Circuit Cellar Ink 255
October 2011

Table of Contents

4


CJ Abate

HTML Task Manager

Get Grounded

8


CJ Abate

HTML New Product News

17


David Tweed

HTML Test Your EQ - Answers for Issue 254

18


Francis Fernandes
Rajendra Gad
Vinaya Gad
Shane Lobo
Gourish Naik
Jivan Parab

Embedded System Communication

A Control Platform for Ethernet-Enabled Systems

Many of today's industrial and consumer electronic applications have hefty data transmission needs and requirements. This means engineers must incorporate efficient embedded technologies that can communicate effectively with each other. You can customize this SoC control platform for any Ethernet-enabled design on your workbench.

Download: Gad-255.zip

26


Carl Stoesz

The Ultimate Cup Warmer

Built around a PIC16F684 microcontroller and an AD595 thermocouple amplifier, this clever design warms a cup of liquid to a set temperature and automatically cools it down. The design uses a watchdog timer to continually monitor whether the cup has been picked up or a full cup has been placed on the heater plate.

Download: Stoesz-255.zip

36


David Ludington

High-Accuracy Voltage Reference Using PWM

Part 1: Pulse-Width Modulation Theory

You can use pulse-width modulation (PWM) to design a programmable voltage source with high full-scale accuracy. This article details the analog design tradeoffs necessary to achieve the desired accuracy when using this technique.

Questions & Answers

40


Nan Price

Testing Devices & Writing in Assembly

An Interview with Larry Cicchinelli

Larry Cicchinelli, author of Assembly Language Essentials, is a ham radio enthusiast, a Circuit Cellar contributing author, and a longtime electronic device designer. In August 2011, Larry and I discussed his background in electronics, the enjoyment he gets from designing and building electronic devices, his affinity for Assembly language, and his future projects.

Above the Ground Plane

46


Ed Nisley

Stepper Motor Drive

Part 2: Microstepping

Most new stepper systems depend on microstepping motor drivers with active current regulation. This article covers the fundamentals and advantages of microstepping motor drivers and describes how their chopper current controls function.

Download: Nisley-255.zip

The Consummate Engineer

52


George Novacek

Environmental Stress Screening

Environmental stress screening (ESS) takes time, resources, and equipment. But the advantages -- low field returns, design robustness, and component quality tracking -- are well worth it.

Embedded in Thin Slices

56


Bob Japenga

Getting Started with Embedded Linux

Part 1: When to Choose Linux for Your Embedded Design

This three-part series introduces the topic of embedded Linux. Why should you choose Linux? To begin with, many of the features, devices, and functionality you desire are already built into the operating system. Read on to find out more.

From the Bench

60


Jeff Bachiochi

Get Your Head Out of the Cloud

An API for Communication with a Wi-Fi Thermostat

The Utility Smart Network Access Port (USNAP) interface, which connects products into home networks, is gaining footing in the marketplace. Here you learn how to build applications to communicate with a Wi-Fi USNAP thermostat using an application programming interface (API).

Download: Bachiochi-255.zip

The Darker Side

66


Robert Lacoste

Line-Coding Techniques

The nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) method is a binary code in which ones are generally represented with a positive voltage and zeros are generally represented by a negative voltage leaving no null condition. This article details the NRZ method and other line-coding techniques -- NRZI, Manchester, Miller, AMO, MLT3, and 4B5B -- that can be used in wireless and wired protocols.

Download: Lacoste-255.zip

74

Crossword Puzzle

78

Crossword Puzzle - Answers for Issue 254

79

Advertiser's Index / November Preview

80


Steve Ciarcia

HTML Priority Interrupt

FTP Directory for INK 255

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