of MnO2. This also reduced the change in capacitance as a function of frequency changes. The capacitance of such capacitors remains constant for much longer and does not drop as fast as in its predecessors with increasing frequency of the electric current. In average, a capacitor with MnO2 electrode “loses” about 50% of its capacity at 100 kHz frequency. In case of a polymer electrode, the capacitor retains more than 90% of its capacity at this frequency.

PASSIVE COMPONENTS

Additionally, the use of a polymer electrode eliminated the risk of so-called ignition failures – strong thermal reactions that lead to component damage, resulting in higher stability and durability of these capacitors. In both technologies, there is also the phenomenon of so-called Self-Healing – elimination of points of substantial flow of electric current due to impurities in the structure of the dielectric material. With all of these advantages, please also note that those capacitors are more sensitive to high temperatures – above 105°C (resistance of the conductive polymer increases with the temperature increasing) and that they have a higher leakage current than their predecessors. Former capacitors with polymer electrode also did not have such high rated voltages as TCJ series component currently manufactured by AVX. It is recommended only to reduce the operating voltage by approximately 20% of rated voltage in order to prevent a possible voltage jump above a safe level.

The tantalum capacitors with polymer electrode are worthy successors of the previous MnO2 technology of electrodes. In these components, it was possible to significantly reduce the ESR value, to eliminate the phenomenon of capacity decrease with increasing frequency and there is no problem of thermal damage due to ignition failures. Target applications of such capacitors include power supply units, LCD monitors, tablets, smartphones or notebooks. The offer of TME includes SMD tantalum capacitors from AVX Company with polymer electrode in the range of capacities from 0.47 to 220 uF and voltage range from 2.5V to 75V. Please contact our sales department who will assist you in the selection of appropriate components. References: 1. John D. Prymak, Replacing MnO2 with Conductive Polymer in Tantalum Capacitors 2. www.avx.com/techinfo_doclisting.asp www.tme.eu

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS EnSilica launches Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR) IP for automotive driver-assist applications Matched to EnSilica’s pipelined FFT IP core, it frees up the apps processor by presenting a marked up radar image EnSilica, a leading independent provider of IC design services and system solutions, has launched a Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR) soft IP core for use in situational awareness radar sensors for automotive driver-assist applications. The hardware accelerated CFAR IP is matched to EnSilica’s pipelined FFT IP core and, operating on continuous data at one bin per clock cycle, the combination of cores delivers a substantially reduced data set for analysis by the processor.

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS Power Integrations First to Demonstrate Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 Smartphone Charger Reference Design Power Integrations introduced the first reference design for a Qualcomm® Quick Charge 2.0-enabled charger power supply. Launched earlier this year, the Quick Charge 2.0 protocol from Qualcomm enables users to charge mobile devices, such as tablets and cellphone handsets, up to 75% faster than when using conventional USB charging technology. Power Integrations has developed the ChiPhy™ family of AC-DC wall-charger interface ICs which, when combined with the company’s AC-DC switcher ICs, incorporates all of the necessary elements to add rapid charging functionality to AC-DC wall chargers. The CHY100 IC detects commands from a Quick Charge 2.0-enabled device, and adjusts the output voltage of the AC-DC wall charger to deliver increased power to the device’s battery through a standard USB cable. When plugged into a five-volt USBpowered device without Quick Charge 2.0 capability, CHY100 IC automatically disables

the higher-voltage capability to ensure safe operation and backwards compatibility with older hardware. An evaluation platform for ChiPhy ICs, DER-381 describes a CV/CC

charger power supply capable of up to 24 W utilizing TOPSwitch™-JX switcher and CHY100D interface ICs. The PSU operates from universal input and provides selectable output voltages (5V, 9V, and 12V) with a maximum constant current of 2A. POWER INTEGRATIONS www.powerint.com

Customers today via early access software are using these best-in-class IP cores in 20 nm Arria 10 FPGAs. The development of the CFAR IP also followed the guidelines necessary for integration with devices adhering to the ISO 26262 functional safety standard for road vehicles. Situational radar sensors can be used in a wide variety of driver-assist applications such as advanced electronic stability control systems, pre-crash impact mitigation, blind spot and lane departure detection, and self-parking. 1D and 2D-CFAR is used in these applications to identify relevant objects or targets from the background clutter of a radar image and tag them for further processing. As driver-assist applications grow in complexity, the challenge is processing all the available data while recognising that a very large percentage of the field of view does not contain relevant objects. The EnSilica CFAR IP coupled with a 2K point FFT can calculate and search over 200,000 Fourier Transforms per second, reducing the radar image to a manageable number of possible objects that are critical to the driver safety. The highly configurable EnSilica CFAR IP implements all the popular compute intensive algorithms, including GOSCA, GOSGO, GOSSO, CA, GOCA and GOSA, that would normally be applied in software and which involve real-time data transform, sorting and selection. The soft IP can be targeted for implementation in either FPGA or ASIC technologies to address a wide range of market segments. EnSILICA

www.ensilica.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

Renesas Electronics Europe announced the upcoming release of a reference design for small scale IO-Link smart industrial sensors. The solution is the result of a close cooperation between Renesas Electronics Europe and its business partners TMG Technologie und Engineering and Maxim Integrated. The hardware platform of the new IO-Link solution combines Renesas Electronics’ RL78, its 16-bit ultra-low power microcontroller, an IO-Link transceiver and a miniature sensor from Maxim Integrated. TMG TE completes the solution from the software and applications side with its IO-Link v1.1 device stack operating on the microcontroller. Renesas introduced the first integrated solutions for both IO-Link devices and master modules in the industry. The company continues to lead in innovation by working with experts in the automation field to develop new concepts for flexible and highly efficient solutions. These activities enable IO-Link technology to be used for the enhancement of sensor networking in an increasing smart and automated world. The IO-Link protocol is an open standard according to IEC61131-9, making use of conventional 3-wire sensor cables for the

transmission of serial digital communications between sensors/actuators and industrial automation systems. IO-Link offers the following key benefits: • Visibility down to field device level • Automatic parameterisation and central data management • Process, parameter and diagnosis data transmission over one bi-directional medium • Remote configuration and commissioning • Backward compatibility to current sensor switching technology

With this new solution, Renesas introduces the new RL78 microcontroller family in IOLink applications and addresses the challenges met by designers wanting to bring smart and intelligent features to miniature sensors. RENESAS ELECTRONICS www.renesas.eu

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

TRS-Star Smart GPRS Data Gateway offers high flexibility Simplifies M2M and telemetry applications A smart GPRS gateway which specifically simplifies M2M (machine to machine) and telemetry applications can be obtained with immediate effect from TRSStar GmbH. It can be found in vending machines which automatically request refilling from a control center, in the remote transmission of sensor measurement values to a data server via a gateway (telemetry), in the remote monitoring of PV (photovoltaic) systems through the systematic recording and transmission of relevant system parameters to a control server and also in the remote control and diagnosis of computer-assisted systems. The central element of the device is a compact quad-band GSM/GPRS communication module which provides the connected end devices with data transmission via the mobile phone network. Application-specific data can be

transmitted with the help of common protocols such as SMS / PPP / TCP / UDP / HTTP/ FTP / MMS / HTTP/ SMTP and IP-T. The end devices are in turn connected to

the smart data gateway using standard digital interfaces. Four digital inputs and also one USB, RS-232 and RS-485 interface respectively are available for this. Due to its universally engineered system architecture, the smart data gateway addresses numerous different M2M applications. The open system architecture makes it possible for smaller customer-specific applications and protocols to run directly on the smart GPRS data gateway. TRS-STAR www.trs-star.com

Kontron's performance-per-watt champion for low-power class of CompactPCI systems features Intel Atom E3800 processors At the SPS/IPC/DRIVES trade show Kontron brought a new rugged performance-per-watt champion to low-power 3U CompactPCI systems with the launch of the longterm available CP3010-SA CompactPCI processor board. The new Kontron CP3010-SA is equipped with latest System-onChip (SoC) Intel Atom E3800 processors - formerly codenamed 'Bay Trail' and quadruples the performance in the low-power class of Intel Atom processor based Kontron CompactPCI systems without increasing the thermal budget. This makes the new board an ideal drop-in replacement even for Intel Core 2 Duo processor based CPCI sys-

tems. The most impressive feature is the three times higher graphics performance compared to previous Intel Atom processor-based designs coupled with an unbeatable TDP (thermal design power) value. The special heatsink design optimized for convection-cooled environments makes the CP3010-

SA a perfect fit for all applications where fans are not desired or not possible. KONTRON www.kontron.com

Microchip’s PIC32MZ 32-bit MCUs have class-leading performance Microchip announces the new 24-member PIC32MZ Embedded Connectivity (EC) family of 32-bit MCUs. It provides class-leading performance of 330 DMIPS and 3.28 CoreMarks™/MHz, in addition to dual-panel, live-update Flash (up to 2 MB), large RAM (512 KB) and the connectivity peripherals - including a 10/100 Ethernet MAC, Hi-Speed USB MAC/PHY (a first for PIC® MCUs) and dual CAN ports - needed to support today’s demanding applications. The PIC32MZ also has class-leading code density that is 30% better than competitors, along with a 28 Msps ADC that offers one of the best throughput rates for 32-bit MCUs. Completing this family’s high level of integration is a full-featured hardware crypto engine with a random number generator for high-throughput data

encryption/decryption and authentication such as AES, 3DES, SHA, MD5 and HMAC, as well as the first SQI interface on a Microchip MCU and the PIC32’s highest number of serial channels. Embedded designers are faced with ever-increasing demands for additional features that require more MCU performance and memory. At the same time, they are looking to lower cost and complexity by using fewer MCUs. The PIC32MZ family provides 3x the performance and 4x the memory over the previous-generation PIC32MX families, in addition to a high level of advanced peripheral integration. For applications requiring embedded connectivity, the family includes Hi-Speed USB, Ethernet and CAN, as well as a broad set of wired and wireless protocol stacks. Many embedded applications are adding better graphics displays, and the PIC32MZ can support up to a WQVGA display without any external graphics chips. Streaming/digital audio applications can take advantage of this family’s 159 DSP instructions, large memory, peripherals such as I2S, and available software. Field updates are another growing challenge for design engineers and managers. The PIC32MZ’s 2 MB of internal Flash enables live updates via dual independent panels that provide a fail-safe way to conduct field updates while operating at full speed. The PIC32MZ is Microchip’s first MCU to employ Imagination’s MIPS microAptiv™ core, which adds 159 new DSP instructions that enable the execution of DSP algorithms at up to 75% fewer cycles than the PIC32MX families. This core also provides the microMIPS® instruction-set architecture, which improves code density while operating at near full rate, instruction and data cache, and its 200 MHz/330 DMIPS offers 3x the performance of the PIC32MX. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/ESJG

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Altera Releases New 100G Ethernet and Interlaken IP Cores To Drive High-Capacity Transmission and Backhaul Applications

Kontron extends Mini-ITX portfolio with a motherboard featuring soldered 4th generation Intel Core processors

Altera Corporation strengthened its intellectual property (IP) core portfolio with the addition of four new best-in-class IP cores to the company’s MegaCore IP library. These new best-in-class IP cores include an ultra-high performance and ultra-low latency 100G Interlaken, 100G Ethernet, 40G Ethernet and 10G Ethernet IP. The cores are optimized to deliver the highest performance, lowest latency and smallest resource utilization in the industry. Developers of data centers and networking equipment can leverage these versatile solutions to increase system bandwidth while differentiating their end system. The Interlaken and Ethernet IP cores, as well as other standard interface IPs, are currently available and fully supported in the latest release of the Quartus II software

With the launch of the new embedded motherboard KTQ M87/mITX Kontron is extending its long-term available Mini-ITX portfolio to include a vibrationand shock-proof motherboard with a soldered 4th generation Intel Core processor (formerly codenamed 'Haswell'). This 'mini powerhouse' has been designed especially for performance-intensive applications in harsh environments and supports the extended temperature range of 0°C to +60°C. With its outstanding graphics performance, the board operates up to three independent displays or an ultra-high resolution 4K monitor. Additionally, the Kontron KTQM87/mITX boasts an excellent performance-per-watt ratio and optimized Thermal Design Power (TDP). The ATX-compatible motherboard offers an extensive ecosystem, so that developers can design even the most demanding systems based on standard components. This reduces R&D costs and accelerates time-to-market. Examples of

v13.1. All IPs included in the MegaCore IP library are validated and demonstrated in silicon. The IP cores deliver 15 percent timing margin for faster timing closure, which allow customers to quickly integrate multiple IP cores into their designs. The new Interlaken and Ethernet IP cores are optimized for use in Altera’s

high-performance Stratix V FPGA as well as future Generation 10 FPGAs and SoCs. Customers today via early access software are using these best-in-class IP cores in 20 nm Arria 10 FPGAs. ALTERA www.altera.com/ip

M-UPS2 by IPETRONIK – Intelligent interruptionfree power supply for mobile DAQ systems IPEmeasure presents M-UPS2, a new advanced version of IPETRONIK's intelligent interruption-free power supply module. M-UPS2 serves as reliable power buffer for car testing DAQ systems. Voltage drops and breakdowns, e.g. at startup and cold start testing, are bridged safely. This power supply module guarantees reliable and consistent data acquisition - even under extreme environmental conditions such as during summer and winter testing. Some significant characteristics of M-UPS2 are its output voltage of 15V ±1V, a 30W power output in battery mode and 50W with onboard power supply as well as a low standby current of <1mA. Furthermore, it features automatic interruption-free switch-over between battery mode and onboard mode and an extended operating temperature range of 25°C to +70°C. The battery is automatically charged and is

exchangeable. This high-performance battery (2.5Ah) buffers short voltage drops or voltage failure during motor startup reliably for a

target applications for the longterm available embedded motherboards are in IPCs, medical computers for image processing, professional gaming systems or digital signage players and pointof-sales terminals. The Kontron KTQM87/mITX excels with a wide selection of interfaces. In addition, customer-

specific functions can be integrated via standard extension slots such as PCI Express and Mini PCIe as well as Kontron's own embedded Feature Connector. With its SIM-card socket, the motherboard is also destined for deployment in intelligent, distributed 'Internet of Things' applications. By supporting the Intel Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX) 2.0, the board offers DSP class I/O processing performance. KONTRON www.kontron.com

IAR Systems launches sponsor program to further boost ec

period of one to five minutes. MUPS2 uses a gold anodized aluminum enclosure of 113 × 85 × 89 mm (W × H × D) that is compatible with the IPETRONIK M-Series and supports IP54 protection class. Supply voltage is 9VDC to 18 VDC, operating current is <100mA (output unloaded). M-UPS2 supports different remote functions for automated switch-on/off. IPETRONIK www.ipetronik.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

IAR Systems® announces the launch of IAR Green Innovation Program, a sponsor program to support innovative development projects in eco-friendly technology. The program will award selected companies with up to $25,000 worth of IAR Embedded Workbench® or IAR visualSTATE® licenses for the duration of the project. Many of the most innovative advances in renewable energy and clean-tech fields over the past twenty years have been developed by small, entrepreneurial technology companies and individuals. To support and further this progress, IAR Systems has created IAR Green Innovation

Program to allow engineers easier access to world-leading embedded development tools including the powerful C/C++ compiler and debugger tool suite IAR Embedded Workbench and the highly sophisticated state machine tools IAR visualSTATE. By significantly enhancing development productivity, IAR Systems’ development tools help green entrepreneurs bring their ideas from prototype to commercialization stages and provide a reliable path to high volume deployment. To be selected as a member of the program, the applying organization should be in the areas of environmental monitor-

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Kontron premieres medical motherboards in series production With the launch of the KTQ67/Flex-MED motherboard at the Medica 2013 (hall 15, stand C20) Kontron is - for the first time - introducing a standard Flex-ATX board with two EN60601-1 compliant isolated Ethernet ports. The Kontron KTQ67/Flex-MED offers a long-term availability of 7 years and in addition to the isolated LANs, it includes 2 DVI interfaces to drive medical imaging tasks on two HD monitors. The performance is scalable across the complete range of the powerful dual core and quad core desktop CPUs from Intel´s 3rd generation Core processors, making it easy to tailor the motherboard to a broad range of individual performance needs. With the availability of these medical motherboards in volume production, sourcing and configuration for System Integrators and Hospital IT departments become an even easier and more convenient task. To deploy a medical PC, customers only have to choose an appropriate standard housing to finalize their individual system configuration. There is no longer any need to add an extra add-on card or to cover the cost of a customized board design in order to obtain galvanic isolated Gigabit Ethernet interfaces and

EN13485-compliant manufacturing documentation. Customers can now benefit from a reduced total cost of ownership through the reduced bill of materials and an optimized supply chain management. Kontron's first medical motherboard targets graphics and/or processing intensive medical applications found in nearly all healthcare environments ranging from diagnostic work stations through to computers in operating theatres, at nursing stations and in consulting rooms, right up to bedside applications.

Such systems are often connected to PACS or other hospital information systems (HIS). In OEM equipment this motherboard will be deployed as a back-end processing block and as a GUI controller for a variety of medical devices including stationary and semi-mobile ultrasound scanners, MRI and CT. KONTRON www.kontron.com

co-friendly development ing, renewable and clean energy systems, systems that optimize energy efficiency, recycling, climate-related disaster recovery, and green quality of life

improvements for people in developing and third world countries. The organization could be a research center, a university program, or a startup company with 10 or fewer employees. “For 30 years, IAR Systems has contributed to future-proof development projects around the world by continuously delivering world-leading development tools with the broadest architecture support to the market,” says Mike Skrtic, responsible for IAR Green Innovation Program and Strategic Account Manager, IAR Systems. “IAR Green Innovation Program is one step further to take responsibility for the future and to encourage developers who lead the way towards a more sustainable planet.” IAR SYSTEMS www.iar.com

IPEmotion 2013.2.0 – Extended functionalities for IPETRONIK's configuration and data acquisition software Version 2013.2.0 of IPETRONIK's data acquisition software IPEmotion offers comprehensive functionality extensions and optimized implementation of complex measurement applications. Innovations include import functions for MDF4 files as well as WAV and DAT audio files, new analysis functions, such as separate time axes for Yt charts, and individual color scale for a third dimension in maps. New field commands are available for report function programming.

MDF4 import was optimized and extended by several new functions: FH blocks contain project parameter information, EV blocks define time channels, SI blocks contain project parameter information and CC blocks contain information about channel scaling for CompuTabs and V-Tabs. Integration of measurement data, GPS position, video and sound is under steady progress. WAF files can now be imported into IPEmotion. This new function was implemented due to customer requirements to analyze sound problems and noises in an early state of prototype testing. Sound files can be recorded using the microphone inputs of IPETRONIK data loggers. Files are stored on the logger in DIAdem DAT format and can also be imported into IPEmotion. Post processing and analysis of sound files can be performed using special software tools. For this, WAV or DAT files need to be converted to ATFX format. ATFX format is a standard format for different sound analysis tools. New features are also available for Yt and XY charts. Several time axes can be added. In "Separated axes" mode, both charts have separated time axes for each channel. Each time axis can be individually moved, stretched and compressed. Also, channels of different files can be compared in one time axis. IPETRONIK

www.ipetronik.com www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS PLS’ Universal Emulation Configurator opens up the full potential of emulation devices from Freescale and STMicroelectronics The Universal Emulation Configurator (UEC) from PLS Programmierbare Logik & Systeme is now also available for the emulation devices MPC57xx from Freescale and SPC57x from STMicroelectronics. With the help of this special tool for definition of trace and measurement tasks for on-chip emulation logic, the full potential of the emulation devices can be used for the first time without any limitations for troubleshooting and software quality assurance. The MPC57xx and SPC57x emulation devices are pin-compatible to their respective production chips, but include additional emulation memory, extensive trigger and filter logic as well as connections for a serial high-speed interface based on the Aurora protocol. In order that developers can easily as possible and abstractly configure the several hundred registers of the additional emulation memory, the Universal Emulation Configurator (UEC) is based on a three-stage programming model. The assembler-like Trace Qualification Language (TQL) of the first stage uses the resources of the emulation hardware. In this way, the individual register values can be set. The C-like High-Level Trace

Qualification Language (HTQL) of the second stage already allows a more abstract description of measurement tasks by conditional actions and definitions of state machines. The third stage of the abstraction and the actual user interface is formed by a graphical editor, with which a measurement task can be put together from predefined blocks. In doing so, specific states in the target are described by signals. These, in turn, can initiate actions or shift an underlying state machine into a new state. The individual blocks, which serve to describe signals, actions and basic elements of state machines, are in turn grouped together in libraries. These can be extended as required or supplemented with own libraries. In order to achieve the optimal level of modularity, flexibility and userfriendliness, Extensible Markup Language (XML) was chosen as data format. PLS PROGRAMMIERBARE LOGIK & SYSTEME www.pls mc.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Kontron launches the new control cabinet IPC product family for automation At the SPS/IPC/Drives trade fair, Kontron announced the launch of a new control cabinet IPC product family for automation. The new Kontron KBox IPCs have been designed for industrial control applications and offer outstanding scalability from entry to high-end level. All four new systems feature an industrial-grade design for common control cabinet installations, are available long-term and can be fitted with industrial I/Os, fieldbuses and/or Industrial Ethernet interfaces to meet individual requirements. Owing to the modular construction with Kontron standard com-

available space next to other control cabinet devices. Performance scaled to match the requirements profile is provided by third generation Intel Celeron and Intel Core i3 and i7 processors. With 4x IEEE1588 supporting Gbit Ethernet, 7× USB2.0, 1× RS232, 1 × DVI and PCIe ×1extension options for fieldbus and Industrial Ethernet interfaces, it is ideal for deployment in real-time control and visualization computers on the process level of the automation pyramid. For more detailed information on the product and availability visit the Kontron KBox C-100 product page.

ponents, the processor portfolio is highly scalable for individual design requirements and at all times up-to-date. Suppliers of automation equipment and OEM customers in machinery and plant engineering thus profit from particularly efficient customization options based on standardized building blocks.

The Kontron KBox B-101 in detail Featuring Mini-ITX motherboards, the new Kontron KBox B-101 offers a high level of processor scalability and is designed for general purpose automation applications. The standard I/O interfaces are determined by the features of the motherboard. All the systems can be extended with a low-profile PCIe x16 as well as with a MiniPCIe slot. For data-intensive applications, OEMs can revert to both a built-in 2.5" hard disk as well as a replaceable hard drive at the front. 2× DisplayPort makes the KBox B-101 ideal for multi-screen applications. For more detailed information on the product and availability visit the Kontron KBox B-101 product page.

The Kontron KBox C-101 in detail The new Kontron KBox C-101 booksize class IPC ranks in the entire KBox IPC family as the performance flagship for industrial control cabinets and is scalable by deploying COM Express modules. It already features latest 4th generation Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, while at the same time convinces with its fanless and maintenance-free design. 2× SATA slots for HDD/SSD as well as 2× PCIe ×4 and 2× MiniPCIe slots are provided to allow fast and flexible connection of individual standard components. Further standard ports are 3× Gbit Ethernet each supporting IEEE1588, 2× USB 3.0, 2× USB 2.0, DisplayPort and RS232. For more detailed information on the product and availability visit the Kontron KBox C-101 product page. The Kontron KBox C-100 in detail The KBox C-100 is a control computer with integrated 128kB NVRAM and is tested to support Soft-PLCs as well as hypervisor technologies. It offers easily accessible interfaces on the top (or front) as well as on the bottom (or rear) of the chassis, optimizing the use of

The Kontron KBox A-101in detail The Kontron KBox A-101 IPC offers an exceptional price/performance ratio for cost-sensitive automation and industrial computing applications. The fanless Box PC with the dualcore Intel Atom processor D2550 is characterized by a maintenance-free design including a robust and fast SSD. Despite its compact footprint, individual interface layouts are possible via the integrated MiniPCIe slot. DisplayPort, 2× Gbit Ethernet, 2× USB 3.0, 2× USB 2.0 and RS232 form the range of standard interfaces. Further options are CAN bus and 2× rear WLAN antenna connectors. For more detailed information on the product and availability visit the Kontron KBox A-101 product page. KONTRON www.kontron.com

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

TPS-1 PROFINET chip becomes a lot more attractive due to even higher performance firmware and a significant price reduction

Atollic leads industry with launch of first embedded IDE with code testing and quality management features as standard

MSC now offers the TPS-1 PROFINET chip from Renesas Electronics with the latest firmware version 1.2. This version offers multiple new features, including plug and play, extended logbook, FX/TX media converter and support for shared and highly modular devices. The feature set of the new firmware version 1.2, which was developed by KWSoftware in close cooperation with Renesas Electronics, is based on the PROFINET specification version 2.3. It supports all real-time classes and fulfills even the most stringent netload requirements easily. Due to the separation of application and real-time Ethernet, minimum integration efforts are needed to achieve the most robust

Atollic announced the launch of TrueSTUDIO Premium edition. Built on the well-established TrueSTUDIO Pro, a powerful IDE for embedded C/C++ development, the Premium edition extends the tool’s capabilities even further to include code testing and test quality measurement features as standard. The TrueSTUDIO Premium edition is designed to help embedded systems developers to achieve two important, but often mutually exclusive, goals of achieving higher software quality, while at the same time, meeting ever increasing time-to-market requirements for product releases. Atollic TrueSTUDIO Premium inherits all the powerful features of the base product such as parallel compilation, RTOS aware debugger with a built-in crash analyzer, multicore and multiprocessor debugging, event and instruction tracing, MISRA-C checking, code complexity analysis and source code review features, as well as target support for approximately 2000 ARM® devices from leading semicon-

PROFINET implementations. Parallel to availability of the new firmware version 1.2, the European reference price for the TPS-1 PROFINET chip has been reduced to 10 euros per device starting from a minimum order quantity of

1,000 pieces. Detailed information about this can be requested by sending an email to micros-renesas@msc-ge.com MSC VERTRIEBS www.msc-ge.com

Latest Intel Atom 22nm Multi-Core SoC Processors Now at Mouser Mouser Electronics, Inc. is now stocking the latest Intel® Atom™ 22nm 64-bit multi-core processors with USB 3.0 and graphics support, targeting high-performance low-power applications ranging from smartphones to intelligent embedded systems. The new Intel Atom 22nm SoC processors available from Mouser Electronics are manufactured using Intel's Tri-Gate CMOS technology. This next generation Atom brings significant performance increases and improved energy efficiency compared to competing processors using planar transistor technology, all while delivering industry-leading performance per watt efficiency. Present 22nm Atom SoCs contain up to four 64bit low power Intel processor cores with each core attached to 56Kbytes of L1 cache; in addition, each pair of cores shares 1MBytes of L2 cache. Compared to currentgeneration Intel Atom processors,

these new SoCs provide improvements of about 3x the peak CPU performance while using the same power draw, or the same CPU per-

ductor manufacturers. The TrueVERIFIER unit testing tool, now an intrinsic part of TrueSTUDIO Premium automates much of the testing process while at the same time preserving flexibility for adapting unit tests to specific requirements. The tool analyzes the source code, autogenerate test suites, builds the

application with test scaffold, downloads, and executes on the target board. Test results and achieved test coverage is then uploaded to the host for easy visualization in the IDE. This improves the efficiency and reliability of unit test implementation, execution and interpretation and archiving of test results and saving time. TrueSTUDIO Premium edition supports black-box testing, white-box testing and test driven development. ATOLLIC www.atollic.com

Reserve Yours Now! Intel’s Galileo Development Board Now

formance while using about 5x less power. The performance-per-watt improvements in this new generation of multi-core Atom processors enable significant improvements in performance and responsiveness for performance hungry battery-powered applications including tablets, smartphones, and other low-power mobile devices. MOUSER ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

Mouser Electronics, Inc. is now taking pre-orders for Intel’s hotly anticipated Galileo Development Board, based on the Intel Quark Application Processor. The Galileo Development Board available from Mouser Electronics is based on the Intel Quark SoC X1000 Processor, a 32-bit Intel Pentium-class system on a chip (SoC). The Intel Galileo board is the first product in a new family of Arduino certified boards featuring Intel architecture. Galileo is designed to be hardware and software pin-compatible with Arduino shields, accessory boards that plug into an Arduino board to extend its capabilities. It is also software-compatible with the

Arduino Software Development Environment, which makes usability and introduction a snap. In addition to Arduino hardware and software compatibility, the Galileo board has several PC industry standard I/O ports and features to expand native usage and capabilities beyond the Arduino shield ecosystem. A full sized mini-PCI Express slot, 100Mb Ethernet port, microSD slot, RS-232 serial port, USB Host port, USB Client Port, and 8 MByte NOR Flash memory come standard on the board. Galileo uses the Arduino Integrated Development Environment (IDE) to create programs for Galileo called “sketches.”

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Easily installable rail-mounted PC with 2 GB RAM and 7.2 GB flash memory DSM Computer has extended its compact rail-mounted H1-A PC family with a system with integrated 2 GB RAM and 7.2 GB flash memory. The large RAM capacity makes it possible to install the powerful Microsoft® Windows® 7 Embedded and POSReady 7 operating systems. A large volume of user data can be saved in the onboard 7.2 GB flash memory. The standardized installation offered with the compact railmounted H1-A PC with a height of 90 mm and a depth of only 41 mm (55 mm with cooling fins) allows it to be installed very fast in an electrical or switching cabinet. With a width of 124 mm (7 U), the industrial computer is ideal for installation under the rail-mounted standard cover. The robust IPC is installed in a high-quality aluminum housing. In addition to two fast 1000 Base-T LAN connections, the rail-mounted PC provides two USB 2.0 ports and a serial RS232 interface. Like the 24 VDC power supply, the two metallically-separated RS485 ports are equipped with an insulation-piercing plug connector. The VGA interface can be used to connect a control monitor during the commissioning and for maintenance purposes. If required, the VGA connection can be configured as an additional RS232 inter-

face. The user data can be saved on the onboard flash memory or on an SD card. The central component of the rail-mounted PC is a Qseven™ module that integrates the energy-saving Intel® Atom™ Z530 (1.6 GHz) processor and the Intel® US15W SCH System Controller Hub with Intel® GMA 500 Graphics Media Accelerator. To ensure optimum heat dissipation, the small 70 x 70 mm module is connected directly with the computer housing.

The flexible replacement of the Qseven™ platform allows the effortless implementation of many rail-mounted H1-A computer family variants with different performance data and technical features. The modular system can be deployed as gateway and communications computer, Web server or distributed control unit in the process automation, plant control, power engineering, building automation, smart metering and electro-mobility. DSM COMPUTER www.dsm-computer.com

w Available to Order at Mouser To run a sketch on the board, simply connect a power supply, connect Galileo's USB Client port to your computer, and upload the sketch using the IDE interface. The sketch runs on the Galileo board and communicates with the Linux kernel in the board firmware using the Arduino I/O adapter. For com-

plete details on programming your board, see the Intel Galileo Getting Started Guide under the Additional Resources Section to the right. With its broad product line and unsurpassed customer service, Mouser caters to design engineers and buyers by delivering What’s Next in advanced technologies. Mouser offers customers 20 global support locations and stocks the world’s widest selection of the latest semiconductors and electronic components for the newest design projects. Mouser Electronics’ website is updated daily and searches more than 10 million products to locate over 4 million orderable part numbers available for easy online purchase. MOUSER ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

IAR Systems is the leading vendor of development tools for ARM Cortex-M MCUs IAR Systems® confirms today that the company is the market-leading supplier of embedded development tools for microcontrollers based on the popular ARM® Cortex™-M cores. More customers than ever choose to work with the powerful development toolchain IAR Embedded Workbench® and during the last year, over one hundred ARM Cortex-M customers have signed Enterprise Agreements. Many of these customers choose to standardize their embedded development on IAR Systems’ tools, gaining unique flexibility with seamlessly integrated workflows and simplified license management.

The reason behind the decision to go with IAR Systems’ tools is most often the excellent width in the number of microcontrollers supported, combined with the practical features of the products and the industry-leading performance. The performance is proven in benchmarks, including record-breaking results for microcontrollers based on ARM CortexM0,-M0+, -M3 and -M4 on the EEMBC® CoreMark® test suite. Numerous user-friendly features and integrations with supplementary tools from IAR Systems’ partners create an easy-to-use, powerful development environment. The incorporated C-SPY® Debugger includes comprehensive functionality such as performance profiling, stack analysis and power profiling. It is complemented by a range of integrated probes for in-circuit debugging and trace. A quick start is aided through thousands of example projects available directly in the tools and the tools are compliant with ARM Embedded Application Binary Interface (EABI) and ARM CMSIS (Cortex Microcontroller Software Interface Standard). In addition to this solid technology, IAR Systems provides professional world-wide technical support and the technical training program IAR Academy™. To meet different customer needs, IAR Embedded Workbench for ARM is available in custom product packages for ARM and ARM Cortex, ARM Cortex-M, and ARM Cortex-M0. Read more and download free evaluation licenses at www.iar.com/ewarm. IAR SYSTEMS

www.iar.com www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Kontron offers rapid shutdown circuitry in latest extended temp, high-performance COM Express module

Kontron launches broad COM Express mini Computeron-Module portfolio for entire range of embedded Intel Atom E3800 and Intel Celeron processors

At the MILCOM conference, Kontron announced its new COM Express basic Computeron-Module (COM) designed for harsh environment applications that features extended temperature operation with rapid shutdown and ECC functionality. The new Kontron COMe-bIP6RXT is based on 3rd generation Intel Core processors and Intel QM77 express chipset to provide a high performance computing building block that offers expansion I/O options with the advantages of small modular form factor with proven technology for rugged applications. The new module delivers increased processing and graphics performance and advanced features at the improved performance/power ratio needed for a diverse range of transportation, military, commercial avionics, oil & gas and outdoor communications applications. Kontron has more than 14 years of experience delivering

At the SPS/IPC/Drives show, Kontron unveiled seven new credit card sized Computer-onModules based on the world's leading form factor standard COM Express. The performance range of the new COM Express mini modules is highly scalable and covers the entire embedded range of the Intel Atom processor E3800 and Intel Celeron processor N2900 and J1900 product families, formerly codenamed 'Bay Trail'. The most impressive feature of the new Kontron COMemBT10 Computer-on-Module family is the three times higher graphics performance compared to previous Intel Atom processors coupled with unbeatable TDP (thermal design power) values. And although all the Intel Atom processor E3800- based modules are designed for the extended temperature range of from -40 to +85°C, they also offer an extensive set of features, including PCIe extension options, new security functions and optional ECC memory. The enhanced, powerful and flexible x86 feature set in combination with the low-power credit card-sized footprint makes the new COM Express mini Computer-on-Modules a perfect

reliable COM-based solutions. Along with extended temperature (-40°C to +85°C) operation and rapid shutdown functionality, the module provides Trusted Platform Management and 4x USB 3.0, PCIe Gen 3.0, DirectX 11

interface support. It also supports a wide variety of standard display interfaces - from legacy VGA and LVDS all the way to latest specifications such as HDMI, DVI, DisplayPort and eDP. KONTRON www.kontron.com

New RX110 Group of 32-bit microcontrollers enables cost-effective entry into the Internet of Things MSC now offers the new RX110 Group of 32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) from Renesas Electronics. The new MCUs deliver a combination of high-performance and ultra-low power consumption, and provide greater device scalability for cost-sensitive Internet of Things (IoT) applications, including mobile healthcare, environmental sensors/detectors, smart appliances, and industrial and building automation. With run-mode power consumption as low as 100 μA/MHz, 4.8 μs wake-up time and three lowpower modes, including the lowest power-down mode with realtime clock (RTC), the RX110 MCUs, which are based on Renesas' RX CPU core, enable extended life cycles for batterypowered applications such as blood glucose meters and remote control systems, to name but a few. The new MCUs provide a complete DSP library, as well as single-

cycle Multiple/Accumulate and hardware-based Divide capability and also feature three operating speeds, achieving 1.56 Dhrystone MIPS (DMIPS)/MHz throughput

and 3.08 CoreMark®/MHz. Just like the RX111 Group, the new RX110 devices are supported by Renesas’ extensive development tools ecosystem. This includes the Renesas Eclipse-based e2 studio integrated development environment (IDE) and the Renesas RX compiler, IAR Systems' Embedded Workbench, as well as the RTOS kernels by Micrium, Segger, CMX, Express Logic, RoweBots, and FreeRTOS. MSC VERTRIEBS www.msc-ge.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

fit for an extremely wide range of new, graphic-rich multi-touch applications. Users in all markets will benefit from double the performance, significantly improved performanceper-watt ratios and the long-term availability which the rugged new x86 modules offer. The range of applications includes everything

from slim but graphics-rich and open, programmable industrial tablets and handheld PCs through to in-vehicle systems and stationary HMIs and controllers. Targeted industries are POS/POI, infotainment, digital signage, gaming, and medical technology as well as industrial automation, and mechanical engineering. KONTRON www.kontron.com

95% efficient 200 W convection cooled power supplies ext XP Power announced the CCB200 series of ultra efficient “green” 200 Watt single output AC-DC power supplies aimed at a broad range of medical and industrial applications. Suiting convection cooled applications that require a very high efficiency in an open frame design, the series has a typical efficiency of 94% and a maximum of 95%, with a flat efficiency curve across the entire operating load range above 20%. Compared to typical 200 Watt supplies, the CCB200, when delivering full power, generates 50% less dissipated heat, resulting in significantly lower component temperatures and therefore an increased product

lifetime. The high efficiency has enabled the convection-cooled units to be packaged in an industry standard 76.2 x 127.0 x 36.32 mm (3.0 x 5.0 x 1.43 inches), usually used for forced-cooled power supplies of this rating. No load power consumption is less than 0.5 W. The series conforms to the ANSI/AAMI ES60601-1 medical 3rd edition safety standard and has approval for use in body floating (BF) applications where a patient applied part is used without the need for a further isolation stage. The CCB200 also complies with the internationally recognized UL/EN609501-1 safety standard for IT equipment.

PRODUCT NEWS

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

Microchip’s new cloud-based development platform now available on Amazon Web Services (AWS) marketplace Key Facts: • Allows embedded engineers to easily connect designs to Amazon EC2 Instances • Bridges cloud and embedded worlds and enables the Internet of Things • Supports easy customisation of connectivity instances and the user experience • Simplifies access to proven, scalable, pay-as-you-go compute capacity in the cloud. Microchip announces a simple Cloud Development Platform that is available on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Marketplace and enables embedded engineers to quickly learn cloud-based communication. Microchip’s platform provides designers with the ability to easily create a working demo that connects an embedded application with the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) service. At the heart of this platform is Microchip’s Wi-Fi® Client Module Development Kit (DM182020), which offers developers a simple way to bridge the embedded world and the cloud, to create applications encompassing the Internet of Things. A rapidly growing number of embedded engineers need to add cloud connectivity to their designs, but have limited experience in this area.

Microchip’s new Cloud Development Platform builds designer confidence by making it quick and easy for them to get up and running on the proven Amazon EC2 cloud infrastructure. Amazon EC2 is a Web service that provides scalable, pay-as-you-go compute capacity in the cloud. It is designed to make Web-scale computing easier for developers. With the vast amount of expertise and scalability provided by AWS, developers can easily customise their connectivity instances and the user’s experience. Microchip’s Cloud Development Platform is available today at www.microchip.com/get/R837.

As part of this platform, its Wi-Fi Client Module Development Kit (DM182020) priced at $99, is available for purchase today at www.microchip.com/get/0D84 MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/R837

ends lifetime and temperature range Due to the high efficiency the CCB200 can deliver the full 200 Watt continuous output power over an extended temperature range from – 20 to +70 degrees C without any derating, and up to +85 degrees C with derating. The industry norm is typically + 50 degrees C before derating applies. The technology employed in the CCB200 ensures the

ultra high efficiency rating is achieved from 90 VAC input, unlike current products in the market that have lower efficiencies at low line and therefore have to specify derating. The full operating range of the CCB200 series is 80 – 300 VAC, with full power available from 90 – 264 VAC. A total of 5 models are available providing the popular nominal outputs from + 12 to +48 VDC. A user trim function provides output voltage adjustment of -4 to +5% of stated nominal in order to accommodate load losses. XP POWER www.xppower.com

Microchip Introduces the PIC32 Bluetooth® Audio Development Kit Microchip announces the new PIC32 Bluetooth® Audio Development Kit. The full-featured kit enables custom application development on the PIC32 microcontrollers (MCUs) for Bluetooth and USB digital audio solutions. The creation of the Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has enabled convenient wireless stereo audio for applications such as smartphone home and automotive audio docks, wireless speakers, A/V receivers and all-in-one compact audio systems among others. Bluetooth audio support is now a regularly seen requirement for smartphone docking solutions. Consumers are able to use their phone as a music source and as a remote control to select the song of their choice and play it from across the room.

With the challenges in RF design, software development, and certifications, developers need a proven, easy to use, complete development kit that will enable them to start right out of the box. Since market requirements vary, developers also need the flexibility to customise their development platform to suit their target market. The PIC32 Bluetooth Audio Development Kit, that ships with audio streaming demo code, delivers up to 24-bit, 192 kHz audio and has been tested with over 100 different Bluetooth audio-enabled devices, spanning 18 different manufacturers. The Bluetooth Hardware module and the Bluetooth A2DP audio software have been Bluetooth.org certified, saving the developer significant certification costs. The modular design allows developers to swap out the included daughter boards (one for Audio and one for Bluetooth), to create their own custom versions with their preferred audio and wireless solution. The kit also supports USB Host and Device connectivity, Apple® device authentication module interface, a 2-inch colour LCD, five general-purpose button switches, 5 LEDs and a Plug-InModule interface for PIC32 microcontroller upgrades. The PIC32MX450F256 MCU is included which runs at 80 MHz with 256 KB Flash and 64 KB RAM. With such a broad feature-set and flexibility, the kit makes an excellent general-purpose development tool. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY

www.microchip.com/get/1FL9

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

DESIGN

SENSORS

Check the presence and position of workpiece carriers • Fast and efficient automatic manipulation of large assembled parts • Avoidance of product wastage • Reduction of damage risk to equipment and resulting downtime Task When pre-assembled cylinder heads arrive at the transfer station, the workpiece carrier holding them must first be halted. An industrial robot then lifts the cylinder head and transfers it to a new workpiece carrier on an adjacent assembly line. The roller conveyor must then start up again and return the empty carrier to the workpiece loading station. Automatic position checking is required to initiate the stop and restart of the roller conveyor and prevent any faulty manipulation by the robot, which could lead to product wastage or machine damage. Solution Extreme range inductive sensors from the Full Inox family (series 700) meet the requirements

of this application, due to their robust industrial construction and proven reliability in the required range (15 to 40 mm). Three M30-sized inductive sensors were used to ensure the safe, reliable implementation of this task. The sensors were mounted between the rollers on the conveyor at the transfer station. As soon as an incoming workpiece carrier covers the second sensor, it is in the correct position. The roller conveyor is therefore instantly put into stop and actuators on the industrial robot are enabled. Once removal of the cylinder head by the robot has been confirmed, the third sensor ensures that the empty workpiece carrier takes the correct onward path. The accuracy in switching distance of these sensors means that they can be relied on to initiate a stop at exactly the right moment.

This ensures that the lift and transfer process takes place under the safest possible conditions. These automated transfer stations speed up production and minimize wastage, downtime and damage to equipment. Sensors, Inductive Extreme Automotive manufacturing industry Presence & position control, machine protection M30 full metal inductive sensor Full Inox family, Extreme range • Robust, one-piece, stainless-steel construction • Same sensing distance on various metals (Factor 1) • Proven reliability, high switching accuracy • Fit-and-forget performance

Operating distance Housing size Housing material Connection Protection Mounting Max. switching frequency Supply voltage range Ambient temp. range Output current Description Part reference After assembly, cylinder heads are transferred to another line for mounting on the engine. The work piece is lifted off its original carrier and placed on a new one. Sensors fitted on the roller conveyor check the position of the work piece carrier, ensuring safety during the lift and transfer process. 30

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

40 mm M30 Stainless steel V2A S12 connector IP68/IP69K Non-embeddable 90 Hz 10 … 30 VDC -25 ... +70°C -13 …+158°F ≤ 200 mA PNP NO DW-AS-713-M30-002

Tel. +40 256-201346 • office@oboyle.ro • www.oboyle.ro

Leuze n n n

ASM

Optical sensors Sensors for logistic applications Safety at work

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Circular connectors M8; M12; M23 Cable and Connectors for Sensors Valve Connectors Distribution Blocks

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Linear Solenoids Permanent Electromagnets

AUTOMATION PRAS26, Magnetic Angle Sensor for Automated Applications ASM introduces with PRAS26 an extension of its POSIROTÂŽ series of angle sensors for automated applications. The generation of the absolute signal over the full 360 degrees of rotation is via a special magnet coupling the rotation to the sensor. The flat housing which offers protection class to IP67 is only 9.5 mm high and is therefore suitable for space-saving installations in compact automated machines and systems. Completely encapsulated electronics withstand high shocks, vibration and moisture penetration.

A constant wear-free operation is ensured by use of an external magnet. In addition, the housing is made of heat-resistant materials which are a mixture of thermoplastic and epoxy glass fiber giving strength and stability. The sensor is supplied with a range of analogue outputs 0.5...4.5 V, 0.5...10V or 4...20mA. With a favorable price-performance ratio and the low profile of the PRAS26 series it is best suited for a variety of OEM applications such as automated heating systems. Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;BOYLE www.oboyle.ro www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

DESIGN

DIGITAL TIMERS

DESIGN

DIGITAL TIMERS

Tel. +40 256-201346 • Mail office@oboyle.ro • Web www.oboyle.ro

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

Lighting Solutins / Display

New Kontron industrial multi-touch monitor series extends scalability of panel PC portfolio

At the SPS/IPC/Drives in Nuremberg Kontron introduced a new series of durable, industrial multi-touch monitors. The new Kontron OmniView monitors extend the scalability of the existing OmniClient panel PC portfolio towards multi-screen system solutions and solutions with distributed monitors. Like the panel PCs, they offer projective-capacitive (PCAP) multi-touch functionality in a high quality 16:9 wide-screen design with joint-free glass surfaces. By extending the product portfolio, customers can realize multi-touch-based multi-screen solutions extremely efficiently, thanks to the availability of panel PCs and monitors from one single source with an identical look & feel. The new industrial monitors featuring IP65 front protection are also, of course, interoperable with any industrial PC. Norbert Hauser, Head of Business Line Industrial Automation, comments on the strategy of extending the OmniClient Panel PC family with monitors: “Multi-touch and multiscreen solutions are a mega-trend in industrial automation. When it comes to multi-screen-based multi-touch solutions with panel PCs, machine and plant operators ideally want to purchase everything from a single source. We have designed our OmniClient Panel PC series in such a modular

way, that we can completely separate the IPC function from the monitor. That results in not one product but three: a panel PC, an industrial monitor, and a long distance interface to bridge remote system installations up to 30 meters. Customers can assemble their specific configuration very flexibly - with, however, the advantage that system responsibility remains in one hand”. Via the long distance interface for DVI-D and USB, the new OmniView industrial monitors can be installed at a distance of up to 30 meters (100 feet) from the host, which allows for extremely flexible GUI installations on machinery and shop floor scenarios. With its high luminance of up to 300cd and matt glass front, the monitors offer excellent readability - even in difficult lighting conditions. Depending on the monitor chassis, mounting options for the new industrial monitors in 21.5, 18.5 and 15.6 formats are either panel mount (installation) or Vesa mount (stand-alone). The monitors also boast a high level of connectivity. With USB for touchscreen control as well as DisplayPort, DVI-I and VGA connections they can not only be hooked up to the latest systems but also to legacy products. The new Kontron OmniView industrial monitors are specified for operating temperatures ranging from 0°C to 50°C and are available now. KONTRON www.kontron.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

Four years of sustained sales growth on Kingbright LED range earns Avnet Abacus successive award Avnet Abacus, has landed the cal support, which is typically deliv'Platinum' award for outstanding ered with personal attention in the sales growth and support from local language, is without doubt a Kingbright, the Taiwan-headquar- major factor in our continued busitered manufacturer of light emit- ness success in the region, and we ting diodes (LEDs) and related products. For the fourth year running, sales through Avnet Abacus have resulted in the biggest revenue growth in Europe for the Kingbright range compared to other distribution channels for Photo caption (left to right): these products, with Hagen Götze, Marketing Manager, Avnet Abacus; annual sales doubling Udo Reinhold, Managing Director, Kingbright Europe over this period. Avnet Abacus is Kingbright's feel it is important to once again largest and most successful pan- recognize this unprecedented conEuropean distributor, stocking an tribution.” extensive selection of SMD LEDs, “The market for compact LED disthrough-hole LED, LED displays play technologies has been gatherand other LED related products ing pace over the past few years, from the manufacturer for a broad and Kingbright has continued to array of industrial applications. produce innovative new compo“We cannot fault the service pro- nents that deliver increasingly vided by Avnet Abacus to our cus- sophisticated functionality to lighttomers in Europe,” said Udo ing designers at affordable prices,” Reinhold, Managing Director, said Hagen Götze, Marketing Kingbright Europe. “Their excel- Manager, Avnet Abacus. lent market knowledge and techni- AVNET ABACUS www.avnet-abacus.eu

Cost-effective 20.5 cm (8 inch) Lite+ TFT displays with a brightness of up to 1000 cd/m2 and a contrast ratio of 600:1 Gleichmann Electronics now offers a new 20.5cm (8 inch) Lite+ TFT display, part name TX20D34VM2BAB, from KOE Europe. The new high-quality WVGA display has been designed for cost-sensitive applications with high optical performance requirements. The TX20D34VM2BAB is the latest addition to KOE’s range of Lite+ TFT displays. It features a 20-pin LVDS data interface and comes in a 16:9 aspect ratio with 800 × 480 pixels resolution, a brightness of 600 cd/m² and a contrast ratio of 600:1. For applications requiring higher brightness, the backlight light density of the module can be enhanced from 600 cd/m² to 1000 cd/m² by increasing the supply current to the backlight. However, as a result, the lifetime

of the white LED backlight is reduced. At a brightness of 600 cd/m², the white LED backlight lifetime is 50,000 hours and at 1000 cd/m² it is 40,000 hours to half brightness.

The new 8-inch display has mechanical outline dimensions of 189.0 mm (w) × 120.0 mm (h) × 7.5 mm (d) and is provided with an operating temperature range of -30°C to +80°C. MSC VERTRIEBS www.msc-ge.com

PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

Low profile high efficiency 180 Watt AC-DC PSU occupies a 46% smaller footprint than industry norm

Analog MEMS accelerometer suits engine anti-vibration and electrically controlled suspension applications

XP Power announced the ECP180 series of low profile high efficiency “green power” open frame 180 Watt AC-DC power supplies. The IT and medically approved units have an average active mode efficiency of 93% and a no load power consumption of less than 0.5 W. With these energy saving credentials the ECP180 produces less heat and assists designers of endsystems to meet current “green” energy efficiency standards. The highly efficient design also enables the units to provide a convection cooled rating of 120 Watt, with the full output power of 180 Watts needing only 10 CFM of forced airflow. Occupying 46% less footprint than the industry standard 3 × 5 inch power supply, the ECP180 measures just 50.8 × 101.6 (2.0 ×4.0 inches), with the lowest profile in its class of only 25.4 mm (1.0 inch). With PFC and a universal wide input range of 85 to 264 VAC, the ECP180 is available in 6

Murata announced the SCA720 series of analog MEMS accelerometers aimed specifically at electrically controlled suspension and engine anti-vibration applications. Measuring only 7.0 × 8.6 × 3.3 mm and constructed from a single crystal silicon, the sensor is mechanically robust and has no deformation up to 70 000g. The accelerometer’s 3D structure employs capacitive sensing techniques that give it extremely sensitive measurement characteristics and excellent offset stability. Internal inert gas damping of the MEMS sensing element provides a mechanical low-pass filter that cuts off above 115 Hz and provide a good stable amplitude output and noise filtering. By using an analog output, the SCA720 can be placed a good distance away from the controlling unit without any interference to the sensors output. This flexibility of mounting is ideal for electrically controlled suspension (ESC) since

output voltage models providing the popular nominal outputs of +12, +15, + 24, +28, +36 or +48 VDC. A secondary 12 VDC / 0.5 A fan output is standard across the range. Meeting the ITE safety specifications of UL/IEC/EN 60950-1 and the latest stringent 3rd edition medical safety standards

ANSI/AAMI ES 60601-1 and IEC/EN60601-1, the ECP180 series is suitable for use in a wide range of information technology, industrial and medical equipment applications. The units also comply with the internationally recognised EMC standards EN55011 and EN55022 Class B specifications for conducted noise emissions. XP POWER www.xppower.com

New high performance MOSFET from Advanced Power Electronics Corp. offers very low on-resistance Advanced Power Electronics Corp. (USA), a leading Taiwanese manufacturer of MOS power semiconductors for DC-DC power conversion applications, has recently released the new AP1A003GMT-HF-3 power MOSFET with very low maximum on-resistance of only 0.99mΩ for use in high current load switching where a very low voltage drop across the MOSFET switch is required to minimise the conduction losses. Provided in a PMPAK5×6 package with integrated thermal pad and with a standard SO-8 footprint compatible with other enhanced 5×6mm power packages, the AP1A003GMT-HF-3

power MOSFET features simple gate drive requirements, a breakdown voltage rating of 30V and a maximum drain-source current rating of 260A. The AP1A003GMT-HF-3 power MOSFET is fully RoHS-compliant and BFR/halogen-free. Samples are available now.

ADVANCED POWER ELECTRONICS www.a-powerusa.com

it allows the freedom to place sensors where required rather than having to be concerned about the length of sensor connections. Measurement of Z-axis movement is possible with Murata’s unique Z-

axis sensing element when mounted flat on a PCB that is positioned in an orientation parallel to the vehicle. The sensor is earth gravity compensated with a +1g offset where Vout is +2.5VDC. Measurement range is 2.11g in both directions, providing a Vout in the range from 0 to +5VDC. MURATA www.murata.eu

Intersil Introduces Low Power Analog Video Decoder with Differential Inputs for Automotive Camera Systems Intersil Corporation introduced the TW9990, a highly integrated analog video decoder that eliminates the need for external op amps while enabling performance advantages through programmable short-to-battery and short-to-ground detection. The TW9990 video decoder is ideal for automotive rear camera displays and other camera systems. Automotive rear camera displays have become a popular driver safety feature. According to Edmunds market research, 70 percent of 2012 vehicles were outfitted with rear cameras. Also, iSuppli, a leading market research firm, reports that nine in 10 new cars have console screens as an option. The quality of the video -

along with the cost and footprint of the camera solution - are critical factors when adding this important safety feature to new vehicles. The TW9990 video decoder is a low power analog video decoder

that supports NTSC/PAL/SECAM single-ended, differential, and pseudo differential composite video inputs as well as S-Video. A single 27MHz crystal is all that is needed to decode all analog video standards. INTERSIL www.intersil.com

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

Microchip’s new 2.4 GHz 50 ohm matched RF front end module for 256-QAM, Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® extends mobile device and router ranges Microchip announces its latest 2.4 GHz, 50 ohm matched RF WLAN Front-End Module (FEM), the SST12LF09, for Bluetooth® connectivity, as well as 802.11b/g/n and 256-QAM Wi-Fi® applications. The SST12LF09 integrates a transmitter power amplifier, a receiver low-noise amplifier, and a lowloss, single-pole three-throw antenna switch for Bluetooth connectivity into a single, compact 2.5× 2.5×0.4 mm, 16-pin QFN package, making it ideal for highdata-rate wireless applications. With its high linear output power of up to 15 and 17 dBm for 1.8% dynamic EVM at 3.3V and 5V, respectively; and 17 and 18.5 dBm linear power for 3% EVM at 3.3V and 5V, respectively, this FEM significantly extends the range of IEEE 802.11b/g/n WLAN systems while providing excellent transmit power at the maximum 256-QAM data rate. The receiver has a 12 dB gain and a greater than -6 dBm input (1 dB) compression

level. In the LNA bypass mode, the receiver has a 9 dB loss and an 8 dBm input compression level. Achieving the maximum data rate, longest range and highest integration in a small package is essential to the designers of mobile devices, multi-channel access

point/routers and set-top boxes. Developers can take advantage of the SST12LF09’s small package size and extra output power at 5V bias to reduce the board size and complexity of their designs while boosting their products’ output power. This FEM also features 50 ohm on-chip input and output match, which is easy to use and shortens time to market. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/95TE

Sensible Solution: Mouser Stocks New Microchip Temp Sensors with Breakthrough I/O Support Mouser Electronics, Inc. is now stocking the new EMC118x family of temperature sensors from Microchip Technology, the first with 1.8V SMBus and I2C communications. The low-voltage I/O support on the EMC118x family of temp sensors allows for interfacing to the latest generation of smartphone, tablet, and PC chipsets. Microchip EMC118x devices available from Mouser Electronics are also the first temperature sensors to use an advanced sensor filtering technology that eliminates sensor noise. This allows temperature-monitoring diode traces in hostile signal noise environments to be as long as 8 inches while still obtaining accurate readings within ±1°C. These Microchip temp sensors combine high-perform-

ance features with options for dual, triple, and quad temperature sensor monitoring. Hardwired system shutdown settings provide security that software cannot override.

The EMC118x family serves a broad range of applications in the mobile, commercial, embedded computing markets. MOUSER ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

New AP4034 family of power MOSFETs from Advanced Power Electronics Corp. suit DC-DC converter applications Advanced Power Electronics Corp. (USA), a leading Taiwanese manufacturer of MOS power semiconductors for DC-DC power conversion applications, has introduced the new AP4034 family of 30V N-channel enhancement-mode power MOSFETs in several popular package alternatives to meet differing cost/performance points. All the AP4034 MOSFETs provide fast switching performance and feature a low typical gate charge of 15nC for good switching performance. With the best thermal performance of the three, AP4034GMTHF-3 MOSFETs benefit from a low maximum on-resistance of 8mΩ and a drain-source current rating of 44.3A. The devices come in a PMPAK5 × 6 package with an integrated thermal pad and with a standard SO-8 footprint compatible with other enhanced 5 × 6mm power packages. The AP4034GM-HF-3 is in a standard SO-8 package, which is widely used for commercial and industrial surface-mount applications, and offers a maximum on-

resistance of 9mΩ and drainsource current rating is 13A AP4034GYT-HF-3 MOSFETs have the same low maximum onresistance of 9mΩ, with a drainsource current rating of 15.5A but offer improved thermal per-

formance even with a smaller 3mm × 3mm foot print. The PMPAK3 × 3 package is specially designed for compact DCDC converter applications, with a small footprint that offers a backside heat sink and a low 1.0mm package profile. All AP4034 family MOSFETs benefit from simple gate drive requirements, are fully RoHScompliant and BFR/halogen-free to comply with current REACH environmental requirements. ADVANCED POWER ELECTRONICS www.a-powerusa.com

Microchip expands capacitive-touch control po Microchip announces a new family of capacitive touch controllers - the CAP12XX family. hese turnkey capacitive touch controllers expand the CAP11XX RightTouch® product portfolio, providing a wide variety of slider, button and proximity functionality. Additionally, the CAP12XX controllers make it easy for designers to add aesthetically pleasing, low-cost touch interfaces. This new sixmember family is available in 8to 16-pin packages. The CAP12XX family serves a wide range of applications in consumer electronics, such as tablets, printers, audio players, small appliances and televisions;

and in the automotive market for automotive interior controls, central stack and overhead lights; as well as other applications. The family provides designers with improved proximity performance and 3.3V to 5V operation. It is also a lower-cost option when integrated LED drivers are not required. The CAP12XX family complements Microchip’s mTouch™ firmware-based solutions and forms part of Microchip’s input sensing portfolio offering turnkey and firmware solutions for keys/proximity and sliders, touch pads and touch screens, as well as 3D gesturing with GestIC® Technology.

PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

High-Current Bellnix Power Module Relies on Powervation’s Digital Controller Technology for Precision Output Voltage Control Low-Profile, 60 A PMBus™ Compliant Module Support Parallel Operation and Incorporates Powervation’s AutoControl® for Higher Performance and Greater Ease of Use Powervation Ltd., the leader in Intelligent Digital Power™ IC solutions, announced that its PV3012 digital controller has been adopted by leading power supply manufacturer, Bellnix Co., Ltd. for use in a new low-profile, 60 A DC/DC module. The BDP12-0.6S60R0 digital power module is a PMBus compliant, non-isolated step-down converter that is designed for today’s Communications and Computing applications, and addresses the needs for small form-factor designs while providing high reliability and high performance. Bellnix’s 60 A BDP is the first in a series of Bellnix Digital Power modules based on Powervation’s digital controller architecture that provides a total power solution in a low-profile, 10 mm, form-factor. The 60 A BDP uses Powervation’s PV3012 digital twophase controller, and parallel BDP module operation is supported via Powervation’s DSS® current sharing bus. This PMBus compliant module features precision measurement & telemetry reporting, a full-line of programmable power supply protection features, power good, and optional tracking function, all

in a compact 32.8 mm × 23.0 mm ROHS compliant SMD package design. Powervation’s Auto-Control is the industry’s leading intelligent auto-tuning technology. The patented adaptive compensation technology optimizes dynamic performance and system stability in realtime without requiring any noise injection or the drawbacks of periodic techniques. This is a key benefit for modules and other designs that drive unknown or variable output loads, and addresses the

challenges of load parameter drift that occurs over temperature and time. The BDP12-0.6S60R0 power module, GUI, and evaluation board are available now from Bellnix; to download the data sheet, visit www.bellnix.com/news/307.html The PV3012 and other digital control ICs are available from Powervation. POWERVATION www.powervation.com

ortfolio with a robust turnkey solution To support the new devices, Microchip has also introduced the CAP1298 Evaluation Board (DM160223) and CAP1188 Evaluation Board (160222) priced at $89.99 each and available for purchase today. All six members of the CAP12XX family are available today for

sampling and volume production. The CAP1203 and CAP1293 are available in 2 × 3 mm, 8-pin TDFN packages; the CAP1206 and CAP1296 are available in 3 × 3 mm, 10-pin DFN packages; and the CAP1208 and CAP1298 are available in 3 × 3 mm, 16-pin QFN packages. Key Facts: • CAP12XX family provides smaller form factor and 5V operation • Offers improved proximity performance for consumer and automotive applications • Wide variety of slider, button and proximity functionality for low-cost touch interfaces • Available in packages from 8- to 16-pins MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/MHCC

Rutronik: new Mini-ITX mainboard based on AMD Embedded G-Series SOC Platform from Fujitsu Rutronik presents the new Fujitsu D3313-S, a MiniITX mainboard for 24/7 continuous operation in an extended temperature range of 0° to 60°C. It is based on systems on a chip (SOC) from the new AMD Embedded G-Series SOC, which is developed especially for industrial applications. The new mainboard will be available at distributor Rutronik from November 2013.

The use of SOCs enables increased computing performance at a low energy consumption level. The new Fujitsu D3313-S will be available in three versions, each with a different SOC by AMD: D3313-S1 is based on AMD Embedded GX-210HA SOC with AMD Radeon(TM) HD8210E Graphics (Dualcore, 1.0GHz), D3313-S2 is based on AMD Embedded GX217GA SOC with AMD Radeon(TM) HD 8280E Graphics (Dualcore, 1.65GHz), and D3313-S3 is based on AMD Embedded GX-420CA SOC with AMD Radeon(TM) HD 8400E Graphics (Quadcore, 2.00GHz). Each version is equipped with two DDR31866/1600-SDRAM SO-DIMM sockets for up to 16GB single-channel memory. All three models support DVI-I, Display Port, and 24bit dual-channel LVDS. They all come with an m-SATA port and a PCIe Minicard socket supporting USB. The layout of the external I/O ports is identical with the one of the preceding generation D3003-S, which enables an easy change of platform technologies while retaining the same housing. The board from Fujitsu's Industrial Series is optimized for a wide range of industrial and semi-industrial applications and has an extended lifecycle with an availability of five years. RUTRONIK ELEKTRONISCHE BAUELEMENTE www.rutronik.com

www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

Murata adopts Powervation’s Digital Control Architecture for latest 25A PoL DC-DC converter Murata today announced the first in a series of Point-of- Load (PoL) non-isolated DC-DC converters based on the Digital Control Architecture from Powervation. The DOSA compatible OKLF 25A PoL has been designed to address the industry’s growing requirement for low voltages (1.25V and less), increased current and power densities, fast transient response times and the need for a tightly regulated DC output voltage. The OKLF 25A PoL is ideal for powering the latest FPGAs and ASICs used in networking, telecommunications and computing applications. The first device in this new series is the OKLF-T/25-W12N-C. This PoL converter has been developed around a multiprocessor System-on-Chip (SoC), digital power management IC from Powervation. Proprietary algorithms have been developed to optimize the performance under the most demanding applications, helping the power system engineer meet tight development

(time-to-market) schedules. The converter delivers a maximum of 25 amps at 1.2 VDC out, when operating up to +70 degrees C with a 200LFM airflow. Also, this model has been designed to oper-

ate over a wide input voltage range of 6.5 to 14 VDC. The OKLF 25A PoL power converter is an ideal option for power system engineers who require output stability under all operating conditions, industry leading efficiency, and a pin-programmable output voltage. Vout can be set in the range 0.69V to 3.63V using a single external resistor. MURATA www.murata.eu

Intersil’s Highly Compact Ambient and Infrared Sensor Sets New Standard for Handheld, PC, TV and Industrial Displays Intersil Corporation introduced the ISL29035, an innovative and highly compact ambient and infrared sensor. The new ISL29035 is the industry’s smallest 6-lead digital light sensor and addresses the latest requirements for angular response and sensitivity to various light sources in handheld, PC, TV and industrial display applications. The ISL29035 enables the automatic adjustment of display brightness based on the ambient light conditions to improve the user experience and extend battery life. The ISL29035 sensor offers market-leading angular response of a minimum of ±35% field of view at 50% light intensity. The wide dynamic range of 0.01 lux to 64,000 lux enhances users’ visual experience while using minimal power. A lux range select feature allows users to program display brightness to suit various ambient light conditions, such as dark, normal and bright light. The ambient light sensor’s advanced selfcalibrated photodiode arrays emulate

human eye response, providing excellent infrared (IR) light rejection. An on-chip charge-balancing 16-bit ADC rejects 50Hz and 60Hz flicker caused by artificial light sources. In addition, the ISL29035 integrates a light-to-digital converter with an

I2C (SMBus Compatible) interface to eliminate the need for a current amplifier, and ADC for interfacing to a system processor. The ISL29035 is available now in 6-lead optical co-packages, priced at $0.58 each in 1,000-piece units. INTERSIL CORPORATION www.intersil.com

Three-phase brushless DC companion device enables Microchip to offer complete, robust motor system solutions Key Facts: • New three-phase BLDC motor gate driver with power module provides all the power, sensing and protection functions needed to implement a robust, highly-efficient solution • Integrates voltage regulators, current-sensing amplifiers and over-current protection • Increases flexibility with configurable driver deadtime management, driver blanking-time control, and Over-Current Limit (OCL) for external MOSFETs • Suitable for harsh conditions such as industrial & automotive under-hood applications

Microchip announces a new three-phase BLDC motor gate driver with power module: the MCP8024. This new device includes functions that power dsPIC® Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs) and PIC® microcontrollers (MCUs) with capabilities to drive six N-channel MOSFETs. Customers can implement improved performance and high robustness providing increased efficiency and lowering system cost while reducing time to market. The MCP8024 operates across a wide voltage range of 6V to 28V and can withstand transient voltage up to 48V. The device provides high-integration analogue, such as three current-sensing operational amplifiers; an over-current comparator; MOSFET drivers and a bidirectional communication interface for a complete motor system design. The configurable driver deadtime management; driver blanking-time control; and Over-Current Limit (OCL) for external MOSFETs, offer a significant increase in flexibility. The adjustable stepdown DC-to-DC converter powers a broad range of microcontrollers with the efficiency benefits of a switchmode power supply. In addition, the wide operating temperature range, from -40°C to +150°C (H-temp), allows the MCP8024 to be used in harsh environments such as automotive under-hood applications. The MCP8024 is available in thermally-enhanced 40pin QFN 5mm × 5mm and 48-pin TQFP 7mm x 7 mm packages. The MCP8024 is suitable for a broad range of applications in the automotive market, such as HVAC blowers and pumps, and in the industrial market including fans, motion control, robotics, and others. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY

www.microchip.com/get/RTAS

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PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

Intersil's New Single Phase Wide Input Step-Down PWM Controller Provides Optimal Transient Performance and Current Sharing Capability

Intersil Launches Fully-integrated 6A Digital Switching Regulator for Next-generation Infrastructure Power Systems

Intersil Corporation introduced the latest addition to its popular family of step-down PWM controllers, the new ISL8115 single phase synchronous controller. Featuring a Vin range from 2.97V to 36V, the new ISL8115 PWM controller offers ultra wide voltage ranges and current sharing capability, making it ideal for a variety of Point of Load (POL) DC/DC applications in industrial and infrastructure markets. The ISL8115 PWM controller enables system designers to maximize performance and reduce cost by providing a single controller for a variety of input voltages. This makes the device ideal for telecom, data communications systems, industrial power supplies, and battery powered products that require the widest possible voltage ranges to maximize performance and minimize system costs. The ISL8115's very wide Vin range of 2.97V to 36V allows it to

Intersil Corporation expanded its industry-leading family of power management ICs with the new ZL2102, a 6 Amp digital synchronous step-down DC/DC power regulator. The new ZL2102 is a fully-integrated, auto compensated DC/DC regulator able to support adjustable output voltages of 0.54V to 5.5V operating from input voltages from 4.5V up to 14V. A high level of integration and ease of configurability make the ZL2102 a reliable building block for even the most sophisticated infrastructure power system applications. The ZL2102 DC/DC regulator is part of Intersil's third generation digital power platform which employs auto compensation, a feature that characterizes the power stage and automatically adjusts accordingly, generating a stable and reliable solution. Auto compensation enables faster design time through the elimination of complex design calculations while providing a highly reliable power supply that can adapt over time to external component aging. The ZL2102 is a high-performance solution in a small 6mm

support up to 5.5V output voltage using direct current resistance (DCR) sensing, maximizing efficiency in high current applications. The device's current sharing capability allows multiple modules to

be connected in parallel via iShare bus to achieve higher output current and to reduce input and output ripple current, resulting in fewer components and reduced output dissipation. Current sharing coupled with phase delay enables the ISL8115 controller to achieve high current with up to six ISL8115-based POL modules in parallel operation. INTERSIL www.intersil.com

Rutronik presents smallest GNSS module based on CSR SiRFstarV chip from GNS GNS has unveiled the new GNS2301 with a superior dynamic performance at high velocity. It provides effective protection against interference signals, as it can eliminate or reduce up to eight independent channel interferences. The module is available at distributor Rutronik as of now. The new GNS2301 supports American, Russian and future European satellite systems, several satellite auxiliary systems as well as self prediction and predicted A-GNSS. The communication is ensured by UART, SPI or I²C. The new module features an extended power supply range of 1.8 up to 4.3V. Therefore, a Lithium battery can be directly connected to the module. With the assistance of

external MEMS sensors, the navigation can be kept up even without satellite reception. 52 signal channels and dimensions of 10 × 9.3 × 2.1 mm complete the key features. The new GPS+

GLONASS combination module is the first CSR based positioning product of GNS. It is completely designed and made in Germany and distributed by Rutronik worldwide. RUTRONIK www.rutronik.com

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

× 6mm footprint. Integrated synchronous power MOSFETs allow the ZL2102 to deliver continuous loads up to 6A from 4.5V to 14V with high efficiency. With inte-

grated compensation, a bootstrap diode and internal low dropout regulators (LDOs) that provide voltage to the internal gate driver, a complete ZL2102based design can be created using minimal external components and board space. The ZL2102 was developed from the ground-up to reduce design time. The ZL2102 can be completely configured with external pin-strap or resistor settings allowing for setup of all key parameters and adjustment of switching frequency, output voltage, soft-start ramp/delay settings and sequencing options. INTERSIL www.intersil.com

Silicon Labs Launches Industry’s Most Energy-

High-Precision Si701x/2x “Sensor on a Chip” Family Simplifies Re Silicon Labs introduced a new family of relative humidity (RH) and temperature sensors that simplify RH sensing designs while providing industry-leading power efficiency and ease of use. Silicon Labs’ second-generation RH sensing solution, the Si701x/2x sensors combine a standard CMOS mixed-signal IC with a proven technique of measuring humidity using a polymer dielectric film. The new family enables accurate RH sensing for home automation, HVAC, refrigeration, healthcare, remote monitoring, automotive and industrial equipment. When combined with

Silicon Labs’ broad portfolio of energy-friendly microcontrollers and wireless ICs, the Si701x/2x family enables best-in-class solutions for measuring, controlling and reporting environmental conditions for a wide range of connected devices linked to the Internet of Things. The Si701x/2x sensor family provides a superior alternative to legacy RH sensing approaches, which use discrete resistive or capacitive RH sensing elements along with analog circuits for temperature compensation and signal conditioning. These discrete solutions typically require a

PRODUCT NEWS

ACTIVE COMPONENTS

Low-power RL78/L1C MCUs with integrated LCD driver and 12 bit A/D converter for sensor modules and healthcare equipment MSC now offers the new RL78/L1C 16bit microcontrollers (MCUs) from Renesas Electronics. The new MCUs integrate LCD driver functions, a high-performance 12-bit A/D converter and a USB module that is compliant with the USB Battery Charging (BC) Specification, Revision 1.2. The MCUs are available in 80-pin and 100-pin packages with on-chip flash memory capacities ranging from 64 KB to 256 KB. Furthermore, depending on the function, the devices feature up to 60 percent reduction in operating current compared to earlier Renesas products. During operation when the LCD panel is not being used, the new MCUs even achieve the industry-leading low current consumption of only 0.62 μA during 32 kHz clock halt operation. Thanks to the integrated USB function module, sensor logs and measurements from healthcare equipment can be managed on host equipment or a personal computer using USB communication. Since this module already conforms to the USB BC Specification, Revision 1.2, it can accept a maximum charging current of 1.5 A. Therefore, with the new RL78/L1C MCUs, batteries can be charged approximately three times faster than with products that only support the USB 2.0 standard.

As usual, Renesas also provides a complete development environment for the new RL78/L1C MCUs. This includes the E1 on-chip debugging emulator and a dedicated Renesas Starter Kit (RSK), which consists of the required development environment at first adoption as well as a support tool for code generation. The various USB drivers (communication class, HID class and mass storage class) required to support rapid charging

Microchip announces a new family of dsPIC33 Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs): the dsPIC33EP512GM710 family. This is an expansion of Microchip’s dsPIC® DSC portfolio that adds higher levels of integration for motor-control applications. The new family of DSCs enables efficient dual motor control with 12 motorcontrol PWM channels (6 pairs), dual 12-bit ADCs, multiple 32-bit quadrature encoder interfaces, and two CAN modules. With this level of integration, the dsPIC33EP512GM710 family can independently control two motors with a single microcontroller (MCU) for optimised system costs. This family can also serve as a communication hub for automotive or industrial applications to connect with multiple CAN busses. This family expands the existing dsPIC33EP families by supporting 512 KB Flash, 48 KB RAM, and four operational amplifiers (op amps). Other features of this family include enhanced analogue functionality with two independent ADC modules, configurable as 10-bit 1.1 Msps with four sample and holds, or 12-bit, 500ksps with one sample and hold, supporting up to 49 channels. This analogue integration enables advanced sensor applications that require multiple precision ADCs with several sample and holds as well the processing power of a DSP.

under the USB BC 1.2 specification can be used in the Renesas e2 studio and the IAR Embedded Workbench development environments. Furthermore, application notes that explain functions such as software touch keys, LCD display, timer functions and serial functions are provided for developers. MSC VERTRIEBS www.msc-ge.com

Friendly, Easiest-to-Use Humidity Sensors

elative Humidity Sensing For Consumer, Industrial and Automotive Designs large bill of materials and PCB area and suffer from lower reliability and risk of contamination. Customers must also perform RH/temperature calibration during PCB assembly, and discrete solutions are not compatible with surface-mount technology (SMT) manufacturing. RH

Microchip expands dsPIC® DSCs for appliance, automotive and industrial applications

sensor module suppliers have attempted to solve these manufacturing challenges, but they do so at a higher system cost and without improving reliability or risk of contamination. In contrast to discrete approaches, the Si701x/2x monolithic ICs offer the highest ease of use while reducing manufacturing cost and complexity. The Si701x/2x family requires negligible BOM cost and is fully calibrated and SMT compatible. The integrated CMOS design provides the highest long-term reliability, and an optional filter cover provides added protection against contamination. SILICON LABS www.silabs.com/humidity-sensor

The dsPIC33EP512GM710 family also includes a Peripheral Trigger Generator (PTG) for scheduling complex, high-speed peripheral operations which saves software cycles and reduces firmware complexity. The dsPIC33EP512GM710 devices enable more efficient, less expensive designs for appliances such as air conditioners, washing machines, dishwashers and refrigerators; for automotive cooling fans, fuel pumps, water pumps, and sensors; and industrial equipment including embroidery machines, lathes and printers, as well as other applications. The dsPIC33EP512GM710 family is supported by Microchip’s dsPICDEM MCLV-2 development board (DM330021-2) and dsPICDEM MCHV-2 development system (DM330023-2) with the new dsPIC33EP512GM706 Single-motor Internal Op Amp PIM (MA330033). For non-motor control applications, a new dsPIC33EP512GM710 General-purpose PIM (MA330035) is offered for Microchip’s Explorer 16 development board (DM240001). MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/V37V www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

PRODUCT NEWS

PASSIVE COMPONENTS

Avago Technologies Unveils New Automotive Smart Gate Drive Optocoupler Enabling Isolated Power Supply in Automotive Powertrain Avago Technologies unveiled the ACPL32JT, a new automotive 2.5A smart gate drive optocoupler device that enables isolated power supply in automotive powertrain systems. The device features an integrated flyback controller supporting regulated output voltage and a full set of fail-safe IGBT diagnostics, protection and fault reporting in support of automotive functional safety requirements. The ACPL-32JT is ideal for use in automotive powertrain traction inverter, power converter, battery charger, air conditioner and oil pump motor drive for electric vehicle (EV), hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) applications. The ACPL-32JT expands Avago’s automotive R2Coupler™ family of products and is intended to further simplify automotive multi-channel IGBT driver board design. By integrating the flyback controller, the ACPL-32JT allows fewer dis-

crete components and small high-efficiency transformer to be placed next to the IC thereby reducing the overall footprint and minimizing electromagnetic interference (EMI) and noise coupling between the IGBT channels. The ACPL32JT enables automotive power module

designers to develop highly compact energy-efficient 6-channel IGBT driver modules. AVAGO TECHNOLOGIES www.avagotech.com

New generation of Bourns miniature chip diodes save board real estate in compact applications – available now from TTI Inc. A new generation of silicon chip diodes from Bourns that answers industry demand for increasingly smaller electronic components is available now from TTI, Inc., the world’s leading specialist distributor of passive, connector, electromechanical and discrete components. Bourns’ new ranges of surface mount TVS diodes and TVS/steering diode arrays integrate multiple functions in tiny package sizes, saving board space in products such as wireless systems, consumer portable electronic devices, network protection devices, SIM card, USB 3.0 /USB OTG and HDMI 1.4 ports. All devices are easily handled with standard pick and place equipment, as their flat configuration minimises roll away.

CDSOT23-SM712 Surface Mount TVS Diodes have a working peak reverse voltage of 7V or 12V and provide ESD protection to 30kV maximum plus surge protection. Available in a moulded JEDEC SOT-23 package with 100% matte tin plating on the lead frame in package sizes A (2.80mm – 3.00 mm) through L (0.08mm – 0.20mm), suitable applications include wireless systems, network protection, portable electronics and RS485 data port protection. CDDFN10-0524P Surface Mount TVS Diode Arrays have low capacitance of 0.5pF and provide greater than 15kV ESD protection. Applications include HDMI 1.3, Digital Visual Interface (DVI), USB3.0/USB OTG, memory protection and SIM card ports. Two families of TVS/Steering Diode Arrays, CDSOT236-0504C and CDDFN10-0506N, complete the range of new generation Bourns chip diode products. CDSOT236-0504C devices have low capacitance of 1 pF and offer ESD protection of more than 15kV for up to four I/O lines and one VDD line in applications including HDMI version 1.3 ports, PDAs and notebooks, display port interfaces, consumer electronics and USB 2.0 ports. CDDFN10-0506N TVS/Steering Diode Arrays feature low capacitance of 0.3pF and are designed for ESD protection of Vcc and six I/O data lines. Applications include USB3.0, HDMI 1.4, high speed ports and portable electronic devices. TTI

EP&Dee | December, 2013 | www.epd-ee.eu

www.ttieurope.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

INDUSTRIAL PARTS

Continuous Color Measurement of Multicolor Surfaces It's Mathai with colorStriker Revolutionizes the Color Surface Measurement of Polychrome Surfaces It's Mathai - international innovation and technology leader in the field of color display - upgrades their colorStriker software with the feature of continuous color measurement of multi-colored surfaces. The enhancement of color surface measurement is particularly suited for the measurement of surfaces with color gradients or strong structures, for example wood, marble and cloth. Instead of creating the average from multiple elaborate single color measurements, colorStriker takes many hundred measurements in the shortest time and combines them. With these methods it is possible for the first time to do colorimetric assessments of wood surfaces. “The new function was created in cooperation with BMW AG,” explained Philip Beckmann, New

Business Development Manager of Eduard Mathai GmbH. “With the new colorStriker software, the precise color identification over the entire surface is possible. As such, sample plates can be scanned and compared with each other. Thanks to continuous color measurement, the color data are recorded in milliseconds and from the result an average value is created.”

Color Surface Measurements Made Easy In particular for color comparisons of large surfaces, the color measurement offers major advantages in contrast to point measurements, as many measurement results may be compared with each other. The colorStriker measurement area it is much bigger than the measurement areas of comparable color measurement devices.

colorStriker offers the continuous color measurement of multicolor surfaces like wood Copyright: Eduard Mathai GmbH www.epd-ee.eu | December, 2013 | EP&Dee

INDUSTRY NEWS

INDUSTRIAL PARTS

The result reflects the colors of the complete color surface, such as a timber panel. In addition to the software, a cost effective tool is provided to depict color differences to customers. Colors can also be easily documented. The complementary quality management module allows easy installation of a reference database, including installation of files for individual systems, recording as reference, min and max display as well as own reference databases for projects and customers. www.colorstriker.com

colorStriker measures colors portably and accurately displays them on a screen Copyright: Eduard Mathai GmbH 44

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