Author Archives: richard wilson

Wireless charger for iPhone 6 adds Watch too

iphone 6 chargerIf you have an iPhone 6 and you want to charge it without fiddling with cables, then a US-based start-up may have the answer.

Skiva Technology has come up with a 3000mAh iPhone 6 battery case with wireless charging dock.

The wireless charging dock, which is looking for backers on the Kickstarter crowd-funding website, is Apple MFi certified.

“We looked for a simple solution to a common problem of wiring mess and associated perils for iPhone 6 charging. We did not find a good product that solves this problem effectively. This is where the idea of EnergySkin IP6 Battery Case + Dock came from,” says Skiva Technology.

The company has developed a working prototype and is now looking for funding to take the wireless charger to commercial that is near production.

There is also an optional Apple Watch stand which allows the users to dock the new Apple Watch along with iPhone 6.

Battery case, which is 7.4 mm in profile, allows iPhone 6 to work with a microUSB cable for sync and charging.

It has a lithium polymer battery with a capacity of 3000mAh. Input is 5V at 1A.

The charger is certified for Europe with RoHS and CE along with FCC approvals.

Richard Wilson

Test market sees trend for modular instruments

NI-compact-vision-systemThe market for test and measurements had revenues of $3.18bn in 2014, according to market watcher Frost & Sullivan.

It estimates the test market will reach $3.87bn in 2019 at a compound annual growth rate of 4%.

Growing demand for the defence and aerospace sectors is driving this healthy growth in the test market.

And the big gainers seems to be the suppliers of modular test instruments, such as PXI instruments.

“Modularity is a key trend in any technologically-evolving industry and A&D is no exception,” said Frost & Sullivan Measurement & Instrumentation Industry Analyst Prathima Bommakanti.

“It is a major aspect of aircraft design – components are in the form of separate modules, which are then integrated in the total engine system. Modular components are preferred as they offer scalability and flexibility. This, however, will reduce the cost of tests.”

With growing pricing pressure, it is possible that smaller suppliers will be hit hard as global customers stay conservative and opt for bigger, well-established test equipment vendors.

“Further, widespread use and decreasing prices of electronics mean that end users continually demand attractively-priced software and hardware despite the enhanced performance of products,” said Bommakanti.

Upgrading existing systems is creating opportunities for testing, instrumentation and measurement equipment vendors, according to the report – Global Test, Measurement, and Instrumentation Market from Frost & Sullivan.

Richard Wilson

Sinclair ZX Spectrum in production again after 30 years

Sinclair ZX Spectrum - ZX Vega Controller2

Sinclair ZX Spectrum

A UK company has started production of a ‘new’ Sinclair ZX Spectrum hand-held games console, more than 30 years after the original ZX Spectrum was inspiring the young of Britain.

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega is compatible with all ZX Spectrum software. It plugs into the composite video and audio connectors of a domestic television set, just like the original.

Retro Computers is the company behind this particular nostalgia kick.

One difference from the original ZX Spectrum, with the Vega power is drawn from a television USB socket or USB power adaptor, and so it requires no additional devices or batteries.

The games console is being manufactured in the UK by SMS Electronics.

Retro Computers writes:

“Having frozen the design we were then able to give the Vega’s manufacturer, SMS Electronics Ltd, the go-ahead to order to components for the first production run of 1,000 Vegas, and for the second run of 3,000 Vegas.”

It hopes to dispatch the first 1,000 Vegas mid-July.

It is the work of the company’s technical director, Chris Smith.

The design is based on an ARM microcontroller with 16Mbit DDR SDRAM, that wasn’t in the original.

Nor was the data storage capability with 64Mbit SPI flash memory.

Smith writes:

“The ARM SOC is the core of the design, and performs all of the work necessary to run ZX Spectrum software. The SDRAM stores the video, audio and game code being executed. The Flash memory stores the system and games software library.”

Smith has also come up with software that “tricks the ARM processor into behaving like a ZX Spectrum, including the replication of the ZX Spectrum’s unusual and characteristic display, with its non-standard television frame size”.

The console’s stereo audio and composite video signals are fed to the television through a cable terminated by RCA phono plugs. It is capable of producing PAL and NTSC signals, making it compatible with televisions across geographic locations.

It will support games written for 16, 48 and 128K models of the ZX Spectrum, and includes new features such as the ULAplus extended colour palettes, recently developed by members of the Spectrum community.

Standard micro-SDCards are used to load user software into the Vega, and are easily accessed through the Vega’s user interface. TAP, Z80 and SZX formats are accepted.

 

Richard Wilson

Cherry sells energy-harvesting device through RS

RS378-Cherry_WirelessRS Components is selling the wireless switch evaluation kit and modular snap and rocker switches by Cherry.

The AFIK-1002 evaluation kit can be used to setup wireless links using self-powered switches, and to test key parameters such as signal strength and range in custom applications.

Included in the box are: an energy-harvesting generator, a snap switch, a rocker switch, a receiver with antenna bushing, and a USB cable.

Kevin McCormack, global head of IP&E at RS Components, said:

“We have the exclusive right to distribute the kit for the first 12 months, which is both a major win for RS and a tremendous opportunity to build close links with product developers currently starting on new designs.”

Mark Mills, European distribution manager at Cherry believes the exclusive agreement will encourages action to grow sales and establish strong connections with new customers.

Self-powered 868MHz snap and rocker switches, as well as an 868MHz receiver module, are also available individually.

The switches transmit at low power, typically 10-14dBm, and up to 100kbit/s. Each has a unique 32-bit identification, allowing several switches to be paired with one receiver or one switch with several receivers.

When operated, the switches transmit up to three telegrams, powered by energy harvested from mechanical actuation.

The receiver is available as a board or as a complete module. Multiple outputs including a TTL output, low-voltage relay output, and RS-232 and RS-485 bus outputs allow the unit to be connected to various types of equipment.

 

 

Richard Wilson

Big data NAND flash with no limits for MCUs

NAND-Flash_EvalUsing large NAND flash memory with the most basic of microcontrollers has got a little easier with a block grouping feature for Segger’s emFile file system, which reduces RAM requirements for block management.

NAND flash is typically used to store large data in embedded systems. However, when using external NAND memory with microcontrollers, RAM limitation is usually the bottleneck.

Block grouping means that the driver treats multiple blocks as a single block to considerably reduce the memory used for administrating the NAND flash memory.

The size of a block group is scalable according to the users’ requirements.

For example, an 8Gbyte NAND flash, with 4096 blocks, would normally require 8kbyte RAM – block grouping can bring down RAM consumption to less than 1kbyte.

According Segger, critically, block grouping does not affect processing speed.

The emFile’s NAND driver has a reading speed of almost 6Mbyte/s and a write speed of 3.8Mbyte/s.

 

Richard Wilson

Wearable sensors measure both feet when jogging

tunePortugal-based start-up Kinematix has developed a wearable monitoring device for runners which measures parameters on both feet while in motion.

As well as measuring running speed, the device also measures each foot’s ground-contact time and heel-contact time.

To do this it monitors in-shoe both feet simultaneously during a run to get the relevant parameters that allow the assessment of running technique.

This enables the system, called Tune, to measure the change in the balance/symmetry of several parameters between the left and right feet during a full run.

“Until now, only elite runners have had access to this type of data,” said Kinematix CEO, Paulo Ferreira dos Santos.

“Now, recreational runners at all levels can monitor their movements during a run, obtain an analysis of the evolution of their running technique, and make use of customized exercise plans designed to help them improve.”

There are sensors mounted in the insoles, these were developed in collaboration with Luxembourg-based sensor firm IEE. Data is sent to a device on the outside of each shoe, which then connects to a smartphone.

According to Kinematix:

“The device provides a post-run analysis that shows the evolution of the runner’s technique throughout a run, and over longer periods of time. The analysis also includes a customized exercise plan designed to improve exactly the movements and muscles needed to maximize the runner’s technique.”

The device is the subject of a Kickstarter crowd-funding campaign which is hoping to raise $100 000.

Kinematix has spent the past eight years studying body movement and how to analyze and improve biomechanics using technology.  Kinematix also worked with Run4Excellence to determine the best running parameters to measure and include in the smartphone app.
 

Richard Wilson

Panel PC is IP66 sealed and fan-less

bvmPanel PCs for harsh environments from BVM come in anti-corrosion stainless steel units with resistive touch screens and sealed to IP66.

The WTP-9A66 versions have two Gigabit LAN ports, two Mini PCIe expansion slots, one of which can be used to for an optional WLAN interface module; four USB2.0 ports and two SATAIII ports.

A 2.5-inch HDD internal drive bay is provided.

The WTP-8B66 versions have two Gigabit LAN ports, six USB2.0 ports, two Mini PCIe slots, two SATAIII ports and three RS232 and one RS232/422/485 serial ports.

Power is from the external mains powered 12V adapter which is rated to IP67.

A standard VESA mounts is provided. External connections are via optional M12 to COM, USB and LAN interface cables.

Richard Wilson

Tuning capacitor for 4G smartphone PAs

STPTIC Tunable Capacitors_IMAGE (2)STMicroelectronics has extend the tuning range of its electronically tunable capacitors.

Designated the Stptic G2 range, the capacitors now have a 5:1 tuning ratio which means they can add extra correction when signal matching  between a smartphone’s antenna and power amplifier.

Other improvements include lower parasitic resistance and inductance as well as a higher ESD rating.

Designed to meet linearity specifications of 3G/4G modulation, the Stptic capacitors are available in eight standard values from 1.5pF (STPTIC-15G2) to 8.2pF (STPTIC-82G2), and are controlled using a bias voltage from 1V to 24V.

This can be provided by ST’s STHVDAC-253M controller, which provides three outputs to control the capacitors in multiple antenna systems.

The capacitors are available in 4-bump 0.4mm-pitch flip-chip packages.

 

Richard Wilson

Tuning capacitor for 4G smartphone PAs

STPTIC Tunable Capacitors_IMAGE (2)STMicroelectronics has extend the tuning range of its electronically tunable capacitors.

Designated the Stptic G2 range, the capacitors now have a 5:1 tuning ratio which means they can add extra correction when signal matching  between a smartphone’s antenna and power amplifier.

Other improvements include lower parasitic resistance and inductance as well as a higher ESD rating.

Designed to meet linearity specifications of 3G/4G modulation, the Stptic capacitors are available in eight standard values from 1.5pF (STPTIC-15G2) to 8.2pF (STPTIC-82G2), and are controlled using a bias voltage from 1V to 24V.

This can be provided by ST’s STHVDAC-253M controller, which provides three outputs to control the capacitors in multiple antenna systems.

The capacitors are available in 4-bump 0.4mm-pitch flip-chip packages.

 

Richard Wilson

UK-based start-up develops low-power IoT radio

CA8210-closeupHot on the heels of the UK government launch of their £10m IoT smart city competition and Qualcomm joining the Thread mesh networking initiative, two UK-based IoT start-ups are about to announce details of a collaborative product.

Cascoda and Vertizan, formerly known as Coveritas, have been collaborating on the development of a low power wireless transceiver that is compliant with the IEEE 802.15.4 standard.

Southampton-based semiconductor developer, Cascoda has developed a propriety radio architecture and to ensure the IoT platform can compete in global market, it worked with Vertizan of Bletchley to validate the software stack.

Cascoda’s bat radio technology uses new demodulation and detection techniques to improve receiver sensitivity to extend coverage in the home without additional power penalties.

The receiver design retains compliance with existing standards, including mesh networking.

The CA-8210 is the first chipset to incorporate technology for the 2.4GHz industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) radio band of the IEEE 802.15.4 wireless standard.

“We knew our patented bat radio architecture would stand out from the crowd and disrupt the market, but our target global customers would expect more than just compliance to the standard,” said  Bruno Johnson, CEO, Cascoda.

“Our software protocol stack had to be tested for every conceivable functional use case, which is well above and beyond the compliance test case set,” said Johnson.

For this Cascoda used Vertizan’s Vitaq system functional verification tool and the work was completed in less than three months .

Vitaq allows users to specify parameter and action-based rules. The tool automatically generates exploratory tests that explore the possible use-case functionality of the software under examination, and also allows test runs to focus on the scenarios of greatest relevance.

“By combining stress testing with difficult-to-reach corner cases, Vitaq has automatically created millions of valuable tests.  This allowed Cascoda to discover, fix and re-verify issues which would have been virtually impossible to find using predetermined test sequences,” said Sean Redmond, CEO, Vertizan.

 

 

 

 

 

Richard Wilson