Tianma Europe’s TM033XDHG01 display module has been designed for use in applications such as thermometers, manometers where analogue displays are traditionally used.
With its high display brightness of 600 cd/m 2, a contrast ratio of 1:800 and a large colour space of 16.7 million colours, the TM033XDHG01 is well suited for outdoor use. The wide viewing angle of up to 80 degrees allows reading from almost any perspective. A built-in display controller with a MIPI-DSI interface enables customer-specific configurations with other interfaces. On request, the display module can also be equipped with a round PCAP controller to support gesture control. The 8.4cm wide octagonal frame simplifies mechanical installation in the front panel of devices.
Main characteristics:
Diagonal : 3.3”
Resolution : 320 x 320
Wide viewing angle (u/d/l/r) : 60°/70°/70°/70°
Luminance : 750 cd/m2
Backlight lifetime : 20 kh
more information on Tianma Europe GmbH – www.tianma.eu
A new milestone is hit by Congatec, as they recently announced Type 7 modules. Congatec has struggled hard to take Linux friendliness to the very next level and to make server response to quickest possible till date. To do that, two Type 7 modules are introduced to the market which provide support of up to 96GB DDR4 and designed for converged edge servers in aircraft.
Conga-B7XD
The two modules introduced are:
Conga-B7XD – Intel Xeon D and Pentium D based Conga-B7XD
Congatec has not competed for COM express in the past. But the game is interesting now, as they got themselves prepare for the race. That’s good for inventions. To cope up with the market, they also introduced a Windows supported version of type 7 module, in addition to the Linux. These are specially designed to run in aircraft computers, to make them extra efficient.
Conga-B7XD & Conga-B7AC COMs
Conga-B7XD
Conga-B7XD board is the first one we will take a look and uses a Xeon D 15xx based core. While, Conga-B7AC, the second one is an Atom C3xxx based. It has an inbuilt memory of DDR4 type, ranging up to 96 GB DDR4 SODIMMs which are available via 3x 32GB-ready sockets. The 12 virtual machines on the system now can use 8GB RAM on each partition.
These new set of modules will excel in applications like augmented reality, airborne platforms for connected aircraft, passenger infotainment, Big Data applications, video surveillance, cloud-based flight data recordings, AI-based virtual assistants for improving pilot productivity and efficiency, and similar because of their demand for higher performance and memory, which is something the new Congatec easily cater for.
Due to its use in highly sophisticated devices, like the cockpit and streaming devices, their durability for temperature ranges and vibrations have builtin. Temperature range is matched from 0 to 60°C or an industrial -40 to 85°C, depending on the processor type. While hard sort of vibration and shockproof material is used, all of this together makes it a powerful device to have.
The modules can be integrated with Intel chips ranging from 4x up to 16x core. Xeon system based module supports the 2.1 GHz Xeon D1577 (Conga-B7XD) whereas, Atom provides 2.0 GHz Atom C3958 (Conga-B7AC) processor configuration. The 3x SODIMM sockets are available for both with an ECC or non-EEC DDR4 2400 MT/s RAM ranging up to 48GB for the Conga-B7XD and 96GB for the Conga-B7AC.
Specifications available for the devices:
Dimension: 125 x 90 mm
Shock and vibration resistant.
Temperature range extended.
4x to 16x core configuration available.
2.1 GHz and 2.0 GHz processor configuration available in Xeon and Atom respectively.
DDR4 up to 96 GB system memory.
Dual Sata III storage interface.
Conga-B7XD provides a single Intel I210A GbE controller.
The Conga-B7AC lacks a GbE controller but supports 4x 10GbE with KR.
Conga-B7XD enables 24x PCIe Gen 3 and 8x PCIe 2.0 lanes.
Conga-B7AC gives you 12x and 8x PCIe interfaces
4x USB 2.0 & 4x USB 3.0 (4 available on Conga-B7XD, 2 available on the Conga-B7AC)
Server support included for Linux, Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora 22, Yocto, Kernel, and windows as well.
Conga-X7EVAL carrier board
Conga-X7EVAL carrier board
In order to support quick prototyping and developing, Congatec is providing a new Type 7 carrier board called the Conga-X7EVAL that can be used for the Type 7 Modules. It extends out the features of the module with ports like GbE port, PCIe Gen 3 lanes, 4x USB 2.0 & 3.0, and others. The 294 x 244mm carrier board is available in a commercial temperature range model.
Conga-B7XD and Conga-B7AC modules, like any other Congatec module, are available in a variety of configuration options. You can customize it according to your needs and get one. It will align your device with the topmost systems of the technology world. More information may be found on the Conga-B7XD, Conga-B7AC, and Conga-X7EVAL product pages.
The Arduino IDE is a great programming tool, it is simple to use and it contains probably all resources one will need to build a project, but evaluating it as a code editor, it is a not the perfect tool. It lacks programming aiding features like IntelliSense, code suggestions, auto-complete, auto-correct, and debug tools, which make the development of projects with a large codebase, easy and endears developers to use code editors like Visual Studio Code and Atom. The above reason coupled with the large user base of most of these editors led to the development of plugins/extensions that enabled the use of some of them for development code for Arduino and other compatible boards.
Programming Arduino on Visual Studio Code Editor with Platform.io or Arduino extension – [Link]
iBASE Technology Inc, a leader in the manufacture of industrial motherboards and embedded systems, is proud to announce the highly integrated IBQ800 low-power CPU module powered by an Intel® Atom™ x7-E3950 @2.0GHz or x5-E3930 @1.8GHz processor. Designed to operate at extended temperatures ranging from -40°C to +85°C, the IBQ800 is suitable for use in industrial environments and vertical market segments including automation, gaming, ATM, transportation, power utility and digital signage.
Built in the Qseven compact module footprint, the IBQ800 offers impressive performance and supports the necessary components and bus interfaces required for the targeted industrial, mobile, and embedded applications. It can be equipped with 8GB or 4GB of LPDDR4 memory and up to 32GB eMMC 5.0 SSD storage on board. The IBQ800 features an Intel® SoC integrated Gen9-LP graphics controller and comes with LVDS or eDP display interface.
In creating the IBQ800, we have kept in mind the needs of embedded system designers for computing performance and rich I/O capabilities in a minimal footprint, as well as long-life availability,” said Wilson Lin, Director of IBASE Product Planning Department. “With dimensions of 70mm by 70mm, it utilizes the established ruggedized MXM connector to interface to the carrier board and route all the I/O signals, including one Gigabit LAN, three USB 3.0, four USB 2.0, HD audio, one COM and two SATA III.
IBQ800 FEATURES
Onboard Intel® Atom™ x5-E3930 @1.8GHz or x7-E3950 @2.0GHz [i-Temp support]
Onboard LPDDR4 memory
1x Intel I210IT PCI-E Gigabit LAN
Supports TPM (2.0), eMMC5.0 (Optional)
Wide-range operating temperature
The IBQ800 Qseven CPU module and the IP416 Qseven carrier board are now available. For more information, please contact an IBASE sales representative, or visit www.ibase.com.tw
NXP’s MCU-based solution for Amazon’s Alexa Voice Service (AVS) leverages the i.MX RT crossover processor, enabling developers to quickly and easily add Alexa voice assistant capabilities to their products. This ultra-small form-factor, turnkey hardware design comes completely integrated with Amazon qualified software for an out of the box AVS experience.
NXP’s production-ready solution is a time-and-cost-effective way for OEMs to build Alexa into their products. It’s fantastic to see NXP create another solution that simplifies the integration process and enables device makers to bring Alexa built-in products to market even faster. — Priya Abani, AVS Director
In terms of hardware, the i.MX RT 106A Crossover MCU features an Arm Cortex-M7 processor (1Mb of SRAM, 32K I-cache/D-cache, FPU) which supports the microphone (supports 3X MEMS microphones, 2X external digital microphones) and processing , a TFA9894D Class-D Amplifier, 8-/16-bit Parallel Camera Interface, Bluetooth/BLE 4.1, and an (optional) A71CH secure element to handle end-to-end security. The board also sports a secure interface JTAG, PLL OSC, eDMA, 4x Watch Dog, 6x GP Timer, 4x Quadrature ENC, 4x QuadTimer, 4x FlexPWM, and IOMUX.
The i.MX RT106A is a solution-specific member of the i.MX RT1060 family of crossover processors, targeting cloud-based embedded voice applications. It features NXP’s advanced implementation of the Arm® Cortex®-M7 core, which operates at speeds up to 600 MHz to provide high CPU performance and best real-time response. i.MX RT106A-based solution enables system designers to easily and inexpensively add voice control capabilities to a wide variety of smart appliances, smart home, smart retail, and smart industry devices.
More information can be found on NXP’s i.MX RT 106A MCU product page.
The Arduino IDE is a great programming tool, it is simple to use and it contains probably all resources one will need to build a project, but evaluating it as a code editor, it is a not the perfect tool. It lacks programming aiding features like IntelliSense, code suggestions, auto-complete, auto-correct, and debug tools, which make the development of projects with a large codebase, easy and endears developers to use code editors like Visual Studio Code and Atom. The above reason coupled with the large user base of most of these editors led to the development of plugins/extensions that enabled the use of some of them for development code for Arduino and other compatible boards.
Programming Arduino with Platform.io or Arduino extension for Visual Studio Code
For this tutorial, we will take a look, how these extensions can be used to program Arduino. Quite a number of editors exist and different variation of extensions have been developed but for today’s tutorial, we will focus on Visual Studio Code (VScode) as our code editor and explore it’s use with the Platform.io and Arduino extensions.
At the end of today’s tutorial, you will know how to develop code for the Arduino and similar/compatible boards using the Arduino and Platform.io extensions on VScode.
Required components
We will use the Arduino blink example for demonstration of today’s tutorial, thus you will only need the target boards.
Arduino Uno (or any other board of the family)
NodeMCU
Any versions/variations of these boards are fine, as long as they work well when you program them using the Arduino IDE. In addition to the components mentioned above, you will need the latest VScode setup. Follow this link to download the setup file and install it on your computer. Ensure you select the “add files to path” option during installation. After installation, restart your computer to allow the installation to settle in.
With this done, we are now ready to use the extensions.
The Arduino Extension
The Arduino IDE for VScode (Visual Studio Code) was one of the earliest extension developed. There is a version of the extension developed by the community while there is another version developed by Microsoft. Any of these extensions can be used. For this tutorial, we will use the Microsoft version of the Arduino extension.
Features and Functionality
The Visual Studio Code Arduino extension retains the ease of use that comes with the Arduino IDE but also provides access to the superb features embedded in the visual studio code which makes coding and debugging a lot easier. Some of the features and functionalities as stated on the extension description, include:
intelliSense and syntax highlighting for Arduino sketches
Verify and upload your sketches in Visual Studio Code
Built-in board and library manager
Built-in example list
Built-in serial monitor
Snippets for sketches
Automatic Arduino project scaffolding
Command Palette (F1) integration of frequently used commands (e.g. Verify, Upload…)
Integrated Arduino Debugging New
Requirements
The only requirement is to have the Arduino IDE installed from arduino.cc. The extension requires the IDE version to be version 1.6.x and up. However, do your best to avoid the version 1.8.7 as it has issues that prevent library and boards installation/updates.
Installation
The Arduino extension can be installed from the extensions market place or via the command line within VScode.
To install from the market place, launch the VScode editor. You should see a welcome page (shown below) -> click on the extension icon (highlighted in the image below) to access the market place.
Enter Arduino into the search bar and select the one that says developed by Microsoft. Click on the install button as shown below and re-launch VScode after installation completes.
Installing the Arduino Extension
After re-launch, the Arduino extension should be visible under your enabled extensions. With the installations done, we can now proceed to run an example with Arduino.
Example
Press the F1 function key to open the command line on VScode. Once the command line becomes visible, type in Arduino. It should show you a list of commands applicable to the Arduino as shown below.
With these commands you can install new Arduino libraries, install new boards, select target board for code upload, select a programmer and pretty much everything you can do with the Arduino IDE or even more. As mentioned earlier, we will use the Arduino blink example as a demonstration. To start with, press F1 and select the “Arduino: Examples” option. Navigate and select the blink example.
Load the Blink Example
This will open the folder containing the sketch under the explorer pane in a new window. Select the .ino file if you wish to make any changes to the code.
Edit the code
Ready to upload the code?
Just like when working with the Arduino IDE, press the F1 function button and select the “Arduino: Board configuration” option to set the target board which in our case, is the Arduino Uno.
At this point, connect your Arduino board and select the “Arduino:select serial port” option after pressing F1. It will bring up a list of all devices connected to the serial port. Select the one to which your Arduino is connected.
Select COM Port
Next, select the programmer by clicking on the “Arduino: Select programmer” option from the function menu. Choose any that you want.
Select Programmer
With this done, we are now ready to upload the code. If you made any change to it and you would like to verify code before uploading you can use the “Arduino: Verify” option after pressing F1. If the code is satisfactory and you are ready to upload, press F1 and click the “Arduino: upload function”.
If you follow all the steps carefully, the process should be easy and the code should upload successful as shown below.
Upload Successful
The Platform.io Extension
Platform.io is an open-source platform developed to facilitate the deployment of IoT solutions. It allows the easy integration of IoT specific features like remote firmware update and testing. The platform supports several boards from Arduino, Espressif and their variations to TI’s MSP430, Tiva and others. It also supports frameworks like the Arduino, Energia for TI boards, and Mbed, effectively making it one of the most comprehensive cross-platform development tool for IoT.
Platform.io Features
Some of the outstanding features of platform.io according to their website include:
Cross-platform build system without external dependencies to the OS software: 550+ embedded boards, 30+ development platforms, 15+ frameworks
Just like we did with the Arduino extension for VScode, we will take a look on how the platformio.org extension for VScode can be used for programming Arduino boards.
Installation
Just like the Arduino extension, the platform.io extension for visual studio code can also be installed via extension market place.
Click on the extensions/package manager icon, when it opens, enter “platformIO IDE” into the search bar and click on the install button as shown below. After installation, reload VScode to allow installation to take effect.
Putting it to Use
Once the reload is complete, a platform.io icon will be visible on the sidebar and the platform.io toolbar will be added to the status bar of VScode. The toolbar contains buttons for popular commands. This makes it easy to quick build, upload, or perform any of the commands without much navigation.
As mentioned earlier, we will use the blink example here too. To create a new project, click on the platform.io home icon and select the “New Project” button. A window similar to the one shown below should open up.
Select Platform and Board type
This window will allow you to select the board, the framework and other things to set up the IDE for use with your target board. Since we will use the Arduino Uno, we select it as the board type and the Arduino IDE as the platform. If this were to be the NodeMCU, you will need to select the nodemcu as the board type and the Arduino or the ESPressif 8266 as the framework.
With the setup done, a new project folder is created. Open the main.cpp file under the src folder to write the code for your project.
Since we are using the blink example, you can copy and paste the code below into the code editor.
/**
* Blink
*
* Turns on an LED on for one second,
* then off for one second, repeatedly.
*/
#include "Arduino.h"
// Set LED_BUILTIN if it is not defined by Arduino framework
// #define LED_BUILTIN 13
void setup()
{
// initialize LED digital pin as an output.
pinMode(LED_BUILTIN, OUTPUT);
}
void loop()
{
// turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, HIGH);
// wait for a second
delay(1000);
// turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW);
// wait for a second
delay(1000);
}
With this done, use the “Build button” on the toolbar to build your code and the “Upload button” to upload it to the target Arduino board. If the installation was properly done, you should get the success remarks on the console window.
Conclusion
The two extensions we examined today are quite powerful. They can be used to develop code for all kind of boards that are compatible with the Arduino IDE and boards that are not Arduino compatible but are supported by the plaform.io IDE (when using their extension). These extensions provide a lot of flexibility and features that make the development of projects with a large code base easy, ensuring you don’t repeat lines via code suggestions and intellisense. They also ensure you keep all the files for a project in a single folder which makes it easy to manipulate and move things around. It might be handy for your next mega project.
Feel free to reach out via the comment section if you have any difficulty setting things up.
At the Embedded World Conference 2019, imec, a world-leading research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics and digital technologies, presents a silicon-based compact microchannel heat sink that enables high heat flux dissipation.
The imec heat sink assembled to a high performance chip for cooling the latter one achieves a low total thermal resistance of 0,34K/W to 0.28K/W at less than 2 W pump power. The advantages of using silicon (Si) technology for fabricating microchannels are reflected in the high quality and low cost of the final devices. Imec’s chip cooler may be the answer for the heat challenge that the new generation of power electronics and systems in a Package are faced with.
The downscaling of integrated chips and their packaging is a major trend in the electronics industry. However, with the resulting ever-increasing power density come detrimental heat effects that impact the reliability and performances of the devices. Liquid is more effective in removing that heat compared to air, because of its higher thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity. Silicon as a material is a relatively good heat conductor. The use of small, parallel, high-aspect-ratio silicon microchannel structures of 32µm wide and more than 260µm deep in imec’s chip cooler further increases the convective heat transfer surface area and the heat transfer coefficient, enabling high heat flux removal. This makes it possible to dissipate power of more than 600W/cm2 while keeping the component temperature below 100°C.
The key attribute of silicon is that it can realize high-aspect-ratio microstructures at low cost by leveraging massively parallel production processes and is directly integrable in the semiconductor infrastructure. In the current version, the Si-based microchannel heat sinks are fabricated separately and then interfaced to the back side of a heat-dissipating chip. Using an optimized Cu/Sn-Au interface, imec achieves a very low thermal contact resistance between both parts. Finally, since the fluidic performance and thermal behavior can be predicted with high degree of accuracy, imec’s microcooler can also be tailored according to external system constraints such as space and liquid supply.
“Imec’s microfluidic heat sink realized on a Si platform is a best-in-class technology demonstrating the lowest thermal resistance allowing a power dissipation of over 600W/cm2 in a very small form factor. It allows for an increase in heat flux by two orders of magnitude compared to classical metal heat sinks,” said Philippe Soussan Principal Member of the technical staff. “Imec is working towards developing a next generation of this chip cooling solution, directly integrating the heat sinks and the IC at wafer scale, aiming at an additional cost of one USD.”
As you’ll see the IMB-1215 still retains a lot of the main features of the “full spec” IMB-1213 but with minor modifications around power, for example, where the standard is single power input (19V DC in) versus the standard wider range power input (12V/19V ~ 28V) of the IMB-1213.
Although there’s still the selectable option to go for a wider power input of 19V ~ 28V on the IMB-1215, if you need it.
Additionally, there’s a PCIe x16 slot on the IMB-1215 which can be used for the choice of own graphics card or any other additional peripheral if you need this level of expansion.
The IMB-1215 is perfect for digital signage – even the manufacture of your own panel pc solution if you need to make your system more compact and slim-line!
Features
Socket LGA 1151 for Intel® Core i7/i5/i3/Celeron
Supports Dual Channel DDR4 SO DIMM 2400/2666, up to 32GB
Have you ever wondered owning a fully powered NAS (Network-Attached Storage) system, but the cost buying one has been holding you back, well, now this is past, and you can easily build a simple NAS platform for just a fraction of the cost.
The Nano Pi M4 launched by FriendlyElec back in 2018, was one the smallest, and most affordable Rockchip RK3399 based SBC, sharing similar layout as the Raspberry Pi 3 and it is generally better than the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ in terms of performance. It shares some identical features, as it supports 2 – 4 GB RAM, HDMI, 4 USB 3.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, 40pin GPIO port, and many others. One distinct feature of the Nano Pi M4 is the 2.54mm pitch header, which was used to expose the 2-lane PCIe interface of the Rockchip Processor.
NanoPi M4 SATA HAT Add-on
FriendlyElec has now launched a 4x SATA HAT for NanoPi M4 board that leverages on the 2.54mm pitch header on the NanoPi M4 board with PCIe 2x signals. The SATA HAT has four SATA ports which support three communication rates: 6 Gbps, 3 Gbps, and 1.5 Gbps. Its 4-Pin power connector includes a 12V and 5V outputs and they are also able to carry large currents.
The SATA HAT is the perfect add-on if you are considering designing your own NAS powered system, with it’s included 4x SATA ports you can connect an array of high-speed storage devices to it. With inbuilt LEDs, you can easily see the status of each SATA port.
NanoPi M4 SATA HAT
Specifications
PCIe to SATA Chipset – Marvell 88SE9215 four-port 6Gbps SATA I/O controller
USB – 2x 4-pin USB 2.0 host connectors
Expansion – NanoPi M4 40-pin header exposed
Misc
Power key, unpopulated power key jumper
Power LED, 4x SATA LEDs
Heat dissipation – 2x PCB nuts for mounting a heatsink on top of Marvell chipset; 2-pin header for a fan, PWM modulation for 12V output
Power Supply
12V DC input via power barrel jack or 4-pin header; 2A needed for one 3.5″ hard drive or four 2.5″ hard drives; 5A needed for four 3.5″ hard drives
4-pin power connector with 12V and 5V output
Dimensions – 65 x 56 mm
Weight – 33.48 grams
The same OS support provided for the NanoPi M4 board can easily be used with the M4 SATA HAT. OS support for this board includes Android 7.1.2 and three Ubuntu-based Linux distributions: Lubuntu 16.04, FriendlyCore 18.04 (Ubuntu Core), and FriendlyDesktop 18.04.
FirendlyElec ran iozone to show the performance with one 750GB Crucial MX300 SSD.
The PicoScope 9404-05 is the first of a new class of oscilloscopes that combine the benefits of real-time sampling, equivalent-time sampling and high analog bandwidth.
The PicoScope 9404-05 has four 5 GHz input channels with market-leading ADC, timing and display resolutions for accurately measuring and visualizing high-speed analog and data signals. It is ideal for capturing pulse and step transitions to 70 ps, impulses down to 140 ps and clocks and data eyes to 3 Gb/s. Most high-bandwidth applications involve repetitive signals or clock-related data streams that can be readily analyzed by equivalent-time sampling (ETS). The SXRTO is fast: it quickly builds ETS, persistence displays and statistics with up to 2 million triggered captures per second. The PicoScope 9404-05 has a built-in full-bandwidth trigger on every channel, with pretrigger ETS capture to well above the Nyquist sampling rate. There are three acquisition modes—real time, ETS and roll—all capturing at 12-bit resolution into a shared memory of 250 kS.
Features
5 GHz bandwidth, 70 ps transition time
1 TS/s (1 ps) equivalent-time sampling
Four 12-bit 500 MS/s ADCs
Pulse, eye and mask testing to 70 ps and 3 Gb/s
Up to 2 million triggered captures per second
Logical, configurable, touch-compatible Windows user interface
Comprehensive built-in measurements, zooms, data masks and histograms
The PicoSample 4 software is derived from our existing PicoSample 3 and PicoScope 9000 products, which together represent over ten years of development, customer feedback and optimization.
The high-resolution display can be resized to fit any window, filling 4k and even larger monitors or arrays of monitors. Four independent zoom channels can show you different views of your data down to a resolution of 1 ps. Most of the controls and status panels can be shown or hidden according to your application, allowing you to make optimal use of the display area.
The oscilloscope has a 2.5 GHz direct trigger that can be driven from any input channel, and a built-in prescaler can extend the trigger bandwidth to 5 GHz.
These compact units are small enough to place on your workbench close to the device under test. Now, instead of using remote probe heads attached to a large benchtop unit, all you need is a short, low-loss coaxial cable. Everything else you need is built into the oscilloscope, with no expensive hardware or software add-ons to worry about, and we don’t charge you for new software features and updates.
Typical applications
Telecom and radar test, service and manufacturing
Optical fiber, transceiver and laser testing (optical to electrical conversion not included)
RF, microwave and gigabit digital system measurements
Signal, eye, pulse and impulse characterization
Precision timing and phase analysis
Digital system design and characterization
Eye diagram, mask and limits test to 3 Gb/s
Ethernet, HDMI 1, PCI, SATA, USB 2.0
Semiconductor characterization
Signal, data and pulse/impulse integrity and pre-compliance testing
High-bandwidth probes
The PicoConnect 900 Series low-impedance, high-bandwidth probes are ideal companions for the PicoScope 9404-05, allowing cost-effective fingertip browsing of fast signals. Two series are available:
Gigabit probes for data streams such as USB 2, HDMI 1, Ethernet, PCIe and SATA
Overview Video
Other features
Bandwidth limit filters
A selectable analog bandwidth limiter (100 or 500 MHz) on each input channel can be used to reject high frequencies and associated noise. The narrow setting can be used as an anti-alias filter.
Frequency counter
A dedicated frequency counter shows signal frequency (or period) at all times, regardless of measurement and timebase settings, with a resolution of 1 ppm.