This month we’re packing up and heading to sunny Orlando, Florida for InfoComm 2015, the largest event for AV professionals in the world. 

Roadtrip!

We’ll be demonstrating why TI DLP® technology continues to lead the audio-visual (AV) industry by giving attendees an up close and personal look at what we’re doing to provide a premier on-screen experience. Joining us on this mission will be several customers also appearing at InfoComm. Acer, BenQ, NEC and other leading projector manufacturers will showcase their own use of DLP technology and show off, in living color, how they are bringing the latest advancements to their customers.

Our holistic approach to image quality considers accurate, long lasting color, high native contrast ratios and performance. Focusing on each of these areas provides a much richer experience than emphasizing a single measurement, such as brightness, alone.

To this end, we’re always pushing the limits of what’s possible in all areas that impact image quality. You want great colors? Most projectors with DLP technology feature DLP BrilliantColor™ technology, which provides a staggering 1 billion (billion!) color shades. Need sharp contrast ratios? Reflective architecture and DLP DarkChip™ technologies give projectors enabled with DLP technology extremely dark blacks and brilliant whites. These high native contrast ratios make it possible for displays to achieve optimal brightness.

Standards exist for a reason.  We’re looking forward to showing this audience of 38,000 people from 110 countries why DLP technology should be considered for every major supplier interested in providing rich, vibrant viewing.

Stop by booth #785 to see the same technology used to illuminate more than 118,000 movie screens worldwide in person and learn how our technology is being used in a variety of today’s most advanced projectors.

Monitoring voltage rails is about as enthralling as doing yard work. And while most people don’t particularly enjoy pulling weeds or hedge trimming, it’s necessary to keep things from getting out of hand or having a significant other yell at you.

Fortunately, there are a myriad of ways to monitor your 1.8-V rails. Unfortunately, it’s not always clear which method is best. Part 1 of this blog series looks at why voltage monitoring is important.

Avoiding brownout

In the digital realm, brownout can cause processors to latch up and malfunction. For example, the minimum supply voltage in the MSP430™ microcontroller (MCU) line is 1.8V. Dropping the supply voltage below that threshold, even for a transient period, can mean trouble. Fortunately, many MSP430 MCUs incorporate their own reset IC to protect against this situation. If brownout occurs, the reset IC puts the processor into reset until the supply voltage rises to a tolerable level. If the voltage monitor is not already integrated into the MCU or if redundancy is required, it’s up to the engineer to implement it discretely, as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Voltage supervisory and watchdog monitoring with the TPS3813K33

Sensing overvoltage events

An IC’s absolute voltage rating is critical. Take the TPS61230 – the input-voltage range is rated to 5.5V during normal operation. The absolute maximum voltage applied at the input is 6V. Exceeding the absolute maximum voltage may cause reliability issues and/or permanent damage to the IC. Although the TPS61230 may be operating off a nominal 5V rail, inaccuracies or transient voltages may not be factored in. A 5V rail rated at 5% accuracy can easily be a 5.25V rail. With enough inductance on the line, loading the circuit can cause the voltage to spike, leading to a supply voltage above 6V. Preventive measures such as hot-swaps and e-fuses will help protect against these events. A reset IC may also be able to accomplish the same thing in some cases, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Using a window comparator such as the TPS3700 or TPS3701 to sense a 5V line for overvoltage events

Battery-level monitoring

Making sure that lithium-ion (Li-ion) and other battery technologies do not stray from their safe operating areas is imperative. This includes preventing undercharge and overcharge states. While this is usually accomplished with battery management systems (BMS), voltage monitors can also protect the battery (or batteries) from such events. Figure 3 shows an implementation of using a dual voltage monitor to detect a drooping battery voltage.

Figure 3: Monitoring a 3.6V Li-ion battery with the TPS3779

Diagnostics

Aside from protection, a system may need to monitor its rails as part of an overall diagnostics strategy. An example is when a system is attempting to qualify for safety integrity level (SIL) recognition under the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61508 standard. Voltage monitors are a means of ensuring that your voltage rails are operating correctly.

Now that we’ve talked about why voltage monitoring is important, stay tuned for my next post on ways to implement voltage monitoring.

Additional resources

• Check out the Supervisor Reset IC Quick Reference Guide.
• Review the supervisors overview on TI.com.
• Read an application note on choosing an appropriate pull-up/pull-down resistor for open drain outputs.

Author: Ashish Syal, principal engineer, advanced technology, Sierra Wireless

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a topic of discussion that’s likely to come up in any technology industry conversation. Earlier today at an event in Paris, Sierra Wireless unveiled both hardware and a new open interface standard for the IoT. We asked Ashish Syal, a principal engineer at Sierra Wireless, a few questions about Sierra’s new announcement, their choices in wireless connectivity technology, and their relationship with TI. 

Questions:

 1.       TI: What is Project mangOH™ and the IoT modules that launched today?

Project mangOH is an open source open source hardware reference design purpose built for cellular connectivity enabling IoT developers with limited wireless, hardware, or low level software expertise to develop applications in days rather than months.

1. It is a low cost flexible and expandable open source hardware reference design for the IoT. It offers seamless connectivity to AV cloud services.
2. With the Legato linux framework, developers can write IoT applications out-of-the box
3. All schematics, BOM and gerber files are available under the creative commons license attribution.

The plug’n’play IoT module prototypes  are based on a new open interface standard designed by Sierra Wireless and partners  to provide a single I/O interface to add industrialized short range wireless, wired or sensor networks technologies.

2.       TI: What makes Project mangOH and the IoT modules stand out from its competitors?

First off, there’s no other open hardware, purpose built for cellular, on the market today with industrial-grade components that can be used to manufacture connected products. But the core to mangOH is the flexibility and expandability that it provides.

Flexibility comes from the CF3 Snap In sockets that support any next-gen WP or HL Series. This allows developers to pick and choose what cellular modules to use based on the end customer needs as well as regional cellular requirements.

Expandability comes from the Arduino connector and 3 IoT module connectors. This enables IoT developers to incorporate any 3rd party Arduino shield with full software support through Legato Linux® framework.  

What makes IoT modules different than other open hardware solutions is that these modules can not only be used for prototyping but can also be used in production. Not only are they plug’n’play from a hardware perspective, but are immediately recognized by the new WP module via the Legato Linux framework. Sierra will be providing sample code for each of these applications that will allow IoT developers can access the data immediately and begin writing their applications.

 3.       There are many wireless connectivity technologies on the market. Why did you choose to integrate Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth® and ZigBee® technology in an IoT module?   

With the proliferation of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and ZigBee enabled products on the market today, it made perfect sense that these technologies be supported on Project mangOH. This enables IoT developers to integrate these technologies and develop new product and service use-cases for the internet of things. Use cases include smart metering, home automation, Wi-Fi access points and gateways, etc…

 4.       Why did you choose TI’s Zigbee and WiLink combo-connectivity technology for your product?

The TI combo solution provided the easiest and smallest option to fit into IoT module. Using both TI’s WiLink 8 module, a combo connectivity solution enabling dual-band Wi-Fi and dual-mode Bluetooth connectivity, and the ZigBee CC2530 wireless MCU, developers are able to meet the wireless connectivity needs for a multitude of industrial IoT applications, examples include: enabling access to sensor data, providing a quick connection to the cloud or remote-control of mesh lighting systems. Sierra plans to integrate these and build driver support inside our open source Linux framework, Legato.  This will allow developers to build multiple applications using a single IoT module connector.

 5.       Where do you see your technology/solution going in the next five years?

We believe that the true potential of IoT can only be achieved if there is interoperability and convergence between multiple technologies and ecosystems. That’s exactly why we designed Project mangOH and the IoT modules with so much flexibility and expandability.

The tag line we’re using at launch is “Go ahead, build something new.” And that’s exactly what we want IoT developers to do – build something that no one has thought of yet. The goal of Project mangOH is to lower the barrier to creating new connected things by making it easier and cheaper to fail, try again by adding different technologies, and in the end succeed by connecting something that wasn’t possible before. Just as the MiniCard standard simplified development for the laptop, tablet, and networking industry, the IoT module connector will provide plug’n’play hardware for IoT developers.

Who knows what the open hardware community will do with this technology over the next 5 years – that’s the exciting part of it all!

For additional information on Project mangOH or the IoT modules, visit: http://hub.sierrawireless.com/WP_Launch

In my last few blog posts on inductive sensing, I introduced the latest addition to TI’s inductance-to-digital converter (LDC) portfolio: the multichannel LDC1612, LDC1614, LDC1312 and LDC1314. The LDC1312 and LDC1314 are 13.3KSPS 12-bit resolution converters, useful for a wide range of applications such as rotational knobs, keypads or flow meters. If system-boundary conditions allow, they can be configured in 16-bit mode without sacrificing the sampling rate. The dual-channel LDC1612 and quad-channel LDC1614 have integrated 28-bit data converters for use in very high-precision applications such as linear encoders or strain gauges.

How improved resolution increases sensing distance

The size of the magnetic field lines around a coil are proportional to the diameter of the sensor inductor. Therefore, the maximum sensing distance of the LDCs is a function of the coil diameter. The resolution and signal-to-noise ratio of the LDC do play a role, however, in determining how far a conductive object can be from the coil in order to detect its presence or measure its distance.

Using a 28-bit LDC over a 12-/16-bit LDC has two advantages:

• You can determine target position to higher accuracy.
• You can detect targets at longer distances.

Methodology and results

To determine the maximum target distance that the new multichannel LDCs can sense, I stepped an aluminum target in 0.1mm increments axially from the 14-mm diameter sensor coil of the LDC1612 evaluation module and captured the LDC response. I recorded both the code change between steps (Figure 1) and the standard deviation of 100 samples per step (Figure 2).

Figure 1: Code change for 0.1mm steps versus target distance

Figure 2: Standard deviation versus target distance, 100 samples per step

Next, I used the measurement data on resolution and standard deviation to determine the maximum target sensing distance for the following conditions:

• The output code step size sufficient to resolve 0.1mm steps.
• The noise floor at the given target position is low enough to determine its position with 6σ probability (99.99966%).

By examining the data, I identified the distance above which these two conditions no longer hold true.This point is the maximum target distance that still meets my accuracy requirements above. The maximum target distance in each case is shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Maximum target distance for resolving 0.1mm steps with 6σ probability

Guidelines for setting your target distance

The maximum target distance that you can sense varies with system parameters such as accuracy requirements and target material composition. Therefore, your application may have a longer or shorter maximum sensing range. However, since sensing range scales with coil diameter, it is possible to establish some rules of thumb from the data:

• LDCs such as the LDC1312 and LDC1314 operate best if the maximum target distance is kept within half of a coil diameter.
• In contrast, the high resolution of the channel LDC1612 and LDC1614 can be used to effectively sense targets as far as two coil diameters away from the sensor.

In my next post, I’ll explain how to configure the LDC1312 in 16-bit mode, which is beneficial in medium-resolution applications in which the faster sampling rates of the LDC1312 are preferable to the LDC1612.

 Additional resources

• Learn more about inductive sensing.
• Read more blog posts about designing with LDCs.
• Check out this TI Design reference design and video for a 1-degree dial using the LDC1314.
• See how LDCs work in this Touch on Metal Buttons with Integrated Haptic Feedback reference design.
• Start a design today with WEBENCH® Inductive Sensing Designer.

Today we are introducing the highly integrated analog system-on-chip microcontroller series from MSP, building on the successes of previous generations of MSP430FG4x MCUs. The new MSP430FG6x MCU series brings even more analog performance and integration together, forming an ideal platform for a multitude of portable instrumentation and handheld metering products. 

When I say high performance integrated analog, I'm not just talking about an analog component here or there. The MSP430FG4x includes all of the following integration:

• 16-bit Continuous Time Sigma-Delta (CTSD) analog-to-digital converter (ADC), (87dB SINAD typ.)
• Low-drift (15 ppm / °C typ), high accuracy (+/- 1%) voltage reference capable of sourcing 1mA external current
• Dual 12-bit digital-to-analog converters (DAC) with synchronization and self-calibration
• Dual low-power rail-to-rail input and output (RRIO) operational amplifiers (op amps)
• Quad low-impedance (<10Ω typ) ground switches
• 12-input voltage comparator

The analog building blocks can easily be configured to create a wide range of systems. By using one amplifier as a trans-impedance stage, followed by a second amplifier as a gain stage, you can easily develop a precision current measuring system. Several system calibration features can be readily accessed such as the low impedance input grounding switches, or by using the DAC to zero the ADC offset.

Additional device peripherals include a 160-segment LCD driver, real-time clock (RTC), 32-bit hardware multiplier, CRC module and up to 128 KB flash memory.

The MSP430FG662x devices also include a USB 2.0 full speed interface, enabling simplified connection to a host system or computer for data transfer or firmware updates.

See how simple it is to enable audio playback in your handheld instrumentation application by leveraging our new TI Design reference design for voiceband audio playback.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Full product details can be found by visiting theMSP430FG6626 product folder.

You can also get more specific development tools from this family of ultra-low-power MSP430 MCUs:

• MSP-TS430PZ100AUSB : 100pin LQFP target socket board  
• MSP-FET430U100AUSB : 100pin LQFP target socket board andMSP-FET bundle

TheTexas Instruments Innovation Challenge (TIIC) India Design Contest train journey that wound its way through different universities across India, bringing on board talented passengers, finally reached its destination at Texas Instruments, Bangalore. Winding its way uphill and reaching new heights of accomplishments – the journey was nothing but spectacular. We witnessed here fresh young minds, building solutions that bring technology to society and ease the lives of millions. 

The Final(s) Destination 

As has been recapped in previous blogs, the contest that started last year has come down to the finals after three rounds of selections and 11 months of effort from the students, mentors and organizers. Ten finalists were invited to the TIIC 2015 Finals and Awards Ceremony last week here at the Bangalore Campus. 

The teams in the finals come from different parts of India and cover varied applications areas like agriculture, traffic management, disability aids, automotive and automation. Each of the projects had a solution implemented using TI technology, integrated into a deployable prototype and taken through end user testing and reviews. This is clearly visible in the way the products were demonstrated, the product overview videos, the product brochure each team created and the confidence with which the teams addressed questions from visitors.  

A collage of the product brochures  

Through the day, we had a steady flow of visitors. The TIers were excited to see the products they have worked on being put to practical uses by the young talent, while the invited guests from academia and industry were impressed by the level of completeness achieved by these budding engineers and the promise they represent. What was heartening was the ease with which the visitors were able to relate to the applications of the products and their possible impact.

Packed Room at the TIIC 2015 Finals Exhibits 

By the time the reviewers had completed their assessments and the consolidation of the results, it was time for the chief guest of the day, Former President of India, Honorable Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, to arrive. In his speech, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam encouraged the young minds to be innovative and have a vision for themselves, and stressed the need for System Design and System Integration learning in colleges.

The Finalist with Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam 

The Winners 

The Chairman’s award for the TIIC IDC 2015 went to the CARDAR team from M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bangalore for their automotive RADAR based implementation of detection and distance assessment to avoid front collision accidents. The first runner up was the XenCom team from Meghnad Saha Institute of Technology, Kolkata, for their implementation of an automated irrigation solution to control pumps by farmers through mobile phones. The second runner up was the RENAISENSE-FARMCORDER team from Easwari Engineering College, Chennai, who implemented low cost system for monitoring important health parameters of crop and consolidation of data.

A special recognition was given to the all-women team from Shri Vishnu Engineering College for Women for their INTERACTIVE SNOEZELEN BUBBLE TUBE that increases concentration level and interest of the user through its unique voice activation methodology.

While there were only four teams that received final recognitions, every student who participated in TIIC IDC 2015 is a winner. Every participant in the TIIC IDC 2015 benefitted from the journey through the contest no matter how far they progressed.

Look out for the next edition of the TIIC IDC contest which will launch soon. Please sign up here to be informed when the next edition begins.

You can find some more event photographshere.

RF communication started as simple automated meter reading (AMR) in Central Europe a decade ago, replacing the high effort, very costly manual read-out of water meters and heat cost allocators in millions of houses and apartments, providing multiple benefits to both end users and utilities at the same time. Customers no longer needed to stay at home waiting to let a utility employee in, who would read out the meters in their apartment; and the utilities gained a continuous access to the metering data, enabling them to provide exact billing and quickly identify meter device fails or device tampering in the field. On top of this, a significant cost savings for the utilities have been achieved by dropping the manual read-out effort and by implementing automated billing system solutions, instead of error-prone manual data collection and entry.

All Sub-1 GHz RF communications in Europe is regulated by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) 300 220-1 V2.4.1 (May 2012), defining which short range devices (SRD) radio devices with power levels of up to 500mW can be used in Europe in the 25 MHz to 1000 MHz frequency range. A few years ago a new ISM narrowband of just 75 kHz suited for meter reading applications at 169.400 MHz was added to the previously available 868 and 433 MHz license-free ISM bands in ETSI 300 220. The maximum transmit power permitted in this 169 MHz band is +500mW (equals +27dBm) and the allowed duty cycle is ≤10%. The required channel spacing is 50kHz or less; LBT (listen before talk) or AFA (adaptive frequency agility) channel access may be used, but both are not mandatory.

The European wireless metering bus (wM-Bus) standard (based on the European EN13757-4 and also -3 and -5 norms) was first introduced a decade ago as a European solution for automated meter reading (AMR). The wM-Bus protocol meanwhile has become the foundation for both the OMS (Open Metering Specification) and DSMR (Dutch Smart Meter Requirements) suite of technical documents, which define the system architecture and implementation of smart metering respectively for Germany and The Netherlands.

Both OMS and DSMR use wM-Bus at 868 MHz (typically the “legacy” T- or S-modes, with the newer C-mode being introduced as well) and can be viewed as a home area network, due to the relatively low maximum transmit power levels of +14dBm (=25mW) effective radiated power (ERP). Due to the limited wireless range inside buildings of some 10s of meters, these wM-Bus modes are used in a fixed network where a data collector unit typically serves may be 10 to 100 wM-Bus enabled (sub-) metering devices. In addition, a drive-by readout is also possible, especially with the T- and C-modes, which may transmit data as often as every 8-10 seconds. This solution has been widely deployed in Germany, where millions of wM-Bus enabled heat cost allocators and water or heat meters supporting T- and S-modes are already in use with many more being installed.

Figure 1. wM-Bus modes S, T and C and ETSI 300 220 relationship

Data collectors in T2 and S2-modes transmit at 868.3MHz with maximum +14dBm and in C2-mode with up to +27dBm at 869.525MHz, utilizing the much higher available power limit and duty cycle in this sub-band (see Figure. 1). Obviously, having a +27dBm radiated power low-cost RF link at 869.525MHz will deliver a superior range coverage in the direction to the meter (or downlink) or between two data collectors.

TI’s RF and MCU solutions have been at the heart of wM-Bus development since 2006, when the Sub-1 GHz CC1101 RF transceiver was released and got integrated in the world’s first wM-Bus RF modules (see [1]). Later on, the high performance CC112x family in the Sub-1 GHz range was introduced, which significantly improved all parameters in wM-Bus modes and still sets the bar for RX sensitivity, selectivity and blocking performance in the market as documented in [2]. Based on the Sub-1 GHz CC12x family of devices TI has recently published several TI Designs, demonstrating how easy it is to add a wM-Bus RF sub-system to a meter (TIDC-WMBUS-868MHZ and TIDC-MULTIBAND-WMBUS), combining a ultra-low-power MSP430™ microcontroller that runs the protocol stack with the CC112x RF transceiver and dedicated battery power management, such as ultra-low Iq DC/DC TPS62730 or TPS62740 or TPS62745.

These TI Design reference designs address various end-equipments of the smart grid infrastructure, consisting of end nodes (or Smart meters) and gateways, like data collectors and mobile data readers, enabling customers to develop state-of-the-art products, with 20+ years of battery lifetime. Large scale roll-outs of smart meters and data collectors or communications hubs will happen in the next five years, as all European countries are focusing their efforts to introduce smart energy systems, as mandated by the European commission. Please, check out the next blog in this series to learn more about 169MHz wM-Bus RF solutions, which have been adopted for smart flow meters in Italy and France, in an upcoming On the Grid post.

Additional resources:

• Wireless MBUS Implementation with CC1101 and MSP430 (Rev. A)
• Wireless M-Bus Implementation with CC112x / CC120x High Performance Transceiver Family

On June 18, 2015, the U.S. House passed Trade Promotion Authority by a bipartisan vote.  We welcome the House action, and look forward to TPA becoming law.

As a global technology company with nearly 90 percent of our revenue from markets overseas, open trade is essential for us to reach our customers. We have strongly supported TPA-2015 by reaching out to members of Congress representing our sites to highlight the importance of the bill to our company. 

TPA puts the U.S. in the best position to reach trade agreements that can open markets and address 21st century trade barriers by allowing negotiators to conclude and Congress to approve new trade agreements. TPA also contains updates that will open markets for U.S. technology products. 

Learn more about why TI supports TPA-2015 and why open trade helps our industry grow.

As a designer, choosing the right power supply topology is essential. Making the wrong choice means angry customers and lost time and money. When looking at voltage regulation, the usual trade-offs of size, efficiency, accuracy and voltage ripple are important. But so too is the topology of the solution. Should it be an inductor-based converter, linear regulator (LDO) or charge pump? While charge pump ICs aren’t the optimal solution for every design, they do possess several advantages over an inductive converter and increased efficiency over an LDO. Let’s explore a few reasons to consider a charge pump.

Charge pumps are simpler, smaller and come in the same building-block capabilities as inductive DC/DC converters

A charge pump converter provides an easy-to-use, small solution size, with ruggedness not found in inductive DC/DC converters. Charge pumps also can be found in boost, buckand invertingflavors, just like their magnetic brethren, without the inductor cost, height and printed circuit board (PCB) area requirements.

If you compare a charge pump-based buck regulator against an inductive solution, you can eliminate the inductor. The trade-off is about 10-20% lower efficiency than an inductive buck, but the charge pump saves space on your board. Charge pump circuits also are great for inverting an input voltage and for boosting. See Figure 1 for an example of how to use a boost charge pump.

Figure 1: The LM2775 is often used for universal serial bus (USB) On-the-Go (OTG)/mobile HDMI applications

In Figure 1, the regulated 5V output mode on the LM2775 (a switched capacitor 5V boost converter) is often used for a USB OTG/mobile HDMI application. You can enable/disable the LM2775 by applying a logic signal on only the EN pin, while grounding the OUTDIS pin. Depending on the USB/HDMI mode of the application, you could also enable the LM2775 to drive the power bus line (host), or disable it to put its output in high impedance, allowing an external supply to drive the bus line (slave). In addition to the high-impedance back-drive protection, the output current-limit protection is 200mA (typical), well within USB OTG and HDMI requirements.

Charge pumps offer greater efficiency than LDOs

Charge pump regulators have approximately 20% greater efficiency over an LDO, while only increasing the solution size by adding two  small ceramic capacitors. Figure 2 shows an example of where a charge pump could be used versus an LDO, as long as output ripple is not a huge design issue. In this situation, regulation is achieved by current control through the input-connected switches or pulse-frequency modulation. Most devices of this nature also include a low-impedance pass mode for when the input to output ratio approaches 1. This gain and efficiency and switch to pass mode is highlighted in the efficiency curve of the LM2771, low-ripple 250mA switched-capacitor step-down DC/DC converter, regulating the output voltage at 1.5V. In this application, the curve highlights that a 30% efficiency gain is possible by using a regulated charge pump circuit (Figure 2).

Figure 2: The curve highlights a 30% efficiency gain using a regulated charge pump versus a LDO

While a charge pump may not be the optimal solution for every DC/DC converter design, it does provide several advantages over inductive converters, including lower cost and smaller PCB size. A charge pump IC also provides increased efficiency over an LDO. To learn more about specific situations for which charge pumps are ideal, check out my next blog coming up in July.

Additional resources:

• Browse product tables for:
  • Charge-pump step-down solutions.
  • Charge-pump step-up solutions.
  • Charge-pump inverting solutions.

In my previous post, I talked about why you might want to use Radio frequency (RF) sampling data converters to handle higher bandwidths in a design. Data converters that operate directly in the RF bands without the additional circuitry of mixers and local oscillators are very alluring. Plus, it’s possible to sample at 4GSPS and beyond.

But wait! How can you transfer digital data to the field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or processor at those speeds? A traditional low-voltage differential signaling (LVDS) or complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) interface is not capable of operating that fast. A JESD204B serialized interface is more common; however, a 12-bit converter sampling at 4GHz within the interface could require 80Gbps of data across the channel. This is no small feat. It requires a combination of high-speed serializer/deserializer (SERDES) transceivers and a large number of lanes. This taxes the capability, power constraints and size of the device.

But it is possible to reduce the input data rate by decimation. Decimation is a simple technique where you eliminate sample points from the data stream to reduce the data rate. Figure 1 illustrates a decimate-by-2 operation. Does this technique distort the waveform and lose information? Not exactly. The information is still intact; the drawback is that the decimation operation creates additional images. A decimate-by-2 will introduce images centered at half the sampling-rate point (Fs/2). The decimation process is accompanied by a digital filter to eliminate these images.

A decimate-by-2 function is equivalent to a data converter operating at half rate, with an analog antialiasing filter operating at half the bandwidth. You can also cascade multiple decimate-by-2 stages together to reduce the input data rate to the desirable level.

Figure 1: Decimation in the time domain and frequency domain

So what’s the penalty for this approach? The reduction in data rate will limit the system’s bandwidth capability. Shannon’s sampling theorem still applies. If a 4GSPS device is decimated by 8, for example, the resulting input data rate would be 500MHz, which can support a signal bandwidth of 250MHz.

Another useful digital feature is a numerically controlled oscillator (NCO). An NCO is a programmable oscillator that can digitally move the signal captured to a digital baseband location. A common approach is to capture the signal in the RF band and use the NCO to move the signal to zero IF (ZIF). Figure 2 illustrates this approach. The signal can be located at any arbitrary RF frequency and moved down to a known location. Once centered at 0Hz, the maximum data rate required is contingent only on the signal bandwidth. The rule of thumb is to select the output sampling rate based on your RF frequency of operation and to select the input data rate based on the maximum signal bandwidth.

Figure 2: Example of an NCO downconverting operation

The ADC12J4000 RF sampling analog-to-digital converter operates at a sampling rate of 4GSPS. This device uses the JESD204B serialized data interface. It includes decimation modes up to 32x and also has an NCO. Engaging the decimation and NCO allows you to keep the maximum output sampling rate while reducing the input rate based on signal-bandwidth requirements or the processor’s serialization speed limitation.

Come back next month, when I’ll discuss how data-converter aliasing can be your friend.

Additional resources

• View a video on How to sample and decimate frequencies with ADC12J4000.
• Learn more about the JESD204B interface for high-speed analog-to-digital converters (ADCs).
• See all posts in RJ Hopper’s RF sampling blog series.

Have you ever seen this video with a cat wearing a miniature shark costume and riding a robotic vacuum cleaner? For the cat lovers out there this video is every bit as awesome as it sounds. If you happen to be a dog lover, not to fear! If you check out the related videos sidebar you can see videos of dogs doing the same thing.

As a validation engineer, I can appreciate a video like this not only because pets are awesome, but also because it demonstrates the quality of the final product. This is especially true in one video where we see a full-grown Siberian husky riding the robotic vacuum. 

You may be thinking, “What’s the big deal?” Well, huskies can grow to be more than 60 pounds, whereas the robot itself weighs only 8.4 pounds. With the dog’s additional weight, the load on the drive train is increased. To continue to move, the motor now requires more torque to compensate for the additional load. This translates to a higher current draw from the battery and additional stress to the electronics in the form of heat. In an improperly designed system, conditions such as these could result in anything from a blown fuse to system overheat and catastrophic device failure.

Yet, instead of device failure we see the robot continues to move and vacuum even under a load 800% greater than what it was originally designed for. That’s pretty impressive! I can tell the robot is robustly designed and was thoroughly validated before it was released to market.

Let’s pretend that wasn’t the case, though. Could you imagine how different things would be for that company if the vacuum caught fire when the dog sat on it? Instead of a viral video, they’d have a massive recall.

This is how the idea of validation was born. Validation refers to testing the functionality of a device or system in real-world and often extreme operating conditions. Products that are not thoroughly tested tend to get recalled, which hurts company image and profit and, even worse, sometimes people. In the Motor Drives group at Texas Instruments, we have a philosophy on recalls: we don’t want them to happen.

That’s where I come in. As a validation engineer, it’s my job to put our parts through the ringer. I act as the first customer of the device and treat it as though I am evaluating it for the first time. I look at the datasheet with no assumptions and test the part in real-world conditions to make sure it does exactly what we say it will do. If there is some weakness in the device, I report my findings to our design team, which they will use that data to make the device more robust.

We test all released devices in the Motor Drives portfolio over their entire operational voltage range, minimum and maximum currents, and a wide range of temperatures. I check the protection circuitry (such as over-current protection and thermal shutdown) and make sure that these systems correctly protect our devices under harsh operating conditions. I also test the functional operation of the device over this range of conditions to ensure that, if a customer does something unexpected, the device still meets specified performance requirements.

I engineer some of the tests I perform to cause catastrophic damage to the device, because by doing so we learn about its limits. Like the show “MythBusters,” I get to blow things up for science! Plus, they give me some pretty neat equipment to use. Check out my validation bench below. I call it The Gauntlet.

Figure 1: Motor Drives validation – The Gauntlet. Fallen soldiers of the most recent validation effort are circled in red.

With engineers like me all across TI running similar tests on their devices, you can be assured that our parts will perform as specified.

Additional resources:

• For design questions, visit the TI Motor Drivers forums on the TI E2E™ Community.
• For reference designs, visit the Motor Drives section on the TI Applications page.
• Learn more about the DRV8701, a new single H-bridge gate driver.

TI is hosting an hour-long Twitter chat focused on the topic of energy harvesting July 8 from 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Central Daylight Time (17:00-18:30 Central European Summer Time).Whether you are searching for the latest trends in energy harvesting technology or designing your own products, our gurus are here to chat.

The Twitter chat will feature TI experts Jeff Falin, Pearl Cao, Jayanth Rangaraju and William Cooper. Follow @TXInstruments and join the #energyharvesting conversation!

If you’d like to submit questions before the chat, leave a comment on this blog or tweet us @TXInstruments.

Don’t forget to RSVP to our Facebook event and forward to your friends!

Jeff Falin

Jeff is an applications engineer for the High Power Charging group within the Battery Management Systems business unit. He has more than 15 years of experience working with linear regulators, DC/DC converters and battery chargers, both powered from DC sources and energy harvesters. Jeff has a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Tennessee.

Pearl Cao

Pearl is a product marketing engineer in the Wireless and Low Power Charger product line under the Battery Management business unit. She focuses on defining and executing the marketing strategy, which entails identifying opportunities, attracting customers, and growing the business. Before this position, Pearl was a systems engineer for three years in the Wireless Power Transmitter group, where she focused on defining new products, driving industry standards, and supporting the complete design-in process with customers.

Pearl has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Toronto. Her awards include the Appreciation of Service Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Toronto section and the Best Paper Presentation Award at APEC 2011. She has also contributed three papers to IEEE.

Jayanth Rangaraju

Jayanth Rangaraju is currently a business manager on the Grid Infrastructure team focusing on TI’s growth in the renewable energy markets. In this role, he is responsible for leveraging TI’s broad portfolio to a strategic advantage by transforming the company’s approach toward solving engineering problems.

He has a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from Visvesvaraya Technological University in Bangalore and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington. He recently graduated with a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business.

William Cooper

William Cooper is a product marketing engineer for TI’s Microcontroller (MCU) business, focused specifically on the strategic development and positioning of MSP430™ ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM) products. He joined Texas Instruments in 2012, rotating through sales, business development and marketing roles as a member of the technical sales associate rotational program. He then managed MSP430 MCU product launches and development tools.

William has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering, as well as a master’s degree in management, from the University of Florida.

We are happy to have our guest blogger, Sari Germanos today. Sari is the Technology Marketing Manager for the Ethernet POWERLINK Standardization Group. His expertise lies in developing complex distributed real-time mechatronic applications.  He also has significant experience in applying simulation technologies to improve the efficiency of developing large-scale distributed systems.

There are many applications that require discrete machine synchronization. Label printing applications require that a print-head start printing based on a specific label location. This process has to be reliable, repeatable, and robust. Web applications need to synchronize the speed of their windings based on the web thickness which constantly changes. Mobile automation machine axels need to synchronize wheel rotation based on angle and velocity.

Implementing synchronized motion in a machine can be quite complex. Such problems are typically solved mechanically using shafts, gears, and differentials. However, the complexity can be significantly reduced when information (such as position of velocity) from a device may be communicated in real-time and with low latency. If a machine can share information between its discrete components consistently and reliably with low latency, the additional cost of complex mechanical mechanisms can be eliminated. It is possible to achieve a high degree of synchronization to meet the needs of the most stringent applications if you have a high performing network that allows you to adhere to the following requirements.

1)      Network packet sizes are kept under 100 bytes

2)      The protocol allows direct one to many communication, thus keeping the bus master out of the loop

3)      Each information packet is transmitted with low latency (under ten micro seconds) Jitter is maintained under 10 micro-seconds

4)      The protocol does not use switches. Switches add unnecessary transmission delays

Fortunately there is a free open source, widely used protocol (Ethernet POWERLINK) that can accurately achieve the highest possible degree of synchronization. Using this protocol in conjunction with the TI Sitara AM335x processors will meet all these requirements.

a)      POWERLINK is a cyclic bus. Each bus cycle is initiated by the bus managing node (MN) where it issues a “start-of-cycle” SoC frame, which is also used as a synchronization frame. The MN then proceeds to send a request frame to each control node (CN). Upon receiving it the CN instantly responded and publishes one data frame, per request and per cycle. Since the CN frame contains data from only one node, it can keep the data size down to a few bytes, thus guaranteeing a fast reaction time.

b)      Each CN response is sent in broadcast mode. So any component on the entire network may choose to listen. This mechanism is ideal for synchronization. This allows for each encoder or sensor in the system to connect directly to the network. So any motor drives can listen in to any encoder and use that data to control the motor it is managing. Because this data does not need to be routed and distributed by the bus master the data is available in real-time at every cycle.

c)      The connection to the network is not managed by the typical RTOS/Ethernet controller combination used in office networks. Here the Sitara AM335x processor takes over the interface and listens to the network. The processor already has its packet ready and pre-loaded which is placed on the network as soon as the co-processor sees the request from the managing node. The POWERLINK thin-layer protocol and the dedicated hardware guarantee low jitter, low latency, and fast reaction time.

d)      The POWERLINK specification requires each component to have two Ethernet ports connected internally by a repeater. This allows the networked components to be daisy-chained, or a star configuration may be maintained using hubs. Network delays are minimal and free tools like Wireshark may be used to log network traffic and debug network issues.

When was the last time you looked inside the cabinet of your machine? Is your network properly serving your machine and providing optimal machine performance?

To learn more about the Powerlink Technology and its realization on TI Sitara Processors, register for the free webinar ‘Using Real-Time Ethernet to Control and Synchronize Industrial Machines’ on July 16, 2015 02:00 PM EDT

Get started today -

• Evaluate the Powerlink solution with the Sitara Ethernet Powerlink Development Platform Reference Design
• or visit www.ethernet-powerlink.org
• or read the TI white paper POWERLINK on TI Sitara™ Processors

Back in the spring, a rare break in the stormy weather gave me the opportunity to visit a home-improvement store for some home project supplies. With Father’s Day promotions everywhere, what should have been a quick errand turned into a leisurely stroll through the power and garden tool section of the home improvement store. My motivation was selfish as I anticipated my family’s annual last-minute questioning: “What do you want for Father’s Day?” If you’re like me, I have never met a power tool I didn’t like.

The battery-operated tools clearly outnumbered the traditional wall AC plug and gasoline-powered devices on display. The biggest displacement was the lawn tools that traditionally ran from small two-stroke gasoline engines in the past. These two-stroke engines have received increasing scrutiny from governments as a major source of noise and air pollution. A Washington Post article cited a 2011 test conducted by the car experts at Edmunds where “a consumer-grade leaf blower [emitted] more pollutants than a 6,200-pound 2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor.” The two-stroke engine emitted nearly 299 times the hydrocarbons of the pickup truck and 93 times the hydrocarbons of a sedan. The blower emitted many times more carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide as well.

Manufacturers have tiered the products by battery voltage, with lower-end products falling below 20V; mid-tier products at 32-40V; and high-tier products at 56V, which can achieve runtimes approaching one hour. The batteries now are all “swappable” battery packs, so in case the battery capacity is not adequate, you can change it out for a fresh one to finish the job without having to wait for the charging cycle. Manufacturers are also smartly introducing tool families that share the same manufacturer-specific battery packs and chargers so the consumers  doesn’t have to buy so many chargers, and manufacturers can enjoy multiple tool sales, leveraging the consumer investment in their specific charger and battery packs.

Figure 1: Battery tiers

This diversity of battery packs and chargers drives a range of product requirements, architectures and topologies. Chargers, for example, use many different power topologies, including flyback, forward, interleaved-flyback, LLC half bridge and phase-shifted full-bridge. Figure 1 shows a segmentation of these topologies by voltage level.

At TI, we support all of these topologies. You can quickly evaluate them by researching constant voltage-constant current TI Designs focused on power-tool charging applications. The 120V, AC-input 200W interleaved flyback design for ~21V battery charging applications, as shown in Figure 2, brings low-cost flyback topology to higher power levels through interleaving. It has interesting advantages for power-tool battery charging, delivering over 90% efficiency and spreading out heat generation by nature of the interleaved power stage. Smaller magnetic components are used allowing for a compact design with additional benefits that include reduced cooling efforts, reduced costs and electromagnetic emissions compliance.

Figure 2: Interleaved flyback design for 21V battery chargers

In addition to complete design files, bill of materials (BOM) and test reports, the reference design guide provides temperature data and a discussion on how to scale the design for higher voltages and currents.

Another popular topology not historically used in constant-voltage, constant-current regulated designs is the LLC half bridge. The half-bridge architecture supports higher power and current levels with the advantages of the zero voltage switching inherent in the LLC topology. Engineers can evaluate the 230V AC input 400W PFC + LLC battery charger for 36V power tools shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3: PFC+LLC battery charger for 36V power tools

The design achieves greater than 92% efficiency, has less than 0.5W of standby power consumption, can be used with or without secondary-side MCU control, is optimized for cost, and is fully tested for robustness and stability. It is also compliant with IEC61000-3-2 class A electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) limits.

Happy Father’s Day to all, and happy designing with battery and charging technologies, which make appreciating dad all the easier.

Many designers are looking for ways to cut costs without sacrificing performance, quality and reliability in their solutions.  In fact, the inverse is true when it comes to technology development because designers expect new processing solutions to be more powerful than their predecessors, yet cost less. 

The C2000™ microcontroller (MCU) team already provides compelling MCU solutions that include the performance and system integration that are needed for performance digital control applications.  Now we are making high performance development more affordable by introducing a new LaunchPad for the popular C2000 Delfino™ real-time control MCUs. 

The new LaunchPad will be based on the C2000 F2837xS MCU family, which is the next generation family to the popular C2000 F28335 MCUs.  The C2000 F2837xS MCU takes single-core MCU performance to the next level by providing a 200MHz central processing unit (CPU), which is further boosted by new accelerators designed to quickly execute common control loop algorithms, power line communications algorithms and complex math functions.  This family also includes a real-time co-processor (CLA) which operates independently of the main CPU and provides an additional 200MHz of processing power.  

The C2000 F2837xS MCU also includes many integrated analog and control peripherals such as 16- and 12-bit ADC modes, comparators, delta-sigma sinc filters, eQEP, high-res PWMs and much more. 

At only US$29.99, the new LaunchPad features this powerful MCU and also includes many other hardware and software features, making it an ideal low-cost development platform for digital control applications. 

Watch this short video to learn more about the LaunchPad.

LaunchPad Features

• C2000 Delfino F28377S MCU
• On-board isolated XDS100v2 JTAG emulator for easy programming and debugging
• Dual 40-pin headers for up to two application BoosterPack expansion
• Free unrestricted version of the latest version of Code Composer Studio integrated development environment
• Free download of controlSUITE with device examples and getting started projects for the Launchpad
• Compatible with the Digital Power BoosterPack (BOOSTXL-BUCKCONV)

Leave us a note and let us know how you plan on using this new C2000 Delfino F28377S LaunchPad!

Wikipedia defines the Internet of Things (IoT) as “the network of physical objects or ‘things’ embedded with electronics, software, sensors and connectivity to enable it to achieve greater value and service by exchanging data with the manufacturer, operator and/or other connected devices”.  This is the SensorTag story.  TI has made available its next-generation wireless connectivity development platform called the SimpleLink™ SensorTag allowing quick and easy prototyping of IoT devices.  The SensorTag is the first provider that combines sensor data with secure cloud connectivity in less than three minutes.  This blog provides a quick overview of the three low-power TI sensors embedded within the SensorTag shown below in Figure 1.

Figure 1: SensorTag Teardown

As the world becomes more connected with the widespread use of handheld devices and the ability to store data in the cloud, having the capability to sense the world around will be even more prevalent than today.  Humidity sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, thermometers, gas sensors, altimeters, cameras, light sensors, and many other types of sensors make it easy to measure the environment and make decisions based on the information.  A major aspect of this is to upload the data onto the web making wireless connectivity an essential part of the IoT.

Embedded within the SensorTag development kit are three innovative sensors from TI: (1) OPT3001– Ambient Light Sensor, (2) TMP007– Infrared (IR) Temperature Sensor, and (3) HDC1000– Humidity Sensor.  Ambient light sensors are useful in many applications such as detecting light to adjust the lighting on your PC display therefore prolonging the useful life of the display itself.  IR sensors make it possible to measure temperature without physically touching the target object.  Think of a pot of hot soup, for example.  Why measure humidity? Ever felt an electrostatic discharge (ESD) on your finger?  It’s not fun!  In low humidity, ESD events are more likely to happen.  ESD can build up in clothes, on your body, on metal surfaces, and many other places so keeping humidity in check will help prevent ESD strikes to occur.  I’ll summarize each sensor type and the benefits they provide next.

OPT3001– Ambient Light Sensor

The OPT3001 is a single-chip lux meter with precision human eye spectral response and unrivaled IR rejection allowing the sensor to measure the intensity of visible light regardless of the light source.  The state-of-the-art OPT3001 is designed for systems where the user experience is impacted by variable lighting.  Its precision spectral response dramatically reduces the error across all lighting conditions, making it an ideal replacement for less-than-optimal photodiodes, photoresistors, or other ambient light sensors that do not match up to human eye responses.  Figure 2 below shows the OPT3001 sensor maximum efficiency at a 555-nm wavelength.

Figure 2: Photopic Luminous Efficiency

 Aside from the stellar performance in matching the human eye response, the OPT3001 has many other attributes that make it suitable for many ambient light sensing applications.  Table 1 below summarizes them. 

Table 1: OPT3001 Features and Benefits

TMP007– IR Temperature Sensor

The TMP007 is a complete IR thermopile sensor system-on-chip (SoC) that includes the sensing element, signal

conditioning, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and math engine to calculate object and die temperatures.  The device measures the temperature of an object without physically touching the object by absorbing the infrared energy emitted from the object.  The built-in thermopile produces internally a digitized voltage representation of the temperature, and provides this and the die temperature to the integrated math engine, which then computes the corresponding object temperature.  Figure 3 below summarizes the top-level description of the TMP007.

 Figure 3: Simplified Schematic

Table 2 summarizes some of the inherent benefits to using the TMP007 in an IR-based temperature measurement system. 

 Table 2: TMP007 Features and Benefits

 HDC1000– Humidity Sensor

The HDC1000 is a digital humidity sensor with an integrated temperature sensor that provides excellent measurement accuracy at very low power.  The device measures relative humidity based on a novel capacitive sensor technology which is placed on the ball side of the device making it a robust solution against environmental contaminants such as dirt and dust.

Figure 4 shows the HDC1000 block diagram revealing the device not only has a built-in ADC, but also carries a temperature sensor (±0.2°C accuracy at 30°C) on board.  The humidity/temperature combination is useful in many applications including HVAC systems, thermostats, and other mobile applications.

Figure 4: Simplified Schematic

The HDC1000 provides the following unmatched benefits:

• Lowest current:
  • 1.2 uA avg. for humidity and temp @ 1sps
  • 820 nA avg. for humidity only @ 1sps

• Smallest size:
  • Tiny 2mm x 1.6mm footprint

• High accuracy:
  • ± 3% relative humidity accuracy
  • ±0.2°C temperature accuracy

 Thanks for reading.  If you’d like more information on the sensing technologies available from TI and the SensorTag development platform, please visit www.ti.com/sensing and www.ti.com/sensortag. 

What does TI’s Cecelia Smith have in common with veteran astronaut Dr. Ellen Ochoa?

Aside from being successful leaders in their workplaces, they are also advocates for diversity and inclusion and role models for girls and women pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

The duo served as keynote speakers at a Catalystbusiness forum on Tuesday, June 16, at the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD). They shared their thoughts about how TI and NASA are promoting inclusive environments and making them stronger by valuing the diversity of employees.

Cecelia, vice president and general manager of our Mixed Signal Automotive (MSA) business, says inclusion is about making every employee count and giving them opportunities to develop.

“When you build a team where every person counts, you will fuel innovation, create a culture of execution excellence, and improve financial performance,” she said during the two-hour session, titled “Disrupt the STEM default: Fueling innovation through inclusion.”

TI and Catalyst hosted the event to help leaders from companies find new ways to attract and retain more women in STEM careers. Speakers shared strategies, successful initiatives and personal experiences for driving innovation and business results through inclusive leadership. The event also included several panelists from Dell and the NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC).

Catalyst is a worldwide nonprofit organization whose mission is to expand opportunities for women and business.

Breaking down barriers

Cecelia is proof that barriers are breaking down for women in the workplace. And she credits companies like TI for leading by example with strong ethics and values such as integrity and commitment to respecting others.

“The words matched the actions of those I interviewed with,” she said of a job interview at TI 20 years ago.

Cecelia started working at TI in 1995 as a systems engineer. She previously worked as an applications engineer for a company in California, where managers told her she was not the right person for a supervisor role that she was vying for. Cecelia learned that the managers were afraid she was going to get pregnant, have another child, and leave the company.

“I was a working mother of one, and we were planning on a second child. This experience got me thinking about leaving engineering and doing something different,” she said.

Then she heard about an opportunity at TI for a systems engineer and thought it sounded like a great fit.

There was one potential complication: “I was seven months pregnant. After what I had been through, I was sure they weren’t going to hire me and I didn’t want to waste everyone’s time,” she said.

So, in full disclosure, she told TI she was seven months pregnant. The hiring manager was still interested, saying TI simply wanted the best and brightest people working on the toughest problems. He encouraged Cecelia to come to Dallas for an interview.

“During that interview process, I saw how TI strives to create an environment where each person can succeed,” she said. “TI had all the things I wanted in a company.”

Today, Cecelia does her part to create an inclusive environment in her organization by “leading from the front,” which means communicating her expectations of her team, being personally accountable for assessing every employee’s strengths, and finding ways to help them grow.

“I want to find out what each person brings to the table, tap into our high-potential candidates, and understand what each person’s specialty is,” she said. “I want to give them assignments that excite them, help them stretch and test their potential.”

See Cecelia's Keynote Address at the Catalyst business forum:

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Diversity of thought

Both Cecelia and her keynote counterpart, Ellen Ochoa, director of the NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC), both talked about how teams made up of people with different backgrounds are more likely to come up with different solutions.

“Different perspectives and world views allow for innovative solutions that any one thinker would be challenged to come up with,” Ellen said.

As the first Hispanic woman to go to space, the astronaut talked briefly about her career at NASA and the agency’s plans to take people to Mars.

She focused her remarks on the center’s practices for inclusion, such as benchmarking with companies like TI, establishing an Inclusion & Innovation Council for top leaders, and starting employee resource groups and training programs for employees and managers. As part of these efforts, managers have been asked to examine their own biases.

“We want to make sure we are a strong, successful organization well into the future – which means attracting and retaining great talent,” she said. “Innovation is important to JSC. We need innovative solutions and need to get the most out of every employee. We compete for jobs with big aerospace firms and really need to be a very attractive employer to get the kind of talent we need.”

Sam Dwinell, vice president in Human Resources at TI, said the company was honored to work with Catalyst and collaborate on the event.

“This was a chance to talk about what’s working for these great companies. People are achieving results in the diversity and inclusion space with a variety of strategies – some big, like company-wide initiatives, and some small, like the day-to-day actions of passionate leaders,” Sam said.

Fran Dillard, director of Diversity and Inclusion at TI, added: “It means a lot to bring these businesses and leaders together to have a very important discussion. At TI, we believe we can play a vital role in diversity and inclusion at STEM companies.”

Welcome to the June edition of MSP Community Highlights! Take a look at some of the amazing projects created using MSP microcontrollers:

Digital FM Receiver designed by Rohit Gupta 

(Please visit the site to view this video)

3D printed robot arm by Roboteurs

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Neko screensaver on MSP LaunchPad created by Chris Baird

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Stay tuned for more great projects and get involved at 43oh! If you need support or want to see some additional projects, check out the E2E MSP forum as well as the E2E MSP Microcontroller Projects. Remember to post your MSP-based projects online and share the links on Twitter. We’ll track all the projects with the #MSP430 hashtag.

It’s easy to forget how primitive life was just a few years ago. We were practically cavemen, with our phone books, paper tickets and DVD players. But electronics changed the way we live – and battery technology enables all of our favorite portable devices to be, well, portable.

The evolution of batteries is naturally tied to the products and systems that use them. As people got used to the convenience of mobile computing and communication, there was a demand (and motivation) to improve portable power sources. But better batteries enabled the creation of new mobile applications – things that we never even knew we needed before.

While battery technology has advanced (relatively) quickly in the past few years, the basic ideas are not exactly new. In 1936, archeologists discovered a 2,000-year old artifact that looked vaguely like it could have been a battery. Was this device really a battery? Maybe not – most experts today discredit that theory. But I like the idea that it might have been. Either way, if you fast-forward to the 17th and 18th centuries, the pace of scientific discovery began to accelerate, and eventually batteries became a practical source of power for newly emerging electrical devices like lights and radios by the 19th and 20th century. About a hundred years ago, the “dry cell” battery began to resemble the common disposable batteries we use today.

By the time lithium-ion batteries were commercialized in the early 1990s, the need for more sophisticated electronic monitoring circuitry became apparent. This new battery system offered many advantages in terms of energy and overall performance, so system designers were willing to invest time, effort and money into developing dedicated battery-management circuits to optimize the life cycle of these cells.

As we grow to depend on batteries more and more with each passing year, the technology in and around them will continue to progress. In the early days of mobile devices, the battery was often one of the most troublesome components in the system, as end users could not reliably estimate when their system would run out of power. Back then, we would never have considered building a device where the battery couldn’t be easily removed and replaced. Technology has progressed to the point today where batteries are seamlessly embedded into portable equipment. Users have reliable and consistent indication of their battery status thanks to accurate built-in battery-monitoring technology. They can quickly and easily recharge, and with wireless power technology, they don’t even have to make any physical connections to do so. Figure 1 showcases the TI innovation that has created today’s state-of-the-art battery management.

I wonder if a few years from now we will look back fondly on the “good old days,” when we had to tap our smartwatches to check in for our next flight.

Additional resources

View TI’s full portfolio of battery-management products

Read TI's Battery Management Guide