Welcome back, Commodore C64 

Commodore USA, LLC and Commodore Licensing B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of Asiarim Corp today announced their licensing agreement whereby Commodore USA, LLC will produce a full line of new Commodore branded "AIO" (All In One) keyboard computers, under an exclusive worldwide license granted by Commodore Licensing B.V. for this newly revitalized computer category. Mr. Barry Altman, President and CEO of Commodore USA , LLC states "We are ecstatic to be partnering with Commodore...

Circuit Cellar magazine, highly recommended by Elektor! 

Microcontroller fans from all over the world know and appreciate the American magazine Circuit Cellar, founded by Steve Ciarcia 22 years ago and currently owned by Elektor International Media b.v. The magazine contains ambitious projects, backgrounders, fetaure articles, lots of practical tips on microcontrollers, peripherals and so on. In Circuit Cellar, engineers write for engineers, and that

New high-quality technical audio periodical 

Linear Audio Publishers of Hoensbroek, The Netherlands, have announced the release of the premier issue of their new semi-annual 'bookzine' called Linear Audio. The printed publication's goal is to provide high quality technical audio information and construction projects to serious hobbyists and professionals. Linear Audio Volume 0 packs 160 pages of technical audio articles covering solid state preamps and power amps, vacuum tube power preamps and low noise preamps, loudspeaker...

LED modules and evaluation kits 

Cree expands its LED Module LMR4 product line with the introduction of Cree EasyWhite technology and a broad range of available color temperatures. The LED Module LMR4 with EasyWhite technology uniquely integrates driver electronics, optics and primary thermal management. Designed to last 35,000 hours while consuming just 12 watts of power, it offers 2700-K, 3000-K, 3500-K and 4000-K color temperatures at 80 CRI. The LMR4 with EasyWhite technology is available in production quantities now...

New kind of computing with probability processing circuits 

Lyric Semiconductor, Inc. a DARPA- and venture-funded MIT spin-out, last week emerged from stealth mode to launch a new technology called probability processing, which is poised to deliver a fundamental change in processing performance and power consumption. With over a decade of development at MIT and at Lyric Semiconductor, Lyric

144-channel dot matrix LED driver 

austriamicrosystems has announced the AS1119, the most advanced and smallest LED dot-matrix driver (channels vs. PCB space) available. The AS1119 drives 144 LEDs but requires only 9 mm² PCB space, reduces external component count, reduces connector pin count and requires fewer PCB layers. Benefits for end users include up to 80% longer battery lifetime, more colorful effects and smoother running animations. The AS1119 is targeted for dot matrix displays in mobile phones, personal electronics...

Radio-based system avoids pedestrian collision 

In collisions with vehicles, pedestrians typically have far less chances to survive than vehicle occupants. A technology developed by the University of Kassel ( Germany ) aims at improving the situation by establishing a radio-based warning system. Available pedestrian detection systems installed in cars typically are based on optical, infrared or radar technologies and hence require a line-of-sight connection between vehicle and pedestrian. Thus, these systems have the disadvantage that they...

Power management SOC boasts full set of features 

The new P95020 power management IC from Integrated Device Technology is a system-on-chip device intended to be used in portable consumer products such as smartphones, portable navigation devices, mobile Internet devices and e-books. According to IDT, the P95020 PMIC is the first of its kind to include a full set of system power regulation and management functions along with human interface subsystems, including audio and touch interfaces support. The embedded MCU is complemented by integrated...

New book from Elektor: ARM Microcontroller Interfacing 

An increasing number of embedded application developers and other enthusiasts are switching to ARM (Advanced RISC Machines) microcontrollers and the associated platforms created by communities and leading chip manufacturers like Atmel. Elektor was the first magazine to publish an ARM development system for home construction and use back in 2005. In this new book from Elektor, you learn to interface and program hardware devices in a wide range of useful applications, using ARM7...

2.5 mile range laser gun keeps Somali pirates at bay 

A new weapon in the fight against Somali pirates, the SeaLase© laser system from LaserSec has a deterrent and sickening effect. In some cases, this laser weapon even causes vomiting. The claimed range is up to 2.5 miles (approx. 4,000 meters). Piracy is a continuing threat to international shipping. Due to various reasons, governments and ship owners are reluctant to implement armed security on board vessels. Companies are therefore constantly looking for other ways to stop their vesseld...

Robust power meter modules facilitate EMC testing 

Teseq PM 6006 power meter modules are designed to meet the demands of EMC testing, which include a large dynamic range, fast measurement, rugged design, and a frequency range matching the intended application. Two models are available. The PMU 6006 connects to a PC USB port and is supplied with control software that runs under Windows. Along with several graphic display modes, the software supports averaging, offset, and selectable measuring units (dBm, dB

Smallest Mini PC to date 

The new LPC-100 from Stealth is a space-saving personal computer that's small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. The little computer is claimed to outperform most desktop and mobile computers available today. There's up to 2.53GHz of processing power on offer, some 500 GB of hard drive storage with solid state options too and up to 4 GB of memory. Stealth's new LPC-100 comes with Intel's 1.9 GHz Dual Core Celeron T3100 processor as standard but upgrades to a 2.26GHz Intel...

Skype reference implementation released for MIPS devices 

MIPS Technologies, a leading provider of industry-standard processor architectures and cores for consumer, home networking, wireless communication and business applications, has announced that support for the MIPS® architecture is now included in the new SkypeKitTM development tools available on the Skype Developer website. As part of the SkypeKit closed beta program, MIPS Technologies has developed a Skype reference implementation for the MIPS architecture. Skype software is used by...

Flexible lighting management unit for mobile applications 

The new AS3676 from austriamicrosystems incorporates highly-efficient and flexible power management for LED illumination with ambient light sense processing, light pattern generation, and audio synchronization for smartphones and portable devices. The chip integrates 13 current sinks, a high-efficiency step-up DC-DC converter and high-power charge-pump, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a programmable low drop-out regulator (LDO), all incorporated with advanced algorithms for...

IDT launches 3D video frame rate converters 

Integrated Device Technology (IDT) has announced what it claims is the industry's first motion-compensated frame rate conversion processors with an integrated resolution-enhancement engine for use in 120 Hz and 240 Hz television sets and high-definition video projectors. The new IDT VHD1200 and VHD2400 devices feature advanced IDT HQV MotionSMART technology, which provides smooth motion and full-detail images while minimizing side effects seen with competitive solutions. The frame-rate...

Nonvolatile voice/audio IC with integrated phone functions 

Nuvoton Technology Corp. has introduced the ChipCorder ISD61S00, a nonvolatile voice/audio IC optimised for telephony systems. The device provides a digital audio interface, audio storage interface, macro scripting ability and programmability, allowing designers to develop telephony-based systems with audio prompting, multi-language options, and fast, address-free recording and playback with a capacity of up to 64 minutes. The ISD61S00 can perform communications functions such as detection...

10 times better cooling 

Researchers at Purdue University have shown that an advanced cooling technology being developed for high-power electronics in military and automotive systems is capable of handling roughly 10 times the heat generated by conventional computer chips. The miniature, lightweight device uses tiny copper spheres and carbon nanotubes to passively wick a coolant toward hot electronics, said Suresh V. Garimella, the R. Eugene and Susie E. Goodson Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering at...

never EZ-ier: Wireless remote control on a chip 

Silicon Laboratories Inc. have introduced an EZRadio® wireless IC solution designed to reduce the cost and complexity of one-way wireless links used in a wide range of consumer, industrial and automotive systems. The new Si4010 system-on-chip (SoC) RF transmitter enables developers to optimize remote keyless entry (RKE), garage door opener, remote control, building automation and security device designs for the lowest system cost and highest performance while ensuring one-way link integrity....

Transparent solar power window technology unveiled 

Researchers at New Energy Technologies developing a proprietary solar window technology are claiming scientific and technical breakthroughs, and in a few weeks they plan to unveil a working prototype of the world's first-ever glass window capable of generating electricity. Conventional solar panels are opaque due to the use of metal coatings and various processes that prevent light from passing through the glass material. New Energy's transparent solar panel technology is based on...

Wireless data loggers support extensive networks 

The Tinytag wireless data logging system distributed by Priggen Special Electronic (PSE) consists of a receiver connected to a PC and a number of wireless logger modules, called Tinytag radio loggers. Each wireless logger is a self-contained, battery powered unit that can receive, log, store and transmit data to other logger modules, as well as the central receiver. The maximum line-of-sight range of each logger is 200 metres, but thanks to the data relay function of the loggers, there is...

Solar boat team sail 138 miles, win DONG Challenge 

In the Netherlands , the Private Energy Solarboat Team (# T83) has been declared the Winner of the DONG Energy Frisian Solar Challenge. The team from Leeuwarden sailed 138 miles (220 kilometres) across lakes and through rivers in the Dutch province of Friesland in five days in an amazing time of 11 hours, 26 minutes and 32 seconds, beating the winner of the 2008 DONG Challenge by 40 minutes. The Sunrise Team (# A03) won the race in the Challenge A, finishing the race in 16:06:40 hours. The...

25% discount on Embedded Linux Control Centre book 

Elektor warehouse is clearing some of their old stock of books to make room for new publications. The book Embedded Linux Control Centre by Hans Henrik Skovgaard is now being offered at a reduced price of just £18.00 instead of £24.00. Be quick to order as the offer expires on July 21, 2010! This book covers a do-it-your-self system made from recycled components. The main system described in this book reuses an old PC, a wireless mains outlet with three switches and one controller, and a USB...

Researchers enhance tunnel magnetoresistance process 

A Japanese team says it has extended a high-performance perpendicular tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) process to nonvolatile logic devices with 40-nanometre dimensions. According to Professor Hideo Ohno of Tohoku University this would allow the fabrication of an 8-Gbit chip with vertical transistors:

ZESAR: Zero Emission Silent Aircraft 

The zero emission silent aircraft realisation (ZESAR), developed by four students from Delft Technical University, The Netherlands, flies on battery power instead of kerosine. The plane should prove clean and silent flying is not just a dream. This would be a blessing for people living near an airport, as the ZESAR hardly produces any sound compared to conventional aeroplanes. The ZESAR concept ( www.cleanera.tudelft.nl/ ) makes use of a blended wing body design, which makes the plane

New dsPIC30F Development System - BIGdsPIC6 

mikroElektronika recently released their BIGdsPIC6 Development System, aimed at users, who wish to develop and design devices using Microchip dsPIC30F devices. The new system supports 64- and 80-pin dsPIC30F microcontrollers. This new release of BIGdsPIC6 features: USB 2.0 programmer with mikroICD and many peripheral modules such as: Piezo Speaker, Serial EEPROM, CAN, FTDI, Touch Screen, Real-Time Clock and etc. Each feature of the board is supported by examples written in mikroC, mikroPascal...

2.4 GHz reference design targets remote controlled racing toys 

Nordic Semiconductor has released nRFready R/C Racing, ­a complete reference design for advanced remote controlled racing toys that operates at 2.4 GHz and supports game play features previously impossible with conventional 27 MHz and 49 MHz remote control systems. These features include racing with multiple friends, using waypoints to define free-form racetracks, feeling crashes through controller vibration, and the ability to collect, see and share racing data. The nRFready R/C Racing...

Vuvuzela Silencer in LABVIEW 

While many websites have suggested solutions to silencing or at least reducing the constant drone of vuvuzelas during Word Cup Soccer games, none have offered much in the way of a solution you can use at home. Now Simon Hogg, a LABVIEW product manager has published an application that detects the fundamental frequency of the vuvuzelas (around 233 Hz) and applies a notch filter to it and as many harmonics as you specify. The end result reportedly is a significant reduction in the annoying...

RS Components unveils online design environment 

RS Components has announced the launch of DesignSpark, the centrepiece of its initiative to provide a comprehensive online design environment for engineers. DesignSpark is an online gateway that gives engineers trusted and reliable information and resources, bringing together design information, user generated reviews and new, free tools to speed up the design process. Developed in partnership with FreshNetworks, a leader in social media development, the site is being launched initially in...

Programming Embedded PIC Microcontrollers course is cheaper all summer 

In this Distance Learning Course staged by the Elektor Academy you learn how to program an embedded microcontroller using Assembly, C and E-Blocks Flowcode. Starting off with the absolute basics the course soon goes into a lot of detail. After all, you cannot learn about software without understanding the hardware so a close look at the components and schematics in duly covered. Gradually the course will become more complex as you move into the more advanced subjects. At the end of the course...

Turn down the vuvuzela please 

Thanks to researchers at the Centre for Digital Music (C4DM) at Queen Mary, University of London , anyone watching the World Cup on their computer can now filter out the droning sounds of vuvuzela playing in South Africa 's stadiums. One of the unexpected hot topics of the World Cup 2010 is the vuvuzela, a new sound to the ears of many football fans. Though hugely popular for its invigorating sound and dramatic volume level, this traditional South African musical horn was badly received...

Elektor unveils DSP radio 

The "Project Generator" issue of Elektor features a construction project for a world radio receiver using a digital signal processor (DSP). The DSP radio has a USB interface for connection to a PC, which enables the radio to be configured and controlled from the PC if desired and use the PC speakers for audio output, as well as drawing power from the USB port. The unit can receive and demodulate FM signals in the FM broadcast band and AM signals over a frequency range of 153 kHz to...

IBM and WiSpry team up to make tuneable RF front end ICs 

The concept of a MEMS system-on-chip RF front end for wireless mobile handsets is coming closer to reality thanks to the joint efforts of start-up WiSpry and IBM Microelectronics. Fabless MEMS chip company WiSpry Inc. has a deal with IBM Microelectronics that calls for IBM to manufacture single-chip tuneable radio frequency (RF) front ends for mobile handsets, which WiSpry will market to tier-one original equipment manufacturers. The key to WiSpry

Open source MHEG and CI+ authoring tool released 

Digital TV software specialist Ocean Blue Software has released its Triton MHEG-5 and CI+ Authoring Tool as an open source, royalty-free product for application authors and developers. The authoring tool developed by Ocean Blue includes many of the features commonly found in professional integrated development environments (IDEs) and allows developers to create dynamic and visually impressive graphical user interface applications for digital TV platforms. According to Ocean Blue, with Triton...

EuroCloud research project receives EU funding 

The European Commission is partially funding a collaborative research project studying the use of ARM processor architecture in data centres and the impact this may have on reducing the energy consumption and carbon footprint of data centres. The project, called EuroCloud, is being conducted by ARM, Nokia, Imec, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) and the University of Cyprus. The project aims to validate the proposition that building data centre server computers around low-power...

Toolbox enables fast generation of 3D models for rotating electrical machines 

Cobham Technical Services has unveiled a 3D version of its rapid electromagnetic design tool for rotating electrical machines, the Advanced Machines Environment, that combines the high accuracy of finite element analysis (FEA) simulation with a design entry system that generates full 3D models of electric motors or generators within minutes. The software is an application-specific toolbox for the Opera electromagnetic simulator and allows users to achieve radical new levels of design...

EU launches all-electric vehicle project 

The European Green Cars Initiative has launched a project intended to explore new technology paths towards the energy efficiency, functionality and usability of electric vehicles that are complementary to future advances in the performance of battery cell technology. According to consortium members, the objectives of the Information and Communication Technologies for the Full Electric Vehicle (ICT4FEV) project consist of building an R&D community, editing a European roadmap, recommending...

Researchers take another step towards organic electronics 

Although organic materials have the potential to revolutionize a wide range of high-tech products, such as computer displays and solar cells, they lack the well-ordered chemical structures of organic materials, so this potential is difficult to put into practice. However, a team of researchers led by Dr Dmitrii Perepichka (McGill University, Canada) and Dr Federico Rosei (Institut national de la recherche scientifique, Canada) recently published research that offers a solution to this...

Maxim launches 16-channel high-voltage switches 

Maxim Integrated Products has introduced its third generation of 230-V switches: the MAX14805 and MAX14806 16-channel, high-voltage SPST devices. Each device has two banks with eight channels each, controlled by two logic inputs for easy operation and design flexibility. Maxim's proprietary HVCMOS technology enables the devices to combine high-voltage bilateral DMOS switches and low-power CMOS logic for efficient control of high-voltage analogue signals. The MAX14806 also has integrated...

Researchers fabricate superconducting nanowires with novel properties 

Materials that become superconductive when cooled usually require relative large dimensions, but a research team at Brookhaven National Laboratory, working in collaboration with a team of Israel's Bar-Ilan University, has managed to achieve this with a material formed into nanowires. After fabricating the nanowires, the scientists also discovered that their resistance could be modulated by external magnetic fields. This effect could potentially be used to switch superconductivity on and...

BEEcube launches fourth-generation FPGA prototyping platform 

BEE4 is the fourth generation of the Berkeley Emulation Engine (BEE), a full-speed FPGA prototyping platform from BEEcube, Inc. BEE4 is designed to address a major problem with multiple FPGA platforms used for system verification and validation, which is their inability to operate at real world speeds. Based on multiple Virtex 6 FPGAs, BEE4 meets the latest design size capacity needs and additionally offers massive amounts of memory for both RTL and application debugging needs, all without...

New book from Elektor: Power Electronics in Motor Drives 

This book is aimed at people who want to understand how AC inverter drives work and how they are used in industry. It concentrates more on the practical design and use of drives than the theoretical principles behind them. The mathematics is kept to an essential minimum. Some basic understanding of mechanical and electrical theory is presumed, and a basic knowledge of single and three phase AC systems would be useful. The key aspects of power electronics are described and presented in a...

Philips testing home health care devices 

Philips Research is examining the prospects for wearable sensors for measuring an increasing number of vital signs. Their goal is to deliver devices that make meaningful predictions about health care while keeping power consumption within reasonable limits. The work is part of a broad initiative to define new consumer systems and services that can lower the cost and improve the quality of health care by monitoring conditions continuously at home. The MyHeart programme uses a belt of sensors...

Imec introduces cognitive baseband radio architecture 

Imec (Belgium) has introduced a cognitive baseband radio (Cobra) architecture targeting 4G requirements at up to 1 Gbit/s throughput with multiple asynchronous concurrent streams, such as simultaneous digital broadcasting reception and high-speed Internet access. The low-cost, flexible architecture addresses a new trend in wireless communication where terminals give their users ubiquitous broadband access to a multitude of services. Cobra is an attractive architecture for future mobile...

SeaMicro unwraps server with 512 Intel Atom processors 

Startup SeaMicro recently the SM1000 server, which boasts 512 Intel Atom processors and delivers the same performance as systems using conventional server CPUs, but at a fraction of their power and space. It is the first of a anticipated wave of servers built on Atom or ARM processors originally designed for mobile systems and aimed at warehouse-sized data centres of companies such as Google and Facebook. SeaMicro claims its system consumes about a quarter the power and space of a Dell R610...

Nanocoating cools chips better 

Nanoscale coatings improve the heat dissipation characteristics of semiconductors and other devices, according to an Army Research Laboratory funded study by researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Oregon State University (OSU). According to PNNL project leader Terry Hendrix, who carried out the study with OSU professor Chih-hung Chang, a ten times improvement in the heat transfer coefficient was observed with nanostructured surfaces compared with a bare aluminium...

Wireless transceiver cuts power consumption by 90% 

European research group Imec plans to produce a short range RF transceiver ten times more power efficient than today's Bluetooth and Zigbee chips. Imec recently demonstrated discrete modules capable of sending 1,024 kbyte/s over 5 meters while consuming less than one milliwatt. Regular production is planned for the end of the year. The Imec RF design uses a simple on-off keying modulation scheme and a regenerative receiver. This approach also allows communication links in -10 dB range,...

Longest journey without recharging 

A Mira electrical vehicle (EV) powered by SANYO lithium-ion battery systems achieved a travel distance of 1,003.184 km (627 miles), breaking its own Guinness World Record for the longest journey without recharging. The trial run was provided by Japan Electric Vehicle Club (Japan EV Club), and implemented at a training school for auto racers in Ibaraki , Japan during May 22 to 23, 2010. The Mira EV already achieved a 555.6 km (348 miles) run without recharging from Tokyo to Osaka, Japan on...

WiFi prototyping board 

The new WiFi PROTO Board from Mikroelektronika is a miniature, low priced wireless 2.4 GHz 802.11b module, ideal for use in embedded applications and OEM equipment. The on-board ZeroG ZG2100M module provides extremely fast data rates that are supported with a wide data range. Communication protocols available to interface to your control system or microcontroller include UART and SPI. Features Single-chip 802.11B including MAC, baseband, RF and power amplifier Data Rate: 1 & 2 Mbps...

Bluetooth: connecting the antenna through a single chip 

Two ICs from STMicroelectronics allow designers to connect an antenna to a Bluetooth transceiver using a single chip. The BAL-2593D5U and BAL2690-D3U are integrated baluns, used to convert the antenna signal to a balanced pair of signals as required by the Bluetooth transceiver. As replacements for traditional baluns built with discrete components, the new devices occupy up to 70% less printed-circuit-board area, simplify design and assembly, and ensure better balanced signal channels with...