New Semis Help Designers Turn on the Power
By: By Randy Frank, contributing editor
When automakers add more electronic features to differentiate their vehicles, they have to consider the impact on the vehicle’s power supply. Some new systems, such as stop-start systems and regenerative braking are being added to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. To simplify the power management task in all systems, suppliers continue to introduce more efficient products and use techniques that reduce power consumption. More area efficient, dual-sided cooling packages for power MOSFETs, the use switching technology in Class D audio amplifiers and LED headlights are examples of industry efforts to use less power...
Mechatronic Test Making Those Difficult Power Driver Measurements
By: by Alan J. Lesko Agilent Technologies
Mechatronics is the combination of mechanical, electrical, and software technologies to achieve the performance goals of the system. This combination of technologies forms an ideal synergy, with each contributing key elements to the overall goal of greater performance. The mechanical hardware provides the heavy lifting: force, torque, and mechanical displacement. The software provides the intelligence...
Controlling Power in Automotive Body Systems
By: by Adam Prengler NEC Electronics America, Inc.
The amount and sophistication of electronics in cars is increasing at a very fast pace, driven primarily by two goals: to increase the functionality and...
Bright ideas drive complex headlamp motion control
By: by Bart De Cock AMI Semiconductor
Smart motor-driver chips enable intelligent system partitioning and help to convert complex multi-axis real-time programming into modular time- and cost-saving reusable designs......
Steering in the right direction
By: by Randy Frank Contributing Editor
EPS is an integral part of advanced stability control systems. This report addresses the control, sensing and power aspects of these rapidly increasing systems and the changes that are occurring in this critical safety system....
New Test Rig for Concept Coverage
At Automotive Testing Expo 2006 Europe, the MTS Systems Corporation presented a proof-of-concept test rig for mechatronic development and validation....
Advanced System Design for Body Applications
By: by Nicola Liporace, Joseph Notaro and Giovanni Torrisi
The penetration of semiconductors inside an automobile is forecasted to increase rapidly in the coming years. Today, a high-end car is estimated to contain...
Digital Power Modules: The Convergence of Power and Body Electronics
By: by Daniel D. Moore
Many applications are taking advantage of digital power modules to combine power and body electronics into a single module. The flexibility and scalability afforded by the DPMs also present worse-case scenarios for designers. Thus, designers must consider trade offs between cost and function /performance....
Turning Comfort and Convenience into Vehicle Differentiation
By: by Randy Frank Contributing Editor
How many body electronics modules will carmakers supply to satisfy the average automotive buyer? The answer apparently is as many as it takes. According to Strategy Analytics, body electronics represent the highest volume electronics applications in today's vehicles. This report explores just a few of the changes that can be expected within the next few years....
Auto Electronics Means More than Silicon
By: By David Morrison, Editor, Power Electronics Technology
Much has been written about the ongoing rise in the electronic content of automobiles. ...
DSP Technology Makes Cars Fuel Efficient And Smarter
By: by Kedar Godbole and Brian Fortman Texas Instruments
Increasing automotive fuel efficiency is key to lower fuel costs and meeting the increasingly strict emissions standards. Engine design and reduction...
