EPDee no 1 - February 2012

FEBRUARY, 2012 ­ ISSUE NO. 1, VOL. 10

DESIGN & MANUFACTURING

EP&Dee ELECTRONICS

PRODUCTS

&

DESIGN

­

EASTERN

EUROPE

Thomas Rudel, CEO Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH

“Consequently we anticipate that the situation will stabilise in 2012 and reach similar levels to 2010/2011.”

Page 6

Strategic entrance spearheaded by a new module standard Kontron's strategic entry into the ARM technology market, as announced in September, is already bearing fruit: A Computer­on­Module specification “Low­power Embedded Architecture Platform” targeting low­power SOC and ARM architectures and a first COM sample based on the Texas Instruments Sitara™ AM387x processor has been shown at the SPS/IPC/Drives 2011 along with a NVIDIA® Tegra™ Page 16 based Pico­ITX™ sample.

THE EAST EUROPEAN JOURNAL FOR EMBEDDED APPLICATIONS

FEBRUARY 2012 Table of Contents COMMENTS INDUSTRY NEWS 3

20 Technologies to watch in 2012

INDUSTRY NEWS COMPANIES INTERVIEW 6

Interview with Mr. Thomas Rudel, CEO Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH Consequently we anticipate that the situation will stabilise in 2012 and reach similar levels to 2010/2011.

DESIGN TECHNOLOGY 8

Detection by deflection; capacitive touch sensing with all-metal front panels Today's explosive growth in touch-based products has lead to consumer-product reviewers and, even, the consumers themselves, pronouncing on the superiority of capacitive over resistive technologies.

DESIGN LEDs 12

Citizen optoelectronic elements in TME’s range of products Optoelectronics constitutes a very important group of elements used in all modern appliances. Without optoelectronics it is hard to imagine both operation of simple commodity products and professional medical, military equipment or industrial automatic devices. Competition in this group of components is very fierce.

We are a real broadliner offering a comprehenPage 6 sive range of components.

DESIGN EMBEDDED 16

Strategic entrance spearheaded by a new module standard Kontron's strategic entry into the ARM technology market, as announced in September, is already bearing fruit: A Computer-on-Module specification “Low-power Embedded Architecture Platform” targeting low-power SOC and ARM architectures and a first COM sample based on the Texas Instruments Sitara™ AM387x processor has been shown at the SPS/IPC/Drives 2011 along with a NVIDIA® Tegra™ based Pico-ITX™ sample.

20

General-purpose Graphics Processing Units Deliver New Capabilities to the Embedded Market Today’s graphics processors are highly programmable, massively parallel compute engines. With the development of open, industry standards, parallel programming languages such as OpenCL™ and the continued evolution of heterogeneous computing, general-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) offer exciting new capabilities for the embedded market.

Kontron's ARM Offensive

Page 16

INDUSTRY NEWS EMBEDDED SYSTEMS INDUSTRY NEWS ACTIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS LIGHTING INDUSTRY NEWS PASSIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS SMT INDUSTRY NEWS MODULES & RELAYS 38

MSI Safety Controller Latching type DW relay from Panasonic

INDUSTRY NEWS CONNECTORS 39

ODU-MAC Modular Connector System

INDUSTRY NEWS MISCELEANEOUS 2

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

General-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) offer exciting new capabilities Page 20 for the embedded market.

COMPANIES INDUSTRY NEWS

Microchip announces 25% performance increase for dsPIC® DSCs for digital-power applications

20 Technologies to watch in 2012 The beginning of a new year is the best time to look forward. This year we list twenty tech­ nologies which hold the promise of significant progress. They are expected to enable products and markets to flourish. Here they are: 1. Microelectromechnical Systems (MEMS) – six or seven sub domains which have a very high growth rate.

2. Wireless sensor networks – the combina­ tion of sensors, microcontroller, energy source and wireless transmission.

3. The Internet of Things – objects with IP addresses.

4. Plastic electronics – organic materials hold out the possibility for low­cost biodegradable circuits.

5. Near­Field Communications (NFC) – will become available in mobile phones.

6. Printed electronics – close cousin to plastic electronics.

7. Energy harvesting – energy should not be “wasted.”

8. Graphene – carbon in a form of monolayer of atoms to enable the “post­CMOS” era.

9. Next generation of non­volatile memory – more than 10 technologies race to replace Flash.

10. Processors and techniques to multi­core and many­core.

11. Graphics and general purpose GPU (graphic processor unit).

12. Extreme UV and other next­generation lithography.

13. Solar conversion (solar cells).

14. White­space radio – proposed as a platform for machine­to­machine (M2M) communication.

15. 4G – the Long Term Evolution (LTE) stan­ dard for wireless communication.

16. 40/100­Gbit/sec Ethernet.

17. Mobile Operating Systems and Android.

18. AMOLEDS for large screen displays.

19. Smart grid technologies.

20. 3­D IC development and integration. n Radu Andrei

Microchip announces a 25% perform­ ance increase for its dsPIC33F “GS” series of Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs) for Switch Mode Power Supplies (SMPSs). Now featuring 50 MIPS per­ formance, the dsPIC33F “GS” series of DSCs includes on­chip peripherals for digital­power applications, such as an Analogue­to­Digital Converter (ADC), Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) peripheral and analogue compara­ tors. The performance increase will allow designers to achieve higher effi­ ciencies in power­supply applications and to fully control their products using a single dsPIC33F “GS” DSC at a lower system cost and with more fea­ tures. The dsPIC33F “GS” family sup­ ports applications such as induction

cooking, Uninterrupted Power Supplies (UPSs), inverters, intelligent battery chargers, power factor correction, HID lighting, fluorescent lighting, LED light­ ing, and AC­to­DC, as well as DC­to­DC power­conversion applications.

MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/JVX4

Silicon Labs introduces the industry’s smallest, lowest power customizable Clock ICs Silicon Laboratories Inc. introduced the industry’s smallest and lowest power customizable clock generators.

Available in a tiny 1.7 mm­squared package, Silicon Labs’ new Si512xx clock generator family offers up to 60 percent lower power than competing solutions and is ideal for space­limited, cost­sensitive embedded and consumer electronics such as portable media players (PMPs), industrial metering and monitoring, portable navigation devices (PNDs), handsets, digital cam­ eras and hundreds of other handheld, power­sensitive products.

As part of Silicon Labs’ comprehensive, programmable timing portfolio, the Si512xx clocks are highly customizable devices. The Si512xx clock generators support up to three LVCMOS clock out­

puts from 3 to 200 MHz in a single device, providing devel­ opers with maximum flexi­ bility while sim­ plifying supply chain manage­ ment. Each out­ put has four levels of output strength setting, which can be config­ ured individually to match the load and the trace length condition of the board.

This is more than twice the configura­ bility of the closest competing product.

SILICON LABORATORIES Inc. www.silabs.com

New mikromedia for Stellaris M3 v1.01 released!

We are happy to present you with our first ARM® Cortex™­M3 multimedia board ­ mikromedia for Stellaris® M3.

Develop your multimedia­rich applica­ tion on high­performance LM3S9B9 ­ Stellaris® ARM® Cortex™­M3 device with this cool new board. As you are used to with all of our mikromedia boards, mikromedia for Stellaris® M3 has rich multimedia peripherals: 320x240px TFT display with Touch Screen, stereo MP3 codec ­VS1053­ which is capable of decoding MP3/WMA/AAC/eAAC+/Ogg Vorbis/WAV files from your MMC card.

Of course, microSD card slot is also available. 3­axis serial accelerometer, USB connector and 8­bit Serial Flash

memory are on the board, too. Board features frontal reset button, battery charger circuit for Li­Polymer batter­ ies, crystal oscillator and connection pads for all other available pins. Board is compatible with all mikromedia shields, including gaming shield, battery boost shield, proto and connect shield.

MIKROELEKTRONIKA www.mikroe.com

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

3

COMPANIES INDUSTRY NEWS

Silicon Labs introduces highest performance, lowest power SUB-GHz wireless ICS Silicon Laboratories Inc. intro­ duced the industry’s highest performance, lowest power sub­GHz transceivers designed to maximize range and battery life for wireless systems. The new Si446x EZRadioPRO® transceiver family’s combina­ tion of superior RF perform­ ance and ultra­low power con­ sumption makes it an ideal solu­ tion for a broad range of wire­ less applications including smart meters, security and home automation systems, industrial control systems, sen­ sor networks and electronic shelf labels. The new EZRadioPRO Si446x transceiver family offers industry­leading RF performance resulting in extended wireless range and compliance with the industry’s

most stringent narrowband regulatory standards while delivering a superior cost­per­ formance solution for designers.

The transceivers provide exten­ ded range for wireless applica­ tions by leveraging best­in­class performance specifications in

transmit output power (+20dBm), sensitivity (­126dBm), link budg­ et (146dB) and RX adjacent channel selectivity (58dB).

SILICON LABORATORIES Inc. www.silabs.com

Maxim to demonstrate highly integrated solutions for Embedded Designs at Embedded World Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. will offer a rich choice of design ideas for embedded applications at the upcoming Embedded World Exhibition & Conference 2012 in Nuremberg/Germany (February 28 – March 1). With its expertise in providing highly integrated analog and mixed­sig­ nal products as well as full­fea­ tured reference designs, Maxim offers solutions for a wealth of embedded applications and helps designers speed up time­ to­market. At the Maxim Tech Lounge in Hall 4A, Booth #122, situated on the stand of Maxim’s dis­ tribution partner AVNET MEMEC, the company will demon­ strate product high­ lights in the areas of Green Power/Energy Management and Signal Chain. Among these are: the fully integrated analog front­ end ICs MAX2991/MAX2992 for G3­Powerline Communications in noisy indus­ trial environments; the MAX13256, a very space­saving 10W H­bridge transformer driv­ er for isolated power supply designs; Maxim’s compact ener­

4

gy harvesting solution MAX17710, the industry's first IC to integrate all of the power­ management functions for ambient energy harvesting as well as for charging and pro­ tecting micro­energy cells (MECs); or the MAX14821/ MAX14824, the industry's smallest, full­featured solution supporting connectivity with sensors and actuators using the efficient and future­oriented IO­ Link protocol. Live demos, pre­

sentations and reference designs and on­site consultancy through Maxim’s product experts will help to solve any design challenges ‘Embedded’ designers might face today.

MAXIM INTEGRATED PRODUCTS www.maxim­ic.com

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

CiA’s 20th anniversary This year is CAN in pared with up to 8 byte). At Automation’s 20th anniver­ the conference some silicon sary (March, 5th). The non­ vendors will launch their CAN profit users’ and manufactur­ transceivers supporting partial ers’ group with 570 member wake­up functionality as stan­ companies serves the CAN dardized in ISO 11898­6. They (Controller Area Network) will enable partial networking; community with marketing and stan­ dardization activities.

CAN is a serial bus system used in many industries. There are sold annually close to 1 billion CAN inter­ faces. Nearly all important chipmak­ “We provide for the entire CAN ers have implement­ community services,” said Holger Zeltwanger (very left), CiA Mananing Director. “We collect ed CAN in silicon. technical, product and marketing information and CiA members have distribute them in our events and publications.” developed the CANopen application layer and this means the user is able to profiles used in many embed­ switch single devices on and ded networks from machine off, in order to reduce energy control to medical devices, consumption. from commercial vehicles to The CiA headquarters in diesel locomotives, from elec­ Nuremberg (Germany) with tronic lock to lift control sys­ 14 employees provides train­ tems, for example. ing courses and in­house sem­ CiA’s birthday is celebrated at inars as well as several printed the 13th international CAN and online publications.

Conference (iCC) in Hambach Besides the established Castle (Germany). At this con­ CANopen conformance tests, ference the CAN­FD (flexible the association will offer data­rate) protocol will be CANopen interoperability tests. introduced. The backward CiA is also represented in compatible protocol breaks China (Guangzhou). the 1­Mbit/s data­rate and allows longer payloads in a sin­ CAN IN AUTOMATION GmbH www.can­cia.org gle frame (up to 64 byte com­

Maxim Wins European Smart Metering Technology of the Year 2012 Award Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. has won the European Smart Metering Technology of the Year 2012 Award for its latest smart meter reference platform, Newport. Judges sought to honor a company that put for­ ward a product that will drive the industry forward, using innovation to make significant advancements in smart meter­ ing technology.

Integrating the latest in metrolo­ gy, security, and powerline com­ munications (G3­PLC) technolo­ gy, Maxim's Newport reference platform gives utilities a versa­ tile way to evaluate smart grid technology, and gives manufac­ turers an easy­to­use smart­ meter design to accelerate time

to market. In April 2011, a small team of dedicated engi­ neers was assembled from the broadest segments of Maxim, including the now fully integrat­ ed Teridian Semiconductor, which Maxim acquired in 2010.

MAXIM INTEGRATED PRODUCTS www.maxim­ic.com

Interview with Mr. Thomas Rudel, CEO Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH When was Rutronik founded? Who are the founders? What was the motivation?

My father, Helmut Rudel, set up Rutronik in 1973. Prior to that he had been employed as a sales engineer at ITT and Roederstein for several years, enjoying considerable success. While he was there he soon worked his way up to the top and there was nowhere for his career to go. An added factor was his desire to set up something of his own. And so he founded Rutronik in Ispringen in 1973. His wife, Uta Rudel, gave him considerable support. At the start she was responsible for administration and finance. That allowed my father to bring his plans into effect.

In 1994 the company bought up BIT­Electronic AG, entering the displays and systems market, followed by Discomp GmbH, adding embedded boards and storage solutions to the product range.

In the meantime wireless technologies have also become part of the range.

It is this broad range of goods and our clear commitment to being a broadliner that makes Rutronik so fundamentally different from most other distributors. Of course there are lots of globally operating broadline distributors, but they generally focus on pecific, usually high­margin products. Here at Rutronik, though, we offer our customers everything across the board and we employ experts for all product areas. Because What did the initial business plan look Rutronik customers can get everything like? When did the company decide to under one roof, we are able to provide them expand abroad? with the best possible assistance to reduce Rudel Rutronik GmbH started off as a distri­ their supply sources and therefore make butor with just five manufacturers: Ruwel, procurement simpler and cheaper. An added Wieland, Kammerer, Bopla and Bertram. factor to be taken into consideration is that That same year, 1973, Helmut Rudel also the increasing complexity of components founded the company Silec Halbleiter GmbH, and applications makes it ever more impor­ specialising in active components, alongside tant to consider an application as a whole.

Rutronik specialising in passive components. In current practice you often find that the With this he laid the foundations for what micro­controller is considered to be the continues to set Rutronik apart today: most important component. Often that is we are a real broadliner offering a compre­ indeed the case, but the greatest value hensive range of components. creation for the customer may lie elsewhere The company started off operating on a ­ in the case of medical applications for purely local basis, but gradually grew until it example it is the display. Interplay within the became a regional and then a national player. application cannot be evaluated if the pas­ In 1991 Rutronik started looking beyond the sive components are not evaluated as well. borders of Germany and set up sales offices If you combine IGBTs or MOSFETs in an in France and the Czech Republic, followed inverter, for example, with a standard capaci­ three years later by offices in the UK and tor in the intermediate circuit, they cannot Spain. We have been operating in Romania bring their potential to bear. The question as for ten years now, i.e. since 2002. to whether a solution should be designed to be integrated or discrete can only be Generalist vs. specialist: Please make answered in holistic terms. The integrated the case for a generalist distributor, version is by no means always the better for Rutronik? option. As with all these issues, the main As the company spread its geographical thing is to always find an ideal balance wings, our product range also expanded. between the technology and the cost factor.

Electromechanical components were added And this can only be successful if all the first to the active and passive components. components are incorporated in the analysis.

6

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Tackling things this way requires consider­ able effort of course, and we employ prod­ uct experts and application engineers for all product areas, ensuring that our cus­ tomers receive first­class support across the board. This sets our strategy apart from that of most other distributors.

Finally, in 2010 you made the first steps outside Europe. What are some of the motivations for this decision?

Which non-European markets do you currently cover?

Our decision to become a worldwide distributor is the next logical step in our development. The needs of our customers have always been the driving force for the expansion of our market presence, our range, our support network and our logis­ tics services.

In recent years an ever increasing number of our customers, including many SMEs, have set up offices outside Europe ­ in all four corners of the world. Sometimes this has been due to production relocation, but the opening up of new sales offices has also been a factor. These customers wanted to have the same service in their non­ European sites that we have provided them with here. It is of course much more efficient for them if they can limit their network of suppliers to a small number of partners. It makes things even more effi­ cient if they can rely on a business partner they know, offering well­established, tried and trusted procedures. We have been delighted to be able to provide them with what they are looking for.

We are now active around the globe, either

with Rutronik’s own employees, as in Mexico, or via hubs which we use to supply our customers anywhere around the world.

The same theory applies here: the speed with which we set up our own branches, wherever they may be, depends first and foremost on our customer’s needs.

Asia is currently well out in front as our main point of focus outside Europe. We have set up two Asian divisions for this purpose, with subsidiaries in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. We employ local staff as field sales engineers, internal sales assis­ tants and field application engineers.

All Rutronik Asian customers are supplied with the complete range of products from our depot in Hong Kong. This allows us to ensure efficient supply for our customers in Asia, without needing to involve Europe, but with European quality standards.

Can you highlight the key strategic and tactical difficulties you encountered when you decided to become a global presence? How did you address those challenges?

The main challenge was definitely differ­ ences in mentality. We have therefore been very fortunate to have certain employees who have managed to act as pathfinders between the cultures ­ I am talking above all of course about Lambert Hilkes, General Manager Rutronik Asia. He has been work­ ing in the electronics industry for over forty years, for various companies and in various countries, including many years spent in Taiwan. This means that he knows the Asian electronics market, the lifestyle and mentality and speaks fluent Mandarin.

There is a team at Rutronik headquarters in Ispringen who assist the team in Asia with

commercial and technical support. We also have people here who offer top­class links between Asia and Europe: Pamela Lu is Taiwanese and is our Project Coordinator for Asia and Peter Klöpfer is Technical and Product Director for Asia.

Conventional wisdom says that one needs to learn walking before running.

Which product lines and services do you offer at the initial stage?

How will you expand?

Yes, that's certainly true. That is why there are three phases to our Asian strategy: 1. Consolidate transfer operations, 2. Increase the product portfolio for our existing customers, and 3. Foster new cus­ tomers in China. We have made very good progress on phases 1. and 2. With regard to phase 3., we have already identified 200 customers in Asia who we want to target more in 2012.

Generally speaking, how important is growth for Rutronik? How do you ensure growth? Is geographic coverage part of your growth strategy?

Our growth has always been and primarily remains organic, i.e. the company is pre­ dominantly growing under its own steam.

Growth is part of our corporate strategy.

Our aim is to ensure constant growth above the market average. So far we have achieved that aim with flying colours almost every year since the company's foundation 39 years ago ­ the only exception being the very difficult year we had in 2009.

To ensure our growth we are not putting all our eggs in one basket and have created a broad base both in geographical terms and with respect to various local markets. This ensures that we can weather fluctuations very well. Another important factor is that Rutronik remains an owner­managed com­ pany with a solid financial footing. This allows us to set our own business strategy, completely independent of shareholders.

To conclude – what are the 2012 electronics industry prospects from an Ispringen perspective?

Many investors will continue to tread care­ fully in 2012, because of the global eco­ nomic crisis. This means that there is no prospect of major spurts in growth.

Nevertheless, we anticipate healthy levels of growth, because we are noticing lots of signs of life from the widest possible sec­ tors of the market. Consequently we antici­ pate that the situation will stabilise in 2012 and reach similar levels to 2010/2011.

We thank you for the interview. www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

7

Technology DESIGN

Detection by deflection; capacitive touch sensing with all-metal front panels Touch-screen and touch-panel interfaces have rapidly assumed the position of inputmedium-of-choice in a wide variety of application spaces, driven to a large extent by the success of portable products such as Apple's iPhone and iPad. Touch-driven interfaces have a long history prior to the current phase of widespread acceptance in the consumer electronics space; a wide variety of sensing technologies, and a great deal of ingenuity, have been applied to the problem over many years. Today's explosive growth in touch-based products has lead to consumer-product reviewers and, even, the consumers themselves, pronouncing on the superiority of capacitive over resistive technologies.

by Darren Wenn, Microchip Technology Capacitive touch has many advantages: it is low power, low cost, simple to implement, mechanically reliable, and it allows product designers a great deal of freedom in matters such as shape and placement of but­ tons, sliders, and the other con­ trol formats that have become ubiquitous. In fact, there is a plethora of capacitive sensing approaches for designers to choose from, all differing in the detail of the techniques they employ, and all sufficiently dif­ ferent that their respective ven­ dors can assert patentable rights over them.

In all cases, however, the field­ effect nature of capacitive touch sensing still imposes some limi­ tations, irrespective of the detailed implementation.

Standard capacitive touch sys­ tems do not normally work through metal; and the tech­ nique demands special software – in effect, signal­processing of the sensor data – in order to maintain operation in environ­ ments with radiated and/or con­ ducted noise. This is a far­from­ trivial point when the touch interface paradigm moves beyond the “cool­gadget” context and into mission­critical indus­ trial control or medical applica­ tions. Some other limitations of capacitive technologies include limited ability to correctly detect a touch in the presence of water

8

or other contaminants, or if gloves (especially heavy protec­ tive gloves) are worn; and the fact that when the location of a button is only delineated graphi­ cally, a problem is created for visually impaired users who rely on Braille.

Detecting panel flexure A new technique that adapts proven detection circuitry tech­ niques with a simple, novel physical construction, over­ comes all of these limitations without compromising power consumption or design simplici­ ty. With the Metal Over Cap approach, all of the circuitry is safely concealed behind a panel – usually, the front­panel of the

Figure 1A

Figure 1B

Figure 1C

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

product itself – yet it retains sensitivity to touch and immu­ nity to false input­detection.

In a traditional capacitive system, the user changes the value of a capacitance by placing their fin­ ger in close proximity to the sen­ sor. The user’s finger becomes part of the sensing capacitor, either forming the second plate of the capacitor, or changing the dielectric properties around an existing double­plate device. The change in value is detected by a variety of circuit techniques: for example, one elementary method is for the sense capacitor to set the frequency of an oscillator, and the altered capacitance shifts the frequency by a measurable amount.

In contrast to arrangements that use the touching finger directly as a capacitor plate, the Metal Over Cap touch system uses a conductive target, sus­ pended over the capacitive touch sensors, to form the sec­ ond plate of the capacitor.

When a user applies pressure on the target (panel), the result­ ing deformation of the target moves it closer to the capacitive sensor. A practical design requires a change in capacitor­ plate spacing – and of capaci­ tance, as capacitance varies inversely with distance between plates – of 6% or more. The change in capacitance is then measured by a microcontroller.

Figure 1A shows the basic con­ struction of a typical metal over capacitive touch sensor, and Figure 1B depicts the deforma­ tion due to a user’s press.

Figure 1C shows an alternate configuration that employs a metal target bonded to the back of a plastic fascia layer. The tar­ get in this configuration can be either a thin sheet of metal bonded to the back of the plastic fascia, or a metal flashing or coating on the plastic sheet.

While the metal target still per­ forms the same electrical func­ tion as a metal fascia system, it is the physical characteristics of the plastic which determine the me­ chanical deviation to the user’s press in this configuration.

Technology DESIGN The design of a successful Metal Over Cap device, and selecting appropriate materials and dimensions, involves balancing a number of factors. The mate­ rial from which the panel is constructed must be thin and flexible enough to deform under a touch or light press; however, the configuration is sensitive to very small physical deforma­ tions, and this requirement is readily met. The material should be resilient and should only deform within its elastic limit, up to the anticipated maximum applied pressure, so that it returns to its “flat” condition after pressure is removed.

Other considerations include the size of the buttons (or other control objects) and their sepa­ ration, the adhesive system used to bond the spacer and target layer to the PCB, and the thickness of the spacer layer.

Spacing between buttons is important in order to minimise movement on the sensors adja­ cent to the one selected.

Button size, layout and separa­ tion is important to minimise the panel deflection over the sensors adjacent to the one that is pressed, bearing in mind that in an application where hands may be gloved, the touch might not always be centred on the target. Factors that affect how the buttons interact include the elasticity of the target material; and the adhesion of the adhe­ sive used to bond the target to the spacer. If the target is too stiff and the adhesive is elastic, then a force applied to button A will cause the target over sen­ sor B to lift. A practical con­ straint for panel design is that the spacing between buttons should be at least one­third to one­half of the diameter of the buttons themselves; and, with the very wide range of materials that are usable for both panel and spacer layers, designers should work closely with the manufacturer of the adhesive to select a suitable system.

Design of the spacer layer itself is one further consideration; the designer is attempting to achieve flex in the target layer or panel, while avoiding any movement in the PCB carrying the fixed capacitor plates.

As well as maintaining the

required gap, the spacer layer has to be rigid; PCB material (FR4), or some other non­ deformable plastic film, can carry out this task.

Electrical Design Detection of the shift in capaci­ tance can employ a number of techniques similar to those used in other capacitive touch sensor architectures. Microchip offers two systems, both of which work well with the Metal Over Cap construction. In the Capacitive Voltage Divider (CVD) approach, the sensor capacitance is connected in par­ allel with an analogue/digital converter's sample­and­hold capacitor; the change in touched vs. untouched capaci­ tance appears as a voltage shift at the ADC's input and is con­ verted to a digital value.

The Charge Time Measurement Unit (CTMU) technique uses a constant­current source and measures the capacitance via its charge/discharge curve. In both cases, full software is available to incorporate into microcontroller coding.

Both detection techniques yield a shift of 60­100 counts in a 12­ 14 bit result, for a 6% capaci­ tance change. This is sufficient to provide a well­discriminated touch detection, although care is needed in design of the system to reduce both mechanical and electrical noise. AC and DC grounding of the target layer, screening of the sensing PCB, careful routing of connections, and good practice in the selec­ tion of bypass capacitors, will result in a robust design.

Conclusion The combination of a deformable panel/target layer and the low power and simplicity of capaci­ tive touch detection create a powerful combination: chal­ lenges associated with opera­ tion in the presence of water and noise are eliminated, the proximity­trigger effect is re­ placed with actuation according to the designer's exact specifi­ cations, and the system retains the low­power operation of capacitive touch. n www.microchip.com

10 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Microchip Introduces Compact, Integrated RF Front-End Module for Wi-Fi® Applications Microchip announces its com­ plete, integrated RF front­end module for WLAN IEEE 802.11b/g/n and Bluetooth® systems ­ the SST12LF03. This device features a transmitter power amplifier, a receiver low­noise amplifier (LNA) and a low­loss antenna switch—in one integrated, compact pack­ age. It is Microchip’s smallest 802.11b/g/n­com­ pliant front­end module. The device’s RF ports are imped­ ance­matched to 50 Ohms, and the mod­ ule requires only two external compo­ nents to achieve optimum perform­ ance. It offers a high linear­transmission power of 19 dBm at 3 percent EVM, using 802.11g OFDM at 54 Mbps, and 22 dBm for IEEE 802.11b operation. The device supports Wi­Fi® and Bluetooth Tx/Rx, and enables simultaneous Wi­Fi and Bluetooth operation. The SST12LF03 is ideal for embed­

ded applications in which small size and high perform­ ance are required, such as notebooks or other portable­electronic devices.

Many battery­powered, hand­ held designs require small size and high performance, and the SST12LF03 meets those needs.

By integrating three RF func­ tions into one compact, sim­

ple­to­use package, this front­ end module makes designing easier and reduces board size.

The SST12LF03 is available in a 20­pin, 3mm × 3mm UQFN package.

MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/E2PB

Microchip and Digilent® unveil PIC32-based Cerebot™ Development Boards with chipKIT™ prototyping capabilities Microchip Technology Inc. announced several new 32­bit PIC32 microcontroller (MCU)­ based Cerebot™ development boards with prototyping capa­ bilities for the Arduino™ com­ patible chipKIT™ development platform. The Cerebot™ MX3cK, Cerebot MX4cK and Cerebot MX7cK (MX3/4/7) boards pro­ vide a single, general­purpose development platform for users to develop a wide range of 32­ bit MCU applications using the free, Arduino­compatible chipKIT IDE ­ called the Multi­Platform IDE, or “MPIDE.” Users can later migrate to development tools that are more widely recognized in the industry, such as Microchip’s MPLAB® X IDE and MPLAB C Compiler for PIC32 MCUs. The Cerebot MX3/4/7 boards break free from the traditional Arduino form factor, providing

flexible pin access and connec­ tivity with Digilent’s line of Pmod™ Peripheral Modules.

The new Cerebot “cK” develop­

ment boards include hardware that enables connectivity to the MPIDE, so users can develop with chipKIT via a bootloader application. Microchip’s PICkit™ 3 debugger/program­ mer can be used with the Cerebot MX3cK. MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY www.microchip.com/get/5QRS

LEDs DESIGN

Citizen optoelectronic elements in TME’s range of products Optoelectronics constitutes a very important group of elements used in all modern appliances. Without optoelectronics it is hard to imagine both operation of simple commodity products and professional medical, military equipment or industrial automatic devices. Competition in this group of components is very fierce. One of the optoelectronics manufacturers equipment is Citizen whose offer is presented below.

All described elements are available in TME’s Internet shop.

Optoelectronic elements have been divided into several groups due to their purpose.

They consist of both electronic and vari­ ous mechanical elements that facilitate mounting and even improve functional properties of the optoelectronics itself.

LED in SMD enclosures Citizen products overview starts with CL­824 type miniature LED with white luminescence. They are manufactured in several groups of color temperatures: 2700, 3000, 3500, 4000, 5000 and 6300 K. Thanks to a small and compact SMD 0816 enclosure, CL­824 led are used in lighting modules emitting uniform light.

They can also be used as signalling ele­ ments mounted directly on printed circuit boards of electronic devices. The light intensity obtained by them is different for various performance versions and is within the range of 1650 up to 2430 mcd.

The CL­824 luminosity angle is 120° which means that the decrease in luminosity brightness by half takes place at the angle of ± 60° measured from the element centre line. Directional characteristics of CL­824 led are presented in figure 1. Typical con­ duction current at the 3,2V led is 20mA. These elements can operate in the temperature range between ­30 ... +85°C.

Figure 1

12 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

LEDs replace more and more often bulbs in lighting fittings. LED production is becoming more and more dynamic. The function of a bulb with tungsten fibre is fulfilled by several or even several dozen of LED’s. This trend is mainly owing to world legal regulations, but such decisions are also taken as a result of multiple analy­ ses of various parameters of alternative sources of light. Much better efficiency and long life are the features in favour of LEDs. Unfortunately, determination of this parameter is not easy, mainly because of its value. An additional difficulty is made by the dependence of LED durability on many factors, mainly on conduction cur­ rent and temperature. In real life, special tests are used (IES LM­80) for which measuring conditions have been very accurately specified. Those tests help to determine the life time of a given element without the necessity of its actual “killing” which could last several or even several dozen years. In most cases LED diodes are not suddenly damaged but gradual deterio­ ration of its lighting can be observed, which results from degradation of its structure. The test whose purpose is to determine LED durability cannot be short­ er than 6000 hours (250 days). The light intensity of the tested element is checked

every 1000 hours, and based on this its parameter characteristics in time function is determined. At the LED initial operating period, its light intensity remains on an almost unchanged level (decreases very slowly). After some time, one can observe clear collapse of the characteristics, after which the light intensity deteriorates at a much quicker rate. In the LM­80 test two characteristic points were assumed which were determined for light intensity drop down to the level of 91,8% and 94,1% of the initial light intensity after 6000 hours of continuous lighting. They correspond to an estimated drop of light intensity to 70% of the initial value, after 25000 and 35000 hours respectively. The diagram of light intensity changes made for CL­824 LED is presented in figure 2. As it can be seen, after 6000 hours, even for the tempera­ ture of 85°C, the curve goes above the threshold of 94,1%, which means light intensity drop to 70% of the initial value will take place for sure after the time not shorter than 35000 hours (approximately 4 years of continuous lighting). However, it should be remembered that the test does not determine this time ideally, those are just estimates. There is one more, essential nuance related to this parameter.

In the catalogues of many manufacturers, LED life is given for the temperature of 25°C, which is not at all reflected in practi­ cal applications. Element structure is always subject to a warm up to a much higher temperature which considerably reduces its life. Citizen specifies this parameter for the temperature of 85°C measured at the enclosure. It means that LED structure is heated up to 125°C. Citizen also manufactures LED lighting in PLCC4 enclosures marked with the CL­ L270 symbol. They also exist in one or two­matrix versions in one structure.

In both cases, lighting angle is 120°.

LEDs DESIGN Those LED’s emit white light with the fol­ lowing color temperature: 2700, 3000, 3500, 4000, 5000 or 6300 K. The scope of those LED’s applications is similar as the one discussed above, however, they oper­ ate with higher conduction currents (typi­ cally it is 60mA), and luminous flux obtained by them achieves the value from 16,2 to 20,5 lm.

with the same color of light. It can be proved by comparing subjective feelings while watching different objects in the sunlight and in artificial light. For exam­ ple, an object that in the sunlight is of a yellow color, after using red light source, is perceived as orange or even red. Each non­uniformity of light source spectral characteristics will therefore lead to a dif­

Figure 2

When comparing this parameter with clas­ sical bulbs made of tungsten fibres, it could be said that there is still a long way ahead of LED manufacturers to achieve compara­ ble performance. For example, luminous flux of a classical bulb 100W/230V is equal to approx. 1360 lm, but its efficiency is only 13,6 lm/W. Meanwhile, CL­L270 LED obtains the efficiency of approxi­ mately from 80 to 102 lm/W. The next group of Citizen lighting LEDs are CL­L251 family elements. These are high­voltage power LEDs manufactured in the Emitter version with the power of 4 and 5W. The enclosure with flat lens has the following dimensions: 13,5×13×1,4mm.

Conduction current at the voltage of 9,3V is equal to 480 and 720mA respectively, and the luminous flux, depending on the version, is within the range from 255 up to 625 lm. The lighting angle is 120°.

Those LEDs are used for production of LED bulbs, ceiling fittings, spot lights etc.

They are available in the following color temperatures: 2700, 3000, 3500, 4000 and 5000 K. This parameter, however, does not clearly specify the ability of giv­ ing up colors, which results from different distribution of radiation even in LED’s

Figure 3

ferent manner of color rendering. CL­L251 LED spectral characteristics are presented in figure 3. In order to enable more accu­ rate comparison of source lights against color rendering, the catalogues provide a CRI parameter (Color Rendering Index), marked with a Ra symbol. If its value is equal to zero it means that the source is monochromatic, whereas, for an ideal white light the parameter obtains the value of 100. A general principle states that the higher the CRI parameter, the better is the rendering of colors by the source of light. There are even norms specifying minimum CRI values for sources of light used in various institu­ tions, e.g. offices, surgeries, schools, libraries, etc.

The CRI indicator for the family of CL­ L251 has the following values: 67, 85 and 90, depending on the performance.

Citizen also offers several other families of power led. For example, 13 Watt CL­L233 are manufactured in enclosures with the dimensions of 23×17,5×1,4mm.

Conduction current at the voltage of 18,6V is equal to 720mA. The luminous flux depending on the version is within the range of 710 to 1400 lm. The CL­L330 (1960 and 2800 lm) and CL­L340 (3060 and 4390 lm) families are characterized by even higher brightness. This is related to higher power of those elements, 26 and 41W respectively.

The CL­L330 and CL­L340 LEDs are used in modern spotlights, ceiling fittings, ware­ house and manufacturing buildings light­ ing systems. They are manufactured in color temperatures 3000 and 5000 K and the CRI coefficient of 67.

While looking through Citizen’s LED cata­ logue parameters, it is worth paying atten­ tion to a certain detail. In the column specifying the maximum permissible tem­

perature of connection (Tj) one can find LEDs operating up to 120°C and up to 150°C. Operating conditions of the latter (Tj < 150°C) can be, in some cases, exceeded. Users with strong nerves can “turn up” LEDs, similarly to what is often practiced with PC processors. “Turning up” LEDs means that nominal conduction current of a LED is exceeded with simulta­ neous maintenance of limitations concern­ ing maximum permissible of each of the parameters (in particular current and tem­ perature). A user should take complete responsibility for all the effects of such proceeding, which not always is cost­effec­ tive, because among Citizen LEDs one can find such whose efficiency, despite of con­ siderable power, is higher than 100 lm/W. LED Modules Optoelectronic elements manufactured by Citizen include also LED module, e.g. CL­ L103. There are also matrices constituting several dozen LEDs mounted on boards with the dimensions of 500×70×1,35mm.

The total power of such module is equal to 3 or 6W at the conduction current of 9,3V. Should this be necessary, a radiator can be mounted onto the board in order to improve cooling conditions. The obtained luminous flux, is within the range of 190 to 720 lm, and the color temperature can be equal to: 2700, 3000, 3500, 4000 and 5000 K. Modules of this kind are used in street and decorative lighting, and also as the element of interiors main lighting.

Figure 4 www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

13

LEDs DESIGN Such applications result among others from a very high efficiency, which in the 6W version is within the scope from approx. 79 up to 110 lm/W, whereas in the 3 W version, it is approx. 89 up to 116 lm/W. Modules used to illuminate interiors (with warm color) have high CRI which is 85. This parameter in modules designed for external lighting applications is 65.

Other group of Citizen LED modules com­ prises of L­CM family. TME offers three variations of such modules with different combinations of power, brightness and conduction current. Among them, there are modules with the powers of 6 and 13W and luminous flux of 605 and 1205lm respectively. The versions with the conduction current of 9,6V or 19,2V are available. The board’s dimensions are 290×15×5,63mm. Modules glow with white color and the color temperature of 5000 K. They fit perfectly as surroundings lighting emphasizing specific climate and mood of rooms. They are also used to

achieve special illumination effects.

The L­CM modules also offer high efficien­ cy which is about 90lm/W. Color render­ ing indicator Ra of 70 ranks them among good light sources in 2A class, for which the Ra parameter can have the value from 70 to 79. In very good sources, the follow­ ing classes are distinguished: 1A (Ra ≥ 90) and 1B (Ra=80...89).

LED Modules designed for a 230V direct power supply One of Citizen’s newest products are mod­ ules designed to be directly supplied from the AC 220...240V/50...60 Hz. Presently, there are two versions of such modules: LMC10B­23L180A­11 with color tempera­ ture of 3000 K and luminous flux of 1100 lm and LMC10B­23W180A­11 with color temperature of 4000 K and luminuous flux of 1000 lm. An inovative technology of LED control – SCD (Selective Current Diversion) has been used.

It is characterized with high efficiency

Figure 5

and low interferences introduced to the network. Modules consume the power of 22W at the power coefficient of 0,97.

LEDs flickering frequency is equal to 100Hz, which is practically unnoticed by a human being. Due to operation at high voltages, enclosures have been made of material with high resistance to puncture.

Optoelectronics additional elements Optoelectronics offer is completed by components used for the assembly of light­ emitting diodes and additional collimators.

L250­HOLDER is a special LED enclosure facilitating its mounting (figure 4), where­ as, the L250­LENS15 element is an exter­ nal collimator for the family of CL­L250 diodes (figure 5). This collimator is used to correct light radiation characteristics.

Among discussed Citizen optoelectronic elements, it is easy to choose those which will meet the requirements of developed lighting applications. All presented diodes and LED modules glow with white color of different temperatures. They can be selected depending on individual needs and likings. Appliances developed by their means can fulfill decorative functions with a subtle, dispersed light intensity, but also appropriate elements can be selected in order to obtain a sharp and pointwise light in order to emphasize single ele­ ments of interiors equipment. Long life of Citizen LEDs guarantees a long, failure­ free operation of lighting systems in which those elements are implemented. n www.tme.eu More information available at: Transfer Multisort Elektronik Tel.: +48 42 645 54 44 Fax: +48 42 645 54 70 export@tme.eu www.tme.eu

TME becomes ARCOL distributor

New Lithium batteries in the TME’s range of products

Transfer Multisort Elektronik has become an official distributor of ARCOL company, a manu­ facturer of resistors. The manufacturer from the Great Britain offers a wide range of resistors with the power from fractions to several hundred Watts. The TME’s offer consists, among others, of popular resistors with a radiator and in the TO220 enclosure.

Transfer Multisort Elektronik has introduced to its range of products industrial batteries of a new manufacturer, TADIRAN Batteries GmbH. Among other novelties in the offer there are batteries in the DD, D, 1/10D, C, AA, 2/3AA and 1/2AA sizes. Lithium batteries are made in the LTC (Lithium Thionyl Chloride) technology, and are available in the capacity from 1000 mAh to 35000 mAh and voltage of 3,6V. The introduced items are offered in several versions of performance, with soldering plates, with axial and standard terminals.

The German manufacturer guarantees high quality of offered products.

Transfer Multisort Elektronik Tel.: +48 42 645 54 44 Fax: +48 42 645 54 70 export@tme.eu www.tme.eu

Transfer Multisort Elektronik Tel.: +48 42 645 54 44 Fax: +48 42 645 54 70 export@tme.eu www.tme.eu

14

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

EMBEDDED DESIGN

Kontron's ARM Offensive

Strategic entrance spearheaded by a new module standard Kontron's strategic entry into the ARM technology market, as announced in September, is already bearing fruit: A Computer-on-Module specification “Low-power Embedded Architecture Platform” targeting low-power SOC and ARM architectures and a first COM sample based on the Texas Instruments Sitara™ AM387x processor has been shown at the SPS/IPC/Drives 2011 along with a NVIDIA® Tegra™ based Pico-ITX™ sample.

With its current performance offerings and low power consumption, the latest ARM technology, which is already deployed in standard tablet applications, is now an alluring option for embedded small form factor (SFF) applications. Kontron's strate­ gic entry into the ARM technology in addi­ tion to that of ×86 derivatives is welcomed by the analysts VDC and a multitude of organizations. Konton's objective is to level out the technological boundaries between ARM and ×86 technologies as far as possi­ ble with scalable building blocks. This is of great interest to many OEMs because they will be able to obtain highly scalable plat­ forms with complete Board Support Packages (BSPs) for all popular operating systems. The abstraction brought about by suitable hardware specific software enables the creation of increasingly homo­ geneous application ready platforms.

OEMs will then be able to switch from one board, module or system to another with relative ease. Kontron is able to ensure this by providing appropriate standardization at the board and hardware­specific soft­ ware levels coupled with the inclusion of extensive software services. The amount of software tweaking required ranges from none at all to hardly any and is dependent on the operating system used and the application programming.

16

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

ARM solutions are always accompanied by full custom designs offerings at the board and system level, which would enable an OEM to focus entirely on application development. The need to grapple with individual specific features is thus eliminated.

Standards facilitate implementation A hardware design on board level demon­ strates how the selection of a suitable CPU for an application can be simplified: The interface feature set of Kontron's NVIDIA® Tegra™ 2 SOC based Pico­ITX™ board (see Inlay 1), which is currently in

Pico­ITX™ Board: SFF single board computer with NVIDIA® Tegra 2 dual core processor This Small Form Factor Pico­ITX™ format (100mm ×72mm) board, which is currently in development and planned for Q1/2012, is fitted with a 1 GHz NVIDIA® Tegra™ 2 dual core proces­ sor. It offers a completely passive cooling concept and a very low power consumption of 3 Watts in addition to an attractive feature set: The ARM Cortex A9 architecture based mini board includes 10/100Mbit Ethernet, three USB 2.0 ports, 16 freely configurable GPIOs and a slot for Micro SD cards as well as 512MB or 1GB 32­bit DDR­2 RAM. The audiovisual experience is not to be overlooked: The integrated ultra low power (ULP) NVIDIA® GeForce® GPU delivers a graphic performance for mobile devices in high play console quality and provides up to two simultaneous HD video streams (1080 p).

Displays are connected via DVI­I for analog and digital signal transmission as well as via two DSI and a 24­bit LVDS converter. Backlight support is either 5V internal or 12V external. Audio is supported with SPDIF as well as stereo line­in and line­out and MIC. Extensive hardware accelerators for flash, video and audio codecs provide flowing and brilliant playback of countless multimedia and web content.

EMBEDDED DESIGN development and planned for Q1/2012, hardly differs from that of Kontron's Intel® Atom™ or AMD Embedded G­Series designs. The main variance lies in the processor used, and hence the perform­ ance class (see Table 1).

A fundamental dissimilarity lies in the fact that the interfaces provided by ARM processors are more dedicated and less generic than for example SATA and PCI Express, which are often used for individ­ ual add­on options in ×86 based designs.

On the other hand, many ARM SOCs include several UARTs, I2C and SPI interfaces. From a purely theoretical viewpoint, the ARM interfaces can be made generic and stan­ dardized by investing in additional develop­ ment expenditure and components.

But this would result in a loss of the superi­ or power saving benefits that make ARM designs so attractive: The reduced cooling requirement gives rise to the inclusion of fanless designs that are more fail safe and have a higher MTBF. The resulting systems are thus easier to develop and manufacture. Both weight and cost are reduced because the need for heat pipes, heat sinks and fans is eliminated.

However, such development is mostly unnecessary, because when it comes to generic interfaces, particularly for SFF designs, the trend is to go for less rather

Table 1

than more. The difference in feature set between the Pico­ ITX™ boards is thus negligible. Because the Pico­ITX™ format is standardized, application­specific selec­ tion of a suitable ×86 or ARM design can take place barrier­free, within only one ecosystem. The advantage is mechanical compatibility with the entire existing product portfolio, which greatly eases system design.

In addition to the mechanical development advantage, Kontron boards also offer ben­ efits in terms of software. These include extensive support of all popular operating systems as well as the Kontron Embedded Application Programming Interface (KEAPI), which was released a year ago.

It ensures the overall design homogeneity by respective APIs for identical functions, independent from processor, operating system and form factor. Such application ready platforms significantly reduce the time to market and development cost. The option to outsource hardware develop­ ment also for ARM based solutions there­ fore becomes very feasible.

to offer its embedded customers the best platform in each case and to provide access to new applications that were pre­ viously not possible. High scalability of the appropriate standard form factors across all processor platforms is very useful because it allows easier OEM porting of applications between RISC and CISC archi­ tectures. With the addition of hardware specific software services to implement necessary code modifications to some extent, the underlying processor architec­ ture becomes ever less of a fundamental decision criterion.

Focus shifts to power consumption and performance per Watt. After an enormous success initiated by ×86 technology, the market has now entered a new era.

Thanks to extensive software support, the borders between different processor tech­ nologies have sunk because the software ecosystem is now expandable to further technology platforms. Consequently, the standard form factors at the board level must also be enhanced in accordance with the new processor platforms.

Scalability spanning processor platforms Did Kontron integrate ARM in the realm of ×86 form factors? Does this mean the entire technology battle is over? If it is up to Kontron, yes. Ultimately Kontron intends

New COM specification targeting ARM and low­power SOC When it comes to ARM and ×86 techno­ logy, it's not really possible to lump everything together.

Pico­ITX with ARM

KTA55/pITX

pITX­SP

(planned for Q1/2012)

Processor platform

NVIDIA® Tegra™ 2 1 GHz dual core

AMD Embedded G­Series, 1 GHz dual core

Intel® Atom™ Z5x0 1.1 / 1.6 GHz single core

Ethernet

1× 10/100 Mbit

1× 10/100/1000 Mbit

1× 10/100/1000 Mbit

USB

3× USB 2.0

6× USB 2.0

6× USB 2.0

Graphics

DVI­I, 24­bit single channel LVDS, Display Serial Interface

DVI­I, 24­bit dual channel LVDS

DVI­D, 24­bit single channel LVDS

Main memory

512 / 1024 MB DDR2

Max 4 GB DDR3

Max 2 GB DDR2

Storage

MicroSD Card Slot, Onboard NAND flash

2× SATA, MicroSD Card Slot

2× SATA, 1× PATA

Audio

2ch. In/out, Mic, SPDIF

HD audio

HD audio analog / SPDIF

I/O features

16× GPIO, 2× RS232, CSI, I2C, SPI, JTAG

8× GPIO

8­bit GPI/O, SDIO

Comparison of the three Pico-ITX™ feature sets reveals hardly any differences in terms of the most relevant interfaces such as USB, Ethernet and graphics and memory for SFF devices. In general, scalability with expansion into ARM technology is well underway. www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

17

EMBEDDED DESIGN Differences between the technologies should be left as such in order to utilize their individual advantages. This is why Kontron developed a new specification for Computer­on­Modules that is particularly suitable for ARM and low­power SOC processor technology. Up to now, all exist­ ing module specifications have been influ­ enced by x86 technology, with feature sets proving too complex for ARM technolo­ gies: For example, a classical ×86 chipset offers a multitude of typical PC interfaces such as PCI Express lanes, USB and SATA ports. But typical ARM SOCs feature more classical embedded ports such as UART, I²C, and several SDIOs, with fewer PC interfaces: PCIe ×16 graphics and PCI are for example not supported as native. ARM

based SOC exhibits differences in video outputs and offers to some extent dedicat­ ed camera interfaces. In ARM processors these are often implemented according to the MIPI® standard such as Camera Serial Interface (CSI) and are currently not implemented in a module standard.

Using the new COM specification, Kontron has defined two new form factors as a future defacto industrial standard for embedded module designs based on ARM and low­power SOC technology. This is complementary to the successful COM Express® standard. Kontron's ETX® standard has already demonstrated that "defacto" industrial standards can be successfully accepted worldwide without committees such as PICMG® or VITA®.

Example of a visiting card sized module with TI Sitara™ AM387x processor family The extremely compact sized (50 mm × 82 mm) ARM computer­on­module, which is currently in development and planned for Q1/2012, is based on the Texas Instruments AM387× single core processor with ARM® Cortex™ A8 and up to 1 GB DDR3 RAM. It integrates the high performance SGX530 3D graphic engine for resolutions up to 1080p at 60Hz and can thus even drive large sized panels in Full HD. Video interfaces include LVDS, embedded DisplayPort (eDP) as well as HDMI 1.3 via a MXM 3.0 connector.

I2S provides a loss­free transmission of digital multi­channel sound, which is important for example in infotainment or multimedia Kiosk/POI applications.

Its further I/O features predestine the future Kontron module for deployment in vehicles or in the industrial sector: 2× CAN (CAN version 2 Part A, B) as well as Gigabit Ethernet facilitate IT and field integration. Two MIPI­CSI (Mobile Industry Processor Interface) conformal camera inputs are also included, which can for example be used in medical applications as well as for optical quality control, gesture based control for HMIs and for personal identification at kiosk systems.

For application­specific extensions offers, the Kontron ARM module includes a PCI Express Gen 2.0 Lane and 3× SDIO, which can for example connect WiFi or 3G/4G modules. 2× USB 2.0 and 2× SPI are also included, which can be used to connect a touch screen. As a matter of interest, there's also an option to use the USB as a client. In such applications the module is attached as peripheral device to a host system. Areas of application include anywhere where complex periphery is required with decentralized intelligence, or where system functions are to be read for parametrization via USB. For a quick start in application development, Kontron will provide an appropriate carrier board with two SDIO slots. Kontron also undertakes application­specific carrier board development including all the necessary testing, certification and basic software right up to complete system integration. This enables OEMs to fully concentrate on application development with the new ARM based modules.

The new COM specification embossed by Kontron is already supported by a further prominent embedded vendor, Adlink.

Within Kontron itself, the new COMs form an important base platform for future scalable low power / ARM based applica­ tion ready platforms such as Box PCs, HMIs and industrial TabletPCs. The new COM specification The new specification was developed based on the 314 pin MXM 3.0 connector.

This is a durable and particularly flat con­ struction with a cost­efficient card edge/goldfinger. Several form factors are supported in order to offer flexibility regarding various mechanical require­ ments. Two dimensions are consequently specified: A small 82mm × 50 mm module and a larger one at 82mm × 80mm prima­ rily intended for future high­performance multicore processors.

Kontron has positioned the specification for the low­power performance class, such as ARM tailored modules, as a plat­ form alternative to existing proprietary custom module implementations that are often tailored to a single ARM processor.

The Kontron driven open COM specifica­ tion really comes into its own with the lat­ est MXM 3.0 connector which enables very flat designs and is also available in a shock and vibration proof construction suitable for automotive applications. Even more decisive is the fact that the pin allo­ cation and thus the feature set are specifi­ cally designed for ARM and SOC processor technologies. The new connector gives rise to new interfaces: Video outputs include LVDS and in future embedded DisplayPort, 24­bit RGB and HDMI are also possible. For the first time dedicated camera interfaces are also included in the standard. Consequently, users no longer need to compromise or work with ineffi­ cient specifications that are stretched between between the ×86 feature set and lean ARM I/Os.

The new COM specification offers two different formats for excellent scalability. It is optimized for low power SOC and ARM architectures.

The new COM specification includes an extremely flat MXM 3.0 connector, with a height of only 4.3 mm. With 314 available pins, it offers a multitude of IO functions for SOC and ARM performance class processors.

18 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS INDUSTRY NEWS Outlook: Extensive services to get you up and running To enable customers to begin using ARM technology immediately, Kontron will pro­ vide its ARM­based building blocks in bun­ dles with extensive custom design servic­ es. This means OEM customers can have already integrated application ready plat­ forms at the board and system levels as standard products or customized and made to order. In addition to this individ­ ual hardware development service at the board and system level, Kontron will pro­ vide extensive services during software development, ranging from driver develop­ ment and OS code modifications to exten­ sive application porting and validation services, as well as HW/SW bundles and volume licensing. Application developers are able to benefit from efficient migra­ tions, quick time to market and signifi­ cantly reduced development costs, because they receive an "application ready platform," which if required is already certified. This enables customers to fully concentrate on their core compe­ tence: application development.

It goes without saying that Kontron also supports all ARM relevant operating sys­ tems: In addition to Windows CE 6 and Windows Embedded Compact 7 (WEC7), Linux based operating systems will be sup­ ported as well as Android on ARM prod­ ucts. VxWorks support will be conceived for TI processors. This is of particular interest for applications requiring maxi­ mum availability and real time behavior.

As is the case with x86 based products, Kontron's ARM products will also support the ARM native version of Windows 8 as per availability on the part of Microsoft.

Kontron's support for Android, which is still a relatively young OS that is popular in the smartphone and tablet market, allows it to open up the door to the huge market of networked, multimedia oriented applica­ tions based on ARM technology. BSPs will be validated for the OS right up to the sys­ tem level. OEMs are therefore able to focus on the application without having to tra­ verse a learning curve. This keeps the time to market and TCO to a minimum.

First ARM based products for the new COM specification and SFF boards Kontron plans to launch at Embedded World 2012 and complete ARM based systems like tablet­PC, HMI and Box­PC are planned for the second half of 2012 and beyond. n www.kontron.de

Author: Norbert Hauser is Executive Vice President at Kontron AG

Kontron and Napatech to exhibit carrier grade network analysis demo during Mobile World Congress 2012 Kontron and Napatech announced a tech­ nology collaboration to demonstrate a live telecom network analysis platform based on the off­the­shelf, NEBS­compliant Kontron communication rackmount server CG2100 and Napatech NEBS­ compliant adapter cards. The integrated demo platform is targeted at telecom equipment manufacturers (TEMs) who seek a significantly improved time to market for the design of network moni­ toring, management, security, and test and optimization applications. Live product demonstrations will be hosted

by Napatech at booth 2G28, Hall 2.0 dur­ ing Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 27 ­ March 1, 2012. Featured are the carrier grade Kontron communication rackmount server CG2100 with dual 6­core

Intel Xeon processors and the Napatech NT20E­NEBS 2x10 Gbps NEBS­compliant network adapter and its deep packet cap­

ture and throughput acceleration features.

KONTRON A.G. www.kontron.com

Kontron announces deployable industrial temp-rated platform for smart M2M applications Kontron announced the availability of its Machine­to­Machine (M2M) deployable sys­ tem, the Kontron KM2M806XT. Adding to the company’s existing portfolio of M2M smart services embedded­connected devices, Kontron’s new ready­to­deploy hardware platform matches the require­ ments of M2M applications that must oper­ ate in extended temperatures and industrial environments. The Kontron KM2M806XT comes complete with application­ready middleware and supports M2M digital device connectivity right out of the box. An optimal platform specifically for factory and smart building automation applica­ tions, Kontron’s new M2M system is indus­ trial temp rated (­40 to +85 °C) and includes a cast aluminium case with ther­ mal management capabilities needed for operation under extended temperature con­

ditions.

The new industrial temperature Kontron M2M system KM2M806XT is based on the Intel Atom processor architecture. The device is designed with a modular approach, which includes a carrier board, audio/video board, a Kontron COM Express mini Computer­on­Module (Kontron COMe­ mTT10), an optional expansion board along with a M2M software development kit from Wind River.

KONTRON A.G. www.kontron.com

Kontron's new 4U industrial rackmount server features 2nd generation Intel Core i3/i5/i7 processors and a new system design Kontron has announced the availability of the KISS 4U Short Q67Flex, the latest addi­ tion to the Kontron Industrial Silent Server (KISS) family in the 4U short 19" rack for­ mat. The industrial rackmount server boasts long­term availability as well as outstanding speed and graphics perform­ ance with the 2nd generation Intel Core i3/i5/i7 processors. The server's scope of application is extended into demanding areas such as in­vehicle systems in the transportation segment or military appli­ cations. In addition to the high processor and graphics performance, other new features of the optimized server design are a temperature range of 0 to 55°C (60°C at 10% POH per month), improved

shock and vibration resistance as well as hot­swappable chassis fans, which are positioned at the front of the system to make swapping more convenient and thus reduce maintenance effort.

KONTRON A.G. www.kontron.com www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

19

EMBEDDED DESIGN

General-purpose Graphics Processing Units Deliver New Capabilities to the Embedded Market

Today’s graphics processors are highly programmable, massively parallel compute engines. With the development of open, industry standards, parallel programming languages such as OpenCL™ and the continued evolution of heterogeneous computing, general-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) offer exciting new capabilities for the embedded market.

GPGPU Challenges What makes GPGPU computing so enticing is the availability of extreme floating­point performance in cost­effective GPUs. In order to benefit from these performance gains, embedded systems need to meet three more challenges: lower power consumption, open standards, and parallel algorithms.

Low power consumption is one of these challenges because embedded applications typically have more modest thresholds for TDP. They are furthermore faced with size, weight, and power (SWaP) constraints.

Portable ultra­sound machines for example benefit from small size, yet demand high­ performance compute capabilities for real­ time imaging. GPGPU offers new compute capabilities within limited power budgets

20 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

for telecom infrastructure. Many defense and aerospace applications (e.g., sonar, radar, video surveillance) require high­per­ formance compute capabilities delivered in embedded form factors. To meet the grow­ ing demand for embedded GPGPU, the AMD Radeon E6760 Embedded GPU delivers 16.5 GFLOPs/W at a modest TDP of about 35W. Heterogeneous Computing and OpenCL To easily gain access to these performance gains OpenCL provides an open standard that enables parallel programming of GPUs (and other processors like CPUs, FPGAs, Cell, etc.). It is created by an industry consortium that includes many chip vendors, software companies, and research organizations. As it has matured, it has become the API of choice

for code that is portable across different hardware and also different operating sys­ tems. This section discusses how OpenCL can be used for programming GPUs. OpenCL Kernel GPUs are extremely good at parallel pro­ cessing, especially at doing similar compu­ tations on lots of data (also called data­par­ allel computations). We will use a very simple example to illustrate our point – a simple element­wise addition of two arrays a and b with the result written to another array c. Instead of adding one pair of ele­ ments at a time, as happens in CPU code, we can use OpenCL to do many additions in parallel on the GPU. The following table is a typical code snippet to do the addition on a

EMBEDDED DESIGN single­core CPU, which looks very similar to the OpenCL kernel that will do the same addition on GPU.

CPU code for (int i = 0; i < sizeOfArray; i++) { c[i] = a[i] + b[i]; } The operation for each item i is called a work­item. Conceptually, all work­items in a kernel are executed in parallel – we can­ not tell if work­item i=x is physically exe­ cuted before, at the same time, or after another work­item i=y. (However, we know that on GPUs, hundreds and even thousands of work­items can be in the midst of execution at any time.)

OpenCL provides us a way of grouping batches of work­items together into work­ groups. In general, work­items cannot syn­ chronize or exchange data with each other, but work­items belonging to the same work­group can. This allows us to write OpenCL kernels that are much more sophisticated than this example. Advanced examples are beyond the scope of this paper; however, there are plenty of tutori­ als available in the web that show advanced usage OpenCL kernel features.

OpenCL Host Program Until now, we have talked about the code that will execute on the GPU. But first we will have to write a host program (CPU code) to control and use the GPU. It will find and initialize the GPU(s), send data and the kernel code to the GPU, instruct the GPU to start execution and know when the results are ready, and read back the results from the GPU. OpenCL makes it easy for multiple imple­ mentations of OpenCL to co­exist on the same machine. For example, you can have one implementation that targets the CPU, another for the GPU(s), and yet another for other accelerators that may be on board.

So, the first step in our OpenCL program has to be to find out how many platforms (implementations) are present on the cur­ rent machine and choose one from them.

Within a platform, we will create a context (typically one, but we can create more for advanced usage). We can think of the con­ text as a somewhat self­contained universe that contains the rest of the OpenCL resources. All of the following steps will take place specific to the context we create.

Next we query and retrieve the OpenCL devices present in this context – in our case, GPUs. We will also need to compile and build the OpenCL program (one or more kernels) for execution on the chosen devices.

We will also create OpenCL buffers that will store our data before and after GPU

execution. For the addition kernel example, we will create three buffers oa, ob, and oc corresponding to the arrays a, b, and c.

OpenCL kernel code void kernel_foo(… … …) { int i = get_global_id(0); c[i] = a[i] + b[i]; Now that we have initialized the GPU and the code that will be executed on the GPU, we are ready to send commands to the GPU (send data, execute kernel, retrieve results, etc.). For efficiency reasons, it makes sense for the host (CPU) program to issue those command calls in an asynchronous (non­ blocking) manner. That is, the host pro­ gram should be able to submit a command to the GPU (for example, data transfer) and not have to wait for the action (data trans­ fer) to be completed. This way, the host can move on to do other things, including send­ ing other commands to the GPU. OpenCL provides a nice construct to submit commands to the GPU: the command queue. For ease of use, there are both blocking and non­blocking variants for a variety of commands that can be submitted to the command queue. In addition, there are mechanisms to query whether a com­ mand (or an event) has completed, and ways for the host program to wait until all preceding OpenCL commands have finished execution. Depending on the properties of the command queue, the submitted com­ mands may be executed either in order of submission or out of order.

All the steps we have performed on the host program until now are initialization activities towards setting up the GPU and preparing it to execute one or more pro­ grams. We have found a platform, created a context, initialized a device and one or more kernels, and created buffers and a command queue. For most use cases, we need to perform these steps just once, and then we can move on to executing the code on the GPU. First, we will send the data in arrays a and b to the corresponding OpenCL buffers we created earlier. To be more specific, we will submit (or queue) commands to start the data transfers to the command queue.

Second, we will set up the arguments the OpenCL kernel will use when it is execut­ ed. For the example using the addition ker­ nel, we will bind the OpenCL buffers oa, ob, and oc to the kernel parameters a, b, and c.

Next, we will submit the action to execute the kernel. One critical piece of informa­ tion we need to give at this point is how many items the addition kernel needs to work on. That is, we need to provide the total number of work­items.

• TeraScale 2 architecture delivering 576GFLOPs SP (peak) • Full hardware implementation of DirectCompute11, OpenCL 1.0, Shader Model 5.0 • Ultra threaded dispatch processor with instruction cache • 6 SIMD engines (MPMD) • Each SIMD engine consists of 16 Stream Cores (SC), Stream core = thread processor • Each SC consists of 5 Processing Elements (PE) • 6 SIMD * 16 SC * 5 PE = 480 PEs (or shaders) • 64KB global data share (GDS) shared by SIMDs and accessible by host CPU. • 128K L2 cache, dual-channel 128-bit GDDR5 memory interface • GDDR5 memory controller • EDC (error detection code) provides CRC checks on GDRR5 data transfers • GDDR5 link temperature compensation, link retraining • Architecture supports atomic operations, write coalesces, semaphores, barrier synchronization etc.

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

21

EMBEDDED DESIGN In our example, the array sizes are sizeOfArray, so that will be the total number of work­ items. After the kernel submission, we submit a command to read back from the OpenCL buffer oc to the array c. Assuming we submitted the previous calls to the command queue in a non­blocking fashion, we will need to make a call to wait until all submitted actions on the command queue are finished, at which point the correct result will reside on the target array c.

Conclusion An understanding of OpenCL is the key for widespread adoption of GPGPU technologies in the embedded market. Many algorithms map well to GPGPU architectures and show compelling performance gains compared to traditional multi­core CPU implementations.

GPGPUs deliver compelling GFLOPs per watt with attractive GFLOPs per cost to enable new capabilities for size, weight, and power­constrained embedded applications. n Authors: Peter Mandl is Senior Product Marketing Manager, Embedded Client Business at Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Udeepta Bordoloi is Senior Member Technical Staff, Embedded Client Business Compute Application Software at Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. 1

OpenCL and the OpenCL logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. used by permission by Khronos

Bibliography: 1) A Fast GEMM Implementation on a Cypress CPU, Naohito Nakasato, University of Aizu, Fukushima, Japan, nakasato@u­aizu.ac.jp 2) AMD Radeon™ E6760 Databook, Product Brief 3) NVIDIA GeForce GT 240 GPU Toms Hardware GeForce GT 240 product review @ http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce­gt­240,2475.html 4) AMD Phenom II X6 1090T CPU General: http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/processors/phenom­ii/Pages/phenom­ii­key­architectural­features.aspx Price: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3674/amds­sixcore­phenom­ii­x6­1090t­1055t­reviewed/1 5) NVIDIA GeForce GT240 GPU, GT240 GE Fanu GRA111 3U VPX Graphics Board Product Brief “GRA111 3U VPX High Performance Graphics Board” http://defense.ge­ip.com/products/3429 6) Xilinx Virext­6 SX475T FPGA State of the Art in Heterogeneous Computing A.R. Brodtkorb, C. Dyken, T.R. Hagen, J.M. Hjelmervik, O.O. Storaasli http://babrodtk.at.ifi.uio.no/Research/Publications 7) Texas Instruments TMS320C6678 Fixed/Floating­point DSP TMS320C6678 Databook Power: http://www.bdti.com/InsideDSP/2010/11/18/Ti Price: http://eecatalog.com/multicore/2011/02/10/for­multimedia­infrastructure­applications­texas­instruments­multicore­ tms320c6678­dsp­delivers­increased­density­low­power­cost­efficient­solution/

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS INDUSTRY NEWS

Power supply app and web interactive product selector launched

MSC introduces Qseven™ Module with AMD® Embedded G-Series Processors

XP Power announced two new online product selection tools for engineers that ease the process of choosing a power supply. Available from the XP Power web site, httwww.xppower.com, the product selector allows search­ ing by product type, (AC­DC or DC­DC), or by application type such as healthcare, industrial, technology, defense & avionics and LED lighting. Simple search parameters such as power rating, input voltage, output voltage(s) and mechani­ cal format provide a quick and straightforward method of finding the ideal power supply from a choice of over 2,000 models in XP Power’s product line­up. It is also possible to search products specifically classified as green power. Once your search has yielded results you can then simply select the model number that suits your specific requirements in order to obtain full product data, download the datasheet, or check stock.

The second selection tool now available is a free dedicated app

MSC Vertriebs GmbH presents its latest Qseven™ module based on the AMD® Embedded G­ Series of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). The compact module complies with the latest Qseven specification rev. 1.2 and measures 70×70mm.

The AMD Embedded G­Series of APUs combines a low­power CPU and a discrete­level GPU in a single processor chip. MSC is focusing on the two lowest­ power processors of this family for the new Qseven module: the T40E dual­core proces­ sor and the T40R single­ core chip both clocked at 1.0GHz and featuring very low power dissipa­ tion (TDP) of 6.4W or 5.5W, respectively. This allows fanless system designs and highly integrated solutions.

Both processors come with the built­in AMD Radeon™ HD6250 Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) which delivers very high graph­ ics performance and supports OpenGL® 4.0, DirectX™­11 and

for use on Apple® iOS® or Android™­based smartphones and devices.

The interactive phone app pro­ vides immediate access to over 2000 models within XP Power’s product range by the simple selection of key design parame­ ters, offering exact match or

closest fit solutions. Once the suitable power supply is cho­ sen, the engineer has the opportunity to view detailed product datasheets, share prod­ uct information via email, cre­ ate a bill of materials, or email the BOM for a quote, leadtimes, or further information.

24

faces such as 6Gbit/s SATA, Gen. 2 PCI­Express and HD Audio which ideally suit the interface definition of the Qseven bus connector.

MSC VERTRIEBS GmbH www.msc­ge.com

XP POWER www.xppower.com

Aeroflex introduces Measurement Suite for WLAN 802.11ac devices Aeroflex Limited announced that the company is adding 802.11ac support to its popu­ lar PXI 3000 Series test system to facilitate the worldwide growth of 802.11ac Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) mobile devices. Wireless devices using the 802.11ac standard will boast a 6X increase in network speed over 802.11n. The 802.11ac devices are faster because they use a less congested portion of the radio frequency (RF) spec­ trum, have wider bandwidth, and use more advanced digital modulation techniques.

Aeroflex PXI 3000 Series sup­ ports transmitter and receiver testing within one compact PXI modular RF test system.

The system is designed for use by silicon vendors, WLAN board integrators, consumer electronics device manufactu­

OpenCL™ 1.1. Each G­Series processor supports single or dual independent high­resolu­ tion displays and delivers excep­ tional multi­media capability up to Full­HD with hardware decode support for H.264, VC­1, MPEG2, WMV, DivX™ and Adobe® Flash built into the Unified Video Decoder (UVD3).

Paired with the AMD Embedded A50M Controller Hub, the plat­ form supports advanced inter­

rers, and contract manufactur­ ers who need to perform RF parametric tests on devices during manufacturing.

Aeroflex’s PXI 3000 Series RF modules support wideband signal analysis and generation for frequencies up to 6 GHz, easily covering the bandwidth and frequency requirements of 802.11ac. Modulation schemes for 802.11ac are sup­ ported, from BPSK to 256QAM. AEROFLEX www.aeroflex.com

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Aeroflex adds LTE-Advanced support to TM500 LTE Test Mobile Aeroflex Limited announced that the TM500 LTE Test Mobile now supports carrier aggregation, which is a key enabling technology for LTE­ Advanced. This feature allows multiple carriers comprised of either contiguous or non­con­ tiguous spectrum to be added together, allowing wider chan­ nel bandwidths—and faster data rates—to be achieved.

For LTE­Advanced, 3GPP Release 10 introduced several new features to augment the existing LTE standard and to meet or exceed the targets of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for IMS­Advanced.

These features are aimed at raising the peak data rate to 1 Gbps and beyond. Achieving this speed will require a chan­ nel bandwidth that is much wider than the 20 MHz cur­ rently specified for LTE. This

will not be possible with just a single carrier in the limited spectrum bands available to most operators. Consequently, carrier aggregation—the abili­ ty to combine multiple carriers scattered around the spec­ trum—will be used to achieve

the wider effective bandwidth that will be required, typically up to 100 MHz. AEROFLEX www.aeroflex.com

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS INDUSTRY NEWS

CMX7861 'FirmCODEC' - full featured analogue Front End for DSP/FPGA/MCU Based Systems

Highly integrated UMTS/HSPA module with 7.2 Mbps download speed and 5.76 Mbps upload speed

The CMX7861 ‘FirmCODEC’ is a full featured analogue front end for DSP/FPGA/MCU based systems. The device is a combi­ nation of codec, embedded sig­ nal processing and auxiliary system support functions, allowing simple interfacing between analogue and digital systems that together improve overall system performance, reduce development time and overall system cost.

Modern­day electronic systems, notably communication, control and monitoring are increasing­ ly migrating to digital opera­ tions, an area dominated by DSP/FPGA/Microcontroller sig­ nal processing. However, the real world is essentially ana­ logue, making analogue to digi­ tal and digital to analogue inter­ faces a crucial part of the over­ all design. FirmCODEC provides this solution. The device is intended for use in a number of applications including radio systems performing the main data conversion and auxiliary operations for monitoring and control, operating in channel bandwidths up to 50kHz and

MSC presents the U10 Multi­ band WCDMA / GSM module from Quectel at embedded world 2012, Nuremberg in Hall 2, Booth 2­219 from February 28 to March 1, 2012. The U10 features a High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) of 7.2 Mbps and a High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) of 5.76 Mbps. The module, which was designed for use in HSPA, GPRS and EDGE modems and portable multimedia applications, has dimensions of only 37.7 mm × 29.9 mm × 5 mm and is based on the new MT6276 communi­ cations controller that is equipped with a 32­bit ARM1176 RISC processor.

Apart from a high­speed USB 2.0 interface and two analog audio inputs/outputs, for multi­ media applications the U10 module additionally provides three UARTs, separate inter­ faces for SD and Dual SIM cards as well as an own interface for cameras with up to 8 megapix­ els resolution.

interfacing RF devices to base­ band DSP/FPGA/microcon­ troller. Single­ended and differ­ ential interface options are pro­ vided and I/Q­based operation is supported. Fully­programma­ ble on­chip independent dual channel, digital channel filters can be utilised for signal condi­

tioning purposes. An Intelligent four­channel SAR ADC, 4 inde­ pendent DACs and GPIO sub­ systems perform valuable func­ tions and minimise host inter­ action and resources. Two syn­ thesised system clock genera­ tors develop clock signals for off­chip use.

CML MICROCIRCUITS www.cmlmicro.com

Aeroflex announces a new family of low-cost broadband signal analyzers Aeroflex Incorporated announced a new family of three low­cost broadband sig­ nal analyzers. These analyzers locate, record, and analyze complex communications sig­ nals for commercial, military, and aerospace applications.

Based on Aeroflex’s success­ ful Broadband Signal Analyzer (BSA) family, the Scout, Hunter, and Explorer signal analyzers offer market­ leading performance at very attractive prices. The new sig­ nal analyzer product family consists of a portable signal analyzer, the Aeroflex Scout CS1104, and two rack­mount­ able signal analyzers, the Aeroflex Hunter CS1207 and the Aeroflex Explorer CS1247.

Common applications for the products are radar; communi­ cations; broadband RF test; satellites; electronic warfare

26

(EW)/electronic countermea­ sures (ECM); spectrum moni­ toring; propagation measure­ ment; electromagnetic envi­ ronments (EME) analysis; wireless; and chip test. All

products have an intuitive user interface based on the market­ leading Aeroflex BSA software, which is familiar to current BSA users and easy to navigate for new users. The family of Aeroflex BSAs incorporates a longer contiguous record time and solves a wider array of dif­ ficult problems more quickly than competitive products.

AEROFLEX www.aeroflex.com

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Furthermore, a digital signal processor with MPEG­4, H.263 and H.264 codecs, which is inte­ grated on the MT6276 commu­ nications controller, enables the recording and playing back of high­resolution images and videos in real­time.

A Bluetooth Host Controller that is fully compatible with the Bluetooth Specification Version 2.1 + EDR is also integrated on the module and enables data transfer rates of up to 3 Mbit/s.

MSC VERTRIEBS GmbH www.msc­ge.com.

Ericsson Power Modules Takes Significant Step Forward with New Digital-Power Technology to Reduce Power Consumption Ericsson has unveiled its sec­ ond digital­power Advanced Bus Converter platform for use with board­mounted DC/DC power modules in telecom and datacom applications. The company’s new FRIDA II plat­ form integrates an unprece­ dented number of technical innovations and industry firsts to make a significant contri­ bution in further reducing energy consumption.

Delivering lower power dis­ sipation in end­customer systems – decreasing the requirement for hard cool­ ing – the new platform will also bring higher reliability, lower CO2 emissions and lower Total Cost Of Ownership (TCO2). Ericsson was the first company to introduce digitally controlled and PMBus­compli­ ant advanced DC/DC bus con­ version technology with its BMR453. Built around the

capabilities of the 32­bit ARM7TDMI­S microprocessor core, the FRIDA II platform integrates brand new hard­ ware and firmware that has been optimized to guarantee the highest efficiency at any point of operation. The plat­ form offers a tightly regulated output voltage (2%) across the

entire operational range – from 36V to 75V – together with an unprecedented output response to input disturbances such as line transients.

ERICSSON POWER MODULES www.ericsson.com/powermodules

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS INDUSTRY NEWS

DSM presents a high-performance rail-mounted PC: power for the electrical-equipment cabinet DSM Computer has extended its compact H1­A rail­mounted PC family with a higher perform­ ance variant that incorporates an energy­saving Intel® Atom™ processor Z530 (1.6 GHz). The standardized installation capa­ bilities allow the computer that is 90 mm high and only 41 mm (55 mm with cooling fins) deep to be installed very quickly in electri­ cal­equipment or switchgear cabi­ nets. With a width of 122 mm (7 U), the IPC – in a robust, high­quality alu­ minum housing – can be installed under the rail­mount­ ing standard cover.

In addition to the processor, the Qseven™ module of MSC Vertriebs GmbH installed in the H1­A integrates a 1 GB DDR2 RAM and an Intel® US15W SCH System Controller Hub with integrated Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator GMA 500. A 3.6 GB flash memory permits the implementation of embed­ ded operating systems, such as

Windows® POSReady, Windows® Embedded Standard and Linux, as well as the stor­ age of user data. The Qseven® module is equipped with a TPM (Trusted Platform Module) for protection against unautho­

rized external access. To achieve an optimum heat dissi­ pation, the small 70 × 70 mm embedded module is directly connected with the computer housing. The rail­mounted computer provides two fast 1000 Base­T LAN connections, two USB 2.0 ports and a serial RS232 connection. If required, a second RS232 can be imple­ mented instead of the existing VGA interface.

DSM COMPUTER GmbH www.dsm­computer.com

CANopen truck gateway The CAN in Automation (CiA) international users’ and manu­ facturers’ group has released version 3.0 of the CAN truck gateway specification. Gateways compliant to this specification link CAN in­vehicle networks to CANopen­based body applications.

Truck bodies are, for example, cranes, aerial working platforms, concrete mixers, or road­cleaning equipment.

Objective of the standardized gate­ way interface is that a body con­ troller can be installed on differ­ ent truck brands without much integration effort. Iveco already provides many of its trucks with CiA 413 compatible gateways.

The CANopen profile specifica­

tion is widely based on the ISO 11992 series. In addition, it specifies a mapping of generic J1939 messages to the CANopen dictionary. Part 8 of CiA 413 describes the frame­ work to use the in­vehicle dis­ play by the body controller. This avoids the installa­ tion of a separate body­specific dis­ play. CiA has released also the CiA 850 recom­ mended practice, which specifies the gateway imple­ mentation for truck­mounted cranes. The leading European crane manufacturers have developed it.

CAN IN AUTOMATION GmbH www.can­cia.org

EasyPIC PRO v7 is released!

We are really excited to present you with the new best place for big PICs ­ EasyPIC PRO v7 board. For the first time in his­ tory we have managed to com­ bine all the features of BIGPIC6 and LV18F v6 boards, which supported high pin count PICs into the unique EasyPIC™ PRO v7. Supporting microcontrollers in both 5V and 3.3V power sup­ ply technology, this board is truly fantastic tool for devel­ opment. Newly redesigned MCU cards are here to stay.

They are well organized and cover all high­pin­count PIC® microcontrollers in TQFP pack­ aging. As in EasyPIC v7, we've grouped PORT headers, LEDs and Buttons into Input­Output groups. We've equipped the boards with tri­state DIP switches, so placing pull­up or pull­down jumpers to desired pins is now just a matter of pushing the switch. Connecti­ vity is also the focus of this board. It has dual power supply, supporting both 3.3V and 5V microcontrollers. It's like hav­

ing two boards instead of one!

Probably the best feature of the board is powerful on­board mikroProg™ programmer and In­Circuit debugger, capable of

programming almost 100 high pin count PIC18® microcon­ trollers! EasyPIC PRO™ v7 has three mikroBUS™ sockets so you will be able to use fast growing number of available Click™ Boards. Board is enriched by new modules: Serial EEPROM, Piezo Buzzer and support for both DS1820, and LM35 Temperature sen­ sors. Ethernet is supported over RJ45 connector, so you will be able to exploit internal Ethernet modules of PIC18FX7J60 microcontrollers.

MIKROELEKTRONIKA www.mikroe.com

Advantech selects Innovasic Semiconductor’s Industrial Ethernet Solution for their Profinet Communication Coupler Innovasic Semiconductor is pleased to announce that Advantech has selected the Innovasic fido1100 System on a Chip (SoC) solution to pro­ vide Profinet connectivity in their new APAX­5071 Profinet Communication Coupler.

“Innovasic’s fido1100-based Industrial Ethernet platforms enable Industrial Ethernet communications quickly and cost-effectively,” said Jordon Woods, Innovasic CTO. “By utilizing these platforms, customers are spared the burden of understanding the implementation of these communication protocols allowing them instead to focus on their differentiating applications thus reducing time to market,” he concluded.

“Innovasic’s platform provided the means for us to quickly add Profinet connectivity to our

APAX product line. Having previously selected Innovasic’s solution for the EtherNet/IP version of our APAX coupler, we were able to quickly produce a Profinet version with no changes to the hardware,” said Tiger Yeh, Director ­ Advantech Industrial Automation Group.

INNOVASIC SEMICONDUCTOR www.innovasic.com

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

27

ACTIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS

IR’s Versatile Family of CHiL Digital PWM Controllers Delivers Smallest Footprint

TI advanced signal conditioners deliver industry’s highest performance at lowest power

International Rectifier, IR® has launched its highly versatile family of CHiL digital PWM con­ trollers that dramatically shrinks footprint and improves efficiency in a variety of mid­ range to high­end and extreme server, desktop, and computing applications. IR’s six new devices meet Intel VR12 and VR12.5 and AMD SVI1 and SVI2 specifi­ cations, and support multiphase designs from 1 to 8 phases operating 1 to 2 loops.

These new third gener­ ation CHiL devices offer efficiency shaping fea­ tures such as phase shedding and variable gate drive with enhanced algorithms including PID scaling (when shedding phases) and phase current bal­ ancing to ensure maximum efficiency. The solution archi­ tecture supports the extremely high di/dt transients from high­ end processors, and, as a result of a new Adaptive Transient Algorithm (ATA), the transients can be met with fewer phases

Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) introduced 10 signal condi­ tioners designed to drive high­ speed interface standards such as 10G/40G/100G Ethernet, 10G­KR (802.3ap), InfiniBand, Fibre Channel and CPRI. The new integrated circuits (ICs) join a comprehensive family of repeaters and retimers that combat signal impairments caused by insertion loss, jitter, reflections and crosstalk in high­speed enterprise ser­ vers, routers and switches.

Manufactured using TI’s high­performance BiCMOS SiGe process technology, these new signal condition­ ers deliver the industry’s highest signal reach per­ formance at less than 6­ mW per gigabit. For more information on these products, visit www.ti.com/sigcon­pr.

Key features and benefits of the DS1xxDF410, DS1xxRT410 and DS100KRxxx families: • Extend reach to exceed 50+ inches of FR­4 backplane or 20 meters of 26­AWG copper cable [36-dB input EQ and 12-dB out-

and fewer capacitors to shrink system size. The new CHiL digi­ tal PWM controllers feature a 30 percent reduction in operat­ ing current to help meet higher efficiency goals during low­load operation. For protection of high­end circuits, the devices offer improved pulse­by­pulse

current limit protection, con­ trolled pulse width limiting a new phase imbalance/phase missing fault feature. The devices fully support phase doubling using IR’s IR3598 to drive two phases from each PWM output.

INTERNATIONAL RECTIFIER www.irf.com

Power Integrations Announces LED Driver Reference Design for High-Efficiency UniversalVoltage Fluorescent Tube Replacement Power Integrations announced a new reference design (DER­ 286) describing a 30 W LED tube replacement ballast power supply capable of achieving industry­leading efficiency lev­ els of over 90% across a wide input­voltage range while meeting worldwide require­ ments for power factor (PF) and total harmonic distortion (THD). The DER­ 286 LED driver reference design is based on the LNK419EG, a member of Power Integrations’ LinkSwitch™­PH family of ICs. LinkSwitch­PH devices combine a controller and 725 V MOSFET to dramatically reduce the complexity and component count of the design, making it ideal for the increasingly cost­ sensitive market for LED­based

fluorescent­tube replacements.

The LinkSwitch­PH device per­ forms both PFC and constant­ current functions in an advanced single­stage topology, eliminating the need for large, temperature­sensitive elec­

trolytic bulk capacitors, which in turn reduces the size and increases the lifetime of the power supply.

POWER INTEGRATIONS, Inc. www.powerint.com

28 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

put de-emphasis (DE); Multi-tap decision feedback equalizer (DFE); Clock and data recovery (CDR) with internal clock synthesis; Repeaters consume 65mW per channel; retimers with CDR consume 150-mW per channel].

• Reduce bill of materials (BOM) cost and simplify system design [Fully adaptive EQ simplifies link tuning; Internal clock synthesis

avoids the need for an external reference clock; Built-in eye monitor and PRBS generator simplifies system debug; Single power supply without the need for external RF chokes.]

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS www.ti.com

New normally-on SiC JFETs from SemiSouth feature ultra low switching losses SemiSouth Laboratories, Inc., the leading manufacturer of sili­ con carbide (SiC) transistor technology for high­power, high­efficiency, harsh­environ­ ment power management and conversion applications, today launched the SJDP120R340, a normally on SiC trench JFET that, when compared with silicon MOSFETs, enables higher switching speeds and substan­ tially lower losses.

Rated at 1200V with a maximum on­state resistance of 340mΩ (typical RDS,on of 270mΩ), these new devices feature a positive tem­ perature coefficient for ease of paralleling and extremely fast switching with no tail current at 150°C. Key applications include photovoltaic microinverters,

SMPS and UPS, motor drives, and induction heating. Explains SemiSouth’s Director of Sales, Dieter Liesabeths: “Because of the small die size and our compact device design, the new SJDP120R340 normally on SiC trench JFETs are very cost-effec-

tive. Samples are available today; with volume production set to begin in Q2 2012 with pricing below $7 in quantities of 1000.”

SEMISOUTH LABORATORIES www.semisouth.com

ACTIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS

New gate driver extends TI’s family of GaN FET driver ICs

Maxim’s High-Speed USB Protectors deliver Automotive-Grade Protection for Mobile Connectivity

Texas Instruments Incorpo­ rated (TI) introduced a low­side gate driver for use with MOSFETs and Gallium­Nitride (GaN) power field­effect transis­ tors (FETs) in high­density power converters. The new LM5114 drives GaN FETs and MOSFETs in low­side applications, such as synchronous rectifiers and power fac­ tor converters. Together with the LM5113, the industry’s first 100­V half­bridge GaN FET driver announced in 2011, the family pro­ vides a complete isolated DC/DC conversion driver solu­ tion for high­power GaN FETs and MOSFETs used in high­ performance telecom, network­ ing and data center applica­ tions. For more information, samples and an evaluation board, visit www.ti.com/gan­pr.

The LM5114 drives both stan­ dard MOSFETs and GaN FETs by using independent sink and source outputs from a 5­V sup­ ply voltage. It features a high 7.6­A peak turn­off current

Maxim Integrated Products Inc. introduces the MAX16919/ MAX16969, High­Speed USB 2.0 automotive­grade protec­ tors with iPod®/iPhone® fast­charge detection and USB host­charger detection for all USB gadgets. The protectors’ fast­ charge detection supports both High­Speed USB (480Mbps) and full­speed USB (12Mbps) opera­ tion, which conve­ niently lets con­ sumers recharge their USB devices while driving. Additionally, the MAX16919/MAX16969 are the only fully integrated auto­ motive­grade USB protectors; they combine several automo­ tive­specific benefits, including short­to­battery and short­to­ ground protections, which are required in today’s harsh automotive environment.

These devices are ideal for automotive radio, navigation,

capability needed in high­ power applications where larg­ er or paralleled FETs are used.

The increased pull­down strength also enables it to drive GaN FETs properly. The inde­ pendent source and sink out­

puts eliminate the need for a diode in the driver path and allows tight control of the rise and fall times. The LM5114 is available in volume now from TI and its authorized distribu­ tors. Offered in a 6­pin SOT­23 package and 6­pin LLP package with exposed pad, the suggest­ ed retail price is $0.58 in 1,000­ unit quantities.

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS www.ti.com

PMBus™ Compliant Synchronous Buck Controller from Powervation Provides Real-Time Adaptive Loop Compensation & Power Saving Modes Powervation Ltd. announced the PV3101, the new single phase digital DC/DC controller featur­ ing the company’s Auto­ Control® adaptive loop com­ pensation technology.

Leveraging Powervation’s core hardware and firmware technologies, the PV3101 uses a proprietary DSP/RISC dual­ core architecture with a preci­ sion data acquisition engine running advanced control and power management algo­ rithms in firmware. The Auto­ Control® adaptive loop compen­ sation algorithm provides the industry’s first and only real­ time autonomous compensation solution, and is able to modulate the converter’s bandwidth on a cycle­by­cycle basis to optimize the trade­off between dynamic performance and system stabili­

ty. PV3101 uses full differential voltage, current, and tempera­ ture measurements and an 11 bit ADC to provide precision

measurement (e.g., ±3% IOUT accuracy over temperature), tight control (e.g., ±0.5% VOUT over line, load, and temperature), and accurate real­time reporting of telemetry information for key power supply parameters.

POWERVATION www.powervation.com

connectivity, and USB hub applications. Maxim also offers system­level modeling and simulation support to achieve the best performance for cus­ tomer­specific applications.

The integrated host­charger

detection circuitry and the adjustable current capability (3A) allow the USB peripheral devices to be charged quickly and efficiently. The industry’s lowest on­resistance BUS switch minimizes line drop, ensuring USB compliance.

MAXIM INTEGRATED PRODUCTS www.maxim­ic.com

SemiSouth announces demo board show casing SiC JFETs in cascode half-bridge configuration SemiSouth Laboratories, Inc. has announced a demo board showing the operation of its SiC JFETs in a cascode half­bridge configuration. Enabling a quick evaluation of the SJDP120R085 JFET, the demo board platform is suitable for many applica­ tions including boost, buck, inverter and PSU half­ bridge power stage designs. In the cas­ code configuration, the JFET is driven via a source­connected MOSFET, allowing existing, commercially available MOSFET drivers to be used.

Normally­on SJDP120R085 1200 V power JFETs enable high­speed switching, are compatible with standard gate drive circuitry, and feature a positive tempera­ ture coefficient for ease of par­ alleling. The JFETs have a high saturation current (27A), low

on­resistance per unit area (85 mΩ max), and improved switching performance.

The demo board comes com­ plete with Gerber files and a BOM to allow users to build their own circuits. Comments Dieter Liesabeths, VP of Sales and Marketing: “Our SiC JFETs

have industry-leading performance and we are committed to supporting them with the best available design tools.”

SEMISOUTH LABORATORIES www.semisouth.com

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

29

ACTIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS

Intersil’s single and dual Channel 14-Bit ADCs are industry’s fastest with JESD204B Serial Outputs

Intersil's 40V Quad Precision Amplifiers Feature Lowest Noise, Low Power Consumption

Intersil Corporation introduced the industry’s fastest, lowest power single and dual channel 14­bit analog­to­digital convert­ ers with JESD204B serial out­ puts. These serial output ADCs provide single channel sampling rates up to 500 Megasamples/ second and dual channel rates up to 250 Megasamples/second.

The ISLA224S/ISLA214S50 series represent the first ADCs now in production with JESD204B serial outputs.

The integrated JESD204B­ compatible transmitter offers data rates up to 4.375Gbps per lane, requiring only two lanes to support either the dual channel 14­bit 250Msps converter (one lane per channel) or the single channel 14­bit 500Msps device. An optional third lane is included in the transmitter to support the maximum sampling rate while operating the serial lanes at less than 3.125Gbps, providing backwards compatibility with the JESD204A standard to sup­

Intersil Corporation expanded its family of precision ampli­ fiers, introducing a set of 40V low power, high ESD products that provide excellent DC accu­ racy and noise performance.

These new quad amplifiers are ideally suited for 12­bit to 24­bit process control, instru­ mentation and data acqui­ sition applications.

Designed on Intersil's PR40 advanced bipolar process, the ISL28407, ISL28417, and ISL28408 all meet the low noise requirements for high gain front ends in indus­ trial control designs while reducing total power consump­ tion for high signal count appli­ cations. The ISL28407 operates from 4.5V to 40V with an ultra­ low bias current drift of 0.3pA/°C over temperature (­ 40°C to +85°C), which is 30 percent lower than competitive quad precision amps. The ISL28407's low offset of 90uV

port lower cost FPGAs. The JESD204B transmitter also pro­ vides deterministic latency between the ADC sample clock and the serialized data stream.

This meets the synchronization requirements of multi­channel and I/Q communications sys­ tems. Power consumption for the ISLA224S25 is just 980mW at 250Msps, compared with 1000mW or higher among

competitive serial devices with lower sample rates. For the ISLA214S50, power consump­ tion is just 1050mW compared with 2500mW for competing products.

INTERSIL CORPORATION www.intersil.com

IR’s Compact AUIR0815S Automotive-qualified Gate Drive IC Shrinks and Simplifies Power Train Design in Hybrid and Electric Vehicles International Rectifier has launched the AUIR0815S auto­ motive­qualified IC featuring very high output current in excess of 10 A to drive large IGBTs or MOSFETs in inverter stages for the power train of hybrid and electrical vehicles.

The AUIR0815S’ very low output impedance and power losses allow opera­ tion in harsh and high temperature environ­ ments. Typical output resistance is 90 mOhm sink and 180 mOhm source. The device also features negative Vgs driving and continuous on­ state capability as a result of an integrated PMOS output in par­ allel to the high­side pull­up NMOS. The OUTH and OUTL separated outputs allow selec­ tion of two different external resistors for charging and dis­

charging the gate essential for controlling EMI and CdV/dT effect in high power motor driver and SMPS applications.

The AUIR0815 simplifies the design of inverter systems by offering high current drive capability with all of the neces­ sary protection features and qualification requirements for the harsh automotive drive train environment.

INTERNATIONAL RECTIFIER www.irf.com

30 EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

maximum and offset drift of 0.8uV/°C maximum provide high DC accuracy over tempera­ ture. It features an industry­ leading combination of low power (290uA maximum per channel), 1MHz bandwidth, low input bias current drift

(0.3pA/°C) and low noise (13nV/√Hz @ 1kHz).

The ISL28417 is designed for sensor front ends, DAC buffer­ ing, precision voltage regula­ tion or low noise instrumenta­ tion applications that need a diverse range of signals.

INTERSIL CORPORATION www.intersil.com

Murata Power Solutions introduces the Industry’s first DOSA compliant 1/32 “brick” 30 W DC/DC converter series Murata Power Solutions announced the ULT series of isolated 30Watt DC/DC con­ verters available in a miniature 1/32 brick industry standard Distributed­power Open Systems Alliance (DOSA) com­ patible open frame package.

Measuring just 19.1 × 23.4 × 8.89mm, the ULT series takes up significantly less board space than other 30W products on the market and is available with either through­ hole or surface mount option. The ULT series has been designed with a wide (2:1) input voltage range of 36 – 75VDC to meet the requirements of 48V and 60V battery back­up sys­ tems. The initial product release includes 12Vout, 5Vout, and 3.3Vout models with lower voltages to come in the near future. The maximum output power of 30W is available

from the 12Vout model, with the 5V and 3.3V models pro­ ducing 25W. Line regulation is typically within ±0.1% of Vout across all Vin conditions at full load. An external trim function allows the output voltage to be trimmed by + 10% to – 20% to accommodate losses. Input to output isolation is certified to

1,500V in accordance with the internationally recognized safety standard EN/UL60950.

MURATA POWER SOLUTIONS www.murata­ps.com

LIGHTING INDUSTRY NEWS

Rutronik presents Oslon Square

“The Right LED” for the Right Application

The Oslon Square, OSRAM Opto Semiconductors’ new LED, offers a wide range of possible uses, including design­ er luminaires for the home or office, retrofits and street lights. The LED is available in many different versions with different color temperatures. It can be operated with different currents, making it extremely ver­ satile. Its reflec­ tive package makes even bet­ ter use of the light and increas­ es system effi­ ciency in all ver­ sions. The Oslon Square is available at distribu­ tor Rutronik now.The Oslon Square measures only 3mm × 3mm, has a low thermal resist­ ance of 4K/W to 3.8 K/W and is accommodated in a robust package which is suitable for outdoor use. The LED chip is enclosed by a reflective pack­ age that reflects light emitted at the side or at the back so that this light is usable. The Oslon

Everlight Electronics Co., Ltd. announces a series of Low/Mid Power LEDs* especially suited for use in solid state lighting.

The new Low/Mid Power LED family has the ability to provide customers a total solution for lighting applications. General Lighting is an interesting and broad market segment. For any individual segment of lighting there are multiple categories and sub categories with differ­ ent requirements and function­ alities. Outdoor lighting encom­ passes street lighting, tunnel lighting, parking lot lighting, landscape lighting, as well as a slew of other appli­ cations. Indoor Lighting encom­ passes replacement bulbs, down lights, light bars, etc. As an example, replace­ ment bulbs are fur­ ther categorized down to directional bulbs, deco­ rative bulbs, and omnidirection­

Square EC is suitable for indoor applications in which a high quality of light is needed, for example in offices. With a color temperature of 3000K it pro­ vides a warm white light and also offers high color stability over a wide viewing angle (120°). The CRI is at least 80.

If the lighting needs to be par­ ticularly uniform a “fine­bin” order can be placed for this LED. At an operating current of 700mA it achieves an effi­ ciency of above 90lm/W and a luminous flux of 200lm and more. At 350mA its efficiency passes the 100lm/W mark.

RUTRONIK www.rutronik.com

Mouser Offering Comprehensive LED selection from Panasonic Mouser Electronics, Inc., regarded as a top design engi­ neering resource and global distributor for semiconductors and electronic components, today announced it is offering a wide range of Panasonic Semiconductor LEDs, including through­hole, surface mount, and infrared LEDs. Panasonic’s visible LEDs are available in through­hole or surface mount packages, in a wide variety of sizes. A broad spectrum of colors are available from red to ice blue, as well as white. Panasonic’s GaAIAs Infrared LEDs offer high power output and high efficiency in either a T1 or T1¾ transparent, epoxy resin package. With fast response times and high­speed modula­

tion capabilities, these infrared LEDs are available in dominant wavelengths of 860nm and 880nm and in half­power angles of 15°, 20°, and 22°.

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 ELECTRONICS www.mouser.com

al bulbs. Furthermore, direc­ tional bulbs are sub categorized into MR16, PAR, AR111, etc.

With a bit of application based marketing, “The Right LED” can be paired with the appropriate applications to provide the best performance and quality. This series consists of 0,06W, 0,2W, 0,4W, and 0,5W products with efficiencies of >100lm/W. These LEDs are of different form fac­ tors; 3020 and 3528 (0.06W), 5050 (0.2W), and 5630 (0.4W and 0.5W) package sizes. *Definition of EVERLIGHT Low/Mid: Power consumption </= 0.2W - Low Power LED Power consumption </= 0.5W - Mid Power LED

EVERLIGHT ELECTRONICS www.everlight.com

Vishay Intertechnology Introduces Super-Thin ChipLEDs in White and a Range of Colors Vishay Intertechnology Inc. announced a series of super­ thin, ultra­bright LEDs in the smallest SMD 0603 package.

The new VLM×1300 series of LEDs uses an innovative ChipLED technology, paving the way for smaller end prod­ ucts with higher performance, more flexibility in design, and enhanced appli­ cations.

The 0603 VLMx1300 LEDs will serve in small­scale, high­brightness products that must work reli­ ably in demand­ ing environ­ ments.

All LEDs in the VLMx1300 series are mounted on highly reliable PCBs measuring 1.6 x 0.8 x 0.55mm and have an extremely wide 130° viewing angle. Available colors include super red, soft orange, yellow, yellow green, true green, blue, and white. Using ultra­bright

AllnGaP and InGaN technolo­ gies (depending on color), the color LEDs have a luminous intensity as high as 450 mcd at a forward current of 20mA and a maximum forward volt­ age of 3.8V. Blue is available with a protection diode that provides ESD immunity up to 8,000V. The white LED has a

maximum luminous intensity of 180mcd at a forward cur­ rent of 5mA and a maximum forward voltage of 3.15V. The table below lists characteristics by part number.

VISHAY INTERTECHNOLOGY www.vishay.com

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

31

PASSIVE COMPONENTS INDUSTRY NEWS

Vishay Introduces New MIL-PRF-83401-Qualified Single-in-Line Thin Film Resistor Network

Synchronous Step-Down Controller provides true current mode control with Sub mΩ DCR sensing

Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. introduced a new MIL­PRF­ 83401­qualified (cage code 57489) through­hole, single­in­ line thin film resistor network.

Featuring low absolute TCR of ± 25ppm/°C, TCR tracking of 5ppm/°C, and tight ratio toler­ ances to ± 0.05%, the M83401 will outperform all the requirements of MIL­PRF­83401 R, V, and H character­ istics. The resistor network released today offers three to nine resistors and is avail­ able in 6­, 8­, and 10­pin low­ profile configurations in isolat­ ed (G) and pin one common (C) schematic styles. The type RZ070, RZ080, RZ090, RZ210, RZ220, and RZ230 device fea­ tures 100 % burn­in screening for increased reliability in demanding military applications.

The M83401 features Vishay Dale Thin Film's patented SPM passivated Tamelox film for very low noise of < ­ 30dB, volt­ age coefficient of < 0.1ppm/V,

Linear Technology Corporation introduces the LTC3866, a cur­ rent mode synchronous step­ down DC/DC controller that allows the use of very low DC resistance power inductor using a novel DCR sensing architecture that enhances the signal­to­noise ratio of the cur­ rent sense signal. A power inductor DC resistance of as low as 0.17 milliohms can be used to maximize converter efficiency and increase power density. This new DCR sensing technique dramatically reduces the switching jitter normally associated with low DCR resistance applications.

DCR temperature com­ pensation maintains a constant and accurate current limit threshold over a broad temperature range. The LTC3866 operates from a 4.5V to 38V input voltage range that encompasses a wide range of applications including most intermediate bus voltages & battery voltages. Strong

power ratings from 0.06mW to 0.120mW per element (0.18W to 1.0W per package), and a wide resistance range of 100Ω to 200Ω per resistor. The device operates over a tempera­ ture range of ­ 55°C to + 125°C.

Offering a low 4.95mm (0.197in) maximum seated height, the resistor network features a rugged, molded ther­ moset plastic construction with gold­plated copper alloy leads.

The leads are attached to the metallized alumina substrates by thermocompression bond­ ing. The M83401 is also avail­ able in a commercial version: the C83401.

32

of both the positive and nega­ tive terminals, enabling high accuracy regulation independ­ ent of IR losses (up to ±500mV) in trace runs.

LINEAR TECHNOLOGY www.linear.com

VISHAY INTERTECHNOLOGY www.vishay.com

Vishay Intertechnology: new Power Metal Strip® Meter Shunt Resistor Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. announced a new Power Metal Strip® meter shunt resistor that combines a 3W power capability in the 3124 size package with extremely low resistance values down to 100µΩ. The WSMS3124 allows placement of an elec­ tron­beam welded shunt in electrical wattmeters. The design also incorporates a physical shape that results in very low TC characteris­ tics (down to 75ppm/°C).

The WSMS3124 meter shunt resistor features a pro­ prietary processing technique that produces extremely low resistance values from 100µΩ to 750µΩ. These values allow for increased accuracy in cur­ rent meter shunt applications for industrial and consumer single­ or multiphase energy meters. With a tolerance of

onboard N­channel MOSFET gate drivers allow the use of high power external MOSFETs, DrMOS devices or power blocks for an output current of up to 40A, with output voltages rang­ ing from 0.6V to 5V. The LTC3866 can be paralleled for even higher power multiphase applications. An onboard differ­ ential amplifier provides remote output voltage sensing

5.0%, the new resistor provides power companies with more accurate data to determine cus­ tomer usage and to adjust billing terms. The WSMS3124 features a five­terminal connec­ tion design and an all­welded

construction that contributes to its superior electrical perform­ ance. The resistor offers very low inductance values of < 0.5nH and a low thermal EMF of < 3µV/°C. The device is lead (Pb)­free and RoHS­compliant.

VISHAY INTERTECHNOLOGY www.vishay.com

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Dual Output, Multiphase Step-Down DC/DC Controller operates with Power Blocks & DrMOS Devices Linear Technology Corporation introduces the LTC3861, a dual output synchronous step­down DC/DC controller with multi­ phase operation, differential output voltage sensing and high frequency operation. This con­ troller works in conjunction with external power train devices such as power blocks and DrMOS, as well as discrete N­chan­ nel MOSFETs and asso­ ciated gate drivers, enabling flexible design configurations. Up to 12 phases can be paral­ leled and clocked out­of­ phase to minimize input and output filtering for very high current requirements (up to 300A). Applications include high current power dis­ tribution and industrial systems, DSP and ASIC supplies. The LTC3861’s current sharing loop enables accurate current shar­

ing between phases across mul­ tiple ICs, both DC and during a load transient. The device’s volt­ age mode control architecture allows for selectable fixed oper­ ating frequency from 250kHz to 2.25MHz or it can be synchro­ nized over the same range with its phased­lock loop (PLL). The

differential amplifier provides true remote output voltage sens­ ing of both VOUT and ground terminals, enabling high accura­ cy regulation.

LINEAR TECHNOLOGY www.linear.com

BKD Electronic offers design and manufacturing services, with the following reference activities: PCB Design, software application design for microcontrollers, Hardware and Software systems design for industrial processes automation, top and bottom PCB assembly with SMT and THT technologies, Optical and functional testing, electromagnetic compatibility tests, equipments for industrial and residential environments, prototype manufacturing and testing.

We have undergoing contracts with the most important electronic components manufacturers, such as: Vishay, Samsung, Royal OHM, Taiwan Semiconductor, NXP, ON Semiconductor, NEC, Sanyio, Osram, Microchip, Toshiba, Atmel, Ninigi, Tyco, Molex, AVX, Yageo, Bourns, Talema, TDK, Epcos, Toko, Fujitsu, Keystone, Kemet, ECE, Schurter, C&K, Hartu, Degson, Everlight, Texas Instruments, National Semiconductor, Omron and we develop strong relationships with collaborators that supply packing units, therefore we own an impressive stock of electronic components.

Through our subcontracting activity, BKD Electronic constitutes as important part of the economic infrastructure, our customers being able to benefit of our services with full confidence, as we can provide: SMT technological operations, THT components assembly, manufacturing coiled electrical wirings, toroidal cores, mechanical assembly, final product testing with testing stand, electromagnetic compatibility testing, with our own laboratory, supplying with SMD and THT components, cables for insulated wirings, PCBs, electro­mechanical components.

We benefit of a stock of electronic components ­ active and passive components, microcontrollers, that are found in our storage facilities, as excess. For this reason, our company makes available for sale the components, with immediate dispatch, process accompanied by various advantages: we sell our excess stock without trade markup and each component is accompanied by the supplier's conformity declaration.

We guarantee de quality and conformity of products with the European Union's directives and regulations.

We can therefore become your main components supplier for various electronic applications used in various industrial domains: telecommunications, safety and surveillance systems, household applications and other industrial domains.

For a complete list with our excess components stock, you can visit the webpage: http://www.bkdelectronic.ro/excesscomponents.php

technology in motion

332005 Anghel Saligny Nr. 3, Petroşani, România Tel.: +40 254 542 964 | Fax: +40 254 548 964 www.elpm.ro | www.bkdelectronic.ro www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

33

SMT INDUSTRY NEWS

Cognex Launches Industrial Vision System with the World’s Fastest Acquisition Speed

Metcal to Sponsor First IPC APEX EXPO Hand Soldering Competition

Cognex Corporation introduces the In­Sight® 500. With the fastest acquisition speed of any industrial vision system, the In­ Sight 500 can inspect parts on the very fastest production lines.

The In­Sight 500 vision system is a high­performance, fixed­mount vision system packaged in a rugged, IP65­rated housing. It is powered by a pro­ prietary vision chip technology, Cognex VSoC™ (Vision System on a Chip), which enables the system to process images at up to 500 frames per second (fps) with windowed acquisition. In addition to the standard In­Sight programming interface, expansive tool set and communication methods, the In­Sight 500 vision system achieves speeds of 100fps at the full 1024 × 768 pixels of resolution and 200fps at 640 × 480. What’s more, In­Sight 500 provides the ability to further window an acquired image

OK International has announced that its Metcal brand is the premier sponsor of the First IPC APEX EXPO Hand Soldering Competition and IPC Hand Soldering Grand Championship, scheduled to take place February 28­29 and March 1, 2012 at the San Diego Convention Center in California.

Jerry Simmons, Marketing Manager, commented, “OK International/Metcal is pleased to sponsor this competition and for the opportunity to promote high-quality soldering standards within the electronics industry.

It provides those organizations that claim to be the best-of-thebest at hand soldering with the opportunity to show what they are made of.”

In further support of the com­ petition, OK International will feature the Metcal MX­5000 Series Soldering System that will be used in the competition in its booth (#1641). ompeti­ tors are welcome to stop by the booth to get familiar with the system beforehand if they are not already. Experts from the OK International team will be available at the booth to pro­ vide best practice advice and

which can accelerate the acqui­ sition to as high as 500fps.

In­Sight 500 can acquire images while simultaneously processing applications at 500fps. Its fast acquisition speed and powerful processor make this vision sys­ tem ideal for applications requiring relatively simple

inspection applications. The full suite of In­Sight tools and com­ munication methods is available with In­Sight 500, including Cognex Connect™ which sup­ ports EtherNet/IP and PROFINET, among other com­ munication protocols.

COGNEX CORPORATION www.cognex.com

Multitest to Exhibit New Test Solutions at BiTS 2012 Multitest will exhibit its leading test solutions at the upcoming Burn­In & Test Strategies Workshop, scheduled to take place March 4­7, 2012 in Mesa.

At the show, Multitest will showcase the most comprehen­ sive portfolio of contactors on the market. Multitest’s Quad Tech™ features: • Four internal contact points • Planar contact surface • Ultra precise manufacturing process The Multitest Cantilever features: • Springs offer a self­cleaning effect (scrub) • Optimum set of critical contact parameters: geometry, coating, force, scrub and surface The company also will highlight its test interface boards, offering the perfect solution for simula­ tion, design and fabrication of test interface boards including: • Fine­pitch applications • High layer count requirements

34

Multitest’s Plug & Yield® pro­ gram ideally leverages the unique, comprehensive product portfolio and the in­depth understanding of the industry’s needs. Total project manage­

ment and concurrent engineer­ ing as well as engineering and quality control on the system level — rather than on test cell components — result in the best time­to­market, optimum performance of the overall test cell and highest yield.

MULTITEST www.multitest.com

EP&Dee ⏐ December, 2011 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

demonstrations of the equip­ ment. During this two­day com­ petition, companies will com­ pete to build a functional elec­ tronics assembly in 30 minutes.

Assemblies will be judged on soldering in accordance with IPC­A­610E Class 3 criteria, the speed at which the assembly was produced and overall elec­ trical functionality of assembly.

IPC­A­610E Master Instructors will serve as the judges.

For more information about the competition, visit http://www.ipcapexexpo.org/ html/ main/hand­soldering­ competition.htm OK INTERNATIONAL, Inc. www.okinternational.com

BPM Microsystems to debut new solution for In-System Device Programming at the 2012 IPC APEX BPM Microsystems will debut its new production solution for in­system device programming in Booth #3702 at the upcom­ ing IPC APEX Expo, scheduled to take place February 28­ March 1, 2012 at the San Diego Convention Center in California.

The new 2800ISP Semi­ Automated In­System Device Programmer offers the unmatched performance and flexibility of 8th Generation site technology. With a custom­ designed test fixture, operators can easily program flash, micro­ controllers and other device technologies on­board after reflow. The semi­automated design of the 2800ISP uses a pneumatic fixture with built­in safety features to actuate the pressure plate. Once actuated,

the circuit board makes contact with high quality pogo pins that are specifically engineered to achieve exceptional signal integrity. Ideal for medium and high­volume production, the 2800ISP is configurable and can program up to 16 devices in parallel. The model 2800 Universal Device Programmer uses BPM Microsystems’ cost­ effective and efficient socket cards with receptacle­base socket option.

BPM MICROSYSTEMS www.bpmmicro.com

SMT INDUSTRY NEWS

Practical Components to Debut New Test Board for 0.33 mm Dummy CVBGA Test Vehicle at the IPC APEX Expo

SIPLACE at the 2012 APEX Show Simplify your manufacturing challenges

Practical Components Inc. will feature its new Amkor PoP stacked packages, including the new TMV PoP, along with its full line of dummy component packages in Booth #538 at the upcoming IPC APEX Expo, sched­ uled to take place February 28 ­ March 1, 2012 at the San Diego Convention Center in California.

Practical Components will introduce a new test board for its dummy (mechani­ cal sample) version of Amkor’s cutting­edge 0.3 mm pitch CVBGA. Amkor’s new semicon­ ductor device is a wafer­scale package in a miniature pack­ age, which is suitable for installation in surface mount technology (SMT). Amkor’s

At this year’s APEX trade show in the San Diego Convention Center (Feb. 28 – March 1, Booth 1111), the SIPLACE team will present many inno­ vations for its award­winning SIPLACE SX placement plat­ form. The innovations range from new setup concepts to efficiency­enhancing machine options like the SIPLACE Smart Pin Support and the revolutionary SIPLACE Glue Feeder. The technology leader in SMT placement will not just make promises, but will take on challenges from electronics manufactur­ ers “live” as part of the SIPLACE Challenge Cup. Visitors to the show will be able to see the SIPLACE team solve customer challenges in a series of live demon­ strations on the booth.

SIPLACE’s new software solu­

ChipArray® range of packages consists of laminate­based ball grid array (BGA) packages that are compatible with established SMT mounting processes.

The CVBGA368­8 mm Evaluation Board is ideal for testing, evaluating and qualify­ ing this fine­pitch technology.

For this package, the board size is 77×132 mm, 1 mm thick and features four layers with 15 pads. It is offered with

OSP, ImAg, & ENIG finishes.

The new B­52 CRET (Cleanliness and Residue Evaluation Test) Kit is designed to help determine the

ionic cleanliness of the manu­ facturing process. The test boards and components follow guidelines associated with the IPC­B­52 Test Vehicle.

The WLP (wafer chip size package) and the OmQFM (open molded Quad Flat Pack) also will be on display. New solder training kits and boards, such as the PCB250 14mm TMV Drop Test Board, the FusionQuad® Thermal Cycle and Drop Test Kits and an IPC/WHMA­A620 Compliant Wire Harness Kit, will be displayed at the show.

Practical Components’ training kits and boards provide tremendous savings and jump­ start productivity.

Meet company representatives in Booth #538 for a copy of Practical Components’ new catalog, ideal for anyone involved in PCB assembly, training, soldering and surface mount technology. The new catalog is designed to help engineers quickly find the key products needed to qualify their technology, train and grow their businesses.

PRACTICAL COMPONENTS www.practicalcomponents.com

tions and placement equip­ ment hardware are designed to make the production processes easier and more efficient.

Flexible gantries and one placement head for all standard devices Software and setup concepts improve efficiency True “feeder anywhere” with SIPLACE software and Multistar Head Smart Pin Support, Glue Feeder and LED Pairing

ASM ASSEMBLY SYSTEMS www.siplace.com

The KIC 24/7 Wave Advances the Wave Process from Art to Science KIC introduces the new KIC 24/7 Wave, using embedded sensors in the wave solder machine to automatically measure the thermal profile for each and every processed PCB to the acceptable process window. A thermocou­ ple also is installed in the solder pot to con­ stantly measure the pot temperature. Any out­of­spec situation is immediately identified, while the standard SPC charts automatically provide Cpk numbers with the ability to provide alarms when the process starts drifting. Every PCB profile is recorded for easy retrieval for full process traceability. Traceability down

to the individual PCB is achieved when bar codes are used. The initial programming of the KIC 24/7 Wave is per­ formed with a KIC profiler.

The KIC profiler is capable of quickly identifying the appro­ priate wave solder settings for an improved process.

KIC www.kicthermal.com

www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

35

SMT INDUSTRY NEWS

Visit the AOI and AXI Technology Leader at the 2012 IPC APEX Expo

ACD adds Omnify Software’s BOM and Data Management to strengthen collaboration with its customers

ViTrox Technologies, a solu­ tions provider of innovative, advanced and cost­effective automated vision inspection system and equipment for the semiconductor and electronics packaging industries, will demonstrate the V810 and V510 inspection solutions at Booth #1351 at the upcoming IPC APEX Expo, scheduled to take place February 28 ­ March 1, 2012 at the San Diego Convention Center in California.

ACD announces that it has suc­ cessfully implemented the Bill of Material (BOM) and Data Management solutions from Omnify Software, a leading provider of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software for electronic, medical, mechani­ cal and defense manufacturers.

ACD has implemented Empower PLM with the initial goal of centralized BOM con­ trol. The company wanted to address issues common among many EMS providers such as trying to manage the various BOM file formats they receive from cus­ tomers, getting updated BOM information via e­mails or phone calls without traceabili­ ty, and multiple versions of the same BOM existing across departments. By adding the Empower PLM Data Management and BOM Management solutions to the existing Change and Document Management solutions, ACD is

The V810 Advanced X­ray Inspection System is the latest revolution in X­ray technology, inspecting double­sided panels with high defect coverage, high inspection speed and low false call rate.

The V810 is capable of detect­ ing many defects including shorts, opens, missing compo­ nents, non­wetting, billboards,

tombstones, lifted leads, solder balls, voiding, insufficient sol­ der, reversed tantalum capaci­ tor and excess solder.

Additionally, it has the ability to inspect the toughest hidden joint defects commonly found on the production line such as head­in­pillow, package­on­ package, PTH and various types of connector joint defects to a standard far beyond other AXI machines in the market.

The V510 Advanced Optical Inspection solution provides the

ultimate synergy in inspection coverage, flexibility, supporta­ bility, and programming methodology. Advanced optical design, next­generation controls, and superior inspection cover­ age make the V510 an optimal solution for test inspection and measurement needs.

The V510 inspection algo­ rithms mirror those of the company’s previous product lines, providing superior cov­ erage of solder joint defects, low contrast component loca­ tion, wrong part inspection, and much more.

With the recent winnings of international awards and grow­ ing installed­base of its machines, ViTrox looks forward to sharing its AOI and AXI tech­ nologies with potential cus­ tomers. The company is no longer a new player in the mar­ ket, but rather it has survived and become the leader in it!

VITROX TECHNOLOGIES www.vitrox.com

36

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

able to better serve its cus­ tomers and gain a competitive edge. ACD now has a single, controlled environment for creating, changing and sharing product information across all groups and with its customers.

With the ability to import all customer BOM files, whether it is in spreadsheet, text or other format, and have

Empower PLM automatically display the differences, high­ light any issues and manage the revisions and history, ACD can ensure the BOM is accu­ rate as well as make sure all departments have access to a single, up­to­date BOM. ACD (Automated Circuit Design) www.ACDUSA.com OMNIFY SOFTWARE www.omnifysoft.com

Seika Machinery to Debut Multi-Point Selective Soldering System at the IPC APEX Expo Seika Machinery, Inc., a leading provider of advanced machin­ ery, materials and engineering services, will introduce the Andes Solbot II Multi­Point Selective Soldering System in Booth #2401 at the upcoming IPC APEX Expo, sched­ uled to take place February 28­March 1, 2012 at the San Diego Convention Center in California.

The Solbot Selective Soldering System uses cus­ tomized and dedi­ cated fixtures/noz­ zles. The lead­free compatible system is user­ friendly and features a com­

pact footprint of only 540×720×250 mm. The Solbot can solder PCBs up to 260×340 mm. Additionally, the number of components on the PCB does not affect tact time.

SEIKA MACHINERY, Inc. www.seikausa.com

SMT INDUSTRY NEWS

SIPLACE Line Monitor - Solid information makes for efficient production The new SIPLACE Line Monitor presents the status of an individual SMT placement machine in a clear and easy­to­grasp manner with ‘traffic light’ indicators, colorful graph­ ics and lists – all on a single screen. With the

With SIPLACE Line Monitor everything under control at a single glance: Splicing requirements, how many units of a product have already been produced, which MSD reels are due to be returned to the cabinet.

SIPLACE Line Monitor, the operating staff can keep everything under control even in high­mix production environments and pre­ vent material­related production stops – still one of the most effective efficiency killers in modern electronics production. Splicing requirements, how many units of a product have already been produced, which MSD reels are due to be returned to the cabinet –

the SIPLACE Line Monitor tells you all this and a whole lot more at a single glance.

All this information makes it easy for the operating and warehouse staff to properly prioritize their activities. Installed in one or more central locations on the production floor, the SIPLACE Line Monitor prevents lots of trips between machines, frees up time and creates transparency for a trouble­free production flow.

The SIPLACE Line Monitor’s software analyzes information from various sources such as setup verification and machine programs on the SMT machine and com­ piles the data on a single, clearly laid­out screen. Particularly critical information, such as where the user can find the MSD reels at the line, are highlighted graphically and with traffic light indicators.

The efficiency improvements even reach as far as the warehouse, because the Line Monitor also minimizes the number of unneeded stock withdrawals and returns.

The operating staff can see for the entire line whether the remaining capacity of individual reels is sufficient to handle the entire production job, thus enabling it to eliminate unnecessary “just in case” stock retrievals. This is especially important for

moisture­sensitive components, which should be removed from dry storage only when needed and can now be returned as quickly as possible after the production run. In real­life applications, the SIPLACE Line Monitor has been particularly useful when the information is displayed on multiple large, ceiling­mounted screens.

The SIPLACE Line Monitor shows at a glance: Track list with current materials; current material quantities, residual running time per track, number of PCBs that can still be produced, MSD time = residual time, reel expiration date and color codes indicating the shortest residual running time, residual track running time and shortest tape length.

ASM ASSEMBLY SYSTEMS www.siplace.com

MODULES & RELAYS INDUSTRY NEWS

MSI Safety Controller System overview MSI 100 FACTS MSI 100 • Compact safety programable unit (not Safety­expandable); • 20 safe inputs; • 4 electronical outputs Kat.4/SIL3 61508 (24VDC/500mA); • 2 ground switching outputs; • 2 Test outputs (for cross­circuit detection); • USBmini for local communication; • Chipcard with stored Safety Configuration; • Removable Spring­ and Screw­Terminals; • Expandable with field bus modules; • Safety Level: SIL 3 IEC 61508, S­Kat. 4 ISO EN 13849 (EN954­1); • Approvals: TÜV, cULus; • System­response time <30ms ( depends on program size (typ. 10ms, check it in menue → SafePLC → Status); • Values of Is/Os of the MSI100 are transferrable to PLC by field bus modules (gateway); • Password generator ForgotIt (to generate a new One­Time­Password to come­into MSI by losing the original password); • Automatically SafetyCheck of the configu­ ration (Safety program) without need of rechecking the final configuration of the MSI compared to the original configuration made by the user with MSI safe­ soft (CRC­check sum).

System overview MSI 200 FACTS MSI 200 • Same features like MSI 100 • With up to 10 Safe Extension Modules expandable • Safe Extension Modules ­ 8 Input /4Input­Output Electronical Module ­ Selectable: 12 Inputs or 8 Inputs / 4 Outputs ­ 4 Output Relay Module ­ 4 separate monitored Relay­OSSDs.

System overview MSI Fieldbus Modules FACTS MSI FB Profibus DP • Standard communication to PLC for diagnosis purposes via field bus modules ­ Certified acc. DPV1­Spec. EN 50170 ­ Electronical 8 Inputs / 4 outputs free programmable ­ NON­Safety data transfer! ­ MSI 100 and MSI 200.

A detailed installation manual about PROFIBUS­ System Integration and STEP 7) will be offered • Further fieldbus modules: ­ DeviceNet, Modbus, CANopen, Ethernet/IP, Profinet.

O’BOYLE s.r.l.

Tel.: +40 (0) 256­201346 Fax: +40 (0) 256­221036 office@oboyle.ro www.oboyle.ro 38

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

Latching type DW relay from Panasonic Panasonic's DW relay was specially devel­ oped for use in smart meters. To save ener­ gy, a latching type relay is required. The DW relay fulfills all demands of this market.

Under the motto "eco ideas", Panasonic hence contributes to the development of efficient, energy­saving smart meters.

Besides the market for smart meters, the DW relay is ideal for numerous other applications.

Its compact design (24×10×18.8mm (L×W×H)) and low coil power dissipation of 200mW for the 1 coil latching type or 400mW for the 2 coil latching type make this relay extremely attrac­ tive for the white goods market, e.g. for use in washing machines, dishwashers and driers, especially to reduce stand­by current consump­ tion. Particularly for this market segment, the DW relay is not only available in an LCP housing (for reflow soldering) but also in PBT, which ful­ fills the VDE standard EN60335 (glow wire test, creepage resistance).

Basically, the DW relay can be used throughout the entire "eco market" when it comes to switching loads of up to 8A/250V AC. The DW relay hence complements Panasonic's existing portfolio of latching type power relays. Above all for battery­driven applications, the latching DW relay extends the period of use considerably.

Advantageous when designing the DW relay in an application are its 6mm creepage and clear­ ance distance between contact and coil and its impressive breakdown voltage of 6kV between contact and coil. The surge withstand voltage here is a remarkable 12kV. Samples of the DW relay are available upon request.

O’BOYLE s.r.l.

Tel.: +40 (0) 256­201346 Fax: +40 (0) 256­221036 office@oboyle.ro www.oboyle.ro

CONNECTORS INDUSTRY NEWS

ODU-MAC Modular Connector System The ODU­MAC modular connector system, manufactured

by ODU, is equipped with a range of combination possibilities and with particular modules: customizable frames, plastic insulation bodies and removable crimp contacts for power, signal, coax, air couplings and fiber optic connections. The connectors are equipped with spring wire contacts, which allow up to 100 000 mating cycles. ODU MAC modular connectors are available in aluminum frame or DIN housing.

Main characteristics:

DIN frame DIN housing is used in heavy use on/off connections and can be locked with locking latch or locking spindle. Connectors are used specially in medical, testing and many industrial applications.

• for mounting in a standard aluminium housing (panel mounted base, cable hood, box mounted base) • 4 frame sizes

n Extremely high mating cycles ( > 100.000) n Vibration protection and stability n Easy operation n High connector density, low space requirements n Alu­frame and Din­housing available Frame versions ODU MAC connectors with aluminum frame are specially used in test automation applications.

• 3 basic version (standard; mini, large) • from 3 up to 60 units per connector • with or without unit­numbering • special for docking applications

Arguments for ODU­MAC − High mating cycles − Outstanding performance under vibration − High density → low required space − Guiding features − Versatility − Easy handling (locking spindle) − Non magnetic contacts − Modification of catalogue versions possible

Fields of application What do you need for the configuration of a connector: n life time (mating cycles) n number of contacts and type of contacts n current load of the contacts n operation environment - environmental temperatures n operating voltage Contact: Eng. Alina Cibu E­mail: alina.cibu@odu­rom.ro www.odu­rom.ro

ODU ROM Manufacturing ­ Str. Fundătura Lânii nr. 22, 550019 Sibiu, Romania Tel: +40 (0) 269 206345; Fax: +40 (0) 269 221006 For general information visit: www.odu.de www.epd-ee.eu ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ EP&Dee

39

MISCELEANEOUS INDUSTRY NEWS

Murata’s collaboration with Beta LAYOUT delivers comprehensive UHF Passive RFID starter kit

Rutronik adds TEAC HD Medical Image Recorder to its portfolio

Murata and Beta LAYOUT, a company specializing in rapid PCB prototyping services, today announced the launch of an RFID starter kit based on Murata’s MAGICSTRAP® UHF passive RFID devices. Aimed at engineers and developers wishing to quickly learn about and incorporate RFID into their electronics design, the kit comprises a reader/writer board, communi­ cation software, two reader anten­ nas and four dif­ ferent kinds of MAGICSTRAP® RFID tag mod­ ules. One reader antenna is designed for standard applica­ tions where the detection range is up to several metres. The loop antenna is provided for use in hidden applications such as for anti­counterfeiting and brand protection. Using the kit allows engineers to trial the full ver­

The new UR­50BD image data recorder from TEAC records lossless images and videos in high definition (HD) quality.

This makes it ideal for all med­ ical imaging processes such as ultrasounds, X­rays, endo­ scopies or video recordings used to aid in operations. Its broad compatibility permits storage and playback on many devices or media. The TEAC UR­50BD is now available from Rutronik.

Not only does the UR­50BD sup­ port all NTSC/PAL for­ mats but also all HD video and audio formats.

This makes it completely com­ patible with almost all medical imaging procedures used to create recordings. The stills or mov­ ing images created can be saved directly in real time onto removable media including the most widely used and cheap­

satility and flexibility of MAG­ ICSTRAP® RFID devices.

Communication over short dis­ tances for individual tag con­ nections can be experienced as well as bulk reading of MAGICSTRAP® based PCB tags as necessary in logistics processes. Typical applications for MAGICSTRAP® RFID include any type of electronics application such as mobile

phones, industrial control, con­ sumer electronics and test & measurement equipment.

MURATA www.murata.eu

est media DVDs, USB sticks and Blu­ray discs.

DVI and HDMI interfaces are available for high­definition data archiving. The USB port on the front of the recorder allows for the convenient con­ nection of USB sticks and hard disks. The stand­alone device has an integrated 100 GB HDD hard disk on which backup copies can be stored. CD, DVD and Blu­ray players as well as

conventional PCs can be used to replay the recordings. The device is operated via RS­232C and USB. RUTRONIK www.rutronik.com

Innovative design gives Omron slide DIP switch enhanced reliability Omron Electronic Components B.V. newly released slide DIP switch uses innovative mechanical design to give more reliable switch operation.

The new Omron A6SN features high pres­ sure, knife­edge internal mechanics, ensur­ ing more reliable and consistent contact operation. This design enables any solder flux residues to be broken during the oper­ ation of the switch actuator. The switch also uses a temperature resistant resin that enables reflow soldering at peak tempera­ tures of up to 260°C, which is higher than most comparable alternatives.

The Omron A6SN is rated at 24V DC at Group Publisher Director Gabriel Neagu Managing Director Ionela Ganea Accounting Ioana Paraschiv Advertisement Irina Ganea WEB Eugen Vărzaru © 2011 by Eurostandard Press 2000

40

EP&Dee ⏐ February, 2012 ⏐ www.epd-ee.eu

25mA, available with 1 to 10 poles and a flat or raised actuator. Insulation resistance is 100MΩ at 100V DC. The A6SN supports an ambient operating temperature range of ­ 30°C to +85°C. Omron’s DIP switch range meets the requirements of many electronic markets including security, vending, indus­ trial, process control and embedded applica­ tions. The product line­up includes industry standard types, low torque sealed switches and a number of industry specific models.

OMRON ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS BUSINESS – EUROPE http://components.omron.eu Contributing editors Robert Berger 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 8 times per year in 2012 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 2012 by Euro Standard Press 2000 s.r.l. All rights reserved.