Embedded Systems

An Arduino-based GPS/GLONASS vehicle tracker developed by Tigal is on the Indiegogo crowd-funding website. This is the second version of the firm’s OpenTracker system, which is an open source commercial grade GPS/GLONASS vehicle tracker that comes with a free web interface for tracking it on Googlemaps or OpenStreetMaps. Designed for the tracking of single vehicles or larger fleets simultaneously, the system can be used to track ...

Alpha Micro Components is creating a suite of tools for designing human-machine interfaces (HMIs) using FTDI Chip’s novel EVE embedded graphics controller chips – both the original FT800 and the new FT801 which adds capacitive touch. FTDI’s EVE chips are novel because they allow 8bit microcontrollers to drive an animated graphics display, and they don’t need video memory. Instead, images ...

Undo Software of Cambridge, the reversible debugging tool specialist and Gartner ‘Cool Vendor’, has adopted a new way of licensing its software which it calls UndoDB Out-and-About.

The field-oriented control (FOC) approach offers many advantages compared to other control strategies used with electric motors. Among the most significant benefits is the fact that FOC offers precise control features based on torque and speed. However, the sensor required by conventional field-oriented control schemes leads to cost increases and limited freedom for designers. InstaSpin-FOC combined with the FAST software ...

A European project to create a heterogeneous multi-core platform which can be reconfigured as a processor-based system for surveillance drones or driverless cars will present its results in Munich next month. The FlexTiles project was launched in 2011 by a consortium of industries, universities and RTOs co-ordinated by Thalès. The project will end in October and on 1 September in Munich will present results and offer a hands-on experience. ...

Raspberry Pi can be powered via an Ethernet connection using a 5V power over Ethernet (PoE) add-on adaptor board. It is the idea of UK-based manufacturer Silvertel which has released a circuit and PCB layout for a 5V PoE adapter board and the information is available for free download and use by any manufacturer of accessories or general hobbyists. As the adapter board can be used to power ...

The design of wearable electronics presents developers with a complex problem. Not only do these computer systems integrated into clothing and everyday objects have to be small, they must also be extremely energy efficient in order to guarantee a high degree of mobility. This also applies to the wireless components: Low-energy wireless protocols for the data transfer such as Bluetooth ...

Raspberry Pi’s graphics processor is attracting as much interest at the low cost embedded computing board’s ARM-based CPU. Both CPU and graphics processor are Broadcom chips. US-based start-up Jetpac runs image recognition software on the Raspberry Pi’s graphics processor (GPU). According to Pete Warden, chief technology officer at Jetpac, Raspberry Pi can be used for image recognition systems due to its embedded GPU for ...

The Spark Core Wi-Fi enabled, Arduino-compatible development platform is now being stocked by consumer distributor CPC. The Spart Core board, which attracted more than $500,000 in pledges on Kickstarter last year, is open source but also code-compatible with Arduino. CPC already distributes the entire Arduino range of products, as well as the recently launched Raspberry Pi model B+ board. According to senior product manager at ...

NI has introduced an embedded system development board which comes with Linux-based real-time operating system (RTOS) already integrated. The SOM (system-on-module) has a dual-core ARM processor in the Xilinx Zynq All Programmable system on a chip (SoC) with memory. But the level of software integration is significant for this type of small format harder development module. This is because it adopts the software design ...