Racing Electronics
One of the perks of writing about electronics is that you get to see some really cool stuff. And while motor racing is not at the top of my list of enthusiasms, an invitation by Freescale to visit the McLaren Technology Centre was just too good to pass up. Besides which, it turned my fellow hacks on EE Journal green with envy: there are some real petrol heads, including a race driver and a Formula 1 Fanatic.
The reason for the invitation is that Freescale’s processors are the intelligence in the engine control units (ECU) that McLaren supplies, on an exclusive basis, to the IndyCar, NASCAR and Formula 1 (F1) racing series.
MIPS Plants a New Family Tree
“Aptiv” Line of Processors: the Start of a New Generation
Blame BMW. Or maybe Sears, Roebuck & Co. The trend of classifying all your products into clearly defined low, middle, and high ranges has now extended its grasp to MIPS Technologies.
Carmakers figured out a long time ago that it would help sell cars if consumers could keep all the confusing model numbers straight. Thus, General Motors had its Chevrolet brand (low end), its Buicks (midrange), and its Cadillacs (high end). That branding strategy served the company quite well, even when all three cars were actually the same vehicle with different hood ornaments.
The Process of Process Tracking
Satin Attempts to Corral a Recalcitrant Beast
Want to scare an engineer? There’s an easy weapon out there. And it consists of only one word.
“Process.”
Process is supposed to mean that a company has a formula, that they have a way of doing things that works, and that it’s repeatable, and – most importantly – that it’s a feature of the company, not some individual that works there. That means the process survives even when key people are no longer working there.
Springtime in the SoC
Audio IP, Static Analysis and Board Member Switch-a-roo
In honor of the Design Automation Conference that is less than a month away, I take a little foray into the mysterious land of tools. First up, I chat with Henk Hamoen (Synopsys) about how Synopsys is working its way into audio IP, and then it's an interview with Mark Zarins of GrammaTech about static code analysis and why your level of comfort in dealing with abstraction is important to them. Finally, I have a special “News You May Have Missed" segment about some recent rumblings on the Mentor Graphics Board of Directors.
Also this week, I have a brand new nerdy giveaway (a TI MSP-EXP430FR5739 Experimenter Board) courtesy of Mouser to throw your way, but you'll have to tune in to find out how to win.
An EDA Foil Hat
iROC Attacks Cosmic Attacks
We are all under attack. Don’t bother hiding the kids; there is no escape. Well, not much, anyway. A foil hat won’t be enough to protect them, and they’d be totally abused at school in a full-body foil outfit.
This constant bombardment isn’t news; it’s the familiar neutron (amongst other particles) assault that comes from space or the materials around us. And it’s just waiting to mess up the system you designed.
I, Robot 101
School Uses Robotics to Teach Engineering and More
Okay, it’s now officially the Twenty-First Century: They’re teaching robotics in school.
I, for one, welcome our robot overlords, especially if they’re like the ones coming out of a small Arizona high school. Last week, I had a nice talk with Enrique Santa Cruz, the Robotics & Automation instructor at Walden Grove High School in Sahuarita, Arizona. (I’ll save you the trouble: it’s a town of 25,000 souls about 15 miles due south of Tucson. You’re welcome.)
