|
Now Showing: Computer Architectures for Embedded Safety-critical Applications
Learn planning, development and incorporation of redundancy schemes in safety critical electronic systems Register Now to Win an iPod!
Our tutorials soon will be available as podcasts. So each month we're giving away an iPod. Click here for details.
|
Visit the ECN Design Network
|
Web Exclusives
|
3D Light Source Shines in Many Directions
Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are light sources that feature high efficiency, energy savings of up to 80%, mercury-free operation, more than 30,000 hours lifetime and impact resistance. It is expected that 150 lumen/watt light efficiency from LEDs can be achieved in the next five years and that 50,000 hours lifetime or more at LM70 can also be achieved in the next few years.
...continue
Estimating Efficiencies of the Optical, Thermal and Electrical Systems in LEDs
There are more than 20 billion light fixtures using incandescent, halogen, or fluorescent lamps worldwide, according to the United States Department of Energy (DOE). Many of these fixtures are being used for directional light applications but are based on lamps that put out light in all directions. The DOE states that recessed downlights are the most common installed luminaire type in new residential construction.
...continue
The Application of LEDs for Industrial LCD Modules
As LCD modules become more widely adopted in the industrial market, the application of LEDs in LCD modules becomes increasingly important. Dynamic color temperature control is one important consideration, particularly when designing for the industrial market, which demands long life cycles combined with high quality and reliability.
...continue
|
more Web Exclusives
|
|
|
The Mathworks Kicks Off EcoCAR Competition
 On August 14th, 2008, The Mathworks held the kick-off to “EcoCAR,” a collegiate advanced technology vehicle competition (ATVC). EcoCAR’s subtitle (“The NeXt Challenge”) says it all- this is the spiritual successor to “Challenge X,” a similarly-themed ATVC contest that, last year, ended with Mississippi State University taking home the gold. In speaking with personnel from the DOE, The Mathworks, and GM (all event sponsors), I concluded that the biggest obstacle to ATV’s greater viability is a lack of young, qualified engineers.
...continue
“Green” Project Aspires to Reduce IT's Carbon Footprint
 According to Doug Ramsey of UC San Diego, “The information technology industry consumes as much energy and has roughly the same ‘carbon footprint’ as the airline industry.” This is because of the unparalleled growth in high-speed electronic equipment, and the corresponding electricity requirements. Not only is energy necessary for the systems themselves, but as IT equipment blossoms, so does their cooling requirements. It’s an implacable scenario that currently plagues the IT industry. Similar to hipster environmentalist celebrities who globe-trot on private jets, how do you conduct scientific research into efficiency issues when your investigative process gobbles up energy?
...continue
Energizer Stays One Step Ahead by Catering to Diminutive Device Trend
 “Quad A” may soon become part of the common vernacular. Although the AAAA battery (or Quad A) has been commercially available since 1989, it’s mostly been a niche product, difficult to find on shelves. But with consumer electronics moving towards smaller, more lightweight devices, with decreasing power requirements, the battery industry is adapting. Quad A has long been an internal industry standard for 9 V batteries (6 Quad A’s linked together, each generating 1.5 V, equals 9 V), but it could soon displace the AAA as the battery of choice for portable electronics.
...continue
|
|
More Efficiency Zone
|
|
Editor's Choice
|
500-mA Converter is Thinnest Available
 With package dimensions of 0.9 x 1.3 x 0.6 mm, the 500-mA TPS62601 step-down DC/DC converter from Texas Instruments is presented as the thinnest device of its type. Accepting an input voltage range from 2.3 to 5.5 V, the output is 1.8 V with a voltage regulation accuracy of +/- 1.5 %. Operating at up to 89% efficiency, the 6-MHz synchronous, switch-mode converter requires only a 0.6-mm-high 0.47-uH inductor and two ceramic capacitors.
...continue
Graphic Design Software Enhances Embedded System Development
 Combining a graphical programming environment with COTS multicore and FPGA hardware, National Instruments’ LabVIEW 8.6 helps engineers rapidly prototype advanced control algorithms and embedded applications on flexible hardware such as CompactRIO and deploy their systems to board-level embedded hardware. Using optimized analysis functions that provide faster execution on multicore systems, engineers can evaluate the behavior of the complete system...
...continue
IP Core Watermark Technology Protects Chip Designs
 Addressing the rapidly-growing international trade in stolen IP, counterfeit chips, and cloned designs, Algotronix has launched DesignTag, a novel concept in tagging using a small low-cost IP core that can be included into an FPGA design or built into a semiconductor. It allows ownership of the design to be positively established and helps in the fight against piracy and fraud. DesignTag is a digital core coded with a customer-specific "signature" that can be identified externally from a working device without needing to read the FPGA bitstream or decapsulate the chip.
...continue
|
More Editor's Choice
|
|