Sleep modes and idle modes in general-purpose microcontrollers have allowed embedded processors to reduce real-time energy consumption and tackle many battery- and low-powered designs. However, as embedded systems become increasingly complex, it takes additional logic to implement a denser, more sophisticated micro core as well as the higher-end peripherals we expect to see today. As […]
8-bit MCUs That Can Operate Under 1.8 V Read More »
Introduction Infrared (IR) can be used for line-of-sight communications over low to moderate range. IR is nice because of the lack of interference (except for sun and compact fluroscent lights) and freedom from FCC regulation. The web site http://tthheessiiss.wordpress.com/2009/08/05/dirt-cheap-wireless/ (Jacob Sikker Remin, 2009) shows how to use a IR remote control receiver and IR LED
Infrared Communications for Atmel Mega644-1284 microcontrollers Read More »
I’m a fan of LEDs, lots of LEDs. So here’s a slightly less crass way of using LEDs for decorative purposes.While this is by no means a neat and polished solution, and probably not the first of its kind, however the pulse effect is as far as I have seen unique, and exactly what I
This project is named “Engadino” after Engadin – ski resort in Switzerland. The reason for this is that I live in Switzerland, I like skiing and the name is easy to remember and pronounce. By itself the project is a clone of “Pinguino“. “Pinguino is an Arduino-like electronics prototyping platform. It supports different 8- and 32-bit ©Microchip
Rechargeable NiCd (nickel-cadmium) cells are widely used in consumer devices because of their high energy density, long life, and small self-discharge rate. As a part of one project, I needed to design a reliable and inexpensive charger for a battery pack containing two NiCd AA-size 1200-mAh cells. In the process of the charger design, I
Charge a nickel-cadmium cell reliably and inexpensively Read More »
A few months ago, I saw an instructable by fjordcarver on how to build a coloursensor with an RGB led and an LDR. It inspired me to try whether I could improve his design. Here are the things that I wanted: The sensor should have as few pins as possible. It should work as a
Build your own (at)tiny colour sensor. Read More »
This article looks at the options for getting started with a GPS design for industrial applications, from the transceivers to modules and the evaluation boards available, as well as the antenna issues to consider. It looks at how modules from suppliers such as Antenova and NXP Semiconductors can be used, extending to single chip implementations
Getting Started with GPS Read More »
Description The MAX31850/MAX31851 cold-junction compensated, 1-Wire® thermocouple-to-digital converters perform cold-junction compensation and digitize the signal from a K-, J-, N-, T-, S-, R-, or E-type thermocouple. The converters resolve temperatures to 0.25°C, allow readings as high as +1768°C and as low as -270°C, and exhibit thermocouple accuracy of 8 LSBs (2°C) for temperatures ranging from
Digital Converters Simplify Multisensor Designs Read More »
Texas Instruments is one of the most dominant technology companies ever. Behind Intel and Samsung, it is the world’s third largest producer of semiconductors. In addition, they are the largest manufacturer of digital signal processors and analog semiconductors. Young students may just know of TI as producers of their world famous graphing calculators. However, for
Texas Instruments releases new battery saving technology Read More »
The Arduino library has always had an “analogWrite()” function, even though the ATmega doesn’t have any way to generate a varying voltage. So why the name? Well, what most microcontrollers can do is generate a pulse-width modulated signal, also known as PWM. That’s just a fancy way of saying that the microcontroller periodically generates a
From PWM to voltage Read More »
