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Board-level EMI shielding: DIY in minutes

ProtoShield sheets from Tech-Etch are depth-etched with a checkerboard pattern for folding, so they can be easily formed into many diverse configurations. In the product-development stage, fully functional shields can be created in minutes with just a pair of scissors and a straight edge for folding. Offered in two sizes: standard (.25-in. squares) and metric (5-mm squares). Both versions are solderable and corrosion resistant due to nickel silver material. Shield prototypes can be directly soldered to the board, or shield clips can be used for easy mounting. Samples available.
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Isolated probing tech for fast-switching power device testing

Keysight Technologies has developed an optically isolated differential probing family dedicated to enhancing efficiency and performance testing of fast-switching devices such as wide-bandgap GaN and SiC semiconductors. Validation of floating half-bridge and full-bridge architectures commonly used in power conversion, motor drives, and inverters requires measurement of small differential signals riding on high common-mode voltages. This measurement can be challenging due to voltage source fluctuations relative to ground, noise interference, and safety concerns.
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Protect sensitive electronics in explosive environments with new aluminum ATEX Cabinet Cooler Systems

EXAIR's ATEX Cabinet Cooler^® Systems deliver a powerful and affordable solution for keeping electrical enclosures cool in hazardous ATEX classified areas -- and they're now available in durable aluminum construction. Engineered for use in Zones 2 and 22, these coolers are UL tested, CE compliant, and meet stringent ATEX standards for purged and pressurized enclosures. With cooling capacities up to 5,600 Btu/Hr., ATEX Cabinet Coolers are ideal for preventing overheating in electrical cabinets. EXAIR offers a comprehensive lineup of systems.
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PLC handbook chock full of must-know information

Automation-Direct's Practical Guide to Program-mable Logic Controllers Handbook has been improved with tons of new need-to-know info, making it a more comprehensive guide to the world of PLCs. Besides covering the basics of PLC history, PLC hardware, and PLC software, this guide takes you deeper into the ever-changing world of PLC communication, the importance of feedback loops, cyber security, and many other areas that are a must-know for any PLC novice or seasoned automation professional.
Get this great resource today.

Haptic feedback prototyping kit from TDK

Get your customers to feel the difference your products make. TDK has released a development starter kit for fast haptics prototyping. It gives mechanical designers and engineers first impressions of the haptic feedback using PowerHap piezo actuators, shows how the mechanical integration works, and provides a reference design. Applications include automotive, displays and tablets, household appliances, vending machines, game controllers, industrial equipment, and medical devices.
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Mini ESD preset torque screwdriver

Need precision fastening with ESD protection at the smallest torque levels? Mountz has you covered. The new FG Mini ESD Preset Torque Screwdriver is built for low-torque, high-precision tasks. Its compact design makes it ideal for tight spaces and small fasteners, while delivering the same reliable control and ESD protection users have come to expect from Mountz. Two models available: FG25z (3 to 25 ozf.in, 2 to 17.7 cN-m) and FG50z (20 to 50 ozf.in, 14.1 to 35.3 cN-m).
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Laumas load cells and electronics from AutomationDirect

Automation-Direct has added Laumas precision-engineered load cells, transmitters, and accessories that deliver reliable performance in industrial weighing and force measurement applications. The FCAL series high-precision bending beam load cells are ideal for low- to mid-capacity systems. CTL series load cells are designed for both tension and compression, with excellent linearity. The CBL series low-profile compression load cells are perfect for space-limited applications. Laumas load cell transmitters are available too for precise monitoring and control. Very good pricing.
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Engineer's Toolbox: What is ground loop feedback?

Improper grounding can create problems in data logging, data acquisition, and measurement and control systems. One of the most common problems is known as ground loop feedback. Experts at CAS DataLoggers run through five ways to eliminate this problem.
Read the full article.

What is a braking resistor?

According to Automation-Direct, "Braking resistors don't actually provide braking directly -- rather, they allow a drive to stop a loaded motor faster." Why is this important? Protect your AC or DC drive system from regenerative voltage that can create an over-voltage fault on the drive -- especially with high inertial loads or rapid deceleration.
View the video.

New Digital Static Meter: Precise measurement, easy use

Static electricity isn't just a nuisance; it's a serious threat to manufacturing efficiency, product integrity, and workplace safety. Unchecked static can lead to costly downtime, product defects, material jams, and even hazardous shocks to employees. If static is interfering with your processes, EXAIR's upgraded Model 7905 Digital Static Meter offers an essential first step in identifying and eliminating the problem. With just the press of a button, this easy-to-use, handheld device pinpoints the highest voltage areas in your facility, helping you diagnose static issues before they become a problem.
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New laser cutting modulating strategy tested with Mikrotron high-speed camera

Modulating a laser beam's intensity distribution optimizes energy delivery to the process zone, resulting in better cutting speed, cut edge quality, and cut kerf geometry. Scientists in Belgium have come up with a new method that they say produces better cutting results.
Read the full article.

All-in-one embedded PLC based on Raspberry Pi 4 -- build control applications

The new PLC CPI-PS10CM4 from Contec Co. is a compact embedded programmable logic controller (PLC) that is loaded with CODESYS, the world's most widely used software PLC. This product uses Contec's original single-board computer, which is based on Raspberry Pi's latest embedded module, the Compute Module 4 (CM4). By using the wide range of peripheral devices for Raspberry Pi, such as Contec's CPI Series, you can build various control applications in a PLC language that complies with the IEC 61131-3 international standard.
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Torque sensors for fastening applications and more

Saelig Company has introduced the Sensor Technology SGR525/526 Series Torque Sensors to provide precision torque monitoring that is critical for performance and safety. The square drive design (for applications with non-cylindrical shafts) allows for seamless integration into power tools, test rigs, industrial machinery, and precision fastening applications, ensuring superior torque measurement without the need for additional adapters or modifications. The SGR525 offers torque measurement only, while the SGR526 provides torque, speed, and power measurement using a 360-pulse-per-revolution encoder. Industries include automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, and research and development.
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Wide-angle camera optimized for larger, faster conveyor belts

Wider conveyor belts operating at higher speeds are now commonplace in modern logistics. To keep up, SVS-Vistek is offering a cost-effective alternative to multi-camera systems with its fxo901CXGE 10-GigE color camera featuring the Sony IMX901-AQR wide-aspect global shutter 16.4-megapixel CMOS sensor. Unlike standard cameras, this unit captures targets in a wide field of view while maintaining high resolutions. The 4:1 horizontal aspect ratio allows one fxo901CXGE to replace an entire multi-camera system, removing the need for image synchronization.
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Handheld thermal imager cuts diagnostic time

The FLIR TG268 is a next-generation thermal imager that provides professionals in the utility, manufacturing, electrical, automotive, and industrial sectors with a lightweight, handheld, affordable condition monitoring tool. Latest enhancements include higher temperature ranges, improved resolution, and larger data storage capacity. Go beyond the restrictions of single-spot IR thermometers to view and evaluate hot and cold spots that may signify potentially dangerous issues. Accurately measure temps from -25 to 400 C. Native thermal images improved with Super Resolution upscaling.
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New study shows analog computing can solve complex equations and use far less energy

UMass Amherst research demonstrates that a memristor device can solve complex scientific problems using significantly less energy, overcoming one of the major hurdles of digital computing.

A team of researchers including University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) engineers has proven their analog computing device, called a memristor, can complete complex, scientific computing tasks while bypassing the limitations of digital computing.

An exemplar photograph of an integrated chip containing memristor crossbar arrays of various sizes made at UMass Amherst. [Credit: Image taken by Can Li and provided by Qiangfei Xia]

 

 

 

 

Many of today's important scientific questions, from nanoscale material modeling to large-scale climate science, can be explored using complex equations. However, today's digital computing systems are reaching their limit for performing these computations in terms of speed, energy consumption, and infrastructure.

Qiangfei Xia, UMass Amherst professor of electrical and computer engineering and one of the corresponding authors of the research published in Science, explains that, with current computing methods, every time you want to store information or give a computer a task, it requires moving data between memory and computing units. With complex tasks moving larger amounts of data, you essentially get a processing "traffic jam" of sorts.

One way traditional computing has aimed to solve this is by increasing bandwidth. Instead, Xia and his colleagues at UMass Amherst, the University of Southern California, and computing technology maker TetraMem have implemented in-memory computing with analog memristor technology as an alternative that can avoid these bottlenecks by reducing the number of data transfers.

The team's in-memory computing relies on an electrical component called a memristor -- a combination of memory and resistor. A memristor controls the flow of electrical current in a circuit, while also "remembering" the prior state, even when the power is turned off, unlike today's transistor-based computer chips, which can only hold information while there is power. The memristor device can be programmed into multiple resistance levels, increasing the information density in one cell.

When organized into a crossbar array, such a memristive circuit does analog computing by using physical laws in a massively parallel fashion, substantially accelerating matrix operation, the most frequently used -- but very power-hungry -- computation in neural networks. The computing is performed at the site of the device, rather than moving the data between memory and processing. Using the traffic analogy, Xia compares in-memory computing to the nearly empty roads seen at the height of the pandemic: "You eliminated traffic because [nearly] everybody worked from home," he says. "We work simultaneously, but we only send the important data/results out."

Previously, these researchers demonstrated their memristor can complete low-precision computing tasks such as machine learning. Other applications have included analog signal processing, radiofrequency sensing, and hardware security.

"In this work, we propose and demonstrate a new circuit architecture and programming protocol that can efficiently represent high-precision numbers using a weighted sum of multiple, relatively low-precision analog devices, such as memristors, with a greatly reduced overhead in circuitry, energy, and latency compared with existing quantization approaches," says Xia.

"The breakthrough for this particular paper is that we push the boundary further," Xia adds. "This technology is not only good for low-precision, neural network computing, but it can also be good for high-precision, scientific computing."

For the proof-of-principle demonstration, the memristor solved static and time-evolving partial differential equations, Navier-Stokes equations, and magnetohydrodynamics problems.

"We pushed ourselves out of our own comfort zone," Xia says, expanding beyond the low-precision requirements of edge computing neural networks to high-precision scientific computing.

It took over a decade for the UMass Amherst team and collaborators to design a proper memristor device and build sizable circuits and computer chips for analog in-memory computing.

"Our research in the past decade has made analog memristor a viable technology. It is time to move such a great technology into the semiconductor industry to benefit the broad AI [artificial intelligence] hardware community," Xia says.

Source: University of Massachusetts Amherst

Published March 2024

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