Wireless Communications System

Challenge

Create a secure, robust, and proprietary battery-powered wireless communications system consisting of a custom-designed transceiver, repeater, and receiver-only devices.

Solution

Texas Instruments integrated radio and microcontroller system-on-chip (SoC) components, PCB level antennae, and lithium-polymer batteries.

Summary

Emergency circumstances require coordination of personnel from within and among departments. Police, fire, and ambulance resources often work in concert to resolve difficult and dangerous situations. Modern communication systems are needed to ensure resources are in place to perform the correct tasks and to maintain the safety of all individuals involved.

Topics: Electronic Engineering, Firmware Development

Wireless Student Response System to Enhance Classroom Learning

Challenge

Design a system with which students in a classroom setting can interact in real-time with projected prompts or verbal questions from an instructor.

Solution

Freescale integrated 802.15.4 (ZigBee) radio and microcontroller system on chip (SoC) components, PCB-trace antenna, Freescale MAC, ANSI C and Code Warrior.

Summary

Children growing up in the digital age of computers, MP3 players, and game devices learn differently than students of the past. To keep students engaged in learning, schools are investing in forms of technology that are familiar to children and intuitive to use.

Topics: Electronic Contract Manufacturing, Electronic Engineering, Firmware Development

Water Chemistry: Chemical Feed Controller

Challenge

Bring laboratory-grade water analysis and chemical feed control to large-scale commercial and industrial water cooling tower systems.

Solution

A custom designed, solid-state, highly accurate multi-channel fluorometer combined with a microprocessor-driven chemical feed controller.

Summary

Accurate chemical monitoring and feed control of chemicals in cooling tower water systems is required to reduce mineral scale, corrosion, and microbe growth. Relatively high volumes of expensive chemicals are required to protect these systems.

Topics: Electronic Contract Manufacturing, Electronic Engineering, Firmware Development, Industrial Controls

Product Design: Designing for Reliability and Manufacturability

Challenge

Refine a proof-of-concept design to optimize product reliability, compliance to regulatory standards, and manufacturability.

Solution

Develop a system of circuit boards and interconnections for cost effective integration and manufacturing while adhering to industry and regulatory standards.

Summary

Assessing the viability of a product idea can be difficult. The process often begins with a rough design sketched on paper. As the research and development phases of the project move forward, one or more proof-of-concept prototypes are often required.

Topics: Electronic Contract Manufacturing, Electronic Engineering, Product Development

Problem Solving: Employing Innovation

Challenge

Create a battery-powered device to power and interface with a sensor array assembly for high frequency sampling.

Solution

The hardware consisted of a Microchip microcontroller, USB interface, LVDS interface solution from Texas Instruments, and custom designed power supply circuits.

Summary

Sensor arrays are commonly used to measure applied forces with high sampling frequency. Designing a sensor array to measure, store, and display the results for dozens of sessions over the span of weeks presents challenges.

Topics: Electronic Engineering

MathCad Circuit Modeling: Improving Circuit Design

Challenge

Meet aggressive project schedules while reducing hardware development costs by improving the circuit design process.

Solution

The addition of detailed electronic circuit modeling in the latest release of the PTC MathCad software environment provides a powerful tool to simulate, optimize, and document the circuit design prior to building a PC board.

Summary

SPICE simulation alone will only report the performance of a circuit design, but it will not recommend component values to meet the design goals.

Topics: Electronic Engineering

Wireless Communications System

Challenge

Solution

Summary

Wireless Student Response System to Enhance Classroom Learning

Challenge

Solution

Summary

Water Chemistry: Chemical Feed Controller

Challenge

Solution

Summary

Product Design: Designing for Reliability and Manufacturability

Challenge

Solution

Summary

Problem Solving: Employing Innovation

Challenge

Solution

Summary

MathCad Circuit Modeling: Improving Circuit Design

Challenge

Solution

Summary

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