Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

Jaguar Land Rover is investigating the use of ultrasound gesture recognition for operating in-car infotainment systems.

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction - Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction – Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

The car company is working with UK start-up Ultrahaptics, which is developing ultrasonic free-space haptic technology for a touch screen display which works with a movement of the driver’s hand above the surface.

The aim is to create a system which does not require the driver to take their eyes off the road to operate.

Using the ultrasound technology which creates feeling in mid-air, known as haptic feedback, the driver’s hand can be tracked as it is moves across the interactive field in front of the screen.

The user will feel virtual objects and control switches and buttons, giving the ability to control them in mid-air and receive feedback to confirm their action has been successfully completed.

Steve Cliffe, CEO of Ultrahaptics writes:

“We are enormously proud to have been chosen to support this safety critical technology program. Our innovation will be truly disruptive to the way we interface with the technology within our vehicles.”

In June, Bristol-based Ultrahaptics received a funding boost with a grant of €1.49m in the latest round of Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 2.

 

Richard Wilson

Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

Jaguar Land Rover is investigating the use of ultrasound gesture recognition for operating in-car infotainment systems.

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction - Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction – Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

The car company is working with UK start-up Ultrahaptics, which is developing ultrasonic free-space haptic technology for a touch screen display which works with a movement of the driver’s hand above the surface.

The aim is to create a system which does not require the driver to take their eyes off the road to operate.

Using the ultrasound technology which creates feeling in mid-air, known as haptic feedback, the driver’s hand can be tracked as it is moves across the interactive field in front of the screen.

The user will feel virtual objects and control switches and buttons, giving the ability to control them in mid-air and receive feedback to confirm their action has been successfully completed.

Steve Cliffe, CEO of Ultrahaptics writes:

“We are enormously proud to have been chosen to support this safety critical technology program. Our innovation will be truly disruptive to the way we interface with the technology within our vehicles.”

In June, Bristol-based Ultrahaptics received a funding boost with a grant of €1.49m in the latest round of Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 2.

 

Richard Wilson

Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

Jaguar Land Rover is investigating the use of ultrasound gesture recognition for operating in-car infotainment systems.

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction - Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

ULT003 Mid-air touch technology inaction – Jaguar Land Rover investigates ultrasound gesture controls in cars

The car company is working with UK start-up Ultrahaptics, which is developing ultrasonic free-space haptic technology for a touch screen display which works with a movement of the driver’s hand above the surface.

The aim is to create a system which does not require the driver to take their eyes off the road to operate.

Using the ultrasound technology which creates feeling in mid-air, known as haptic feedback, the driver’s hand can be tracked as it is moves across the interactive field in front of the screen.

The user will feel virtual objects and control switches and buttons, giving the ability to control them in mid-air and receive feedback to confirm their action has been successfully completed.

Steve Cliffe, CEO of Ultrahaptics writes:

“We are enormously proud to have been chosen to support this safety critical technology program. Our innovation will be truly disruptive to the way we interface with the technology within our vehicles.”

In June, Bristol-based Ultrahaptics received a funding boost with a grant of €1.49m in the latest round of Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 2.

 

Richard Wilson

Chip upgrades old USB ports to USB-C

Microchip UTC2000 DFP app Microchip has introduced a 16pin chip that can turn products with USB 2 and 3 ports into products with the new reversible USB-C connector.

It is interposed between an existing circuit that had an old-style USB connector, and the USB-C connector replacing it.

Called UTC2000, it handles the power and ancillary connections that surround USB-C, but not data signals which are either wired directly from legacy circuit to the USB-C connector, or wired via a separate multiplexing chip. In the multiplexer case, the UTC2000 generates the necessary ‘plug orientation’ signal.

It works at both ends of a USB link: in a host (behind a USB-C ‘downstream-facing connector’ (DFC)) or in a peripheral (behind a USB-C ‘upstream-facing connector’ (UFC)).

“USB-C cable is poised to become the ‘universal’ cable, as it is capable of supplying transfer speeds of up to 10Gbit/s, 100W of continuous power and ultra-high-bandwidth video through alternate modes – all with a single connection and cable,” said Microchip. Whose chip in this case can handle 15W which is “ideal for notebooks, printers, mobile devices and battery chargers”, it claimed.

Microchip UTC2000 UFP appAlongside orientation detection, functions include: powered cable detection, configurable charging profiles (5V @ 500mA, 900mA, 1.5A or 3A), enable for host/hub port control, over-voltage monitoring, Type-C ‘audio adapter’ detection and audio adapter control. There is also a fault output pin.

Support comes from the UTC2000 evaluation kit (EVK-UTC2000) which enables both UFP and DFP types of interface to be converted to Type C.

The package 3 x 3mm QFN, 0.85mm high.

steve bush

Chip upgrades old USB ports to USB-C

Microchip UTC2000 DFP app Microchip has introduced a 16pin chip that can turn products with USB 2 and 3 ports into products with the new reversible USB-C connector.

It is interposed between an existing circuit that had an old-style USB connector, and the USB-C connector replacing it.

Called UTC2000, it handles the power and ancillary connections that surround USB-C, but not data signals which are either wired directly from legacy circuit to the USB-C connector, or wired via a separate multiplexing chip. In the multiplexer case, the UTC2000 generates the necessary ‘plug orientation’ signal.

It works at both ends of a USB link: in a host (behind a USB-C ‘downstream-facing connector’ (DFC)) or in a peripheral (behind a USB-C ‘upstream-facing connector’ (UFC)).

“USB-C cable is poised to become the ‘universal’ cable, as it is capable of supplying transfer speeds of up to 10Gbit/s, 100W of continuous power and ultra-high-bandwidth video through alternate modes – all with a single connection and cable,” said Microchip. Whose chip in this case can handle 15W which is “ideal for notebooks, printers, mobile devices and battery chargers”, it claimed.

Microchip UTC2000 UFP appAlongside orientation detection, functions include: powered cable detection, configurable charging profiles (5V @ 500mA, 900mA, 1.5A or 3A), enable for host/hub port control, over-voltage monitoring, Type-C ‘audio adapter’ detection and audio adapter control. There is also a fault output pin.

Support comes from the UTC2000 evaluation kit (EVK-UTC2000) which enables both UFP and DFP types of interface to be converted to Type C.

The package 3 x 3mm QFN, 0.85mm high.

steve bush

Chip upgrades old USB ports to USB-C

Microchip UTC2000 DFP app Microchip has introduced a 16pin chip that can turn products with USB 2 and 3 ports into products with the new reversible USB-C connector.

It is interposed between an existing circuit that had an old-style USB connector, and the USB-C connector replacing it.

Called UTC2000, it handles the power and ancillary connections that surround USB-C, but not data signals which are either wired directly from legacy circuit to the USB-C connector, or wired via a separate multiplexing chip. In the multiplexer case, the UTC2000 generates the necessary ‘plug orientation’ signal.

It works at both ends of a USB link: in a host (behind a USB-C ‘downstream-facing connector’ (DFC)) or in a peripheral (behind a USB-C ‘upstream-facing connector’ (UFC)).

“USB-C cable is poised to become the ‘universal’ cable, as it is capable of supplying transfer speeds of up to 10Gbit/s, 100W of continuous power and ultra-high-bandwidth video through alternate modes – all with a single connection and cable,” said Microchip. Whose chip in this case can handle 15W which is “ideal for notebooks, printers, mobile devices and battery chargers”, it claimed.

Microchip UTC2000 UFP appAlongside orientation detection, functions include: powered cable detection, configurable charging profiles (5V @ 500mA, 900mA, 1.5A or 3A), enable for host/hub port control, over-voltage monitoring, Type-C ‘audio adapter’ detection and audio adapter control. There is also a fault output pin.

Support comes from the UTC2000 evaluation kit (EVK-UTC2000) which enables both UFP and DFP types of interface to be converted to Type C.

The package 3 x 3mm QFN, 0.85mm high.

steve bush

FTDI Chip launches evaluation modules for next-gen USB technology

To encourage the widespread use of its next generation USB interfacing technology, FTDI Chip has unveiled a new family of evaluation/development modules. image

The company’s FT600/1Q USB 3.0 SuperSpeed ICs, which are already in full volume production, are forthwith backed up by the UMFT60XX offering.

This module family is made of 4 models, which provide different FIFO bus interfaces and data bit widths. Through these modules operational parameters of FT600/1Q devices can be fully assessed and interfacing with external hardware undertaken, such as FPGA platforms from the industry’s leading suppliers.

Measuring 78.7mm x 60mm, the UMFT600A and UMFT601A each have a high speed mezzanine card (HSMC) interface with 16-bit and 32-bit wide FIFO buses respectively.

Qvers the same functionality in relation to Xilinx boards.

Fully compatible with USB 3.0 SuperSpeed (5Gbits/s), USB 2.0 High Speed (480Mbits/s) and USB 2.0 Full Speed (12Mbits/s) data transfer, the UMFT60xx modules support 2 parallel slave FIFO bus protocols with an achievable data burst rate of around 400MBytes/s. The multi-channel FIFO mode can handle up to 4 logic channels. It is complemented by the 245 synchronous FIFO mode, which is optimised for more straightforward operation.

“We recognized early on that USB 3.0 system designs that are reliant on programmable logic, rather than MCU technology, are going to have a multitude of important benefits to the embedded engineering fraternity. They will allow bill-of-materials costs to be kept under control and the writing/compiling of masses of C code to be avoided,” states Fred Dart, CEO and founder of FTDI Chip. “As a result we have worked closely with the most prominent companies in the programmable sector to promote this more technologically and financial efficient method of implementing USB 3.0. The new modules we have introduced are designed such that they can plug into most FPGA development platforms supplied by vendors such as Xilinx or Altera.”

david manners

FTDI Chip launches evaluation modules for next-gen USB technology

To encourage the widespread use of its next generation USB interfacing technology, FTDI Chip has unveiled a new family of evaluation/development modules. image

The company’s FT600/1Q USB 3.0 SuperSpeed ICs, which are already in full volume production, are forthwith backed up by the UMFT60XX offering.

This module family is made of 4 models, which provide different FIFO bus interfaces and data bit widths. Through these modules operational parameters of FT600/1Q devices can be fully assessed and interfacing with external hardware undertaken, such as FPGA platforms from the industry’s leading suppliers.

Measuring 78.7mm x 60mm, the UMFT600A and UMFT601A each have a high speed mezzanine card (HSMC) interface with 16-bit and 32-bit wide FIFO buses respectively.

Qvers the same functionality in relation to Xilinx boards.

Fully compatible with USB 3.0 SuperSpeed (5Gbits/s), USB 2.0 High Speed (480Mbits/s) and USB 2.0 Full Speed (12Mbits/s) data transfer, the UMFT60xx modules support 2 parallel slave FIFO bus protocols with an achievable data burst rate of around 400MBytes/s. The multi-channel FIFO mode can handle up to 4 logic channels. It is complemented by the 245 synchronous FIFO mode, which is optimised for more straightforward operation.

“We recognized early on that USB 3.0 system designs that are reliant on programmable logic, rather than MCU technology, are going to have a multitude of important benefits to the embedded engineering fraternity. They will allow bill-of-materials costs to be kept under control and the writing/compiling of masses of C code to be avoided,” states Fred Dart, CEO and founder of FTDI Chip. “As a result we have worked closely with the most prominent companies in the programmable sector to promote this more technologically and financial efficient method of implementing USB 3.0. The new modules we have introduced are designed such that they can plug into most FPGA development platforms supplied by vendors such as Xilinx or Altera.”

david manners

Power semiconductor market to grow at 5%

The overall power semiconductor market, including both power discretes and power modules, is predicted to grow 5% in 2015 to reach $17 billion, says IHSimage.

In 2014, y-o-y power discrete revenue grew 5% and power module revenue grew 12%.

The global power module market is projected to comprise nearly one third (30 percent) of the power semiconductor market by 2019, growing at twice the rate of power discretes, from 2014 to 2019, says IHS.

“OEMs will continue to want modular power solutions, which can be integrated easily into various subsystems and used in many different devices,” says IHS’ Richard Eden, “power modules are widely found in inverters for wind converters, photovoltaic solar energy systems and other renewable energy applications. They are also found in industrial motor drives and hybrid and electric vehicles.”

Infineon continued to be the largest supplier for the global power semiconductor market in 2014, with an estimated market share of 13%. Mitsubishi ranked second, at 7%. ST moved up to the third market position, displacing Toshiba, with an estimated market share of 6%.

With the acquisition of IR by Infineon last year, the market landscape for power semiconductors is changing. The merged companies held almost 27% of the power transistor market in 2014.

The transistor product category includes bipolar transistors, metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), and insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) products, accounting for about two thirds of the total discrete power semiconductor market.

Mitsubishi Electric was the largest supplier for power modules in 2014, although the company’s estimated share of the market remained at 24% for 2013 and 2014. Infineon maintained the second-ranked position at 20%.

The top four power module suppliers – Mitsubishi, Infineon, Semikron and Fuji Electric – accounted for 65% of the global power module market in 2014.

david manners

Power semiconductor market to grow at 5%

The overall power semiconductor market, including both power discretes and power modules, is predicted to grow 5% in 2015 to reach $17 billion, says IHSimage.

In 2014, y-o-y power discrete revenue grew 5% and power module revenue grew 12%.

The global power module market is projected to comprise nearly one third (30 percent) of the power semiconductor market by 2019, growing at twice the rate of power discretes, from 2014 to 2019, says IHS.

“OEMs will continue to want modular power solutions, which can be integrated easily into various subsystems and used in many different devices,” says IHS’ Richard Eden, “power modules are widely found in inverters for wind converters, photovoltaic solar energy systems and other renewable energy applications. They are also found in industrial motor drives and hybrid and electric vehicles.”

Infineon continued to be the largest supplier for the global power semiconductor market in 2014, with an estimated market share of 13%. Mitsubishi ranked second, at 7%. ST moved up to the third market position, displacing Toshiba, with an estimated market share of 6%.

With the acquisition of IR by Infineon last year, the market landscape for power semiconductors is changing. The merged companies held almost 27% of the power transistor market in 2014.

The transistor product category includes bipolar transistors, metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), and insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) products, accounting for about two thirds of the total discrete power semiconductor market.

Mitsubishi Electric was the largest supplier for power modules in 2014, although the company’s estimated share of the market remained at 24% for 2013 and 2014. Infineon maintained the second-ranked position at 20%.

The top four power module suppliers – Mitsubishi, Infineon, Semikron and Fuji Electric – accounted for 65% of the global power module market in 2014.

david manners