Texas Instruments interview Zachary Manchester to learn more about his KickSat project. KickSat is the world's smallest spacecraft that is enabled by TI's CC430 MCU+RF SoC that enables the general public to run various experiments in space. Using open source hardware & software methodologies, Zack turned to the community to make this out-of-this-world project a reality!

Initial impressions of being over-complicated and perhaps unreliable meant Bluetooth got off to a slow start back in the early 2000s. Now, it enables an increasing number of connected devices, but which version is right for your application? By Karl Torvmark, Head of Strategic Marketing, Wireless Connectivity Solutions, Texas Instruments.

  The European Commission now mandates day time running lights (DRLs) and due to their benefits LEDs are almost exclusively used for this purpose; they now have an even brighter outlook. By Michael Weitz, System Engineer, TI.

Patrick Fisher, under supervision of D.M.G. Preethichandra at the School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, created a custom single-board 300W BLDC controller based on TI's BOOSTXL-DRV8301, a Motor Drive BoosterPack featuring DRV8301 and NexFET MOSFETs. Fisher then used the single-board 300W BLDC controller to power and control a PX4 autopilot-based custom Quadcopter.

Patrick Fisher, under supervision of D.M.G. Preethichandra at the School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, conducted his final-year research project report entitled "High Performance Brushless DC Motor Control," which compared techniques and capabilities of sensorless BLDC controllers and resulted in the creation of a customised motor controller based on InstaSPIN-FOC. This InstaSPIN-FOC-based motor controller was subs...

Integrating support for industrial protocols for both automation and industrial drives, the Sitara AM437x processor family has been unveiled by Texas Instruments. The ARM Cortex-A9 -based processors enable the development of applications such as factory automation, Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), home automation and Internet of Things (IoT) gateways, human machine interface (HMI), and more.

Texas Instruments introduces the industry’s first seven-channel, NMOS low-side driver, replacing standard Darlington transistor arrays with a power-efficient, drop-in compatible integrated circuit (IC). The TPL7407L replaces half of the transistor arrays required to drive high current loads, providing a new option for high voltage systems that previously required a number of transistor arrays or a motor driver.

Texas Instruments announced its comprehensive ultra-low power FRAM microcontroller (MCU) platform with all the necessary hardware and software tools, and support for developers to reduce energy budgets, minimise product size and enable a battery-free world. TI's MSP430FR59x/69x FRAM MCU families with EnergyTrace++ real-time power profiler and debugger range from 32 to 128 KB embedded FRAM.

Texas Instruments introduces the industry’s first 18-V, 20-A and 30-A synchronous DC/DC buck converters with PMBus interface. The SWIFT TPS544B20 and TPS544C20 converters feature small QFN packages and integrated MOSFETs to drive ASICs in space-constrained and power-dense applications in various markets, including wired and wireless communications, enterprise and cloud computing, and data storage systems.

Texas Instruments has introduced the industry’s fastest and lowest power baseband receiver analog front end (AFE) for ADAS applications.  The 4-channel AFE5401-Q1 is designed for the next generation of automotive radar applications where space constraints and increasing radar performance are driving a need for greater bandwidth, high integration and low power.

Using Texas Instruments' TPL7407L, learn how making a small change in your low-side drivers can make a big impact on the system's power dissipation.

Featuring improved read zone and battery performance for ultra-low power applications, Texas Instruments has announced the RF430F5978 microcontroller. This highly integrated RF solution is suited for low-power RF applications, such as wireless sensor networks, data-loggers, active transponders, remote monitoring systems, container tracking, access control and asset control/management systems.

Low Power Consumption is the Key Many electric motors consume more current than necessary just because they do not operate within their optimum efficiency range. Field-oriented control (FOC) is ideally suited to solve this problem by enabling precise control based on torque and speed.

Achieving up to 95% efficiency, the 1A TPS63050 and 4A TPS630250 buck-boost regulators have been launched by Texas Instruments. Providing 95% effciency in half the solution size when compared to competing products, the company claims that the single-inductor devices are the industry’s smallest and highest performance buck-boost regulators currently on the market. The devices have been designed to extend battery life in Li-Ion battery-powere...

Texas Instruments has started mass production of what the company claims to be the world’s most advanced automotive-grade wireless connectivity devices, the WiLink 8Q family. The family integrates WiFi, Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy and GPS/GNSS technologies into an AEC-Q100 qualified wireless connectivity chip for automotive infotainment systems.

The newest member of Texas Instruments' Jacinto platform, the DRA72x “Jacinto 6 Eco” SoC has been introduced. Manufacturers can use the DRA72x processor to cost-effectively integrate and deliver high-integrity audio, simultaneous multimedia streaming and device connectivity in a wide range of automobiles, including the burgeoning entry- to mid-level segment.

Texas Instruments is expanding its RF portfolio with the addition of seven high-performance RF gain blocks, three down-converting mixers and a complex modulator. According to the manufacturer, these RF building blocks provide the industry’s best combination of power and performance.

A power line communication (PLC) modem platform, enabling the support of multiple regions with one device, has been unveiled by Texas Instruments. The optimised TMDSPLCKITV4 kits provide developers with a smaller low-cost design to evaluate any narrowband OFDM PLC technology standard for use in a variety of industrial systems such as smart grid advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), solar energy installations, and building and factory automation...

Enabling the configuration of baseband-to-radio communication and first call or system verification in just one day, the RF Software Development Kit (RFSDK) has been added to TI's Base Station SoftwarePac. With the RFSDK, TI’s KeyStone-based TCI6630K2L small cell SoC and TCI6631K2L backhaul SoC can now seamlessly implement digital radio functions like DPD and CFR.

Enabling the quick creation of a power supply PCB layout, the WEBENCH PCB Export has been unveiled as a new feature in TI’s online WEBENCH Power Designer tool. The tool allows engineers to export the layout to CAD development platforms such as those provided by Cadence and Mentor Graphics.