#150 January 2003 Embedded Applications

Table of Contents Task Manager Fifteen Moore Years—by Jennifer Huber Priority Interrupt Inside the Box Still Counts—by Steve Ciarcia New Product News—edited by John Gorsky Use Frequency Modulation to Send ASCII Data by Tom Napier Several years ago, Tom completed an ultrasonic transmitter project built around a PIC16C84. Now, he returns to this subject to explain the importance of frequency modulation and describe how it’s used to send ASCII data. In his latest project, Tom switches to a ’16C54. p.12 Keywords: Communications, frequency, modulation, ultrasonic, Doppler, QPSK, FSK, MSK, PIC16C54, DAC-08, TL082, serial, PLL (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) ROBOTICS CORNER The (G)Eiger Sanction—The Design, Construction, and Interfacing of a Simple Radiation Detector by Tom Dahlin Recently, one of Tom’s customers asked him to design a Geiger counter for a robotic sensing platform. That request led him on an exciting journey that involved everything from hunting for surplus parts to reviewing physics concepts. Now, Tom is ready to share his experiences. p.18 Keywords: Radiation, detection, Geiger, tube, nuclear, roentgen, seivert, Basic Stamp II, BXA-502, G1300, CDV-700, CCFL inverter (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Feature Article of the Month— The PSoC RangeFinder A Simple Ultrasonic Distance Meter Read it Now! by Fabio Piana Some distances are more difficult to measure than others. Therefore, Fabio built his own ultrasonic rangefinder, which won First Prize in the Cypress PSoC design contest. It can be used for measuring liquid levels, generic distances, and even the depth of snow. p.26 Keywords: Distance meter, range finder, ultrasonic, PSoC, CY8C26443, LCD, serial Where's the Hardware? by Enoch Hwang It would take years, even for the most voracious reader, to thumb through all of the books published on the topic of using software to build hardware. Fortunately, Enoch has done much of the legwork for us. He put together a concise tutorial on designing an ALU chip. p.32 Keywords: Hardware emulation, VHDL, ALU, counter, display driver, design, logic operations, FPGA, synthesis, MAX+PLUS II, MAX7000S, programming (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) AVR Video Generator Teaching Programming and Graphics by Bruce Land Pop quiz: What do you get when you mix a small black and white TV with the Atmel AVR Mega163? If you’re a lab-oriented professor, you get a standardized, cost-effective video generator for your classroom. Follow along as Bruce describes how he did it. p.40 Keywords: Graphics, programming, education, AVR Mega163, video, RS170, sync, flicker (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) Building an Electric Airplane by George Novacek When it comes to planes and automobiles, many engineers see electric motor technology as the ticket to an energy-efficient, cost-effective future. With this in mind, George shows us how to design an electrically actuated system, focusing on control and braking. p.44 Keywords: Airplane, actuator, brushless, motor, BLDC, magnetism, torque, speed, timing, control, PWM, braking, back EMF, fly-by-wire (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) Embedded XML—Make your Customer's IT Department Happy by Edward Steinfeld The popularity of XML is growing. As a result, engineers must work closely with IT departments to meet data management requirements. The task can be difficult, but there are ways you can help enhance data flow without having to customize each device you design. p.52 Keywords: XML, database, tags, schema, HTML, XMLSPY, RomXML, parser/framer, translator (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Sponsored Article— Read it Now! APPLIED PCs Construct an ATA Hard Drive Controller by Fred Eady It’s about time you had full control of your hard drive. The controller you’ve been waiting for is just one project away. This month, Fred shows you how easy it is to build an ATA hard drive controller. Amazingly, all you need is a good micro and a few everyday parts. p.58 Keywords: Hard drive, controller, ATA, ISP, RTL8019, LF1S022, ATmega128, Ethernet, ICCAVR C compiler, cylinder, LBA, FAT32, MBR Sponsored by ImageCraft Creations Inc.   ARMs to ARMs—Part 3: Working in the World of ARM by Robert Martin Now that you’ve been fully assimilated into the world of ARM, it’s time to get to work. In this final installment of Robert’s series, he demonstrates how to implement the ARM architecture in CPU and system cores, tool chains, and tools. Now, you don’t have to rely on the x86 or 68K. p.68 Keywords: ARM, core, ARM7, V4.T, ARM7TDMI, Thumb, instructions, SA1110, StrongARM, XScale, PXA250, PXA210, GNU tools, JTAG emulators, ROM monitor, development boards, RedBoot, AT91EB40 (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Sponsored Article— Read it Now! FROM THE BENCH GUI Interfacing A Straightforward, Simple Solution by Jeff Bachiochi Without the proper tools, even a straightforward project like interfacing a micro to a GUI can be complicated. So, it’s always refreshing when a company develops technology that can simplify such a project. p.72 Keywords: GUI, interfacing, AGB64LV01-GC, engine, LCD, uHTML, SPI, touch screen, ADS7846, tools, currency converter, bill acceptor, AL$, iButton, DS1963S, DS2480B, Easy GUI Browser chip Sponsored by Amulet Technologies   (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Sponsored Article — Read it Now! SILICON UPDATE Going Mobile by Tom Cantrell After popping the hood on another concept car, Tom started thinking about LIN technology. Clearly, car makers are hyping the value of it, and soon, other industries are likely to hop on the bandwagon. p.78 Keywords: LIN, vehicle, network, J1850, CAN, single master, multi-slave, protocol, TJA1020, TH8060, PIC16C432, MC68HC908EY, MC33689, MC33895, PSoC, PICDEM LIN Sponsored by: Melixis Microelectronic Systems Test Your EQ by edited by Dave Tweed Advertisers Index PREVIEW February #151 Communications GPS-GSM Mobile Navigator MCS-51 SBC for the Classroom—Part 1: Hardware A Wireless Indoor/Outdoor Humidity Meter USB Parallel Port Robotics Corner: Easy Image Processing —Camera Interfacing for Robotics Above the Ground Plane: Nonlinear Mixing Applied PCs: A P89C668 Development Board for 8051 Fans From the Bench: Newcomer Nitron—Motorola's Leading 8/16-Pin MCUs Silicon Update: Working the ’Net Cover Photography by Meadows Marketing