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MS5839-02BA36 Digital Altimeter

Posted on 2 July, 20202 July, 2020 by mixos

TE Connectivity’s digital altimeter delivers sensing accuracy for both pressure and temperature measurements

TE Connectivity’s (TE) MS5839 is an ultra-compact digital altimeter that is optimized for applications where chlorine and saline are present. The robust, gel-filled design of the MS5839 enables operation in harsh media environments while providing accurate and reliable digital measurements. This MEMS-based sensor offers advanced water resistance, chlorine resistance, shielding, low power consumption, and digital interconnectivity in an ultra-compact, low-profile package. The board-level design delivers sensing accuracy for both pressure and temperature measurements.

Miniaturization, performance, and precision are key for sensors embedded in consumer devices like swim watches and diving equipment. Expanding on TE’s portfolio of ultra-compact digital altimeters, the MS5839 2-bar model is designed to meet the next generation of device manufacturer designs and challenges.

Benefits

Enables ultra-compact design with robust gel-filled construction that is suitable for harsh media environments
Facilitates both pressure- and temperature-combination sensing with precise 24-bit digital output and I²C interface
Offers advanced water resistance, chlorine resistance, and digital interconnectivity with low power consumption
Ensures high accuracy and high performance with O-ring and integrated shielding to reduce signal noise and interference

Applications

Shallow diving computers
Underwater drones
Swim watches
Fitness trackers
Underwater vehicles
Diving equipment
Diving computers
Shallow water drones

more information: https://www.te.com/global-en/product-CAT-BLPS0061.html?q=MS5839

LMD-401 Radio Transceiver Module for Industrial Applications

Posted on 2 July, 2020 by mixos

The LMD-401 is a low power narrow band synthesized transceiver with GFSK modulation, designed for use in the North American ISM licensed band

Saelig Company, Inc. has announced the Circuit Design LMD-401 RF Transceiver Module for industrial applications, which is certified to FCC Part 90 in the USA and ISED RSS-119 in Canada. The LMD-401, a successor to the successful LMD-400-R, is a compact integrated module with the long-range transmission and excellent interference rejection characteristics demanded for today’s battery-operated radio equipment. The LMD-401 is pin- and performance-compatible with the LMD-400-R, but provides reduced current consumption and a greater operating temperature range. Users can set operating frequencies in 12.5kHz steps within the 458MHz to 462.5MHz band, now with improved RF output flatness up to 10mW. Receiver performance includes superior interference rejection characteristics that meet the highest European EN300220 receiver standard, category 1.

The LMD-401 is designed to have low spurious emissions and excellent interference rejection capabilities, with sensitivity to -116dBm. Users can expect stable operation, even in a site where multiple radio units are being operated simultaneously. All high frequency circuits are enclosed inside a robust housing to provide exceptional resistance against shock and vibration. Using a TCXO as the reference oscillator circuit ensures high frequency stability over a wide temperature range.

This simple, compact and low power transceiver is designed for embedding in user equipment and is suitable for low power industrial telecontrol and telemetry applications requiring high performance and reliability. Applications include industrial remote control, telemetry, remote monitoring, security, data acquisition, SCADA, etc.

Features

FCC Part 90 and ISED RSS119 certified
12.5kHz channel spacing Narrow band FM
High receiver sensitivity with double super-heterodyne receiver circuit
Superior receiver performance (EN300220 category 1 receiver equivalent)
4800bps data rate
Transparent data interface: simple and easy serial data interface allowing use of user-specific protocols
Operating voltage: 3.0 to 5.5 V (typ. 46mA / TX, 36mA / RX)
Operating temperature range: -20 to +65degC

The LMD-401 RF transceiver is made by Circuit Design, Inc., a leading Japanese supplier of low-power radio modules, highly rated for their quality and performance. Their products are in use worldwide in industrial remote control, telemetry, monitoring systems, tracking systems, drones, etc. The LMD-401 is available now from CDI’s US technical distributor Saelig Company, Inc.

SBG Systems Ellipse-D Miniature Dual GPS INS

Posted on 2 July, 2020 by Tope Oluyemi

Ellipse-D is the smallest Inertial Navigation System (INS) integrating a Dual-antenna, multi-band GNSS receiver, capable of delivering precise heading as well as centimeter-level position accuracy in the most challenging GNSS conditions. It provides attitude, heading, heave as well as navigation outputs. Ellipse-D is an ideal choice for magnetic denied applications and can operate in all dynamic conditions with optimal performance. It features 0.05° Roll and Pitch (RTK), Post-processing with Qinertia PPK Software. The Ellipse-D is equipped with state-of-the-art MEMS sensors, especially very low noise gyroscopes. The Ellipse-D enables a 9-axis IMU sensor, a dual-antenna RTK GNSS module offering one-centimeter accuracy, with a 64-bit microprocessor for processing data. The Ellipse-D is also equipped with high-quality accelerometers with Internal FIR filters coupled with Coning & Sculling integrals to provide efficient vibration rejection. Additional features includes a temperature sensor, pressure sensor, and odometer input.

The Ellipse-D inertial navigation sensor specifications include:

SoC – Unknown 64-bit microprocessor for data processing
GNSS – Dual antenna GNSS with support for GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BEIDOU; Supported features: SBAS, RTK, RAW
Sensors – 3-axis gyroscope, 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis magnetometer, temperature sensors, pressure sensor
Host Interface:
RS-232, RS-422, USB up to 921,600 bps
CAN 2.0A/B up to 1 Mbit/s
Protocols – Binary eCom, NMEA, ASCII, TSS
Input Voltage – 5 – 36 V
Power Consumption – < 1,000 mW
Dimensions & Weight:
Box: 46 x 45 x 32 mm | 65 grams
OEM: 29.5 x 25.5 x 16 mm | 17 grams

Application of the SBG Systems Ellipse-D inertial navigation system includes UAV navigation, USV, Antenna tracking and SAT OTM, UGV, Instrument Buoy, Gimbaled Camera, etc. The Ellipse-D is a go-to product because it offers access to technical support by phone and email, unlimited free firmware updates, Ellipse sensors are not restricted to export and ITAR free, and Ellipse are warranted for 2 years. This warranty can be extended up to 5 years. For the INS models (E, N, D), the internal Extended Kalman Filter fuses in real-time inertial and GPS data for enhanced position and orientation measurements in harsh environments (urban canyons, tunnels, etc.)

Ellipse INS enables features that allow you to connect to a PC via Qinertia program. The Qinertia improves your navigation data, it also helps to access further analysis, and helps to fix some outages in your trajectory Qinertia PRO gives access to post-processing to all SBG sensors, in all applications/environments. It is compatible with industry-standard GNSS receivers. Native support of Septentrio, Novatel & Trimble. It has a modern & Intuitive Interface, easy-to-use step by step project creation wizard, and advanced quality & feedback indicators. Area of application includes Marine, Airborne, and Land. Qinertia gives access to offline RTK corrections from more than 7,000 base stations located in 164 countries – and it is always up-to-date. It supports Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. The Ellipse-D is available in either Box or OEM versions. More details can be found on SBG Systems Ellipse-series product page.

Simple fixture determines leakage of capacitors and semiconductor switches

Posted on 2 July, 202029 September, 2020 by mixos

The circuit in Figure 1a comprises a voltage follower, IC₁ , and the reference-voltage source of IC₂. IC₁ is an Analog Devices AD8661 op amp, which has a guaranteed input-bias current of no more than 1 pA and a typical input-bias current of 0.3 pA (Reference 1), and IC₂ is an Analog Devices ADR391 precision voltage reference (Reference 2). The manufacturer trims the input offset voltage of this op amp not to exceed 100 µV, and the typical value is 30 µV. These properties suit this amplifier for observing self-discharging of almost any type of capacitor. The leakage currents of solid-tantalum capacitors and those having high-quality plastic dielectrics are well above the input-bias current of voltage follower IC₁. The CUT (capacitor under test) initially charges to the reference-voltage level of 2.5V by connecting Point A to the output of IC₂. Subsequently, at some convenient time, Point A disconnects from the source of the reference voltage. A DVM (digital voltmeter) measures the output voltage of the follower at some reasonable time.

Simple fixture determines leakage of capacitors and semiconductor switches – [Link]

Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC based FZ3 Card for Deep Learning

Posted on 2 July, 2020 by mixos

MYIR introduces a powerful FZ3 Card for deep learning. Built around the Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ ZU3EG MPSoC, with Computing Power up to 1.2TOPS and MobileNet up to 100FPS, the FZ3 Card is an ideal machine learning hardware for developers to develop, validate or just directly integrate it into their end artificial intelligence (AI) products, thus accelerating their AI applications.

The FZ3 Card (with the installed radiator) has the size of 100mm by 70mm, integrated with 4GB DDR4, 8GB eMMC, 32MB QSPI Flash and 32KB EEPROM, many peripherals are routed out on board including USB 2.0, USB 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet, TF, DisplayPort (DP), PCIe interface, MIPI-CSI, BT1120 camera, USB-UART, JTAG, IO expansion interfaces.

The Card is also provided with rich software resources, it’s able to run PetaLinux 2019.1, and fully compatible to use Baidu Brain’s AI development tools like EasyDL, AI Studio and EasyEdge, which makes it much easier for developers to quickly leverage Baidu-proven technology or deploy self-defined models, enabling faster deployment. Typical applications of the FZ3 Card are AI camera, AI computing device, robotics, intelligent car, intelligent electronic scale, patrol UAV and other embedded intelligent applications.

MYIR provides FZ3 Kit as a whole development kit, it contains the FZ3 Card and some necessary accessories including one 12V/2A power adaptor, one 16GB TF card, one mini USB cable and one mini DP to HDMI cable. The FZ3 Kit is priced at only $259/unit.

More information about the new products can be found at http://www.myirtech.com/list.asp?id=630

Littelfuse Adds 105ºC Rated, 800V Solid State Relay to Product Line

Posted on 1 July, 20201 July, 2020 by mixos

Littelfuse, Inc. a global manufacturer of leading technologies in circuit protection, power control, and sensing, announced the PLA172P OptoMOS® Relay, an 800 V normally-open single-pole 6-pin solid-state relay (SSR). It is the first solid-state relay in the Littelfuse product portfolio that comes with guaranteed electrical parameters at 105 °C ambient operating temperature.

“The PLA172P is an extension to our OptoMOS solid-state relay product line, offering our highest voltage rating (800V) in a surface mount SSR Flatpack package,” said Steve Andrezyk, Global Product Manager at Littelfuse. “It also has our highest temperature range in a solid-state relay, extending our operational temperature range from 85 ºC up to 105 ºC, enabling hardware engineers to precisely design their circuits at very challenging temperatures.”

This combination of high voltage rating, high-temperature range, and surface-mountable packaging is recommended for applications including:

Industrial
Instrumentation
Medical
Isolation Test Equipment
Battery Isolation Monitors
Industrial Solar Field Isolation Monitor

The PLA172P OptoMOS relay includes these key benefits:

Replaces electro-mechanical relays (EMRs) that are bulky and prone to failing drop tests
Unique device pinout provides more than 6.8 mm of pad-to-pad separation between the high voltage output pins preventing arcing
5000 V_RMS input-to-output isolation
5 mA low input control current over operating temperature range

Application – Isolation Current Monitor

Isolation current monitor circuits for higher voltage systems >400 V require high blocking voltage, low off-state leakage current relays with high input-to-output isolation rating to prevent potential lethal current conduction to the system chassis. The PLA172P relay’s 800 V load voltage rating with 100 mA load current capability provides additional design margin compared to the more common 600 V rated SSRs, particularly on noisy AC power line applications and high voltage battery applications. The 105 °C specifications including the low 5 µA maximum off-state leakage current rating in conjunction with the low on-resistance, making it the ideal choice for high precision isolation current monitor applications.

Availability

PLA172P OptoMOS relays are available in tape and reel format in quantities of 1,000 as well as 50 per tube. Sample requests may be placed through authorized Littelfuse distributors worldwide. For a listing of Littelfuse distributors, please visit Littelfuse.com.

View Product Page

Download Datasheet

Advantech Launches Edge Network Appliance Designed Ready for 5G & Wi-Fi 6

Posted on 1 July, 20201 July, 2020 by mixos

Advantech a global leader in IoT, today announced its new FWA-1112VC network appliance which introduces a series of innovative features to its widely adopted range of entry and mid-level white boxes for software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) and universal Customer Premises Equipment (uCPE). Major upgrades include extended connectivity choice, with dual 10GbE SFP+ and PoE+ support, in addition to a future-proof design ready to adopt coming 5G and Wi-Fi 6 technologies. The FWA-1112VC is a fanless and compact platform that fits working environments where noise levels need to be kept down. It also supports wide operating temperature range to meet edge deployment needs, extending uCPE use cases from enterprise to smart city and industrial IoT.

The new Advantech FWA-1112VC white-box appliance is based on Intel Atom® processor and has been cost optimized to run SD-WAN and network security workflows. It provides flexible WAN connectivity options including 5G, 4G/LTE, Wi-Fi 5, Wi-Fi 6 and 10 GbE SFP+ configurations. Encryption and compression acceleration are supported using Intel® QuickAssist with DPDK providing the technology needed to accelerate packet handling without consuming additional resources. Additional features include PoE+, eMMC and dual 4G/LTE support and improved surge protection. Its fanless design allows for wide operating temperature ranges from -20 ⁰C up to +70 ⁰C to meet harsh environments requirements at the edge.

Fanless and compact with wide operating temperature range extends SD‑WAN and uCPE use cases to Smart City and Industrial IoT
The new cost-optimized FWA-1112VC also features 10GbE SFP+ connectivity to meet increasing WAN speed demands
The platform has been validated by leading uCPE and service provider partners ADVA and Combridge, member of Deutsche Telekom Group

The FWA-1112VC has been validated by leading partners including ADVA and Combridge. ADVA Ensemble Connector is a virtualization platform that enables agile, automated delivery of multi-vendor software services. Combined with the new FWA-1112VC hardened appliance, it provides an open edge platform that gives service providers access to a wide variety of uCPE use cases including recent ADVA-Advantech joint smart city blueprint. Combridge, member of the Deutsche Telekom Group, offers data and internet services to business partners. By integrating the new FWA-1112VC as part of their portfolio, they are able to target new application areas at the edge and be prepared to bring the benefits of 5G and Wi-Fi 6 technologies to their customer base.

“For over 20 years, Advantech has been providing innovative networking platforms trusted by top equipment manufacturers and service providers to transform global networks,” said Sandy Chen, Head of Network Appliances & Hyper Converged Network Servers, Cloud IoT Group, Advantech. “The FWA-1112VC is another step forward in our pioneering white-box uCPE offering that extends the cloud to the edge supporting fully disaggregated network models that allow service providers and enterprises to drive innovation in the 5G and IoT era.”

“The uCPE market is rapidly expanding to include additional application such as IoT and 5G,” commented James Buchanan, Senior Vice President and General Manager Edge Cloud at ADVA. “The new Advantech FWA-1112VC supports that evolution with its enhanced support for wireless technologies and extended temperature range. It will be a welcome addition for those looking to expand the deployment of virtualized applications.”

“We already use Advantech’s existing portfolio in our custom tailored solutions, enabling us to deliver highly customised, yet cost-efficient solutions to the market,” said Endre Magyari, Business Development Director at Combridge. “I am very confident, that this new tiny yet powerful device Advantech FWA-1112VC will further enhance our capabilities and competitiveness in the SD-WAN market, considering its advanced 5G and Wi-Fi 6 technologies and size/cost efficiency.”

The FWA-1112VC is available for evaluation and will be available for customer shipping in September 2020.

Detailed product information: https://www.advantech.com/

Calculate Size of Solar Panel, Battery Bank and Inverter (MS Excel Spreadsheet)

Posted on 1 July, 202030 November, 2020 by mixos

Design of solar panel/battery bank and inverter using this Excel Sheet.

This MS Excel spreadsheet calculates the following:

Total Demand Load
Size of Solar Panel
Select Type of Connection of Solar Panel
Select Rating of Each Solar Panel
Energy from Solar Panel as per Daily Sun lights
Size Battery Bank
Select Type of connection of Batteries in Battery Bank
Size of Inverter

Calculate Size of Solar Panel, Battery Bank and Inverter (MS Excel Spreadsheet) – [XLS]

How Miromico Designed the Industry’s Smallest LoRaWAN Module for the IoT

Posted on 1 July, 2020 by mixos

Miromico develops innovative IoT solutions in volume using state-of-the-art wireless technologies, including LoRaWAN, Sigfox, and NB-IoT. The Zurich, Switzerland-based company also provides design services in the areas of ICs, electronic systems, and software. By:Christine Young

The company is disrupting the design of sensors by tapping into novel wireless communications technologies. In doing so, Miromico is producing low-cost, battery-powered sensors that operate for more than 10 years. To facilitate fast prototyping and development for its customers, its designs are based on standard Miromico modules that can be used out of the box. Using these modules, designers can bring wireless connectivity to a variety of products.

While many of the company’s LoRaWAN modules are based on chipsets that are large and do not provide security, IoT applications demand the opposite. “In LoRaWAN, our clients want to have access to novel and highly integrated technologies. We needed for the extension of our LoRaWAN module family a microcontroller that is small, offers security, and is cost competitive. At the same time, we also wanted to have a strong partner with competence in security,” explained Dr. Schekeb Fateh, who works in business development at Miromico.

The company found its microcontroller solution in the MAX32625/MAX32626 microcontrollers from Maxim’s family of ultra-low-power microcontrollers, which are ideal for IoT applications and wearables. The FMLR-6x-x-MA62x, which measures just 8.6mm x 9.3mm, is the world’s smallest LoRaWAN module. It can send with up to 20dBm and receive with a sensitivity of -137dBm and offers security on the node. Designers can place the module in a high-density urban or long-range rural environment and connect to a large variety of sensors via LoRaWAN.

The MAX32625 and MAX32626 are Arm^® Cortex^®-M4 devices with floating-point unit, providing 512KB flash, 160KB SRAM, flexible power modes, an intelligent PMU, and dynamic clock and power gating to help optimize performance and power consumption. For designs that require always-on monitoring, the microcontrollers have internal oscillators that run at 4MHz for maximum battery life (they can also run at 96MHz for high performance). To meet security needs, the devices have a trust protection unit (TPU) that provides ECDSA and modular arithmetic acceleration support, a true random number generator, and a secure boot loader.

Miromico was able to move from idea to mass production of its LoRaWAN module in less than six months. The company also met its power, form factor, and security targets using the MAX32625 and MAX32626.

Designers who are ready to evaluate LoRaWAN technology can take advantage of the Maxim DARWIN LoRaWAN Starter Kit. The kit includes a customizable IoT button as an example for an end device, a development board with a Maxim FMLR module for fast prototyping, and a Tabs hub LoRaWAN gateway for connectivity with a backend and application server provided by the Swiss partner company, InstaSolution.

This blog post was adapted from the Miromico customer testimonial. Read the testimonial to learn more about the Miromico story. [via]

HiSilicon & Nowi Introduce Energy Autonomous NB-IoT Platform: a Power-free Solution in the Smallest Size Possible

Posted on 1 July, 20201 July, 2020 by mixos

HiSilicon and Nowi’s continued collaboration has led to a 2nd generation Energy Autonomous NB-IoT platform optimised for ease-of-use and form factor. New Internet of Things applications are now possible, where physical size is limited and ‘Plug & Forget’ indefinite operation is required.

HiSilicon (Shanghai) Ltd and Nowi Energy B.V. today showcased the 2nd generation of their Energy Autonomous NB-IoT platform. The device acts as a sensor hub that can transmit via NB-IoT while operating indefinitely through its energy harvesting capabilities. It is based on HiSilicon’s Hi2115 NB-IoT solution and Nowi’s leading NH2 energy harvesting power management IC. The solution removes the need for manual intervention (changing batteries) or cabling to supply power in applications that become zero maintenance.

Building upon the success of the 2019 collaboration (link), HiSilicon and Nowi have optimized the design to resolve customers’ challenges and satisfy new, stricter market requirements to broaden the variety of applications addressed. The platform combines connectivity and energy harvesting in the smallest size possible and offers an open slot on which various sensors can be placed depending on the application need. As such the platform can act as the backbone of countless connected sensor solutions.

HiSilicon and Nowi are offering the reference design and the corresponding schematics for others to build their solutions upon.

Charles Sturman, Senior Director Product Marketing at HiSilicon said

“Many IoT applications require super long deployment lifecycles and direct power connectivity is often not possible. As such, energy autonomy is becoming an important factor. Our collaboration with Nowi addresses these demands as their next-generation NH2 device reaches efficiency and size targets which are changing the rule-book on Energy Harvesting. At HiSilicon, we aim towards a fully connected, intelligent world and such partnerships are crucial to achieve this vision. “

The Energy Autonomous NB-IoT V2 Platform solves multiple challenges:

Provides a ‘Plug & Forget’ solution capable of multiple transmissions per day indefinitely
Offers a platform that can be tailored to fit many sensor applications with minimal effort
Enables applications that were previously unable to use NB-IoT with energy harvesting due to size constraints
Enables both indoor and outdoor applications

Simon van der Jagt, CEO Nowi said

“From industrial IoT to Smart Home applications we see a strong need for ease-of-use, reduction in device maintenance and small form factor solutions. As such, integrated energy harvesting solutions are playing a key role in the future of connectivity. Nowi’s energy harvesting power management technology uniquely offers these advantages owing to its extremely small PCB assembly footprint, top energy harvesting performance and ease of implementation. We are excited to team up with HiSilicon and help customers on their way by offering the schematics of this new reference design platform. Nowi’s NH2 PMIC is becoming available in Q4 of 2020 for high volume customers.”

The 2nd generation Energy Autonomous NB-IoT board has a significantly decreased PCB size and bill of materials. This powerful new design enables new IoT applications that require continuous operation and have fundamental constraints in form factor.

Technical Specifications:

3 Transmissions per day in indoor conditions*
6 Transmissions per day in outdoor conditions*
Can operate with a range of photovoltaic (multiple) cells
Dimensions: 5.5cm x 3.5cm

* Depending on the size of PV