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Data processing units will elevate data centre performance, says Nvidia

Wed, Oct 07, 2020

At GTC, a virtual, global event hosted by Nvidia, the BlueField-2 family of data processing units (DPUs) was introduced. They are supported by DOCA, a data centre infrastructure on a chip architecture that raises networking, storage and security performance, says the company.

The BlueField-2 DPU can deliver the same data centre services that could consume up to 125 CPU cores, said the company, to free up the CPU cores to run other applications.

The Nvidia BlueField-2 DPU has the same capabilities as the company’s Mellanox ConnectX-6 Dx SmartNIC, with Arm cores. The fully programmable PCIe module delivers data transfer rates of 200Gbits per second and accelerates key data centre security, networking and storage tasks, including isolation, root trust, key management, RDMA/RoCE, GPUDirect, elastic block storage and data compression.

The BlueField-2X DPU, additionally has an Nvidia Ampere GPU with AI capabilities that can be applied to data centre security, networking and storage. Third generation Tensor Cores enable it to use AI for real time security analytics, including identifying abnormal traffic, which could indicate an intruder, together with host introspection to identify malicious activity, and dynamic security orchestration and automated response.

An Nvidia DOCA software development kit is also available to enable developers to build applications on DPU-accelerated data centre infrastructure services.

DOCA provides developers a comprehensive, open platform for building software-defined, hardware-accelerated networking, storage, security and management applications running on the BlueField family of DPUs.

Server manufacturers worldwide including ASUS, Atos, Dell Technologies, Fujitsu, GIGABYTE, H3C, Inspur, Lenovo, Quanta/QCT and Supermicro, have confirmed plans to integrate the DPUs into their enterprise server offerings.

Software support includes VMware (VMware Cloud Foundation), Red Hat (Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat OpenShift) and Canonical (Ubuntu Linux). Cybersecurity provider, Check Point Software Technologies, is integrating BlueField-2 DPUs into its technologies, which more than 100,000 organisations worldwide.

BlueField-2 DPUs are sampling now and BlueField-2X DPUs are under development and expected to become available in 2021.

DOCA is available for early access partners now.

http://www.nvidia.com

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Motobit Sentinel warns motorcyclists of potential hazards

Wed, Oct 07, 2020

A wearable device for motorcyclists has been introduced by Motobit. The Motobit Sentinel is specifically designed by a team of engineering bikers to increase the personal riding safety and improve the overall riding experience of fellow bikers.

It connects via Bluetooth to a smartphone and the Motobit app, and the rider receives warnings about potentially dangerous situations through strong vibration feedback.

There are several features for rider-safety. For example, advanced algorithms in combination with the Motobit app, allow the Motobit Sentinel to understand the users’ riding behaviour and analyses the course of the road ahead in order to suggest the adequate riding speed for every situation.

In the event of an accident, emergency contacts can be notified by pressing the easy to access button on the device to inform the rescue chain as quickly as possible.

For group riders, two or more devices can be combined. The lead rider will be alerted if another group motorcyclist cannot keep up.

The feedback and alerts are described as “powerful and non-distracting vibrations” so that the rider can keep the focus on the road.

As every motorcyclist uses different riding gear, Motobit Sentinel has been designed to be worn around the body, as a wristband or attached to the belt of the trousers or kidney belt, or simply inserted into a pocket.

Motobit Sentinel is the product of two years of diligent research and development of the team of Motobit. The company was founded by motorcycle enthusiasts with the vision to make motorcycling as safe as driving a car. They used their own experiences as motorcyclists, to address difficulties such as estimating the proper riding speed when approaching different situations as well as the importance of being warned about dangers in advance that may otherwise create great risks for motorcyclists.

https://www.getmotobit.com

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Advantech models fanless EPC-C301 on Intel Core for machine vision

Tue, Oct 06, 2020

Based on the 8th Generation Intel Core processor, the EPC-C301 is a compact fanless box PC from Advantech. Intended for industrial use, it has domain-focused I/O and can operate in a wide temperature range.

The EPC-C301 integrates Intel and Canonical technologies, provides Ubuntu OS and OpenVINO toolkits. It has been developed for machine vision applications, such as biometric artificial intelligence (face recognition), automated optical inspection (AOI) or automated plate number recognition (APNR).

EPC-C301 supports four GbE LAN and four USB 3.2 Gen2 x1 (10Gbits per second) to accommodate the IP/HD camera inputs required for AOI, APNR and other machine vision applications. The compact design measures just 170 x 118 x 70mm and has four USB 2.0 and four UART interfaces to expand performance with card readers, barcode scanners, key pads, fingerprint sensors and other peripherals.

There are also two isolated CANBus ports designed for use in automation and medical applications. Windows and Linux based drivers/APIs are also available for convenience and compatibility, adds Advantech.

The 8th Generation Intel Core processor at the heart of the PC is the first one that doubles the core count to quad-core on a low power 15W CPU, says Advantech. High-bandwidth dual-channel DDR4 supports up to 32Gbyte while satisfying intensive data handling and image processing requirements. The EPC-C301 is equipped with an M.2 M-Key 2280 that accepts both SATA SSD’s and PCIe x4 SSD’s, to advance computing speeds.

To meet artificial intelligence IoT (AIoT) IoT challenges on the edge, the EPC-C301 includes M.2 E-Key for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, M.2 B-key for LTE and a mini-PCIe, which is compatible with Advantech’s VEGA-330 AI mini-PCIe module. This system has a broad operating temperature (-20 to around 60 degrees C) typically incurred in outdoor applications like passenger information/tracking systems (PIS) or smart parking solutions.

The EPC-C301 also features the Intel OpenVINO developer kit, which is compatible with the VEGA-330 AI acceleration card and Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.

The fanless box PC is available for order now.

http://www.advantech.eu

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CH201 ToF sensor operates at up to 5m

Mon, Oct 05, 2020

TDK has extended its ultrasonic time of flight (ToF) sensor platform, with the Chirp CH201 sensor range which includes CH201 MEMS sensors, sensor modules, and developer kits.

The CH201 MEMS sensor, sensor modules, and developer kits joins Chirp’s original CH101 ultrasonic ToF sensor product. While the CH101 provides measurements for use cases scenarios of up to 1.2m, the CH201 provides exact long range measurements to targets at distances up to 5m, says TDK.

Chirp’s MEMS ultrasonic technologies leverage proprietary ToF range sensors in a 3.5 mm x 3.5 mm reflowable system in package (SiP) which combines a MEMS ultrasonic transducer with a power efficient digital signal processor (DSP) on a low power, mixed-signal ASIC.

The CH201 works in any lighting condition, including full sunlight to complete darkness independent of the target’s colour and optical transparency. Like the CH101, the CH201 has a configurable field of view (FoV) and a flexible DSP capable of handling a variety of ultrasonic signal processing algorithms.

The CH201 offers flexible industrial design options for range-finding, presence / proximity sensing and object-detection / avoidance.

A developer kit is also available (DK-CH201) for prototyping with one or more ToF sensors. The kit includes one CH201 with the option to add up to four additional ultrasonic modules.

An evaluation module (EV_MOD_CH201-03-01) is easy to use and designed for rapid integration and evaluation of hardware designs, says TDK. Different acoustic housings available to adjust the FoV.

Sensors, developer kits and evaluation modules are available now through worldwide distribution.

TDK is based in Tokyo, Japan. It was established in 1935 to commercialise ferrite, a key material in electronic and magnetic products. TDK’s portfolio features passive components such as ceramic, aluminium electrolytic and film capacitors, as well as magnetics, high-frequency, and piezo and protection devices, as well as sensors and sensor systems such as temperature and pressure, magnetic, and MEMS sensors. In addition, TDK provides power supplies and energy devices and magnetic heads. Products are marketed under the brands TDK, Epcos, InvenSense, Micronas, Tronics and TDK-Lambda.

TDK focuses on demanding markets in automotive, industrial and consumer electronics, and information and communication technology. The company has a network of design and manufacturing locations and sales offices in Asia, Europe, and in North and South America.

http://www.tdk.com

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Data processing units will elevate data centre performance, says Nvidia

Motobit Sentinel warns motorcyclists of potential hazards

Advantech models fanless EPC-C301 on Intel Core for machine vision

CH201 ToF sensor operates at up to 5m

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