XLP technology Nano microcontrollers

Microchip Technology has announced a new family of 8-bit PIC microcontrolers (MCUs) featuring nanowatt XLP technology, which enable extremely low sleep currents. The high-performance, low-power PIC18F13K22, PIC18F13K22, PIC18F14K22 and PIc18LF14K22 (PIC18F1XK22) MCUs are available in 20-pin packages and provide 1.8V-5.5V operation, with up to 16 Kb Flash program memory. Nano watt XLP technology allows the PIC18LF1XK22 MCUs to operate longer using less power, or with fewer battery changes, by enabling sleep current of 34 nA, typical at 18.V; timer 1-oscillator currents of 800 nA, typical ata 1.8 V, 32kHz; and watchdog timer currents of 300 nA, tyical at 1.8 V.

Voice modules

The wireless transceiver modules from u-blox are optimised for low-cost, mass market, location-based applications requiring mobile connectivity. Featuring low power consumption and GSM/GPRS class 10 data transmission with voice capability, the LEON G100 and G200 combine base band, RF transceiver, power management unit and power amplifier in a single, easy-to-integrate solution. These are ideally suited for M2M and automotive applications such as automatic meter reading, remote monitoring automation and control, surveillance and security, e-call,road pricing, asset tracking, fleet management, anti-theft systems and point-of-sale terminals.

New arrivals

Nano Battery !!

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Researach Institution for Electronic Nano Systems ENAS have developed a battery the weighs less then 1 gram and is less than 1 millimeter thick. The battery, which can be fprinted in a process similar to silk-screening shirts, could power bank cards or other slim application carriers. " The battery is environment-friendly as it contains no mercury. Its voltage of 15.V lies within the normal range. By placing several batteries in a row, voltages of 3V,4.5V and 6V can also be achieved.

All in one mobile phone charger.

After months of negotiations with hte European Commission, major producers of mobile phones have finally agreed to develop a standard for phone charging based on the Micro USB interface. The companies that signed the MoU include Apple, LG, Motorala, NEC , Nokia, Qualcomm, Research in Motion, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Texax Instruments.
With this agreement, consumerswill be able to charge mobile phones anywhere from the new common charger. This also means considerably less electronic waste, because people will no longer have to throw away chargers when buying new phones. The large majority of phones will charge within two hours with the new common chargers, says the EU. Only in combination of a large battery with a small charger, the phone will charge within six hours.

AUTOMOBILES

DEFINITION:By definition an automobile or car is a wheeled vehicle that carries its own motor and transports passengers. The automobile as we know it was not invented in a single day by a single inventor. The history of the automobile reflects an evolution that took place worldwide.

It is estimated that over 100,000 patents created the modern automobile. You can point to the many firsts that occurred along the way to producing the modern car; and with that goal in mind, highlighted below are articles, biographies, time lines, and photo galleries related to the history of the automobile and its many inventors.

FASTEST SUPER COMPUTER

A scientist of Indian origin has created a new supercomputer, called Cystorm which can carry out 28.16 trillion calculations per second.
Cystorm, a sun Microsystems machine, was developoed by Mr SrinivasAluru from the Iowa state University. The 3,200 computer procesor cores that power Cystorm makes it perform 28.16 trillion calculations per second, which is five times the peak of CyBlue, an IBM Blue Gene\L supercomputer that's been in campus since early 2006 and users 2,048 processors to do 5.7 trillion calculations per second.
According to Mr Aluru, Mr Ross Martin Mehl, professors of computer Engineering and the leaders of the cystorm project, the new machine also scores high on a more realistic test of a supercomputer's actual performance:15.44 trillion calculations per second.

EVM technology can tamper?

Electronic Voting Machine :
(EVM technology)

Hardware

Inadequately secured hardware can be subject to a physical Tampering. Some critics, such as the group "Wij vertrouwen stem computers niet" ("We do not trust voting machines"), charge that, for instance, foreign hardware be inserted into the machine, or between the user and the central mechanism of the machine itself, using a main in the middle attack, and thus even sealing DRE machines may not be sufficient protection. Claim is countered by the position that review and testing procedures can detect fraudulent code or hardware, if such things are present, and that a thorough, verifiable chain of custody would prevent the insertion of such hardware or software.

Software

Security experts, such as Bruce Shenier demanded that voting machine source code be publicly available for inspection.Others have also suggested publishing voting machine software under a free software license is done in Australia.

Suggestions for protection

In December 2005 the US Election Assistance Commission unanimously adopted the 2005 Volantary voting system guidelines which significantly increase security requirements for voting systems and expand access, including opportunities to vote privately and independently, for individuals with disabilities. The guidelines will take effect in December 2007 replacing the 2002 Voting System Standards (VSS) developed by the Federal Election Commission.

Some groups such as the Open voting Consortium that to restore voter confidence and to reduce the potential for fraud, all electronic voting systems must be completely available to public scrutiny.

Also proposed is the requirement for use of open public standards and specifications such as the Election Markup Language(EML) standard developed by OASIS and now under consideration by ISO. These can provide consistent processes and mechanisms for managing and performing elections using computer systems.

CORDED HEADSETS

GN Netcom has launched lightweight, sturdy and professional quality headsets for use in cost_conscious contact centres.
The jabra GN1900 headsets feature a noise canceling microphone,which filters out unwanted background noise, and Peakstop technology,which protects users from harmful sounds. The multiple adjustment points make these adaptable to individual preferences and the lightweight design ensures all-day comfort. The GN1900 QD variants have been designed for use with traditional desk telephones,however the future-proof design enables users to migrate to IP hard phones.
The GN1900 USB variants meet the increasing demand for cost_effective, professional VOIP headsets.

BUSINESS PHONE

Siemens Enterprise Communications has introduced the Bittel CLIP business phone. The phone is line_powered and does not require any external battery. Suitable for offices, it is a full_duplex, hands_free speaker phone with features like message waiting light, 16-digit caller ID with adjustable display contrast, phonebook (up to25entries) and a data port for connecting a parallel phone,fax machine, answering machine,etc.

Technology News

Mobile Internet usage exploding

Mobile INternet usage is growing at a phenomenal rate. Social networking is driving that growth with a third of young adults regularly accessing Face book and Twiiter from their mobiles. A eport byindustry analyst CCS Insight, based on a UK survey of more than 1`000 adults between 16 and 35 years, offers insights into the mobile Internet habits of this technology-savvy and demanding consumer group.
According to the report, men are twice as likely as women toaccess the Internet through their mobile phone; ;young adults expect mobile content, expecially music and videos, to be free; and BBC iPlayers is the service people would like the most to see on their phones. Paloo Pescatore, report author and head, mobile content CCS Insight, shares, "Forget music downloads and video-social networking is what people want. Media owners and operators will has to find new ways to make money from their assets."

PC sales record negative growth

The total PC sales between April2008 and March 2009, with desktop computers, notebooks and netbooks token together, were 6.79 million units, registering a decline of seven per cent over the previous year - according to Manufacturers' Association for Information Technology (MAIT). IT consumption in 2008-09 was severely impact, especially in the slowdown in the Indian economy.
Impact on consumption of notebooks was most pronounced as growth plummeted to a negative 17 per cent compared to a high of 114 per cent in the previous year. Scale of desktops declined four per cent. The October -November-December quarter was the most adversely impacted, subsequent to which growth in PC consumption started to show signs of revivial. With business sentiment gradually gaining momentum, PC consumption in fiscal 2009-10 ex expected to cross 7.3 million units, registering a seven per cent growth.

Electronic Tongue

Electronic Tongue to sense taste

Scientists have devised a small, cheap, lab-on-a-chipo sensor that accurately identifies sweetness. It can accurately identify the full sweep of natural and artificial sweet substances, including 14 common sweeteners, using easy-to-read colour markers.

"We take things that smell or taste and convert their chemical properties into a visual image," said study leader Kenneth Suslick, University of Illinois a -Urbana-Champaign (UI-UC). This sensory "sweet-tooth" will help to ensure that beverages taste great with a consistent flavour.

ELECRONIC NEWS

E-paper's green credentials will boost adoption

The use of electronic paper, also known as 'e-paper,' is increasing as a result of its ultra-low power consumption, a similar user experience to real paper and 'green' benefits, according to a report from market research firm Gartner. E-paper is a display medium intended to mimic the appearance of ordinary ink on paper while being rewritable.
Gartner said that despite disadvantages of poor colour and refresh rate characterists, e-paper will hve significant benefits over other display media and positively impact the traditional paper market, the retail display sector, a number of consumer markets and the office environment in years to come.
One of the key drivers for e-paper adoption is the way it is continuously evolving to include new technologies. Recent additions include touchscreen, wireless connection and rewritable colour support capabilityinto devices using e-paper. Multiple e-book readers have also been introduced and applications of the technology are now expanding beyond e-book readers to include device displays for phones, clocks and watches.
Gartner believes that the cost of e-paper displays will need to fall further if it is to act as a viable mainstream alternative to print media, especially as the falling costs and increasing quality of alternative technologies-such as OLED and LCD - could moderate the growth potential of e-paper.

COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENTS

Carded headsets

GN Netcom has launched lightweight sturdy and professional quality headsets for use in cost-conscious contact centers.
The Jabra GN1900 headsets feature a noise canceling microphone, which filters out unwanted background noise, and PeakStop technology, which protects users from harmful sounds. The multiple adjustment points make these adaptable to individual preferences and the lightweight design ensures all-day comfort. The GN1900 QD variants have been designed for use with traditional desk telephones, however the future-proof design enables users to migrate to IP hard phones.
The GN 1900 USB variants meet the increasing demand for cost-effective, professional VoIP headsets

TEST AND MEASUREMENT

Spectrum analysers

With a bright colour display to analyse any kind of signal within the frequency range of up to 1 GHz, ATL's SPA01 spectrum analyeser meets the RF measurement needs of educational setups and the industry. The low-cost, high-performance digital synthesised RF measurement instrument has a tracking generator with 16-bit half numerical display (center frequency, 0.01 MHz resolvability) and intermediate frequency and 4 kHz video filters.

Thermal imager

SUMITRON has introduced a low cost, high-performance camera from Ideal Industries, USA, that blends visible images with infrared images to track down problems that threaten the continuous operation of server rooms and data centres. The Heat Seeker detects hotspots in servers, UPS batteries and electrical connections before costly system failures occur. It also measures temperature fluctuations in cooling systems.

Electronic weighing scale

Innovative Systems has developed an electronic weighing scale with built-in thermal printer. This machine generates bill without the need of computer and is suitable for those retailers who don't want to keep computer. The machine is equipped with a 16-bit, low-power, high-speed Renesas microcontroller and 24-bit sigma-delta analogue-to-digital converter with an accuracy of 1 gam at 35 kg. It has two sets of 4-window, 6-X7-segment displays (one for customer and second for retailer) to show weight, rate of the item, amount and total amount of all the items purchased by the customer. A separate RS-232 port is available to connect additional booth display. Out of 100 preprogrammed items with their names and rates, 32 items can be accessed directly from the memory via a separate 4X4 keyboard.

NEW TOOLS AND EQIPMENTS

Pad-printing machine

Indus Engineering offers an economical pad-printing machine (Model FXP-1010-C) with a ceramic ring and magnetically sealed cup. The machine is equipped with a quick-changover image plate to facilitate fast-changing jobs and continuously variable image transfer rate to accommodate different types of articles.
The closed-type machine is highly efficient, accurate and user friendly. It features inductive proximity sensors for trouble free working, auto fault detection facility and dual-impression printing mode for translucent inks.

Drying systems for Solar cell metallisation

Rehm Thermal Systems has launched an advanced series of drying systems for solar cell metallisation. The RDS 2100 and RDS 3000 offer a variety of advanced process features and thermal control that enable PV manufaturers to move their processes to an entirely new level of efficiency and yield. The drying process consists of a combination of either five or seven IR zones and one central convection zone. This design combination offers temperature profiling that can be adjusted for both precision and flexibility.
The systems guarantee a safe transport through the oven either via mesh belt or with pin chain up to three lanes. At belt speeds of up to 6m/minute, these provide high through puts of up to 5700 wph. A condensate residue management system controls the buildup of unwanted paste solvent and vehicle residue in the process chamber and extends the maintenance intervals.

Electronic load for DC power supply testing

Prime Electronics has introduced a feature-packed electric load (Model EL 601) measuring only 14.5X25X25 cm cube and weighing 7 kg. It is designed for easy portability and saves valuable space on the test bench. All controls and displays are provided on the front panel for ease of operation. Multiturn load adjustement pot makes it very easy to precisely set the load. Separate volt age and current/power meters give continuous display of load voltage and current/power on the front panel.
With voltage range of 2060V DC, current range of 0-120A and power range of 600W, the EL 601 is useful for testing of switching power supplies, SMPS units, DC power plants, DC-DC converters, solar chargers, variable power supplies, telecom power supplies, medical power supplies, solar charge controllers, redundant power supplies, hot-swappable power supplies, multi-output power supplies, battery chargers, float-cum-boost chargers, DINH rail power supplies and other DC sources such as fuel cells and batteries.

NEW....NEW...NEW...

VALUE-FOR- MONEY NET BOOK

1All those who want to pack their world in something as smallas 24 cm can now opt for intex N101-WC1100 net book .
Features & USP The notebook has a 24cm display and weights 1.2kg(with battery). Equipped with intel Atom N270 processor, it is power efficient and provides a fast day-to-day computing experiences. The net book packs a 160GB DDR2 memory expandable up to 2GB. It boats of WLAN 802b/g wirelessLAN module and also features Bluetooth connectivity,7-in-1 mini card reader,WSVGALED backlight display and a battery life of 240 minutes.

price:
Rs18,900 (black)
Rs 19,400 (red)

STYLISH LCD MONITORS


Samsung India has launched Lavender Series of LCD monitors with new and stylish features.
Features & Usp The Lavender series monitors are avaible in 55cm and 58cm screen sizes with dynamic contrast ratio of 50000;1, reaponce time of 2ms, viewing angle of 170\160 degree and a 1d6;9 wide-format panel that is made for multimedia and optimised for HD content. these boast of an elegant touch-of-colour design in rose black colour with a distinctive fine cut on the rear.

The monitors have front OSD touch buttons that emit red light from under the panel. Use of biodegradable components in manufacturing of exterior panels makes these 100per cent recyclable and environment-friendly. The monitors consume less than 1w of power in the power-off mode, which makes these more energy-efficient than conventional monitors.

Price:
Rs. 12,500 (55 cm)
Rs. 13,500 (58 cm)

Toshiba Satellite M500 Notebook

Toshiba India has launched the Premier series Satellite M500 notebook, which features a 35.6cm LED back light display with clear super view technology and widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio that offers a resolution of 1366X768 pixels and a luminance of 260 NITs. The Harman/Kardon stereo speakers provide a vibrant sound experience. The Satellite M500 has an integrated DVD sper multi-drive (dual-layer), a 5-in-1 card reader, three USB 2.0 interfaces and an additional eSATA/USB combo port that supports sleep-and-charge, allowing a customer to charge an MP3 player, mobile phone or other device while the laptop is switched off. The notebook is priced at Rs. 53,490 (appx.)

How to use Camcorder

Do's

1. Do some research work before you by either a digital still camera or a camcorder
2. Decide what is more important, shooting good-quality video or good-quality stills?
3. Checkout the products you want to purchase. Handling, features and even looks are important
4. Read the manual carefully before using the product. Often you might not get satisfactory results just because you are not using the camera properly. In case of any doubt, ask for a demo from the retailer
5. Take proper care of your digital equipment. Use the necessary precautions, and always use proper recommended accessories.

Don'ts

1. Do not purchase from unauthorised dealers. You may experience malfunctions, and is some cases, the manufacturer may not be able to provide technical assistance
2. Do not use accessories that are not recommended with you proudct
3. Do not disassemble the camera. This might cause shock hazards, or severe damage to the product. Read the safety recommendations provided in you manual
4. Do no let small children handle the camera without supervision
5. Do not violate safety regulations while shooting.
   

New Updates

Power LED ceiling light

BINAY has launched 300X300 mm power LED luninaires that are suitable for indoor mounting on ceilings. Manufactured with long-life, high intensity LEDs having efficiency of 100 lumens per watt in cool white (5500-6500 d K) these lamps are available in surface-mount or recess-mount fittings. They can be recess-mounted in square cutout of 300X300 mm square.
The luminaires are ideal for mounting in corridors, small rooms, kitchens and other small areas in commercial and residential structures. These are available in 12W, 20W and 30W ratings. The designed life is 50,000 hrs to L70 or 100,000 hrs to L50.

Portable hard drive
Transcend has introduced a new portable hard drive that combines good looks and shockproof features in a compact portable size. Similar in size and weight to a deck of playing cards, the 4.6cm Storejet 18M is clad in a sporty two-tone contrast colour scheme. It features and advanced dual-stage shock-protection sytem that incorporates internal suspension technology with an extra-durable, vibration/impact-dampening silicone outer shell.
Fully compliant with USB 2.0 specifications, the drive features a one-touch auto-back button that lets users instantly backup and synchronise date with their notebook or desktop PC. It is priced at Rs.6000 and available with 120GB storage capacity.

16GB SD card
KINGMAX claims to have introduced the world's highest-capacity waterproof SD card. The 16GB SD card adopts PIP technology inside, which has passed the waterproof test and is IPX7-certified from SGS. In addition, due to the unique packing technology, it prevents piracy. The built-in error-correcting code detects and corrects transfererrors and supports 'contents protection for recordable media' mechanism.
The card is available in 2GB, 4GB, 8GB and 16GB capacities

Wireless and Screenless MP3 Players

If you love listening to music but don't like to si glued to the computer,tangled in wires, take a sigh of relief. Companies are rolling out music systems that are not only wireless but also screenless. Targeting the youth are scend, Bose, Moser Baer and many more, making the competition indeed a fierce one. There are certainly more brand options and product features to choose from, to suit your needs and budget. When making your choice, establish whether you need an MP3 player for just listening to music or for storing photos and watching videos also.
Recently, Apple had re-designed its iPod Shuffle, which, unfortunately, did not stir up the youthy. Taking the opportunity, Sony has come up with an innovative wireless and screenless MP3 system, taking the music system directly into the earphones. Sounds innovative but does it work well? In fact, it's interesting to see devices shrinking in size.

Wireless and Screenless:

Wireless technology is not new but it is being usd by the music system makiers only recenlty. This technology can mainly be categorisd into two segments -Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. But the latest MP3 technology has revolutionised the market- it has done away with both.
Most of the wireless Mp3 players use the stereo Bluetooth technology but Sony has taken a leap further by building, the MP3 player inside the headphones. It has no sound modifications software, not even bass and treble controls. In fact, the only interesting it has is Zapppin, which has done away with the traditional display screen as well-yet another unique feature.
"Zappin scans though the music library by playing what the MP3 player thinks is the most recognisable clip of each song. The user can select short clips-about 4-15 seconds long-by pressing the jog dial while the music is playing,"explains Tomonori Moroda, division head, home audio video, Sony India.

Advantages and limitations

As the wireless MP3 players are targeted at the youth and the gymgoers, these may be an initial hit. " The great advantage of a wireless headset is that there are no wires to get rangled in. You have more freedom and can even move away from the MP3 while continuing to listen to music. However, there are certain obstacles for a widespread deployment of wireless devices due to lack of awareness and the cost factor as they are comparatively more expensive than the wired ones.