June 14 – Day 5: Programmable Devices With a New Twist
Continuing Education Center 6/14/2013 Post a comment A few devices strike out from the familiar programmable logic territory in the search for the "next big programmable thing" (NBPT). This class will cover some of these new devices and concepts. Put on your life vest because this is white-water rapids country!
June 13 – Day 4: Fixed-Function MCUs With Programmable Fabric
Continuing Education Center 6/13/2013 Post a comment Adding fixed functions to programmable logic devices is not new, but the most recent crop of devices with fixed-function MCUs is now addressing more targeted applications. As higher-level software functions and even real-time operating systems (RTOSs) can be easily included, the device reach is extending to specific, targeted applications. This class examines the types of features included and the types of applications these devices are now targeting.
June 12 – Day 3: Programmable Analog, Part 2 & Timing
Continuing Education Center 6/12/2013 Post a comment Programmable analog functions are continued in this class along with some of the devices used for programmable timing and clock generation. This class will provide a detailed description of several of these types of devices and will show specific examples of their use.
June 11 – Day 2: Programmable Analog, Part 1
Continuing Education Center 6/11/2013 Post a comment One of the first classes of application-specific programmable logic devices combined analog circuits with digital programmable logic. These devices address the increasingly complex area of power management and similar applications. This class will provide a detailed description of several of these types of devices and will show specific examples of their use.
June 10 – Day 1: An Introduction to Application-Specific Programmable Logic Devices
Continuing Education Center 6/10/2013 Post a comment Application-specific programmable logic devices are extending the reach of programmable devices into non-traditional applications. This class will provide an overview of the various technologies used and applications being addressed by non-traditional programmable logic devices.
May 24 – Day 5: Remote & Cloud Services, Directions & Products
Continuing Education Center 5/24/2013 1 comment We will look at cloud-based services and monitoring stations that customize automation, control, security, and energy management. Distant signaling techniques all have advantages and disadvantages, and these will be examined for POTS phone lines, smartphones, and Internet cloud-based monitoring and control. Again, architecture is key, and options such as direct control vs. procedural control will be looked at. We will take a look at cloud servers and reflectors that are available.
May 23 – Day 4: Detailed Look at Wireless Technology for Automation & Control
Continuing Education Center 5/23/2013 1 comment Wireless technology is, for the first time, cost-effectively tackling some of the tough issues that have always hindered the widespread deployment of effective automation technologies. We will look at some of the emerging wireless protocols and technologies that the ISM bands make feasible for low-cost use. Advantages, as well as disadvantages and vulnerabilities, will be discussed, along with cost issues and security, especially for life-critical services.
May 22 – Day 3: Architectures & Topologies for Automation & Control
Continuing Education Center 5/22/2013 1 comment We will take a more detailed look at architectural tradeoffs between central control and distributed control. The ability to manage all traffic, all conditions, and respond in a reasonable timeframe will be examined as well as functionality that may exist when a control point is not functioning. The ability of a distributed control network to share information concurrently for higher-level decisions will be looked at.
May 21 – Day 2: Architecture Overviews
Continuing Education Center 5/21/2013 1 comment We will discuss challenges that any technological solutions face. First and foremost is cost. If any technology is too expensive, it will not catch on, even if there is eventual payback and cost advantages. Other challenges include the ability to have a unified approach that addresses both new construction and existing buildings and structures. We will also look at how automation technology reacts in emergency situations.
May 20 – Day 1: Reasons, Benefits, Advantages & Disadvantages of Automation Technology
Continuing Education Center 5/20/2013 4 comments We will begin with an introduction to home/building automation: what is it, why do we need it, how does it work, and so on. We will discuss how any solution must be cost effective and even able to provide a payback. We will also discuss how automation technology can enhance safety, security, comfort, energy efficiency, and remote monitoring and control.
May 10 - DAY 5: Medical Data Storage
Continuing Education Center 5/10/2013 233 comments With the sensitivities of medical data storage and retrieval by unauthorized persons, regulations such as the US HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) require data encryption and retrieval controls. We will look at repositories such as Health Vault and some of the issues that may affect embedded systems developers and how these may be approached.
May 9 - DAY 4: Medical Device Communications, Part 2
Continuing Education Center 5/9/2013 214 comments We continue our look at communications and data storage by examining two major standards in more detail: the Continua standard (and some of the underlying standards), and the ZigBee Heathcare Profile.
May 8 - DAY 3: Medical Device Communications, Part 1
Continuing Education Center 5/8/2013 181 comments Much is being said about the need for communications between medical instrumentation and the patient/consumer, as well as to caregivers. We will look at some of the major communication protocols and their implementation.
May 6 - DAY 1: Executive Overview: Introduction to Medical Electronics
Continuing Education Center 5/6/2013 321 comments A brief overview of the unique characteristics of medical electronics, concentrating on the sensing and measuring of biometric values. We will look at the different types and classes of medical instrumentation and what regulations and challenges apply.
April 19 – DAY 5: Energy Conversion and Management Silicon
Continuing Education Center 4/19/2013 172 comments This discussion presents various commercial devices and circuit topologies used for energy conversion and storage. We will review various silicon integrated circuit components and present some interesting commercial energy harvesting kits that students may wish to explore
April 18 – DAY 4: Energy Storage Devices
Continuing Education Center 4/18/2013 235 comments This discussion will focus on energy storage devices with emphasis on batteries, battery applications, and battery technologies. Super capacitor and large capacitor energy storage devices will be included in the lesson.
April 17 – DAY 3: Energy Generation Discussion 2
Continuing Education Center 4/17/2013 231 comments This discussion will continue our talk about energy generation devices as applied to piezoelectric, thermal, and chemical energy harvesting devices. The instructor will present various devices and review their energy production methods.
April 16 – DAY 2: Energy Generation Discussion 1
Continuing Education Center 4/16/2013 242 comments This discussion will review concepts of energy generation as applied to photoelectric, magnetic inductive, and radiated energy harvesting devices. The instructor will present various devices and review their energy production methods.
April 15 – DAY 1: Energy Review
Continuing Education Center 4/15/2013 304 comments This discussion presents a short review of energy – how it's measured and applied in low-power electronic devices. We'll discuss the promise of "free" and "inexhaustible" energy, battery-life extension, and introduce various energy generation technologies.
Apr 05 - Day 5: Universal Verification Methodology (UVM)
Continuing Education Center 4/5/2013 232 comments Because of the complexity of creating verification environment and the common elements that many of them require, a class library has been created to help jump-start a verification project. This provides a high-level overview of its structure and capabilities.
Apr 04 - Day 4: SystemVerilog
Continuing Education Center 4/4/2013 213 comments SystemVerilog is becoming a very common language for functional verification. In this segment I will provide a high-level overview of the language and its capabilities.
Apr 03 - Day 3: Verification Methodologies
Continuing Education Center 4/3/2013 264 comments There is no single right way to perform verification. It is often described as an art rather than a science. In this section we will examine the most commonly used methodologies and the ways in which progress can be measured.
Apr 02 - Day 2: Models & Model Execution
Continuing Education Center 4/2/2013 279 comments Verification is performed on models of the intended design, but those models can be at many different levels of abstraction and use different software or hardware to execute them. We will look at the major ones in use today and where they are best utilized in a design flow.
Apr 01 - Day 1: Fundamental Concepts
Continuing Education Center 4/1/2013 303 comments The functional verification of electronic systems consumes in excess of 50 percent of the time and resources for most complex chip designs, which certainly leaks into system design. On the first day, we'll define the scope for the course and examine many of the fundamental concepts, terms, and methodologies that will be expanded upon later. Whether you are designing an IC or a system, these concepts will come in handy.
March 22 - Day FIVE: Developing Low-Cost, Low-Power, Small Vision Systems
Continuing Education Center 3/22/2013 209 comments We’ll present a detailed case study of the development of a smart, automotive, rear-view camera system incorporating vision-based object detection and distance estimation. We’ll discuss the challenges associated with creating an embedded vision system that meets very demanding cost, size, power, and performance requirements. We’ll present the lessons learned during algorithm, software, and system development, and how those lessons apply to other embedded vision applications.
March 21 - Day FOUR: When to Use FPGAs to Accelerate Embedded Vision Applications
Continuing Education Center 3/21/2013 186 comments FPGAs can accelerate some image processing algorithms, while reducing latency and jitter compared to using CPUs. We’ll compare CPUs and FPGAs as embedded vision processing engines, exploring which types of vision algorithms and applications can benefit from implementation on an FPGA, and which are better suited for a CPU or other type of processor. We’ll share benchmark results comparing FPGA and CPU implementations of vision applications, and introduce high-level programming of FPGAs.
March 20 - Day THREE: Improving Image Understanding by Improving Image Quality
Continuing Education Center 3/20/2013 192 comments Cameras typically apply preprocessing algorithms to raw pixel data to generate pleasant images by compressing dynamic range. We’ll discuss how appropriate image preprocessing can ease the work of image-understanding algorithms, and how these algorithms can assist in preprocessing.
March 19 - Day TWO: Interfacing to and Processing Data From Image Sensors
Continuing Education Center 3/19/2013 216 comments Image sensors use varied hardware interfaces and output data formats, which can complicate system design and make it difficult to switch sensors. Their high output rate can overwhelm data connections and processors. Programmable logic devices can solve both problems: Their flexibility can comprehend normally incompatible interfaces, and they can accelerate common functions like color space conversion, image resizing, frame rate transformation, aspect ratio alteration, and edge detection.
March 18 - Day ONE: What Can You Do With Embedded Vision?
Continuing Education Center 3/18/2013 287 comments Embedded vision is the incorporation of computer vision techniques into embedded systems, mobile devices, PCs, and the cloud. In this session, we’ll look at some of the coolest new applications of embedded vision, such as systems that read a person’s emotional state from facial images and systems that help prevent driving accidents by monitoring the road. We’ll touch on the algorithms that enable these capabilities and the types of processors used to run those algorithms.
March 8 - Day 5: The Challenges of Using NAND Flash Memory in Embedded Systems
Continuing Education Center 3/8/2013 219 comments Designing and using firmware to access NAND flash memory is more complicated than it sounds. In this class, we will review how the limitations of NAND flash memory can be dealt with using clever software. More precisely, we will present the details of a K-associative sector translation layer.
March 7 - Day 4: Choosing the Right Storage Media
Continuing Education Center 3/7/2013 203 comments There are more new types of storage media offered every year, and making the right choice for your application is becoming more complex. In this class, you will discover the strengths and weaknesses of different technologies. We will cover the basics of different storage media types, including SD, e-MMC, NAND, NOR, PCM, and USB Mass Storage devices.
March 6 - Day 3: Balancing Performance, Safety & Resource Usage in an Embedded File System
Continuing Education Center 3/6/2013 233 comments Engineers often have to make tradeoffs when meeting the performance, safety, and cost requirements for their projects. In this session, you will learn how to choose which file system mechanisms and features to use, depending on the importance of each of these criteria for your system.
March 5 - Day 2: Understanding How the File Allocation Table (FAT) Operates
Continuing Education Center 3/5/2013 228 comments The FAT file system has become the de facto standard for data exchange between systems. It is ubiquitous on USB drives, memory cards, and other portable devices because of its wide compatibility with operating systems for personal computers. In this class, we will discuss how this industry standard works and consider its strengths and limitations.
March 4 - Day 1: Introduction to File Systems
Continuing Education Center 3/4/2013 348 comments In this introductory session, we will review some historical and theoretical information on file systems. We will also discuss the different definitions and types of file systems in order to provide a broader view of the field.
Feb 19 - Day 2 - Selecting an 8-bit Microcontroller
Continuing Education Center 2/19/2013 385 comments A technical study of different 8-bit microcontrollers and their development tools. Technical importance of the 8-bit and its controversial longevity.
Feb 18 - Day 1 - An Overview of the Microcontroller Marketplace
Continuing Education Center 2/18/2013 239 comments Viewers will understand the differences among the microcontroller, microprocessor, and (briefly) DSP markets and the common selection characteristics of reliability, packaging, and development tools.
Feb 8 - Day 5 – Bootloading CCS C Compiler Applications
Continuing Education Center 2/8/2013 259 comments The final session will focus on developing bootloadable applications using the CCS C Compiler for PIC Microcontrollers. The idea is to demonstrate the versatility of the Bootloader code by demonstrating bootloading PICBASIC PRO applications followed by bootloading and running PIC18F47J13 applications generated with the CCS C Compiler.
Feb 7 - Day 4 – Bootloading PICBASIC PRO 3.0 Applications
Continuing Education Center 2/7/2013 268 comments The fourth session will describe how to write PICBASIC PRO 3.0 applications that can be loaded via the Microchip PIC18F47J13 Bootloader. A PICBASIC PRO 3.0 driver for the NHD-02C16CZ that can be melded with the Microchip Bootloader code and PICBASIC PRO 3.0 application code will be introduced.
Feb 6 - Day 3 – Bootloader Firmware Design
Continuing Education Center 2/6/2013 249 comments The third session will concentrate on the assembly of the necessary Microchip Memory Disk Drive File System components to support the PIC18F47J13. The concepts presented in this session will be supported by working code examples. The Microchip Memory Drive File System API will also be examined.
Feb 5 - Day 2 – Bootloader Hardware Design
Continuing Education Center 2/5/2013 388 comments The second session will describe the hardware design that will be used to implement the physical components of the Microchip PIC18F47J13 Bootloader. The hardware will consist of a PIC18F47J13 that is supported by an FTDI FT232RL USB-to-UART Bridge IC and a Microchip MCP1703 3.3-volt LDO voltage regulator. A buffered microSD card carrier card and an NHD-02C16CZ 3.3-volt LCD are also part of the Bootloader hardware complement.
Feb 4 - Day 1 – Anatomy of a Microcontroller Bootloader
Continuing Education Center 2/4/2013 382 comments This first session will introduce the students to the basic firmware elements of the microchip microcontroller, Bootloader. The building blocks that make up the Microchip Bootloader will be described in detail. The firmware that supports each Bootloader building block will also be examined.
Jan 25 - Part 5. Today’s Smart Sensors
Continuing Education Center 1/25/2013 173 comments This tutorial provides information on what sensors are available today and insight into the types of sensors that are under development.
Jan 23 - Part 3. A Case Study of Smart Sensor Development.
Continuing Education Center 1/23/2013 215 comments In this tutorial, our lecturer discusses the development of a smart sensor from concept (including the physics of the base sensor) through the design tradeoffs and manufacturability issues to deployment.
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A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
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