26 April 2023 FEATURING: • Software & Tools for Design, Modelling, Simulation & Debugging • Interconnect, Passive & Electromechanical • Real-Time Location Services & Geo-Positioning • Spotlight: Smart Grid & Renewable Energy Cables • Wires • Accessories
• AOI; X-ray • Component counters • Component storage • Conveyors • Device programming • Dot dispensing and conformal coating • ESD consumables • In-circuit testers • Jet printers • Low pressure injection moulding • PCB washing machines • Pick-and-place machines • Reflow ovens; vapour phase ovens • Rework and soldering stations • Selective wave soldering; wave soldering • Solder wire and solder paste • SPI • Stencil printers +27 11 869 0049 | [email protected] | www.mykaytronics.co.za The ultimate choice for a fast moving generation! MyKay Tronics We efficiently supply and support a total turnkey solution to the South African electronics market Supply Efficiency Support
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 1 TELECOMMUNICATIONS, WIRELESS, IoT, RF & MICROWAVE FEATURE 26 April 2023 Vol. 46 No. 3 News................................................................................. 3 Systems, components, design..........................8 General ............................................................................29 Hot chips......................................................................31 Open [re]sources .......................................................32 QuickFind index ....................................................IBC contents on the cover features regulars Interconnect, passive & electromechanical.......15 A host of connectors including ultra-rugged, low-profile mezzanine, waterproof power, and extreme performance connectors. Real-time location services & geo-positioning..................................................................22 The surging UWB technology wave, and various GNSS modules. Software & tools for design, modelling, simulation & debugging...............................................24 All about programmers, development kits and the MPLAB X IDE. Spotlight: Smart grid & renewable energy........26 New solutions for wireless battery management systems, the current state of energy storage, and future trends. 26 April 2023 FEATURING: • Software & Tools for Design, Modelling, Simulation & Debugging • Interconnect, Passive & Electromechanical • Real-Time Location Services & Geo-Positioning • Spotlight: Smart Grid & Renewable Energy Cables • Wires • Accessories Helukabel is an international leading manufacturer and supplier of cables, wires, and accessories for industries such as mining, industrial, solar, data, oil and gas, automotive, and food and beverage. With subsidiaries in 61 locations and 39 countries, Helukabel boasts a wide product range and stock availability, and can offer solutions to suit all cable and accessory needs. For more information contact Helukabel SA, +27 11 462 8752, [email protected], www.helukabel.co.za
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 2 NEWS Disclaimer While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements, inserts and company contact details are printed as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material. Published by: Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd Wild Fig Business Park, Block B, Unit 21, 1494 Cranberry Street, Honeydew Tel: +27 11 543 5800 [email protected] Gauteng Tracy Wolter, Tel: +27 11 543 5800, [email protected] KwaZulu-Natal Jane van der Spuy, Tel: +27 83 234 5412, [email protected] Western Cape Contact Durban or Jhb numbers for details Advertising: Print and Online Sales Manager: Malckey Tehini [email protected] Editor: Peter Howells, B.Tech (Electronic Engineering), [email protected] Subscription services For address changes, subscriptions, renewal status or missing issues call +27 11 543 5800 or [email protected] or WRITE TO: Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd, Box 385, Pinegowrie 2123 Subscribe online: www.technews.co.za All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, adapted, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Technews Publishing (PTY) Ltd. Reg No. 2005/034598/07 ISSN 0256-8934 VOLUME 46 NO 3 26 APRIL 2023 From the editor’s desk Peter Recently I was sitting, rather uncomfortably, watching the display on my phone showing me that I was at an altitude of around 8300 m above sea level and travelling at a speed of 911 km/h between Johannesburg and Durban. Being pitch dark outside, I had no visual reference of where I was or how fast I was travelling, save for the marvel of technology I was holding in my hand. Together with the speed and altitude readings, it also indicated that I was headed in almost an exactly south-east direction, and it had readouts of trip distance and maximum and average speeds. GNSS and its subset, GPS, have become synonymous with everyday life. No longer do we wonder how to get from point A to point B, even if we have never been to point B before. We simply take out our smartphone and access whichever navigation application we are comfortable with, then ask it to choose the route and guide us to our destination. And it does so with aplomb, routing us around areas of high traffic, bypassing unpaved roads and, if we choose, toll roads; sometimes guiding us through dodgy areas, to finally arrive at the destination in the quickest possible time. Using map books have, by and large, become a thing of the past, although my somewhat battered Southern African map book still finds a home in the boot of my car, just in case. You never know when you cannot access the GNSS signal, and, as my son can attest to, the three most important things in modern day lives are Wi-Fi, battery life, and food (usually in that order for most teenagers). Most people have forgotten the ‘dark ages’, prior to 2000, when GPS systems were not accurate, not because they were inherently poor, but because of a feature called selective availability. This feature allowed military personnel and equipment to utilise a very accurate position, while commercial use had a specific error introduced, allowing for positioning to be accurate only to within 100 m (compared to military’s 10 m). But in 2000, the then-president of the USA, Bill Clinton, ordered the selective availability feature to be switched off, opening a raft of commercialisation that has grown exponentially in the following 20 years. Despite positioning, many people do not realise the widespread use of GPS signals. All telecommunications systems, and indeed the internet, rely on the highly accurate clocks that exist on the orbiting satellites. This allows ground-based systems to have their clocks and data synchronised, helping data to flow efficiently. Much of modern-day farming equipment relies on GNSS data for ploughing fields, Good day from 25 000 feet planting crops, and future planning – many farming vehicles are now able to drive and perform these functions autonomously, thanks to GNSS. Because GPS is ‘owned and governed’ by the US military, the GNSS now comprises multiple constellations as more countries have come on board to launch and manage their own satellite navigation systems. Russia has GLONASS, China has BeiDou, and Galileo is operated by the European Union. Most modern GNSS receivers, like those embedded in modern smartphones, can receive signals from all these constellations. This has provided more accurate and precise navigation, with accuracy down to 3 m being commonplace. My thoughts then drifted to the new navigation kid on the block, Ultra Wideband (UWB), with its technology that delivers precise positioning with an accuracy measured in centimetres. More devices are being launched with UWB technology built-in, and once this becomes mainstream, it will launch brandnew commercialisation prospects. Misplacing devices will be a thing of the past. Personal trackers will be smaller, utilising less power. Warehousing will be completely revamped. The shopping centre experience will be turned on its head. Turn to page 22 for a brief primer on UWB technology – it certainly promises to be a disruptive technology.
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 3 NEWS ELECTRONICS NEWS DIGEST EVENTS Continued on page 4 Electronics News Digest Financial • The prices of NEV (new energy vehicle) power batteries fell by 3 to 4% MoM. The Li-ion battery industry was still in the process of consuming existing inventory, and prices of materials in the upstream sections of the industry chain continued to fall. The average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide registered MoM drops of 9% and 8% respectively. The prices of other cathode-related upstream materials such as cobalt (II, III) oxide and cobalt (II) sulphate also reached a trough. • The average selling price of NAND Flash products will continue to fall 5 to 10% in Q2 2023. Despite the fact that NAND manufacturers have continued to roll back production, there is still an oversupply of NAND Flash, as demand for products such as servers, smartphones, and notebooks is still weak. Two major players, Kioxia and Micron, both reported a reduction in production with Kioxia’s revenue plunging 30,5% due to the weak demand. • Trendforce has reported that several manufacturers, including Micron and SK Hynix, have started scaling back DRAM production. The ASP of DRAM dropped 20% in Q1 2023, and this price decline is expected to slow down to 10% in the next quarter. It is still uncertain whether the demand will recover in the second half of 2023, and therefore, production is being scaled back to force a rebound in the average selling price. • On a more upbeat note, smartphone camera module output is predicted to grow by 3,6% to 4,62 billion units in 2023 as smartphone demand picks up. Consumers are now, more than ever, prioritising camera performance when it comes to choosing a new smartphone. Companies • Intel has barely retained its title as the world’s most valuable semiconductor brand, marginally ahead of TSMC. Intel, whose brand value dropped 10% to $22,9 billion, edged TSMC by only $1,2 billion after its brand value increased by 5% to $21,6 billion. This is largely due to the fact that Intel has built a mainly consumer-facing brand, producing products for laptop and desktop computers, while TSMC is a business-to-business brand manufacturing semiconductors for the likes of Apple, AMD, and Nvidia. • Eskom has been issued with a R950 million fine in favour of Framatome, the company contracted to manufacture and replace the six steam generators at Koeberg nuclear power station. The fine was a penalty for delaying the project to replace unit 1 steam generator. The delay was in order to reduce load shedding in June 2022, but stage 4 power cuts were still implemented despite the delay. The project requires each Koeberg generation unit to be shut down for a projected five months. • Riding the worldwide hype surrounding ChatGPT, and now, other AI and ML products, Nvidia has introduced new intelligence chips and supercomputing services. This is intended to showcase how the company’s technology will drive the next round of AI breakthroughs. Nvidia has said that AWS is set to use 20 000 interconnected H100 GPUs (successor to the A100 used by OpenAI). Oracle announced that its platform will be using 16 000 of the new Nvidia H100 GPUs for high-performance computing applications, and Microsoft has started adding H100 GPUs to its existing compute infrastructure. • Nvidia is also positioning itself as a key player in quantum computing with the launch of new hardware and software. This month the company unveiled Cuda Quantum, a platform for building quantum algorithms using the popular classical coding languages C++ and python. Their program will help run the algorithm across both quantum and classical computers depending on which system is most efficient for that particular problem. The platform is named after Cuda, the Nvidia software most AI developers use to access the company’s GPU, and which has set Nvidia apart from other manufacturers in the AI space. • MTN South Africa will spend at least R1,5 billion in 2023 to secure its network against vandalism and load shedding. MTN’s CTO, Michele Gamberini, stated that there have been more than 400 attacks on its tower infrastructure in the Eastern Cape alone, with thieves making off with batteries, copper cable, and generators. • The South African Cabinet has approved a bill on electricity regulation which will pave the way for private generation projects. Despite its monopoly, Eskom is unprofitable and is moving ahead with its plan to separate into individual business entities: generation, transmission, and distribution. The bill will strengthen the role that energy regulator Nersa plays, and allow measures to create a transmission system operator that includes the provision of an electricity trading platform on a multi-market basis. • China Energy Engineering Group has proposed building a 1 GW floating solar farm on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe. The R18,3 billion AATF2023 9-11 May 2023 Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg With its theme of ‘For Africa from Africa’ for all things automation and technology, AATF2023 promises to be an immersive industrial automation technology experience not to be missed. AATF serves to identify and engage in the latest automation technology developments, inventions and trends. Register at https://www. africaautomationtechnologyfair.com/ en-gb.html SMTconnect 2023 9-11 May 2023 Nuremburg event grounds, Germany SMTconnect is a trade fair for electronic production in Europe that brings people and technologies together from the areas of development, production, services, and the applications of microelectronic assemblies and systems, in an inspiring work atmosphere. This exhibition is a significant industry event regarding innovations in the production of electronics, substrates and systems to do with mounting and connection technologies. PCIM, the exhibition for power electronics, intelligent motion, renewable energy and energy management, will take place at the same venue during the same time, and entry is free for SMTconnect attendees. Register at https://smt.mesago.com/events/en.html Enlit Africa 2023 16-18 May 2023 Cape Town Enlit Africa hosts Africa’s entire power and energy industry in this premier conference and exhibition event, which is now open for pre-registration. This show includes both live and digital events, exhibitions, and exclusive one-on-one interviews with leaders in the energy sector. Discover the latest innovations in the energy sector and connect with power and energy industries. Register at https://enlit-africa.com/ SECUREX 2023 6-8 June 2023 Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg Africa’s ultimate security expo is celebrating its third decade of bringing together suppliers and manufacturers of security technology and services. Securex will provide local and international suppliers and manufacturers with an excellent platform from which to engage with the local security industry. Register at https://securex.co.za/
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 4 NEWS ELECTRONICS NEWS DIGEST Continued from page 3 project will use more than 1,8 million PV panels installed over 146 modular floating units on the world’s largest lake. Civil engineering works would make up around 20% of the cost, with the balance used for the electrical equipment and installation. Zimbabwe currently has up to 12 hours of power blackouts per day due to electricity generating problems. China Energy has previously completed similar projects in China and Thailand. Benefits are threefold as the projects, besides generating power, avoid competition for land and have the potential to reduce evaporation from lakes. • Starlink rival OneWeb is set to launch global internet coverage this year. The company has launched the final 36 satellites of its initial 616-satellite constellation. OneWeb now has enough satellites in orbit to offer broadband to businesses and customers in the US by May, with global coverage set to be offered by the end of 2023. • Not to be outdone, SpaceX launched 495 additional Starlink satellites this year, the latest being 56 satellites on 24 March. This brings the total to over 3580 of these small LEO satellites with global coverage. Nearly 12 000 satellites in the Starlink network are planned to be deployed. • The Swedish mining group Boliden is becoming one of the first in the world to start using battery-electric trucks for heavy underground transport, starting in 2023. In mining environments, the electric trucks can deliver several big advantages, including no exhaust emissions, a safer workplace, and quieter working conditions. Technologies • NAPAfrica, the African continent’s largest Internet exchange point (IXP), reached a 3 Tbps peak traffic milestone. This peak in Internet traffic was reached on the back of some significant gaming releases and software updates. Since then, the increase in NAPAfrica’s average throughput has continued, and recently peaked at 3,44 Tbps, with the increase attributed to enterprises moving into the cloud and the ever-increasing demand for video and gaming services. • Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel Corporation and a pioneer in the semiconductor industry, has died at the age of 94. He is most wellknown for ‘Moore’s Law’ where he originally observed, in an article, that the number of transistors on microchips had roughly doubled every year since integrated circuits were invented. His prediction was later amended to every two years and helped both Intel and rival chipmakers target research and development resources aggressively to make sure that his prediction held true. In an interview in 2005 Moore said, “I was very fortunate to get into the semiconductor industry in its infancy. And I had an opportunity to grow from the time where we couldn’t make a single silicon transistor to the time where we put 1.7 billion of them on one chip. It’s been a phenomenal ride.” His legacy will certainly be remembered. • Researchers at the University of Rochester have announced a breakthrough in superconductor technology. A new material that is a superconductor at room temperature, albeit at high pressure, promises to revolutionise the electronics industry, leading to many new practical applications including ultra-efficient electricity grids, ultra-fast and energy-efficient computer chips, and incredibly powerful magnets for various control applications. Superconducting circuits are also used as qubits, the basic units of quantum computing. • Computing pioneer Bob Metcalfe has been awarded the industry’s most prestigious prize for the invention of Ethernet, a technology that remains the cornerstone of the internet. The Association for Computing Machinery conferred its 2022 Turing Award on Metcalfe and credited him with Ethernet’s ‘invention, standardisation, and commercialisation.’The award, known as the Nobel prize of computing, comes with a $1 million prize purse, thanks to backing from Google.
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 5 NEWS Electric equipment called a recloser is a high-end, precise automatic switchgear device. A recloser has sophisticated electronics and sensors that aid in preserving the electricity grid from breaking down. It opens to shut off the power supply when a short circuit occurs. It then automatically closes and restarts the power after a short while. A recloser can manually and automatically reset faults, while also restoring power supply. It shuts off the power supply permanently when a fault occurs more than three times in a circuit, to prevent any further mishap. Reclosers are mostly used to avoid short circuit-related events in businesses, manufacturing facilities, malls, and office settings. Over the projected period, North America will account for a leading market share in the recloser Recloser market set to reach $3,6 billion by 2033 industry. This regional market is expanding on the back of growing investments in smart grid projects, automatic distribution systems, and infrastructure development. The market is also benefiting from the increasing demand for the installation of automatic safety systems in both the residential and commercial sectors. Inmarsat published a whitepaper in April 2021 that highlights the value of satellite-monitored reclosers for remote areas. The Inmarsat L-band network’s BGAN M2M service is the best option for recloser control and monitoring as it offers up to 99,9% uptime, even during bad weather. For more information visit www.factmr.com Now in its third decade of matchmaking security technology and service providers with organisations seeking security solutions, Securex South Africa is co-located with A-OSH EXPO, Facilities Management Expo, and Firexpo, at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand from 6 to 8 June 2023. “By co-locating these four popular shows, we can maximise the time that visitors spend at the expos. They can source thousands of safety and security solutions all under one roof,” says Mark Anderson, portfolio director at Specialised Exhibitions – a division of Montgomery Group. A-OSH EXPO is the largest platform for occupational safety & health products and services in Africa. Facilities Management Expo showcases the providers of products and services geared towards ensuring that the systems of the built environment, or facility, work harmoniously. Firexpo, launched in 2022, builds on the symbiotic relationship between security (Securex), facilities management (Facilities Management Expo) and occupational safety & health (A-OSH EXPO). Addressing the critical element of early detection, that will ensure the timeous evacuation of people and the implementation of fire retarding and suppressing measures, Firexpo gives visitors a clear insight into which products and services are best suited to their environment. Visitors are also spoiled for choice at the various seminars and conferences hosted at the four expos. “For individuals seeking knowledge downloads on the latest trends and regulations in the industry, we offer the well-attended Securex Seminar Theatre, Saiosh free-to-attend Seminar Theatre, the Facilities Management Seminar Theatre powered by Broll, and the Working at Height Theatre. These sessions are populated with high-quality topics by respected industry leaders who present thought-provoking and stimulating subject matter,” says Anderson. End-to-end safety and security solutions at Securex South Africa Endorsed by leading industry professional bodies – SAIDSA; ESDA; FPASA; PSiRA; SASA; ISS; Saiosh; SAQCC Fire; FFETA; FDIA; Safety First Association; Working at Height Institute; and the National Bargaining Council for the Private Security Sector – Securex South Africa, A-OSH EXPO, Facilities Management Expo and Firexpo are essential tools for organisations intent on improving their risk profile and optimising their business operations. To register for free attendance at Securex South Africa follow this link: https://tickets.tixsa. co.za/event/securex-expo-south-africa-2023 To register for free attendance at A-OSH EXPO follow this link: https://tickets.tixsa.co.za/event/aosh-expo-south-africa-2023 To register for free attendance at Facilities Management Expo follow this link: https://tickets. tixsa.co.za/event/facilities-management-exposouth-africa-2023 To register for free attendance at Firexpo follow this link: https://tickets.tixsa.co.za/event/ firexpo-south-africa-2023 For more information visit www.securex.co.za or contact Zelda Jordaan, [email protected] Mark Anderson, portfolio director at Specialised Exhibitions – a division of Montgomery Group. Conductive foot, heel, and shoe grounders are used in electrostatic discharge protected areas to provide a path to ground for static electricity. This assists in preventing a build-up of static electricity, which can cause damage to sensitive electronic components. The range of grounders are designed to be worn on the heel of the shoe, and they provide a direct connection to the ground that is covered with conductive floors or mats, allowing static electricity to be safely discharged. They are a safe alternative to ESD shoes. ESD foot grounders are easy to install and can be used on standard shoes by placing the grounding tab in the shoe under the foot. Altico, the ESD division of Actum Electronics, offers a range of basic heel grounders, reversible heel grounders and shoe grounders. Reversible options are longer lasting as once the one side is worn, you can just rotate them to use the other side. Shoe grounders must be worn on both shoes to maintain the integrity of the body-to-ground connection, even when one foot is lifted off the floor. Shoe grounders should not be worn in isolation, but form part of a complete grounding system, which consists of a wrist band, cord, and conductive flooring. Disposable shoe covers are also available and should be worn with a grounding tab for permanent grounding. Features of Altico shoe grounders: • Quick-release buckle. • Unique elasticised rear section provides comfort to all shoe types. • Brightly coloured heel band for clear identification. • Reinforced black conductive rubber. • Easy to fit and adjust to any shoe size. • Leave no scuff marks. • Large, knitted ribbon contact tab with 1 MΩ resistor. with Greg Barron, Actum Group director Clearing the Static For more information contact Actum on +27 11 608 3001 or email [email protected]. Actum is a specialised importer and distributor of industrial and electronic products in Southern Africa. Conductive foot, heel, and shoe grounders
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 6 NEWS BMW Group-owned Mini has unveiled its claim to being the first solar-powered electric vehicle charging station in South Africa. The charging station was built in collaboration with Red Bull, the V&A Waterfront, and the City of Cape Town. The partnership with energy drinks maker Red Bull is a perfect fit according to Shaun Willis, head of Mini South Africa. The two brands have had a longstanding relationship, with the first Minis converted into the Red Bull Mini in California, USA, over 17 years ago. Mini is on track to produce electric-only vehicles by 2030, and it will soon release three new electric models onto the market, with the new, highly anticipated Mini Cooper Electric. The launch of the first solar-powered EV charging station is a significant milestone for Mini SA as it continues to look for new ways to promote sustainable energy solutions. Solar charging for Mini in Cape Town GigaDevice, a semiconductor manufacturer of flash memory, 32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs), and sensor technology, has been recognised as one of the ‘Top 10 China IC Brands’ for its outstanding technology breakthroughs and product innovation at the 2023 China IC Design Achievement Awards Ceremony and China IC Leadership Summit. The company’s GD5F1GM7 SPI NAND Flash and GD32F470 microcontroller also received the ‘Best Memory of the Year’ and ‘Best MCU of the Year’ awards, respectively, in the high-demand IC product categories. The China IC Design Achievement Award, held for 21 consecutive years, is among the top awards in China’s semiconductor industry. This GigaDevice receives outstanding awards in IC design Veeam Software has announced the winners of the Veeam ProPartner Awards for 2022 in South Africa, Johannesburg. The awards are held annually to reward the outstanding success and the commitment of Veeam ProPartner Value-Added Resellers (VAR) and Veeam Cloud & Service Provider (VCSP) partners. As a partner-centric organisation, Veeam recognises partners that leveraged customer support and Veeam expertise to deliver modern data protection in increasingly complex IT environments to ensure that the most diverse workload types, data, and applications are protected. The following Veeam partners received honours for the 2022 Veeam ProPartner Awards: The Value-Added Reseller of the Year, South Africa: Datacentrix; The Best Veeam Backup for Microsoft 365 Reselling Partner, South Africa: First Technology KZN; The Best Kasten Reselling Partner of the Year, South Africa: Datacentrix; The Best SMB Reselling Partner of the Year, South Africa: Datacentrix; The Best VCSP Partner of the Year, South Africa: Saicom; The Best Veeam Backup for M365 VCSP Partner, South Africa: Silicon Sky; The Best Kasten VCSP Partner of the Year, South Africa: Cyberlogic; The Value-Added Reseller of the Year, Rest of Africa: Blanche Birger; The Best Veeam Backup for M365 VCSP Partner, Rest of Africa: Evail; The Best Kasten Reselling Partner of the Year, Rest of Africa: Business Connexion Namibia; The Best SMB Reselling Partner of the Year, Rest of Africa: Blanche Birger; The Best VCSP Partner of the Year, Rest of Africa: Layer3; The Distributor of the Year Award, sub-Saharan Africa: Axiz. For more information visit www.veeam.com Winners of the Veeam ProPartner Awards for 2022 award reflects the winning company’s leading position in the industry and its outstanding product development, service, and support capabilities. GigaDevice holds the top market share in China for NOR flash and ranks among the top three globally with the company having shipped over 19 billion units of NOR flash cumulatively, with an annual shipment exceeding 2,8 billion units. For more information contact NuVision Electronics, +27 11 608 0144, [email protected], www.nuvisionelec.com
Complete information offering to suit your needs Annual subscription includes: • 10 issues of Dataweek (February to November) • Annuals: • Electronics Buyers’ Guide (EBG) www.ebg.co.za • Electronics Manufacturing & Production Handbook (EMP) Twice a week our news briefs cover the latest news and views. Fast, to the point and direct to your inbox, they are the ideal way for professionals to stay in touch with what matters to them. www.dataweek.co.za The place where professionals search for products, services and suppliers. With access to a continually expanding repository of online pages, this is the ultimate electronics and communications technology reference site. subscribe today [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] +27 11 543 5800 advertise in Dataweek The print publications Email news briefs The Dataweek website The authoritative one-stop resource for electronics and communications technologies This is the most convenient way to stay in the know if you’re on the go. You can view the e-book version of any of the magazines online or download them as a PDF. The digital magazines
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 8 REGULAR SYSTEMS, COMPONENTS, DESIGN Quectel Wireless Solutions and Amazon Sidewalk have announced a partnership to bring advanced connectivity solutions to customers. Amazon Sidewalk is a secure, low-bandwidth, long-range network for IoT devices. The Quectel KG100S module and a portfolio of matching antennas will be fully compatible with Amazon Sidewalk, making launching and maintaining connected IoT devices and solutions quicker, easier, and more cost effective. It is designed to provide persistent connectivity to devices that are outside the range of typical home IoT networks. The KG100S is a low-power, cost-effective module in an LGA form factor which is developed specially to support Amazon Sidewalk applications. It is equipped with a built-in SX1262 transceiver supporting LoRa and FSK, and a high-performance, energy-friendly Silicon Labs EFR32BG21B microcontroller with a 2,4 GHz radio transceiver for Bluetooth LE 5.1 and 80 MHz ARM Cortex-M33 microcontroller core. With a small size of 15 x 15 x 2,25 mm, and with 96 KB of RAM and 1 MB Flash, the module has a 3,3 V and 1,8 V power supply and is suitable Advanced connectivity solutions used by Amazon Sidewalk STMicroelectronics has announced its latest Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) accelerometer, the LISDUXS12, which promises to deliver always-on functionality, together with excellent energy efficiency. With embedded AI, integrated Qvar and anti-aliasing filter, the sensors themselves are able to provide context information. This smart, digital, three-axis linear MEMS accelerometer provides the ability to build always-on, always-aware applications that can support people’s daily activities seamlessly and continuously. The embedded anti-alias filter reduces processing complexity while consuming only a few µA. Current consumption in high-performance mode with anti-alias filter is 10,8 µA, which drops to 2,7 µA in ultralow-power mode. The LIS2DUXS12 MIPI I3C slave interface and embedded 128-level FIFO buffer complete a set of features that make this accelerometer a reference in terms of system integration from a standpoint of the bill of materials, processing, or power consumption. The LIS2DUXS12 has user-selectable full scales of ±2/±4/±8/±16g and is capable of measuring accelerations with output data rates from 1,6 to 800 Hz. With embedded machine learning core, programmable finite state machine, and integrated analog hub/Qvar sensing channel, the accelerometer is suitable for a wide range of applications such as wearable devices, game controllers, portable healthcare devices, true wireless stereo, wireless sensor nodes, motion-activated user interfaces, and asset trackers. For more information contact Renaldo Fibiger, Altron Arrow, +27 11 923 9749, [email protected], www.altronarrow.com MEMS accelerometer with integrated AI MACOM Technology Solutions Inc., designers of analog RF, microwave, millimetre-wave and photonic semiconductors, components and subassemblies, announced an expansion to its power amplifier product portfolio with the MAPC-A1605 7,0 kW power amplifier. This device is suitable for high-power and high-voltage aerospace and defence applications, including radar and electronic warfare (EW) systems. The MAPC-A1605 can operate at 960-1215 MHz and represents MACOM’s highest-power-level RF amplifier component product. This extremely high-power level was achieved by combining novel high-voltage circuit topologies with advanced packaging materials for improved thermal management. The MAPC-A1605 utilises MACOM PURE CARBIDE gallium nitride-on-silicon carbide (GaN-on-SiC) technology and operates at 150 V bias levels. MACOM also introduced the MAPC-A1603 and MAPC-A1604, which operate at similar frequencies but lower voltages and lower output powers of 3,3 kW and 5,0 kW, respectively. Previously, MACOM’s highest-power amplifier was the MAPC-A1500, operating at 2,6 kW. “Our customers want to transmit higher power levels and these new amplifiers will help enable that,” said president and CEO Stephen G. Daly. MACOM extends PURE CARBIDE GaN-on-SiC power amplifier range to 7kW for connecting low data rate applications such as sensor networks and smart home devices. Quectel also offers a portfolio of high-performing embedded and external antennas to support the Sidewalk designs and devices. By bundling module and antennas, device OEMs can ensure cost-effective devices with fast-time-to-market. Amazon Sidewalk modules also allow IoT devices to automatically connect and have no cost to transmit messages to Amazon Sidewalk, which removes the need for manual onboarding or set up to establish/maintain a connection. By doing this, Amazon Sidewalk brings connectivity to everyday objects both inside and outside the home – kitchen appliances, gas sensors, lawn sprinklers, keys, rubbish bins, pet trackers, streetlights – instantly connected out-of-the-box through Amazon Sidewalk, fulfilling the promise of a connected world. For more information contact Quectel Wireless Solutions, +27 82 653 7458, [email protected], www.quectel.com For more information contact RFiber Solutions, +27 12 667 5212, [email protected], www.rfibersolutions.com
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 9 REGULAR SYSTEMS, COMPONENTS, DESIGN Quectel Wireless Solutions has announced how its latest smart module with machine compute and edge intelligence capabilities is revolutionising the colour sorter industry with higher efficiency and accuracy. Employing Quectel’s high-performance SG560D smart module, the solution improves the colour sorting of industrial materials that can be transformed via a visual identification system, through a combination Industrial smart colour sorter solution with edge intelligence Effective from 1 January 2009, the latest version of the Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) added UN serial numbers for dangerous goods, and lithium batteries are classified as lithium-ion batteries (UN 3090 and UN 3091) and lithium metal batteries (UN 3480 and UN 3481). The regulation states that lithium batteries cannot be transported by air if they are not accompanied by a test report or certificate of approval based on UN38.3. UN 38.3 refers to Part 3, paragraph 38.3 of the United Nations Manual of Tests and Criteria for the Transport of Dangerous Goods, which requires lithium batteries to pass height simulation, high and low temperature cycling, vibration test, shock test, external short circuit at 55°C, impact test, overcharge test, and forced discharge test, before transportation to ensure the safety of lithium batteries. Forced discharge means that the battery discharges the internal stored power. When the voltage reaches a certain value, continued discharge will cause over-discharge. It will destroy the crystalline structure of the positive and negative electrodes of the battery, degrading the thermal stability of the two electrodes. The negative electrode produces a large amount of hydrogen gas, which catalyses the decomposition of the organic electrolyte. When the temperature is high enough, the positive electrode will decompose and produce a large quantity of hydrocarbons, which will eventually lead to the rupture of the battery, resulting in fire. Real case scenario A test required a 3,7 V battery cell to undergo a forced discharge at 500 A. An ITECH T6030D-80-900 high-power DC power supply was used. The PSU Forced discharge test of lithium batteries for aviation applications was set to 12 V/510 A and connected in series with the battery cell. An IT8912A-150-1200 high-performance DC electronic load, with constant current set to 500 A, was used to discharge the cell. The sense function of the load was switched on, and through the remote measurement terminal, the voltage of the battery cell could be read back in real time. The voltage and current data used for this experiment was then recorded through the supporting software. The data was then analysed, and conclusions drawn, once the experiment was complete. ITECH DC power supplies and loads can be used to test all types of battery chemistries. Besides the models mentioned above, there are also bi-directional DC power supplies and the ITS5300 battery testing system for different battery testing options. For more information contact Conical Technologies, +27 66 231 1900, [email protected], www.conical.co.za of machine vision and edge intelligence capabilities, and automatically sorts objects based on colour and shapes accordingly. The advanced colour sorter application, aimed at the industrial materials management industry, utilises the Quectel SG560D smart module based on the Qualcomm QCS6490 chipset, and additional integrated hardware including cameras, lamps, and air guns. The solution can detect, recognise, and sort a broad array of textures, colours and materials, including food materials such as rice, wheat, corn, soybean, seeds, nuts, and salt; plastic objects such as plastic pieces, plastic granules, and plastic bottle caps; and minerals like quartz stone, quartz sand, pearls, and marble. With advanced visual identification system, the smart colour sorter solution can manage colour sorting of high-volume objects, with four cameras working simultaneously to stream video, with an accuracy of less than 1/200 000 error rate. Additionally, it can help reduce operating and labour expense significantly. Quectel’s SG560D is a powerful smart module equipped with a Qualcomm Kryo 670 CPU built on Arm v8 Cortex technology and a Qualcomm Adreno 642L GPU. It also features two HVX high-performance digital signal processors, which bring superior computing power to enable fast, high-quality data processing and make quicker, data-driven decisions. The SG560D also supports 5G new radio (NR), Wi-Fi 6E bands of 2,4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz, dual-band simultaneous (DBS), Wi-Fi 2x2 MU-MIMO, and Bluetooth 5.2, which significantly improves network coverage and enhances transmission data rates in different application scenarios. For more information contact Quectel Wireless Solutions, +27 82 653 7458, [email protected], www.quectel.com
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 10 REGULAR SYSTEMS, COMPONENTS, DESIGN Designed for the smallest IoT devices, the xG27 and BB50 families range in size from 2 mm2 to 5 mm2. These offer IoT device designers energy efficiency, high performance, trusted security, and in the case of the xG27 family, wireless connectivity. This makes the xG27 SoC family and BB50 MCU ideal for tiny, battery-optimised devices like connected medical devices, wearables, asset monitoring tags, smart sensors, and simple consumer electronics like toothbrushes and toys. The new xG27 family of SoCs comprises the BG27, for Bluetooth connectivity, and the MG27, supporting Zigbee and other proprietary protocols. Built around the ARM Cortex M33 processor, the BG27 and MG27 share several common features designed to make them the ideal SoC for small form-factor devices. In one use case, Lura Health, a medical device manufacturer and participant in the Alpha programme for BG27, has already selected the new SoC to form the basis of its new in-development smart wearable. However, unlike other common wearables on the wrist or other external places, the new Lura Health monitor is designed to be fitted into a person’s SoC small enough to be glued to a tooth Power Integrations has announced a 900 V GaN extension to the company’s InnoSwitch3 family of flyback switcher ICs. The new ICs, which feature the company’s proprietary PowiGaN technology, deliver up to 100 W, with better than 93% efficiency, eliminating the need for heat sinks, and streamlining design of space-challenged applications. InnoSwitch3 designs also offer exceptional light-load efficiency, making them ideal for providing auxiliary power in electric vehicles during low-power sleep modes. The AEC-Q100-qualified InnoSwitch3-AQ family is particularly suitable for EVs based on 400 V bus systems where the 900 V PowiGaN switch provides more power and increased design margin – required for 12 V battery-replacement systems – with enhanced efficiency over silicon-based converters. “The dominant bus voltage for electric vehicles is 400 V,” stated Peter Vaughan, automotive business development director at Power Integrations. “EV manufacturers are optimising their new generation of 400 V systems and re-engineering various power stages in the vehicle, such as the on-board charger. The 900 V PowiGaN switch is extremely beneficial because it easily accommodates the highly inductive noise spikes that are often present in automotive environments. The extra power delivered by our GaN technology matches the increasing power demands of EV manufacturers. Moreover, efficiency in power conversion – even in auxiliary systems – is important for range extension and thermal management.” In the industrial space, extra power and increased efficiency are extremely 900 V GaN flyback switcher IC advantageous in applications such as appliances, three-phase motors and auxiliary power supply units (PSUs) in servers. The new 900 V parts are pin-for-pin compatible with existing 725 V and 750 V InnoSwitch3-EP parts, and offer increased safety margin, which is ideal for countries with unstable line voltages. The new 900 V InnoSwitch3-EP and InnoSwitch3-AQ CV/CC flyback switcher ICs employ synchronous rectification, a valley switching discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) and continuous conduction mode (CCM) flyback controller. FluxLink communication technology enables the IC package to bridge the isolation barrier, optimising efficiency and eliminating the need for optocouplers. PowiGaN technology enables InnoSwitch3-EP ICs to deliver up to 100 W mouth. Specifically, the device is so small that it is glued to a tooth. With the device, dentists and other clinicians can collect important data from saliva, which is used to test for over 1000 health conditions. “The BG27 is amazing because it’s small enough that we can develop an IoT sensor smaller than a tooth, the power consumption is low enough to remove battery life as a product constraint, it has enough memory to store a sophisticated firmware application, it allows us to perform the data analysis required to gain insightful information from what we are monitoring, and it has all the peripherals we need to interface with our sensors,” said Noah Hill, co-Founder and CTO of Lura Health. “We spent hundreds of hours searching for a microcontroller that meets our needs, and the BG27 is the only solution that checks every box.” The BG27 and MG27 open and extend a wide range of possible applications and use cases. For more information contact NuVision Electronics, +27 11 608 0144, [email protected], www.nuvisionelec.com (230 V alternating current ±15%) without heat sinks. InnoSwitch3-EP devices incorporate multiple protection features including line over- and under-voltage protection, output over-voltage and over-current limiting, and over-temperature shutdown. Devices are available with standard and peak power delivery options. Automotive InnoSwitch3-AQ devices can also deliver 100 W from a 400 V bus, and provide performance and protection features like those of the popular 1700 V silicon-carbide InnoSwitch3-AQ ICs currently used in 800 V EV systems. For more information contact MB Silicon Systems, +27 11 728 4757, [email protected], www.mbsiliconsystems.co.za
The MAAD-011048 from MACOM Technology Solutions Inc. is a wideband 5-bit, 1 dB step MMIC digital attenuator with a full 31 dB range. Operating over a frequency range of DC to 55 GHz, the device is compatible with 1,8 V CMOS logic. It is available in a lead-free 3 mm, 20-lead surface mount laminate package. DC to 55 GHz digital attenuator With the recent launch of the S32G3, the S32G family of vehicle network processors just doubled in size. The S32G3 series offers up to 2,5 times the performance, memory and networking bandwidth as the S32G2 series. The new S32G3 processors are pinout- and software-compatible with the S32G2 processors, allowing for a drop-in replacement which can provide around 10 times the performance over the previous generation. The S32G3 processors address processing needs with up to four lockstep pairs of Arm Cortex-M7 microcontroller cores, and up to eight Cortex-A53 application cores and an increase in the frequency by 30% to 1,3 GHz. System RAM has been increased up to 20 MB to support more and larger microcontroller Accelerating software-defined vehicles and safety processing applications, and the isolation domains have been doubled to 16 domains. Additionally, to support the higher number of cores and applications, system and watchdog timers have been increased. Being vehicle network processors with network acceleration, the S32G3 network capabilities were also enhanced for higher vehicle data bandwidths. The Low Latency Communication Engine (LLCE) supports up to 5 Mbps CAN FD traffic on all 16 interfaces, and the Packet Forwarding Engine (PFE) supports up to 2,5 Gbps on all three Ethernet interfaces. For more information contact EBV Electrolink, +27 21 402 1940, [email protected], www.ebv.com The attenuator is controlled with either a SPI-compatible serial interface or a 5-bit parallel word. SEROUT is same signal as the SERIN but delayed by six clock cycles, which is useful when using these attenuators in daisy-chain operation. This device is ideally suited for use where high accuracy, very low power consumption, and low intermodulation products are required, such as the ISM market. For more information contact RFiber Solutions, +27 12 667 5212, [email protected], www.rfibersolutions.com REGULAR SYSTEMS, COMPONENTS, DESIGN
Dataweek, 26 April 2023 www.dataweek.co.za 12 REGULAR SYSTEMS, COMPONENTS, DESIGN In the first article [March 2023, http://www.dataweek.co.za/18832r web address], it was shown how a classic linear program execution in a microcontroller differs from a CNN. The CIFAR network, with which it is possible to classify objects such as cats, houses, or bicycles in images, or to perform simple voice pattern recognition, was discussed. Part 2 explains how these neural networks can be trained to solve problems. The training process for neural networks The CIFAR network, which is discussed in the first part of the series, is made up of different layers of neurons, as shown in Figure 1. The image data from 32 pixels × 32 pixels are presented to the network and passed through the network layers. The first step in a CNN is to detect and investigate the unique features and structures of the objects to be differentiated. Filter matrices are used for this. Once a neural network such as the CIFAR has been modelled by a designer, these filter matrices are initially still undetermined, and the network at this stage is still unable to detect patterns and objects. To facilitate this, it is first necessary to determine all parameters and elements of the matrices to maximise the accuracy with which objects are detected, or to minimise the loss function. This process is known as neural network training. For common applications as described in the first part of this series, the networks are trained once during development and testing. After that, they are ready for use and the parameters no longer need to be adjusted. If the system is classifying familiar objects, no additional training is necessary. Training is only necessary when the system is required to classify completely new objects. Training data is required to train a network, and later, a similar set of data is used to test the accuracy of the network. In our CIFAR-10 network dataset, the data are the set of images within the ten object classes: aeroplane, automobile, bird, cat, deer, dog, frog, horse, What is ML? – Part 2: Training convolutional neural networks By Ole Dreeson, staff engineer, field applications, www.analog.com. ship, and truck. However – and this is the most complicated part of the overall development of an AI application – these images must be named before training a CNN. The training process works according to the principle of backpropagation; the network is shown numerous images in succession and simultaneously conveyed a target value each time. In our example, this value is the associated object class. Each time an image is shown, the filter matrices are optimised so that the target and actual values for the object class match. After this process has been completed, the network can also detect objects in images that it did not see during training. Overfitting and underfitting In neural network modelling, questions often arise around how complex a neural network should be – that is, how many layers it should have, or how large its filter matrices should be. There is no easy answer to this question. In connection with this, it is important to discuss network overfitting and underfitting. Overfitting is the result of an overly complex model with too many parameters. We can determine whether a prediction model fits the training data too poorly or too well by comparing the training data loss with the test data loss. If the loss is low during training and increases excessively when the network is presented with test data that it has never been shown before, this is a strong indication that the network has memorised the training data instead of generalising the pattern recognition. This mainly happens when the network has too much storage for parameters, or too many convolution layers. In this case, the network size should be reduced. Loss function and training algorithms Learning is done in two steps. In the first step, the network is shown an image, which is then processed by a network of neurons to generate an output vector. The highest value of the output vector represents the detected object class, like a dog in our example, which in the training case does not yet necessarily have to be correct. This step is referred to as feedforward. The difference between the target and actual values arising at the output is referred to as the loss, and the associated function is the loss function. All elements and parameters of the network are included in the loss function. The goal of the neural network learning process is to define these parameters in such a way that the loss function is minimised. This minimisation is achieved through a process in which the deviation arising at the output (loss = target value minus actual value) is fed backward through all components of the network until it reaches the starting layer of the network. This part of the learning process is known as backpropagation. A loop that determines the parameters of the filter matrices in a stepwise manner is thus yielded during the training process. This process of feedforward and backpropagation is repeated until the loss value drops below a previously defined value. Optimisation algorithm, gradient, and gradient descent method To illustrate our training process, Figure 3 shows a loss function consisting of just the two parameters x and y. The z-axis corresponds to the loss. The function itself does not play a role here and is used for illustration purposes only. If we look more closely at the three-dimensional function plot, we can see that the function has a global minimum as well as a local minimum. A large number of numerical optimisation algorithms can be used to determine weights and biases. The simplest one is the gradient descent method. The gradient descent method is based on the idea of finding a path from a randomly chosen starting point in the loss function that leads to the global minimum, in a stepwise process using the gradient. The gradient, as a mathematical operator, describes the progression of a physical quantity. It delivers, at each point of our loss function, a vector – also known as a gradient vector – that Figure 1. CIFAR CNN architecture.
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