Articles & Blogs

FPGAs in the Arduino World: Use Alorium’s Snō Module for Both Preconfigured and Custom IP Publish Date: 2019-05-01

Alorium’s XLR8 and Snō dev boards provide yet another simple and inexpensive way to make use of an FPGA’s real-time abilities in embedded system designs.

IMUs: Let Your Host Sleep with On-Board Machine Learning Publish Date: 2019-04-18

Integrating machine learning and decision tree processing into IMUs can offload real-time position and movement processing from the host application processor.

Add a Dash of FPGA to Arduino and Raspberry Pi Dev Board Mix

Single board computers speed embedded system development.

5G is a Long Way Off: Use Ready-Made LTE 4G Modules for Remote IoT Sensing and Control Publish Date: 2019-04-02

Don’t wait for 5G: Ready-made 4G LTE modules and associated development kits simplify remote IoT product development and shorten time to market, now.

The Basics of CircuitPython for Rapid Microcontroller-Based Prototyping and Development Publish Date: 2019-03-14

Adafruit’s CircuitPython brings the increasingly popular Python programming language to inexpensive, embedded microcontroller dev boards.

Learn the Art and Science of Switching Power Supply Design

The HP 9878A I/O expander used switching power supply ICs that are still available today, but practitioners of the art now have a lot more resources available.

IMUs for Precise Location: Part 2 – How to Use IMU Software for Greater Precision Publish Date: 2019-01-24

IMU software determines precise position from IMU sensor data and is used in embedded applications ranging from consumer to industrial, medical, and military.

Fundamentals of Current Measurement: Part 3 – Funnel Amplifiers Publish Date: 2019-01-23

Funnel amplifiers allow high side current measurements in systems where the load’s power supply operates at a higher voltage than the measurement circuitry.

Get That Grease Off of Your Heatsink

Thermal paste has withstood the test of time, but there many new thermal compounds in form factors that make it easier to get the heat out in tricky situations.

Zener Diodes Won My High School Science Fair – and We’re Still Going Strong

Both Zener diodes and voltage references can play important roles in modern circuits.

Fundamentals of Distance Measurement and Gesture Recognition Using ToF Sensors Publish Date: 2018-11-28

Integrated time of flight (ToF) sensors provide a simple, fast, and inexpensive way to measure distance and to recognize simple gestures in embedded systems.

Quickly and Easily Apply FPGAs with the Arduino MKR Vidor 4000 Publish Date: 2018-11-13

The Arduino MKR Vidor 4000 provides a simple and inexpensive way to make use of an FPGA’s real time abilities in embedded system designs.

Fundamentals of Current Measurement: Part 2 – Current Sense Amplifiers Publish Date: 2018-11-07

How to accurately and safely amplify the low-level voltage generated by current sense resistors into a relatively large voltage that’s more easily measured.

Sub-Dollar Microcontrollers Turn the Embedded World Upside Down

Feature-rich, low-cost microcontrollers provide near ideal solutions for numerous embedded applications.

Fundamentals of Current Measurement: Part 1 – Current Sense Resistors Publish Date: 2018-10-09

Current sense resistors are widely used to measure current flow to track system performance, but there are nuances to be aware of for successful implementation.

Four Critical, Low-Cost Tools to Make Hand Soldering Better and Easier

The right tools and techniques make a big difference when it comes to hand soldering electronic components.

Use IMUs for Precise Location Data When GPS Won’t Suffice Publish Date: 2018-10-02

IMUs provide precise positioning information for embedded applications ranging from consumer to industrial, medical, and military.

Quickly Implement Efficient Real-Time Clock/Calendar Functionality in Embedded Designs Publish Date: 2018-09-20

Implement real-time clock/calendar (RTCC) functions in embedded systems with minimal design time, component count, and power consumption.

Building Projects? Designing PC Boards? There is One Ruler You Should Have

Some tools are just plain useful: The DigiKey 12-inch ruler is one of them, along with the Aven headband magnifier.

Quickly Develop Custom, HP Test Instrumentation Using Off-the-Shelf Boards and Open Source Software Publish Date: 2018-08-14

Using the Red Pitaya Open Instrumentation Platform and an array of open development tools, developers can create their own test and measurement systems.