Surgical Robotics: Rovers Exceed Expectations - Redefining Hardware in Real Time - Catching Up With Clocks

www.newelectronics.co.
uk
12 July 2016
SMART EXCEED
CITIES/TRANSPORT
EDA FORHARDWARE
THE IoT INUSB-C
DESIGN
CONSIDERATIONS
ROVERS
EXPECTATIONS REDEFINING
REAL TIME
CATCHING
UP WITH CLOCKS
SURGICAL
ROBOTICS
Advances in medical robotics
are dramatically improving
the consistency, safety and
quality of surgery
CONTENTS
VOL 49 NO 13
16
12
23
20
Cover image: Hamlyn Centre/Imperial College
COMMENT
How can we realise the full

potential of robots while
maintaining public trust?
NEWS
Technology developed by
Roke Manor allows 3D
reconstructions to be made
from a single video input 6
UK institutions come together
to represent the engineering
profession in the aftermath of
the Referendum
7
As the Memec name
disappears from the
distribution landscape after
40 years, a distribution
veteran retires
8
PCB design platform expanded
as developer looks to address
needs of mainstream
engineers
9
www.newelectronics.co.uk
12 July 2016
INTERVIEW
10
Complex problems; system solutions
ELECTRONIC DESIGN AUTOMATION 20

Chip design for the rest of us
Systems and software expertise have seen this

communications technology company receive
two Queens Awards: one for Innovation and
another for Export Achievement
With interest in the Internet of Things growing

rapidly, the way in which chips are designed
will have to change. We explore how some EDA
companies are reacting to developments
COVER STORY
Smaller, cheaper, more intelligent
12
In the future, surgical robots are likely to be

smaller, cheaper, sensor rich and more targeted,
providing such benefits to patients as less
trauma and faster recovery times
SMART CITIES / SMART TRANSPORT

Beyond the laboratory: the smart
city playground
The Internet of Things is not a one size fits
all concept and, as cities become more
complex and more populous, new devices and
applications will need to be tested in the real
world.
Meanwhile, Bristols VENTURER consortium has
started trials of an autonomous vehicle on public
and private roads
POWER
Powering change
23
The USB port has become ubiquitous since

its introduction in the 1990s. But the recently
announced USB-C interface will require careful
decisions when it comes to power system design
16
SYSTEM TEST
Developing better test approaches
26
Having a good grasp of how measurement tools

operate can provide engineers with valuable
insight into how test methods can be improved,
set up simplified and test parameters upgraded
New Electronics weekly eZine features

the latest blogs, news, articles and
more. To register for your copy, go to
INDUSTRIAL
AEROSPACE
SYSTEM ON A CHIP
MEDICAL
AVIATION
CONSUMER
THREADX: WHEN IT
REALLY COUNTS
When Your Companys Success, And Your Job, Are On The Line You Can Count On Express Logics ThreadX RTOS
Express Logic has completed 1 years

of successful business operation,
T H R E
and our agship product, ThreadX,
has been used in over EillioQ
electronic devices and systems,
ranging from printers to smartphones, from single-chip
SoCs to multiprocessors. Time and time again, when
leading manufacturers put their company on the line,
when their engineering team chooses an RTOS for their
next critical product, they choose ThreadX.
Our ThreadX RTOS is rock-solid, thoroughly eld-proven,
and represents not only the safe choice, but the most
cost-effective choice when your companys product
simply must succeed. Its royalty-free

licensing model helps keep your BOM low,
A D
and its proven dependability helps keep
your support costs down as well. ThreadX
repeatedly tops the time-to-market results
reported by embedded developers like you. All the while,
Express Logic is there to assist you with enhancements,
training, and responsive telephone support.
Join leading organizations like HP, Apple, Marvell, Philips,
NASA, and many more who have chosen ThreadX for use in
over Eillion of their products because their products are
too important to rely on anything but the best. Rely on
ThreadX, when it really counts!
Newnes
Contact Express Logic to find out more about our ThreadX RTOS, FileX file system, NetX Dual IPv4/IPv6 TCP/IP
stack, USBX USB Host/Device/OTG stack, and our *8,X graphics toolkit for embedded GUI development. Also ask
about our TraceX real-time event trace and analysis tool, and StackX, our patent-pending stack size analysis tool that
makes stack overfl ows a thing of the past. And if youre developing safety-critical products for aviation, industrial or
medical applications, ask about our new CertificatioQPack for ThreadX.
Second Editio
adX for ARM, Coldre,

With Thre
ices
append
Now with
architectures
PowerPC
MIPS and
M
CD-RO
INCLU DED
Edward
>viii>
>V] V
E
REAL-TIM
ED
EMBEDD ADING
RE
MULTITH
L. Lamie
U v Jii } VV U{{xx
Copyright , Express Logic, Inc.

ThreadX, FileX, and TraceX are registered trademarks, and NetX, USBX, *8,;, StackX, and Certification Pack are trademarks of Express Logic, Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
COMMENT
ROBOTIC ETHICS
Scientists fear
revolt of killer
robots!
HOW CAN WE REALISE THE FULL
POTENTIAL OF ROBOTS WHILE
MAINTAINING PUBLIC TRUST?
hat sensationalist headline from a Sunday newspaper raises concerns

about the development and use of robots how can we ensure that
people trust the technology?
Speaking at Robots: faithful servants or existential threat? part of
UK Robotics Week 2016 Professor Alan Winfield of the Bristol Robotics
Laboratory joined a panel looking to address a range of ethical questions
relating to robotics and autonomous systems. Robot ethics aims to
understand the ethical implications and consequences of robotic technology;
in particular, autonomous robots.
While the panel agreed that robotics and autonomous systems were
generating real benefits for society for example, driving innovation in
surgery and healthcare it was crucial that, at a time when cyber attacks,
hacking and security issues were challenging the protection of personal data
it was vital that trust in robots was not undermined.
Accepting that the potential benefits of robotics are immense, the panel
agreed that scientists need to innovate responsibly and that robots need to
be engineered to a very high standard.
Prof Winfield said there was a real need for an ethical discussion when
it came to robotic innovation, as ethics would underpin any standards and
regulations which would be crucial in effectively assessing and mitigating the
risks associated with robotics technologies.
Work is already underway. A robotics ethical working group published the
worlds first guide to the ethical design of robots and autonomous systems
in April 2016. But, said Prof Winfield, any standards will need to have teeth
to underpin any future regulations. He pointed to the passenger airline
industry as one which is regulated, but which has an amazing safety record,
deploying a reverse and transparent process for air accident investigations.
Prof Winfield said there is a strong case for an equivalent body to the
Civil Aviation Authority to oversee driverless cars. Without a regulated
framework, he noted, it is difficult to see how the technology will succeed in
winning consumer confidence.
Inevitably, just a day after this event, Tesla announced that one of its
vehicles had been involved in a fatal accident.
Timing, they say, is everything.
Neil Tyler, Editor (neil.tyler@markallengroup.com)
12 July 2016
NEWS
AUTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGY
Black box for 3D images

Editor
Neil Tyler
neil.tyler@markallengroup.com
Online Editorial Peggy Lee

Assistant
peggy.lee@markallengroup.com
Group Editor
Graham Pitcher
graham.pitcher@markallengroup.com
Contributing
Editors
Chris Edwards, John Walko

Louise Joselyn
editor@newelectronics.co.uk
Art Editor
Martin Cherry
martin.cherry@markallengroup.com
Illustrator
Phil Holmes
Sales Manager James Creber

james.creber@markallengroup.com
Publisher
Peter Ring
peter.ring@markallengroup.com
Executive
Director
Ed Tranter
ed.tranter@markallengroup.com
Production
Manager
Nicki McKenna
nicki.mckenna@markallengroup.com
ISSN 0047-9624 Online ISSN 2049-2316

Annual subscription (22 issues):
UK 108. Overseas; 163. Airmail; 199.
New Electronics, incorporating Electronic Equipment News
and Electronics News, is published twice monthly by
MA Business, Hawley Mill, Hawley Road, Dartford, DA2 7TJ.
T: 01322 221144 E: ne@markallengroup.com
Moving on?
If you change jobs or your company moves, please contact
circulation@markallengroup to continue receiving your
free copy of New Electronics
2016. All rights reserved. No part of New Electronics

may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the Publisher.The views
expressed do not necessarily represent those of the editor of
New Electronics. Advertisements in the journal do not imply
endorsement of the products or services advertised.
Origination: CCM, London. Printed by Pensord.
TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS 3D RECONSTRUCTIONS FROM DASHCAM VIDEO.

GRAHAM PITCHER REPORTS.
What is said to be the first viable 3D black
box technology for vehicles has been
demonstrated by Roke Manor Research. The
system operates using data captured from a
single dashboard camera.
Early iterations of the technology were
developed by Roke in research undertaken
for the Defence Science and Technology
Laboratory. Since then, it has been
developing and miniaturising the technology
with the help of funding from Innovate UK.
Roke showed the black box fitted to an
autonomous Toyota Prius. The car avoided a number of hazards before simulating a road traffic
accident. Rokes engineers then developed a high definition 3D reconstruction.
Dr James Revell, a consultant engineer at Roke, said: Unlike current dashcams, [our]
technology uses computer vision algorithms to enable the precise position and orientation of
any vehicle. This allows for the near perfect 3D reconstruction of any accident even if the
vehicle loses complete control.
VCO created from 2D materials

Researchers from the University of California,
Riverside (UCR) and the University of Georgia have
used three 2D materials graphene, tantalum
sulphide and boron nitrate to create a voltage
controlled oscillator (VCO). According to the team,
the part is the first useful device that exploits the
potential of charge density waves to modulate an
electrical current through a 2D material.
Apart from having the potential of being an
alternative to silicon based technology, the device
is thin and flexible, making it suitable for use in
wearables.
Prototypes are said to operate at MHz

frequencies, but the team suggests that
operational frequency could increase to the THz
region.
UCRs Professor Alexander Balandin, who led
the research, said the system is the first functional
VCO comprising 2D materials that operates at
room temperature. It is difficult to compete with
silicon, he said. However, we believe our device
can potentially become a low power alternative
to conventional silicon technologies in many
different applications.
Battery performance boosted
Graphene photodetection
The Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) and ETH

Zurich have developed a way to enhance the
performance of Li-ion rechargeable batteries.
Claire Villevieille, head of PSIs battery
materials research group, said: Under
laboratory conditions, we enhanced
storage capacity by a factor of up to three.
Commercial batteries, she added, could see a
50% boost in performance.
Changing the way in which anodes work
was said to be key. Instead of making anodes
from densely packed graphite flakes, the team
coated graphite flakes with nanoparticles of
iron oxide and aligned them using a magnetic
field. By orienting them in the correct direction,
lithium ions flow more readily.
A Graphene Flagship project has shown

that graphene can enable silicon based
photodetection in the near infrared.
Silicon based photodetectors do not
perform well in the near infrared. Addressing
the issue, the team interfaced graphene
with silicon on chip to create Schottky
barrier photodetectors with a responsivity
comparable to that of silicon germanium
detectors.
Professor Andrea Ferrari from the
Cambridge Graphene Centre said: This
proves that graphene can compete with the
state of the art by producing devices that can
be made more simply, cheaply and work at
different wavelengths.
12 July 2016 www.newelectronics.co.uk
NEWS
Engineering collaboration
UK ENGINEERING UNITES AFTER BREXIT RESULT. PEGGY LEE REPORTS.
A number of engineering organisations have come together to provide advice to the government
in future EU negotiations following the UK referendum. The group contends that with engineering
accounting for 27% of the UKs GDP and more than half its exports, the UK could be seriously
affected by adverse changes to its trading relationship with European export markets.
Following a meeting on 29 June, the 38 strong group has established a project to gather
evidence, analyse the risks and opportunities, as well as produce advice to underpin a strong
position and a positive result for the UK in future negotiations. The Royal Academy of Engineering
(RAE) will be leading the project.
Philip Greenish, RAE chief executive, said: Never in my lifetime has there been an issue that
so emphatically requires strategic collaboration across the engineering profession. We are building
a new, proactive framework for making engineering advice available to government on these
critical matters for now and for the duration of the change process.
According to the group it is important the UK remains embedded in globally recognised codes
and standards, has access to the skills the industry needs and retains competitiveness in export
markets.
Glasgow launches LoRa network

A consortium composed of Stream
Technologies, Semtech, Boston Networks and
CENSIS has set up a LoRa network in Glasgow.
Working with Glasgow, Strathclyde
and Glasgow Caledonian universities, the
group has installed a wireless IoT network
covering 12km2. The network will enable the
development and use of devices such as
building and indoor environmental monitors,
pollution sensors and devices designed to
support independent living.
Glasgow was selected because of its
similarities to many major metropolitan areas
worldwide. The city includes a grid system
like major US conurbations, older historic
spaces and a mix of urban and extra-urban
12 July 2016
environments all of which are ideal for

testing low-power radio network performance.
The consortium is also working on
installing a similar sensor network in
Inverness to monitor conditions in more rural
environments.
ENGINEERING PROFESSION
Harwin expands UK
manufacturing
Harwin has officially opened its new
manufacturing centre in Portsmouth, which
provides increased automation and R&D
facilities. The 3million, 3000m building
increases the facilitys floor space by 33%.
Damon de Laszlo, Harwins chairman,
said: We are committed to high quality
manufacturing in the UK. That means
embracing Industry 4.0 smart factory
practices, investing in the latest equipment,
designing products for automated
assembly and empowering and training our
flexible workforce. We expect significant
productivity gains to be made along with
the increase in capacity.
Poor bug detection

Researchers from the New York University
Tandon School of Engineering, working with
MIT and Northeastern University, say as
few as 2% of bugs in some programs are
detected by current tools.
The team reached its conclusion after
research introduced known vulnerabilities
into software using a technique called
LAVA Large Scale Automated Vulnerability
Addition. The automated system
inserts known quantities of synthetic
vulnerabilities which possess many of the
same attributes as computer bugs in the
wild.
Brendan Dolan-Gavitt, an assistant
professor at NYU Tandon, said: The only
way to evaluate a bug finder is to control
the number of bugs in a program, which is
exactly what we do with LAVA.
The team now plans to develop a
benchmark for bug finding software.
NEWS FEATURE
ELECTRONICS DISTRIBUTION
he Memec name has disappeared from

the distribution world after more than 40
years. Founded by Dick Skipworth in 1974
and run initially from his house, Memec
Microelectronics and Memory Company shot
to fame by rewriting the rules of how electronic
components were sourced and sold.
In some ways, Skipworth could be seen
as having invented demand creation; Memec
specialised in finding new components from
start up companies predominantly on the US
West Coast and selling them aggressively
into Europe. Previously, distribution was more
about fulfilment. Such was the companys
success that, when it went public in 1980,
the offer was oversubscribed by more than 50
times.
In 1991, Skipworth sold Memec to
German company
Veba, buying the
business back
in 2000, then
selling it to Avnet
in 2005. Now,
what was Avnet
Memec has merged
with Avnets Silica
organisation, with
the Memec name
being consigned to
history.
Coincidentally,
another long
time name in
the electronics
distribution industry
has announced
his retirement. Chris McAneny, director of
strategic business development with Future
Electronics, has called time on a 40 year
career.
Talking exclusively to New Electronics,
McAneny said: Weve all changed over that
time, including the distribution sector. Famous
names including Abacus, Macro, Jermyn and
ITT have all gone and are now part of other
organisations.
McAneny was talking as the news of
Premier Farnells acquisition by Swiss
company Dtwyler broke. It reminds me of
one of Pasquale Pistorios famous sayings,
McAneny recalled. Some companies are too
big to be small and too small to be big. And
thats whats happened in the distribution
sector over the last few years. Pistorio was
CEO of STMicroelectronics until 2005.
It would be hard to include Memec in
that description: at one point, Memec was
A shifting landscape
AS THE MEMEC NAME DISAPPEARS AND PREMIER FARNELL IS ACQUIRED, A
DISTRIBUTION VETERAN STEPS DOWN. BY GRAHAM PITCHER.
amongst the five largest distributors of
electronics in the world. But recent times in
distribution have been typified by consolidation
within two large blocks the broadliners on
one side and the so called high service
companies on the other. In between these
two blocks were companies which fall into
Pistorios description and have been acquired
by one of those blocks. Those remaining
are effectively stuck in the middle, McAneny
continued, dont have the scale and business
will be difficult for
them in the future.
Our
Although a
customers
broadliner, Future
sees itself as
are often
short of time different from
its competitors.
and short of
Robert Miller
resources;
founded Future
in 1968 with the
we can help
view of helping the
them to
electronics industry
deliver.
and the principles
he applied then still
Chris
hold, McAneny
McAneny
claimed. Holding
inventory to
support customer
requirements,
providing technical resources and value added
services.
Since then, he continued, different
companies have followed different routes;
companies like Memec would have been
strong on technology.
In McAnenys view, its important to
support customers through the life cycle
of a product, rather than simply shipping
components. We have always wanted to be
relevant to our customers, covering everything
from new product introduction onwards.
For example, Future has a chain of system
design centres, where our engineers can work
on the challenges faced by customers. Our
customers are often short of time and short of
resources; we can help them to deliver.
Theres also obsolescence management,
he continued. How can we help companies
deal with longer product life times, but shorter
product cycles?
Lazlo Mudriczki, who is taking over

McAnenys role, noted: Our FAEs dont
go into customers with datasheets any
longer; were now looking to help them solve
problems and the System Design Centre
network is a significant unit.
One thing which Future is unlikely to
do is to take on the two big high service
companies. McAneny: Future has pretty much
the right number of products on its shelves
and we dont want to stock every available
semiconductor. We need enough product lines
to give us scale, but not so many that we
become overloaded.
However, demand creation remains
important. Mudriczki noted: While Future has
put in place a new management team over
the last couple of years, the core principles
remain the same; the turns model hasnt
changed significantly and the company
remains driven by demand creation.
Looking forward
Looking to the future, McAneny sees Future
continuing to invest. Although the market is
expected to show low growth in the next five
years, Future is investing heavily.
McAneny sees three tiers of company in
the UK. There are global companies with UK
design operations and these are important
because they bring global partnerships. Then
there a good mid range UK companies. Then
there is a level of companies with good ideas
and we are looking to reach those in order to
help them grow.
Mudriczki added: Its all about
partnerships with those companies, helping
them to develop solutions.
How does McAneny see the state of UK
electronics? You can look back with nostalgia
or forward with optimism, he said. Today,
there are more apprenticeships becoming
available and companies are looking for
engineers.
In the past, people started out working
for big companies. Today, many people are
looking to set up their own business. As
long as we can encourage the development
of engineering and electronics, we will
continue to see the UK creating world beating
companies with good products.
NEWS
PRODUCT DESIGN
Design platform extended

NEW PRODUCTS LOOK TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF ALL MAINSTREAM
ENGINEERS. BY NEIL TYLER.
Mentor Graphics has made what it
describes as significant additions to its
PADS PCB Product Creation Platform,
including new analogue and mixed signal
and high speed analysis products.
These products address engineering
challenges associated with mixed
signal designs, DDR implementation
and electrically correct design sign off,
explained Jim Martens, product marketing
manager, board systems division. At a
time when electronic designs are becoming
more complex, we felt it was important that
we not only addressed the needs of larger
technology companies but also SMEs
design teams, no matter what size, face
the same challenges. Too many analysis
tools are targeted at companies with large
EDA budgets and we wanted to make
those tools available to the mainstream
engineer.
According to Martens, The new
products are intended to streamline
the design process and ensure circuit
performance goals are met, reducing the
need for prototypes and design respins.
All products are becoming more
challenging to develop and these new
PADS products, combined with recently
launched PADS HyperLynx DC Drop and
PADS FloTHERM XT, mean we will be
able to give engineers greater access to

technologies that have tended to be out
of reach of the mainstream PCB market.
These additions are very affordable.
As more electronic products being
developed contain analogue content and
need to be designed and validated in the
context of the overall system, analogue/
mixed signal simulation is becoming
essential for product creation.
The PADS AMS Cloud a cloud-based
circuit exploration/simulation environment
and user community will be free for all
PADS users, who will be able to create and
share designs in an online environment.
It will also be possible to transfer
designs to the PADS AMS Design Suite,
eliminating the need to recreate circuits
manually in order to perform advanced
analysis and drive the PCB design flow.
The PADS AMS Design Suite allows
engineers to simulate analogue and mixed
signal and digital designs within one
schematic session and the HyperLynx DDR
option allows engineers to identify and
solve signal integrity and timing issues.
The HyperLynx DRC tool accelerates
the electrical sign-off process by allowing
engineers to perform electrical rules checks
and identify violations affecting the design
integrity and board performance.
STFC launches technology centre

An advanced engineering technology centre has opened at the STFCs Daresbury
Laboratory.
The Campus Technology Hub (CTH) aims to provide UK businesses and
entrepreneurs with an affordable access to an array of technology including 3D printing
and prototype facilities, and electronic test and measurement equipment. This is
intended to speed the prototype process. It will be available to universities, research
organisations and businesses of all sizes.
Professor Susan Smith, head of the Daresbury
Laboratory, said: The CTH has one purpose to
provide companies with affordable access to
the best skills and facilities in engineering
research and development so that they can
solve their technology challenges to better
compete on a national and international
level.
12 July 2016
Complex problems, system

An award winning company tells Graham
Pitcher how its focus on exploiting technology
niches has paid dividends.
oughborough Sound Images was one of the UKs rising stars

during the 1990s, riding on the back of the boom in demand
for digital signal processing in one form or another. In the late
1990s, the company merged with US based Mizar to form
Blue Wave Systems, with ambitions to grow the combined entity
significantly; not only through organic growth, but also through
strategic acquisitions. But the dot com bubble burst, Blue Wave was
acquired by Motorola and, by the mid 2000s, according to Edward
Young, things werent going well. He left to form CommAgility.
Since then, CommAgility has enjoyed success in developing
embedded signal processing and RF modules, as well as LTE
PHY/stack software, for 4G and 5G mobile network and related
applications. CommAgility received a Queens Award for Enterprise
10
in Innovation in 2016, on top of a Queens Award for Enterprise in

International Trade in 2013. It has also featured in a 2015 list of the
fastest growing technology companies, as well as the Deloitte UK
Fast 50 in 2012 and 2013.
Young said: We have found a niche in wireless communications,
including test equipment. We are also involved in wireless research.
True to its roots, CommAgility remains based in Loughborough.
We manufacture in the UK, Young asserted, and we find the
location good in terms of local contacts, as well as the ability to
recruit graduates from Loughborough University.
The company unveiled its first RF product in 2011. We were
aiming for a high quality product which could tune from 600MHz to
4GHz, Young explained. It needed to be configurable and flexible.
More recently, the company acquired German based MIMOon, a
provider of LTE software solutions for mobile handsets and wireless
infrastructure. Since being set up in 2006, MIMOon has pioneered
and promoted the use of software defined radio.
We have focused on LTE and grown with it, Young said. More
recently, we have been taking combinations of hardware and software
INTERVIEW
EDWARD YOUNG
Were a technology company, but were exploiting niches. We

address such areas as taking LTE technology into test equipment and
do some work in the small cell market. Our technology development
is guided by the markets we think we can compete in.
Edward Young
into new areas; for example, air to ground communications, satellite
communications and surveillance.
Our IP experience in both hardware and software is allowing us
to get involved in complex projects where LTE is being modified,
he added. While two to three years ago, we provided hardware with
low level software, we are now providing technology for specialised
applications.
One thing which Young says CommAgility is not interested is
competing with the likes of Ericsson. Were a technology company,
but were exploiting niches. We address such areas as taking LTE
technology into test equipment and do some work in the small cell
market. Our technology development is guided by the markets we
think we can compete in.
One example provided by Young is an application where standards
need to be customised. For example, in surveillance, you might want
a lot of parallel small channels and to listen to the base station and
mobile sides.
solutions
LTE development, he said, is moving ahead rapidly. There are
already companies out there with Release 10 based products, but
theres a lot of talk about LTE and IoT narrowband communications
Release 12 and 13. Were having to work hard to keep up to date in
those areas we want to do business in.
So how has the wireless industry changed since the days of
LSI and Blue Wave? In those days, customers would program the
hardware we developed, he said. Now, we have far more systems
and software expertise, which allows us to get involved in testing of
complete systems, for example. Customers today depend on us far
more than in the past.
When we were hardware only, we saw customers trying to do the
kind of products we offered and it took them a long time. Were
offering them a reduction in the investment needed; its classic
outsourcing.
One industry trend of which CommAgility and similar companies
have been able to take advantage is the decline in expertise
across industry. Our approach gives customers a time to market
advantage, he said, because we bring expertise in IP. We are
12 July 2016
seeing larger companies wanting to move to LTE, but which dont

have the knowledge in house, so they work with companies like
CommAgility. However, we need to prove our worth.
CommAgility has always based its hardware on a combination of
FPGA and DSP. If you want a good system, Young stressed, you
need both. More recently, the company has looked to use more DSP
cores, as well as more ARM cores and more accelerators. Everything
can be done in a single chip, but some more complex applications
will need multichip, even multiboard, solutions. But, in general, what
used to take multiple chips has been condensed into one chip.
This might make the hardware look easy, he continued, but
thats not the case and we have to get around that.
This work has seen the company recognised in the Queens Awards.
We got our first one three years ago for our export achievement. It
reflected the fact that we work in a global market and, while we were
doing good technology, it was good to win one for export.
Young says the award brought in good customers, including
wireless test. We could show commercial success and technical
innovation. With the second award, it was good to be recognised for
our technology.
How hard is it for CommAgility to work in a global market? It
varies, Young admitted. Our advantage is that we specialise in
particular technologies, so people looking for that technology will find
us. But, because its a technical field, people are happy to interact
with us, Young concluded.
Edward Young
Edward Young is managing and sales director of
CommAgility, an award winning developer of embedded
signal processing and RF modules and LTE PHY/stack
software for 4G and 5G mobile network and related
applications. Prior to cofounding CommAgility in 2006, he
served in a range of marketing, sales and engineering
roles at Motorola, Loughborough Sound Images and
Lucas Industries, in the areas of telecomms, digital signal
processing and image processing. He holds a Masters
and first class Honours degree in Electrical and Information
Sciences from Cambridge University.
11
COVER STORY
ROBOTIC SURGERY
Smaller,
cheaper,
more
intelligent
Future surgical robots are likely to be smaller,
cheaper, sensor rich and more targeted, providing
real and tangible healthcare benefits. By Neil Tyler.
obots have been in use since the 1960s, but

it is only 25 years since robotic technologies
were first used to assist surgeons in
improving surgical outcomes, providing
such benefits as less trauma on the body, minimal
scarring, and faster patient recovery times.
Among the first robots deployed were ROBODOC
and Acrobot, developed for use in orthopaedic surgery.

Acrobot was the first robot to be developed with
what is described as active constraint this allowed
surgeons to cut only within defined safe regions,
preventing them from damaging surrounding tissue.
Another device, Probot, was designed to address
prostate surgery and achieved a robotics first when it
actively removed tissue from a patient in a clinical setting.
As robot technology has developed, numerous
academic and research centres have been established
and one of the most successful is the Hamlyn Centre
for Robotic Surgery at Imperial College in London.
Established in 2008 by Professor Guang-Zhong Yang
and Lord Ara Darzi, the centres long term aim is to
develop advanced minimally invasive surgical robots
that combine intelligence, sensor rich technologies
and seamless human interaction with machines.
While modern surgery can effectively be traced back
to the 1860s, Prof Yang says the Post War period saw
the development of minimal invasive surgery, such
as angioplasty and new technologies such as the
development of the fibre-optic flexible endoscope. This
type of surgery is difficult to perform and employs specific
instruments that require considerable dexterity to use
properly. Robotic surgery was originally seen as helping
to augment those basic invasive surgical skills.
Robotic surgery is defined as a type of minimally
invasive surgery whereby patients are operated
on using miniaturised surgical instruments
that fit through small incisions in the body,
usually no more than 6mm in diameter.
The first generation of medical robots in the
early 1990s was intended to improve the dexterity
of the surgeon. The main problem with keyhole
surgical instruments is that access to the patient
The iSnake Surgical System is a device
suite designed specifically for Minimally
Invasive Surgery (MIS), employing an
augmented reality system and an
innovative control system.
12
12 July 2016
is, by its very nature, limited. So device pivoting and

tissue contact is difficult to perform accurately.
Over the past 25 years, we have seen the development
of surgical robots, micro-robots and flexible systems that
are intended to better support this type of surgery.
Robots are able to provide what we call aligned
visiting motor access and motion scaling, which aids
surgeons by scaling down their motions as well as
compensating for and removing any hand tremors.
The ultimate effect is to give the surgeon unprecedented
control in a minimally invasive environment.
That means every movement the surgeon makes
with the master controls is replicated precisely by
the robot. The surgeon can even change the scale
of the robots movements so, for example, using a
4:1 scale, the tip of the robots arm will move just
an inch for every four the surgeons hand moves.
The economics of robotics, however, remains a
challenge, according to Prof Yang. While robotics
can improve the consistency, safety and quality of
surgery surgeons do not always need to be in the
same room as their patients, specialists who are in
demand are then able to treat many more people
and help to make long procedures less stressful for
surgeons, the costs of acquiring and then maintaining
these systems can be prohibitive, especially for modern
healthcare systems whose budgets are already under
considerable strain. At present, robots are not cheap.
Successful surgical robot

Prof Yang identifies two significant milestones in
the development of medical robots the first being
the medical licensing of the Zeus surgical system,
developed out of work originally conducted for NASA
by Computer Motion, as well as the development
12 July 2016
of the da Vinci robot by Intuitive Surgical.

The da Vinci medical robot has become one of the
most successful surgical robots and its latest version
uses miniaturised instruments deployed on three
separate arms to enable surgeons to maximise the
range of their motions and the precision of their actions.
A fourth arm provides a high definition 3D camera that
helps to guide the surgeon during the procedure.
The defining moment for modern robotic surgery came
when you saw a significant take up of the technology. In
the US, the market is much larger than in Europe. Costs
are less of a problem for private healthcare providers,
compared to the more socialised healthcare that tends
to be on offer in Europe, Prof Yang suggests.
The number of surgical procedures performed
using the da Vinci surgical robot are growing at around
14% year on year. In 2015, the device was used in
some 600,000 procedures worldwide. Around 2400
da Vinci robots have been deployed in the US, with
a further 1200 operating in the rest of the world.
Surgical robotics is costly and it is vital that a
vibrant ecosystem is developed that combines academia
and business to support them, argues Prof Yang.
Traditional robotic systems use a surgeon master
console and a patient slave manipulator. But
today, surgical robotic research is evolving towards
the development of platforms that are capable
of performing specific types of surgery which are
intended to support or assist surgeons. For example,
we are no longer focused on robotic systems
capable of covering an entire surgical procedure.
I doubt that in the future we will see ever larger
surgical robots being developed; the focus is likely to
be on the development of smarter, miniaturised devices
which are mechatronically enhanced to assist the
13
COVER STORY
ROBOTIC SURGERY
surgeon. The focus will be on developing more accessible

and more cost effective technology, he believes.
Robotic systems have tended to be complex and
expensive, with a large footprint in the operating theatre.
While research is focused on simpler, lower cost devices,
Prof Yang suggests that smarter robotic instruments
will integrate imaging and sensing technologies.
Alongside these advances, I also expect to see the
growing use of augmented vision to help improve the
surgeons experience by delivering immersive visualisation
and high definition images, removing the need for
invasive surgery. New techniques will ultimately lead to
new and safer as well as more accurate procedures.
While there is much excitement around the potential of
virtual reality, Prof Yang believes that augmented reality
holds greater potential when it comes to robotic surgery.
Virtual reality is not new and has been around
for many years as a tool for training surgeons. While
it is by no means a new technology, the displays are
much improved. And while there may be an element
of hype around the whole concept, we are very
aware of its use in the surgical environment.
However, Prof Yang believes that augmented reality,
combined with haptic feedback, will enable surgeons to
perform perceptually enhanced actions in which the
surgeon and the robot will be able to work together,
sharing command of the tools being deployed.
It is an exciting development in surgery. Imaging
is crucial in performing accurate and safe surgery
it provides the navigational tools. At the moment,
surgeons can only see the exposed tissue augmented
reality will enable them to see beyond that. By
knowing what is going on, what is below the surface
and the consequences of any surgical activity,
patient outcomes will certainly be improved.
According to Prof Yang, imaging technologies that can
provide detail down to the cellular level are already being
used. We are able to see what is happening at the cellular
level and, as a result, conduct optical biopsies, he says.
Growing awareness
As computers become more powerful, the fusion of data
from a variety of sensors will help the robot to become
more aware of the entire surgical environment. As a result,
Prof Yang believes surgeons will be able to make greater
use of robotic assistance and, in some cases, allow robots
to perform autonomously surgery which requires high
accuracy, but which also involves a great deal of repetition.
Obviously, this will be conducted under the
supervision of a surgeon, suggests Prof Yang.
A survey conducted in the US has raised some concerns
over the safety of robots, linking them to at least 144
deaths and more than 1300 injuries, as well as recording
more than 8000 device malfunctions.
14
Augmented
reality holds great
potential when it
comes to robotic
surgery
Prof Yang
The research, conducted by the University of Illinois at

Urbana-Champaign, MIT and Chicagos Rush University
Medical Center, covered a 14 year period up to the
end of 2013 and while it suggested that the number
of incidents was limited when the overall figure of
1.7million robotic procedures was taken into account,
it did suggest there were some risks associated with
robots, especially in more complicated surgery and where
there was less experience and expertise among users.
The Hamlyn Centre has been developing medical
robotics since the early 1990s. Today, it is focused on a
range of innovative techniques and technologies, including
flexible telemanipulators, autonomous microrobots
and perceptual docking and active constraints.
According to Prof Yang: While the use of miniaturised
slave instruments has increased, the technology needs
further development and its use on more advanced
procedures remains limited.
We have developed flexible snakelike
manipulators (i-Snake) that are able to navigate
in confined spaces and can move around
obstructions to gain access to restricted areas.
This intelligent flexible endoscope will allow an
anatomically natural approach that will not only cause
less internal damage, but will also enable enhanced
levels of visualisation to better control the manipulator.
Another development is in autonomous microrobots.
This is a relatively long term research focus on the
part of the centre, Prof Yang says. These robots will
require a large number of enabling technologies, including
mobility, actuation, navigation, non-image sensing,
software architectures and multiple robot co-operation.
However, considerable work is required in terms of fault
tolerance and the physical recovery of the robotic device.
In the future, surgical robots will become more
clinically relevant but, in order to succeed, the
technology will need to address a number of issues,
including cost effectiveness, if they are to meet the
ambitions of researchers and surgeons alike.
12 July 2016
12 July 2016
15
Beyond the laboratory: the

Smart City playground
The Internet of Things is not a one size fits all concept
and, as cities become more complex, new devices
and applications will need to be tested in the real
world. By Neil Tyler.
ccording to the United Nations,

some 70% of the global
population is expected to be
living in cities by 2050. This will mean
that large population concentrations
will have to be provided with a broad
range of stable and sustainable public
services which, in turn, will have to
be delivered in a safe environment.
Another striking figure is that more
than 60% of the worlds economic
growth in the next 10 years is
expected to come from city areas.
Cities are having to address
these pressures in a sustainable
and economic way and this has
given rise to the concept of the
Smart City or, perhaps more
accurately, the City of Things.
The Smart City is focused on
delivering better use of resources,
16
making transport systems smarter

and providing more efficient and
effective water, waste management,
heating and lighting services.
Increasingly, however, rather
than a top down governmental
approach, many of the cities that are
embracing the Smart City concept
do so by taking a radical bottom
up approach to the development
of new, innovative services that,
in turn, bring government, citizens,
academia and industry together.
In Antwerp, this approach is
described by Professor Steven Latr,
an assistant professor at the University
of Antwerp and iMinds in Belgium, as
the quadruple helix that is intended
to combine and safeguard public
interests while at the same time
facilitating and supporting creativity.
We want people, through

the intelligent use of Internetbased communications and
applications, to have far more
control over their lives, he says.
Hundreds of smart sensors and
wireless gateways have been deployed
across the city to create what is in
effect a living laboratory for the IoT.
Our aim is to connect citizens
across the city with solutions that
will improve their quality of life, he
explains. Weve turned Antwerp
into a large testbed where data
will be collected and analysed on
a large scale. Weve created a real
life testing environment, rather
than use the constrained and
controlled environment of a more
traditional research environment.
Singapore is another city looking
to become an international guinea
pig for smart technologies.
Commenting, Professor Low Teck
Seng, CEO of the National Research
Foundation (NRF), the national
research funding body said: We are
trying to virtualise the whole city and
looking to build 3D models of each
12 July 2016
SECTOR FOCUS
building, including glass, cement and

the internal geography of the building.
We are looking to integrate live data
from cameras in order to use it for
traffic or disaster management.
In the UK, more than 30 cities
either have what can be described
as smart initiatives taking place
or are looking to roll out such a
programme the landscape is
changing rapidly, whether in terms of
sustainability, mobility or governance.
One leading city is Bristol,
where the Bristol Is Open
initiative is intended to provide the
city with an ambitious research
infrastructure to help it better explore
developments in software, hardware
and telecom networks in order
to better promote more machineto-machine communication.
According to Stephen Hilton,
Futures Director at Bristol City
One leading city is Bristol, where the Bristol Is Open

initiative is intended to provide the city with an ambitious
research infrastructure to help it better explore
developments in software, hardware and telecom
networks in order to better promote more machine-tomachine communication.
Council: We are looking to give

people the ability to interact, work
and play with the city that they
live in. Connectivity is key: most
broadband or wireless providers
have tended to provide connectivity
based on what businesses
currently need rather than providing
additional capacity, where people
can gain access to more bandwidth
than they need to get started.
The Bristol is Open initiative is using
a high performance software defined
network as its operating system. Using
SMART CITIES
the NetOS a growing number of IoT

platforms and big data analytics are
now in place to support an emerging
number of smart city applications.
Bristol is Open is a joint venture
between the city council and the
University of Bristol which, since its
launch last year, has emerged as
one of the UKs largest smart city
initiatives, explains Professor Dimitra
Simeonidou, chief technology officer
of Bristol is Open. We are using
high performance fibre available for
research, as a foundation for new
digital services around the city.
Much like Antwerp, Bristol is
determined to turn itself into a
high tech testbed for innovation
and, according to Prof Simeonidou:
We have a 30Gbit/s fibre
broadband network powering it.
Discussions about Bristol is
Open started a few years ago. I lead
The Bristol Brain aims to create a 3D-printed largescale city model on top of which, real-time data and
sophisticated analytics can be projected and visualised
12 July 2016
17
the High Performance Network Group

at the university and was focused
on open programmable networks,
open software and hardware for
networking. Prior to Bristol is Open,
we had been working on a number
of projects around the world looking
to open up infrastructures to both
technical and vertical market users.
In Bristol, we are looking to
use big data to solve a variety
of problems from air pollution
to traffic congestion, as well as
assisted living for the elderly.
Its not just about new
technology, suggests Hilton. People
in Bristol are concerned by the quality
of air. If we are to improve it, people
also need to behave differently and
make different choices. We have
to be able to connect data to the
individual in order to highlight then
influence the choices they can make.
We need to nudge people towards
more sustainable activities.
The citys fibre network fibre
runs across several miles of council
owned BNet ducts and has been
upgraded to a 144 fibre core. In
addition, the city is deploying a mile
of wireless connectivity which, in
turn, will be complemented by an
RF mesh canopy covering Bristol.
This is the Brunel Mile, named
after the illustrious Victorian engineer
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, who left a
significant physical imprint on Bristol
from the Clifton suspension bridge
to the Temple Meads railway station
and the Great Western Railway itself.
The Brunel Mile connects the
citys Temple Meads rail station
to the SS Great Britain, anchored
in the dock area of Bristol, and
provides an experimental test
bed for wireless technology such
as 5G mobile broadband.
Crucially, in order to manage the
mass of data, that is and will be
generated by the network of sensors
being deployed, the network is being
sliced, with each application handed
a portion of the available bandwidth.
In addition to the Brunel Mile, up
18
to 1500 photocells incorporating RF

technology will be hosted on street
furniture with nine sites used to link
the mesh onto the 144 fibre core.
This will allow for experimentation and
research into machine to machine
communications creating an Internet
of Things, explains Prof Simeonidou.
A creative community
Bristol is Open, which is receiving
funding of 75million to cover
investment in both infrastructure
and technology, involves, as Prof
Simeonidou explains, working
with communities and software
companies to develop applications
that will support a wide range
of smart city projects.
As an example, she points to a
traffic control application that uses
cameras to monitor movements of
traffic and people around the city.
The application which has been
developed is able to recognise different
types of mobility, including vehicles
and groups of pedestrians, and then
makes data available for research.
All these applications are being built
on the NetOS, which was developed
originally by the universitys High
Performance Networks research group.
The system is based on
software defined networking and
network virtualisation principles
which, according to Simeonidou,
The Brunel Mile

connects the
citys Temple
Meads rail station
to the SS Great
Britain, anchored
in the dock area
of Bristol, and
provides an
experimental test
bed for wireless
technology such
as 5G mobile
broadband.
is a first for smart city.

We need to be able to tap into
the citys creativity, Hilton explains,
and the platform that we have created
means that smaller companies
which are interested in developing
applications and services to sit on
top of it, will be able to do so.
Tracking technology is being used
by health, education and city transport
sectors to monitor and manage the
citys traffic congestion problems and
were looking at real time transport
information that can be transmitted
openly, enabling applications to be
built around, for example, a family
day out to provide better analysis of
leisure and retail activity in order to
improve services in the future.
We have developed an
applications store, free for anybody,
which at the moment is internal,
explains Prof Simeonidou. But
we will be gradually opening it
up for users and to communities
for commercial exploitation.
Crucially, according to Prof
Simeonidou: Our technology
is agnostic, which means that
we are able to make all of the
applications that have or will be
developed more easily transferable
into other environments.
Bristol has also developed
an emulator to assist in future
developments in the City, but which
12 July 2016
SECTOR FOCUS
The Bristol Brain,

according to Hilton,
is situated in the
citys 360 spherical
planetarium, which
was originally a
2000 Millennium
project. Its been
retrofitted with 4k
projectors, has a
fibre link connecting
it to a high
performance super
computer at Bristol
University and will be
able to project real
time data in a 3D
environment.
will also be available to help other

smart cities around the world
The Bristol Brain, according to
Hilton, is situated in the citys 360
spherical planetarium, which was
originally a 2000 Millennium project.
Its been retrofitted with 4k projectors,
has a fibre link connecting it to a high
performance super computer at Bristol
University and will be able to project
real time data in a 3D environment.
Open to an audience of 180
people, it will enable them to
experience new city scenarios at the
same time through 3D visualisation.
While we are currently unable to

render the city to highest level
of detail, we see the data dome
as a place where people will not
only be able to visualise, but also
experience, different models.
The project is aiming to create a 3D
printed large scale city model on top of
which real time data and sophisticated
analytics can be projected.
We will be able to show real
time pedestrian and traffic flows;
the energy use of buildings or the
air quality in the city at different
times of the day, enthuses Hilton.
SMART CITIES
We want people to be able to leap

into the city model, to experience an
immersive digital environment that
will use virtual reality, augmented
reality and haptic technologies to
allow people to experience new
developments before they are
built meaning that future different
scenarios for the city can be explored
and their impact on transport,
air quality, noise, light and other
factors fully understood before any
physical development takes place.
The Bristol Brain could
fundamentally change the way the
city is planned, enabling citizens
and planners to work more closely
together to make better decisions
It will provide a single,
holistic planning tool that will
be open for all, says Hilton.
According to Hilton, projects like
Bristol is Open are intended to help
people to better understand the
city they live in. He concludes:
Big business must not be allowed
to dominate the smart city concept.
A very efficient city is a sterile city
and we want to use Bristol is Open
as a platform that encourages not
only big business, but creatives and
innovative start-ups to help address
the challenges of urban life.
Bristols Venturer consortium embarks on trials of driverless cars

In 2015, the VENTURER consortium was given the green light by the
then government to explore the feasibility of driverless cars in Bristol.
Funded by Innovate UK, the consortium, which is made up of
among others Bristol Council, Fusion Processing, AXA insurance and
Williams Advanced Engineering, draws on the expertise of a range
of organisations from across different sectors to not only look at the
technology but assess its impact on the public and investigate both the
legal and insurance aspects of driverless cars.
Bristol has a reputation as an innovative city, says Stephen
Hilton, Futures Director at Bristol City Council, and this project brings
together high quality knowledge and developments in digital solutions.
The Formula 1 Williams team has put a huge amount of work into
developing simulators and the vehicles are themselves being kitted out
with virtual technology as we look to test the human aspect when it
comes to operating these vehicles.
The VENTURER trial will run for 36 months and testing of the
12 July 2016
consortiums autonomous vehicle, the BAE Systems Wildcat, started on

both private and public roads in early 2016.
The Wildcat is free range, so it doesnt need a guided pathway,
explains Hilton. Bristol is very much a pioneer in the development of
this technology. I dont believe well see a revolution; rather, itll be a
period of evolution in which autonomous and driven vehicles will have
to operate side by side.
According to Hilton, autonomous vehicle technology offers
enormous opportunities to influence not only road safety but also
issues of particular concern in Bristol, such as congestion, air quality,
climate change and social inclusion.
The acquisition of data will be a crucial part of this project,
Hilton suggests. Well be able to look at new insurance models and
charging schemes as this marketplace evolves. Our aim is to champion
experimental solutions through the deployment of ICT and digital
technologies, but by doing so in a people friendly manner.
19
or the past 20 years, the rhetoric

of integrated circuit design
has been one of increasing
exclusivity, despite the falling cost
of transistors with each jump in
process node. The rise in mask
and software tool costs over those
same generations has forced many
would-be chipmakers to settle for
off the shelf microcontrollers and
programmable logic.
ARM is one compant betting on
a reversal in the downward trend of
custom IC design starts driven by a
surge of interest around applications
for the IoT. At the Design Automation
Conference, held last month in
Austin, the processor designer
expanded its programme to attract a
wider base of companies to use its
low end M-series cores by recruiting
tools suppliers Mentor Graphics and
Cadence, as well as design houses
such as Open-Silicon and Sondrel.
Nandan Nayampally, vice president
of marketing and strategy of the
CPU group at ARM, said: The main
targets are startups and makers. We
are also seeing OEMs in white goods
who want to start building their own
solutions rather than using standard
microcontrollers.
Filling the capability gap

Chris Shore, training manager for
partner enablement, said: A lot of
companies are coming into this who
havent done their own custom SoC
before. This programme fills the knowhow capability gap that many of these
customers have.
Kevin Steptoe, vice president
of engineering at design house
Sondrel, added: This class of device
turns everything upside-down. The
customers are not necessarily chip
aware people and they dont have
vast sums of money to have a classic
EDA tool licensing model.
ARM expects many to use the lowcost prototyping approach known as
multiproject wafer in which masks
for a collection of different ICs are put
together to be manufactured on the
20
Chip design for

the rest of us
As the IoT unfolds, classical EDA design flows will need to
change. By Chris Edwards.
same wafer to provide samples and
even low-volume production parts.
Nayampally pointed to the
availability of multiproject wafer
services for processes as being
relatively affordable, quoting costs
of $16,000 for samples of a 25mm2
chip built on a 130nm process and
$42,000 for a 16mm2 die aimed
at the 65nm node. Design support
company eSilicon slices the wafer
even more finely, providing the ability
for companies to group together
multiple small chips in what would
normally be one slot.
Steptoe sees a range of different
types of company looking to develop
This class of device

turns everything upsidedown. The customers
are not necessarily chip
aware people and they
dont have vast sums of
money to have a classic
EDA tool licensing
model.
Kevin Steptoe
their own silicon. Among those now

looking to build their own IoT silicon
will be companies looking to improve
the performance of existing designs
or to reduce overall production
costs or power consumption through
integration. Steptoe said: Theyve
got more than a spec. Theyve got a
design that can be retargeted. I think
there will be a lot of those.
More speculative, but on ARMs
radar, are companies which have
an idea for an IC and, potentially, a
system-level model, but which have
limited experience in the design
process. Because companies coming
from those different angles will often
have few, if any, SoC designs under
their belt, they are likely to turn to
design houses to get their ICs to tape
out, Steptoe argued.
Mentor Graphics Tanner EDA
group, which has signed up for the
ARM programme alongside Cadence,
sees its main targets as existing
chipmakers that, until now, have left
digital integration to others.
Jeff Miller, product strategy and
marketing director for the Tanner
group, noted: We have a special
package of tools available to
DesignStart customers. The idea
is that they can buy everything they
need to implement a basic SoC and
use their analogue know-how for
connected sensors for the IoT.
A lot of people are coming from
the analogue side. Now, they want
to move into a larger IoT market by
adding an MCU, as well as radio IP.
12 July 2016
RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
The companies moving sideways

into a market previously dominated
by standard microcontrollers are
often looking to capitalise on the
specialised processes now available
for older nodes. There are people
doing high voltage designs that are
currently dominated by 180nm BCD
processes, said Miller. Others are
moving to smaller processes because
they have substantial digital content,
so they are looking at 65nm or 90nm.
Steptoe said the push to integrate
more digital logic into ICs focused
on analogue and sensor processing
does not change the design flow
dramatically; it will still be a matter
of synthesising IP written in hardware
description languages down to
standard cells and then having them
organised by a place and route tool.
However, the EDA tool suppliers
expect customers working on older
nodes to be able to benefit from
what they have learned implementing
designs at the leading edge.
For example, the place and route
tool in Tanners IoT offering is based
on the Nitro engine, which is used
for todays 14nm finFET based ICs.
Miller said designs on older nodes
can take advantage of the analysis of
parasitics introduced to deal with the
issues surrounding finFET processes
to make it easier to ensure circuits
hit their timing targets. We are
12 July 2016
The main targets

are startups and
makers. We are
also seeing OEMs
in white goods
who want to start
building their
own solutions
rather than
using standard
microcontrollers.
Nandan
Nayampally
repackaging it to make it easier to

use for the Tanner customer base.
Synopsys found that when it
applied its newer tools to older
processes, it was possible to
increase overall density because
of improvements to placement
and routing algorithms. A further
advantage, according to Antun Domic,
general manager of the Synopsys
design group, is that tools developed
during the past decade have focused
increasingly on power consumption
an issue critical to battery powered
sensor nodes. They can more easily
cater for multiple power domains
on the die that designs were not
expected to have when the 90nm or
65nm processes were at their initial
peak of development.
Although much of the flow will be
automated, Steptoe believes hand
tuned layout will be increasingly
important element of IoT node
design. Energy harvesting circuitry
will require a highly customised
approach, he contended.
The inclusion of MEMS sensors
into designs will, however, complicate
the flow. Although CMOS based MEMS
allows for monolithic integration, a
EDA
likely scenario for many projects will be

to have two or three devices pulled into
a single package.
Regardless of whether they are
packaged or on the same die, they
have to be designed together, Miller
argued. We have a bunch of tools to
model the MEMS device, from which
we can take the output and feed it as a
reduced-order model into the IC design
tools to make sure they work together.
Analysing trade offs

Tom Beckley, senior vice president of
Cadences custom IC and PCB group,
claimed the need to analyse tradeoffs
between board, package and chiplevel integration has become more
pressing. Cadence is no longer just
focused on EDA. We believe the world
of unfolding smart products requires
unified solutions.
The need to build small ICs into
flexible boards for wearables and other
uses will put more emphasis on the
need for codesign, potentially pushing
more of the work into the intersection
between electrical and mechanical
design. The focusmay switch from
classical EDA flows to those that look
at the system as a whole.
We believe the world

of unfolding smart
products requires
unified solutions.
Tom Beckley
21
22
EMBEDDED DESIGN
POWER
Powering change
The USB-C interface will require more careful decisions when it comes
to power system design. By Graham Pitcher.
T
I think USB-C will
win, but its like
the early days of
Blu-Ray versus
DVD; you have to
choose.
Jia Wei
he USB port has proved to

be popular. Since its first
appearance in the mid 1990s,
billions of devices have benefited
from its ability to not only transfer
data, but also power.
Jia Wei, Intersils director
of marketing and applications
engineering for mobile power
products, noted: The specification
has evolved over time and is now at
v3.1. Version 2.0 had limited data
rate and power delivery abilities,
so industry decided to work on
something better. That was USB 3.0,
which supported higher data rates
and more power.
In its original format, USB could
transer 5W. Thats not a lot, said
Wei. Its probably good enough
for phone charging, but not fast.
But a new version of the standard
called USB-C is set to change
that, establishing a USB connector
ecosystem that addresses the needs
of the latest devices while retaining
USBs functional benefits.
This will handle up to 20V,
negotiable between both ends of the
cable, Wei pointed out. Users can
pass up to 3A over a passive cable,
he continued, but need a special
cable after that to handle up to 5A.
Because the specification supports
power levels of up to 100W, its
good for a wide range of consumer
electronic devices and other
applications.
However, Wei continued, USB-C
charging requires a fundamental
change to the existing power delivery
architecture and this presents a new
challenge to system designers.
In Weis opinion, the problems
12 July 2016
start when designers have a system

in which a variable voltage passes
over a USB cable. These systems
have to support 5V in order to be
backwards compatible, he said, but
they also need to handle up to 20V in
order to support the latest devices.
Variable input uncertainty

When a fixed input is greater than
the output, designers can use a
buck converter for all applications.
However, with a variable input,
Wei continued, this relationship is
uncertain and requires the use of
a buck-boost converter, which also
means there will be different modes
of operation.
He gave an example. A challenge
is how to use the 5V to 20V adaptor
voltage to charge a 2.5V to 17.2V
battery. There is no definite input
to output relationship, which would
need the buck topology, and no

definite output to input relationship,
which would need the boost
topology.
Figure 1a shows an approach
based on the pre-boost concept.
Here, the USB adaptor voltage is
boosted to a voltage higher than the
highest USB adaptor voltage 25V
for example then down converted
using a buck converter to charge the
batteries. This requires an additional
boost converter, Wei noted. This
increases solution cost and size, as
well as reducing the overall efficiency
due to power loss in the pre-boost
stage.
Another way of addressing the
problem is shown in figure 1b. In
the buck charger or boost charger
approach, the USB adaptor voltage
is handled by either a buck or a
boost charger, depending on the
23
EMBEDDED DESIGN
input/output voltage relationship.

While this configuration eliminates
the additional power loss of the
pre-boost design, it still requires an
additional boost charger, meaning a
larger, more expensive solution.
A more elegant arrangement,
according to Wei, is the buck-boost
charger shown in figure 1c. This can
operate in buck mode when there is
input to output, in boost mode when
there is output to input and in buckboost mode when there is two way
flow and the input is approximately
equal to the output. This, said
Wei, allows for a better design, the
smallest solution size and the best
overall efficiency. It meets all the
system designers requirements.
Only such product available

Intersil says it is the only company
currently producing a USB-C buckboost charging product the
ISL9237. When the market began to
change, Wei said, we saw the need
for such a device and entered the
general market in 2016. However, we
had developed a custom device for a
particular client before that.
The part consists of four switching
FETs and an inductor, as well as
a battery connecting FET. The four
switching FETs are grouped into
a forward-buck leg and a forwardboost leg. By operating either leg,
this topology can operate in forward
buck mode or forward boost mode
for charging the battery. It can also
operate in reverse buck mode to
deliver power from the USB port in
order to charge an external electronic
device, such as a tablet, smartphone
or the emerging portable power bank
products that can be used to charge
other products.
The ISL9237 offers a range of
features, including the ability to
communicate with an SMBus host.
Compliant with USB 3.1, as well as
the latest Intel IMVP8 PROCHOT#
and PSYS requirements, it protects
against battery voltage drop, adapter
overcurrent, battery overcurrent and
24
POWER
Fig 1a The pre boost approach

~25V
5 to 20V
USB adaptor
Boost
Buck
charger
Fig 1b The buck charger or boost charger approach

Buck
charger
5 to 20V
USB adaptor
Boost
charger
Fig 1c The buck-boost charger approach

5 to 20V
USB adaptor
Buck-boost
charger
overheating. According to Intersil,

the part provides a two level adaptor
current limit with programmable
magnitudes and durations.
Why USB-C?
When I visit customers, Wei
explained, they realise that USB-A
and -B will be made obsolete by USBC. Everything is changing and now its
one cable for everything, including
data and power.
He also noted that USB-C has
a particularly popular form factor.
USB Power Delivery features

Power levels of up to 100W
Power direction is no longer fixed,
allowing the product or the host to
provide power
Allowing each device to take only
the power it requires and to get more
power when required
Intelligent and flexible system level
power management
Allows low power devices, such as
headsets, to negotiate for only the
power they require
Thats also appealing and it can

be designed into very small devices.
Once people see the benefits, many
of them adopt the technology.
But what about those designing
products for markets beyond
consumer electronics? Those
designing for the industrial equipment
market, for example, will be starting
to think about how they can tap
into the USB-C ecosystem, Wei
contended. Were seeing a lot of
industrial style applications turning
to USB-C, looking to access such
features as power management.
But even though USB-C brings
benefits there is a downside. Cost
will be higher, he admitted. The
connector is more expensive than
devices used in the past, but cost will
come down as USB-C becomes more
of a mainstream technology.
Another issue which designers
need to take into account is the
fact that USB-C involves power
negotiation. This is handled by
USB-PD (for power delivery), which
is a piece of silicon sitting in each
connector or port.
Negotiation sets the voltage level.
For example, Wei said, a designer
might decide to save some cost by
limiting operation to 12V, but that
will also limit how much power can
be delivered. System designers need
to understand how to support the
power levels and to choose cables
appropriately.
Even without -PD, Wei said,
devices will still be capable of power
delivery, but it might be fixed at 5V.
As the market evolves, we may see
more stripped down parts appearing.
It comes down to market sentiment,
he added, but it will be segmented.
While USB-C is gaining momentum,
other approaches are available. Apple
Lightning is similar, but its a closed
ecosystem. Another technology is
Qualcomms Quick Charge.
I think USB-C will win, Wei
concluded, but its like the early
days of Blu-Ray versus DVD; you have
to choose.
12 July 2016
26
Developing better
test approaches
Insights into how you can improve test methods and make set up
simpler. By Howard Peat and Giacomo Tuveri.
When connecting remote sense
terminals to the load, the internal
feedback amplifier will see the voltage
at the load, rather than at the output
terminals. Since the control loop
senses the voltage at the load, the
supply will keep the load voltage
constant, regardless of voltage drops.
A parallel connection with remote
sense is shown in fig 2.
Accurate device under test (DUT)
current can be measured via an
ammeter, a current shunt or the
supplys built in read back; each has
pros and cons. Current read back can
provide measurement accuracy while
avoiding the difficulties associated
with connecting current shunts;
connection equipment can be kept to
a minimum and measurements can
be triggered to start with other power
related events.
Figure 1: Schematic
showing power
source output
characteristics
Constant voltage
operating line
It is possible to connect multiple

power supply outputs in series to get
higher voltage, or in parallel for more
current. When connecting outputs in
series for higher voltage, the following
precautions should be taken:
Never exceed the floating voltage
rating of any output
Outputs should not be subjected to
reverse voltages
Only connect outputs with identical
voltage/current ratings in series
Each power supply output should
be set independently so the voltages
add up to the desired value. Each
output should also be set to the
maximum current limit the load can
handle safely. The voltage of each
output can then be set to sum to the
total desired voltage.
When connecting outputs in parallel
for higher current, it is critical that:
RL = RC = VS/IS
vS
RL > RC
RL: Load resistance

RC: Critical (crossover) resistance
RS: Voltage setting
IS: Current setting
Vout
aving a good grasp of how

measurement tools operate
can provide valuable insight into
how test methods can be improved.
Setups can be made simpler and
more effective, plus test performance
parameters can be upgraded. This
is true for modern power sources.
Power supplies can operate in
constant voltage (CV) or constant
current (CC) modes, depending on
load resistance and voltage and
current limit settings (see fig 1). In
some circumstances, they may go into
an unregulated (UNR) mode.
Power supplies will operate in CV
mode while the load does not need
more current than the current limit
setting allows. In accordance with
Ohms law, maintaining a constant
voltage while changing the load
resistance will require the current to
change. If the output current (Iout, Vs/
RL) is less than the current limit, the
power supply will regulate the output
at the voltage setting.
Should the load resistance
decrease to less than RC the ratio
of the power supply voltage limit to
current limit the power supply will
regulate current. Again, Ohms law
says the voltage will change if the
current stays constant at the current
limit setting, leading to CC operation.
If the supply cannot regulate its
output voltage or current, then UNR
will ensue. Possible causes of UNR
include an internal fault, the AC input
line voltage being below the specified
range, another source of power
connected across the supplys output
or the output transitioning between CV
and CC (or vice versa).
A power supplys connections
ideally have no resistance but, in
reality, lead resistance is a function
of length and wire diameter, so when
a supply delivers current, it may
decrease the voltage at the load.
For setups with long load leads, the
voltage at the output terminals will not
represent the load voltage accurately.
Remote sensing can correct for
voltage drops.
Constant current
operating line
RL < RC
Iout
IS
12 July 2016
SYSTEM DESIGN
One output operates in CV and the

other (or others) in CC
The output load draws enough
current to keep the CC output(s) in
this mode
Only connect in parallel outputs with
identical voltage and current ratings
Set the current limit of all outputs
equally.
Everything possible should be
done to minimise noise on the DUTs
DC power input. Since filtering noise
from the power source can be difficult,
start with a unit with very low noise.
While linearly regulated supplies can
accomplish this, they can be large and
generate heat. Modern switch mode
supply performance, however, is now
comparable with that of linear supplies.
The most effective way to reduce
noise is by ensuring load and sense
connections use shielded two wire
cables. In order to mitigate the effect of
common mode current, the impedance
to ground from the output terminals on
the supply should be equalised.
Most DC power supplies protect
sensitive DUTs and circuitry from
exposure to potentially damaging
voltages/currents. When the
DUT trips a protection circuit, the
output is turned off and displays
a notification. Most power supplies
feature over voltage and over current
protection.
While CC mode regulates the
output current at the current limit, it
will not turn off the output. Instead,
the voltage dips below the voltage
setting and the power supply
continues in CC mode, producing
current at the current limit setting.
Over current protection shuts the
output off to prevent excessive
current flow to the DUT. The current
limit should be set low enough to
protect the DUT, but high enough
to prevent nuisance tripping due to
normal fluctuations due to output
transients.
While you might assume the power
supply output is completely open when
in output off, this may not be the
case. Output impedance will vary from
While most power supplies can

measure DUT steady-state voltage/
current, some can also measure
dynamic voltage and current using
an integral digitiser. When making a
digitising measurement, the following
parameters can be set:
Time interval between samples
Number of samples acquired
Acquisition time
Once two of these are set, the
remaining parameter is determined via
the following equation:
+S
Power
supply
+out
out
Load
12 July 2016
+S
Power
supply
SYSTEM TEST
+out
out
S
Acquisition time = time interval x

(number of samples - 1)
Figure 2, above:
Parallel connection
of power supplies
with remote sense
Figure 3, below:
A power supply with
internal relays on
output terminals. The
DUT is disconnected
when the relays are
open
model to model and can depend upon

installed options.
The output off state will typically
set the output voltage/current to
zero and disable internal power
generating circuitry. However, this
does not guarantee that no current
will flow. Some power supplies have
an internal output relay option for
disconnection purposes, but even
with this installed, output capacitors
may be connected to the output
terminals. For critical applications,
where complete disconnect between
the power supply output and the
DUT is mandated, check with the
vendor whether the output relay
provides complete disconnection
(see fig 3). If not, then external
output disconnect relays will be
required.
Inside power supply
Similarly, a built in digitiser can

be configured to trigger and capture
power supply output voltage or current
waveforms. The digitiser will buffer
readings, with data retrieved and
analysed using any standard software
package. Using the power supply in
place of a battery enables acquisition
of dynamic information on the current
flowing into the DUT, allowing power
management to be optimised.
Typically, power supplies bias
circuits that require a constant
voltage. However, more advanced
applications may call for a time varying
voltage or current. It is possible for
a PC to change the power supplys
output voltages for discrete periods,
allowing the DUT to be tested at
different voltages.
Internal output relays

+
Author profiles:
Howard Peat is
distribution sales
manager with
Microlease. Giacomo
Tuveri is marketing
industry manager,
EMEAI, with Keysight
Technologies.
Reverse
protection
diode
RFI/ESD
filters
Device
under test +
Output
capacitor
27

Surgical Robotics: Rovers Exceed Expectations - Redefining Hardware in Real Time - Catching Up With Clocks

Încărcat de

Informații document

Titlu original

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Surgical Robotics: Rovers Exceed Expectations - Redefining Hardware in Real Time - Catching Up With Clocks

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

www.newelectronics.co.

Cover image: Hamlyn Centre/Imperial College

How can we realise the full

ELECTRONIC DESIGN AUTOMATION 20

Systems and software expertise have seen this

With interest in the Internet of Things growing

In the future, surgical robots are likely to be

SMART CITIES / SMART TRANSPORT

The USB port has become ubiquitous since

Having a good grasp of how measurement tools

New Electronics weekly eZine features

Express Logic has completed 1 years

simply must succeed. Its royalty-free

adX for ARM, Coldre,

Copyright , Express Logic, Inc.

hat sensationalist headline from a Sunday newspaper raises concerns

Black box for 3D images

Online Editorial Peggy Lee

Chris Edwards, John Walko

Sales Manager James Creber

ISSN 0047-9624 Online ISSN 2049-2316

2016. All rights reserved. No part of New Electronics

TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS 3D RECONSTRUCTIONS FROM DASHCAM VIDEO.

VCO created from 2D materials

Prototypes are said to operate at MHz

Battery performance boosted

The Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) and ETH

A Graphene Flagship project has shown

12 July 2016 www.newelectronics.co.uk

Glasgow launches LoRa network

environments all of which are ideal for

Poor bug detection

he Memec name has disappeared from

Lazlo Mudriczki, who is taking over

12 July 2016 www.newelectronics.co.uk

Design platform extended

able to give engineers greater access to

STFC launches technology centre

Complex problems, system

oughborough Sound Images was one of the UKs rising stars

in Innovation in 2016, on top of a Queens Award for Enterprise in

12 July 2016 www.newelectronics.co.uk

Were a technology company, but were exploiting niches. We

seeing larger companies wanting to move to LTE, but which dont

obots have been in use since the 1960s, but

and Acrobot, developed for use in orthopaedic surgery.

is, by its very nature, limited. So device pivoting and

Successful surgical robot

of the da Vinci robot by Intuitive Surgical.

surgeon. The focus will be on developing more accessible

The research, conducted by the University of Illinois at

Beyond the laboratory: the

ccording to the United Nations,

making transport systems smarter

We want people, through

building, including glass, cement and

One leading city is Bristol, where the Bristol Is Open

Council: We are looking to give

the NetOS a growing number of IoT

the High Performance Network Group

to 1500 photocells incorporating RF

The Brunel Mile

is a first for smart city.

Express Logic has completed 1 years

Copyright , Express Logic, Inc.