Smart And Safe Automotive Electronics

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We live in an age of information and technology that has made everything around us smarter. Electronic and digital components have made life easier in our homes, offices, and automobiles.

Some of life’s bells and whistles, like nose hair trimmers, are no more than budget-grabbing gizmos. However there are many intelligent tools that can bring convenience and safety to our daily tasks.

In the vast world of “smart” technology, the automotive electronics market is king. Indispensable features such as anti-lock braking systems and electronic stability control are perfect examples of smart and safe automotive electronics.

Recent developments by industry experts have created a huge increase in the number of electronic devices installed at automotive plants. Just to give you an idea of how quickly cars have evolved electronically, the Apollo 11 space craft traveled to the moon and back using a mere 150 kilobytes of onboard memory. It’s remarkable to think that the typical CD player uses a whopping 500 kilobytes just to keep our favorite songs from skipping. Listening to uninterrupted music is a mere iota of how electronics have impacted a car’s performance in order to benefit drivers.

Telematics is the term used for the technology that involves automobile communication systems. The term was originally used to describe the blending of telecommunications and informatics or information technology. This industry has been gaining more and more attention from car manufacturers over the past years. In the mid-1990s, industry insiders predicted that telematics would become “the” go-to technology; increasing overall sales and more importantly, transforming the automotive industry into a major player in mobile technology. In reality, these forecasts panned out to be less than what was predicted. From an initial industry projection of over $40 billion dollars, the figure has been whittled down to half as more conservative measures were considered.

Nevertheless, that is by no means an indication that the development of this telematics technology has been or will be abandoned. In fact, on average automobile manufacturers spend $2000 on electronic systems for every vehicle that comes off the line — in incredible increase from the $110-per-car budget of the early 1970s. This huge increase in spending is reflected in everything from engine performance to entertainment systems, security features to safety devices. Every component of the vehicle works together to provide automobiles that perform better, are more comfortable, and ultimately safer to drive.

Some of the most common smart and safe automotive electronics are as follows:

Controller Area Network
More than one computer runs your car. There is actually a network of computers called the Controller Area Network (CAN). Like a LAN (Local Area Network) that’s commonly used in home and business computers, the CAN links computers together. In your vehicle, the CAN basically links the many separate computer systems together and allows them communicate with each other. These interconnected systems involve everything from critical systems like engine management, cruise control and anti-lock brakes and cruise control, to less-demanding applications like automatic window and seat controls.

Fuel Efficiency
Skyrocketing fuel prices have forced automotive manufacturers to realize the need for fuel-efficient vehicles, and to meet that demand. Smart automotive electronics are used to create the more efficient burning of fuel, such as the electronic fuel injection system (EFI). The technology used in hybrid vehicles takes this one step further, with electronic devices that allow the driver to automatically switch between gas and electric engines.

Safety Devices
There are generally two categories of devices designed to protect the safety of the driver and passengers: active and passive safety devices.

* Active safety devices: These are systems that constantly work to ensure the safety of drivers and passengers. Examples of active safety devices are dynamic steering response (DSR), traction control (TCS), and acceleration slip regulation (ASR). While the average driver may not notice these systems at work, they are constantly sensing road and driving conditions and adjusting the car’s performance accordingly to create a safer ride. Electronic Stability Control has been shown by researchers to have a large safety benefit in reducing single vehicle skids.

* Passive safety devices: While these features may be more visible and seem simpler, they are also controlled by smart and safe automotive electronics. Thanks to developments in electronics and technology, airbag deployment has seen a tremendous amount of improvement over the years. Early airbags would deploy too early or too late, offering little or no benefit to the driver and passengers. Now, more advanced systems have created devices in your car that are actually programmed to the conditions that can lead to a high collision impact. Airbag and seating adjustment systems are deployed to minimize impact and decrease the degree of injury to the people inside the vehicle.

Think of the advancements over just a decade, and you’ll agree that the car of today certainly is a far cry from its predecessors. Modern automobiles offer more than simply a means of getting from point A to point B. Smart and safe automotive electronics make “getting there” as comfortable and as secure as possible.

Basic Laws Of Electronics

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Thanks to the physical laws of electronics, circuit analysis is very procedural. This is the second entry in a tutorial in basic electronics. The first entry covered basic electronic concepts such as voltage, current, and power. This session will cover Ohm’s Law, and Kirchhoff’s Laws of voltage and current. These are the fundamental laws needed for circuit analysis and design.

Resistors and Ohm’s Law
Georg Simon Ohm was a German physicist that in 1826 experimentally determined most basic laws that relate to voltage and current for a resistor.

Ohm’s law basically states that the resistance of a component (commonly a resistor) is equal to the voltage dropped over the resistor divided by the current going through it.

This law makes it relatively easy to find one of three values: voltage across a resistance, the resistance value itself, or the current flowing through the resistance (as long as the other two values are known).

Nodes, Branches, and Loops
These three concepts must be understood for basic circuit analysis. They help determine if components are in series or parallel and if the components share the same current or have the same voltage drops.

A branch represents a single circuit component such as a resistor or voltage source.

A node is a point where two or more branches connect.

A loop is any closed path in a circuit.

Elements are in series if they exclusively share a single node. Elements that are in series share the same current.

Elements are in parallel if they are connected to the same two nodes. Elements in parallel have the same voltage across them.

Kirchhoff’s Laws
The first of Kirchhoff’s Laws is Kirchhoff’s current law (KCL). This law states that the sum of all current entering a node or enclosed area of a circuit is equal to zero. Simply put, current entering a node or area equals the current leaving the node or area.

The second of Kirchhoff’s Laws is Kirchhoff’s voltage law (KVL). This law states that the sum of all voltages around a closed path or loop is equal to zero. Simply put, the sum of voltage drops equals the sum of voltage rises.

This is found by following the loop in one direction (the direction does not matter). If the positive terminal is hit first, the voltage is added. If the negative terminal is hit first, the voltage is subtracted. Together these values will equal zero.

Once all of the voltages are found, we can start the loop anywhere we want. I find it convenient to start at the negative terminal of a main voltage source. Since we hit a negative terminal first, we subtract it. Now we simply finish the loop and add the voltages together.

This law comes in very handy for analysis.

Basic DC Analysis
By combining Kirchhoff’s voltage and current laws, basic DC circuits are relatively easy to analyze. Knowing that all voltages in a loop add up to zero and all currents entering a node, minus currents leaving a node also equals zero, most current and voltage values can be easily obtained.

If a loop contains one voltage source and multiple resistances, voltage division (eq. 1) should be used to find the value of voltage drops across the known resistances. Once the voltage across the known resistance is found, Ohm’s law (eq. 2) can be used to determine the current flowing through the resistance.

Eq.1 Voltage Division:
((voltage source in volts) (resistor of interest in ohms))/(sum of resistance in loop)

Eq.2 Ohm’s Law:
(voltage across a resistance) = (known resistance)(current flowing through resistance)

Keep in mind that resistors in series can be added to give total resistance between two nodes. The total resistance between two nodes that have resistors in parallel is found using eq. 3 below.

Eq. 3 Equivalent Resistance (Req) of Resistors in parallel:
Req = ((resistance in branch 1)(resistance in branch 2)) / (sum of resistances in both branches)

There is much more to be said about DC circuit analysis but most would go beyond the scope of this article. The purpose of this article is to give a basic understanding of the laws and concepts of basic electronics.

Other concepts that make DC circuit analysis easier are current division, mesh analysis, and nodal analysis. These techniques use the rules behind KVL, KCL, and Ohm’s Law but would require a visual example for thorough explanation.

I hope that this short tutorial has been helpful to anyone who is new to the world of electronics either as a hobbyist or as a technician trying to learn electronics repair.

Video Game Industry Stocks Why Is Electronic Arts More Expensive Than Activision

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I was looking through gaming stocks and noticed that shares of Electronic Arts (ERTS) are trading at a much higher valuation than Activision Blizzard (ATVI). That made me wonder, Does Electronic Arts deserve to trade at a premium to Activision?

Electronic Arts is trading just under $20 per share. EPS estimates for 2010 are 43 cents per share and 62 cents for 2011. That equates to a 46 multiple on current years earnings and a 32 multiple for 2011. The 5 year growth rate is 12.8%, which is pretty optimistic considering the negative earnings growth of the past five years. Its tough to have faith in Electronics Arts management considering the poor operating efficiency. Management has graced us with a negative ROE and ROA over the past few quarters.

One of the bright spots for Electronic Arts is the companys storied brand name and solid balance sheet. Electronic Arts has cash cow franchises Madden NFL, The Sims, Battlefield, Rock Band, etc. The software developer has $1.78 billion in cash and no debt. The stock looks expensive using any valuation method including price to book and price to sales. Shares of Electronic Arts appear to be benefitting from improving trends in the video game industry. Video game sales rose 10% last month.

Activision Blizzard is trading just under $12.00 and has a expected EPS of 73 cents for 2010 and 82 cents for 2011. 2010s PE ratio is 16 and 2011s is 14.5. Earnings growth is estimated at 14.6%. Activision raised 1st quarter guidance last week due to strong sales from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. While ROA and ROE are not very impressive, at least both numbers are positive for Activision. The management team has done a qualitative job at Activision with its acquisitions and ability to consistently grow the bottom line.

Compare this with Electronic Arts who has been trying to fix its internal problems for years. Activision has no debt and $3.25 billion in cash on its balance sheet. Shares are currently trading less than 1.5 times book value. Activision has a popular lineup of games including World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and Starcraft.

Aquire Modern Electronic Surveying Equipment

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Presently electronic surveying equipment has turned into an indispensable device throughout the whole construction industry. It is with the utilization of the equipment by which a worker can much more easily determining accurate dimensions in order to be certain that the construction labor being carried out is accomplished properly. Though surveying has been around for many hundreds of years now (both the Egyptians and Romans previously utilizing it to construct their roadways and edifices (pyramids included) it’s in fact very tough to figure out just definitely when it was first started.
All the tools which is now utilized now will be built from three separate mechanisms that are adequate for measure distance, and angles as well as the elevation of an object. But the great part regarding all surveying equipment along with electronic variants is that they’re capable of measuring one or more of the parts we had mentioned previously.
However since the’re so many various pieces of equipment to decide from it could become a little overpowering when an person must to render a choice as to the ones they should get, most certainly if a individual has minimal or no background in surveying. Next we’ll share specification regarding a few of the variants of surveying equipment that are currently in use right now.
1. Electronic Levels
These shoot a beam of infrared light which is is not possible to see to the naked eye and assists to building a an area or great reference elevation and is used in order to get measurements during construction jobs. There are two distinct types of electronic levels that a lot of surveyors are presently using either a single beam or a rotating beam.
The solitary beam projects a light that can either be projected to an additional spot either vertically, horizontally or at a angle. Although the rotating beam furnishes the surveyor with a level of reference covering a certain open area. All these kinds of levels are leveling themselves and will not begin functioning till the tool has straightened itself properly. Plus if at at some point time should the level after being moved or knocked the light is automatically stopped and will only come back on if theequipment straightens itself out.
2. Electronic Distance Measurer’s
Often it is frequently described to as EDMa and are used to precisely measure the length between one point and too the next. This particular section of electronic surveying equipment works through measuring what long it takes the laser to move from the EDM to a prism found at a different place and then sent back to the EDM again. However before the invention of this specific piece of electronic equipment tapes or chains were added in order to provide accurate measurements of the gap between 2 places.
Such to all current electronic surveying equipment they’ll use a computerized system that is capable to collect and recording all of the data gathered out on construction area prior it it being transferred over to a machine and the data is printed. This therefore renders the assignment of the surveyor much easier to execute and will furnish them with accurate readings as well as measuring continually.

The Development Of The Electric Bass Guitar

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Although the concept of a bass guitar was first developed in the 1930s, it wasn’t until the 1950s that mass production met with popularity and the concept of an electric bass guitar became mainstream. Once the idea of an electric bass guitar took hold, and was used widely in groups and bands performing across the world, many companies began developing new styles and methods to create some fantastic ideas for the instrument, and help its popularity grow. Today the electric bass guitar has stepped forwards from the dark shadows of the back of the stage to take a much more prominent position at the front – and has become known as a very popular and stylish instrument to play. Not forgetting, of course, that the quality of sound and versatility have come a long way too.

Since it took about twenty years for the idea of an electric bass guitar to become a mainstream popular idea, it is unsurprising perhaps that it took another twenty years for the next big jump in design and innovation. It was in the 1970s that the company known as Music Man was founded by Leo Fender. It was this company that designed and created the StingRay, which was the first bass guitar to include active electronics. Although these active electronics can sound quite complex, the simple effect was to increase the range of high and low notes, and enhance the crispness of each.

In the early seventies a company called Alembic created the basic design for the high end bass guitars, known as boutique guitars. These were crafted using the highest degree of expertise, with the most highly skilled craftsmen using the finest quality materials. With unique, custom designs, the most premium woods available and some of the most innovative electronic gadgetry included, these boutique bass guitars became well known as the top guitar to have – and brought bass guitars from the back of the stage to the very front – an equal to the standard electric guitar.

Over the next thirty years the designs of electric bass guitars have varied, with new innovations, odd and unusual features and designs, including a headless bass by Ned Steinberger, who also introduced the Trans-Trem tremolo bar. A few years later the Guild Guitar Corporation introduced the astonishing fretless bass, known as the Ashbory. Quite how a guitar would work without frets would challenge any sane thinker – but the Ashbory used silicone rubber strings, with a piezoelectric pickup. The result of this was a sound more like a double bass than an electric guitar.

It was in the nineties that five string basses became popular, and prices began to reduce quite significantly, seeing pre-amplifiers built in to most bass guitars – previously something reserved for the higher end guitar. Today we see electric bass guitars include digital modelling circuits actually built in to the guitar – almost like having a computer built in to the body of the guitar, and able to enhance, distort, amplify and altar the voice of the guitar in such a way that it is possible to program the guitar to sound like any of the well known types of guitar available previously.