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DC/DC converter can extend industrial devices’ battery life by up to 20 per cent

Thu, Nov 04, 2021

Boasting low quiescent current (IQ) of 60nA, the TPS61094 buck/boost converter can extend the battery life of industrial applications, says Texas Instruments. The bi-directional buck/boost converter’s IQ is one-third that of competing boost converters, says the company. It integrates a buck mode for supercapacitor charging while providing low IQ, to extend battery life by as much as 20 per cent when compared to commonly used hybrid-layer capacitors (HLCs). Supercapacitor charging and discharging help support peak loads and backup power, which are important for continuous operation in battery-powered industrial applications such as smart meters, smoke detectors and video doorbells, as well as medical applications.

Engineers designing battery-operated systems frequently face a common design challenge: a need to achieve high efficiency at no- or light-load conditions, in the low milliampere or microampere range. This requires power supplies to regulate their output while maintaining low supply current in the nA range.

Today’s lithium thionyl chloride (Li/SOCl₂) battery-based designs often manage peak load with HLCs. This are expensive and not optimal for controlling charge current, explains TI. The TPS61094’s combined low IQ and supercapacitor charging and discharging allow HLCs to be replaced with supercapacitors for peak load support and to extend battery life in applications that must run on a single battery for 10 years or more.

The TPS61094 can provide back up power in applications that require safe power-down or last-gasp communication during a power outage.

In addition to extending battery life, the buck/boost converter has a 2.0A inductor current limit in boost operation, which doubles the output current of competitive boost converters, according to the company.

The additional output current enables the TPS61094 to support radio standards – such as narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), LTE-M, Wi-SUN, MIOTY, Bluetooth and wireless M-Bus – over a wider input voltage range. For example, it can support more than 250mA of output current down to an input voltage of 0.7V.

Typical industrial applications such as smart meters require several power components for back up power features or peak load support. Integrating a buck charger and a boost converter into a single IC removes the need for a discrete buck charger, inductor and two external capacitors.

The integration of the buck charger and boost converter also allows design engineers to easily control the handshake between all functions, for a seamless transition between operating modes.

The TPS61094 is now available through TI and authorised distributors in a 2.0 x 3.0mm, 12-pin very thin, small outline no-lead (WSON) package. Full and custom quantity reels are available and there is also the TPS61094EVM-066 evaluation module.

http://www.TI.com

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SerDes transmit and channel test are included in Keysight’s automotive suite

Thu, Nov 04, 2021

Automotive serialiser/deserialiser (SerDes) transmit and channel test applications, as well as an automotive adapter portfolio to verify mobile industry processor interface (MIPI) A-PHY and Automotive SerDes Alliance (ASA) standards have been developed by Keysight Technologies in association with Sony Semiconductor Solutions and Rosenberger.

High-speed automotive SerDes interfaces enable transport data streams to make in-vehicle video, audio and communication possible. The high bandwidth, reliability and performance of SerDes serial links are key requirements in automotive applications, which enable advanced infotainment and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in vehicles.

Tests performed by Keysight’s AE2010T automotive SerDes transmitter test application enable customers to automatically configure each result utilising a Keysight Infiniium UXR-series oscilloscope. Tests performed by Keysight’s AE2010L automotive SerDes channel test application enable customers to automate network analyser tests. Together, these applications provide critical information to maintain data integrity and low loss networks, while meeting current automotive SerDes specifications, says Keysight.

Keysight and Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation are collaborating to bring the industry’s vision of standardised automotive SerDes to market. This will have benefits for chipset vendors and OEMs, bringing unified test results and requirements.

“Automotive SerDes standards are important to our strategy of embedding a serialiser on our image sensors. We are pleased to work with Keysight to validate our design against emerging SerDes specifications,” said Kenji Onishi, general manager, automotive business department, Sony Semiconductor Solutions.

Keysight has also partnered with Rosenberger to offer customers industry accepted adapters for automotive SerDes and high-speed data links. “Our customers will benefit from testing solutions for all automotive connector interfaces, which are either standardised or accepted to become global standards for automotive high-speed data transmission soon,” said Hauke Schütt, executive vice president of test and measurement at Rosenberger. “This includes . . . for coaxial and differential transmission channels, such as FAKRA, HFM, HSD or H-MTD,” he said.

Keysight’s SerDes transmitter and channel test applications offer automatic configuration and calibration cues of all required test equipment to reduce overall test time. They also offer an extensive range of tests for standards conformance of MIPI A-PHY and ASA, to reduce cost and save multiple installations and license purchases. The test framework to report multi-trial results includes a full array of statistics for each measurement. They also offer quick, accurate, and repeatable test results for validation and debugging, says Keysight.

Channel test software runs on a E5080B ENA Vector Network Analyzer, PXI Vector Network Analyzers, or Streamline Series USB Vector Network Analyzers and provides the framework for connectors, cables, and harnesses to quickly test automotive SerDes links.

http://www.keysight.com

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congatec unveils CoMs for 5G connected mobile and stationary devices

Thu, Nov 04, 2021

Computer on Modules (CoMs) specifically designed for industrial-grade edge appliances have been announced by congatec.

According to Martin Danzer, congatec’s director of product marketing, the modules are qualified for applications exposed to extreme shock and vibrations. All provide the opportunity to deploy TSN (time sensitive networking) -capable real-time connected over the air (OTA) services and device2x communication. There are also virtual machine implementations available, he adds, for enabling different tasks and domains on a single device. Target applications range from high-end edge servers to low power client platforms, confirmed Danzer.

Two module families are based on the COM-HPC specification. The conga-HPC/cTLU and conga-HPC/cTLH COM-HPC Client modules are based on the 11th Gen Intel Core vPro, Intel Xeon W-11000E and Intel Celeron processors. They are intended for demanding IoT gateway and edge computing applications requiring high bandwidth with up to 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes.

A congatec starter set is available for both module families. The starter set includes the conga-HPC/EVAL-Client carrier board, which is based on the ATX form factor. Engineers can use standard PC components for their embedded system designs.

Another highlight for 5G platform designs is congatec’s COM Express portfolio. This now includes the COM Express Type 6 conga-TS570 modules based on the new Tiger Lake H processors. They are suitable for connected real-time IIoT gateway, edge computing and micro server workloads. For demanding transportation and mobility applications requiring high computing performance in a rugged shape, the Intel 11th Gen Core-based modules are able to operate in extreme temperature ranges of -40 to +85 degrees C. For 24/7 connected fanless embedded systems, the conga-TCV2 COM Express Compact Computer-on-Modules based on AMD Ryzen Embedded V2000 processors are another option, advises congatec.

The modules are tailored for 5G connected and solar powered distributed process controls in smart energy grids, remote train and wayside systems, connected autonomous vehicles, and mobile outdoor equipment with limited battery capacity. The range includes Intel Atom x6000E Series, Intel Celeron and Pentium N and J Series processors on SMARC, Qseven, COM Express Compact and COM Express Mini CoM standards, as well as Pico-ITX SBCs.

For OEMs requiring 5G connected edge server level computing power, congatec’s COM Express Type 7 Server-on-Modules based on the AMD EPYC 3000 Embedded processors support up to 16 cores. Multiple cores open more options to consolidate workloads by using virtual machines on the basis of hypervisor technology from Real-Time Systems. The EPYC 3000 Embedded processors consume up to 100W TDP, so congatec has also designed cooling to ease system integration.

SMARC and Qseven platforms based on NXP i.MX 8 processor technologies for 5G includes low power SMARC and Qseven modules with machine and deep learning capabilities. They can be used in systems to see and analyse their surroundings for situational awareness, visual inspection, identification, surveillance and tracking, as well as gesture-based contactless machine operation and augmented reality. Typical examples of use will be e-charging infrastructures which require load balancing logic for various distributed charging columns and 5G connectivity for payment, services and management.

http://www.congatec.com

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Intelligent sensors automatically sense human presence

Wed, Nov 03, 2021

Three sensors, the PerSe Connect, PerSe Connect Pro and PerSe Control, have been released by Semtech. They can be used in smartphones, laptops and wearables.

The PerSe sensors intelligently sense human presence near the mobile device and other consumer electronics, and enable advanced RF control when the user is in close proximity. The smart human sensing feature, low power and tiny footprint enable the sensors to be used in a range of wearable applications, such as gesture control and automation.

Consumer electronics manufacturers can integrate the sensors for connectivity in 5G/Wi-Fi 6 with increased RF performance in smartphones and laptops, while also helping ensure compliance with the worldwide Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) regulations, explains Semtech. PerSe is claimed to provide best-in-class sensing and robust noise immunity allowing OEMs and ODMs to design devices with longer detection distance within a smaller sensor area.

The PerSe Connect sensor enhances connectivity for smartphones and laptops (5G Sub-6, 4G and Wi-Fi). They help optimise the RF power for best connectivity and help to maintain SAR compliance while delivering a fast wireless experience, says Semtech.

The PerSe Connect Pro is designed for high band 5G mmWave devices in smartphones, laptops and tablets. It enables higher sensing distance to safely manage the increased RF exposure, confirms Semtech.

The third model is PerSe Control which enables smarter control in wearables. It enables human detection, automatic on/off and start/stop response. It also delivers gesture control and response including smart assistant, noise cancellation activation and media player control.

“Smart sensors, such as the PerSe portfolio from Semtech, can differentiate between humans and inanimate objects, including handheld positions. This advanced sensing capability is essential for mobiles, wearables and 5G mmWave devices to deliver a superior user experience,” said Joe Hoffman, director, intelligent edge and sensor technologies research at SAR Insight. “Mobile, portable and wearable devices complicate the design window of performance, battery life and human RF absorption,” he added.

http://www.semtech.com

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DC/DC converter can extend industrial devices’ battery life by up to 20 per cent

SerDes transmit and channel test are included in Keysight’s automotive suite

congatec unveils CoMs for 5G connected mobile and stationary devices

Intelligent sensors automatically sense human presence

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