|
Table of Contents
Task
Manager
Variety
is the Spice of Life—by
Jennifer Huber
Priority
Interrupt
Electronic
Gremlins —by
Steve Ciarcia
New
Product News—edited
by John Gorsky
General-Purpose Cable
Tester—Stand-Alone or with a GUI
by Michael Griebling
Michael
built his first cable tester with an Apple II, Basic
compiler, and several decoders and multiplexers.
Twenty-five years later, it’s still hard to find
cost-effective, general-purpose cable testers. So
he’s at it again, but this time he’s armed with
a PIC micro and JAL. p.12
Keywords:
Cable
tester, JAL, interface, PIC16F628, serial, GUI
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
Automotive
G-Force Meter—Challenging the Factory Specs
by
Ross Tsukashima
How accurate are the specs car companies
publish in their glossy brochures? Asking himself
the same question, Ross decided to challenge a factory’s
numbers with his own G-force meter. Not only is
the meter inexpensive, it fits on the lid of an
ordinary travel mug. p. 24
Keywords:
G-force, acceleration, ADXL202E, accelerometer,
PIC16F84A, PicBasic, LCD, PWM
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
|
—Feature
Article of the Month—
Automatic
Temp Controller
Data Logger for Slow Cooker
|
|
Read
it Now!
by John Moyer
Most chefs would argue that barbecuing is more art than science.
Nevertheless, John introduced ATmega8-based
technology to the procedure. The result? An
automatic temperature controller that eliminates
the need for constant vigilance when slow
cooking. p. 28
Keywords:
Temperature controller,
barbecue, ATmega8, thermocouple, ADC, accuracy,
airflow, LCD, LTC1050, ICCAVR
|
DTMF-Controlled
Remote Switching System
by Arthur
Musah
Interested in remotely controlling
your sprinklers, house lights, and air conditioners
with a phone and a password? In this article, Arthur
shows you how to do so by connecting his MSP430
microcontroller-based DTMF-controlled switching
system to a telephone line. p. 36
Keywords:
DTMF, MSP430, telephone, decoding, TS117, sampling,
tone generation
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
Blueport—Bluetooth
Interface for Embedded Systems
by
Zoltan Molnar
Blueport is a compact, card-sized module that you
can implement as a smart SPI peripheral. By following
Zoltan’s lead, you can achieve seamless wireless
communication for your embedded applications. It’s
time to say goodbye to those piles of cables. p.
44
Keywords:
Bluetooth, connectivity, microcontroller,protocols,
GAP, transport layer, HCI, L2CAP, API, AT90S8515,
ROK100108
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
Updating
the Home Control System—Part 3: The Complete
Upgrade Solution
by
Robert Morrison
Now that you’re familiar with Robert’s FPGA design
methodology, it’s time to get your hands dirty.
In the final installment of his series, Robert describes
the hardware, firmware, and software you’ll need
to start working on a home automation project of
your own. p. 54
Keywords:
HCSII, FPGA, XV2000E-1156, voice, ISD4003-8,
caller ID, compiling, loading, XPRESS, Synplify
Pro, ISE WebPACK, Spartan-II
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
APPLIED PCs
New ICE Age—MPLAB ICE 2000 Replaces PICMASTER
by Fred Eady
Keeping up with the latest and greatest technology,
Fred ditched his PICMASTER for the MPLAB ICE 2000.
Not only was the transition from his PICMASTER a
smooth one, it enhanced his mobility, because the
MPLAB ICE 2000 is ideal for use with laptops.
p. 62
Keywords:
ICE, MPLAB ICE 2000, PIC,
emulator, debugging
(If you have pop-ups disabled
click here for password)
Poor
Man's Front Panel
by
Brian Millier
Not every design problem requires a complicated,
expensive solution. For instance, you don’t have
to lose your mind and wallet the next time you find
yourself scrounging for a front panel. In this article,
Brian shows you how to maximize your time and money.
p. 70
Keywords:
Front
panel, LCD, universal infrared remote, IR, AT90S2313,
serial, BASCOM-AVR
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
FROM
THE BENCH
Making Sense of the Gerber File Format
by Jeff Bachiochi
Jeff enjoys writing reviews about the devices that
affect his daily engineering routine. This month,
he covers the story of photoplotter technology.
Read on as he makes sense of the Gerber “plot.”
p. 74
Keywords:
Gerber
file, CAD/CAM, ASCII, PCB, vector photoplotter,
aperature, command codes, raster scan, RS274-X,
RS274-D
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
SILICON
UPDATE
Digilog Déjà Vu
by Tom Cantrell
Tom’s been working the analog PLD beat for us for
several years now. This latest update comes on the
heels of his recent investigation into Anadigm—one
of the fresher faces to hit the “digilog” scene.
p. 80
Keywords:
Analog
PLD, digilog, Vortex, FPAA, AN10E40, AN220E40, design
software, CAB, SAR, I/O, LUT, AnadigmDesigner2,
(If you have pop-ups disabled click
here for password)
Test
Your EQ
Advertisers
Index
PREVIEW
June #155
Measurement
& Sensors
Build
a Graphical User Interface with TcI/Tk
Time-Triggered Technology
Construct a Hand-Held Radiation Monitor
Remote Heath–Monitoring System
Mad Dash for Cash Microchip Design Contest 2002
Winners
ROBOTICS CORNER: The Altmotor
ABOVE THE GROUND PLANE: Battery Power—Feeding
the Z3801A
APPLIED
PCs: e-Field Evaluation Module
FROM THE BENCH: Encore!—Zilog’s Z8 Flash
Memory-Based Micro
SILICON UPDATE: Good Vibrations
|
