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COM-HPC — Next Generation Standard for Industrial Server Grade Computer-on-Modules

Posted on 2 November, 2020 by mixos

Advantech, a member of the PICMG COM-HPC subcommittee and the leading solution provider for A-IoT platforms and building blocks, announces COM-HPC. The new standard will be the technological platform for a series of high-performance Computer-on-Modules to be released by Advantech as an extension of its portfolio. They will be designed to meet the exacting requirements of next-generation IoT markets, where they have to handle and process with very high quantities of data.

This new standard was necessary as the existing standard COM Express Type 7, in place since 2016, is not able to handle the demands of new requirements, such as 5G-data communication. Upcoming applications will be the real time data synchronization and the processing of machinery in factory lines – or different locations – for industrial automation. Defense-systems, medical imaging applications and warehouses employing robots will also be typical use-cases for this high-performance module.

“PICMG Is excited about the pending completion of the COM-HPC specification. Advantech continues to be a leader in IoT intelligent systems and embedded platforms. Their commitment to the development of COM-HPC will lead to the rapid adoption of the forthcoming open specification.”

said by Jessica Isquith, PICMG President.

Advantech played an important role in defining the specifications for more than two years. The standard is scheduled for ratification at the end of 2020.

High Core Count and Memory Capacity Delivers Improved Performance

All five COM-HPC module standards (A ~ E) will utilize 800 pins via two new high-speed connectors with at least 4 x 100 pins each and 2 x 400-pin board -to-board connectors.

Besides other improvements, this allows an increased power input and optimized I/O expansion capabilities. The available board sizes enable the adoption of high-level processors. Larger model COM-HPC modules are compatible with 4 ~ 8 pcs long DIMM memory expansion sockets. Additionally, the module’s TDP supports 110W processors (in comparison: COM-Express only supports up to 65 Watts). COM-HPC accepts power inputs higher than 300W to deliver excellent performance with powerful devices. Size E features up to 1TB memory via 8x pcs long DIMM memory capacity. Size C offers 128GB via 4x pcs SODIMM (Figure 1).

Key Features will be:

Intel® Xeon® D 16Core/TDP 110W processor
Up to 512GB memory with 8pcs 288pin RDIMM/LRDIMM
Up to 45 lanes PCIe Gen. 3 (x16, x8, x4, x1), 4x ports USB 3.0, & 2x ports SATA III
Up to 4x ports 10GBASE-KR, and 1x port 1000BASE-T
Pinout: COM-HPC Server type
Dimensions: Size E 200 x 160 mm (0.65 x 0.52 in)

Advanced Data Transmission and I/O Expansion

COM-HPC supports higher bandwidths via innovative BGA-type board-to-board connectors. These solutions offer PCIe 4.0 and PCIe Gen 5 (32GT/s) support, and can be scaled up to 65 lanes. They feature ports for 4x USB 4.0 or USB 3.2 Gen. 2 x 2, up to 10GBASE-T and 8x ports 25GBASE-KR with sideband signals. COM-HPC also offers more low power I/O such as 12x GPIO, SPI, IPMB, I2C, and SMBus for intelligent system management.

Coming soon:

Advantech will release a COM-HPC evaluation kit called SOM-8990 and a carrier board called SOM-DB8900, in the fourth quarter of 2020. This will be a server pinout equipped with Intel Xeon® D processor.

For more information regarding COM-HPC or other Advantech products and services, please visit our website at http://bit.ly/Advantech_COM-HPC or contact your local sales support team under 00800-2426-8081 or embedded@advantech.eu. Learn more as well about Advantech’s local customization options under http://bit.ly/AdvantechDMS

ST to make cartridges for Covid-19 tests

Posted on 2 November, 2020 by mixos

STMicroelectronics is to manufacture cartridges for a multi-sample lab-on-a-chip test system developed by Alifax in Italy. By Nick Flaherty @ eenewseurope.com

The move extends ST’s manufacturing from packaging the microfluidics lab-on-a-chip device to making the whole cartridge, which measures 46.9mm x 21.9mm x 8.2mm, at its backend plant in Malta. Alifax then adds the chemical reagents for the Polymerase Chain Reactions (PCR) test. Other test cartridges are assembled in a cleanroom.

The cartridge can be used to detect many different types of pathogens, but the main focus is of course Covid-19, with test results in less than an hour. It can also handle multiple samples in a single cartridge, which is a key design feature to boost throughput.

The 300g desktop Molecular Mouse developed by Alifax is a small portable instrument that contains a broad range of ST components, including STM32 MCUs, sensors, amplifiers, and other devices. The cartridge has six reaction chambers, and for the Covid-19 test, Alifax is using two chambers per sample. Each chamber supports precise heating and cooling of the reagents and samples to amplify the target genetic material, if it is present. Alifax adds a fluorescent reagent to identify the key parts of a virus.

“One crucial lesson from the current global pandemic is the importance of rapid, cost-efficient point-of-care testing that allows immediate remote diagnosis, and then, if necessary, patient isolation,” said Alessandro Cremonesi, Chief Innovation Officer, STMicroelectronics. “ST has been investing in its Real-Time PCR platform convinced that innovative semiconductor-based diagnostic solutions can positively impact our lives.“

“Leveraging our high-volume semiconductor-manufacturing technology and long-term leadership in microfluidics, we’ve developed a rapidly customizable, highly flexible cartridge and instrumentation platform that delivers rapid and precise point-of-care diagnostic results, which Alifax has used to respond almost immediately to present pandemic and future diagnostic needs,” added Benedetto Vigna, President Analog MEMS, and Sensors Group, STMicroelectronics.

“Building on our passion for research and excellence in innovation, Alifax has established its strength in hematology and bacteriology for diagnostic purposes. By working closely with ST and combining its foundational microfluidic and other technology in the Molecular Mouse and our pathogen-specific assays, starting from a COVID-19 test, we’re ready to contribute to rapidly diagnosing, isolating, and ultimately stopping the spread of pathogens,” said Paolo Galiano, President of Alifax.

Alifax had been developing 4-5 assay panels for sepsis, and one assay to detect Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya when the pandemic began and pivoted to develop the Covid-19 assays. The sepsis and Zika, Dengue, and Chikungunya assays will follow soon.

E522.48 – 16 channel automotive LED driver with bus interface

Posted on 2 November, 2020 by mixos

The E522.48 is a multi-channel PWM driver for e.g. light application. It provides 16 current sinks with integrated 10bit PWM generator for each channel. Each of the drivers can digitally be configured to drive up to 100mA with a selectable slew rate. The device supports I²C bus controlled operation to enable fast light animation sequences. For failsafe conditions the device provides internal non-volatile memory to store channel individual current and duty cycle information for highest flexibility. An advanced device power management feature allows LED channel bundling with automatic current balancing to external resistors resulting in reduced device power dissipation. Various diagnostic features, like LED open, short condition detection and temperature sensor, are provided to meet automotive requirements. To protect the device from thermal damage, the device implements a configurable LED supply and device temperature dependent automatic LED current derating.

Features

Fast I²C bus interface for dynamic LED control
Device and LED supply voltage range from 5V up to 40V
16 PWM generators with 10bit resolution
16 programmable LED drivers up to 100mA
LED driver current selection step size of 100µA
2 prioritized PWMIN interface pins
PWMIN interface with fallback data
Direct PWM input
10bit ADC for LED open, short and system diagnosis
Single lamp mode behaviour option
Advanced device power management by channel bundling option
Automatic supply and temperature dependent LED current derating
LED channel individual bin class brightness correction
Optional external LED bin class resistor evaluation
Developed according ISO26262 supporting applications up to ASIL B

more information: https://www.elmos.com/produkte/power-management-ics/led-driver-ic/e52280e52281e52282e52283.html

New UltraBK DC/DC Converters Feature Two-Stage Design

Posted on 2 November, 20202 November, 2020 by mixos

Fully Integrated DC/DC Converters from Murata Feature Patented Ultra-Compact, High-Efficiency Design

Leveraging a multi-patented design that significantly reduces the footprint and height of power-conversion circuitry, Murata has introduced the UltraBK™ family of compact, low-profile, fully-integrated DC/DC converters.

The UltraBK™ converters are aimed at space-constrained applications such as IT and network infrastructure equipment. In addition to unprecedented space savings, they deliver high energy efficiency, high reliability, outstanding low-noise performance, and fast transient response.

The converters achieve their extremely low height and compact footprint using an innovative two-stage design. This design combines a switched-capacitor charge pump followed by a smaller buck or boost converter with lower-voltage power MOSFETs and reduced output inductance compared to conventional designs. The capacitor network provides almost lossless conversion of the input voltage at any ratio, enabling overall operating efficiency as high as 90.5%. The output inductor is approximately 10 times smaller than for a comparable conventional circuit, allowing the entire converter to fit in a 10.5 mm x 9.0 mm LGA package only 2.1 mm high. Moreover, electromagnetic emission (EMI) is typically 20 dB lower.

“Conventional power converters can occupy 30-50% of circuit-board real estate and typically require large, tall inductors that pose layout challenges and can interfere with cooling airflow,” said Shuji Mikami, Power Modules Division, Low Power Products Department, Murata. “Our UltraBK™ family changes everything for designers, simplifying board design and thermal management while also raising power density and delivering excellent energy efficiency, transient performance, and low noise emission.”

Murata is launching the UltraBK™ family by introducing four buck converters that provide a choice of 4 A and 6 A output ratings and the option of a built-in I2C port to allow digital configuration and control. The converters have a wide input voltage range of 6.0 V to 14.4 V, with programmable output voltage from 0.7 V to 1.8 V.

The 4A MYTNA1R84RELA2RA and 6A MYTNA1R86RELA2RA, and similar MYTNC1R84RELA2RA and MYTNC1R86RELA2RA with I2C control, are now available from Murata’s distributors.

Brushed DC Motor Controller Using Infra-Red Remote

Posted on 2 November, 2020 by mixos

This project enables the user to control a Brushed DC Motor using an Infra-Red Remote Control, thus controlling speed, direction, and also brake of DC Motor is possible. It’s an Arduino compatible open-source hardware that helps you develop many DC Motor control applications. The user has to write the code as per the application requirement. The project is based on three main parts, Atmega328 microcontroller, LMD18201 DC Motor H-bridge, and TSOP1838 Infra-red receiver. This board can control DC motor up to 48V DC with continuous current up to 3A and with peak current 6A.

Example Arduino code is available under Downloads below. This code will help you to control the speed of the motor in 4 steps up/down using an infra-red remote control with help of two switches.

Brushed DC Motor Controller Using Infra-Red Remote – [Link]

MIT CSAIL’s SwingBot learns the physical properties of an object to swing it into nearly any desired pose

Posted on 2 November, 20202 November, 2020 by Emmanuel Odunlade

Being a human is far easier than being an artificial machine. The things we take for granted sometimes are some of the toughest tasks to give robots. Take, for instance, something as simple and mundane as handling objects of different sizes and weights. We as humans really do not care about how we are able to carry objects and swing them in almost any directions, we just know that it’s something we can do even without thinking, probably because in our fingertips lies other information that goes beyond size and weight, like texture, friction, shape etc.

This however is not an easy task for robots because before a robot can swing any object, it has to first learn about the object’s friction and center of mass. Getting them to handle a single object might even be easy, but handling and swinging different objects of multiple sizes and weights are an entirely complex task.

A team from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL) have developed a robotic arm that can use a pair of grippers to pick up objects, estimate its size and weight, and swing it into nearly any desired pose.

“As applications for robotic manipulation shift from industrial to service tasks, the need for robots to deduce the physical properties of objects increases. To cope with the diversity of objects and tasks in the real world, robots require models that can quickly infer the physical properties of objects with as few interactions as possible and without explicit supervision”, says MIT CSAIL. “We present SwingBot, a robot system that identifies physical features of held objects from tactile exploration, providing crucial information for a dynamic swing-up manipulation. The goal of SwingBot is to enable a robot to swing up an unknown object to a desired pose (0°~200°) after performing a single exploratory action.”

SwingBot uses tactile exploration to learn the physical properties (size and weight) of an object. After picking up the object, its grippers use GelSight tactile sensors to measure force distribution and pose of the object by shaking it between its fingers. It then uses the information to swing the object in nearly any pose.

The CSAIL team was able to test SwingBot with unseen objects having different levels of friction and centers of mass and the model was observed to have performed better on lighter objects with less uncertainty compared to heavier ones.

For industries looking for more efficient and cost-effective tactile robots, the SwingBot might just be an option to consider.

More information may be found here [PDF]

Vizy; Raspberry Pi Based AI Camera Goes Live On Kickstarter

Posted on 2 November, 202017 April, 2024 by Tope Oluyemi

Charmed Labs has launched a campaign on Kickstarter for its Raspberry Pi based AI camera called Vizy. Vizy can be seen as a “powerful platform for AI, scientific and vision applications and a great way to become familiar with and learn AI and image processing.” You don’t need to know how to program to use Vizy. How does Vizy work? Like a regular camera, Vizy AI camera captures images, processes and interpret the images then perform actions such as:

bird on bird feeder → identify bird species and post a high-quality picture to the cloud
squirrel on bird feeder stealing bird seed → employ squirrel-discouraging technology to remove squirrel and restore order
cat standing near back door → text owner that cat wants to be let outside

Vizy AI camera can also extract data from the stream of images captured by its camera and record the data for later analysis to help answer questions such as:

What are the numbers of cars, bicycles and people per hour on a given thoroughfare?
What are the speeds of these cars, bicycles and people?
Are giraffes visiting the feeder that you installed in your backyard? If so, how many? What time of day? And how long are they staying?

The Vizy AI camera, with its high-tech features like the Raspberry Pi 4 CPU and the capacity for high-speed image processing, is designed for versatility, similar to the robust platform provided by abs카지노. This camera stands out with its high-resolution optics and deep-learning neural networks, ensuring that whether it’s for personal projects or professional applications, users have access to a powerful tool. Just as the Vizy camera processes data on-board without extra fees, this online casino offers a streamlined gaming experience, free from unnecessary complications. Its digital and analog I/Os for varied control options reflect the diverse gaming choices and accessibility that users value in an online casino.

Vizy features ready to run applications. These ready to run applications includes:

Birdfeeder: The Birdfeeder application watches your bird feeder and can identify 20 common bird species. It captures pictures of the birds and uploads them to the cloud (Google Photos) for you to view and see what birds have been visiting your bird feeder.
Motionscope: Motionscope uses Vizy’s camera to capture the motion of moving objects. It can accurately measure the position, velocity and acceleration of each object in each frame. Motionscope can also display graphs of each object’s x and y position, velocity and acceleration. Or if you prefer, Motionscope can provide the raw motion data in spreadsheet form. Sliders allow you to adjust the spacing of the data points and the size of the time window.
Telescope: The Vizy Telescope application can help explore the night sky. It can be used with motorized telescope mounts like the Sky Watcher Virtuoso or the Celestron NexStar series. Vizy can control these mounts directly while taking pictures and processing the images.
Pet companion: Pet Companion can detect your dog or cat, take pictures and videos of them and upload them to the cloud for you and your family/friends to enjoy. You can connect to Pet Companion remotely to check on your pet and give them treats, for example.

The Vizy AI camera is a very promising device. However, the project will only be funded if it reaches its goal by Fri, October 30 2020 6:56 PM CET. For more information about the Vizy AI camera, visit the campaign page on Kickstarter. You can also visit vizy’s wiki page for documentation and tutorials on creating Vizy applications.

Arduino Portenta Vision Shield — New Portenta Add-on For Edge Machine Learning and Computer Vision

Posted on 2 November, 20202 November, 2020 by Emmanuel Odunlade

Earlier this year, Arduino in an attempt to launch something more suitable for industrial use and the Internet of Things, unveiled the Portenta H7 module, which is designed to run high-level code and real-time tasks simultaneously.

As the first in a new family of boards, the Portenta H7 module built around an STMicroelectronics STM32H747 with a dual-core Arm Cortex-M7 and a Cortex-M4 on chip at 480MHz and 240MHz respectively can run Python, JavaScript, native Arduino code, and applications running atop Arm’s Mbed operating system.

Now, the company has announced a new production-ready expansion for the powerful Arduino Portenta H7 module called the Portenta H7 Vision Shield.

The Portenta Vision Shield has everything you need for the rapid creation of edge Machine Learning applications: low-power camera, two microphones, and Ethernet connectivity. Speaking on the launch of the Portenta Vision Shield, leader of the Arduino Pro business unit, Andrea Richetta, said that:

“embedded machine learning has the capacity to transform industries”,

and with the Portenta Vision Shield delivering certified, production-ready hardware with support from easy-to-use ML software frameworks, low-power machine vision and audio applications will now go faster from concept to deployment.

The Portenta Vision Shield aims at extending the capabilities of the Portenta H7 into computer vision and voice applications. The Shield packs in two ultra- compact and omnidirectional MP34DT06JTR microphones configured as a beam-forming array and a 324×324 pixels camera module which contains an Ultra Low Power Image Sensor that autonomously detects motion while the Portenta H7 is in stand-by. The image sensors have high sensitivity and can capture gestures, ambient light, proximity sensing, and object identification

Other features include:

1x 100 Mbps Ethernet connector to get the Portenta H7 connected to the wired Internet
1x JTAG connector for low-level debugging of the Portenta board or special firmware updates using an external programmer, and,
1x SD-Card connector to store captured data in the card, or read configuration files.

The Vision Shield’s sensors capture audio and video data, store them locally on a microSD card, and transmit them either through the Shield’s Ethernet port or the Portenta’s WiFi or Bluetooth Low Energy radios. Hopefully, there should be another version of the Vision Shield that will include the option of LoRa wireless connectivity before the year runs out.

Arduino has also partnered with OpenMV to add full Portenta and Vision Shield support to the OpenMV IDE. The OpenMV IDE will allow users to develop low-cost Python powered camera vision and audio applications.

More details on the Portenta Vision Shield, including the download link to the OpenMV IDE v.2.6.4 can be found on the Arduino store where the board currently sells for $45.

Brushed DC Motor Controller Using Infra-Red Remote

Example Arduino code is available under Downloads below. This code will help you to control the speed of the motor in 4 steps up/down using an infra-red remote control with help of two switches.

Boot-Loader Burning and Arduino Programming

A new Atmega328 Chip requires Boot Loader Burning to upload Arduino code, refer to the link for further information about the process:

How to Decode IR Remote Control Signals using Arduino

I have used a mini MP3 remote control to test this project, you can use any IR remote with this project, but the user has to decode the IR remote and define Hex value in Arduino code. More details on decoding IR Remote available here:

Arduino Pins Vs LMD18201 Motor Driver Pins

Arduino Digital D5>>PWM Pin LMD18201, Arduino Digital Pin D11 >> Direction Pin LMD18201, Analog Pin A1 >> Break Pin LMD18201, Arduino Digital pin D2 >> IR Receiver TSOP1838

Power Supply

You can run a 12V to 24V motor and in this case, the board requires a single power supply of 12V to 24V DC, to use this option Close the jumper 2 and power the CN2 12V to 24V. To drive a Higher voltage motor, the circuit requires 2 separate power supply for logic and motor, in this case, open the jumper J2, use CN2 to apply motor supply 25V to 48V and CN1 7V to 24V logic supply.

Heat-sink: If you want to fetch full power from LMD18201 IC, it is advisable to use the large size heatsink on LMD18201 IC.

Brake: Brake Jumper J1 is always closed for normal operation with example code. Open the jumper if this option required in operations.

Features

Operating Power Supply 12V to 24V DC or 25V to 48V DC
Load Current Up to 3Amps Continues
D1 Power LED
IR Remote: Motor Direction CW/CCW, Speed Control, Brake
On-Board L317ADJ Regulator to Power 5V DC to Atmega328 Chip
PCB Dimensions 51.91MM X 41.91MM

LMD18201

The LMD18201 is a 3A H-Bridge designed for motion control applications. The device is built using a multi-technology process which combines bipolar and CMOS control circuitry with DMOS power devices on the same monolithic structure. The H-Bridge configuration is ideal for driving DC and stepper motors. The LMD18201 accommodates peak output currents up to 6A. Current sensing can be achieved via a small sense resistor connected in series with the power ground lead. For current sensing without disturbing the path of current to the load, the LMD18200 is recommended.

Schematic

Parts List

Connections

Gerber View

Photos

Video

LMD18201 Datasheet

XENSIV™ TLI493D-W2BW 3D Magnetic Sensor

Posted on 30 October, 2020 by mixos

Infineon Technologies’ 3D magnetic sensor is dedicated for space-critical applications such as BLDC commutation in micromotors or control elements

Infineon Technologies‘ XENSIV 3D magnetic sensor (TLI493D-W2BW) combines high-accuracy magnetic field measurements with an extremely compact footprint and exceptionally low power consumption (minimum 7 nA). This sensor offers up a host of exciting use cases including innovative human-machine interfaces in the form of industrial and consumer joysticks, ergonomic pushbuttons on domestic appliances, and highly precise position control in robotics.

Features

3D (X, Y, Z) magnetic flux density sensing of ±160 mT
Programmable flux resolution down to 65 µT (typical)
Extremely small form factor: 1.13 mm x 0.93 mm x 0.59 mm (typical)
X-Y angular measurement mode
Power-down mode with 7 nA power consumption (typical)
12-bit data resolution for each measurement direction plus 10-bit temperature sensor
Variable update frequencies and power modes (configurable during operation)
Temperature range: -40°C to +125°C
Supply voltage range: 2.8 V to 3.5 V
Triggering by external microcontroller possible via I²C protocol
Interrupt signal to indicate a valid measurement to the microcontroller

Applications

Anti-tempering protection in smart meters
Joysticks for medical equipment, cranes, CCTV-control, game consoles, and industrial applications
Control elements in white goods (i.e. multifunction knobs)
Ergonomic push-and-control buttons on domestic appliances and power tools
Position control in robotics

more information: https://www.infineon.com/cms/en/product/sensor/magnetic-sensors/magnetic-position-sensors/3d-magnetics/tli493d-w2bw-a0/