Embedded World 2013 preview

But should British engineers join the throng on 26 to 28 February 2013? If size is important, then the answer would be 'yes'; this promises to be the biggest in the event's 11 year history. "Embedded World will remain focused in 2013 but still grow appreciably. It is the largest event in the world for embedded system technologies and the most professional shop window," explained exhibition manager Alexander Mattausch. "We are very pleased about yet more growth in terms of display space, number of new exhibitors and international share of exhibitors, which confirms the importance of the event." Last year, there were 872 exhibitors and 22,262 visitors. But size is not everything and the content of the conference programmes will be of interest to many. The keynote this year is to be given by Stuart McClure, president and ceo of Cylance, whose presentation 'Securing Invisible Things' will examine the questions: Why aren't our information systems secure? How could this happen? What can we do to avert the next cyber catastrophe? And how can the 'bad guys', as McClure calls them, be stopped? Amongst the many other topics included in the conference sessions are MCMs, ultra low power and multicore processors. For a full conference programme, visit www.embedded-world.eu/program.html For those wanting to meet new and existing suppliers, or just wanting to get a feel for some of the trending technologies, many exhibitors have something new to shout about. The following is a small sample to whet your appetite. A first time exhibitor at Embedded World, Cadence Design Systems (visit at Hall 4-609) will show its latest prototyping and Early Software Development suite, which is comprised of four platforms which aim to help accelerate system integration, validation and bring up, with a set of four connected platforms for concurrent hardware/software design and verification. The Universal Debug Engine (UDE) 4.0 will be demonstrated by PLS (visit at Hall 4-310). The new UDE 4.0 features enhanced debug capabilities for multicore targets, optimised visualisation options during system test and dedicated support for a range of the latest 32bit multicore SoCs from various manufacturers. Using the newly developed target manager for the UDE 4.0, among other things, cores and functional units can now be specifically selected for debugging. In order to retain an overview when working with several cores, debugger window tabs and toolbars are colour coded. Rohde & Schwarz (visit at Hall 4-112) will present two new probes. The RT-ZS60 active voltage probe is said to be a solution for any task requiring single ended measurements of signal integrity. It is the market's first compact, single ended 6GHz probe that can handle tests on high speed interfaces such as DDR memory modules or general analyses for A&D, research or consumer electronics, for example. For automotive, power and medical technology applications, the RT-ZD01 active differential high voltage probe offers a selectable measurement range to a maximum of 1kV(rms). Microsemi will show its SmartFusion2 SoC fpgas at Hall 1-652. These fpgas are claimed to deliver the security, high reliability and low power required in critical industrial, defence, aviation, communications, medical and motor control applications. Express-IB, a high performance COM.0 R2.0 Type 6 module, will be demonstrated by Adlink (Hall 1-532). It features an Intel Core i7/i5/i3 processor supporting Intel HD Graphics integrated on the cpu with three independent displays. A PCI Express x16 Generation 3.0 bus is available for discrete graphics expansion or general purpose PCIe. Silicon Laboratories will showcase an array of embedded mixed signal products and development tools (Hall 4A-211). Latest embedded mixed signal solutions on display will include the single-chip Si7005 relative humidity sensor that combines a mixed-signal IC manufactured on a standard cmos process with the proven technique of measuring humidity using a polymer dielectric film. This demo highlights the Si7005 sensor's advanced functionality with a demonstration board that features Silicon Labs' SiM3L1xx Precision32 mcu and an lcd that displays humidity and temperature readings. XMOS (Hall 1-235) will highlight the L-Series, which it claims to be the world's most diverse range of multicore microprocessors. Offering 8, 10, 12 or 16 logical cores and a choice of memory capacities, the L-Series is said to allow engineers to specify the exact solution they need. Meanwhile, the company will be using Embedded World to launch an addition to the L-Series and claims this will be a 'world's first'. Avnet Memec's stand (Hall 4A-122) will feature three key presentation areas: multisupplier technology focused demonstrations; an area dedicated to Renesas, Semtech, Cirrus Logic and Echelon; plus the 'Maxim Integrated Tech Lounge'. Visitors will have the chance to meet product experts and members of Avnet Memec's team of applications engineers to discuss their questions. Among the devices on show from Toshiba Electronics Europe (visit at Hall 4-534) will be the latest family of ultra-miniature ARM Cortex-M3 mcus that combine on-board field oriented control capabilities with dedicated peripherals and functions that reduce system development time. Smart meter mcus will include devices built around the ARM Cortex-M0 core that replace the traditional two chip analogue front end and processor implementation with a single chip. The company will also showcase the latest version of its free MotorMind PC software that allows designers to quickly and easily set up, modify and manage key motor control parameters via a graphical user interface. Rutronik (visit at Hall 1-318) will demonstrate innovations from a variety of market segments, including the world's first emergency watch from Limmex, which has an integrated Telit GE865-QUAD wireless module that enables assistance to be summoned anywhere at the push of a button without the need for a mobile phone. Highlights of the Enpirion stand (Hall 4-429) include the EN2300 family of fully integrated 12V dc/dc converters. Rated at 4A, 6A, 9A and 15A, the parts are made using the company's power mosfet technology and offer double the power density of alternative solutions. Enpirion's PowerSoC technology integrates the controller, power mosfets, high frequency input capacitors, compensation network and inductor. The company will also show the industry's first PowerSoC based on electroplated wafer level magnetics. Devices in the EL700 family deliver low cost, low power point of load dc/dc conversion at a switching frequency of 18MHz. Highlight of the Swissbit stand (visit at Hall 1-524) will be its X-500 Series Industrial SATA II solid state disk. Available with up to 512Gbyte, the 2.5in storage solution combines a data rate of up to 260Mbyte/s on SATA II and 15,000 IOPS with 4k random accesses. Additionally, the SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) protocol with lifetime monitoring and a BCH-ECC (error correction code) ensures reliability with the power fail protected X-500 series.