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Epiwafer and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK has appointed Rina Pal-Goetzen as VP of government affairs...

The bistable load switch is made on two comparators. The load is switched on and off sequentially by applying a voltage of two different levels to the input of the device.

Earlier in [1], a new class of bistable elements was proposed—two-threshold thyristors, which are switched on/off from one state to another when control voltages of two levels (“High” or “Low”) other than zero are applied to the input of the thyristor.

Wow the engineering world with your unique design: Design Ideas Submission Guide

The bistable load switch, Figure 1, is designed for switching the load when an Uon or Uoff voltage is applied to the input of the device. The device contains two comparators U1.1 and U1.2, as well as an output transistor Q1, for example, 2N7000.

Figure 1 A bistable switch controlled by input voltage levels, with separately adjustable load on and off thresholds.

The device works as follows. Its input (inverting inputs of comparators U1.1 and U1.2) is briefly supplied with a voltage of a certain level (Uon or Uoff). The comparators comparison noninverting inputs are supplied with voltages of two levels from the potentiometers R2 and R3. When the switching voltage Uon (Uon<Uoff) is applied to the input of the device, the comparator U1.1 switches. At its output Uout1, the voltage switches from the conditional level of the logical unit to the level of the logical zero. The LED indicates the enabled state of the device. On the drain of the transistor Q1 (Uout2), on the contrary, the voltage changes from the level of logical zero to the level of logical unit. Through the resistor R10, the high-level voltage enters the inverting input of the comparator U1.1, fixing his condition.

To return the device to its initial state (disconnecting the load), a voltage of a higher level (Uoff) is applied to the input, which is able to switch the state of the second comparator U1.2. When switching this comparator, the voltage at the inverting input of the comparator U1.1 drops to zero, the circuit returns to its original state.

Such a device, with some simplification and modification, can be placed in the DIP6 housing, Figure 2. Switching the output signal level from the conditional level 0 to 1 occurs when a low-level voltage Uon is briefly applied to the input of the device, a return to the initial state occurs when a high-level voltage Uoff is applied to the input.

A typical circuit for switching on such a chip is shown in Figure 3. External adjustment elements R1 and R2 are used to adjust the on and off switching thresholds (Uthr1 and Uthr2).

Figure 2 A bistable switch, as well as a possible of integrated circuit based on it.

Figure 3 Variants of a bistable switch chip with external switching thresholds control circuits, or internal unregulated ones, and the possibility of using the circuit in a DIP4 case for an unregulated version with fixed switching thresholds.

If using a resistive divider R1–R3 to set constant on and off levels of Uthr2 and Uthr1, then the bistable switch can be placed in the DIP4 chip housing, Figure 3, which has power terminals as well as input and output. To obtain the switching levels, which do not depend on the supply voltage, you can use a simple voltage regulator (Zener diode) built into the microcircuit to power the resistive divider R1–R3.

Michael A. Shustov is a doctor of technical sciences, candidate of chemical sciences and the author of over 800 printed works in the field of electronics, chemistry, physics, geology, medicine, and history.

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• Load switch-timer with multi-point control over two wires

References

1. Shustov M.A. Two-threshold ON/OFF thyristors, switchable by the input signal level // International Journal of Circuits and Electronics. – 2021. – V. 6. – P. 60–63. Pub. Date: 09 December 2021. https://www.iaras.org/iaras/home/computer-science-communications/caijce/two-threshold-on-off-thyristors-switchable-by-the-input-signal-level

The post Bistable switch made on comparators appeared first on EDN.

In a a pre-close trading update for full-year 2023, epiwafer and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK says that it expects revenue to be at least £115m. This is down 31% on 2022’s £167.5m. However, it reflects a more than 20% increase from first-half to second-half 2023, in line with previously issued guidance. IQE expects this to result in an adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) of at least £3m and a net debt position of about £3m...

Ideal limit-sensing solution for appliances and automatic testing equipment (ATE) applications

Littelfuse, Inc., an industrial technology manufacturing company empowering a sustainable, connected, and safer world, is excited to announce the availability of the MATE-12B Reed Switch Series. These sub-miniature reed switches provide longer life and higher reliability than currently available in existing 12.7 mm reed switches, achieving millions of cycles. Their extensive longevity exceeds the requirements for automatic test equipment and appliance applications. View the video.

The MATE-12B is a normally open switch with a 12.7 mm x 1.8 mm (0.276” x 0.071”) glass envelope, which can switch up to 200 Vdc 10 W. They provide a high insulation resistance of 1012 ohms (minimum) and a low contact resistance of less than 100 milli-ohms.

The MATE-12B Reed Switch Series is ideally suited for markets that require long-life cycles and high reliability, such as:

• Automatic Test Equipment (ATE) for power semiconductor testing,
• Appliances, and
• Other limit switching applications.

The MATE-12B key benefits and differentiators include:

• High reliability and prolonged lifecycle: Extensively tested and proven to achieve millions of operation cycles, a significant advantage over currently available 7 mm reed switches.
• Design flexibility: The sub-miniature magnet size and hermetically sealed glass envelope enable use in more challenging environments and applications.
• PCB space savings: Extremely compact size and light weight help reduce the end product’s size.
• Suitable for harsh environments: Hermetically sealed and meets cULus requirements.

“The MATE-12B is an extension of our existing product line, which helps our end customers with significantly higher efficiency and longer lifetime,” said Wayne Wang, Global Product Manager at Littelfuse. “The minimal risk of failure is especially critical to limit switching applications such as in appliances and power semiconductor automatic test equipment.”

Availability

The MATE-12B Reed Switch Series is available in bulk quantities of 1000 pieces. Place sample requests through authorized Littelfuse distributors worldwide. For a listing of Littelfuse distributors, please visit Littelfuse.com.

The post Latest Littelfuse Sub-miniature 12.7 mm Reed Switches Provide High-Reliability, Longer Life Cycles appeared first on ELE Times.

For its fiscal first-quarter 2024 (to end-November 2023), LED chip and component maker SemiLEDs Corp of Hsinchu, Taiwan has reported revenue of $1.65m, down slightly on $1.695m a year ago but up on $1.453m last quarter...

Brand new (old stock) IC, no signs of marking tampering. https://preview.redd.it/s2uuxyc61scc1.png?width=756&format=png&auto=webp&s=6026bad928eadcc0bebd45e5ba606745e350fb10 submitted by /u/Al3x_Y [link] [comments]

Courtesy: Mouser Electronics

Early-stage Internet of Things (IoT) concepts defined sensors that linked directly to the cloud. However, as vertical industries started seriously evaluating IoT architectures to extract greater business value, it became clear that this one-size-fits-all approach was impractical for various reasons.

Consider just a few of the implications of a cloud-first model in industrial IoT (IIoT) deployments:

• Data and device security: The potential of insecure endpoints communicating directly with the cloud meant hackers could exploit vulnerabilities to access sensitive industrial networks.
• Runaway networking costs: Sensor-to-server data transmissions (especially over public networks) can be so costly they prohibit scaling to the thousands of nodes required by many IIoT deployments. Add large volumes of measurement and status data generated by industrial sensors, and network congestion, packet delays, and inefficient bandwidth usage abound.
• Power consumption of always-on sensor nodes: Remote sensor nodes require continuous connection to the network and an energy source. This is particularly challenging in remote settings like mining and agriculture, where limited access can mean replacing batteries or troubleshooting networks costs thousands of dollars.

New classes of secure hardware, networking, and battery technology emerged from these challenges to redefine how IoT systems were architected and industrial devices were designed. The technology revolution began by combining security and energy efficiency in edge-centric silicon.

The Low-Power Foundations of IoT Processors

Introduced as real-world IoT requirements were being defined in 2009, ArmCortex-M0 CPUs offered the ability to operate solely on 16-bit “thumb” instructions rather than the 32-bit instructions required by its predecessors.

Thumb instructions’ compact encoding method enables code density improvements of roughly 30 percent on processors like the Cortex-M0, which has a cascading effect on memory usage (lower), die sizes (smaller), power consumption (less), and ultimately cost (reduced). Fast-forward to today and devices based on the Arm Cortex-M33 architecture feature thumb instructions and built-in hardware security via features like TrustZone.

TrustZone delivers hardware-based data and device security through a secure root of trust (RoT). When combined with the energy efficiency of Cortex-M33 CPU cores, TrustZone creates secure, battery-powered IoT devices that can operate for extended periods in remote settings. It also doesn’t detract from CPU performance, as Cortex-M33 processors deliver an impressive 1.5 DMIPS/MHz and 4.09 CoreMark/MHz for handling complex tasks at the edge to reduce reliance on centralized cloud processing.

From the beginning of IoT rollouts through today, Cortex-M-class chips continue to deliver possibilities for various IoT use cases.

The Rise of LPWAN

The success of energy-efficient IIoT edge nodes is not only a result of their host processor but also how they connect. In the late 2000s, the advent of 4G technology signaled the decline of earlier networks, highlighting the need for a new low-power, wide-area networking (LPWAN) technology that facilitates long-range communication for IoT devices.

LPWAN technologies such as LoRa have emerged as an appealing method for linking battery-powered IoT devices to networks. Its long-range capabilities and low energy consumption make it an ideal choice for IIoT applications like asset tracking, environmental monitoring, industrial automation, smart agriculture, and smart cities.

Today’s LoRa transceiver modules facilitate LPWAN communications over distances of up to 15km while consuming approximately 40mA of current during transmission. Typically, LoRa modules interface with host processors like Cortex-M-class devices through UART and communicate via ASCII commands, streamlining integration with IoT devices.

These transceivers pair with sub-GHz antennas that meet the frequency requirements of LPWAN networks, many of which are available in compact SMD form factors that fit the space constraints of edge devices. In addition to supporting protocols like LoRaWAN, some of these antennas also support short-range wireless technologies like Wi-Fi, Zigbee, and Bluetooth to enable the creation of backhaul-enabled wireless sensor networks.

Lithium Battery Technology Advances for IoT Edge Nodes

Thanks to the availability of secure, energy-efficient computing technology and LPWAN networking, the idea of battery-powered IIoT sensor nodes became a reality. The IIoT industry embraced the concept of battery-powered sensors, and demand for dependable, high-density power sources increased.

Lithium-ion batteries emerged as the preferred choice for powering these sensors thanks to consistent power density and reliability improvements. These advancements yielded the ability for IoT devices to operate for extended periods on a single battery charge—a critical requirement for many agriculture, mining, and industrial applications. Meanwhile, the improved reliability of lithium-ion battery technology led to reductions in maintenance and operational expenses while ensuring uninterrupted data collection and communication.

A Qoitech study on the compatibility of LoRaWAN technology and coin cell batteries highlighted the pairing’s potential in enduring, low-power wireless IoT sensor nodes. In the study, researchers tested the performance of coin cell batteries using a battery-profiling tool. The tool measured a 40mA (peak current) LoRaWAN power profile with an exit condition that triggered when the voltage dropped below 0.6V or 2V. The study provides insightful results, revealing disparities in coin cell performance among manufacturers that are particularly evident at higher current levels. It also proved that CR2032 and CR2450 are viable options for powering LoRaWAN devices.

This harmony between LPWAN technology and high-density lithium-ion batteries has helped propel the IIoT landscape, enabling new energy-efficient wireless sensor nodes. Lithium coin cell batteries have emerged as the go-to power source for these devices due to their compact size, impressive energy density, and extended lifespan. The availability of diverse lithium coin cell battery options—available in various chemistries and configurations tailored to specific IoT applications—gives developers freedom of choice.

Mouser Electronics offers a comprehensive selection of coin cell batteries, enabling developers to select the most suitable power source for their IoT projects. Additionally, many tools are available to help developers evaluate battery performance under practical conditions. These can ensure IoT sensor nodes operate reliably over long lifecycle deployments and help identify the most efficient and cost-effective power solutions for a given application.

Future of Technology for the Industrial IoT

Recent IIoT technology advancements have not been limited to the edge; they’ve also extended to the control layer. These improvements have led to multicore systems-on-chips (SoCs) featuring multiple CPU or graphics cores, integrated neural network accelerators, and dedicated IP blocks for executing analog, security, and other workloads.

These high-performance chipsets almost always contain multiple high-speed I/O interfaces that streamline system integration in a number of deployment contexts. They are also candidates for embedded virtualization using technologies like hypervisors and single-root I/O virtualization (SR-IOV) that partition on-chip cores, memory, and I/O resources. As a result, multiple mixed-criticality workloads can run and execute simultaneously on a single physical processor, maximizing resource utilization and reducing overall size, weight, power consumption, and cost versus multiprocessor solutions.

Elsewhere, networking standards like Ethernet Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) are rising. TSN introduces deterministic communication capabilities from the control layer to sensor nodes and enterprise systems for fine-grained timing control, precision device management, and task-oriented workflows like virtual programmable logic controllers (vPLCs). The convergence of these technologies is expanding functionality as IIoT nodes continue to evolve.

The evolution of IIoT technology building blocks started at the far edge and continues today at the control layer. For instance, the emergence of multicore SoCs with integrated accelerators and the adoption of networking standards like Ethernet TSN have paved the way for improved device management and the implementation of containerized enterprise applications.

The post Building Blocks for IIoT Edge Nodes appeared first on ELE Times.

DFI, a global leader in embedded motherboards and industrial computers, has announced their participation in the Embedded Tech India Expo for the first time. In collaboration with distribution partner Dynalog, they will be showcasing their range of rugged industrial-grade products, industrial motherboards, and embedded systems. DFI hopes to assist customers and industries in India in achieving their demands for digital transformation and intelligentization.

This flagship event is co-located with India’s largest tech and infra expo, the Convergence India Expo. Held at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, India, from January 17th to January 19th, the expo brings together powerful business and technology leaders in the embedded technologies industry to share their knowledge and explore new solutions. DFI’s products will be displayed alongside Dynalog’s networking solutions at their joint exhibition booth. With over 40 years of legacy, Dynalog India Ltd, is a distinguished leader of automation
solutions recognized across India and is one of DFI’s most important distributors and partners.

DFI will present flagship products such as the ECX700-AL rugged embedded system, EP100-AL compact PC, PCSF51 SBC, and the latest SOM modules for applications in factory automation, transportation, and military industries in India. These products are already being implemented and have achieved positive results in India. For example, DFI has initiated production on an SOM module with wide temperature range for an aerospace and defense electronics company. The customer chose DFI after reviewing more than five
industrial PC competitors, because DFI could provide the most comprehensive support and customization services.

With India’s market potential and DFI’s cutting-edge technologies, DFI aspires to become the best partner in India’s industrial transformation. DFI supports government initiatives such as the “Make in India” initiative that promotes entrepreneurship and encourages companies to manufacture products made in India. From government to private sectors, DFI is committed toward contributing its services and enabling companies to realize their goals. DFI will continue to seize opportunities in India by delivering its industrial-grade
embedded solutions for industrial automation, military defense, smart transportation, smart city, and other sectors while enhancing its presence through participation in local events.

– Exhibition Dates: 17th -19th January 2024
– Venue: Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, India
– Booth No.: B158

The post DFI To Present Latest Innovations Alongside Partner Dynalog at Embedded Tech India Expo 2024 appeared first on ELE Times.

Put together my first electronic project. Savaged the fan from an old printer and decided to make something useful. Because the fan is 24V i had to use a step up converter that also tells me the battery voltage. submitted by /u/VerySlowLorris [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/DELTA129 [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/BlownUpCapacitor [link] [comments]

Independent power electronics company Quantum Power Transformation (QPT) of Cambridge, UK — which was founded in 2019 and specializes in developing next-generation gallium nitride (GaN)-based motor drives — has appointed Rupert Baines as its CEO, effective from 1 April. He is a veteran of the semiconductor industry with C-level roles including CEO of UltraSoC (sold to Siemens) and chief marketing officer of Codasip...

Lynred of Grenoble, France, which designs and manufactures infrared (IR) detectors for aerospace, defense and commercial applications, has appointed Hervé Bouaziz as executive president and Xavier Caillouet as CEO...

The Electronic Communications Office of Iceland (ECOI) has selected Rohde & Schwarz mobile network testing to assess and benchmark the performance, coverage and capacity of the country’s three mobile network operators. The campaign is intended to ultimately improve the quality of service (QoS) and quality of experience (QoE) for the end users in Iceland, given the island’s challenging geography and climate. ECOI commissioned Rohde & Schwarz network analytics services to roll out a benchmarking campaign based on an internationally standardized, transparent process based on the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).

The national regulatory authority Fjarskiptastofa (FST) – internationally known as the Electronic Communications Office of Iceland (ECOI) – commissioned Rohde & Schwarz to conduct a large-scale mobile network quality benchmarking campaign in Iceland. The mobile network testing experts from Rohde & Schwarz planned and implemented the benchmarking campaign as a service for ECOI. The collected data was processed using the Network Performance Score (NPS) 2.0. The NPS is a fully transparent test methodology in line with ETSI TR 103 559 that compares standardized KPIs for mobile networks using active drive and walk tests.

ECOI is one of the first regulatory authorities in Europe to rely on the NPS for such a large-scale network benchmarking campaign. The NPS is based on a methodology described by the European standardization organization ETSI in ETSI TR 103 559. It provides an industry-proven standard and internationally comparable quality of service and user experience assessments for mobile networks.

The campaign was conducted over five weeks in September and October 2023. Roughly 9 000 km were driven through big cities like Reykjavik, small towns and on remote roads around the entire island. The network quality within shopping malls was also assessed. Approximately 90 % of Iceland’s population was covered. The campaign included over 17 000 calls and the evaluation of over 160 000 data tests, including application level tests for 90-second voice calls, eGaming applications, online meetings and video chats to assess the typical experience for current subscribers. NPS version 2.0 applies more challenging thresholds and intricate weighting, especially for developed networks dominated by 5G technology, as is the case in Iceland.

The benchmark measurements confirmed that all three mobile networks in Iceland; Síminn, Nova and Vodafone scored over 700 points (out of 1000), making them on par with other mobile networks in Europe. All three networks have very good 5G coverage in cities and towns and excellent 4G coverage nationwide. Both voice and data services are reliable, but there is still room for improvement. Thanks to the NPS method applied in real drive tests, QoE issues especially along highways could be detected, which remain unnoticed with other test methods.

ECOI wants to spur the development of Iceland’s telecommunications networks and provide services for everyone, no matter where they live on the sparsely populated island. By fostering healthy competition among the three Icelandic network operators with benchmarking, the operators are encouraged to invest in the infrastructure that ultimately benefits end-users and businesses. Þorleifur Jónasson, Director Infrastructure Division at the Electronic Communications Office of Iceland, says: “ECOI believes that only a methodology deeply rooted in internationally recognized standards allows a fair and unbiased assessment of the mobile network quality. This is why we partnered with Rohde & Schwarz to provide us with their mobile network quality benchmarking services. Their ETSI defined Network Performance Score methodology convinced us.”

Maja Mitic, Director Network Analytics Services Mobile Network Testing at Rohde & Schwarz, says: “Iceland has vast open landscapes and a rough climate that can make it challenging for operators to provide the best possible network coverage, especially with 5G in the game. ECOI is among the first regulatory authorities in Europe to trust Rohde & Schwarz with such a transparent and unbiased large-scale benchmarking campaign to assess a country’s network quality and user experience. It’s a crucial step to ensure further investment, innovation and consumer protection through enhanced competition among Icelandic network operators.”

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BluGlass Ltd of Silverwater, Australia — which develops and manufactures gallium nitride (GaN) blue laser diodes based on its proprietary low-temperature, low-hydrogen remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) technology — has completed its acquisition of contract manufacturer GaNWorks Foundry Inc, following the installation and validation of core GaN wafer processing equipment at its laser production fab in Silicon Valley...

My brief mention in the teardown that I just submitted (and you’ll either have already read or will read soon, depending on EDN’s publication order preference), of MagSafe wireless support in the charging dock for the Lenovo Smart Clock 2, reminded me that I’ve intended for a while to deliver some dedicated coverage of this Apple-branded technology. No better time than the present to actualize this aspiration, I suppose…

I’ve actually editorially introduced MagSafe already, in the context of a wireless charging pad teardown I did in late 2022. The term dates all the way back to 2006, when it was first applied to a magnetic coupling technique for powering and recharging laptops:

After taking it through two generations, the second more svelte than the first, Apple phased it out from laptops beginning in 2015, only to bring it back as MagSafe 3 six years later. I’m approximating the approach for the new-to-me Intel-based 2020 13” Retina MacBook Pro I migrated to while on Thanksgiving holiday last week (as I write these words on December 1) by means of a third-party USB-C intermediary that works pretty well (although I admittedly wish the magnets were a bit stronger):

That said, one year earlier, Apple had already resurrected the MagSafe brand name, albeit this time focused on a different product line: smartphones. Beginning with the iPhone 12, the company augmented its Qi-baseline, proprietary-enhanced integrated wireless charging scheme (which had dated from 2017’s iPhone X) with magnets, initially promoted to optimally align the device with charging coils. And even that wasn’t the first time Apple had implemented magnet-augmented wireless charging; it’s been the (proprietary protocol-only, in this particular case) standard for the company’s smart watches ever since 2015’s initial Apple Watch Series 1:

MagSafe got “personal” for my family when I upgraded my wife from the iPhone XS Max she’d had for the past several years (at left in the following photo):

to an iPhone 14 Plus (at right in the following photo) for her birthday earlier this year:

I took advantage of the opportunity, of course, to also pick her up some accessories; a couple of Apple MagSafe chargers along with third-party stands to install them in:

A MagSafe Duo for travel, since she also owns an Apple Watch (the watch charging pad is on the right; recall that as I previously mentioned, its charging scheme is proprietary-only, therefore incompatible with other Apple and more general Qi-supportive devices):

A Belkin charging dock for the car:

Several third-party multi-device chargers (she also has an AirPods Pro earbuds set with a Qi-compatible charging case, don’cha know):

Both Apple- and Speck-branded cases (along with several screen protector sets, of course):

Two Apple MagSafe Battery Packs:

A “wallet” for some paper currency, a credit card, identification documentation and the like:

And a nifty Belkin mini-stand that also does triple-duty as webcam stand and “finger grip”:

Admittedly, at least some of these are primarily-to-completely “convenience” purchases. After all, her existing Qi chargers continue to work fine, albeit in a non-magnetic-attached fashion. Others offer more meaningful enhancements to the status quo. Take cases, for example. The magnets built into the phone aren’t strong enough to grip a charging base through a standard leather, silicone, or plastic case intermediary. Instead, you need specific MagSafe-compatible cases with their own built-in magnets, appropriately polarity-oriented to attract (versus repel) both the phone and charger on either side. To that “attract” point, however, these cases don’t need to intensely wrap around and otherwise cling to the phone as their non-magnetic predecessors did; the magnets do all the “clinging” work by themselves. Which is nice.

Same goes, even more so, for supplemental batteries. She was used to ones like this:

which were not only bulky but also a pain in the derriere to install and remove. Now she only needs to slap a diminutive battery onto the back of the phone, where it’ll magnetically cling when the internal battery charge is low.

The more general charging situation is interesting. As I already mentioned, some companies dodge it completely, selling only stands into which you slip an Apple-branded charging pad:

Others, like my 2022 teardown victim, avoid the word “MagSafe” completely (while, note, still claiming iPhone compatibility), presumably in an attempt to dodge Apple legal attention:

Some, while actually chargers, state only that they’re “MagSafe compatible” (such as the Belkin car dock I showed you earlier). I’m not clear whether the manufacturers of such products are required to obtain a license from Apple so they can officially make such a claim, but they generally don’t support the maximum power output that iPhones accept, for example.

And others are fully “Made for MagSafe”. From what I can tell, among other requirements their suppliers need to put official Apple charging modules in them in order to brand them as such:

That said, Apple still keeps some feature set niceties to itself. Apple’s own battery packs, for example, are the only ones capable of reporting their charged state (specific percentage, versus just approximation LEDs built into the batteries) via a software-enabled display on the phone itself. And Apple’s “wallets” are the only ones with nifty integrated “Find My” location support.

Admittedly, I was initially somewhat cynical of the whole wireless charging concept, primarily due to its inherent environment-unfriendly inefficiency, and I doubled down on my scorn when Apple rolled out what I initially opined as being the MagSafe “gimmick”. Perhaps obviously, I’ve subsequently had at least somewhat of a change of heart since then. Partly, this is due to the admitted reduction of repeated insertion-and-removal wear-and-tear on a device’s charging port (Lightning, USB-C, etc.) that wireless charging affords. And once you take the wireless charging plunge, the magnets are legitimately beneficial in ensuring that the charging pad and device are optimally aligned for peak efficiency.

To wit, as I write these words the Qi consortium and its members are in the process of rolling out version 2 of the specification (and products based on it), also magnet-augmented (among other enhancements) and claimed MagSafe-compliant. And in advance, I’ve already purchased Mous MagSafe-compatible cases for my two Google Pixel 7 smartphones:

along with two Belkin magnetic external batteries:

And although my DJI gimbal has a magnetic mount which isn’t natively MagSafe-compliant:

a third-party adapter sturdily bridges the divide:

One other comment before concluding: as I mentioned a few months ago, Apple’s latest iPhone 15 smartphone family has migrated from Lightning to USB-C, following in the footsteps of several iPad family predecessors. As such, and in a seeming prematurely rushed fashion (the company still sells other Magsafe- and Lightning-based phones, after all), Apple in-parallel discontinued both the Lightning-based MagSafe Battery Pack and Magsafe Due charger, with no USB-based successors (yet, at least) unveiled as I write these words. Odd.

And speaking of the MagSafe Duo, I have “for parts only” examples of both it and the MagSafe Charger sitting in my to-do teardown pile. Stand by for writeups on both products to come, hopefully soon. And until then, I welcome your thoughts on this piece in the comments!

—Brian Dipert is the Editor-in-Chief of the Edge AI and Vision Alliance, and a Senior Analyst at BDTI and Editor-in-Chief of InsideDSP, the company’s online newsletter.

Related Content

• Disassembling a wireless charger with a magnetic personality
• Apple’s latest product launch event takes flight
• Wireless charging: The state of disunion
• Teardown: Wireless charger boosts output, alters orientation
• Solving a wireless charging mystery

The post Apple’s MagSafe technology: Sticky, both literally and metaphorically appeared first on EDN.

Infineon Technologies AG combines its proven expertise in magnetic position sensors with its established linearized tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) technology to launch the XENSIV TLI5590-A6W magnetic position sensor. The sensor comes in a wafer-level package and is well suited for linear and angular incremental position detection. The device is qualified for industrial and consumer applications according to the JEDEC standard JESD47K and can be used as a replacement for optical encoders and resolvers. It is well suited for positioning lenses for zoom and focus adjustment in cameras.

The TLI5590 is a low field sensor with Infineon TMR technology which was developed for high-volume sensor systems. As a result, the sensor offers ultra-high sensitivity, low jitter, and low power consumption. Compared to linear Hall sensors, TMR sensors offer better linearity, lower noise, and lower hysteresis. The high signal-to-noise ratio and the lower power enable cost-effective magnetic designs with lower battery consumption.

As a result, the new sensor enables accurate detection with rapidly changing directions. The TLI5590 consists of two TMR Wheatstone bridges, where the TMR resistance depends on the direction and strength of the external magnetic field. In combination with a multipole magnet, each bridge provides a differential output signal, i.e., sine and cosine signals. These can be further processed for relative position measurement.

The sensor is housed in an extreme small 6-ball wafer level package SG-WFWLB-6-3. Due to the higher integration density, the sensor size has been reduced, which supports miniaturization and position detection in microsystems. The TLI5590-A6W enables fine measurement with a very high accuracy of better than 10 µm, which is achieved by using a suitable linear or rotary magnetic encoder. With an extended operating temperature range of up to +125°C, the sensor can be used flexibly in various industrial and consumer applications. In addition, its high temperature stability makes it the perfect choice for use in harsh environments.

Availability

The TLI5590-A6W can be ordered now. More information is available at https://www.infineon.com/linear-sensors/tli5590-a6w

The post XENSIV stray field robust linear TMR sensor enables high-precision length measurements in industrial and consumer applications appeared first on ELE Times.

Mojo Vision Inc of Saratoga, CA, USA — which is developing and commercializing micro-LED display technology for consumer, enterprise and government applications — has integrated red, green and blue (RGB) sub-pixels into a first-of-its-kind single panel using its proprietary high performance quantum dots (QDs) and integration processes. The proof-of-concept integrates 1.3μm-diameter red and green QD-based sub-pixels adjacent to 1.3μm-diameter native blue sub-pixels, demonstrating the viability of the company’s path to developing single-panel RGB micro-LED displays. The milestone is said to mark significant momentum toward scaling micro-LED technology and its use in augmented reality (AR) devices for peak performance in diverse outdoor environments...

Guerrilla RF Inc (GRF) of Greensboro, NC, USA — which develops and manufactures radio-frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) and monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) for wireless applications — has received an initial purchase order (PO) of $1m for a new point-to-multipoint (PTMP) wireless infrastructure design win associated with its GRF2013 gain block. Delivery is scheduled for early second-quarter 2024. Management estimates the upper end of the design win to offer a $3.5m opportunity for calendar year 2024, of which the firm has only included $1m in released projections. This is a new production ramp and adds to existing sales...

Courtesy: Lattice Semiconductor

With the explosion of data being generated by billions of connected devices, sensors, and systems, major technology inflection points like AI at the Edge, sensor to cloud connectivity, and resilient security are creating new opportunities. With these trends, the demand for FPGAs is significantly growing thanks to their inherent programmability as customers and developers look for more flexible and adaptable solutions. FPGAs help to improve the longevity of product lifecycles and accelerate time-to-market, enabling customers and developers to lean into FPGA technology when designing applications across Communications, Computing, Industrial, Automotive, and Consumer markets. We are also seeing a fast-growing FPGA ecosystem with an estimated 100,000+ new FPGA-based designs starting every year and 50,000+ FPGA developers worldwide.

With more than 40-years of low power programmable solution innovation, Lattice introduced the ground-breaking mid-range FPGA platform, Lattice Avant and Lattice Avant-E device family in 2022, extending our low power leadership to span the small and mid-size density FPGA portions of the market. This introduction was born out of customer demand as they found the market lacking compelling mid-range FPGA solutions, with three key considerations: power efficiency, performance, and form factor, design aspects for which Lattice has become known and trusted for over the last 4 decades.

Today, at the Lattice Developers Conference, Lattice announced multiple innovative hardware and software solutions creating the strongest and fastest product portfolio in company’s history by introducing two new mid-range FPGAs – Lattice Avant-G and Lattice Avant-X, expanded solution stacks for AI, embedded vision, security, and factory automation, and enhanced software capabilities supporting the robust product portfolio.

Higher Performance. Lower Power – New Mid-range FPGAs Lattice Avant-G FPGA Family

Avant-G general purpose FPGAs are designed to enable a wide range customer needs by offering seamless, flexible interface bridging and optimized compute for system expandability.

Lattice Avant-G devices offer best-in-class signal processing and AI, flexible I/O supporting a range of system interfaces, while providing dedicated LPDDR4 memory interfaces at 2400 Mbps. Lattice Avant-G devices deliver 12.5G SERDES with support for up to PCIe Gen 3 and 10G Ethernet.

Lattice Avant-X FPGA Family

Avant-X advanced connectivity FPGAs are designed to enable high bandwidth and security, with a feature set tailored to customer needs for signal aggregation and high throughput.

Lattice Avant-X devices offer up to 1 Terabit per second total system bandwidth, PCIe Gen 4 controllers with hard DMA, and a security engine to encrypt user data in motion providing quantum safe cryptography. Lattice Avant-X devices deliver 25G SERDES supporting up to PCIe Gen 4 and 25G Ethernet, along with support for DDR5 memories and advanced user-logic accessible security.

Key features and performance highlights of the new Lattice Avant-G and Avant-X FPGAs include:

• Power Efficiency

• • Up to 2.5X lower power than similar class competitive devices, helping system and application engineers achieve power and thermal design efficiencies, improve operating costs, and enhance reliability
• Form Factor
  • Up to 6X smaller package size compared to similar class competitive devices enables size-efficient system designs
• Performance:
  • Up to 8X faster INT8 multipliers compared to similar class competitive devices, optimized for AI/ML applications
  • Up to 10X faster device configuration times for applications requiring rapid start-up
• Modernized Feature set (varies by device):
  • Advanced bitstream and user logic accessible security features including AES encryption, ECC/RSA authentication, quantum safe cryptography, physical unclonable functions (PUF), tamper monitor, true random number generator (TRNG), and side-channel resistance
  • High speed memory interface support including LPDDR4 and DDR5, and Hardened DFI training layer
  • Fastest Soft Error Detect (SED) to minimize error propagation and to enable fastest recovery from Single Event Upset (SEU)

Expanded Solution Stacks – Accelerating Your Time to Market

Lattice’s solution stacks are designed to speed customer development and time-to-market by giving them a toolkit of hardware, software, and IP tailored to the needs of their application. Solution stack updates announced today include:

Lattice sensAI solution stack: Accelerates the integration of flexible, low power inferencing at the Edge for AI applications across client computing, automotive, factory automation, and consumer IoT with:

• Up to 3X faster performance with upgraded accelerator engine and complier tool
• Expanded network support with additional preprocessing capabilities

Lattice mVision solution stack: Accelerates the development of low power embedded vision applications including machine vision, robotics, ADAS, drones, and AR/VR with:

• Expanded sensor/video bridging solutions including MIPI to PCIe®, SLVS-EC to PCIe, and MIPI to HDMI reference designs and demos

Lattice Sentry solution stack: Provides a cyber resilient Root of Trust solution with:

• Platform Firmware Resiliency (PFR) root of trust to secure and develop a NIST 800-193 compliant PFR solution

Lattice Automate solution stack: Accelerates the development of smart Industrial automation systems including applications like robotics, embedded real time networking, predictive maintenance, functional safety, and security with:

• Enablement of Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA) for field communication
• Expanded motor control solutions with golden hardware & golden system reference designs

Enhanced Software Capabilities

Lattice is committed to providing best-in-class, easy-to-use software tools that help enhance customers’ design experience and design environment. Key updates to Lattice Propel and Lattice Radiant software includes adding full support for the new Lattice Avant-G and Avant-X FPGA families, the introduction of enhanced ease-of-use and scripting to Radiant, and expanding the IP portfolio in Propel.

Advanced computer vision software Glance by Mirametrix was also updated with new features to expand its applicability across Edge applications for various markets. Updates include a new smart avatar privacy feature and 3D head pose for low power capability.

Latest FPGA Trends and Opportunities in Today’s Interconnected World

Alongside these exciting new hardware and software solutions announcement, Lattice is hosting a 3-day virtual Developers Conference featuring

• Guest keynotes from NVIDIA, Meta, and BMW
• An incredible line up of guest panel discussions on Edge AI, connectivity, and security
• 35+ in-depth technical breakout sessions and trainings
• A robust FPGA-based demo showcase with industry leading partners and customers

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