Hello,

This week's blog is all about hardware design - a bit of a refresher from some of the recent topics I've covered. 

Op amps are an essential analog circuit component - they may be new to some of you, or a topic that's gathered cob webs over the years to where a refresher may be useful. We cover several of the basic configurations that are commonly used in such applications as analog computers, PID control systems. etc. There's also a "Quizplanation", which can be taken at any time, as many times as you want, and the answers and explanations are provided during the quiz.

We also saw potential use of the quiz and materials by educators, so I'm experimenting with providing the PDF of the article, another PDF of the quiz, and a PDF of the answers and explanations. If you find this useful for teaching, or have suggestions, please drop a note in the comments.

Also in this issue of the newsletter, Murray provides an overview of a Range Extender system that enables ICE to act as a charger for BEVs. With the rate at which batteries are evolving,the high maintenance of ICE (especially ICE that is not used much), and with the racket my buddy's EREV Volvo made as he pulled up in it (the car was at walking speed but the engine was running at around 3,000 rpm), I'm going to stick my neck out and predict that extended range automobiles will be lucky to be deployed for the next decade, if that.

As I wrote a while ago, the main value, I think, of an EREV is not technical or operational, but is a marketing tool that baits the ICE-reluctant crowd (around 25%, iirc) into seeing the value of pure BEV and bridging their adoption of BEV.

In other words, I think anthropologists will be digging up an EREV and scratching their heads on why they were ever brought into existence when central grid power plants are waaay more efficient and cleaner (yes, even coal is cleaner than an ICE). We'll see...

enjoy,

-andyT