Articles – Page 196

Stuck in (Net) Neutral(ity)

June 3, 2014

This article is NOT about net neutrality. I’m hoping that opening declaration serves as a bit of a moat, as from what I’ve seen in the past few weeks any point of view on net neutrality is met with serious vitriol. I don’t need contempt in general, especially over something that I do for free. So while I stand by my many requests for comments, head elsewhere if you’re going to flame me.

If you are reading this article, odds are extremely good that you are on the Internet (given that … Read More → "Stuck in (Net) Neutral(ity)"

Pssst…

Beacons Beckon

by Bryon Moyer

June 2, 2014

I should probably start here by laying out my biases. I’m not a shopper. And when I shop, I like to be left alone until I need (and ask for) help. I think my worst shopping experience was in Shanghai at one of the markets where they hawk all manner of (probably counterfeit) goods. For someone like me (especially if you’re feeling moderately ill, as I was), it was like shopping hell – “Hey DVD!” “Hey watch!” People shouting from all directions, pulling on your sleeve, vying for your affections. (OK, just kidding – vying for your money.)

< … Read More →

Power Windows 2.0

Chromatic Glass Adds Embedded Intelligence to Construction

by Jim Turley

May 28, 2014

This week we’re going to talk about programming windows. No, I mean it. Literally, windows. As in, the glass outside your building.

Think I’m nuts? Then you haven’t met the people at View, Incorporated, the Silicon Valley–based company that makes “smart glass.” This isn’t the glass for your smartphone or tablet. It’s window glass, like you’d use for an office building, hospital, or hotel. We’re talking big sheets of glass – as much as 50 square feet. And they’re programmable.

Google Glass, meet Microsoft Windows.

View’ … Read More → "Power Windows 2.0"

Mass to Maker

Engineering the Deindustrial Revolution

by Kevin Morris

May 27, 2014

The Industrial Revolution was all about scalability. By developing efficient, scalable processes for manufacturing goods, engineers were able to create products for the masses more efficiently. Instead of treating each individual new automobile as a separate artisan project, assembly lines cranked out enormous numbers of identical cars with dramatically less (and less-skilled) manual labor. As a result of this more labor-efficient production, the cost of cars dropped, and automobiles became available to the masses. And so it went, from cars to candy to Converse, the flood of mass-produced commodities flowed across the landscape of civilization, forming rivers … Read More → "Mass to Maker"

Sub-threshold Design

Ambiq and PsiKick Chart a Challenging Path

by Bryon Moyer

May 26, 2014

We’ve been turning it down for years.

Energy consumption has gradually grown as a concern, to the point where it’s eclipsed performance as a primary driver for many circuits. To reduce power, you can do one of two things: turn down frequency (for dynamic power) or turn down the supply voltage. We’ve already stopped driving clocks as hard as we used to, what with the shift to multicore for scaling performance. But we’re still turning down the voltage.

The first move, where we took logic from 5 V, where it had been … Read More → "Sub-threshold Design"

Aiming Wireless Power

We Explore PowerByProxi and Cota

by Bryon Moyer

May 22, 2014

Not long ago, we looked at wireless power. And we looked at some of the standards and conflicts underway as companies and technologies vie for best position. And it looked like a simple two-sided issue, with the eventual winner not yet clear.

Well, turns out there’s even more going on, some of it in places we rarely visit. I’ve run across two more wireless power stories, and … Read More → "Aiming Wireless Power"

Buy-Curious?

A Visit to Avnet HQ Sheds Light on the Dismal Science of Distribution

by Jim Turley

May 21, 2014

“Daddy, where do electronic components come from?”

“Well, sweetheart, when a customer and a vendor love each other very much…”

We’ve all had that awkward conversation. When you release the bill of materials for your new project, somebody has to source all those components and get them into your hot little hands. How does all that stuff get to you? A while ago, I got to see where the electronics stork actually lives.

If you’ll pardon the expression, Phoenix, Arizona is a hotbed of electronics distribution. That’s where … Read More → "Buy-Curious?"

Collision of Two Worlds

The FPGA Supercomputing Nexus of Hardware and Software

by Kevin Morris

May 20, 2014

We are always trying to make machines that think faster. Before we finish building computers that can solve the last generation of problems, our imagination expands and we have a whole new set of challenges that require a new level of computing power. Emerging applications like machine vision can seemingly consume all of the computing power we could possibly throw at them – and then some.

For the past couple of decades, a quiet but radical minority has seen FPGAs as a magic bullet in the quest for more computing power. However, the challenges … Read More → "Collision of Two Worlds"

Hardware Emulation: The Clash of The Titans

by Lauro

May 15, 2014

Editor’s note: Lauro Rizzatti may be best known for his association with EVE, now part of Synopsys. Just to be clear, he is no longer with Synopsys, so this piece doesn’t reflect an official Synopsys position.

Hardware emulation has moved from the dusty back room of an engineering department used by a select few to numerous desktops and, along the way, become an important component of a verification blueprint. The numbers tell part of the story: The hardware emulation market hovers around $350 million, with a prediction from Gary Smith EDA that it will … Read More → "Hardware Emulation: The Clash of The Titans"

An Open Sensor Platform

Sensor Platforms and ARM Propose Framework

by Bryon Moyer

May 15, 2014

It might just be the end of another lurch.

Technology doesn’t evolve in a smooth, continuous fashion. Someone has an idea for something totally new and makes it happen. And someone else sees that idea and thinks, “OK, that’s pretty cool, but I have a better way to do it.” And someone else looks on, shakes her head at the pitiful, primitive attempts underway and puts forth yet another approach that does its tricks even more efficiently and elegantly.

And so, from that original brainstorm comes a flurry of innovation. Each modification benefits … Read More → "An Open Sensor Platform"