Advantech, the embedded platform and iService platform provider, is happy to announce Android 4.0 support on its HIT-W181. HIT-W181 is an 18.5", 16:9 full-flat PCT or multi-touch terminal, with features including 2.0 megapixel camera, WiFi, VOIP, barcode reader, RFID, NFC, MSR and fingerprint reader. The slim, fanless all-in-one system, powered by an IntelR Atom or IntelR Core i7 processor is ideal for retail, exhibition hall, education/campus, vending, self-service and kiosk applications, where a fast, elegant and efficient system is needed. The availability of Android 4.0 is the first for Advantech and the first in the industry. Android 4.0 is more stable, runs faster, and offers a number of enhancements which are now available to the HIT-W181 infotainment termainal.HIT-W181 is Ahead of the CurveThe announcement of Android 4.0 is exciting and handset manufacturers are scrambling to take advantage of the new features it offers. Advantech is already there, and in the industrial computer space no less! This is great news for end users of the HIT-W181 in areas such as retail, exhibition hall, education/campus,self-service, vending and kiosk, as well as for system integrators looking to take advantage of improvements in the Android environment.Enhanced Interface, Communications and SecurityAndroid 4.0 has a number of new features. It has replaced hardware/programmable buttons with a set of virtual keys, allowing quick and easy application development. Additionally, Android 4.0 brings native NFC (near field communications) support which will appeal to transaction-based applications that need reliablecommunications between handset and the HIT-W181 display. Security in Android 4.0 has also been greatly improved. The system supports face recognition coupled with auto-login for simple and secure authentication.Android 4.0 is Faster and More StableHIT-W181 is able to take advantage of improvements in stability and speed that are a part of Android 4.0. System speed is 30% faster than under Android 2.3 and operating system stability has been enhanced giving the platform the stability needed to serve critical applications. Memory management under Android 4.0 has also been improved with better memory allocation and deallocation of tasks running on the system. The result is that HIT-W181 runs leaner and faster.Advantech will continue to roll out support of Android 4.0 for its other HIT series Hospitality Infotainment Terminals: the HIT-W221, HIT-W151 and HIT-W121. For more information about HIT-W181, or other Advantech products and services, please contact a local sales office or visit us on the web at http://www.advantech.com/.About AdvantechFounded in 1983, Advantech is a leader in providing trusted, innovative products, services, and solutions. Advantech offers comprehensive system integration, hardware, software, customer-centric design services, embedded systems, automation products, and global logistics support. We cooperate closely with our partners to help provide complete solutions for a wide array of applications across adiverse range of industries. Our mission is to enable an intelligent planet with Automation and Embedded Computing products and solutions that empower the development of smarter working and living. With Advantech, there is no limit to theapplications and innovations our products make possible.Find more information(http://www.advantech.com/ais/news.aspx?doc_id=%7b3302917A-8D63-44FE-A8C2-41E8251485B)The slim, fanless all-in-one system, powered by an IntelR Atom or IntelR Core i7 processor is ideal for retail, exhibition hall, education/campus, vending, self-service and kiosk applications, where a fast, elegant and efficient system is needed.

Imagination Technologies, a leading multimedia technologies company, has achieved Wi-Fi Direct certification for its Ensigma UCCP IP Reference Platform. Wi-Fi Direct is a certification mark for devices supporting a technology that enables Wi-Fi devices to connect directly, making it simple to do things like print, share, synch and play without joining a traditional home, office or hotspot network.Imagination's Ensigma UCCP IP platforms are a unique range of low-power solutions enabling the reception of a wide range of analogue and digital TV, mobile TV, and digital and analogue radio broadcast standards, as well as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity standards, on a single device.With Wi-Fi Direct, mobile phones, cameras, printers, PCs, and gaming devices can now connect to each other directly to transfer content and share applications quickly and easily. Devices can make a one-to-one connection, or a group of several devices can connect simultaneously. Connecting Wi-Fi Direct-certified devices is easy and simple, in many cases only requiring the push of a button. Moreover, all Wi-Fi Direct connections are protected by WPA2, the latest Wi-Fi security technology. With Wi-Fi Direct, users do not need an access point or internet connection - their personal Wi-Fi network goes with them wherever they go.Ensigma Series3 Wi-Fi capabilities include: 802.11a/b/g/n + MIMO (Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output), plus Bluetooth v3.0.By incorporating the latest wireless communication technology on its Ensigma Series3 platforms, Imagination is able to offer significantly increased data throughput, sensitivity, and other key performance metrics, while limiting bandwidth requirements and lowering transmit power.Information in this release on Wi-Fi Direct features is provided by the Wi-Fi Alliance. See also: http://www.wi-fi.org/discover-and-learn/wi-fi-direct

As one after another handheld consumer electronics gadgets such as tablets and smartphones emerges in the market, touch panel technology, with its capability to enable smaller devices, lower manufacturing cost and intuitive user experience on small screens, is no longer confined to conventional industrial/commercial applications like kiosks, KTV jukeboxes, machines at production lines, POS and ATM. It is gradually replacing traditional keyboard/mouse as the major interface for man-machine communication and interaction on personal devices.DisplaySearch forecasts that global touch control module shipment will reach 1.4 billion units by 2015 with a revenue totaling US$9 billion. Japan's Fuji Keizai also estimates that by 2016, the market will grow 110.5% from 2011 with a total output at JPY775.3 billion.Multi-touch already a trend for touch panelsPIXCIR COO Vincent Fuentes said more and more daily-life hardware and applications (such as 3D interactive games and web mapping devices), even Microsoft's Windows 7 and Windows 8 operating systems, begin to support touch control interface. In view of this trend, global touch panel market will enjoy dramatic growth in the next few years.Multi-touch technology, which enables multi-finger motions on one panel, has been particularly popular since the launch of the Apple iPhone due to higher operation flexibility when compared to single-touch, personalized input methods, and its more intuitive and simple usage that can do without painstaking learning processes.Currently, touch panel technologies that are mature enough include electromagnetic, SAW, optical (CMOS imaging and infra-red), pressure detection, capacitive (surface capacitance and projected capacitance) and resistive modules (analog and digital.) Resistive modules are more widely adopted as it was developed long time ago with lower manufacturing cost.Due to soaring demand for multi-touch, however, related technology has evolved as applications and operating systems advance from the simpler two- and three-point touch to 10-point that is stricter on report rate, power consumption and false alarm standards. Among all the above-mentioned touch control technologies, only projected capacitance can meet all the requirements. This is why almost all all-in-one (AIO) PCs or ultrabooks on exhibit at Computex 2012 were equipped with projected capacitive panels.Optimization of product should start with casing design, cover lens thickness and electrode layout selectionProjected capacitive technology is basically based on capacitive sensing, which detects the changes of capacitance in ITO contacts on ITO glass in order to identify the touch positions and motion trajectory when users touch the screens with fingers. Therefore, it can precisely get the accurate touch positions without alignment, and the subsequent characteristics of near-field probe and greater sensitivity will prevent scratches and cracks of the screens for longer device life.Fuentes said projected capacitance technology include self capacitance and mutual capacitance. He explained that self capacitance is modified by the direct coupling between a finger and one electrode, and the touch position is located by measuring the changes of capacitance in the electrode. Mutual capacitance is the coupling between two electrodes.It is noteworthy that in order to avoid crosstalk between fingers that can lead to touch position misjudgment and floating, a good return path is necessary when designing panels and self capacitance should be as low as possible.Floating can be directly subjected to circuit (the closed loop circuit between device and user), self capacitance and mutual capacitance that vary with the device's casing, size, power line (power supply connecting exterior alternating current or direct current), user location and the way the device is held. It is not directly linked to the device's driving voltage and sensing technology. Fuentes continued that vendors can start with design and integration of device casing, cover lens thickness and electrode layout selection to increase the panel's sensitivity and identification efficiency under multi-touch mode.Differences and solutions of various electrode layoutsFor the SITO case, common electrode layouts include Diamonds, Hollow, Empty, Matrix, Radiator and Islands. Tested with 6mm electrode pitch and 8mm touch point diameter, each electrode layout delivers different performance in linearity, floating (portable devices), SNR, covers thinner than 0.5mm and screens larger than 12 inches.Except for the category of large screens, the Radiator layout performs well in all aspects. The Diamonds layout is good in thick covers and large screens, but is doing OK with linearity and SNR while performance in thin covers and floating is even worse. Vendors can choose suitable layouts according to their needs, or make some adjustment in relevant design parameters to achieve best performance.For example, in the Radiator layout vendors can optimize its fin pitch for best effects. According to tests done by PIXCIR, when pitch is smaller than cover the mutual signal is doing well but the ITO loading would be too high. On the contrary, ITO loading is good if the pitch is larger than cover but its mutual signal will be weak.Therefore, the best way is to equalize the pitch and the cover so that mutual signal and ITO loading will be in range acceptable for vendors. Ring width is the key for the Hollow layout. Ring width must match the cover lens thickness. Fuentes said the ITO to ITO gap should match the process rule and should follow the optical requirement (typically 40-100um.)PIXCIR recognized for long-time devotion to projected capacitance technologyPIXCIR CEO Jiin-Wei Hung said his company has been devoted to the development of projected capacitance technology since the iPhone emerged. The company has six core patents in Europe, the US, Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan, and has been licensed with EU patents. As for Taiwan, PIXCIR also has 244 patent applications, with 133 in reviewing process and 61 approved.Its Tango method has been widely adopted in the handset market (such as DIFO 4.3-inch handset, Dell 5.0-inch MID, CGMobile 4.0-inch handset, Lenovo 5.0-inch MID, GuoXT 4.3-inch handset, Ramos 8-inch tablets, etc), as well as in consumer electronics products like digital cameras and coffee machines.Hung emphasized that PIXCIR is not only a partner of WPG Holdings but also a qualified supplier recommended by Qualcomm and Spreadtrum. Hung forecast that with Tango's module manufacturing cost lowering to the same level as resistive panels, more mature OGS technology and growth opportunities brought by upcoming Windows 8/ultrabook, capacitive touch panels will replace resistive touch panels in a very short time and become mainstream in the market.As market demand expands rapidly while supply fails to keep up with it, a war in the touch panel market is bound to begin. PIXCIR will hold on to the Tango series' market positioning philosophy and continue to develop touch control ICs with the highest price/performance ratio, offering the best touch panel solutions to industrial control, home appliances, telematics and consumer electronics products.Jiin-Wei Hung, CEO, PIXCIR (right)Vincent Fuentes, COO, PIXCIR

Frankwell Lin, the President of Andes Technology Corporation and a veteran with years of experience in market observation, said despite mainstream in the personal computing market has evolved from the single type of open-architecture PC products to various closed embedded devices like smartphones, tablets, digital TVs, smart grid and telematics in an era with all sorts of consumer products and applications, "speed-focused," "micro-oriented" and "smart" features will be the ultimate goals for these products no matter how situation changes.In addition to the ever-decreasing size of system/SoC, simpler CPU codes for faster computing of device, less power consumption and lower software/hardware manufacturing cost, the new generation of devices starts to enter a new era of being micro-oriented, smart-focused and smart via integration with various sensing/identification/processing and mobile components, user interfaces suitable for mobile/home application, and the omnipresent connected environment (such as London's Urban OS).New generation of smart devices should enhance power efficiency and support various communications protocolsLin said in view of this new era, the new generation of consumer devices should support touch screens, auto screen rotation, gesture or voice control, and auto detect/control of outside conditions such as temperature and image. They should also have intelligent features like a feedback mechanism for proper control and monitoring, or capability for schedule-driven activities.Moreover, indispensable features include versatile connectivity to USB, Ethernet, BT, Wi-Fi and Zigbee, personalized setup, storage and usage of personal data and corresponding security features, and longer battery life with standby and sleep modes.In order to achieve various requirements of the above-mentioned devices, there must be support from related systems and hardware/software. Andes Technology has developed various CPU IP lines to help vendors transform themselves toward smarter products.In fact, Andes Technology's AndesCore series has long been welcomed by vendors in the market. N12 and N10 products have also accumulated many successful cases of application in Linux-based devices of networking, virus scan, surveillance, eBook, thin client, portable multimedia, wires display and wires communications.Most vendors of SSD, eMMC/eSD, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, as well as those involved in protocol stack, weak leveling, block management, hardware engine control and typical program size larger than 100KB that need CPU to cover, adopt AndesCore because of its high performance and compact code size, said Lin. As for vendors of touch controller and battery gauge/protection, as well as those involved in measure current, voltage, temperature and short circuit, position calculation and perform cell balancing, the appeal is high power efficiency and small gate count.AndesCore is widely adopted by vendorsAndes Technology estimated that since the launch of the AndesCore series in various specs, about 100 million units of embedded equipment around the world have been based on innovative SoCs built by clients with the company's processor IP products. Lin said this year his company will release the latest AndesStar V3 instruction set and the N13 and SN8 series that are based on the architecture, in an effort to offer more software support and satisfy various market demands from downstream clients.For example, AndeStar V3 instruction set can support virtual hosting and priority-based interrupt preemption for faster speed and lower power consumption. It also offers all-C embedded programming and more robust debugging. "AndeCore products based on this instruction set have other additional features with different models. For example, N1337 is a product based on AndeStar V3 with 64bit caches.Compared to the previous instruction set, AndeStar V2, the new V3 made a lot of improvements. In terms of code size reduction, for example, the instruction set features function prolog and epilog, shift followed by ALU operations, branch on small constant, repeated code sequences and V3M for most frequently used V3 subset for MCE. On average, code size can be reduced by 15% after compilation and MCU benchmarks can even achieve at least 20% reduction.Moreover, V3 instruction set also has many instructions for voice applications required by smart equipment. As V3 instruction set is a reinforced version of V2, the former adds 38 new instructions (19 32-bit and 19 16-bit instructions) on top of strengthened compilation of original instructions. With great backward-compatibility, programs written on V2 are still useable in the new version so there is no need for extra time and cost for re-programming.AndeStar is more competitive in code size and efficiencyIn a comparison between AndeStar and 8051, Lin noted that: when executing 16-bit average computing, 8051's code size can reach 12 bytes and it takes 11 cycles to finish processing, but AndeStar only needs 4 bytes and 2 cycles; in executing 16-bit multiply computing, 48 bytes/48 cycles and 8 byets/8cycles are respectively needed for 8051 under generic and mem-mapped HW modes, while AndeStar only needs 4 bytes and 1 cycle. In terms of code size or efficiency, AndeStar is more competitive than 8051.CPU-specific features are usually written in assembly language in order to accelerate execution and reduce code size after compilation, said Lin, describing it as a great burden for developers. In view of this, Andes Technology provides component libraries in all-C language for CPU resource management, system startup code and ISR, so that vendors can benefit from simple development, ease of use, reduced code size and faster execution.Responding to different needs from various applications, AndesCore have diversified its products to achieve greater balance in terms of conflicting execution efficiency, energy consumption and wafer size than other competitors.For example, there is no need to focus on speed for remote controller, IOT/WSN and power meter. Andes Technology offers N8 series for entry-level equipments smaller than 100MHz. Economic devices in 100-200MHz like MCU, BT/Wi-Fi/GPS, PC peripheral, storage, touch panel and MP3 can adopt N9 series. As for highly-professional/safety control platforms such as switch, gateway, client device, STB, smartphone, smart TV, smart card, NFC and mobile payment, they can also find support from N13 and SN8 series.Vendors should choose CPU IP carefullyLin stressed that we are in the emerging phase towards a micro-oriented and speed-focused smart era, and SoC is the key for people to enter this era. So how vendors choose CPU IP for SoC in their products is the core element for future success. Andes Technology has long been devoted to R&D of design solutions to be embedded in micro-controllers since foundation. For instance, Andes N8 is regarded by many IC designing houses as the best solution for upgrade from 8bit MCU to 32bit.As for tablets, Andes has been proven successful in applications for tablets such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, FM, touch control, power management, etc. Lin believes that with more and more equipment embedded with SoC in people's daily lives, vendors like Andes Technology will play important roles in the future supply chain of the industry.Frankwell Lin, President of Andes Technology

According to the Vice President of Advantech EmbCore Group, Miller Chang, "There are many definitions for an Intelligent City; from collective intelligence of a city's population, to artificially intelligent environments where embedded information and com munication technologies disappear into the physical objects and the surroundings in which we live, travel and work. Whatever the definition, the cloud will be the final key that unlocks this vision of the intelligent city."With the rapid expansion of industrial automation applications, many vertical industries have adopted automation as the way forward to grow their businesses. Traditional automation equipment has limits, but with cloud-based systems, communications cover a much greater area and intelligence can be embedded into the physical environment. This means machines and devices throughout the city can identify and communicate with other machines and devices,as well as the city's population—enabling the intelligent city to evolve and grow over time.Examples of an Intelligent CityAdvantech's "Enabling an Intelligent Planet" mission matches precisely with the concept of an intelligent city. For example, Digital Signage displays in department stores have to display a multitude of products and manage precise content for each vendor on each floor. And it may be practical, due to the distance of each device, to tailor individual content for each vendor to each display. But, this is simply not practical in other scenarios such as in train stations, banks, or chain stores. Replacing content manually one-by-one will be drawn out and time-consuming. By managing geographically dispersed equipment via cloud services, and by integrating the hardware and software services, these devices can be managed remotely from the backend, delivering regularly updated content from the cloud. This represents a breakthrough in time management constraints but also allows greater control over all terminals, giving constant feedback on their status and maintaining reliable operation.Automation Cloud Goes MainstreamCloud computing is becoming mainstream in the automation industry. All automation products not only must have a certain amount of networking features, but they also need to include features that take advantage of cloud-based services. In terms of advantages, Miller Chang believes that it is in the reduced cost of system management. Service providers will host services for multiple companies; sharing complex infrastructure is costefficient and customers pay only for what they actually use.In addition to a substantial decline in the cost of system management, the industrial cloud can initiate new types of business strategy, benefits include:Fast: The most basic cloud services work out of the box, cloud computing allows businesses to skip certain procurement and capital expenditure phases.Up-to-date: Most providers constantly update their software offering, adding new features as they become available.Scalable: With cloud hosting, businesses can grow quickly because cloud systems are built to cope with sharp increases in workload.Mobile: Cloud services are designed to be used from a distance, so if the workforce is mobile, employees will have access to most systems on the go.Advantech are already used to applications with intelligence built in, but the cloud adds much more to the city economy and its evolution by making possible more connections between devices and people.Find more information, please visit: http://www.advantech.com/Thanks to advanced IT and automation technologies, the systems that make our city work are increasingly becoming intelligent.

Imagination Technologies, a leading multimedia technologies company, has achieved Dolby MS11 certification for its Meta processors. Meta processors are widely deployed in digital audio products including docks, radios and connected audio systems. With MS11 certification Meta can decode an extensive range of multistream audio standards using a single thread of the Meta processor.According to Dolby the MS11 Multistream Decoder provides television and set-top box manufacturers with a single-package technology solution for decoding all premium audio formats, including Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital, HE AAC with Dolby metadata, and all HE AAC/AAC bitstreams. It ensures optimal compatibility with the worldwide installed base of home theatre systems and with future broadcast audio standards.The Meta family of embedded processors use hardware multi-threading to combine both general purpose 'Apps' and DSP capabilities in one processor. Using true hardware multi-threading and efficient DSP architecture Meta processors have exceptional tolerance to SoC system latencies while also delivering complex DSP and mathematical capabilities and levels of real-time response that make them ideal for audio SoC applications.Broadcasters are implementing various formats to meet new TV audio standards worldwide. With Dolby MS11 on Meta manufacturers can ensure that their TV or set-top box products are ready for all present and forthcoming audio requirements by delivering a cost-effective solution, compatible with a comprehensive array of audio formats and standards.The addition of Dolby MS11 support on Meta processors further extends Imagination's comprehensive portfolio of IP for HD TV which includes: Ensigma multistandard 'world' broadcast demodulation and 'SmartTV' connectivity; PowerVR graphics for advanced gaming, apps and user interface; PowerVR multistandard, multistream video decode and encode up to 4Kx2K; Meta multistream audio and apps processors; and HelloSoft V.VoIP 'video-chat' technologies.Dolby MS11 is now available for use by all Meta licensees, subject to appropriate license from Dolby.Information in this release on MS11 features is provided by Dolby. See also: http://www.dolby.com/gb/en/professional/technology/broadcast/dolby-ms11.html

Brett Gaines, Director of Marketing and Business Development, Touch Materials of Atmel Corporation, said since Apple Inc lauched iPhones and iPads several years ago, smartphones and tablets have been widely accepted by consumers due to their intuitive and interesting way of operation. Touch screens also become an indispensable component of most consumer electronics devices.Currently, nearly 100% of new smartphones and tablets from various vendors are equipped with touch screens instead of traditional I/O. The emergence of application software and operating systems supporting touch screens is also accelerating growth of the touch screen panel market. For example, the upcoming new Microsoft OS is likely to follow strategies in the past and expand its touch screen technology to wider applications such as ultrabooks, convertible PCs and all-in-one (AIO) PCs.Various software/hardware demand from consumers triggers growth in global touch screen marketAccording to statistics from ITRI's IEK, touch screens will achieve a 100% penetration in the AIO market in 2012. AIO PCs adopt touch screens due to considerations of better exterior, thinness, lower cost and multi-media capability. Just as NPD DisplaySearch said in its latest Touch Panel Market Analysis report, this is also the result of the fact that Microsoft has the Metro interface for touch screen functions in Windows 8 and enables consumers to sustain the same user experience with different end devices. This will lead to a revolution in touch screen panel design for tablets and notebooks, and the total output of relevant modules is also expected to double from US$2.9 billion in 2011 to US$5.7 billion in 2015.Due to the ever-increasing penetration of touch screens, vendors have to seek differentiation through other channels in order to stand out amid fierce competition. Comparing several popular models of consumer digital products in the market, we can find that in addition to the convenience, practicality and fun brought by touch screen functions, appealing exterior with chic design is of even greater importance.Many market research reports indicate that while consumers used to focus on products' functions, quality and practicality, these key considerations have been replaced by exterior design and aesthetics as technology matures. In order to cater to various demand on product exterior and operations, vendors now have more brand-new ideas and concepts about the characteristics of touch screens, said Gaines.Chic exterior and smooth user experience are key to competitivenessFor example, Gaines believes touch screens will evolve toward sleek, edgeless forms in larger sizes for minimalistic exterior that can provide users visual effects on larger screens without interruption from screen frames (especially for glaze frames.) Better noise immunity is also a requirement as touch control sensors are more susceptible to electromagnetic interference from display at the bottom and cannot detect the signals due to thinness of the screen.Indispensable features for new generation of touch screens include: lower power consumption of touch screen controllers that will offer mobile devices longer battery life after recharging; faster, more precise touch control capability for more complex multi-touch features while remaining smoothness of operation; and strong/flexible material that can bent according to exterior and enables versatile design of consumer electronics products.However, as traditional touch screen panel technology may cause embrittlement, it's impossible to meet all the requirements for the new generation of products. In view of this, Atmel introduced a film-based, highly flexible touch control sensor, Atmel XSense Touch Sensors.Gaines said the product features new characteristics by using highly flexible material, stack-up of ultra-thin sensors and wider screens. It delivers better performance with narrower borders, narrower bond area, lower sheet resistance, better and more precise touch recognition, and stronger touch pen functions. Existing supply chains are available to supper higher production of sensors so overall system costs can be reduced. The new product will help vendors accelerate development in the new generation of smartphones and tablets, and expand touch control to other new industrial products and consumer electronics products.Multiple edges of Atmel XSense touch sensors will help vendors explore new frontiers in product designTaking product design as an example, new models of consumer electronics products will eventually face the following problems amid emergence of sleek, edgeless design: How can the glass surface be fully utilized? How can the mechanical parts of devices be reduced or eliminated? How can we achieve the most edgy product exterior in the industry?Gaines said in order to meet various needs for the exterior of new products, XSense Touch Sensors can be mounted on curved surfaces and wrapped around the display, or even integrated with capacitive controls on the side of the display as part of the sensor. XSense Touch Sensors, whose thickness is less than one third of traditional sensors and the bond area is less than two thirds of those, offers consumers better touch control experience while improving device reliability and reducing total system cost.Using its patent roll-to-roll metal mesh technology, Atmel makes rolls of XSense Touch Sensors through circuitization in various processes such as sensor layout and sensor mask, and then delivers the rolls to downstream touch screen makers, who will use the materials, together with flexible print circuit (FPC) and cover lens from other vendors, in lamination and bond before assembling the sensor modules with Atmel's touch controllers."This kind of manufacturing technology and stock-up production process can not only enable characteristics of wide screens, narrow bezel, versatile exterior, narrow bond, better noise immunity and lower power consumption for products adopting XSense Touch Sensors, production of sensors will also be accelerated with larger output, which eventually will help reduce products' manufacturing costs."Atmel has long been committed to innovation as its business philosophyAtmel Corporation is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of microcontrollers, touch sensor capacitive IC, ASIC, non-volatile memory, radio frequency components, etc. Major products include EEPROM, EPROM, flash, PLD, microcontroller, FPGA, AVR, USB, ASIC, WLAN, VOIP, DSC, RF, BT, smart card and security products. With US$18 billion global revenue a year, the company owns offices in 27 countries with a total of 5,100 employees around the world.With its long-time commitment to innovation, Atmel will continue to help vendors develop excellent products with more functions, smaller sizes, higher intelligence and greater cost efficiency by providing clients with excellent development tools and best technology solutions, so they can gain advantage and leadership in the highly competitive market.Brett Gaines, Director of Marketing and Business Development, Touch Materials at Atmel

Rich Cerruto, Vice President of Coverity Inc Asia Pacific Operation, said software bugs may cause major consequences. Related media reports in recent years include: software error messages to infusion pumps at a company caused 560 deaths; Bombardier's share price plummeted after software flaw caused new product delay; 560 million Skype users were impacted by an outage caused by software problems; and similar problems also led to over US$100 million loss for JPMorgan.Moreover, according to a survey conducted by Forrester in May 2011, 49% of the interviewed said software defects are the major cause for shipment delay and recalls; 46% said software defects will reduce customer satisfaction; 38% said this will result in security holes; 36% emphasized that this will hurt corporate reputation. "As software has become a source of corporate competitiveness and is closely correlated to business operation, any software defects may lead to corporate crisis instantly," Cerruto elaborated on the importance of detecting and fixing software defects.Debugging is actually quite difficult due to complex software supply chainsHowever, architectures and sources of software applications are rather complex now. For example, a smartphone often involves applications from various enterprises, which may include consumer application platforms (such as Google, App Store, Open Source, Java, etc), device manufacturers (Ericsson, RIM, HP, Motorola, Samsung), operating system providers (Android, Symbian, Linux, Windows, Chrome OS), device drivers developers (Nvidia, AMD) and chip/microprocessor vendors (Intel, Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, Infineon, Marvell).A complex software supply chain would only increase chances for software defects, added Cerruto. Due to vague accountability, it's hard to track back and submit evidence once a problem occurs and everybody is passing the buck. The most common response would be, "I'm happy to fix it if it's my codes." The problem gets worse as it's hard to maintain same software quality among various upstream suppliers who are not subject to consistent standards of management and control.Cerruto believes there are several reasons behind poor software quality and the subsequent security problems: most enterprises have long lacked the ability to define and enforce management policies on code quality and safety; code development teams fail to adopt suitable measures against possible quality/safety crisis after codes are distributed into software supply chains; OEM makers are unable to see where security/quality crisis lies in each component unit from an all-dimension perspective of software supply chains; and software security examination is independent of standard development process and decoupled from the work of developers.The following situation is quite common: testing often starts late in the development cycle so once defects or safety problems are found, it often takes a lot of time to readjust/revise the software and the costs will increase, said Cerruto.Using static testing with Coverity's automatic defect detection tools is the best wayThe solution is to test and fix codes as early as possible in each stage of software development. A 2002 survey by NIST showed that when testing was held late in the integration and system testing stage, it would take 10 times as much time and cost as in the requirements and design stage. However, Cerruto added, vendors should not test in an aimless manner when they decide to go on with the testing.It is better to use static testing together with Coverity's automatic defect detection tools, Cerruto stressed. As traditional testing methods cannot offer path coverage, many defects are inevitably neglected. However, static testing can test all paths without executing the codes, which means developers can locate defects in a more comprehensive and systematical way. Even codes in rarely executed paths can be tested.In addition to lowering cost and reducing uncertainty about development schedules caused by unexpected defects, security-wise it is safer for products as hackers won't find any channels to invade and steal information, he said.Cerruto continued that static testing with Coverity automatic defect detection tools consists of three stages: the first is to build as development tools will collect information on how codes are compiled and will build a virtual environment in order to understand the company's standard building process. Usage of compilers will also be transparentized. It will help to have a grip on all original files and parameters related to compilation such as definitions of macro and command line options.Based on this, developers can test and analyze each path passing the codes via blocks known as "checkers." Checkers will try to discover each actual defect in the codes, such as computer crashes, memory corruption, memory leak and any other problems that can cause serious errors. It is not just checking if the code format is correct.Real code defects can be found with low chances of system missIn the last stage, testing results, including the location and root causes of the defects, are presented and explained before being saved in databanks so that developers within the enterprises can manage and share triage of the defects across the teams. This will boost enterprises' efficiency in the process of fixing defects.For example, some companies have the so-called "Coverity Fix Day" each week during which all developers will leave all their daily work behind and focus on the analysis, discussion and removal of defects. Some defects are the most critical and placed first to be fixed. Old defects are put on the to-do list for later fixing.With the help of Coverity automatic defect detection tools, all types of defects, in C/C++ or Java/C��, can be found quickly, including resource leaks, null pointer dereferences, concurrency issues, integer handling issues, improper use of APIs, control flow issues, memory-corruptions, memory-illegal access and security best practices violations.Automatic defect detection tools often miss when testing code defects. It can be a waste of time for developers and deter people's interest in learning tools. In a more serious scenario, it can hurt enterprises' credibility on tool analysis and prevent the tools from delivering its inherent performance.Coverity has always been devoted to eliminating mis-detection, said Cerruto. Compared to tools from competitors, Coverity tools offer precise and fast analysis results with an error rate below 10-15%. Moreover, defects found are often serious ones that can cause code problems, not just superficial problems such as conflicting formats. It will not only prompt developers to master the tools as soon as possible and also save their time from being wasted in vain.Even when they are analyzing massive codes, Coverity automatic defect detection tools can achieve balance in terms of broadness, depth and scalability. In view of that, leading brands such as LG, Synopsys, RSA, L3 communications, Honeywell, NEC, Medtronic, Juniper, BMC Software, Samsung, SEGA and Sony have become Coverity's partners and users.Rich Cerruto, Vice President of Asia Pacific Operations, Coverity

According to an IDC survey, 645 million smartphones, 225 million notebooks and 105 million tablets are expected to be shipped in 2012 and, from 2012 to 2015, the compound annual growth rates (CAGR) of smartphones, notebooks and tablets are expected to be 17%, 13% and 20%, reflecting a strong demand for such consumer electronics.According to Eric Wang, Global Strategic Marketing Manager, TE Connectivity, increasingly prevalent cloud services over the past few years have changed the scenarios of how consumer electronics are used. Now massive data can be accessed and used online anytime to provide briefings to customers, share photos with friends, enjoy MP3 music outdoors, and use smartphones to complete transactions. Because data need not be stored on devices in advance, people are more willing to use various consumer electronic devices to enjoy their convenience.Critical influence of connectivityAs each consumer electronic device used to have only one function, users had to carry many different devices with them when they were on the go. They carried cell phones, digital cameras, MP3 players, handheld game consoles, GPS, and/or notebooks in order to meet different needs and wants.Technology advances have helped integrate many functions onto a single device. Camera, game playing, and music downloading/playing functions built in on smartphones, tablets or ultrabook are increasingly common, according to Wang, and this indicates the product design orientation of consumer electronics has been shifting to platform design orientation, and how to help systems and the data on devices integrate and work smoothly on iOS, Android, Windows CE, and Symbian is a focus of attention among device manufacturers.Moreover, multiple function devices have been increasing data traffic. According to the Cisco VNI 2010 report, the CAGR of mobile data from 2009 to 2014 would be as high as 34% and, by 2014, near 70 exabytes of data would increase monthly around the world. Consumer electronics would generate 87% of such data while business activities only 13%.To address the situation, it is necessary to increase devices' speed of internal and external data transmission, while the specs of existing data transmission interfaces such as USB, HDMI, Display Port, Ethernet, SATA, PCIe, Thunderbolot are being rapidly upgraded to prevent bottlenecking devices. Wang stressed that connectivity is critical to the efficiency of various consumer electronic devices.Many special connector designs as a must for new generation slim devicesAt the same time, new generation consumer electronics becoming increasingly slimmer is an obvious trend, which can be observed from the desktops in the 1970s, ensuing old-fashion notebooks, cell phones, modern notebooks, and smartphones, tablets, and ultrabook debuting in the 21st century. Nowadays a device can be as thin as 1 inch or even 0.5 inch.According to Wang, given the very limited internal space of increasingly slimmer devices, installing various components and parts for heat ventilation, power supply, storage, touch control, as well as PCB while integrating camera, game, GPS, and music functions can be resolved by improved connectivity between components and parts in addition to redesign, changing component shapes (e.g., replacement of cylinder batteries with square ones), and using new components and parts that are smaller but more powerful (e.g., replacement of conventional hard disks with SSD).In sum, the connectors for slim devices should not only provide a high speed of transmission but also have a high pin count and fine pitch in order to meet the requirements for both thinness and execution efficacy of new generation consumer electronics.Therefore, TE Connectivity - the world's largest manufacturer of passive electronic components as well as a world leader of network solutions, undersea communications systems and other specialty products - has launched its Ultra Low Profile SODIMM, Ultra Low Profile NGFF, USB RJ45 Hybird, and Fine Pitch Dock, which can sharply decrease the connector height in consumer electronics by 30%. According to Wang, these new products can enhance data transmission efficiency in addition to enabling even thinner devices and design flexibility.Component height reduced by TE Connectivity with transmission speed remaining unchangedUltra Low Profile SODIMM Connector, for example, features a 0.6 mm pitch, 204pos, and thickness lower than 3.0 mm to support single-sided memory chips, provide both versions of STD and RVS, and enable bevel insertion as well as an ultra low profile. Compared to the existing 4.0 mm connectors, Ultra Low Profile SODIMM Connector reduces its thickness by at least 25%, making devices 5-10% thinner. It is very suitable for the motherboard sizes of the latest ultrabooks, notebooks, all-in-one PCs and tablets.Ultra Low Profile Docking Connector - because of its 0.5/0.6 mm pitch design and multiple applications - provides 30-80 anchorages and complies with HDMI, USB, and DisplayPort protocols. It saves PCB space by more than 30% and decreases connector thickness by 25% to enable increasingly thinner devices. It is suitable for not only ultrabook and tablets but also for various handhelds.As to USB and RJ45, the standards commonly used for external transmission, TE Connectivity provides its USB/RJ45 Hybrid Connector support. The product has 17 pins, with four of them supporting USB 2.0, five supporting USB 3.0, and the other eight supporting RJ45. Therefore, single-port support to MagJack RJ45, USB 2.0, and USB 3.0 can be simultaneously provided while the speed can be maintained at higher than 1G/bps. The speed is not compromised because of the multiple specification support.Moreover, port height is reduced by 30% to make devices 15-20% thinner to provide even more compact and lighter computers. TE Connectivity also plans to help develop thinner DC jacks, HDMI, DisplayPort, CPU sockets, flexible printed circuits, and board-to-board connectors.Manufacturers' preference for TE Connectivity, which exceeds consumer expectationsTE Connectivity is a world-leading supplier of connectors, fiber optics, precision wires and cables, antennas, as well as sealing and protecting and circuit protection solutions. The company now helps the world's top-10 manufacturers of consumer electronic devices develop many new functions for their next-generation products to make such products work even better and faster.According to Wang, TE Connectivity can lead the markets of game consoles, PCs, smartphones, and tablets by providing the advanced technologies that change consumer expectations. The company's well-designed and crafted connectors help develop even more compact and lighter products for the mobile device market.According to Wang, a wide variety of point-to-point connectivity solutions provided by TE Connectivity often exceeds customer expectations and provides pleasant surprises to consumers. As a result, many companies have decided to partner with TE Connectivity, because TE Connectivity solutions provide multiple options and customization services to meet the needs of designing diverse light and slim devices.Eric Wang, Global Strategic Marketing Manager, TE Connectivity

According to a Canalys report in 2012, 488 million smartmobile devices were shipped in 2011 with 48.8% of them running Android and 19.1% iOS.From the fourth quarter of 2010 through the fourth quarter of 2011, the global growth rate of smart mobile devices was 62.7%. The growth of Android devices was 244.1%, the highest, followed by 183.1% of Bada and 96.0% of iOS.According to Microchip, it is ABI Research's view that the explosive shipment growth of smart mobile devices boosted the 2010 global revenue of aftermarket peripherals to US$26.5 billion. According to a Microchip forecast, the market of Apple accessories and peripherals amounts to about US$10 billion with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15%.Lifestyles to be changed by various smart mobile devicesAccording to Chuck Li, Regional Sales Manager of Microchip, various daily applications for businesses, homes, hospitals, and vehicles have a close tie with smart mobile devices, which enable daily office work, entertainment, financial transactions, location-based services, remote control and remote home care. There is no doubt that the smart functions associated with such applications will have a strong influence over the direction and growth of the global market of peripherals.Li stressed that ongoing launches of smart mobile applications are new opportunities for peripheral manufacturers to create their products that strengthen the existing mobile devices. These products, for example, include home care systems combining monitoring and sensing functions, ticket devices that provide certification and payment functions, exercise or medical equipment, and payment tools. "Smartphones and mobile peripherals have become a 'lifestyle hub' that helps us interact with the world in a way unimaginable in the past," said Li.Various key functions built in on smart peripherals have close interaction with mobile applications and can create very unique user experiences. "Different applications, however, require different key functions provided by smart peripherals," said Li.Devices with e-wallet or POS applications must have encrypted computing and password protection built in for both data and hardware security. As to the peripheral for exercise equipment, motion sensing and advanced analogue functionality are required for accurate movement measurement. Speaker peripherals should support multiple audio compression formats and audio effects while amplification is also indispensable."Correct identification of the key functions that smart peripherals should have enables a good understanding of hardware specs and helps design optimized microcontrollers as well as other system parts and components," said Li.Rapid growth of mobile devices primarily driven by applications and peripheralsBased on the aforementioned, smart peripherals have become one of the key factors to attract consumers but pose many challenges to manufacturers, which have to factor in complicated product diversity issues during product design. Therefore, the high quality of product design as well as the best user experience can only be ensured by hardware and software integration of key functions, network and peripheral connectivity, power efficiency, firmware libraries, operating system support, and various applications.In terms of network or peripheral connectivity, as external communication of smart devices relies on interfaces, how many interface specs can be supported by peripherals is the most important consideration during product design. "Either wireline interfaces or wireless interfaces have their pros and cons," said Li. "Therefore, product design had better decide the interface specs to be supported based on the habits of target users, how complicated design is, power consumption, bills of materials (BOM), etc."Challenges and complicated considerations despite design options and specsUSB interfaces, for example, can be found on iPad. Android tablets, iPod, Android phones, and various mobile devices for their connectivity with massive storage devices, CDC devices, human interface devices, audio devices, etc."The latest USB 3.0 supports a data rate up to 5Gbit/s, but most smartphones and tablets retain the old USB 2.0 because of higher costs of the USB 3.0 chip per se, peripherals, and the circuit board to go with USB 3.0," said Li. "As a result, some new devices have compatibility issues." Moreover, the master/slave architecture of USB in the past only enabled the master to set up schedule connection and transmit data while peripherals could only passively respond to the master. "This has been improved by new generation peripherals' USB OTG support, but many old devices still support the old operation mode," said Li when reminding manufacturers to pay attention to the issue during new product design.Regarding the RF design for devices, there are two options: the module and chip-down. Module accelerates time to market, and design can be completed with only some knowledge of RF, according to Li, but additional certifications are required and cost effectiveness can only be achieved when output is not high. "Chip-down, on the contrary, requires RF professionals' participation as well as many RF tests and certifications, but mass production can reduce the cost to the lowest."Power sources for peripherals have a similar issue. Cell phones and tablets can use A/C chargers and do without batteries, but extra design is required in order to convert A/C into D/C. The extra design cost can be saved by using batteries to do without any extra space for circuits, but maintaining battery voltage stability can be difficult.Annoying development simplified by Microchip Development KitShould firmware library support to different operating systems be considered? Can the latest operating system specs be met? Is automated detection and network connection possible? Are simple APIs and automated initialization available? Can firmware libraries be updated?According to Li, seeing that peripheral manufacturers have many complicated considerations during new products design, Microchip has integrated various needs of field application engineers and design houses around the world to provide rich XLP PIC MCU supporting many Android and iOS development kits. Therefore, the fastest time to market of general-purpose peripherals, digital audio speakers, as well as MIDI synthesizing, sound mixing, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi devices will be possible.Microchip Firmware Libraries is royalty free while supporting the latest Android and iOS by providing automated detection, network connection, and initialization as well as boot-loading and digital audio support. As a result, manufacturers are free from many inconveniences that they would otherwise have to resolve by themselves.Various Microchip Development Kits provide flexible product development options, e.g., Simple Accessory with IR or 8-bit Development Kits for simple peripheral development, and MIDI Accessory, MIDI Synthesize, and PIC32 Sound Mixing for sound mixing product design.It is Li's recommendation that peripheral manufacturers' new product R&D should follow "the most appropriate OS development licensing," such as Apple's MFi, and then select suitable MPLAB X IDE/XC Compilers, OS Libraries, PICkit, MPLAB ICD, or MPLAB REAL ICE debugger/programmer based on different OS and MCU requirements in order to gain complete support.For further understanding of the resources of smartphone peripheral development provided by Microchip, please visit http://www.microchip.com/smartphonesChuck Li, Regional Sales Manager, Microchip Technology