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July 2009 Archives

July 1, 2009

An Engineer in Wonderland - High visibility pedestrian railings

 

An Engineer in Wonderland has a new home. You can find this particular entry here. If you wish to leave a comment, please do that on the new blog.

 

Every time I see these things I am impressed with the elegance of the idea.

cunning railings 2.JPGSome clever soul thought of off-setting the vertical infill bars in the pedestrian guard railings near crossings in such a way that kids were visible through the railings before they ran out across the road.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 1, 2009 2:11 PM | | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

July 6, 2009

Weird & Wireless: GPS, and how do those satellites know where I am?

tom tom navigation.gifWelcome to a new series of posts on Electro-ramblings concerning the wonderful but sometimes weird world of wireless comms, written by Joel Young, CTO of Digi International


As far as I can tell, my GPS unit doesn't have a transmitter, so how do those satellites know where I am?

When I was a freshman engineering student at the University of Southern California in 1982, I got to go on a tour of TRW's Space Division where I saw one of the first GPS satellites being assembled. We were told that this technology was going to revolutionise navigation. Yet I couldn't help but wonder how the satellites would know where I was.

Today that thought reminds me of a trip to the mall when my children were very young. We looked at the mall map and found the label saying, "You are here" and my son asked me how the mall people knew where we were.

So goes the world of GPS. GPS technology has evolved over the past 27 years and become much more accurate. Nonetheless, the basic principle remains the same and you don't have to be an RF expert or a math wizard to understand it. With GPS, most of the satellites know very little except the exact time.
 

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 6, 2009 8:43 AM | | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (1)

Electronics Weekly UK Electronics Research Map

google research map.jpg
Here's a resource we would like you to bookmark: the Electronics Weekly map of UK electronics research.

Using the familiar Google Maps system, it provides a quick geographical overview of electronics research news. Each point on the map links to an associated news story that we have covered on Electronics Weekly.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 6, 2009 1:45 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 7, 2009

Q5 Interview - Eamonn Walsh, Brainboxes

Eamonn Walsh at Brainboxes.JPG
The latest Q5 interview is now online, with the chairman of of data communications systems manufacturer Brainboxes.

Eamonn Walsh talks to Electronics Weekly about OEM design activity, opportunities in the current economic climate, and end-markets with growth prospects...

The five questions this week are:

1. What impact is the downturn having on your markets?

2. How is design activity in your OEM customers being affected?

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 7, 2009 11:33 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 8, 2009

Naming and shaming technology

mannerisms.jpgHave a look at a new post from David Manners on Mannerisms - Ten Worst Things About Technology


He writes:
You love it. You hate it. It delights you and it drives you mad with rage and despair. Here are The Ten Most Annoying Things About Technology.
The thing is, you would have thought we were spoiled for choice, but when David asked around the office suggestions quickly, strangely dried up. Objections to particular aspects of proprietary software were ruled out and issues of performance were also disallowed (after all, the fact that your own office PC is underpowered can't be blamed on technology).

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 8, 2009 4:12 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 13, 2009

Futurism: The digital-roll laptop

concept laptop.jpg

A glimpse of the future, maybe? The concept of a roll laptop definitely 'has legs' for me.

Thanks to Gizmodiva for flagging this one - designer Hao Hua envisaging a future laptop design, as "digital roll".

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 13, 2009 3:04 PM | | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

July 14, 2009

An Engineer in Wonderland - Bridges I have known

 

An Engineer in Wonderland has a new home. You can find this particular entry here. If you wish to leave a comment, please do that on the new blog.

 

second severn crossing.jpg

I like bridges.

For example, between junctions 11 (A320) and 12 (M3) on the M25 is a brutal-looking cable stay bridge that carries the Chertsey to Virginia Water railway.

It is a magnificent thing, all concrete and steel. 

It looks like the one that got out of the civil engineers design office before the architectural consultant could stop it. 

I can imagine the instruction: "Sod what it looks like, just make it STRONG".

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 14, 2009 2:24 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Q5 Interview - Roland Schimmelbauer, Toshiba Electronics

Roland Schimmelbauer.JPG
The latest Q5 interview is now online, with the VP of European sales & marketing for Toshiba Electronics Europe.

Roland Schimmelbauer talks to Electronics Weekly about business opportunities in 2009, how Toshiba is addressing power efficiency, a key technology for the next 12 months, and consolidation in the Japanese semiconductor industry...

The five questions this week are:

1. How have changes in the market affected Toshiba's position as one of the world's biggest NAND flash suppliers?

2. Power efficiency is the industry watch-word right now. What are the main tools and capabilities a chip maker such as Toshiba has to address this in its products?
 

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 14, 2009 1:01 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 16, 2009

An Engineer in Wonderland - DAB nightmare

 

An Engineer in Wonderland has a new home. You can find this particular entry here. If you wish to leave a comment, please do that on the new blog.

 

Alexandra Palace mast.jpg

I use my DAB radio every day.

And I just bought another one, for my workshop.

So I must be a fan. 

Or at least not a detractor.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 16, 2009 4:02 PM | | Comments (11) | TrackBacks (0)

July 20, 2009

Samsung ties up Blockbuster service for HDTV

Samsung Blockbuster.jpgThis one caught my eye over the weekend - one for our Digital Life category. It has the sniff of the future about it, with increasing integration of Net functionality into high-end TVs.

Thanks to Coated.com for this one (note the deal itself is in America, not the UK)
Samsung Electronics America and Blockbuster have struck a deal that will allow Blockbuster to offer movie rentals through Samsung's next generation of high-definition televisions.
This move is being done in an effort to gain some ground on the movie rental service, Netflix. Users will be able to access digital rentals via the Internet, just using their televisions remote control and a built-in feature in the television itself.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 20, 2009 12:39 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 22, 2009

Openness and Linux unlocking mobile innovation

LiMo Shikiar thumbnail.jpgIf you haven't done so already, check out our Open Source Engineering blog, which covers the use of Linux in embedded applications. The strapline is:
"Observations from the coal face of Open Source Engineering, bringing Linux and GNU software to embedded environments, whether for industrial, automotive or mobile applications."
The latest addition is a 3-part series, courtesy of Andrew Shikiar, Director of Global Marketing of LiMo Foundation. Check out the three posts:

Continue reading "Openness and Linux unlocking mobile innovation" »

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 22, 2009 11:43 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 27, 2009

Kingston squeezes 256GB into memory stick

Kingston DT300 jpg.jpgGot £565.67 spare? Fancy a little memory stick? Well, what about Kingston's new flash drive?

The standard-sized Data Traveller 300 has a capacity of 256GB. Staggering. That's almost 10 times the capacity of my (six-year old) Samsung X05 laptop. The power of miniaturisation.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 27, 2009 8:26 AM | | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

July 23, 2009

YouTube goes 3D



Another one for the Digital Life category: YouTube is now supporting 3D videos (3D glasses still required, of course). Google writes:
First there was 1953's 3D thriller "House of Wax," then there was the Michael Jackson adventure "Captain EO," and this summer there are at least three major motion pictures in 3D. The format is exploding in popularity, and already there are countless 3D videos on YouTube. We wanted to make it easier for you to watch and enjoy them in a variety of formats, since having a 3D experience usually requires special glasses or viewing techniques.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 23, 2009 10:27 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

AMD ships its 500 millionth x86 processor

AMD_logo_us-en.gif
One for the history books: AMD claims to have shipped its 500 millionth x86 processor, whether for laptop, desktop or server.

Not sure who has been counting to this exact date - and no one is reporting whether the 500 millionth was a mighty Opteron or humble Sempron. Or even where it was was sold... Barcelona, Congo, Newcastle, Manilla, Windsor...?

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 23, 2009 3:22 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 24, 2009

Weird & Wireless: Can batteries be left out in the cold?

battery black.jpgWelcome again to the new series of posts on Electro-ramblings concerning the wonderful but sometimes weird world of wireless comms, written by Joel Young, CTO of Digi International

Why are we told to store batteries in the refrigerator to preserve them even though battery life seems so poor when electronics are left out in the cold?

The thing I love about batteries is that they seem so utterly unpredictable and even nonsensical - as if to defy all logic - but once you understand their true nature, they make perfect sense. The first thing we must remember is that all batteries are little chemical power generators - as such, they are subject more to the rules of chemistry than they are electromagnetics.

One of the common laws of chemistry is that reactions generally speed up when they get warm and slow down when they get cold. Such is the life of a battery.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 24, 2009 10:31 AM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

July 28, 2009

Q5 Interview - Wes Hansford, The MOSIS Service

Wes Hansford - Mosis.jpgThe latest Q5 interview is now online, with the Director of the The MOSIS Service, a US-based independent service provider with access to the fabrication of MPWs, prototypes and low volume production quantities of analogue and mixed signal ICs.

Wes Hansford talks to Electronics Weekly about the most popular processes, which processes and applications show most promise for the future, and where he is seeing growth...

The five questions this week are:

1. What are the most popular processes and why?

2. What processes and applications show most promise for the future and why?

Continue reading "Q5 Interview - Wes Hansford, The MOSIS Service" »

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 28, 2009 4:42 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 29, 2009

Test & Measurement Zone launches

T&M Zone logo 200.jpg
If you work in the area of test and measurement, be sure to bookmark our T&M Zone, a new topic-specific element of the site.

Richard Wilson, editor of Electronics Weekly, curates the page, selecting news, comment and analysis relevant to the subject, which sits alongside RSS feeds of the latest products and news. Don't miss the latest developments.

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 29, 2009 3:32 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 30, 2009

Weird & Wireless: What's the deal with electronics and radios on airplanes?

Quantas aircraft.jpgWelcome again to the wonderful but sometimes weird world of wireless comms, written by Joel Young, CTO of Digi International
I must admit I was somewhat reluctant to address this topic because there has already been a lot written and I fly a lot and I definitely don't want to offend anyone trying to keep me safe on an airplane.

Nonetheless, I was encouraged by one of my co-workers today as we pondered many of life's mysteries. So for those of you who fly, you know that that there are at least a couple of things that are puzzling about electronics usage (or maybe more).

First the flight safety speech says that during the flight, once it is declared safe, you are not allowed to use "televisions, radios, cell phones or any other electronics that operate in a transmit mode."

Continue reading "Weird & Wireless: What's the deal with electronics and radios on airplanes?" »

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Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com on July 30, 2009 10:30 AM | | Comments (13) | TrackBacks (0)

About July 2009

This page contains all entries posted to Electro-ramblings in July 2009. They are listed from oldest to newest.

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