SpringSoft has introduced two new products aimed at addressing the challenge of designing custom chips that contain both analogue and digital circuitry. Building on its expertise in automated custom design with its Laker suite of custom IC design solutions, SpringSoft has unveiled the Laker Custom Row Placer and Laker Custom Digital Router. These tools are fully compatible with the Laker Custom Layout Automation System, allowing designers to work within a single custom IC layout environment to efficiently place-and-route both digital custom cells and standard cells for either mixed-signal or custom digital designs.

Atego, the independent supplier of industrial-grade, modeling and development tools for complex, mission and safety-critical embedded systems and software, has announced the release of Aonix ObjectAda Real-Time for Windows targeting the Wind River VxWorks 653 multi-partition RTOS for PowerPC. This is the first release of the Aonix ObjectAda product with full Ada runtime support for the Wind River safety-critical platform.

Aeroflex has introduced support for MIMO (multiple-input/multiple-output) testing capabilities for its PXI 3000 Series manufacturing test system with the introduction of its new PXI 3061 module, a multiport RF combiner. The initial target application for the new module is WLAN IEEE 802.11n device testing.

As a result, the WLAN Measurement Suite software (3030 RF digitizer software option 103) has been updated to take advantage of the MIMO capabilities offered by the 3061 RF combiner. This latest release of the WLAN Measurement Suite supports testing of WLAN devices implementing up to 2x2 MIMO communications. Support for 4x4 MIMO device testing is expected later this year.

SpringSoft has introduced a powerful new methodology and ‘ease-of-use’ advancements with the release of its Certitude Functional Qualification System. The Certitude system has been designed to remove verification uncertainty and accelerate functional closure for complex intellectual property (IP) and system-on-chip (SoC) designs with automation technologies that qualify the thoroughness of verification environments and identify weaknesses that could allow bugs to go undetected.

XMOS has launched a reference design for iPhone and iPod docks, which keeps the audio signal path end-to-end digital, from the iPod or iPhone via USB to the amplifier. Implemented entirely in software, using the XMOS XS1-L1 event driven processor, the flexible design eliminates analog audio processing components making it resistant to RF interference and enabling bit-perfect digital audio streaming for highest fidelity audio performance.

Toshiba Electronics Europe’s ASIC & Foundry Business Unit has announced a new generation of technologies and services for speeding the development and reducing the cost of System-on-Chip (SoC) RF ICs. The technologies enable ICs with higher reliabilities than traditional System-in-Package (SiP) alternatives while a ‘hybrid’ ASIC / COT (customer own tooling) flow model significantly reduces development risk.

Toshiba’s latest RF-CMOS technologies and services support the integration of RF, analogue and complex digital baseband and processor functions into a single chip. As a result they are suitable for fabless chip makers looking to deliver solutions for Near Field Communications (NFC), Wide Area Networks (WANs), digital broadcast, telemetry and many other wireless communications applications.

LDRA, a provider of automated software verification, source code analysis, and test tools, has integrated the LDRA tool suite with the IAR Embedded Workbench for the PIC18, AVR, AVR32 and MSP430 microcontrollers.

IAR Embedded Workbench provides full ANSI C compliance, support for embedded C++ as well as host-controlled I/O facilities not typically available for these microcontrollers. LDRA has been able to leverage these capabilities to add static analysis, code coverage to Modified Condition/Decision Coverage (MC/DC), and requirement traceability on these resource-constrained footprints.

National Instruments has expanded its NI FlexRIO Product line with a new offering of NI FlexRIO FPGA modules for PXI Express and a new baseband transceiver adapter module. These new products offer optimised solutions for high-speed signal processing and other automated test and measurement applications. They also represent the industry’s first commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) solution with the flexibility of NI LabVIEW FPGA technology and high-speed, reconfigurable I/O (RIO) for PXI and PXI Express systems.

A range of current sensors is now available that allows Yokogawa’s family of precision power meters to be used for measuring very high currents.

Developed and manufactured by Hitec Power Protection the new Zero-Flux current sensors allow the precise measurement of currents up to several thousands of amperes - including
simultaneous measurement of AC and DC currents - while also providing accurate phase-shift information.

AVX Corporation has announced a range of upgrades to its tantalum capacitor simulation and modeling support tools.

Version III of AVX’s SpiTan software for simulation and modelling of tantalum capacitors includes new features such as the effects of temperature and voltage on DCL leakage current. Equivalent circuits of capacitors with parameter values are given and more than 80 new released codes have been added.

The AQ1100 Series from Yokogawa is a new family of multi-field testers for carrying out optical loss measurements in the installation, commissioning and maintenance of fibre-optic infrastructure including FTTx systems.

Designed to complement Yokogawa's existing range of portable optical time-domain reflectometry (OTDR) instruments, the AQ1100 Series consists of three models, each incorporating a light source and an optical power meter in a single compact package.

IAR Systems has announced the latest release of its IAR Embedded Workbench for ARM. Optimised for code size and increased execution speed, it performs up to 13% better on CoreMark benchmarks for Cortex-M0 compared to the previous version of IAR’s Embedded Workbench.

Commenting on the announcement Geoff Lees, General Manager, Microcontroller Product Line, NXP Semiconductors said, "This new release has been tuned to generate compact code with faster execution speed. IAR Systems continues to be a leading player for tools on the ARM Cortex market"

In a move designed to speed up real-world testing of mobile handsets for LTE networks ahead of network deployment, Aeroflex is introducing the first one-box test system for cell phone signal fading simulation. Integrated within the 7100 Series digital radio test set, the new fading simulator option offers RF engineers an inexpensive and reliable baseband tool for signal fading profiling, a requirement for LTE (Long Term Evolution) certification.

CEVA, a leading licensor of silicon intellectual property (SIP) platform solutions and DSP cores, has launched CEVA LTE-Lib, a highly optimised, comprehensive LTE software library for the CEVA-XC family of communication processors. Developed in cooperation with leading LTE vendors, CEVA-XC licensees can leverage this LTE library to reduce development costs and time-to-market for their LTE software modem designs.

SpringSoft, a supplier of specialised IC design software, has introduced a new power-aware debug module for its Verdi Automated Debug system. Power-aware debug has been designed to accelerate the comprehension of power intent and automates the process of visualising, tracing and analysing the source of power-related errors. The module is fully integrated with the hardware description language (HDL) debug capabilities of the Verdi system.

Aeroflex has announced that its TM500 Test Mobile will be the first to market to support multiple UE (user equipment, or handset) emulation in conjunction with measurements for the 3GPP W-CDMA Release 8 DC-HSDPA (Dual Cell High-Speed Download Packet Access) standard.

The TM500 DC-HSDPA Multi-UE Test Mobile will enable 3G infrastructure equipment manufacturers to perform rigorous load testing. They can now test the performance of their DC-HSDPA base stations under conditions of increasing user demand, speeding up the development of infrastructure equipment and its deployment in networks.

Low-power MCU provider Energy Micro AS has chosen IAR’s Embedded Workbench for ARM for inclusion in its EFM32 Gecko Development Kit. All code examples for the EFM32 MCU supplied in the kit will be based on the IAR Embedded Workbench. In addition, customers will have the opportunity to purchase the Energy Micro kit directly from IAR Systems.

According to Jørn Norheim, Tools Manager, Energy Micro, "The highly efficient code generated by IAR Embedded Workbench for ARM complements the EFM32 MCU. IAR Systems' development tools are well recognised and respected by engineers, and our cooperation will further enhance designs where lower power consumption is crucial."

RF Engines Limited (RFEL) has developed a sophisticated, 32 channel RF signal generator to enable challenging RF environments to be recreated in labs to test RF equipment.  RFEL has created a complete solution on a Xilinx Virtex-5 FPGA chip that is run within a PC on a PCI-express card. The PCI Upconverter is a flexible and configurable system that replaces racks of expensive RF test equipment offering significant saving for Test and Measurement Laboratories. 

ACAL Technology has designed a new powerkit that will allow engineers to use the world’s smallest power supplies to configure a plug-and-play custom power module in under five minutes.

Each Excelsys powerKit contains an application-specific Xgen powerPac chassis module, and seven different Xgen powerMod dc output modules which can be inserted, removed or exchanged to create a custom power-supply. These provide a range of output voltages, from 1.5V to 58V, with a maximum current of up to 50A. The kits are presented in a rugged case and include two pairs of serial, and two pairs of parallel, links as well as power and signal connectors, documentation, screwdriver and a voltage adjustment tool.

Aeroflex 3250 Series spectrum analyzers now include an optional 8 GHz tracking generator suitable for any kind of bench or lab environment. The new 3250 Series tracking generator has a frequency range of 100 kHz to 8 GHz and a level range from 0 dB down to -20 dB. An adjustable output level, with a setting resolution of 0.5 dB, provides additional flexibility when testing the frequency response and compression characteristics of amplifiers, filters, and non-linear devices.

The silicon Intellectual Property (IP) provider, Evatronix SA and CMP (Circuits Multi Projects), are collaborating in the development of an educational programme which will include the distribution of a large portfolio of Evatronix Intellectual Property (IP) for Universities and Research Laboratories.

CMP is a service of Multi Projects on Wafer supporting several technologies. Since 1981, more than 1000 institutions from 66 countries have been served through 5200 projects on 600 Runs. CMP will now license Evatronix IPs to ease the access and shorten the time of designs’ development.

Providing design engineers with isolated and bussed network circuit options, TT electronics BI Technologies has developed two SON (aka QFN or DFN) 8-pad packaged sample kits. 

Designated SFN08AKIT and SFN08BKIT, the sample kits include four or seven ultra-stable thin film resistors configured in isolated and bussed circuits, respectively. Each sample kit contains 10 resistor networks, and the highly reliable networks are specified for voltage divider and gain setting circuits in the military, aerospace, industrial and medical arenas.

In response to the rising need for cost-effective tools to develop robust and reliable 6 Gb/s SAS and SATA systems, JDSU has announced the availability of the Xgig LXP and Narrow Blade development systems, as well as three new advanced functions compatible across the Xgig product line. The availability of lower cost SAS/SATA certified development tools makes the comprehensive monitoring, capture, and analysis capabilities of the industry-leading Xgig platform accessible to a wider range of developers and applications.

Synopsys is making available high quality DesignWare High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) 1.4 transmitter (Tx) and receiver (Rx) digital controllers and PHY IP solutions that are compliant to the standard specification. With full support for new features of the HDMI 1.4 specification including HEAC, 3D formats, real-time content signaling, 4K x 2K resolution and 10.2 Gbps aggregate bandwidth, the DesignWare HDMI IP enables designers to incorporate differentiated functionality into their digital TV (DTV) and home theatre applications with less risk and improved time-to-market.

NXP Semiconductors has launched a low-cost, web-enabled development tool platform, LPCXpresso, for the LPC ARM processor family of microcontrollers. The LPCXpresso features an easy-to-use interface and supports the complete product design cycle, providing an end-to-end development solution.

LPCXpresso is designed for the beginner as well as the advanced designer and users can now evaluate, explore and develop within a single easy-to-use interface while retaining all the advanced features associated with powerful and expensive tools.

JTAG Technologies has announced an interim update to its renowned ProVision boundary-scan development tools-suite that includes the new continuity test module 'Buzz'. Service Pack 1 for CD release 15 (CD15-SP1) is available immediately for download.

JTAG ProVision uses a unique project database structure, automatically analysing the boundary-scan and non-boundary-scan elements of a design to create rapidly a full set of tests and in-system programming applications.

National Instruments has expanded its automated test product line with two new RF signal conditioning modules that enhance the measurement accuracy and flexibility of PXI based RF and microwave test systems. In applications such as RF signal path degradation modeling, field strength metering and receiver testing, engineers can combine the new NI PXI-5695 8 GHz programmable RF attenuator with a vector signal generator (VSG) to improve RF signal quality at low power levels.

Engineers can integrate the new NI PXI-5691 8 GHz programmable RF preamplifier, which also functions as a power amplifier, with VSGs to increase maximum power and with vector signal analysers (VSAs) to measure low-level signals.

Crossware, an embedded software tools developer, has enhanced its Development Suite for ARM to make it compatible with Atmel’s range of application examples available across its AT91SAM3U family of Cortex-M3 based flash microcontrollers (MCU).

The enhanced Crossware suite now allows developers using the AT91SAM3U MCUs to speed application development and to rapidly experiment with the SAM3U-EK evaluation board, understand the methods and techniques appropriate to the planned application and to make use of all the user friendly features that are provided within the Crossware environment.

Microchip has launched the PICDEM Inductive Touch Development Kit which it has developed to make it easy to create inductive touch-sensing applications using standard 8-, 16- or 32-bit PIC microcontrollers (MCUs), or 16-bit dsPIC Digital Signal Controller (DSCs).  The kit includes a fully-developed inductive-touch board, complete with embossed metal front panel, source code, schematics and a diagnostic software tool that enables designers to evaluate their application.

Silicon intellectual property (IP) provider, Evatronix SA, and Landshut Silicon Foundry GmbH have announced a partnership that will offer new possibilities for SoC designers, according to the two companies. As part of the agreement LFoundry will support the most popular products from the Evatronix IP portfolio within the LFoundry leading analog/mixed signal technology nodes.

The partnership will allow customers to apply Evatronix IP to LFoundry’s process design kits (PDK) in both 150 nm and 350 nm technology platforms and facilitate the development of analog/mixed signal products especially for European SoC developers.

National Instruments has launched LabVIEW Robotics 2009, a new version of its graphical system design software that provides a standard development platform for designing robotic and autonomous control systems. NI LabVIEW Robotics 2009 delivers an extensive robotics library with connectivity to standard robotic sensors and actuators, foundational algorithms for intelligent operations and perception and motion functions for robots and autonomous vehicles.

Yokogawa Europe has teamed up with Hitec Power Protection to develop a range of high-current power measurement solutions combining Yokogawa's family of precision power analysers with Hitec's Zero-flux range of DC current-transformer based sensors.

When used in conjunction with an instrument such as Yokogawa's WT3000 precision power analyser, the Hitec sensors allow currents of several hundreds or even thousands of amperes to be measured accurately. They also allow precision DC and AC measurements to be carried out simultaneously.

New software for the Yokogawa SL1000 high-speed data-acquisition system will provide additional functionality including X-Y display and waveform accumulation capabilities.

In addition to the real-time X-Y display feature, which plots the relationship between two different input signals, the new acquisition software provides a 'mark' function which allows the user to attach an information label during measurement as well as an 'auto play' function for zoom or history waveforms. In addition to the new accumulation display, a 'snapshot' function is also available that can be used to visually compare a reference signal with a new measurement.

VTI Instruments Corporation has introduced the EX1200-7416, a transient capture and time-stamp module that extends the capabilities of the EX1200 Series of configurable LXI Class A instruments. The new module supports a broad range of applications that require level comparison, event detection, and time stamping.

The EX1200-7416 can be combined with other EX1200 plug-in modules to create a versatile, multifunction instrument that can be used in a variety of data acquisition and test applications. The module is ideal for applications such as power-supply monitoring, where it can detect critical out-of-tolerance conditions that require immediate intervention.

Lattice Semiconductor has announced the immediate availability of an evaluation board for the ispClock 5400D programmable clock device. The new board is an easy-to-use platform for evaluating and designing with the ispClock5400D differential clock distribution device. The evaluation board can be used by itself to review the performance and in-system programmability of the 5400D device, or as a companion board and clock source for LatticeECP3 FPGA Serial Protocol or Video Protocol evaluation boards.

Densitron has introduced a new range of proprietary Plug & Play driver card evaluation kits for its Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO) industrial TFT series, covering display sizes of 5.7”, 7”, 8”, 10.4”, 12.1”, 13.3” and 15”.  The new demonstration platforms are specifically designed to allow users to get up and running with their prototyping process quickly and with minimal fuss.

The new kits support LVDS/TTL interface and panel resolution of up to SXGA(1280X1024) @ 60Hz, and offer interface options of analogue RGB (0.7Vp-p) and digital DVI-D. Composite video input option is also available.

IAR Systems has announced the availability of the IAR KickStart kit for the NXP LPC1114. This is believed to be the world's first commercial starter kit for ARM Cortex-M0-based microcontrollers.

A long partnership and the cooperation exhibited during the development project between NXP and IAR Systems has led to IAR Systems latest starter kit being the first in the market. One of the features which enabled the speedy development of this kit was the fact that the NXP LPC11xx Cortex-M0 family is 100% pin compatible with the NXP LPC13xx Cortex-M3 family. 

The new Yokogawa AQ6373 is an optical spectrum analyser designed to carry out measurements over the wavelength range from 350 to 1200 nm, including the visible light spectrum from 380 to 780 nm.

The AQ6373 features a colour analysis function which makes it ideally suited to measurements on LEDs and laser light sources.

Key performance parameters include a wavelength accuracy of ±0.05 nm, a wavelength resolution down to 0.01 nm, and a sensitivity of –80 dBm, switchable to a choice of high dynamic-range modes.

Renesas Technology Europe has announced the availability of the Renesas Multimedia Solution Linux*1 platform, which enables low-cost and rapid development of systems incorporating the SH772x Series application processor for low power multimedia applications such as audio and video for portable and industrial devices. The first product in the series is the MS7724 platform for the SH7724, the newest entry in the SH772x Series. Shipments will begin in December 2009.

Xilinx has announced details of four new development kits as part of its ongoing Targeted Design Platform strategy for the Virtex-6 and Spartan-6 FPGA families.  Following on from the launch of the evaluation Base kit in June, the new Domain kits will address Connectivity, Embedded and DSP applications.

The introduction of the Virtex-6 and Spartan-6 families in February marked the beginning of the company’s new platform approach to deliver increased FPGA design productivity and ease-of-use to developers.

CEVA Inc, a licensor of silicon intellectual property (SIP) platform solutions and DSP cores, has introduced the industry’s first integrated optimising toolchain that will enable an end-to-end, fully C-based development flow for licensable DSP cores.  Available as part of the CEVA-Toolbox Software Development Environment, the Application Optimizer allows application developers to develop software for CEVA’s DSPs purely in C-Level, eliminating any hand-written assembly coding and providing significantly better overall performance and a shorter design cycle for SoC designs.

Freescale Semiconductor has announced two interchangeable peripheral modules and 8- and 32-bit microcontroller (MCU) modules for the Tower System.

The advanced peripheral modules offer developers 802.11b Wi-Fi and rapid prototyping functionality. The newest MCU modules support Freescale’s MCF5225X 32-bit ColdFire MCU and MC9S08LL64 8-bit MCU.

"With the addition of these advanced modules for Freescale’s Tower System, we are providing designers, students and hobbyists an affordable development system that’s modular and expandable,” said Aiden Mitchell, director of Freescale’s Industrial & Multi-Market Microcontroller business.

IAR Systems has announced a global volume license programme. With its support for more than 20 different 8-, 16-, and 32-bit MCU architectures, IAR Systems is a leading provider of software tools for embedded systems and this new programme has been tailored to benefit both new and existing customers.

IAR Volume License Program targets all customers that wish to save money by reusing previous investments, ensure flexibility in multiple and time-critical projects and/or want to protect their investment by additional support and services. The programme includes five different levels; customers receive a combination of benefits and discounts based on how many registered IAR Embedded Workbench licenses they have.

SpringSoft, a global supplier of specialised IC design software, and Magma Design Automation, a provider of chip design software, have completed cross-tool validation using TSMC’s 65nm interoperable process design kit (iPDK). The companies have been able to demonstrate full interoperability between the SpringSoft Laker Custom Layout Automation System and Magma Titan Mixed-signal Design Platform running in the OpenAccess environment. This validation saves time and effort of setting up an interoperable flow and ensures consistent results.

Power Integrations has launched Version 7.1.5 of its PI Expert power supply design software. Available now for free download from the Power Integrations website, this revision of the design tool includes a number of enhancements:

1. Provides improved support for Power Integrations’ HiperPLC controller IC for offline resonant converters. The software permits the designer to choose from a variety of magnetic core materials and sizes for both for the LLC and PFC stages. The design spreadsheet allows for transformer design optimisation for improved efficiency.

2.  Accurately calculates the external resistor (R_EXT) required to reduce no-load consumption in designs using PI’s LinkSwitch-II and LinkSwitch-CV product families in flyback topologies

3. Expands the Help feature to include traditional Chinese language support.

STMicroelectronics has announced an extremely low-cost development environment that will maximise access to its STM32 microcontroller families built using the ARM Cortex-M3 processor core, which is optimised for embedded applications.

The environment combines the Atollic TrueSTUDIO/STM32 development tool, which can be downloaded free-of-charge with no limitations on code size or usage time, and ST’s ST-LINK debug probe to connect to the target via USB.

Aerotech has launched a new range of high precision linear positioning stages for high throughput industrial production and test applications. The low-cost PRO165LM series features and improves upon Aerotech’s hard-top and side sealed stage design with a powerful direct-drive brushless linear motor, micron level linear encoder feedback and long-life linear motion guide bearings for extremely smooth motion and exceptional servo system sensitivity.

Xilinx has introduced the industry’s first Broadcast Connectivity Targeted Design Platform with Xilinx Virtex-6 FPGAs to simplify development of serial digital interface (SDI) solutions for high- performance broadcast audio and video systems. The broadcast connectivity platform accelerates time to market and differentiation of professional broadcast audio, video and network connectivity products, including cameras, switchers, routers, encoders, professional monitors, and cinema projectors.

EnSilica, an independent provider of front-end IC design services, has enhanced its design service capability with the addition of three new, highly configurable and low-power soft processor cores – the eSi-1600, eSi-3200 and eSi-3250 - to its customer IP portfolio. The new processor cores are available immediately for deployment as part of EnSilica’s full specification-to-silicon design service through a number of leading foundries and an FPGA integration service utilising devices from all the leading vendors.

XMOS has announced the industry's first reference design for USB Audio 2.0. The solution enables standard computer-based systems to deliver bit-perfect prosumer quality sound.

Implemented entirely in software, using the XMOS XS1-L1 event driven processor, the design supports hi-speed USB Audio 2.0 connectivity and up to 6 input and 6 output audio channels at 24-bit resolution and a sample rate of 192 kHz.  Higher audio channel counts are also supported using the XMOS L2 and G4 devices.

Agilent Technologies is expanding its digital storage oscilloscope and digitiser portfolio with three new low-profile models in the Infiniium 90008 Series. These hybrid instruments offer the highest channel density available in ultrahigh-performance oscilloscope/digitisers, with eight channels that deliver digitising rates of 40 GSa/s and bandwidths from 8 to 13 GHz – all in a 7U-high package.

TT Electronics BI Technologies is offering a passive voltage divider engineering sample kit in a move designed to provide engineers with increased flexibility when it comes to circuit latout. Designated SFN06VDKIT, the sample kits contain several different versions of the company’s SFN Series voltage dividers, which feature two ultra-stable precision thin film resistors. 

JTAG Technologies is looking to widen the use of the boundary scan test in design as well as production activities with a new set of downloadable tools that will also include a free-for-life debug tool.

JTAG live, which was launched at Productronica in Munich, Germany, has been designed for electronics engineers and technicians to use in checking PCBs and basic continuity and correct operation. The new tool family consists of three products: Buzz, Clip, and Script, each of which will be used to target different aspects of the debugging process.

Renesas Technology Europe has launched a new turn-key reference platform for lowest-cost Human-Machine-Interface (HMI) solutions, based on Renesas’ H8S/2456F high performance 16-bit Flash microcontroller. The kit enables engineers to develop HMI’s using colour TFT LCD quickly and easily. It targets a Bill-Of-Material (BOM) for a finished HMI module, including a QVGA TFT with 16-bit colour-depth, of under 20 € for volume orders.

Tektronix has announced a series of enhancements to its popular DPO7000 Series Oscilloscopes, including support for the Mobile Industry Processor Interface (MIPI) D-PHY standard and new UART/RS-232 protocol analysis software. Additionally, the DPO7000 Series now includes four passive probes and three analysis tools as part of standard configurations.

The Atmel Corporation is to release the QTouch Suite, a complete development suite for capacitive touch buttons, sliders and wheels using AVR microcontrollers. It will include the new QT600 development kit and QTouch Studio, AVR Studio and free QTouch Library SW package for AVR microcontrollers.

Lattice Semiconductor has launched Version 8.0 of its ispLEVER FPGA design tool suite, which includes several enhancements for the design of high speed double data rate (DDR) interfaces for the LatticeECP3 FPGA family. These include automatic interface code generation to increase design productivity and reduce coding errors, as well as enhanced timing analysis that provides more transparency to circuit timing details.

National Semiconductor Corp. has introduced the WEBENCH Visualizer, a powerful comparison and selection tool that enables engineers to rapidly select an optimal power system design.

Silicon Laboratories has announced its entry into the human interface market with the introduction of the QuickSense portfolio of highly accurate and fast-response touch, proximity and ambient light sense devices supported by a common development environment.

WITTENSTEIN High Integrity Systems and InterNiche Technologies Inc. have extended the range of solutions available under their cross distribution agreement which gives their respective customers better access to a complete range of integrated products.

Aerotech has launched a new pan & tilt positioner with integrated drives and motion controls for high-end camera security, surveillance and defence applications. The APT series was developed through Aerotech’s extensive design and manufacturing expertise in gimbals, optical mounts and motion simulators for military, aerospace and government research.

Avago Technologies has introduced the industry's first ultra broadband traveling wave amplifier (TWA) for high-speed digital communications applications that operate in the 30KHz to 80GHz frequency band.

TTi has upgraded its well known EX354D bench power supply to improve its precision. The new model, the EX354RD, has 4-digit meters for both voltage and current along with switchable remote sense terminals.

Synopsys has announced the expansion of its verification collaboration with Freescale. The integration of complex hardware enabled by Moore’s law, IP, and embedded software content in modern devices is causing a rapid increase in verification complexity.

New from Yokogawa the WT3000T is a precision power analyser specifically targeted at the needs of the power transformer industry.

TÜV Product Service, the world’s largest medical device notified body, is extending its UK-based active medical device testing service.

New DMM4000 family offers 5.5 and 6.5 digit resolution and integration with other Tektronix bench instrumentation.

Aerotech has added a further ANT series linear positioning stage series to its ultra-high precision nano Motion Technology (nMT) range. The new ANT130-L brings higher load capacity and increased travel of up to 160 mm.

The Yokogawa DLM6000 mixed-signal oscilloscope is the flagship product in a new family of high-performance digital oscilloscopes featuring bandwidths up to 1.5 GHz, memory of 6.25M points per channel, an intuitive graphical user interface and a number of advanced analysis features.

JDSU introduces the ValidatorPRO and ValidatorPRO-NT test instruments, the first single-solution handheld testers to allow enterprise network installers to speed certify Ethernet cabling, perform optical power measurements, and verify connectivity of WiFI networks. 

Future Electronics has introduced the EM Mini-Blox daughterboard, a prototype development board supporting the new MCF51EM smart meter-on-a-chip from Freescale Semiconductor. Together with Future Electronics' Crossbow Future-Blox main board, the EM Mini-Blox provides a comprehensive development system for designers using the MCF51EM.

National Instruments has announced the NI cDAQ-9174 four-slot and cDAQ-9178 eight-slot NI CompactDAQ chassis, which are advanced versions of the popular NI CompactDAQ chassis released in 2006. The two new chassis build on the functionality of the original chassis by adding a four-slot option; the ability to take mixed-sensor measurements at different rates; two built-in, external BNC triggers; and four advanced counters.

High-speed design is an increasingly important factor in electronic system design. Both designers and project managers need to take signal integrity issues into account right from the start of the project.

At Renishaw, which designs and manufactures a range of products including: CMM controllers and measurement systems, automated instruments, Raman microscopes and linear and rotary encoders, part of my role is a mix of educating people on high-speed theory, providing rules of thumb to help them identify the risk areas and then supplying a design flow with modern tools that can reduce those risks.

Atmel realeases fully-featured platform to optimise external DDR2 and Flash Memory organisation for improved performance and cost-effective data storage.

Silicon Laboratories has introduced the expansion of its Any-Rate Clock Generator family with the Si5355/56. The Si535x devices are made to order, 8-output CMOS clock generators capable of synthesizing four unique, non-integer related frequencies from 1-200 MHz.  The Si535x clock generators provide guaranteed 0 ppm frequency synthesis error for any combination of frequencies, enabling the replacement of multiple clock ICs and crystal oscillators with a single device. 

Rittal is expanding its range of well-established configurators for the Comfort Panel and Optipanel command panels by adding another engineering tool: the new Configurator for support arm systems.

Avago Technologies has developed a new ‘ground breaking’ embedded optical engine technology that will enable high-speed connectivity in a wide range of electronic computing and consumer applications.

The new Simulink Control Design 3.0, equipped with new features that automate the process of tuning proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controllers, is now available from The MathWorks. These new features are being released along with new PID Controller blocks in Simulink.

Aerotech has released its new and improved ANT95 NanoTranslation series which include single axis and integrated dual axis stages that offer 25 mm and 50 mm travel ranges with 1 nanometre resolution and a choice of ±3.0 microns or ±250 nanometres certified accuracy classes.

IAR Systems and Ember Corporation have teamed together to deliver an easy to use ZigBee development and debugging platform for sensing and control applications such as smart metering and home automation. Ember recently launched the EM35x InSight Development Kit.

X-FAB Silicon Foundries has announced the availability of comprehensive new process design kits (PDK), branded as TheKit, based on the Cadence Design Systems Virtuoso IC 6.1 custom design platform and SKILL programming language.

Synopsys, a provider of software and IP for semiconductor design, verification and manufacturing, has launched its new StarRC Custom parasitic extraction solution for analogue mixed-signal (AMS) and custom digital IC design.

AdaCore has announced a new release of its Ada Integrated Development Environment (IDE) plug-in, GNATbench 2.3.1. This new release supports Workbench 3.1 and VxWorks 6.7, the latest versions of Wind River's Eclipse-based IDE and real-time operating system, offering real-time/embedded systems developers a sophisticated Ada programming environment tightly integrated into the Wind River Workbench development suite. It also supports Workbench 3.0 and VxWorks 6.6, allowing projects that have chosen those versions to upgrade to GNATbench 2.3.1 and take advantage of its new features.

According to Moore's Law, the number of transistors that can be placed on an integrated circuit (IC) increases exponentially, doubling approximately every two years. While the semiconductor industry has taken full advantage of this scaling, steadily increasing the number of components per chip, more components translate into greater design complexity and an increase in the amount of time required to complete a design. One area where this added complexity proves especially problematic is layout. Problems arise not only because more components must be laid out, but because the circuit and layout designers are often two different people, making communication of device attributes difficult.

Aeroflex has announced it has added new LTE measurement capabilities to its flexible, modular PXI 3000 platform. This latest addition enables production test engineers to achieve faster time-to-volume for RF components and LTE user equipment. The new solution leverages itself on Aeroflex's record in LTE testing for R&D and the proven yield and throughput benefits of the PXI 3000 Series platform in mobile handset manufacturing.

National Instruments has launched the NI TestStand ATML Toolkit to help engineers reduce development and maintenance time by expanding test system component interoperability and increasing test system documentation. The Automatic Test Markup Language (ATML) is an IEEE standard consisting of XML document formats that describe different aspects of a test system. The new toolkit adds support for the ATML TestDescription standard and improves support for the ATML TestResults standard in NI TestStand. The toolkit can be downloaded from the National Instruments Services Resource Center and is available for free to customers who have the current Standard Service Program.

Zuken has announced a partnership with Gigatronik to improve both their complex vehicle design capabilities. This announcement is seen as laying the foundations for future integration between Gigatronik's ESCAPE software for creation of logical functional networks in graphic forms and Zuken's E³.cable solution for harness development and documentation. This partnership will allow the re-use of data between the two environments, essential for sophisticated vehicle design.

IAR Systems has released the IAR Embedded Workbench for Cortex-M. Believed to be one of the world's first integrated development environment designed specifically for ARM Cortex-M0, Cortex-M1, and Cortex-M3 based cores, IAR Embedded Workbench for Cortex-M has been designed to provide a comprehensive set of tools in a single package.

Toshiba Electronics Europe (TEE) has announced that the TrueSTUDIO development environment from Swedish embedded systems specialist Atollic is now available for the company's range of ARM926EJ-S and ARM Cortex-M3 microcontrollers. Two versions of the environment can be supplied: Atollic TrueSTUDIO Lite, which, while completely free-of-charge, delivers high levels of functionality; and the low-cost Atollic TrueSTUDIO Professional, which provides further development capabilities.

NEC Electronics and Vector have announced the availability of an AUTOSAR 3.0 compatible software package for various hardware platforms. This software package enables easy design of application software without the need for new developments. The package includes AUTOSAR Basic Software and a comprehensive tool chain. The solution was developed under close cooperation between the two companies.

SpringSoft has announced that ISS Group and Transfer B.V. will distribute the SpringSoft verification enhancement and custom chip design solutions in Europe's Nordic and BeNeLux regions.

LeCroy has launched the industry's first single-source lineup of test instruments to comprehensively support the USB (Universal Serial Bus) 3.0 standard, also known as SuperSpeed USB. The LeCroy USB 3.0 Test Suite is an integrated selection of test instruments that addresses all transmitter, receiver, TDR and protocol tests currently defined in the Universal Serial Bus 3.0 specification.

As software design and debugging represents the majority of development cost and time for many applications, efficient design tools play an increasingly critical role in managing project cost and deadlines. To simplify development while accelerating identification, analysis and resolution, Texas Instruments (TI) has announced the availability of Code Composer Studio v4, a major upgrade to its integrated development environment (IDE) based on the Eclipse open source software framework.

With applications that include rear views, wing mirrors, night vision and lane departure warnings, automotive engineers are increasingly positioning cameras throughout the vehicle that have to feed data quickly and efficiently back to processing modules and a central consol. This is a real design challenge for engineers, and as cameras become smaller and more affordable the range of applications, such as accident recording to determine the number of passengers in the vehicle, continues to increase.

The School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at the University of Southampton has become the first Western European university to receive the Charles Babbage Grant from Synopsys. Through the grant, named after the British mathematician and inventor Charles Babbage, who designed and built mechanical computing machines over 150 years ago, ECS will receive licenses of Synopsys' comprehensive electronic design automation (EDA) software and intellectual property. The grant, worth $25,000, will also enable the University to set up a brand new laboratory for virtual learning. The Virtual Learning Environment focuses on integrated circuit design and also involves a new range of courses on advanced system-on-chip (SoC) design, with support and faculty training from Synopsys. The grant has enabled ECS to install new computer hardware in the virtual learning laboratory to support up to 20 students.

TÜV Product Service, a product testing and certification company, is launching the UK's first product testing remote monitoring service.

The new ‘Remote Monitoring Service' means that TÜV customers will be able to significantly reduce costs traditionally associated with testing, such as environmental and EMC, to increase time to market for new products.

According to Moore's Law, the number of transistors that can be placed on an integrated circuit (IC) increases exponentially, doubling approximately every two years. While the semiconductor industry has taken full advantage of this scaling, steadily increasing the number of components per chip, more components translate into greater design complexity and an increase in the amount of time required to complete a design. One area where this added complexity proves especially problematic is layout. Problems arise not only because more components must be laid out, but because the circuit and layout designers are often two different people, making communication of device attributes difficult.

Last month Xilinx released the Xilinx Base Targeted Design Platform which has been aimed at designers with the intention of accelerating the development of system-on-chip (SoC) solutions with Xilinx Virtex-6 and Spartan-6 field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). This base-level targeted design platform combines the 11.2 release of  the ISE Design Suite, an expanded intellectual property (IP) portfolio, and pre-verified reference designs targeting Virtex-6 or Spartan-6 FPGAs within fully integrated evaluation kits that will enable design teams to shorten development cycles and focus engineering resources on creating greater product differentiation.

This year's CDNLive! saw more than eighty papers submitted covering topics from low-power design and formal verification to constraint-driven design and electronic system-level design and both the conference and the associated exhibition were well attended.

At the opening session Lip-Bu Tan, Cadence's new president and CEO, offered an overview of the current market and discussed some of the changes he was seeking to bring to the business after being in position for 100 days.