Control

The intention of the Internet of Things is to digest and

control these objects in a way that we typically do not,
currently. For consumers, this could mean an Android
app allowing you to check and adjust the temperature
of your living room without leaving your couch. Or a
wearable fitness device that can perform the same
function, albeit from the trail. Whatever the case, you
have a thing and a way to access it via the Internet.
Measure, Observe and Feedback
This part is difficult to quantify, but in general terms,
the Internet of Things is seen to utilize sensors for the
measurement of environmental phenomena. Some of
these sensors might include:
S Inductive
S Capacitive
S Temperature
S Humidity
S Pressure
S Infra-red
S Electromagnetic waves
S Acoustic
S Biological
S Gas
S Location
S Orientation
S Directional forces
S Forms of radiation
Where it differs from standard, engineered practices
for using a sensor (for example, using a temperature
sensor to monitor motor temperature or an infra-red
sensor as part of a limit switch) is that these sensors
are attached to devices and networks that they
typically wouldnt be.
For example:
S A capacitive sensor/sheet attached to a door, to tell
when a person knocks on it
S An acoustic sensor to detect when a dog is barking
S Accelerometer on an armband to characterize the
exercise theyre undertaking
Connected
Once youve acquired the information from your
sensors and their associated controls, you must
make it accessible via the Internet. Its not unlike the
evolution of the television set with buttons and dials or
the so-called smart televisions we have today, which
can be controlled from your phone. This connectivity
could be from your phone over Short Message Service
(SMS), a local network (WiFi or LAN or CAN) and
even the global internet. Hence the name, Internet of
Things, or by some, Internet of Everything.
Problems to Overcome
The Internet of (Every)Thing(s) has potential problems.
These problems are partly based around:
S Transport infrastructure of the data collected.
S Presentation and storage of the data into tangible,
coherent and relevant information.
S Integrity, security and privacy of valuable and
sensitive information from collection through to
presentation.
Transportation
The transport infrastructure, if we consider that all
communications from these devices may move to
an Internet Protocol (IP) based system, will rely on
the ability to navigate IPv4 and IPv6, not taking into
account intermediate communication methods up until
that point. This places expectancy on the devices to
be able to have enough power to use a network stack
at some point in their transmission or transportation.
Currently a lot of systems are utilizing IPv4, of which
the global address space has practically run out.
There is a very slow migration to IPv6 which has a
significantly larger amount of address spaces available.
However, it may come to pass that a translation
occurs between the two and IPv4 is used for the
smaller networks. I would hazard to suggest that it
may not even be required depending on the data
collection mechanism (eg. RFID, bluetooth, etc.)
2 The Internet of Things
Presentation/Storage
If were suggesting an Internet of Things type of world,
where potentially every object can feed back details
of its existence, then that is a lot of information that
needs to be stored somewhere. Consider the example
of a parce| de||very frm, such as Amazon. The|r boxes
may report on their status along the entire route of
their global journey. That data requires a transportation
mechanism thats accessible almost everywhere, and all
that information must be stored somewhere. Decisions
would have to be made as to how valuable the data
about to be stored is; what it is intended to be used for;
and how it would be displayed to the interested parties.
Integrity, Security and Privacy
These are important factors when dealing with
confdent|a| data. Safety and protect|on of |ts accuracy
should also always be a consideration. Lets lead with
an example:
An elderly lady is wearing a watch that monitors the
status of her health, electrocardiography (ECG) signals
and mobility. It is customized to her and contains a
persona| |dent|fcat|on number. Someth|ng happens to
the lady when shes either traveling, or in the home and
the watch tries to connect and report that she hasnt
moved for a long while. The watch attempts to report
the current state to a system that can determine if the
ECG signals are low, whether this is bad, whether
someone should check on
her and so on.
There are a few areas
that could be raised for
concern with such
a scenario:
S The information reported by the watch is incorrect
(or the watch is actually not being worn) and the
actions taken to check on the lady are incorrect.
S An occurrence in which the watch was unable to
report to the system, or the wrong watch reported
to the system.
S Someone has intercepted the signal the watch was
trying to communicate, discovers that something
has happened to the lady and takes advantage of
the situation in a nefarious way.
S The device(s) involved in the system are no longer
maintained because of succession to the product
(end of life), or perhaps the company has gone
under. Because it was not open-source, there is no
one left to maintain the system and the issue goes
unreported.
S Corruption occurs in the system or the system
does not perform its calculations properly. Perhaps
it does not have redundancy to handle the
information thrown at it during maintenance and the
situation is ignored or delayed.
These are the very concerns attendant with any existing
system; they are not unique to Internet of Things-based
applications. It is the scale that stands to vary.
Should We Do This?
Yes, in my opinion, and whether we should or not
the technology is here. Technology in general stands
to gain from our interest in Internet of Things-based
applications, as designers will be required to optimize
for portability, low power, integrity and security of
information. So, what will you bring to the party?
Christopher Stanton is a Technical Social Media
Specialist at element14, coming from an academic
background in software development, computer
security with an MSc in Computer Network Technology.
He is also an active member of Leeds Hackspace in the
UK where he can be found tinkering with a 3D printer,
sensors or the laser cutter.
3 The Internet of Things
Learn more about the Internet of Things when you visit our
engineering community on element14.com
By 2018 |t |s est|mated that 19 b||||on dev|ces w||| become connected. As sensor techno|ogy |s refned, you may fnd
yourse|f |n a wor|d where your car knows when to h|t the brakes before you do. The poss|b|||t|es are end|ess. From
government sectors, to |ndustr|a| and consumer e|ectron|cs, the app||cat|on of techno|ogy |nto everyday objects
w||| transform da||y ||fe. Here e|ement14 br|ngs you the |atest lnternet of Th|ngs news, b|ogs, des|gn cha||enges and
d|scuss|ons to he|p you start des|gn|ng for a connected wor|d.
The NEW element14 Design Center
The Des|gn Oenter on e|ement14.com |s an on||ne dest|nat|on ded|cated to prov|d|ng e|ectron|cs eng|neers w|th the
best too| for se|ect|ng the r|ght deve|opment k|ts, deve|opment too|s and software to get your prototypes and des|gns
to market faster. You`|| fnd r|ch product data and |nformat|on |nc|ud|ng tutor|a|s, v|deos, data sheets, app notes,
Oommun|ty content, software down|oads, and more w|th an |ndustry-|ead|ng search and se|ect|on |nterface. lt`s the
most comprehens|ve source of |nformat|on for eng|neers |n the ear|y stages of des|gn.
Upcoming Webinars
July 8, 2014
HOME AUTOMATION AT YOUR FINGERTIPS WITH
ECLIPSE SMARTHOME AND OPENHAB B
Ec||pse SmartHome |s an open-source p|atform for
bu||d|ng home automat|on systems. Jo|n Ka| and Thomas
|n th|s web|nar and |earn how you can bu||d your very
own open home automat|on so|ut|on.
July 15, 2014
CONNECTING YOUR PROJECT TO THE CLOUD,
FREE-2-1 GOHACKME! B
Th|s web|nar w||| exp|a|n how to qu|ck|y and eas||y
connect, contro| and mon|tor a|| your projects w|th the
c|oud v|a W|-F|, comp|ete|y FREE!
July 22, 2014
THE INTERNET OF THINGS
IN PRODUCTION (BOSCH) B
ln th|s web|nar, Dr. verena Majuntke of Bosch Software
lnnovat|ons GmbH |n Germany w||| exp|a|n what |mpact
the lnternet of Th|ngs w||| have on manufactur|ng and how
|t m|ght change bus|ness for manufacturers.
July 24, 2014
ULTRA-LOW-POWER DESIGN AND DEBUG USING
THE MSP430FR5969 LAUNCHPAD B
Jo|n us for an overv|ew of the wor|d`s |owest power
m|crocontro||ers and |earn how to use the powerfu| too|
cha|n bu||t a|ongs|de the FRAM MO p|atform.
Webinar Recording
FROM ARDUINOS TO RASPBERRY PIS, IOT-IZE YOUR
EMBEDDED PROJECTS WITH OPEN IOT SOFTWARE! B
RoadTest in Review
RASPBERRY PI AND ENOCEAN
INTERNET OF THINGS PACK B
S|nce the Raspberry P| was |ntroduced |n 2012, |t has
taken the wor|d by storm, revo|ut|on|z|ng the fe|ds of
e|ectron|cs educat|on, project deve|opment and rap|d
prototyp|ng. Now the Raspberry P| |s ready to embrace
the lnternet of Th|ngs w|th the add|t|on of the EnOcean P|
and EnOcean Sensor accessor|es.
Design Challenge
Ongoing through August
PI IN THE SUN: GET YOUR SUMMER ON. GET MOVING.
BRING YOUR PI. B
What k|nd of coo| app||cat|ons can you th|nk of for your
Raspberry P|? A portab|e |emonade m|xer? A v a|ert
un|t? A backyard m|ster to keep coo|? We want to hear
your |deas! Share your idea
Member Projects
WHAT ROBOT HAS A PI FOR A BRAIN? RAPIRO!
TURN THE RAPIRO INTO AN IOT DEVICE B
Also available
BLOG: VEHICLE SIMULATION DESIGN PROJECT B
4 element14 Community Internet of Things Resources
Networking
The makeup of network traffc |s becom|ng more and more
comp|ex. O|oud comput|ng |s anyth|ng but fuff and secur|ng
our persona| |nformat|on |s paramount.
Hear what Newark element14 & Freescale
are doing to help customers get ahead of the
networking curve
B
Industrial Automation
Many manufacturers today st||| |mp|ement hybr|d Ethernet
and f|e|d-bus networks |n and between factor|es. A
new standard |s needed to address the potent|a| of the
|ndustr|a| network w|thout sacr|f|c|ng the robustness the
env|ronment requ|res.
Hear what Newark element14 & Freescale are
doing to help solve this challenge
B
Smart Energy
As |ncreas|ng consumpt|on puts a stra|n on g|oba| energy
resources, conservat|on |s becom|ng more |mportant
than ever. The smart gr|d |s po|sed to he|p homeowners
and ut|||t|es opt|m|ze energy use and cost, but some
cha||enges ex|st.
Learn what connectivity trends are shaping the
future of smart energy
B
Automotive
Many |n the |ndustry be||eve that the automob||e w|||
undergo more changes |n the next 15 years than |t has
s|nce |ts |ncept|on 125 years ago. Of part|cu|ar focus now,
however, |s the safety of automob||es wor|dw|de.
What next steps must we take to achieve our
goal of zero accident fatalities
B
Healthcare
Oonnect|ng pat|ents, hea|thcare profess|ona|s and
hosp|ta|s resu|ts |n more than a hea|th|er popu|at|on.
lt |owers hea|thcare costs, |ncreases access to care,
|mproves pat|ent care and empowers pat|ents.
Learn how we can reach this healthy pinnacle
B
Consumer
The poss|b|||t|es of the lnternet of Th|ngs are end|ess, w|th
app||cat|ons rang|ng from wearab|es to connected cars
and homes.
See the advantages Newark element14 &
Freescale offer to help you lead this next wave
of innovation
B
The Internet of Things is ushering in a wave of new ideas and
innovations that will stimulate the development of new products across
multiple markets, including networking, industrial automation, smart
energy, automotive, healthcare and consumer. Newark element14
asked some of Freescales experts in these markets to talk about
current trends and innovations:
6 Freescale: Industry Trends
Accelerometers/Gyroscopes
DIGITAL MEMS VIBRATION SENSOR
WITH EMBEDDED RF TRANSCEIVER B
A comp|ete w|re|ess v|brat|on sensor node that comb|nes dua| ax|s
acce|erat|on sens|ng w|th advanced t|me doma|n and frequency
doma|n s|gna| process|ng.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
ADlS16229AM|Z 96W6313
COMPACT, PRECISION SIX DEGREES OF FREEDOM
INERTIAL SENSOR AND EVALUATION BOARD B
A comp|ete |nert|a| system that |nc|udes a tr|ax|a| gyroscope and
a tr|ax|a| acce|erometer.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
ADlS16445AM|Z 47W4400
ADlS16445/POBZ 47W4399
XTRINSIC 6-AXIS ECOMPASS (3-AXIS MAG,
3-AXIS ACCEL) AND EVALUATION BOARD B
Acce| & Oo|df|re Next Generat|on lnte|||gent P|atform
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
FOS8700OOR1 47W8598
RD4247FOS8700 45W3813
XTRINSIC FXLC95000CL INTELLIGENT, MOTION-
SENSING PLATFORM AND EVALUATION BOARD B
lnte|||gent h|gh-prec|s|on, f|ex|b|e, mot|on-sens|ng p|atform
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
F|O95000O|R1 128999
KlTF|O95000EvM 69W2124
3-AXIS, DIGITAL XTRINSIC ACCELEROMETER B
Th|s dev|ce can accommodate two acce|erometer conf|gurat|ons
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
MMA8491OR1 47W8613
DEMOMMA8491 05W7574
TRlNSlO-SENSORS-EvK 69W6392
INEMO INERTIAL MODULE: 3D ACCELEROMETER
AND 3D GYROSCOPE B
Dynam|ca||y user-se|ectab|e fu||-sca|e acce|erat|on range
and angu|ar rate.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
|SM330D|O 87T0976
Pressure
XTRINSIC SMART PRESSURE SENSOR B
Prov|des h|gh|y prec|se pressure and a|t|tude data.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
MP|3115A2 48T4344
TRlNSlO-SENSORS-EvK 69W6392
DEMOSTBMP|3115A2 75T6605
DEMOAPESENSOR 24R9104
MEMS PRESSURE SENSOR B
|tra compact abso|ute p|ezo-res|st|ve pressure sensor. 260-1260
mbar abso|ute d|g|ta| output barometer.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
|PS331APTR 94T6380
|PS331APTR 526707
|PS331APTR 68W6730
Touch
MPR121 CAPACTIVE TOUCH SENSOR
AND EVALUATION BOARD B
Second generat|on sensor contro||er. Features an |ncreased |nterna|
|nte|||gence p|us Freesca|e`s second generat|on capac|tance
detection engine.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
KlTMPR121EvM 24R9147
MPR121OR2 24R9786
CAPACITIVE TOUCH AND HAPTICS GAME CONTROLLER B
The MSP430TOH5E based HAP-TOOH Boosterpack features
capac|t|ve touch sens|ng and hapt|c techno|ogy |n a game contro||er
based deve|opment board
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
BOOST|-HAPTOOH 127922
LDC1000 INDUCTANCE TO DIGITAL CONVERTER B
Enab||ng contact|ess, magnet-free measur|ng of a meta| or
conduct|ve targets, de||ver|ng greater performance, re||ab|||ty &
f|ex|b|||ty for |ess power and cost.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
|DO1000NHRT 062695
|DO1000EvM 062690
8 SENSORS Browse the sample of our sensor offering, or visit our web site
and see our entire ready-to-ship selection at newark.com/sensors-transducers
PAN1740 SERIES PLACE & PLAY BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY MODULES B
The PAN1740 Ser|es |s Panason|c`s next generat|on 'nanopower" B|uetooth |ow Energy modu|e w|th reduced form
factor, s|gn|f|cant|y |ower power consumpt|on, embedded B|E stack and prof||e. Panason|c cost eng|neer|ng |owers
component count and the app||cat|on BOM. Th|s s|ng|e mode B|uetooth system-on-ch|p modu|e |s opt|m|zed for |ow
power and sma|| s|ze. The power consumpt|on of on|y 5mA |n Tx or Rx mode a||ows for the use of co|n ce|| batter|es and
reduces battery requ|rements up to 50% when compared to current generat|on B|E dev|ces.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
ENW-89846A1KF 512287
EvA|_PAN1740 498755
ROVING NETWORKS BLUETOOTH MODULES & ACCESSORIES B
Sma||, form factor, |ow power, O|ass 2 B|uetooth & W|F| modu|es and accessor|es for des|gners who want
to add w|re|ess capab|||ty to the|r products. These dev|ces support mu|t|p|e |nterface protoco|s, are s|mp|e to
des|gn |n, and are fu||y cert|f|ed, mak|ng them a comp|ete embedded w|re|ess so|ut|on.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No. Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
RN42-l/RM 06W3305 RN-370M 06W3275
RN-SMA-S 06W3254 RN-SB-T 06W3268
RN-SMA-4 06W3256 RN-41-EK 53W9935
RN-SMA4-RP 06W3257 RN-340M-W 06W3273
RN-F|-SMA6 06W3266 RN121-l/RM 06W3277
RN-SMA7-RP 06W3258 RN-131-PlOTAl| 47W7781
RN42-l/RM 06W3312 RN-171-EK 47W7782
RN52-l/RM 64W7015 RN-270M 27W5673
RN-PS-S 06W3253 RN-340M-S 06W3272
RN42N-l/RM 06W3308 RN-41-SM 27W2084
RN171-l/RM 06W3284 RN41-l/RM 06W3299
RN-SMA-S-RP 06W3255 RN-131-EK 47W7780
RN131O/RM 06W3281 RN-270F 27W5672
RN-SR|-PRO3v-DG| 06W3264 RN-SR|-PRO3v-O|R 06W3263
RN-SR|-FTD5v-DG| 06W3261 RN-v-EK1 47W7778
RN42v-l/RM 48W6763 RN-v-RD2 47W7779
RN171vW-l/RM 06W3288 RN134-l/RM 06W3283
RN131G-l/RM 06W3282 RN-171-PlOTAl| 47W7783
RN41vO-l/RM 48W6760 RN-422M 06W3276
RN41v-l/RM 48W6761 RN174O-l/RM 06W3289
RN-PS-lNT 06W3252 RN-370F 06W3274
RN171v-l/RM 06W3287 RN-42-HlD-RD1 27W2085
RN42vP-l/RM 48W6762 RN-52-EK 66W7163
RN171vS-l/RM 06W3286 RN-220P 27W5671
RN-240M 06W3271
10 Bluetooth & Wi Modules
Need low power?
See the best from Texas Instruments
CC430 TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM B
Br|ng|ng persona| and |ndustr|a| w|re|ess network|ng
to the mass market!
The OO430 comb|nes |ead|ng MSP430 MO and |ow-power
RF techno|ogy.
S H|gh ana|og performance/|ntegrat|on
S Ease of deve|opment
S H|gh RF sens|t|v|ty & b|ock|ng
S F|ex|b|e data rate & RF modu|at|on formats
The OO430 techno|ogy p|atform offers the |ndustry`s |owest power,
s|ng|e-ch|p rad|o-frequency (RF} fam||y for m|crocontro||er (MO}-
based app||cat|ons. By mak|ng RF des|gn easy, sma||, performance-
r|ch and power-eff|c|ent, the OO430 p|atform he|ps advance RF
network|ng app||cat|ons |nc|ud|ng |ndustr|a|/bu||d|ng automat|on,
asset track|ng, energy harvest|ng, |ndustr|a| mon|tor|ng and tamper
detect|on, persona| w|re|ess networks, a|arm and secur|ty systems,
sports/body mon|tor|ng and automat|c meter|ng |nfrastructure (AMl}.
The MSP430 product fam||y |s an |dea| protoco|/app||cat|ons
m|crocontro||er for var|ous |ow power w|re|ess app||cat|ons.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
OO430F5123lRGZT 88W4649
OO430F5133lRGZ 88W4650
OO430F5135lRGZ 79R3028
OO430F5137lRGZ 94T6964
OO430F5147lRGZT 88W4652
OO430F6137lRGOR 88W4653
Now ships with Debian GNU/Linux

distribution pre-installed
THE ELEMENT14 BEAGLEBONE BLACK (REVISION C) B
Fu|| featured, |nternet enab|ed deve|opment p|atform that ut|||zes
the |ow cost Tl S|tara

AM3358 ARM

Oortex

-A8 processor from Texas lnstruments

and runs a var|ety of OS |nc|ud|ng Deb|an,
Angstrom, buntu and Andro|d.
lt`s des|gned to address the
needs of des|gners, ear|y
adopters, and Open Source
members. lncreased
on-board f|ash to 4GB.
LTC3107: ULTRA-LOW VOLTAGE ENERGY HARVESTER
AND PRIMARY BATTERY LIFE EXTENDER B
Des|gned to extend the ||fe of a pr|mary battery |n |ow power w|re|ess
systems by harvest|ng and manag|ng surp|us energy from extreme|y
|ow |nput vo|tage sources.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
|TO3107EDD=PBF 330945
|TO3107lDD=PBF 330947
LTC3330: NANOPOWER BUCK-BOOST DC/DC WITH
ENERGY HARVESTING BATTERY LIFE EXTENDER B
H|gh vo|tage energy harvest|ng power supp|y p|us a
DO/DO converter.
Manufacturer Part No. Newark Part No.
|TO3330EH=PBF 091704
|TO3330lH=PBF 091706
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11 Low Power & MDK-ARM Special Offer & BeagleBone Black
The Internet of Things
Drives New Design Approach
By Mark Toth, Business Development Manager, CadSoft
Computer. Originally published in The PCB Magazine
The most common question asked of electronic
product developers today is how do you do more
with less? How do you incorporate newer, faster
technologies in smaller packages to take advantage
of new products and architectures that provide more
functionality and power efficiency, all on time and
under budget? Is it possible to retool processes
without negatively impacting designer productivity?
Can advanced techniques and current best practices
be made available at the designers fingertips during
development without leaving the design environment?
Increased consumerization, of electronics and a
convergence of various elements of functionality, due
in part to the IoT (Internet of Things), is putting intense
economic pressure not only on time to market, but on
cost of development as well. Add to that increased
competition in the electronics industry and continued
globalization, and were seeing increased investments
in tools, training, new best practices and increasing
openness to collaboration.
To illustrate the continued globalization...
The EDA Consortium (www.EDAC.org) in its
most recent report showed Printed Circuit
Board and Multi-Chip Module revenue of
$148.3 million, a YoY increase of 5.2 percent
compared to the same quarter in 2012. The
four-quarter moving average for PCB & MCM,
however, increased 10.0 percent. This is
compared to overall industry revenue which
increased only 3.8 percent YoY for the same
quarter reported, but dropped almost

1 percent in sequential quarters. The four-
quarters moving average, which compares
the most recent four quarters to the prior four
quarters, increased by only 5.3 percent.
Not surprising, a geographic trend for the
design tool industry shows revenue for
s|| des|| |oo|s || ||e /s|s |sc|/c |e|o|
increased to $431.9 million in the most
recent quarter reported, an increase of 18
percent compared to the same quarter of the
prior year. The four-quarter moving average
increased 14.4 percent.
The opportunity costs for electronic product
development are exponential, but there are major
pitfalls as well. A simple rule of thumb in management
consulting practices states that, on average, companies
|ose a th|rd of after-tax proft when they sh|p products
six months late. One could easily argue the penalties
are s|gn|fcant|y greater |n the consumer e|ectron|cs
market, which has now far exceeded the $200B mark.
Design cycle time plays a big part in determining a
product launch schedule, and the PCB layout part of
this process is often called upon to make up for early
design phase schedule slips. In todays competitive
climate, finding ways to reduce design cycle times is
a priority for all engineers. Of chief concern for many
companies is that as PCB design becomes more and
more complex, engineers need to have cost effective
tools that reduce time-to-market. Another potential
challenge is the fact that companies have design
teams dispersed all over the world.
Given all those factors, its easy to see how
completing a product launch within the specified
time frame can be daunting. To address all of these
challenges, companies need tools that can leverage
their existing resources (both human and computer),
allow interoperability, have a gentle learning curve and
can offer extensions that link other time-intensive parts
of the design cycle or supply chain.
In a recent industry survey conducted by CadSoft
Computer to commemorate the 25th anniversary of
EAGLE for PCB prototyping, designers from 42 different
countries weighed in on future requirements, as well as
emerging trends in electronic product development.
Some of the results were surprising:
S 64% of respondents think development boards are
reducing the need for custom PCB design.
S Almost half (46%) are developing with Open Source
Hardware platforms.
S Eighty-three percent agree peer-to-peer communities
are important, while 25% believe they are essential
Other results were not unexpected:
S The majority of designers put functionality before cost
when buying design tools, with 60% of respondents
rating functionality as an extremely important factor
S A design tool should offer a gentle learning curve
S Design tools should:
S Allow multiple designers to lay out a single project
w|thout sacr|fc|ng product|v|ty
S Have a plug-and-play model for tasks that are
intensive to increase productivity
S Allow designers to collaborate with each other in real-
time from anywhere in the world
While it is true that more and more design projects
are being started with off the shelf development kits
and boards instead of designing a PCB from scratch,
engineers will often need to design an interface board
(such as a shield, cape, expansion, daughter card,
etc.). This is a market where many PCB tool companies,
|nc|ud|ng OadSoft, have s|gn|fcant|y benefted.
As more and more open source hardware platforms are
fnd|ng the|r way |nto commerc|a| deve|opment projects,
some large, global silicon suppliers are now offering such
low cost open source kits to the Maker and hobbyist in
hopes of increasing demand for their technologies. TIs
Launchpad series is just one example.
What about peer-to-peer, social media, designing in
the Cloud and other forms of collaboration are these
trends fuelling designer productivity?
Although somewhere between novel idea and trend, a
few considerations need to be addressed before the
cloud is deemed mainstream for electronics design.
These include risk and compliance (such as data
secur|ty and retr|eva|}, fex|b|||ty (access and contro|} and
t|m|ng (d|fferent serv|ces w||| beneft from mov|ng to the
cloud sooner). From a business standpoint, it is more
15 The Internet of Things Drives New Design Approach
Fig 2: The Arduino Mega 2560 reference design and schematic in CadSoft EAGLE
||ke|y to occur |n POB des|gn frst, as there are so many
more PCB designers to make it a more sustainable
model. Determining factors for a design application
to harness the power of the cloud are tied to obvious
benefts such as |ncreased speed and capac|ty, |ower
cost, security and so on. If your design application is
not performance-intensive, or the cloud does not lower
your development costs or improve productivity, it
might not make sense just yet.
Other online resources and communities, however, have
ex|sted for years he|p|ng eng|neers get answers, fnd
common design elements and identify new technologies
faster. E|ement14.com, the frst and |argest on||ne
engineering community with more than 200,000
members, enables developers to connect with like-
minded peers to gain design inspiration or obtain expert
answers and opinions. One of its most active forums
is hosted by the CadSoft EAGLE user community. In
addition to answers and advice, element14 contains a
free database of CAD libraries, which are searchable
by component supplier, thus enhancing designer
productivity and cost to develop.
Another trend that continues to evolve in the PCB design
industry is the tighter forms of integration between
e|ectr|ca| and phys|ca| des|gn. To effc|ent|y br|ng a new
product into production, electrical CAD (ECAD) and
Mechanical CAD (MCAD) data must be merged. A virtual
3D representation of the PCB geometry within MCAD
tools allows Mechanical Engineers to quickly design
product housings as well as other mechanical features
that fully utilize the available 3D real estate. MCAD
features such as cross-section views and interference
checks he|p ensure that there w||| not be any future ft
issues when prototypes are built.
Generating a virtual 3D representation
of PCB geometry within MCAD tools has
historically been a time consuming task.
IDF (Intermediate Data Format) has been
around for 20+ years, but in the earlier days
of IDF, the labor involved to create 3D PCB
representations was time consuming and
costly, states Keith Richman, President of
Simplified Solutions. In 2014, many tools
are available to help expedite the 3D PCB
process. Manufacturers and online services
now provide 3D STEP Models that can
help populate a 3D PCB. In addition, some
solutions contain integrated 3D component
libraries that allow the 3D geometry task
to be completed in just hours. 3D printer
technology can then be utilized to generate
a geometric 3D representation of PCB
geometry prior to the more expensive
manufacture of PCB prototypes.
16 The Internet of Things Drives New Design Approach
Figure 3: 3D visualisation enables users to simulate
larger systems here shown as a PCB Board design
in an enclosure this saves time and cost even before
prototype is built. Credit: EagleUp
17 The Internet of Things Drives New Design Approach
Speaking of component libraries...The amount
of information needed on thousands of different
components threatens to overwhelm even the most
organised professional. Challenges for board designers
with this sort of technology is dealing with and
creating the complex shapes needed to implement
the components. Engineers comment regularly I am
spending too much precious product development
time creating footprints or in other parts of library
management. This is a very important issue which
greatly impacts designer productivity. You cant be
designing a custom part for each component you
want to add to your circuit. While some 3rd party tools
come with many libraries already, tens of thousands
more are available online or in design portals such as
the element14 community from manufacturers and user
shared libraries.. Building a custom library can take over
20 minutes per part for a small quantity from scratch,
so th|s rea||y adds a s|gn|fcant beneft when eng|neers
can rely upon a rich pool of information validated by an
active community. Within complex devices if the design is
open, users can specify the parts through an integrated
search on a parts database with an online distributor
or electronics supplier. This allows electronic design
eng|neers to |mmed|ate|y search and fnd parts on||ne
with parametric search to choose the right components,
and have access to a huge amount of technical
information regarding the components themselves
technical datasheets, links to guidance on solutions for
spec|fc app||cat|ons, pr|c|ng and ava||ab|||ty can a|| be
available from within the design environment without
having to jump between several websites. This virtual
integration of the design chain not only enhances design
quality and designer productivity, but it reduces risks
associated with misidentifying a critical component or
selecting a part that is obsolete or out of stock.
Jeremy Blum, Open Hardware Designer
and Hardware Engineer at Google [x] points
out. .... as designs continue to get more
and more complex, following best practices
becomes more and more important. For novice
designers, its easy to encounter a myriad of
potential design problems that may or may not
be caught by traditional DFM checks. Some of
the things to look for when preparing a PCB
for production are problems that are only fully
understood by designers who have been doing
PCB CAD for many years. Luckily, as open
source designs become more common place,
and as more and more professional designers
join communities like element14, it becomes
easier and easier for new designers to get
help and tips from industry veterans. A truly
community-driven design platform makes the
barriers to entry lower than ever before.
Once engineers have homed in on the bill of materials
that fts the project budget and are ready to fabr|cate
the PCB, very often one has to send it off and wait.
Users should be able to access instant quotations for
their small volume PCB Fabrication and take advantage
of quick turn prototyping service from reliable, high
quality service partners, again, through a one-click
integrated PCB quote link.
Prototyp|ng |s as much about mechan|ca| ft and
manufacturability as it is about functionality, quality
and performance. Designers are packing more and
more components onto smaller and smaller boards into
smaller enclosures, placing unprecedented demands on
design, analysis and simulation tools.
Many are resorting to exotic and/or
aluminium-clad PCB materials, via in pad or
HDI features, blind/buried via technology to
be able to fit all of the required functionality
onto their circuit boards, adds Ed McMahon,
CEO of Epec Engineered Technologies.
Choose a design solution that not only easily
places those features into your design, but
also allows you to clearly and accurately
Analysts believe the number of connected devices in the world could reach more than 50 billion
over the next decade, and that by 2020 there will be:
S 3 billion subscribers with sufficient means to buy information on a 24-hour basis to enhance their lifestyles and improve
personal security. in mature markets, these customers will typically possess between 5-10 connected devices each
S 1.5 billion vehicles globally, not counting trams and railways
S 3 billion utility meters (electricity, water and gas)
S A cumulative 100 billion processors shipped, each capable of processing information and communicating
Its highly probable that the next big Internet of Things killer app will be born out of the innovative Maker Community, on an
easy-to-use Arduino board.
Details above provided by Atmel Corporation, 2014
communicate to your PCB fabricator what
you are trying to accomplish. Many design
products allow you to use the features and
test them in your design, but do not give
the fabricator the specific data they need to
manufacture the product.
While there are a plethora of commercial products
available (most of them expensive to very expensive),
there are relatively few that are low cost and yet lend
themselves to the notion of virtual design chain
integration. For whichever path you choose(en), it
is important to weigh factors such as openness and
capac|ty for |ntegrat|on, ease of use, fex|b|||ty and
are community-based. It is this ease-of-use that is
increasingly becoming important to balance how
complex design can be accelerated while keeping the
upfront design costs low.
Despite the increasing levels of semiconductor
integration and readily available systems-on-chips
for many applications, not to mention the increasing
availability of highly-featured development boards
which can be used out-of-the-box, electronics product
development still relies heavily on custom PCB design in
many cases. Even for one-off developments the humble
PCB still performs an important role; its a physical
p|atform for your des|gn and |t`s a|so the most fex|b|e
ingredient to pull any electronics system together.
Learn more
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