Page 416 – Electronics-Lab.com

0-6V @ 1.5A Adjustable Power Supply With Current Limit using LT3081

Posted on 4 May, 20204 May, 2020 by mixos

This is a simple power supply that provides an adjustable output voltage with an adjustable current limit. In such a small package, both these features make the power supply unique. The output voltage is adjustable range 1.2V to 6V DC and current limit range adjustable up to 1.5A, Input Supply is 12V-30V DC.

The LT3081 is a 1.5A low dropout linear regulator designed for rugged industrial applications. Key features of the IC are the extended safe operating area (SOA), output current monitor, temperature monitor, and programmable current limit. The LT3081 can be paralleled for higher output current or heat spreading. The device withstands reverse input and reverses output-to-input voltages without reverse current flow. The LT3081’s precision 50μA reference current source allows a single resistor to program output voltage to any level between zero and 34.5V. The current reference architecture makes load regulation independent of the output voltage. The LT3081 is stable with or without input and output capacitors. The output current monitor (IOUT/5000) and die junction temperature output (1μA/°C) provide system monitoring and debug capability. In addition, a single resistor programs current limit.

0-6V @ 1.5A Adjustable Power Supply With Current Limit using LT3081 – [Link]

Sound Sensor with onboard Relay Arduino Nano Shield

Posted on 4 May, 20204 May, 2020 by mixos

This sound sensor with Relay driver shield for Arduino Nano can be used to develop sound-activated ON/OFF switch or other projects that require sound senor. LM358 op-amp is used as the amplifier, 1^st op-amp amplifies the microphone signal, and 2^nd op-amp works as a half-bridge rectifier that converts AC signal into a DC voltage. This DC voltage is connected to analog pin A4 of Arduino Nano, further, this circuit has a comparator that provides High-level signal output and goes low as the sound is detected, this signal is connected to D4 Pin of Arduino Nano. The board provides a dual output, analog voltage as well as a digital output. The output of the sensor is normally high and goes low when it detects sound. PR1 Trimmer potentiometer is provided to set the threshold. PR2 Trimmer potentiometer can be used to set the sound sensitivity. On-Board 5V relay can be triggered using digital Pin D5 of Arduino Nano, Relay can drive a load up to 7Amps 12V DC or 230V AC. The circuit works with 5V DC and consumes approx. 50mA.

Sound Sensor with onboard Relay Arduino Nano Shield – [Link]

MA782 is a low power angle sensor with SPI output

Posted on 4 May, 2020 by mixos

MPS MA782 is a 12-Bit, digital low power angle sensor with SPI output – the world’s smallest absolute ICEncoder™.

The MA782 is the world’s smallest absolute ICEncoder™ which detects the absolute angular position of a permanent magnet (typically a diametrically magnetized cylinder on a rotating shaft). With its power cycling ability, the sensor is suitable for applications requiring low average power. The timing can be controlled by an on-chip clock or by an external controller. Flags are available for detecting a definable amount of angle change.

The MA782 supports a wide range of magnetic field strengths and spatial configurations. Both end-of-shaft and off-axis (side-shaft mounting) configurations are supported.

The MA782 features magnetic field strength detection with programmable thresholds to allow the sensing of the magnet position relative to the sensor for the creation of functions such as the sensing of axial movements or for diagnostics.

On-chip non-volatile memory provides storage for configuration parameters, including the reference zero angle position, the power cycling parameters, the filter window affecting the output resolution and magnetic field detection thresholds.

Features and benefits

8 Bit to 12 Bit resolution absolute contactless angle encoder
1µA current consumption in idle mode
10mA current consumption in active mode
Internal or external power cycling control
Warning on change flags
SPI serial interface for digital angle readout and chip configuration
Magnetic field strength alarm
3.3V supply
-40°C to +125°C operating temperature
Available in a QFN-14 (2mmx2mm) package

Application example

more information: www.monolithicpower.com

NXP Announces General Availability of the Arm Cortex-M33-based LPC551x/S1x MCU Family

Posted on 4 May, 2020 by mixos

NXP Semiconductors today announced the availability of its LPC551x/S1x microcontroller (MCU) family – further extending its performance-efficient LPC5500 MCU series. The LPC551x/S1x MCU family offers developers low power consumption, embedded security, pin-, software- and peripheral-compatibility to accelerate time-to-market. The LPC551x/S1x family leverages ultra-efficient 40-nm flash technology for cost and performance benefits.

Key features include:

Over 600 EEMBC® CoreMarks® and as low as 32uA/MHz
Up to 150 MHz Arm® Cortex®-M33 core
Up to 256 KB on-chip flash; up to 96 KB SRAM
CAN FD / CAN 2.0 with MCUXpresso-based software enablement
Dual-USB with on-chip PHY, supporting both HS and FS modes
SDIO and up to 9 FlexComm interfaces (configurable as either SPI/I2C/I2S,UART)
Advanced security enabled with MCUXpresso software and tools:
- SRAM PUF based device root key with added application key storage options
- Secure boot and anti-rollback protection
- Arm TrustZone® technology for resource isolation
- Hardware block cipher (PRINCE) for encryption/decryption of internal flash
- Accelerators for symmetric and asymmetric cryptography
- Authenticated debug capabilities
Available in HLQFP100, VFBGA98 and HTQFP64 packages
LPC551x/S1x is fully supported by NXP’s MCUXpresso suite of software and tools

To learn more about the LPC551x/S1x MCU family, please visit: www.nxp.com/LPC551x.

Product Availability and Support

The LPC551x/S1x MCU family is available now from NXP and its distribution partners with a suggested resale price starting at $0.97 (USD) for 10,000-unit quantities of LPC5512JBD64.
NXP is accompanying the silicon release with a LPC55S16-based development board at a suggested resale price of $41.18 (USD). Third-party support is allowed from the broad Arm ecosystem.

World’s Smallest Intel mini PC has an Intel Celeron N4100 Processor, 6GB LPDDR4 RAM and 128GB ROM

Posted on 4 May, 20204 May, 2020 by Emmanuel Odunlade

Despite its size, CHUWI’s yet-to-be-released LarkBox ultra-mini PC offers decent computing performance without extra heat. With 6GB LPDDR4 system memory and up to 128GB storage capacity, the LarkBox mini PC can handle daily multitasks easily without breaking a sweat.

So far, we have seen quite a number of small Intel mini PCs, one of the smallest being the ECS LIVA Q2 micro PC with Intel Celeron N4000 Gemini Lake processor, 4GB RAM, and 32GB eMMC flash storage housed in a 160 mm3 enclosure. While the LarkBox mini PC maintained quite some similarities with the ECS LIVA Q2, the compact, and easy-to-carry-around Intel mini PC from CHUWI comes with certain specifications that place it some steps ahead of the ECS LIVA Q2 micro PC. The LarkBox is expected to come with smaller body size, higher efficiency Celeron processor, more storage capacity, and better video output.

By comparison, features and specifications of Chuwi LarkBox mini PC include:

Features	CHUWI LarkBox	ECS LIVA Q2
System on Chip	Intel Celeron N4100 quad-core Gemini Lake processor with Intel UHD Graphics 600; 6W TDP	Intel Celeron N4000 dual-core Gemini Lake processor with 12EU UHD Graphics 600; 6W TDP
System memory	6GB LPDDR4	2 or 4 GB LPDDR4
Storage	128 GB SSD storage, MicroSD card	32 or 64GB eMMC flash storage, Micro SD slot up to 128GB
Connectivity	Bluetooth 5.0, 802.11ac WiFi	Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth 4.1, 802.11ac WiFi
USB Port	2x USB 2.0 ports, 1x USB Type-C port	1x USB 3.1 General port, 1x USB 2.0 port
Video output	HDMI up to 4K resolutions	HDMI 2.0
Power supply	TBD via USB-C port	12v / 2A
Dimension	61 x 61 x 43 mm	70 x 70 x 33.4 mm

Even with its small size, the LarkBox, just like the ECS LIVA Q2 comes with an ultra-silent cooling system that keeps it cool at all times and ensures that the PC works stably under any workload. There are no details concerning the operating system but most likely the mini PC should be able to run Ubuntu 18.04 and other Linux distributions quite well.

Meanwhile, the LarkBox mini PC is yet to be released and there is no word concerning its price too, but the company has started a global giveaway where 4 lucky winners get to own a free LarkBox Ultra-mini PC.

New Powerful Raspberry Pi High-Quality Camera Features a 12MP Sensor and Optional C and CS mount lenses

Posted on 4 May, 20204 May, 2020 by Emmanuel Odunlade

Staying through to their pace-setting tradition, the Raspberry Pi Foundation has once again pushed the bar of what is achievable with SBCs, higher, with the launch of what is arguably the most powerful camera ever shipped with an SBC.

The first official Raspberry Pi camera with 5MP resolution which was launched back in May 2013, was followed with an updated 8MP version in 2016.

As useful as these two versions were, they had their shortcomings and have now been rendered obsolete as the Raspberry Pi Foundation, a few days ago, announced the launch of a new high-quality camera that boasts of a higher megapixel back-side illuminated sensor, with improved sensitivity and interchangeable lens support for both C and CS-mount form factors. Describing the motivation behind the new cameras in the press release, the foundation stated that:\

“There has always been a big overlap between Raspberry Pi hackers and camera hackers. Even back in 2012, people (okay, substantially Dave Hunt) were finding interesting ways to squeeze more functionality out of DSLR cameras using Raspberry Pi cameras. We are pleased to announce a new member of the Raspberry Pi camera family: the 12.3 megapixels high-quality Camera, alongside a range of interchangeable lenses.”

As versatile as the previous camera modules were, the Pi Foundation added that there were some limitations including their relatively small sensors which led to to a lower signal-to-noise ratio as well as a poorer low-light performance. This, amongst others, are some of the shortcomings that the new high-quality camera is designed to handle.

In terms of features, the new camera is equipped with a 7.9mm 12.3-megapixel Sony IMX477 sensor that provides back illumination for lower light performance and a more improved signal-to-noise ratio compared with fixed-focus lenses. It also features an integrated back-focus adjustment ring, integrated IR cut filter, and a C and CS-mount lens support with a C-CS adapter.

Some other features of the camera include:

1.55 μm x 1.55 μm pixel size lens with 1920 x 1080 resolution
RAW12/10/8 and COMP8 formats outputs
Integrated IR cut filter
Integrated Back-focus adjustment ring
1/4″ – 20 Tripod Mount
A 7.87-inch ribbon cable (200mm)

The HQ camera is highly targeted at industrial and consumer applications like security cameras that work well with all Raspberry Pi models and require high visual fidelity and/or integration with professional optics.

Quite a few retailers already have the camera in stock or up for pre-order, and in addition to the camera, most of them are giving customers the opportunity to buy a 6mm CS-mount lens or a 16mm C-mount lens along with the camera.

More details including the price of the Raspberry Pi High-Quality Camera Module may be found on its shopping page or the Raspberry Pi blog.

STM32Cube MCU development software now on GitHub

Posted on 4 May, 20204 May, 2020 by mixos

STMicroelectronics has published STM32Cube embedded software on GitHub to open up collaborative development and allow fast and efficient update distribution. By Ally Winning @ eenewsembedded.com

Publishing all STM32Cube original code through GitHub allows developers using over 1000 STM32 Arm Cortex -M MCU variants and heterogeneous Cortex-M/-A MPUs to store, manage, track, and control code. GitHub features such as Pull requests promote co-development, enabling the proposal of alternate solutions and new features through GitHub’s change-handling structures. GitHub Issues — the privileged communication channel between developers – allows users to submit problems, share solutions, and contribute to fixes.

The move to GitHub also ensures developers can receive all software updates as soon as they are published, more quickly than traditional means of updating MCU packages.

All current STM32Cube MCU packages are already online, as well as Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) code and MCU-independent CMSIS drivers. The remaining STM32Cube embedded-software components will be added over the coming months.

More information: https://github.com/STMicroelectronics

Sound Sensor with onboard Relay Arduino Nano Shield

Features

Supply 5V DC
Relay Switch Normally Open/ Normally Closed
Relay Switch 7Amps
DC Voltage Output Connected to A4 Analog Pin
Sensor Digital Output Connected to D4 Digital Pin
D5 Digital Pin Controls The Relay
PR2- Trimmer Potentiometer to set the sound sensitivity
PR1- Trimmer Potentiometer to set the threshold
CN1 Supply Input
CN4 Relay Output
PCB Dimensions 76.49 x 93 mm

Schematic

Parts List

Photos

LM358 Datasheet

LMV7235 Datasheet

Power-handling capabilities of inductors

Posted on 3 May, 2020 by mixos

App note from Coilcraft on how to calculate the power dissipation of an inductor.

Inductors are not typically rated by power, however an approximation of the power-handling capability of an air core or ceramic core chip inductor can be estimated using the data sheet specifications for current and resistance.

Power-handling capabilities of inductors – [PDF]

0-6V @ 1.5A Adjustable Power Supply With Current Limit using LT3081

The LT3081 is a 1.5A low dropout linear regulator designed for rugged industrial applications. Key features of the IC are the extended safe operating area (SOA), output current monitor, temperature monitor, and programmable current limit. The LT3081 can be paralleled for higher output current or heat spreading. The device withstands reverse input and reverse output-to-input voltages without reverse current flow. The LT3081’s precision 50μA reference current source allows a single resistor to program output voltage to any level between zero and 34.5V. The current reference architecture makes load regulation independent of output voltage. The LT3081 is stable with or without input and output capacitors. The output current monitor (IOUT/5000) and die junction temperature output (1μA/°C) provide system monitoring and debug capability. In addition, a single resistor programs current limit.