New on Embedded.com

Exclusives

John A. Carbone

Bring big system features to small RTOS devices with downloadable app modules

Kannan Sadasivam and Sachin Gupta

Basics of SoC I/O design: Part 1 – The building blocks

Highlights

My Spring ESC highlights

Digging for gold at the ESC

Wozniak, crashing spacecraft, and emerging Android on-demand

Editor's Note

Bernard Cole Site Editor Embedded.com

Being inaugurated today on line is UBM Electronics Virtual Event: ESC Silicon Valley , the first of several online virtual events to be held over the next few months. It will be available later for viewing also. There you can download materials from classes and view online videos of speakers and attend webinars. And if you want to ‘walk” the show floor, we’ve created an ESC Silicon Valley Video Channel on YouTube , with videos of interviews with vendors.

In addition, this week Jack Ganssle reviews some of the most impressive technology showcased at the recent ESC in “ My Spring ESC highlights.” And in my Cole /bin column “Digging for gold at ESC ” I comment on trends and developments evidenced at the ESC in San Jose and in Chicago. Also, in “Wozniak, crashing spacecraft and emerging Android on-demand ” Ron Wilson provides his perspective on events he found worthy of note at the Spring ESC.

Featured design articles on Embedded.com this week include downloadable application modules (DAMs) for small footprint RTOSes, the basics of SoC I/O design, mixed signal MCUs for the Internet of Things , adaptive real time smart meter monitoring , and designing autonomous wireless sensor networks.

Design How Tos

Bring big system features to small RTOS devices with downloadable app modules

Bring app downloadability to small footprint RTOSes using a new architectural feature called “downloadable application modules,” which cheat the linker to isolate parts of a program from each other via the kernel, allowing downloads during execution of the program.

Basics of SoC I/O design: Part 1 – The building blocks

Integration of analog with digital and increase in on chip features in mixed-signal controllers demand more complex I/O structures as well, but are often the most neglected features of a chip. This two part article will provide the basics for allowing developers to optimize their performance and functionality. Part 1: The I/O building blocks.

Basics of SoC I/O design: Part 2 – Hot swap & other implementation issues

Having dealt in Part 1 with some of the basics of SoC I/O pin assignment, in this second part we will deal with a variety of implementation issues, including hot swap, interrupts, pin assignments and Interfacing with the devices being operated at voltage other than SoC's core voltage

The 'internet of things' is driving demand for mixed signal MCUs

There is increased activity around the 'internet of things'; the ability to create networks of small devices that monitor and control our surroundings to create a sort of 'augmented reality'.

Software and hardware challenges due to the dynamic raw NAND market

In this stellar article, Allred and Agarwal lay out the different non-volatile memory technologies, issues with NAND, and potential ways forward.

Novel harmonic analysis method for smart metering

This article presents a new approach, titled Adaptive Real Time Monitoring (ARTM), and compares it against other possible methods: FFT algorithms and bandpass filtering. ARTM will be featured in the next generation Analog Devices (ADI) products for energy applications.

6LoWPAN: The wireless embedded Internet – Part 3: 6LoWPAN architecture, protocol stack & link layers

Part 3 of an excerpt from the book “6LoWPAN: The Wireless Embedded Internet” reviews the 6LoWPAN architecture, and then examines its protocol stack and three link-layer technologies used with 6LoWPAN.

An autonomous wireless sensor network for space applications

ASTRAL, which stands for Autonomous System and Transmission wireless sensor network for space applications, is designed to develop a demonstrator to validate the concept of adapting wireless technology for space missions. The result was a demonstrator for monitoring vibration in satellites on the ground and during the launch over approximately 30 minutes.

Industrial sensors and control–The basics–Part II

Here is the first segment of Chapter 6 of the Sensors Handbook, 2nd Edition, titled Industrial Sensors and Control. This segment is a discussion of temperature sensors in process control.

Improving USB 3.0 with better I/O management

This article explores the impact of USB 3.0 on mobile handheld hardware and software design and what can be done, through proper I/O management, to improve interactions between USB 3.0 connected components.

Embedded Systems Bookshelf

Excerpts

Embedded Books Reading Room
Bernard Cole's favorite links to book excerpts.

Reviews

Engineer's Bookshelf
Airport fiction blows. A look at books other engineers are reading and why you should read them, too. Recommend and write a review yourself. E-mail Brian Fuller.

Jack Ganssle's Bookshelf
A list of book reviews by Jack Ganssle, contributing technical editor of Embedded Systems Design and Embedded.com.

Max's Cool Beans
Clive “Max” Maxfield, the editor on Programmable Logic DesignLine, often writes about interesting books.

Product News

Sealevel PCIe serial interface adds 8 RS-232/422/485 Ports

The new Ultra COMM+8.PCIE serial interface from Sealevel Systems, Inc. is designed to deliver ultimate flexibility for expanding serial communications in a variety of test and measurement, process control, and point-of-sale applications. Compatible with any PCI Express slot, the board provides eight multifunction serial ports, each individually field-configurable for RS-232, RS-422, or RS-485.

Atmel Sensors Xplained software drivers speed design development

Atmel Corporation has integrated its new Sensors Xplained software drivers with the recently-launched AVR Studio 5 Integrated Development Environment (IDE).

Smart energy module combines metering and control

ByteSnap Design has developed a ZigBee Smart Energy-compliant module that provides both metering and control in smart energy systems.

Kontron rolls M2M Smart Services Developer Kit

Kontron today introduced its new machine-to-machine (M2M) Smart Services Developer Kit with a deployable Intel Atom processor-based services-ready system.

Rapita rolls RVS on-target timing verification and code coverage tools

The Rapita Verification Suite (RVS) from Rapita Systems is a new on-target timing verification, optimization, and code coverage toolset.

Cirrus Logic CS1501, CS1601 digital PFC ICs boost performance

The CS1501 and CS1601 from Cirrus Logic are digitally controlled, variable frequency discontinuous conduction mode (VF-DCM), active power factor correction (PFC) ICs intended for use in switch-mode power supplies rated up to 300 watts.

Ultra-compact PQFN2x2 power MOSFET focuses on low power applications

IR is extending its packaging portfolio with a PQFN 2 mm x 2 mm package featuring its latest HEXFET MOSFET silicon.

Fairchild's Dual Asymmetric MOSFETs boast high power density, small package

Fairchild Semiconductor's FDMS36xxS family of power stage dual asymmetric MOSFET modules incorporates a control and synchronous MOSFET, as well as a monolithic Schottky body diode in a PQFN package.

News

Maxim offers energy-harvest oriented PMIC

Maxim Integrated Products has introduced the MAX17710, which it claims is the industry's first IC to integrate all of the power-management functions for ambient energy harvesting, as well as for charging and protecting micro-energy cells (MECs), a form of solid-state battery.

Zigbee gets consensus on smart meter spec

The Zigbee Alliance said it has achieved consensus on a key issue that blocked progress on Smart Energy Version 2, a key standard for smart meters.

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