#151 February 2003 Communications

Table of Contents Task Manager Triumph Over New Year's Resolution—by Jennifer Huber Priority Interrupt Real People—by Steve Ciarcia New Product News—edited by John Gorsky USB Parallel Port by Jan van de Kamer With each passing generation of PC and OS technology, it’s becoming harder for you to connect your home-built hardware to your computer. However, with Jan’s USB-to-standard parallel port adapter, you will have no problem connecting your own hardware. p.12 Keywords: USB, parallel port, PC, interface, emulation, FT8U245AM, power (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) MCS-51 SBC for the Classroom Part 1: Hardware by Praveen Deshpande, Prajakta Deshpande, & Viraj Bhanage College students tend to experience a lot of problems when working with development systems that use PLDs and ASICs. So, at the behest of a local college professor, Praveen and his colleagues developed an inexpensive 8051-based SBC that’s perfect for the classroom. p.20 Keywords: 8051, SBC, 89C51, DS80C320, memory, I/O, serial, firmware, boot loader (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Feature Article of the Month— GPS-GSM Mobile Navigator Read it Now! by Ma Chao & Lin Ming What’s the more laudable engineering feat, designing a navigation system capable of tracking ships in Shanghai Port or placing at the top of a competitive design contest? With the award-winning GPS-GSM Mobile Navigator, Ma and Lin accomplished both. p.30 Keywords: GPS, GSM, navigation, communication, SMS, AT90S8515, serial, NMEA, software, BASCOM-AVR A Wireless Indoor/Outdoor Humidity Meter by Ken Macleish Fascinated by weather instrumentation, Ken recently built an indoor/outdoor humidity meter with several basic components and a few PIC micros. In this article, he describes how to build the separate indoor and outdoor units and how to make them aesthetically pleasing. p.38 Keywords: Humidity, wireless, HIH-3610, temperature, dew point, LED, PIC12C672, PIC16F84A, RF, construction, antenna, RCR-433-HP, RCT-433-AS (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) ROBOTICS CORNER Easy Image Processing Camera Interfacing for Robotics by Daniel Herrington Since childhood, Daniel has incorporated high-tech toys in his robotics projects. Thus, it’s no surprise that he used a Game Boy Camera in one of his recent designs. Now, he’ll show you how to use the camera to enhance the navigation system on your own mobile robot. p.44 Keywords: Robotics, imaging, camera, AT90S8515, Game Boy Camera, ADC, serial, M64282FP, tracking, C (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) APPLIED PCs AP89C668 Development Board for 8051 Fans by Fred Eady Despite their geographical and occupational differences, most of Fred’s readers have one thing in common: their love of the 8051. This month, Fred assuages their appetite for 8051-related projects with a simple 80C51-compatible P89C668 development board. p.54 Keywords: P89C668, development board, 8051, UPD71055L, I/O, RTL8019AS, Flash Magic, RS-232, Ethernet, RM-232-433 (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) ABOVE THE GROUND PLANE Nonlinear Mixing by Ed Nisley In a number of previous articles, Ed has covered the topic of linear audio mixers. This month, he will address the flip side of the coin, nonlinear mixing. If you’re not accustomed to working with nonlinear mixers, this article is the perfect place to begin. p.62 Keywords: Signal mixing, nonlinear, TrueRTA, generator, amplitude, frequency coefficients, transmitter, receiver (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Sponsored Article— Read it Now! FROM THE BENCH Newcomer Nitron Motorola's Leading 8/16-Pin MCUs by Jeff Bachiochi Motorola’s 2003 design contest is upon us, so now’s the time to get familiar with the Nitron family. This month, Jeff introduces us to the flashy technology that will soon permeate the low-end markets. p.68 Keywords: Nitron, 68HC908, design contest, core, memory, TIM, COP, LVD, I/O, ADC Sponsored by Flash Innovation 2003 Design Contest (Contest Web Site) Short Solutions Simple EL-Lamp Driver by D. Prabakaran In this complicated world, quick solutions can be lifesavers. D. Prabakaran recently designed a straightforward EL-lamp driver that includes an HV826 integrated circuit. With it, he can enhance backlighting applications ranging from laptop displays to keypad lighting. p.76 Keywords: HV826, lighting, EL lamp, electroluminescent (If you have pop-ups disabled click here for password) —Sponsored Article— Read it Now! SILICON UPDATE Working the 'Net by Tom Cantrell Shouldn’t every engineer know a little more about the process of network-enabling his or her widget? Tom definitely thinks so. With Tom on your side, you’ll be working the ’Net to your advantage in no time. p.78 Keywords: Network, Ethernet, TCP/IP, RS-232, CoBox, IGM7100, SitePlayer, HTML, web, MC5272 Sponsored by i2Chip, Inc. Test Your EQ Advertisers Index PREVIEW March #152 Signal Processing Updating the Home Control System—Part 1: FPGA Upgrade Board MCS-51 SBC for the Classroom—Part 2: Software Development Intelligent Light-Effects Controller for Entertainment Systems 2-D Optical Position Sensor A Look at Computer Viruses Using Rotary Encoders as Input Devices Build Your Own MP3 Player Applied PCs: Get Hooked on Video With the STV5730A From the Bench: The Switching Approach—Infiltrating the Linear Supply Market Silicon Update: Not Fading Away Cover Photography by Meadows Marketing