Electronic Design UPDATE: August 27, 2003

Aug. 27, 2003
Editor's View -- Innovation Will Get Us Past The Industry Downturn by Dave Bursky, Editor-at-Large. The downturn that we have lived through during the last three years has been the longest and deepest that the electronics industry has ever experienced...
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Electronic Design UPDATE e-Newsletter Electronic Design Magazine PlanetEE ==> http://www.planetee.com August 27, 2003

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*************************ADVERTISEMENT************************** Don't Miss the Intel Developer Forum, Sept. 16-18. Register now and pay only $995! San Jose McEnery Convention Center, San Jose, California Register today at http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BBq80AG * See technologies and products up-close and in-person * Attend interactive hands-on labs * Exchange ideas with fellow technology leaders As a valued subscriber to Electronic Design, register now using price code CRNBDE and receive the special pre-conference rate of $995. Take advantage of this offer today. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BBq80AG **************************************************************** HOT TIP: Visit our recently redesigned Web site, www.elecdesign.com, where the power of Electronic Design is a mouse click away! Read our Web exclusives, discover Featured Vendors, access our archives, share viewpoints in our Forums, explore our e-newsletters, and more. ATTENTION! ATTENTION! ATTENTION! Ballot For Electronic Design's ENGINEERING HALL OF FAME It's time to elect the Class Of 2003 to our Engineering Hall Of Fame. Be sure to cast your vote for the individuals you believe should be inducted this year. Last year, you elected many of the giants in our industry, led by William Hewlett and David Packard, who had the highest vote tally of all nominees. Here's your opportunity to determine the inductees who will become the Class Of 2003. Our online ballot allows you to vote for as many nominees as you deem worthy and to name your own candidates, too. Engineering Hall Of Fame ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCGG0Ao And be sure to participate in our current QUICK POLL: Mark David, Editor-in-Chief, would like to know if you suffer from Loud Music Dependency Disorder (LMDD). Take the QUICK POLL or e-mail Mark at mailto:[email protected] Go to http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ03Hf0Ay Today's Table of Contents: 1. Editor's View Innovation Will Get Us Past The Industry Downturn 2. Focus On DSP * Next-Generation Processor Boosts Peformance, Support Functions 3. News From The Editors * Wi-Fi Antenna Tunes Into Manufacturing, Warehousing * Audio IP Brokerage Shares Product Development And Business Risk * Embedded Java Database Supports Multiple Connections * Clock Resequencer And Universal Logic Gates Handle 10-Gbit/s Data 4. Upcoming Industry Events * Intel Developers Forum * IEEE System-On-Chip Conference * IEEE Custom Integrated Circuits Conference * International Wireless Symposium * Symposium on Global Business Issues in Semiconductors and Nanotechnology * Sensors Expo & Conference * Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT 5. Magazine Highlights: August 18, 2003 issue * Cover Feature: Success Story -- Satellite Radio Gets Serious * Leapfrog: Industry First -- Pre-Layout Tool Boosts Yield For Analog Circuits * Technology Report -- Integrated Development Environments: The Ties That Bind * Design View / Design Solution -- Rev Up Designs With Resistor-Programmable Oscillators Edited by John Novellino ********************** 1. Editor's View -- Exclusive to Electronic Design UPDATE ********************** Innovation Will Get Us Past The Industry Downturn By Dave Bursky, Editor-at-Large The downturn that we have lived through during the last three years has been the longest and deepest that the electronics industry has ever experienced. Yet through all the belt tightening and staff cutbacks, one aspect of the industry has remained a steady beacon pointing at recovery -- innovation. After attending a number of technical conferences this month, I am more convinced than ever that innovation is our lifeblood in this industry. Although advances in digital technology often seem to take the spotlight, I see innovative products being introduced in every area, from chip design tools to cooling systems to novel high-frequency interconnection schemes. These innovations will drive the industry forward, providing the impetus needed for companies to update their designs and bring forth new generations of systems that do more, cost less, and consume less power. For instance, advances in high-performance digital circuits and systems at the Hot Chips and Hot Interconnects Conferences at Stanford University provided a look not only at some of the latest processors, but also at some of the system architectures and interconnect schemes that will allow designers to leverage the high-performance devices. Some of the high-speed processors described at Hot Chips include two of the second-generation Itanium chips from Intel that pack over 400 million transistors, a dual-CPU UltraSPARC processor from Sun Microsystems, the next-generation Power5 architecture from IBM Corp., and a 600-MHz vector DSP chip designed by newcomer Telairity. But chips weren't the only focus at the conferences. For example, Cray Computer presented the architecture of a 10,000-node computer system while researchers from Los Alamos Labs described a network designed to link computers for supercomputing applications. At the Hot Interconnects conference that followed Hot Chips, a presentation from Princeton University illustrated a wave-pipelined on-chip interconnect scheme to create on-chip networks that greatly improve on-chip data movement. And, researchers from Georgia Tech described a way to use network processors as building blocks in overlay networks to dynamically customize stream handling and reduce delays in the data paths, improving overall performance. But not every innovation has to do with silicon. At last month's Semicon show in San Francisco, for instance, W.L. Gore & Associates demonstrated a trackless flat cable assembly that eliminates the need for a moveable cable track to hold the cable in controlled-motion applications. This reduces particulate generation, weight, and much of the vibration caused by the cable tracks. Process equipment can then run smoother and cleaner, and that should improve chip yields. Innovation is everywhere, whether it's a multimillion dollar chip design or a few thousand dollars for a cable assembly. Creating innovative products and leveraging them will be the key to building a better future. To comment on this Editor's View, go to Reader Comments at the foot of the Web page http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEH0An ********************** 2. Focus On DSP ********************** ***Next-Generation Processor Boosts Peformance, Support Functions The TriCore 2 from Infineon Technologies expands on the TriCore 1's unified DSP/control instruction set to provide optional support for multithreaded instruction streams, an optional floating-point computational unit, and improved coprocessor support. A deeper six-stage pipeline allows the core to operate at higher speeds -- typically 400 to 500 MHz for a hard-core implementation at 0.13 microns. (However, the deeper pipeline may require that control code written for the original TriCore be recompiled; DSP code can be reused.) The hard macro core -- consisting of the processor, the memory management unit, the multithreading extension, the floating-point unit, and 160 kbytes of RAM -- occupies just eight square millimeters and consumes only 0.5 mW/MHz from a 1.5-V supply. At 400 MHz, the processor executes about 600 MIPS and 800 million multiply-accumulates (MMACs). Performance scales up or down at the rate of 1.5 MIPS/MHz and 2 MMACs/MHz. The core employs a 64-bit crossbar interface that allows multiple blocks of intellectual property to connect to the core with minimal delay. Infineon Technologies ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0oxR0AS ********************** 3. News -- From The Editors ********************** ***Wi-Fi Antenna Tunes Into Manufacturing, Warehousing Wi-Fi, or 802.11b, wireless local-area networks are widely used in industrial wireless applications like inventory control, logistics, shipping and receiving, and security. However, this indoor environment presents challenges to system designers because of a myriad of multipath and attenuation problems. The MegaSphere antenna is designed for just such applications. The antenna operates over the 2.4- to 2.5-GHz range. It has a cylindrical form factor, vertical polarization, and a peak input power of 50 W. It can be mounted in the open air or in environments with high ceilings. The drive impedance is 50 ohms. A choice of coax connectors is offered, including RP-TNC, N-female, SMA male, or RP-BNC. Centurion Wireless Technologies Inc. ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEI0Ao ***Audio IP Brokerage Shares Product Development And Business Risk Sensaura, an audio development and licensing company, has created an audio intellectual property (IP) brokerage. According to the company, this brokerage will be the largest of its kind. In this venture, Sensaura plans to share product development risk with customers by using a transparent, royalty-based licensing model. Working as a consultant, the company will collaborate with the customer during its product development to integrate an audio solution. The client will then be charged a quarterly licensing fee based on sales. Sensaura is targeting applications in the automotive, consumer, and communications sectors. Sensaura's IP products range from implementations of discrete algorithms such as Dolby and MPEG decoders to complete audio IP solutions such as audio watermarking, text-to-speech, and voice recognition. Sensaura Ltd. ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEJ0Ap ***Embedded Java Database Supports Multiple Connections Embedded Java programmers get a leg up with PointBase 4.6. This small-footprint SQL database product line includes PointBase Embedded, Micro, and Unisync. PointBase Micro is designed for J2ME environments. The latest version includes enhancements such as single JVM support for multiple database connections and optional password authentication. Contact PointBase for licensing details. PointBase Inc. ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEK0Aq ***Clock Resequencer And Universal Logic Gates Handle 10-Gbit/s Data Able to handle timing for 7- or 10.7-Gbit/s data streams, the SY58052U precision data-to-clock resynchonizer accepts a serial data input and generates a CML-compatible output data stream that is synchronized to the rising edge of the input reference clock. With random/deterministic jitter of less than 1 ps rms and less than 10 ps p-p, the device is optimized for communications, backplane retiming, and signal restoration applications. A second chip, the SY58051U, is a low-jitter "AnyGate" device that operates as fast as the SY58052U and can produce any logic function of two Boolean variables (AND, NAND, OR, NOR, Delay, Negation), or can be configured as a 2:1 multiplexer. The chips are fabricated in the company's silicon-germanium process technology and come in 3- by 3-mm 16-contact MLF packages. They operate from a 2.5- or 3.3-V supply and are guaranteed to function from -40 degrees C to 85 degrees C in the industrial temperature range. In lots of 1000, the SY58051/52U cost $8.33 each. Micrel Semiconductor ==> http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0qFZ0Am ********************** 4. Upcoming Industry Events ********************** Sept. 16-18, Intel Developers Forum, San Jose, Calif. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BBrI0AY Sept. 17-20, IEEE System-On-Chip Conference, Portland, Ore. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEL0Ar Sept. 21-24, IEEE Custom Integrated Circuits Conference, San Jose, Calif. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEM0As Sept. 22-23, International Wireless Symposium, San Diego, Calif. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEN0At Sept. 22-24, Third Annual Symposium on Global Business Issues in Semiconductors and Nanotechnology, Lake George, N.Y. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEO0Au Sept. 22-25, Sensors Expo & Conference, Anaheim, Calif. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEP0Av Sept. 24-25, Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT, Cambridge, Mass. http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ087a0Ah ********************** 5. Magazine Highlights ********************** In case you missed them, here are some of the high points of our most recent issue, August 18, 2003. * Cover Feature: Success Story -- Satellite Radio Gets Serious Sirius Satellite Radio delivers 100 channels of CD-quality music, sports, and news to auto and home receivers. * Leapfrog: Industry First -- Pre-Layout Tool Boosts Yield For Analog Circuits Why wait until first silicon to find out that you have a yield problem? Here's a tool that uses manufacturing data to address transistor sizing before layout. * Technology Report -- Integrated Development Environments: The Ties That Bind Changing development tools can often be more difficult than changing target processors, so the benefits must be significant. * Design View / Design Solution -- Rev Up Designs With Resistor-Programmable Oscillators For the complete Table of Contents, go to http://lists.planetee.com/cgi-bin3/DM/y/ecXE0DJhUf0EmQ0BCEQ0Aw

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CONTACTS: Electronic Design UPDATE e-NEWSLETTER

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Editorial: Lucinda Mattera, Associate Chief Editor: mailto:[email protected] Advertising/Sponsorship Opportunities: Bill Baumann, Associate Publisher: mailto:[email protected]

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