2013 – Page 5 – EEJournal

New Synopsys DFT Offerings

September 12, 2013

It’s ITC time, and this is when many of the EDA and test folks roll out their new stuff. True to this pattern, Synopsys has announced two new offerings, one of which allows faster SoC testing, the other allowing faster design of the test infrastructure in an SoC.

The first is a rather significant upgrade to their design-for-test (DFT) offering. Called DFTMAX Ultra, it’s a from-the-ground-up revamp of their test compression technology. It addresses compression, test speed, and the number of test pins.

They’ve completely redone their compressions scheme, … Read More → "New Synopsys DFT Offerings"

After all the stringent methods

by Bryon Moyer

September 6, 2013

After all the stringent methods are applied, one is left with a complex system that at times tries to defeat itself, due to competition for resources. Worker functions are suspended during management functions, which depend upon the same faculties for interpretation and execution. Time to space translation on input and space to time for useful output. The disclaimer shipped with most software tells the truth: buyer beware.

There is a remedy, an alternative to TMs that is in and for the time domain vs being relegated to the space domain.

Details on request c.moeller@ … Read More → "After all the stringent methods"

New MEMS Oscillators

by Kevin Morris

September 4, 2013

Quartz is under attack yet again. While some folks are bringing quartz into non-timing applications, others are trying to squeeze it out of its primary application: timing.

Sand 9 is the latest such company, having just debuted their basic platform. They point to some fundamental limitations of quartz as a material, limitations we’ve lived with for a long time. Issues they highlight in particular are vulnerabilities due to vibration and shock, degradation at high temperatures and frequencies, issues with rapid temperature dips, inconsistencies … Read More → "New MEMS Oscillators"

Stable Video, Easier Development

by Amelia Dalton

August 29, 2013

There are times when a shaky video can be just the thing. Imagine: where would the Blair Witch Project have been without it? What would an entire generation of hipsters do without the ability to shake (ironically) their video? How are happening new producers supposed to attract new audiences without being able to make their video look shoddy and unprofessional? Did you know that Shakes media specialises in corporate video production for your business?

But, aside from those times, shaky video is not so good. In fact, for … Read More → "Stable Video, Easier Development"

Two Ways to Tune an Antenna

by Amelia Dalton

August 28, 2013

We’ve looked at a couple of companies focusing on improving the performance of cell phone antennas in real time as conditions change. WiSpry (MEMS) and Peregrine (SOS CMOS) were two such examples. But Cavendish Kinetics came into the picture as well, and it turns out that there’s another layer of nuance as to what these … Read More → "Two Ways to Tune an Antenna"

A Different Spin on Job Loss

by Jim Turley

August 26, 2013

In a discussion with Teledyne DALSA about their MIDIS MEMS process, we spent a few moments discussing how the ASIC die and the MEMS die are mated together. With this technology, the MEMS die has landing pads and the ASIC die gets micro-bumped and flipped and mated to the landing pads.

The question was whether this was done wafer-to-wafer or using known-good dice. The answer was wafer-to-wafer, since yield allows it and the costs are much lower. All pretty much reasonable reasoning.</ … Read More → "A Different Spin on Job Loss"

An Anti-Security Tool for Gray Hats

by Amelia Dalton

August 22, 2013

We all know that if we want to be able to… well… transgress someone else’s private computer and internet stuffs, there’s a subterranean culture with a dress code involving black hats where, for the right price, you can get all kinds of tools that will open up all kinds of unsavory possibilities. These are the guys our computer security systems are trying to protect us from. They’re the guys your mother warned you about.

If we keep them out of our computers, then we’re ok. Right?

< … Read More →

A Navigation Demo

by Kevin Morris

August 21, 2013

We’ve talked before about indoor and pedestrian navigation and the challenges they pose. As part of the ongoing industry effort to crack that nut, Movea recently announced a demonstration of their indoor navigation skills in France and South Korea. I was trying to parse their announcement carefully to catch the nuances of what they were claiming.

First of all, they claim that this is a “first,” but I think the key qualifier is that this is the first time … Read More → "A Navigation Demo"

A Software View of Hardware

by Bryon Moyer

August 20, 2013

One of the defining characteristics of an embedded system is that you should have no expectations about what it’s made of or how it’s arranged. There are no architecture standards, and that’s how everyone likes it.

Well, ok; not everyone: the poor dudes writing tools for embedded systems have a heck of a challenge dealing with all the variety. And, frankly, some of those tools come full circle and help architects decide how to optimize their systems. But if each variant takes a major project to configure the tools, then that& … Read More → "A Software View of Hardware"

A Different Kind of Current

by Jim Turley

August 15, 2013

We’ve seen a number of different ways in which magnetic interactions with electron current can be put to use thanks to the concept of spin. Those magnets are also conductors, so electrons are moving through materials having various (or no) magnetic polarization.

You might wonder why I went through the trouble to specify “electron” current. I mean, that’s what current is: a flow of electrons. Right? Well, it turns out there’s another more subtle current. … Read More → "A Different Kind of Current"