Freescale Semiconductors has posted their Medical Applications User Guide. This 116 page PDF outlines the MCU, RF, sensor and display technologies offered with specific emphasis on their implementation in developing medical applications. Included are block diagrams of medical devices and overviews of contemporary medical electronics technologies.
Category Archives: components
TI pressure sensor kit
TI is making a limited number of samples available of their Field Transmitter: Pressure Sensor Solutions kit. The kit includes: • RCV420 – Precision 4mA to 20mA Current Loop Receiver • ADS1255 – 24 Bit, 30kSPS Very Low Noise Delta-Sigma ADC • MSP430F2003TRSAT – Ultra-Low-Power 16bit MCU, Integrated 16bit Sigma Delta ADC • XTR300 – […]
Si570 XO – Programmable Oscillator group buy
Jayson Tautic writes that he’s conducting a fundraiser / group buy for the popular SiLabs Si570 programmable oscillator. “You’ll notice this used in a lot of DIY/maker SDR projects. Some of your readers may be interested as this part has customarily been viewed has difficult or expensive to obtain in small quantities.” Software-defined radio enthusiasts […]
FTDI announces EVE, Embedded Video Engine chip
FTDI has announced the introduction of the FT800, Embedded Video Engine (EVE). FTDI Chip is redefining the cost and quality paradigm for graphic user interface (GUI) development with the introduction of the FT800, Embedded Video Engine (EVE). With 3 in 1 functionality including display, audio, and touch operations, engineers now have an advanced solution to […]
TI: parasitic effects and PCB design
Wedecon Electronic Design located this post on the Texas Instruments blog highlighting the problems presented in PCB design by parasitic effects caused by rapid high current transients and high frequencies. You can view the post Everything is Part of the Circuit on the TI blog. Via the contact form.
Blackhat video: deconstructing a secure processor
This video of Chris Tarnovsky’s 2010 Blackhat Conference was recently posted. Chris is with Flylogic Engineering, LLC, which conducts security analyses of semiconductors. He describes the presentation, “From start to finish, we will walk through how a current generation smartcard was successfully compromised. The talk will discuss everything that was required in the order the […]
New TI CC3000 modules
video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player TI has announced the availability of their new CC3000 module. The TI CC3000 module is a self-contained wireless network processor that simplifies the implementation of Internet connectivity. The module uses TI’s SimpleLink WiFi solution which minimizes the software requirements of the host MCU. TI has posted information on the BoosterPack, […]
Free TI breakout boards
Goran provided this quick tip: “TI has some free breakout boards right now – even shipping is zero cost.” Check the TI estore for details and availability. TI says the board involved is “the DEM-OPA-SO-1A demonstration fixture helps designers evaluate the operation and performance of TI’s High Speed, Wide Bandwidth Operational Amplifiers. This unpopulated PC […]
TI SMD to DIP breakout board
Fred Nasb draws out attention to TI’s SMD to DIP adapter board. The DIP-Adapter-EVM supports these TI packages: D or U(SOIC-8), PW(TSSOP-8), DGK(MSOP-8), DBV(SOT23-6, SOT23-5 and SOT23-3), DCK(SC70-6 and SC70-5) and DRL(SOT563-6). It provides a handy way to convert SMD components for use with solderless breadboading or to be wired directly to existing circuits. You […]
7-channel relay and inductive load sink driver ICs
Uwe tipped us to Texas Instruments’ low power 7-channel relay and inductive load sink driver ICs: TI offers two rather new low power 1,8V & 3.3V & 5V 7-channel relay and inductive load sink driver ICs: – ULN2003LV (Output/Switching Voltage max. 8V – e.g. for 5V relays) – ULN2003V12 (Output/Switching Voltage max. 16V – e.g. […]
Metal oxide varistors catch fire in surge protection devices
Arhi tipped us off to a potential problem in cheap surge protection devices. The metal oxide varistors (MOVs) found in surge protectors are prone to catching fire in cases of extended current surges. MOVs are designed to suck up short surges that might occur on power lines. Unfortunately, in case of prolonged surges MOVs break […]
FT231X USB to UART chip
Guan Yang draws our attention to a new member of the FT232 family, the FT231X. I wanted access to more pins than your typical FTDI board provides, and realized that our friends at FTDI have designed a replacement for the venerable FT232 series that found a home in classical Arduinos, Bus Pirates and countless USB-to-serial […]
Video: dynamic flip-flop tutorial
Dynamic flip-flops. What are they and why should you care? Jeri Ellsworth discusses their operation and characteristics in this new video tutorial.
TI previews MSP430FR59xx low power MCUs
TI has announced the preview of the MSP430FR58xx and MSP430FR59xx family of ultra-low-power microcontrollers. This group consists of several devices featuring embedded FRAM nonvolatile memory, an ultra-low-power 16-bit MSP430 CPU, and different sets of peripherals targeted for various applications. The architecture, FRAM, and peripherals, combined with seven low-power modes, are optimized to achieve extended battery […]
The surface mount component codebook
An illustrated guide to identifying surface mount components from our previous post on the topic. Thanks Celia! Via the comments.
Jeri’s one-bit ADC
One-bit ADC? Using a single flip-flop Jeri Ellsworth explains the principle behind ADC. This represents a simplified version of Delta-Sigma modulation.
Training module: Austria Microsystems AS1130 LED driver chip
Digi-Key has a training module on using the Austria Microsystems AS1130 LED Driver chip. The AS1130 can drive 132 LEDs with one chip via the “Crossplexing” technique similar to Charlieplexing. The AS1130 features include a built-in scrolling function. The 38 page PDF datasheet is available here. Drone via the contact form.
TI multicore programming guide
TI has released their Multicore Programming Guide. Their announcement states, “To meet the ever-increasing processing demand, modern System-On-Chip solutions contain multiple processing cores. The dilemma is how to map applications to multicore devices. In this paper, we present a programming methodology for converting applications to run on multicore devices. We also describe the features of […]
TI EMI/ESD protection guide
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) isn’t something you usually think about until after you’ve accidentally zapped a sensitive component and can’t figure out why it looks OK but isn’t working. Similarly, electromagnetic interference (EMI) usually isn’t taken into account unless it begins to negatively impact a new wireless design. TI has released a 41-page PDF entitled System […]
Bus Pirate and DS1307 realtime clock interface
jokkebk from Code and Life wrote this short how-to on interfacing the Bus Pirate to communicate with the DS1307 realtime clock. A good description showing beginners how to connect a BP to components or breakout boards and establish communications quickly and easily. Want to simplify hardware hacking? Get your own Bus Pirate for about $30.