Headed to Embedded World?
Author: EIS Release Date: Mar 17, 2023
Embedded World returns to its more conventional diary slot (14-16 March) in Nuremberg, Germany. There are exhibitors in halls 1, 2, 3, 3A, 4 and 4A, covering application software and systems, embedded design, IC and IP design, M2M, safety and security, displays and startups. Caroline Hayes has curated some highlights to look for.
One of the themes for Embedded World is connectivity – the parallel conference programme includes a keynote by Daniel Cooley, CTO, Silicon Labs Charting the Connected Future, as well as sessions around LoRaWAN, time sensitive networking, IoT management and use cases, Bluetooth and 5G.
Several of these topics are addressed by four industrial grade single pair Ethernet devices to be introduced by Microchip Technology. The LAN8650 and LAN8651 10BASE-T1S MAC-PHY Ethernet controllers with serial peripheral interface and the LAN937x and LAN938x Gb Ethernet TSN switches with integrated 100BASE-T1 phys are for connecting edge IIoT devices to the cloud. Microchip says they reduce the cost and complexity of IIoT edge devices and support high speed, Ethernet-everywhere architectures.
The LAN8650 and LAN8651 10BASE-T1S mac-phy Ethernet controllers enable the use of basic microcontrollers when creating network devices, for example, sensors and actuators. The low speed devices do not need their own communication system and are connected to a standard Ethernet system via the company’s mac-phys and use simple, twisted-pair wiring.
For the higher bandwidth of industrial applications, the LAN937x and LAN938x Gb Ethernet TSN switches have integrated 100BASE-T1 phys and include hardware time-stamping features to support TSN, including IEEE 802.1AS (gPTP) and IEEE 1588v2 (PTP). For energy efficiency, they include “ultra-deep” sleep power-down with remote wake for battery applications.
The industrial grade 100BASE-T1 devices reduce cost, wiring and installation complexity because they span from device to server, says Charles Forni, vice-president of Microchip’s USB and networking business unit. They are also designed for operation in harsh environmental conditions and across an expanded temperature range.
Microchip will announce supporting network analysis tools and evaluation boards, the LAN8651 EVB and EVB-LAN9383. Microchip’s MPLAB Harmony 3 software includes configure, debug and program designs. The MPLAB Network Creator provides an intuitive graphical interface for switch configuration.
Microchip – 3A-443
The partnership between Aries Embedded and software developer Emdalo Technologies will be highlighted at the former’s stand. The pair have jointly developed embedded modules based on Microchip’s PolarFire SoC architecture. According to Aries’ MD, Andreas Widder, the PolarFire SoC was chosen because it combines a 64-bit Risc-V multicore processor subsystem with low-power FPGA technology.
The M100PF and M100PFS system on modules (SoMs) are based on the PolarFire FPGA architecture. They are described as embedded systems for secure, power-efficient computation in smart embedded vision, industrial automation, communications and the IoT.
The M100PF SoM family implements the PolarFire FPGA and is available with 100K logic elements (LEs) to 300K LEs. It features 12.7G transceivers and offers up to 50% lower power than competing mid-range FPGAs, claims Aries.
The M100PFS SoM integrates a hardened real-time, Linux-capable, Risc-V-based MPU subsystem on the mid-range PolarFire SoC-FPGA family, for low power consumption, thermal efficiency and defence-grade security, said the company.
Evaluation platforms for both SoMs are available.
Aries Embedded – 1-110
Following the ratification of the COM-HPC Mini module specification, congatec will present modules with 13th generation Intel Core processors (codenamed Raptor Lake) in Nuremberg. The company will showcase the Mini modules alongside its COM-HPC SoM (server on modules) down to the new, credit card-sized (95mmx60mm) COM-HPC CoM (client on modules). The latest PICMG standard is designed for applications where space is limited, such as DIN rail PCs or tablet devices. It brings a performance boost and high speed interfaces for migration without significant modification of the system design or housing, says congatec.
congatec COM-HPC Computer-on-Modules
Visitors will also see congatec’s CoMs with 13th generation Intel Core processors on COM-HPC Client Size A and Size C. Its COM Express 3.1-compliant modules, also with 13th generation Intel Core processors, can serve as upgrade options with PCIe Gen 4 support for higher data throughput.
congatec – 3-241
Another proponent of COM-HPC modules is Adlink. It will also be demonstrating its COM Express and COM-HPC modules.
The company will introduce a discrete graphics card on the embedded MXM form factor, the MXM-AXe. It integrates the latest Intel ARC A-series graphics processor for mobile (code-named Alchemist).
There will also be an AI camera development kit for prototyping and testing edge AI vision systems. Hardware and software are installed for ease of use and there is a range of interfaces, including DI/O, COM and LAN ports, and optional accessories. The GUI-based development tool provides a low-code environment with software tools for labelling and training, and two open-source selected models so users can build a proof-of- concept model without AI expertise, says the company.
There will be a live autonomous driving proof-of-concept demonstration with a car that combines camera-lidar fusion, the RQS-59G ROS2-enabled embedded robotic controller and the AVA-3510 AI-enabled in-vehicle autonomous driving computer. It meets autonomous driving applications from levels 1 to 4, says Adlink. The company will demonstrate its customisation services for production-grade autonomous driving with an integrated liquid cooling system.
Adlink – 3-147
Distributor Arrow Electronics is using this year’s show to demonstrate its support for innovative embedded designs. Its stand will have areas dedicated to core technologies for system design and deployment and there will be presentations on trends in semiconductors, interconnect, passives and electromechanical components. There will be presentations on topics such as renewable energy, electrification of everything and AIoT.
There will also be the JetCarrier96 reference design, which will be generally available from mid-March. The 96Boards enterprise edition-compliant carrier board for the Nvidia Jetson family of SoMs uses a standard microATX form factor and works with power supplies, chassis and desktop computer peripherals that are commonly available so prototyping is not delayed by sourcing. The board is designed with card slots and connectors to support peripherals and sensors and is intended to accelerate the design of custom carrier boards for autonomous machines, intelligent vision, diagnostic healthcare imaging and AIoT.
Arrow – 3A-135
Test & measurement
A number of industry firsts are claimed for the MXO 4 series oscilloscopes by Rohde & Schwarz. They are equipped with a 13.3in full HD capacitive touchscreen and are believed to offer the fastest real-time update rate at more than 4.5m acquisitions per second. They have a 12-bit ADC, which is claimed to have 16 times the resolution of traditional 8-bit oscilloscopes at all sample rates and with no trade-offs for more precise measurements, says the company. Standard acquisition memory is 400Mpoints on all four channels, which provides 100 times the standard memory of comparable oscilloscopes.
The R&S MXO 4 oscilloscopes are available in 200MHz, 350MHz, 500MHz, 1GHz, and 1.5GHz bandwidths models.
Rohde & Schwarz – 4-218
Power management
Embedded World will be the European launchpad for Qorvo’s entry into the battery management system sector. The company will introduce the first two devices in its Power Application Controller (PAC) range, the PAC22140 and PAC25140. Both have the same analogue blocks, but different processing power, memory and communication and interface options. The controllers are intended for use in high power, that is, 10 to 20 cells in a string up to 100V, for example, large power tools and garden machinery.
The company will pre-announce a 5mΩ fet TOLL, which will be officially launched at APEC in Florida, US, the following week. The 750V, 5.4mΩ (at 25°C) SiC fet is in an industry-standard TO-leadless (TOLL) package. It is claimed to have the lowest RDS(on) fet available in a TOLL package of all power semiconductors (Si, SiC and GaN) and 75% lower RDS(on) than its nearest 600/650V-class competition fet in a TOLL package.