Consumer

January 2014
Quintic unveils wearable tech chip

Quintic 9020

Quintic, a leading developer of integrated nano-power wearable platforms, introduced its 9020 for wearable technology applications. The 9020 is designed specifically for the wearable technology market. It provides the best power consumption along with best performance on the market; enabling more intelligence in
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Date:
01/31/2014
Atmel, a global leader in microcontroller and touch technology solutions, will be powering the Internet of Things at embedded world 2014 in Nuremberg, Germany. From February 25th – 27th Atmel will show its broadest portfolio of 8- and 32-bit MCU architectures that puts it at the heart of the Maker community an
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Date:
01/30/2014
Altium, a leader in smart system design & automation, embedded software development, and Nimbic, a leading provider of electromagnetic simulation solutions for signal integrity, power integrity and EMI analysis, announced a development partnership. This will make Nimbic the newest developer partner to join Al
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Date:
01/29/2014
UH Researchers create novel flexible & transparent conductor

Zhifeng Ren, University of Houston

University of Houston researchers have developed a new stretchable and transparent electrical conductor, bringing the potential for a fully foldable cell phone or a flat-screen television that can be folded and carried under your arm closer to reality. Zhifeng Ren, a physicist at the University of Houston and pr
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Date:
01/29/2014
NCSU to lead new institute for next-generation power electronics

Wide-bandgap (WBG) semiconductor-based power electronics

North Carolina State University has been selected by the Obama Administration to lead a public-private manufacturing innovation institute for next generation power electronics. Supported by a $70 million Energy Department investment over five years as well as a matching $70 million in non-federal cost-share, the
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Date:
01/28/2014
Asia‘s largest trade show for lasers, optics and photonics, LASER World of PHOTONICS CHINA 2014 will take place at the Shanghai New International Expo Center from March 18 -20, 2014. The show is expected to occupy an area of 34,500 sqm, with about 600 exhibitors from China and other countries across the world. Fr
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Date:
01/28/2014
Mouser launches wireless charging technology site

Wireless inductive charging devices

Mouser Electronics recently launched its new Wireless Charging Technology site, offering a detailed overview of this rapidly evolving technology to help designers identify the ideal wireless charging semiconductor and passive components – as well as development tools – to put a charge into their next design pr
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Date:
01/27/2014
Vishay's Gen III MOSFET claims first in MICRO FOOT Package

TrenchFET p-channel Gen III power MOSFET

Vishay Intertechnology extended its offering of TrenchFET® p-channel Gen III power MOSFETs with what is believed to be the industry's first -20 V device in the 2.4 mm by 2.0 mm by 0.4 mm CSP MICRO FOOT® package size. Designed to increase efficiency and save space in mobile computing devices, the Vishay Siliconix Si8
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Date:
01/27/2014
The China Information Technology Expo - CITE 2014, the largest IT and consumer electronics show in Asia, will come to  Shenzhen, China from April 10-12, 2014. Among other things the event will provide sales & information opportunities for U.S. and international businesses wishing to enter the Asian ma
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Date:
01/27/2014
Can the Internet of Things drive adoption of energy harvesters?

The energy harvesting market

The Internet of Things adds connectivity to things. It is a broad term referring to applications as diverse as internet connected vehicles to consumer electronics such as smart phones. However, the edge of the Internet of Things network will consist of simpler sensors and wireless devices that provide, among ot
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Date:
01/24/2014
Power MOSFETs from Advanced Power Electronics target DC/DC converter apps

AP4034 30V N-channel enhancement-mode power MOSFETs

Advanced Power Electronics, a leading manufacturer of MOS power semiconductors for DC-DC power conversion applications, has introduced the AP4034 family of 30V N-channel enhancement-mode power MOSFETs in several popular package alternatives to meet differing cost/performance points. All the AP4034 MOSFETs provide fas
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Date:
01/24/2014
ROHM unveils its latest line-up of Li-ion battery-management ICs

ML5238 Li-ion Battery Management IC

ROHM Semiconductor presents a new member of its IC series providing high-accurate charge/discharge control, monitoring and protection functions for Li-ion secondary battery packs.These rechargeable battery packs are commonly used in E-Bikes, Power Tools, UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supplies) and HEV applications whi
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Date:
01/23/2014
Transparent conductive sheets (on glass or other substrates) are used in a variety of applications including touch screens, displays, lighting, photovoltaics, etc. This is already a large and well-established business. Indeed, the non-display sector alone (includes touch) is set to generate $1.4 billion in 2014 at
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Date:
01/23/2014
MiOS, provider of advanced control and monitoring solutions for the home and small enterprise markets in 65 countries, and EnOcean, the world leader in energy harvesting wireless solutions, announced the release of a plug-in for the MiOS Marketplace, delivering control of Z-Wave products using EnOcean self- po
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Date:
01/22/2014
Microchip announces Arduino-compatible chipKIT ecosystem expansion

Digilent’s chipKIT WF32 board

Microchip Technology, a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, announced the expansion of its Arduino™ compatible chipKIT™ ecosystem, with two new development tools from Digilent, Inc., and an embedded cloud software framework. Digilent’s chipKIT WF32 board minimizes th
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Date:
01/22/2014
CamSemi C2172 controller wins NMI low power design award

CamSemi wins NMI low power design award

CamSemi’s recently launched C2172 next generation Primary Side Sensing controller (PSS) has been named as overall winner in the ‘Low Power Green Design of the Year’ category at the 2013 NMI Electronics Systems Awards. The new C2172 controller is helping manufacturers to develop the industry’s lowest co
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Date:
01/22/2014
STMicro microcontroller powers miniature artificial-intelligence race cars from Anki Drive

STM32 microcontroller in AnkiDrive

STMicroelectronics, a semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, announced that its STM32 microcontroller was selected by Anki, a robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) startup, for use in their first product – Anki Drive™, in which consumers can download an ap
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Date:
01/22/2014
The Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA) Nanotechnology Committee is sponsoring an Industry Session at APEC 2014 titled, “Latest Advances in Nanotechnology.” This year marks PSMA’s fourth Industry Session on Nanotechnology at APEC, which positions itself as the “Premier Event in Power Electronics.” Th
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Date:
01/21/2014
Due to expected infrastructure development prior to the FIFA World Cup, Brazil’s smart meter market revenue will increase more than tenfold, from $36m in 2013 to $432m by 2020, at an impressive Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 43%, forecasts research and consulting firm GlobalData. According to the co
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Date:
01/21/2014
RIGOL to present their latest high-performance, cost-attractive DAQ at Embedded World 2014

M300 data acquisition/data logger switch unit

Rigol Technologies expands its product offering with a new data acquisition/data logger switch unit. The M300 combines a DMM with a gauge head selector switch. The highly versatile system can be extended with 5 plug-ins and optionally with a 61/2 digit DMM, 10 different switch and control modules of bipolar swit
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Date:
01/21/2014
TowerJazz, a specialty foundry leader, and MAPS, a provider of mobile, lighting and automotive ICs, announced collaboration on the launch of what is believed to be the first resonant wireless power transfer (WPT) receiver Chip(Rx). Intended for mobile products, the device integrates high efficiency full active re
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Date:
01/20/2014
Porous Power Technologies announced the launch of SYMMETRIX® NC2020, a ceramic battery separator designed to significantly improve thermal stability and safety of large-format lithium-ion batteries. Applications include batteries for electric vehicles, flat-cell consumer electronics, utility-grade energy storage, an
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Date:
01/20/2014
One way that supercapacitors are developing faster than batteries is in the choice of format, from transfer printable ones for mobile phones to load-bearing structural components and smart skin for vehicles. In the European Union Powerweave project, supercapacitors not batteries have been chosen as the energy st
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Date:
01/17/2014
UBC projects get NSERC funding for efforts including flexible solar cell and wearable electronics development

Several UBC projects received NSERC funding including an effort to develop flexible solar cells and wearable electronics

University of British Columbia research in fish ecology, oil sands, energy efficient buildings, clean water and wearable electronics received a $9-million boost today through the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The 10 UBC projects were among 77 grants awarded to 23 universities totaling
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Date:
01/17/2014
President Obama launches public-private manufacturing innovation institute

President Obama

The President announced new steps with the private sector to strengthen the manufacturing sector, boost advanced manufacturing, and attract the good paying jobs that a growing middle class requires. The President also announced the selection of a North Carolina headquartered consortium of businesses and universities, le
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Date:
01/17/2014
Next-generation power factor correction controller from TI improves energy efficiency

The UCC28180EVM-573 360-W PFC evaluation module

Texas Instruments introduced a power factor correction (PFC) controller that claims to have the industry’s widest range programmable frequency operating in continuous conduction mode. The UCC28180 8-pin PFC controller cuts power consumption in half and delivers power factor correction greater than 0.95, compared to
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Date:
01/17/2014
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced $4.8 million in awards for projects that explore new technologies to make buildings in New York State more energy efficient while helping to expand the building sector economy. “New York is continuing to invest in new technologies and systems that improve energy efficienc
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Date:
01/16/2014
For the next three years, 26 partners from five European countries will conduct research on environmental sensors and sensor networks for energy efficient solutions. Under leadership of Infineon Technologies the research project “Environmental Sensors for Energy Efficiency” (ESEE) will help to further reduce en
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Date:
01/16/2014
The EMerge Alliance – an open industry association leading the rapid adoption of safe direct-current (DC) power distribution standards for buildings – today announced the expansion of the EMerge Alliance Registered™ product program to include the first products supporting the EMerge Alliance Data/Telecom Cen
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Date:
01/16/2014
A novel software application created by the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) could improve the efficiency of commercial buildings by allowing occupants to interact with buildings more directly. The new Building Agent (BA) application allows facility managers to quickly diagnose and
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Date:
01/16/2014
Always-on 6-Axis inertial-motion sensors claim lowest power

LSM6DB0 6-axis smart sensor

STMicroelectronics, a semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications and motion, environmental, audio and micro-fluidic MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems), announced a family of always-on 6-axis inertial motion sensors with industry-lowest power requirements, ultra-compact pa
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Date:
01/16/2014
Silego's 40mΩ dual-channel GreenFET3 load switch has 1.0 x 1.6 mm footprint

SLG59M1446V 40mΩ dual channel GreenFET3 load switch

Silego Technology introduced the SLG59M1446V, a 40 mΩ dual channel GreenFET3 load switch product based on Silego’s proprietary sub-micron copper power FET technology. This technology supports the world’s smallest full-featured, high efficiency power switches down to 1 x 1 mm in standard plastic packaging. The SLG59M144
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Date:
01/16/2014
Buck-boost battery charging controller empowers solar applications

LT8490 synchronous buck-boost battery charging controller

Linear Technology announced the LT8490, a synchronous buck-boost battery charging controller for lead acid and Lithium batteries, featuring automatic maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and temperature compensation. The device operates from input voltages above, below or equal to the regulated battery float vo
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Date:
01/16/2014
O2Micro, a global leader in the design, development and marketing of high-performance integrated circuits and solutions, announced a patent grant for its Power Source Detection topology from the Japanese Patent Office. This invention, issued 19 claims under Japanese patent number 5,388,484, compare
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Date:
01/15/2014
Qualcomm, through its venture investment arm Qualcomm Ventures, kicked off its QPrize™ 2014 international seed investment competition. The goal of the contest is to identify and fund the industry's next promising, early-stage technology companies. The QPrize competition is open to entrepreneurs across China, Eur
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Date:
01/15/2014
Bourns miniature chip diodes now available now from TTI

Silicon chip diodes from Bourns

A family of silicon chip diodes from Bourns is intended to answer the industry demand for increasingly smaller electronic components, and is now available from TTI, a leading specialist distributor of passive, connector, electromechanical and discrete components. Bourns’ new ranges of surface mount TVS diodes an
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Date:
01/14/2014
Exar, a leading supplier of high performance analog mixed-signal components and data management solutions, today introduced the XRP9710 and XRP9711 multi-output, synchronous step-down, programmable power modules that offer the industry’s highest power density and lowest profile at 2.75mm with 5V-22V inputs. Bo
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Date:
01/14/2014
High performance MOSFET from Advanced Power Electronics offers very low on-resistance

AP1A003GMT-HF-3 power MOSFET

Advanced Power Electronics, a leading manufacturer of MOS power semiconductors for DC-DC power conversion applications, has recently released the AP1A003GMT-HF-3 power MOSFET with very low maximum on-resistance of only 0.99mΩ for use in high current load switching where a very low voltage drop across the MOSFET sw
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Date:
01/14/2014
MIT Professional Education will offer “Tackling the Challenges of Big Data” over four weeks beginning March 4, 2014. This course is the first of its kind: cutting edge content delivered by world-renowned CSAIL researchers, in a flexible format for working professionals, on an open source educational platform de
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Date:
01/14/2014
Greenvity Communications now offers total turn-key solutions comprising system-on-chips (SoC), modules, software and mobile apps that enable any home device or Internet of Things (IoT) device to be smart and controllable for energy-saving and home and building automation purposes. At the core of these solutions ar
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Date:
01/13/2014
Seventy percent of global energy production is consumed in commercial and residential buildings. Power electronics applications can reduce this substantially. The IEEE PELS Emerging Technologies Technical Committee and PSMA, with leadership from the PSMA Alternative Energy Committee, will sponsor this special on
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Date:
01/13/2014
Inverted thru-board connectors offer low-profile space savings for LED lighting apps

Thru Board Card Edge and Poke-in Platform Connectors

TE Connectivity, a leader in connectivity, announced their latest Inverted Thru Board (ITB) Card Edge and Poke-in Platform Connectors that provide a low-profile and increased power delivery solution for LED lighting applications. The ITB Card Edge and ITB Poke-in Platform Connectors are two-position connectors th
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Date:
01/13/2014
Vishay SMD ESD protection diodes offer high surge capability in an SMF package

Vishay surface-mount ESD protection diodes

Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (NYSE: VSH) today announced a new series of surface-mount ESD protection diodes in the low-profile SMF package. For portable electronics, SMFxxA series devices provide high surge capability of 200 W at 10/1000 μs. With their low 1 mm profile, "Low-Noise" technology, and very f
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Date:
01/13/2014
In this article we will examine effective ways to use IEC (International Electrical Commission) safety standards to explore the limits of a design by figuring out what standards may apply to a problem amongst the hundreds available. The standards and supporting documents from the IEC are perceived as a burden to
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Date:
01/10/2014
Growing Opportunity for Manufacturers of Digital Power

Jonathon Eykyn, IHS

The digital power market is forecast to grow substantially in the next five years with unit shipments of digital power supplies and digital power ICs projected to grow by factors of three and five respectively by 2018 according to IHS. The early adoption of digital power has been dominated by telecommunications, servers a
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Date:
01/10/2014
eGaN technology enhances envelope-tracking and wireless power transmission apps

Schematic of fixed and envelope tracking power profile in a RF Power amplifier

The concept of envelope tracking for radio frequency amplifiers is not new. But the ever-increasing need for better base station efficiency and output power, as well as the need for improving RF power amplifier efficiency, is driving intense research and development in envelope tracking. Envelope Tracking RF pow
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Date:
01/09/2014
Linear's 2.5A monolithic active cell balancer offers telemetry interface

LT8584 monolithic flyback DC/DC converter

Linear Technology Corporation announces the LT8584, a monolithic flyback DC/DC converter designed to actively balance high voltage stacks of batteries. These battery stacks are commonly found in electric and hybrid vehicles as well as fail-safe power supplies and energy storage systems. Because these batteries are
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Date:
01/09/2014
O2Micro International announced its participation in Lighting Japan 2014, January 15 -- 17. Lighting Japan 2014, a composition of three shows -- the LED/OLED Lighting Technology Expo, LED/OLED Light Expo, and Design Lighting Tokyo 2014 -- will be held at the Tokyo Big Sight, Tokyo, Japan. O2Micro will demons
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Date:
01/08/2014
Euromonitor, a UK-based research firm, has recently recognizes Haier as a leading global major appliances brand in the world, positioning itself as a complete lifestyle manufacturer for consumers. Haier couples cloud-control technology and customization to give consumers the ability to experience smart
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Date:
01/08/2014
Building on its years of innovation-driven research and development, at the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show, AMZER unveiled its line up of connected and wearable devices. AMZERcontrol™ is a family of wireless automated control solutions which enhance as well as ease the consumer's daily experiences and tasks. Bot
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Date:
01/08/2014
Entropic, a leader in semiconductor solutions for the connected home, continues to push the boundaries by developing low power MoCA(R) (Multimedia over Coax Alliance)-based solutions. The Company announced what they believe is the first MoCA 2.0 USB bus-powered adapter reference design to deliver a 'no exc
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Date:
01/07/2014
Dialog's reference design enables smaller low-power Ultrabook adapters

Dialog iW1762 and iW1760 digital PWM controllers

Dialog Semiconductor, a provider of highly-integrated power management, audio, AC/DC and short-range wireless technologies, announced its latest move to deliver innovative solutions for Ultrabooks™ with the thinnest, smallest 45W and 12W travel-size power adapters that can be used with an Ultrabook. Developed by
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Date:
01/07/2014
Taiwan’s Institute for Information Industry (III) has joined the HomeGrid Forum Board. III adds an Asian voice and point of view to the Board, better enabling HomeGrid Forum to understand and react to the needs of Asian Operators, vendors and consumers.   Founded in 1979 as a Non-Governmental Organization (
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Date:
01/07/2014
Freescale-enabled Wearables Reference Platform supports multiple applications

Freescale wearables reference platform (WaRP)

To help systems designers more easily navigate the quickly evolving consumer wearables market, Freescale Semiconductor is enabling an open-source, scalable reference platform that gives OEMs the building blocks they need to rapidly develop a wide range of wearable product designs from a common platform. Unlike other wea
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Date:
01/06/2014
Coilcraft's mini coupled power inductor targets flyback and SEPIC apps

PFD3215 Series coupled chip power inductors

Coilcraft’s compact PFD3215 Series coupled chip power inductors provide high efficiency and excellent current handling in a rugged, low-cost part. PFD3215The dual-wound PFD3215 features a 1:1 turns ratio and is designed for use in a variety of circuits including flyback, multi-output buck and SEPIC. These versatile
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Date:
01/06/2014
The lighting control systems marketplace has been in a state of transition in recent years. Changing energy efficiency codes, new construction project increases, wireless technology benefits, increases in LED lighting adoption and conservation initiatives have been the key factors driving the growth of the
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Date:
01/06/2014
AspectSolar equips Everest expedition

SunSocket Solar Generator

Portable solar power innovator AspectSolar announced their sponsorship of Mike and Steve Marolt, the 8000m (8K) descent skiers behind the 2009 documentary Skiing Everest. After a tour of festivals, ESPN bought the film in 2011 for a series of primetime broadcasts. The brothers, their friend Jim Gile, and Ski Ch
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Date:
01/04/2014
MiOS, LTD., a global provider of advanced control and monitoring solutions for the home and small enterprise markets in 65 countries, and EnOcean, the world leader in energy harvesting wireless solutions, announced the release of a plug-in for the MiOS Marketplace, delivering control of Z-Wave products using En
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Date:
01/03/2014
At the 2014 International CES, Ericsson will demonstrate the experience of "Living Life in the Networked Society." Visitors to the Ericsson booth will see how different aspects of an everyday connected life are seamlessly stitched together, allowing each of us to share experiences with family, friends an
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Date:
01/03/2014
Vicor unveiled the latest easy-to-navigate version of their website with a host of new online power design tools. Developed with extensive input from power engineers and refined with intensive user experience testing, Vicor’s new website – including its popular PowerBench™ tool suite – has been redesigned an
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Date:
01/02/2014
Hirose BM22 Series micro-hybrid board-to-FPC connectors handle up to 4 amps

Hirose BM22 Series connectors

Hirose, a leader in the development of innovative connector solutions, offers a hybrid, board-to-FPC, small form factor connector capable of delivering nearly three times the power of similar-sized conventional connectors. The 4-position BM22 Series connector measures just 4.24 x 2.64mm with a mated height of on
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Date:
01/02/2014
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