Analog Devices at embedded world 2021 Digital

Analog Devices will employ its virtual exhibition stand to showcase its technology offerings ranging across sensing, data acquisition, signal processing, data networking, machine learning and AI, through to power provision and power supply design. ADI will also host a number of round-table sessions as part of the on-line event.

Highlights among the many demonstrations will be:

3D depth sensing – in depth

Having seen rapid adoption in consumer market sectors, such as Augmented and Virtual Reality, and gaming, the techniques of 3D Depth Sensing have much to offer the broader embedded space. A featured demonstration and video in ADI’s portfolio will describe how the company continues to advance its time-of-flight (ToF) sensing technology, and how it can be applied to provide spatial awareness to a broad range of systems.

Giving industrial robotics a more accurate ‘view’ of their environment can yield performance and safety benefits: the same is true of logistics and automated materials handling. ToF systems are also being applied in areas as diverse as occupancy monitoring (people counting) in smart buildings, through to gesture detection in automotive user-interface designs. The demonstration will highlight ADI’s partnership with Microsoft aimed at mass-market deployment of 3D imaging, using Microsoft’s Azure Kinect.

Actionable insights from condition monitoring

Condition-based monitoring of machine health is a field in which Analog Devices has a breadth of expertise and experience, covering the complete path from initial measurement through to actionable insights. ADI’s condition-based monitoring solution, determining the health of machines through spectral analysis of vibration data, includes the company's MEMS sensors, high-resolution data acquisition systems, mastery of a wide range of networking standards, both wired and wireless, and ADI OtoSense.

This last is ADI’s artificial intelligence (AI) offering that applies machine-learning techniques to identify trends in the captured data, enabling intervention at the optimum time through Actionable Insights.

AI monitors motors, 24/7

The OtoSense Smart Motor Sensor technology will also have its own dedicated demonstration, specifically focussing on how it can yield a dedicated and highly-accurate predictive maintenance platform dedicated to electric motors, employing Artificial Intelligence and machine learning techniques. In addition to multi-axis vibration data – with elements in common with the condition-based monitoring demonstration outlined above – magnetic field and temperature measurements also feed into algorithms that provide a comprehensive view of the health of a motor. The demonstration will show how a system that is simple to configure can immediately begin a predictive maintenance regime to watch for the development of known fault types, both electrical and mechanical.

Power supply design: optimised from the outset

A further highlight of ADI’s on-line exhibit will centre on power provision, and in particular, on tools aimed at simplifying power supply design, and ensuring first-time-right, optimised outcomes. Many of the key objectives of PSU design are unvarying; efficiency, minimised board area, minimised cost, and lowest EMI.

Faced with system boards that call for more numerous, and more complex power rails, designers face a considerable challenge. ADI has a long history of providing design tools to address exactly this issue, and the 2021 virtual exhibition stand will showcase the latest additions and enhancements. Addressing the problem from a system level is the starting point, using a sequence of ADI tools to plan a power tree, select devices and simulate the power system at a detail level.

Power over data lines

A related area is that of power provision over data lines, and of power-over-Ethernet, which will have its own dedicated demonstration. Single-pair Power over Ethernet (SPoE) technology provides standardised and interoperable power delivery that also includes comprehensive port-to-port fault isolation and telemetry, enabling system health monitoring from a power perspective.

Further demonstrations will showcase ADI’s ultra-low power, single-pair, Ethernet data networking for field sensor connectivity (10BASE-T1L); the Eagle Eye solution for occupancy monitoring in ‘smart’ building management; a broad range of the latest data acquisition and signal handling/routing developments; and, in a different sphere of activity, ADI’s suite of offerings in e-Mobility, including battery management and data connectivity solutions for electric vehicles.

Round table sessions - meet with ADI’s rxperts

Introduced by the organisers of embedded world 2021 as part of the all-digital, on-line format is the facility for round table discussion sessions. Requiring pre-registration and with fixed numbers of attendees per session, the 30-minute events will provide the opportunity to explore specific topics in more depth.

ADI will host round table sessions on condition monitoring technology (March 1st, 15:00); on power management and power design software tools (March 3rd, 12:00); and, for those aspiring to join the ADI team, an insight into the company’s graduate training program (March 5th, 11:00).

Registration for these sessions can be done after registration for the virtual event.