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Electronics For You
July 2014 Issue
Vol. 46 No. 7
Technology Focus
Mind-Reading Pets and Hijacking Planes: RPi Innovations Go Into Overdrive
In the two years since its release, the Raspberry Pi has literally gone places—from reaching near-space in a balloon to crossing the Atlantic. Let us take a look at the latest slew of crazy innovations powered by this little board
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Buyers’ Guide
Budget-Friendly Oscilloscopes
Digital oscilloscopes, being expensive, have always been out of reach for many. But this doesn’t make them less desirable. Fortunately, test and measurement companies have sensed this situation and started developing low-priced oscilloscopes with reasonable quality and features. So we now have several wonderful low-budget options. Let us take a look at some of them
| DIY: Project
Web-Based Device Controller With Arduino Board
Arduino board can also be used to control electrical devices and appliances over the Internet. Just by clicking a few buttons on a webpage, the devices can be operated from a remote location
Download source code
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DIY: Circuit
USB LED Light Cum Battery Charger
Nowadays, many devices with rechargeable batteries use USB power to recharge them while they are connected
| DIY: Circuit
Telephone Tapping Using FM
This is an interesting circuit which you can connect to a telephone line to listen to the conversations through any FM radio receiver
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DIY: Circuit
Efficient 5V Relay Driver
This design idea outlines a method to use an analogue switch and discrete components to reduce the power dissipated in relay actuation
| DIY: Circuit
Difference Counter for In and Out Gates
Sometimes, we need to know whether someone is still inside a building before it is locked. And if so, how many persons are still inside? There can be many other similar situations for which the circuit presented here can come handy
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DIY: Tips & Technique
Interfacing Dot Matrix LED with Raspberry Pi
You will find in this article projects for interfacing an 8×8 and a 5×7 dot-matrix display with Raspberry Pi
Download source code
| DIY: Tips & Technique
Modify Servo Motor for Continuous Movement
Servo motors are widely used in precise control applications, but most of them can rotate up to 180 degrees only
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Wearable Electronics
Wear Your Future
“During a Formula 1 race, a driver experiences wrenching forces of more than 4.5G. His heart rate may exceed 180 beats per minute and his blood pressure could rise by half. With soaring temperatures inside the cramped cockpit he will also dehydrate, typically losing 2-3 litres of water during the race. Yet the driver must concentrate well enough to achieve lap times that might vary by just a tenth of a second. This is tough, on both mind and body. Hence it is not just the performance of the car itself which an array of sensors keeps an eye on, wirelessly transmitting data about the engine, suspension and so on to the pit crews. The drivers’ own vital signs are constantly monitored, too.” —Economist
| Technology Focus
Raspberry Pi: A Tinkerer’s Dream Come True
The Raspberry Pi has spurred so much interest in last one year that we decided to uncover what makes it such a great catalyst for innovation
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Manufacture
Part 1 of 2: Flexible Electronics: The Next Ubiquitous Platform
Just as the IC replaced discrete circuit board electronics, flexible electronics will almost inevitably, by virtue of the ever-demanding end-user, supersede solid-state ICs. So let us find out a bit more about flexible electronics, the materials required for their fabrication, the fabrication processes and the applications
| Information Technology
Software Defined Networking
Movement of distributed data centres to clouds has been the major driver towards the software-defined networks. The cloud service providers want their networks to be flexible and extensible
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Test & Measurement
From 50MHz to 100GHz, Bench-Top to Wristwatch
Oscilloscopes Have Come a Long Way
In this story, we explore the latest features and kinds of oscilloscopes that play an integral role in effectively testing designs today. We also learn how new technologies in oscilloscopes are enabling test and embedded engineers to design better
| Defence Electronics
Part 4 of 4: Defence Lasers and Optronic Systems: Gas Laser Electronics
Carbon dioxide and helium-neon lasers are the two commonly used gas lasers used in tactical military applications. High-power lasers, such as carbon dioxide gas dynamic lasers, hydrogen fluoride/deuterium fluoride lasers and chemical oxy-iodine lasers, which can generate mega-watts of CW power for directed-energy weapon applications, are also broadly classified as gas lasers. These lasers are pumped by gas dynamics or by chemical reactions. Focus in this concluding part of the article is on gas laser electronics with emphasis on the role of electronics in gas lasers having potential for tactical military applications
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Industry Focus
PCB Industry in India: Marching Ahead
Poor government policies and increased imports have always been major threats to PCB manufacturers and suppliers in India, but the industry is growing and expanding to other verticals, and still harbours huge potential. Let us see how
| DIY: Project
Quiz Game Controller
This PIC16F877A microcontroller-based quiz controller, designed for up to six players or teams, is suitable for school and college quiz competitions
Download source code
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DIY: Project
Arduino-Based FM Receiver
This project is of an FM radio based on Philips TEA5767 digital radio-receiver module. The radio receiver uses I2C interface with Arduino UNO development board
Download source code
| DIY: Software
Designing Dual-Priority Encoder Using LabView
In priority encoder, if two or more inputs are equal to 1 at the same time, the input having the highest priority will take precedence
Download source code
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DIY: Software
C++ Implementation of Digital FIR Filters Using Blackman Window
This utility program can be a handy tool for anyone working in the field of signal processing with interest in implementation of the project through C++ programming
Download source code
| eStyle Buyers’ Guide
Android KitKat Smartphones: A Treat For All
Buying a phone has a lot to do with its OS, but it is not the only criteria. A powerful processor, high-definition screen and a powerful camera are equally important. If they were not, Motorola would have easily become the market leader in the last six months
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Telecom Technology
New Frontiers of UAV Civilian Applications
Applications for unmanned aerial vehicles continue to grow by leaps and bounds, especially when they involve difficult tasks or dangerous situations
| Career
Data Analytics will be the Next Big Thing for Engineers
There is a growing demand for engineers in the data analytics (DA) field, with some companies particularly looking for electronics engineers with a penchant for programming and mathematics. Of course, jobs in DA pay really well too! So let us find out the skills, salary and what lies ahead for a career in DA
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Interview
"There is no ‘starting point’ for IoT devices"
If you were tracking our stories, you would know how a product conforms to the IoT criteria. Now, it is time to move forward so you can actually build a product for IoT. T. Anand, managing director of Knewron, discusses with Dilin Anand from EFY some basic elements and building blocks for IoT-based products
| Useful Websites
Raspberry Pi: Getting Started
Raspberry Pi has always been a favourite for engineers and hobbyists. Here are some of the websites that will help you understand and start using your Raspberry Pi
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EFY Plus DVD
LTSpice IV: Ideal for SMPS Simulations
LTSpice IV is a free, high-performance Spice tool to virtually model, simulate and analyse electronic circuits, particularly switching regulators, before actually building them using electronic components
| Internet of Things
“Cool Tech for ‘Kool’ IoT Products”
The Internet of Things (IoT) is top-most on most electronics companies’ agenda today. Texas Instruments (TI) is no different. Their wide connectivity portfolio is powering several interesting IoT products and platforms across the globe, such as the ‘Internet of KoolThings’ platform created by DeviceLab Inc. and KoolTechs Inc. Praveen Ganapathy, director, business development, Texas Instruments (India), speaks to Janani Gopalakrishnan Vikram about what’s trending in this space
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Embedded Design
Analogue Components for IoT Applications
Numerous analogue components and chips are introduced to the market every year, but what is influencing their evolution? Read on to find out the latest technologies in this field, the influence of the Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm on analogue world and some interesting applications powered by analogue components
| EFY Plus DVD
This Month’s DVD Contents
This month’s DVD brings you circuit modelling along with PCB EDA tools for students and small businesses. Also included are a neural network simulator and a machine learning tool for enthusiasts. Have fun!
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Innovation
Drishti: For Airport Visibility Measurement
This highly-precise and cost-effective transmissometer developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Aerospace Laboratories (CSIR-NAL) is a significant contribution to the field of electronics and airport instrumentation in India
| eStyle First Look!
.3G Wi-Fi Router from Lapcare
.Astrum’s NFC Enabled Portable Speaker
.Lenovo Introduces All-In-One PC
.Intex Launches Low-Cost Quad-Core Phone
.Xolo Launches First Windows Tablet
.GizMo ByTes
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Technology News
World’s smallest nanomotor that runs the longest
Engineers at the University of Texas at Austin, USA have developed world’s smallest nanomotor which they claim to be the fastest-ever developed
| Interview
"There exists a phenomenal growth opportunity in the voice and music arena"
Designing audio devices used to be simple, but modern designs are very integrated and efficient. This interview looks at what has changed, and helps you keep on top of the changes. Joep A.J. van Beurden, chief executive officer, CSR plc speaks with Dilin Anand, senior assistant editor at EFY
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Industry News
Incubation centre for electronics start-ups gets DeiTY nod
The Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) has given a go ahead to the setting up of an incubation centre to provide physical as well as technology infrastructure to electronics start-ups from across the country
| EFY Plus DVD
FidoCADJ: Vector Drawing Software
FidoCADJ is a simple, intuitive application that helps users create vector drawings for schematics as well as printed circuit boards. You can select from a wide range of preset components and print or export your designs to various file formats
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EFY Plus DVD
Simulate Your Circuits Using Qucs
In this article we explore the features and functions of Quite Universal Circuit Simulator (Qucs) and go through a step-by-step analysis. Qucs is available for Windows, Mac and Ubuntu (open source) in the DVD accompanying this month’s issue of EFY Plus
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Issue...
Security 2.0
PCB Industry in India
Wi-fi & RF Modules
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