Microchip Technology has released its PIC18-Q20 family of microcontrollers (MCUs), the industry’s first low pin count MCUs with up to two I3C peripherals and Multi-Voltage I/O (MVIO). Available in 14- and 20-pin packages as small as 3 x 3 mm, the PIC18-Q20 MCUs are a compact solution for real-time control, touch sensing, and connectivity applications. The MCUs […]
Did the GPS Daemon bug affect you?
Those using Global Positioning System (GPS) appliances and the open source daemon, GPSD, to obtain time information from these GPS appliances could have experienced problems on Oct. 24, 2021. However, they were warned. On October 21, 2021, the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released a warning to Critical Infrastructure (CI) owners and operators, and […]
What sensors are in a modern washing machine? Pt 1.
The number and different types of sensors in cars and smartphones are cited frequently and certainly are impressive. However, sensor usage in many other areas is increasing as well. Appliances, which are not replaced as frequently as vehicles and smartphones, could surprise many people with the different sensing functions and types of sensors used in […]
How can you get sensors online quickly and securely?
At Sensors Expo 2019, Bob Martin, a senior staff engineer for Microchip Technology describes how a security encryption element on two demo boards can securely connect sensors to the Internet for Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity. The AVR-IoT and the PIC-IoT development boards provide instant connectivity through bus connectors to the MikroElektronika Wi-Fi PLUS click. […]
What application problems do newly released sensors solve?
Coping with the application environment is one of the more complex issues that sensors must address. To survive in harsh environments, sensors manufacturers improve the ruggedness of their sensors in many different ways. Three recently announced products exemplify the differences. For dusty and wet environments, Sensata Technologies ACW4 single turn and TCW4 multi-turn absolute Hall […]
How do you get an MCU design to market quickly?
The short answer is with development boards. For more details, at Sensors Expo 2018, an expert from Microchip Technology explains how his company expands the capability of microcontroller (MCU) evaluation boards with numerous MikroElektronika plug-ins using a microbus connector for a variety of applications. In addition, with the MPLAB Code Configurator, base code can be […]
What’s new in microcontrollers for sensing?
At Sensors Expo 2018, Jason Wellman from the 8-bit marketing division at Microchip Technology demonstrates the noise improvement and other capabilities of the advanced analog to digital converter (ADC) on the company’s recently introduced ATmega4809 microcontroller (MCU). As a Core Independent Peripheral (CIP), the ADC filters and averages random noise as well as periodic noise […]
How quickly can you get a custom frequency MEMS oscillator?
At Sensors Expo 2018, Tim Bergeson from Microchip Technology shows how the company’s TimeFlash 2 Field Programmable Kit programming tool allows users to quickly and easily program MEMS oscillators anywhere and anytime. After setting the frequency of the tool to 140.3253 MHz with a selected 10 parts per million (PPM) tolerance, within a matter of […]
How can you secure a sensing node?
At Sensors Expo 2018 in San Jose, CA, Martin Squibbs, Product Marketing Manager for Microchip Technology discusses the company’s newest SAM L11 microcontroller (MCU), the first on the market to have the Arm Cortex-M23 core with TrustZone. Leveraging TrustZone, the three differentiating features of the 32-bit MCU are high security, parallel capture (through a two-stage […]