Industrial Embeddded Systems
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
IES2010RG.indd 1 4/20/10 11:05 AM Conference: June 7-9, 2010 • Exhibits: June 8-9, 2010 Donald E. Stephens Convention Center • Rosemont, IL • www.sensorsexpo.com Find the Solutions to Your Sensors & Sensing Technology Challenges! Gain the knowledge you need from leading experts and peers in the sensors industry. This year’s Conference Program includes more than 40 Technical Sessions in 8 Tracks covering: • Energy Harvesting • Bio-Sensing • Novel Approaches to Measurement • Low-Power Sensing • MEMS & MCUs • Power/Smart Grid Monitoring & • Wireless Networking • Monitoring Tools & Applications Control Identify specific solutions to your most difficult detection and control-related challenges on the expo floor. Sensors Expo brings together the largest and best-in-class Expo Floor Highlight: showcase of sensing technologies and systems for Open to All Attendees! attendees to evaluate and make informed decisions. The Pavilion Area consists of vendors who provide Energy Harvesting & Power Management solutions capable of capturing, converting, storing and delivering energy in a form that can be used to provide the power needed by the system it serves. The Pavilion also includes an Application Theatre area where vendors will provide demonstrations, and education content, and around Energy Harvesting & Power Management for all Sensors Expo attendees. Sponsors include: Visit www.sensorsexpo.com for a complete list of participating vendors! Register Today at the Early Bird Rates & Co-located with the Embedded Save up to $200 on Your Conference Pass! Systems Conference Chicago! Or, Register Now for a FREE Expo Hall Pass! Subscribers: Visit: www.sensorsexpo.com to register or call 877-232-0132 or 972-620-3036 (outside U.S.). Use discount code F307M for an EXTRA $50 OFF a Gold or Main Conference Pass! PRODUCED by: OffiCial PUbliCatiOn: SilvER SPOnSOR: mEDia SPOnSOR: Sensors2010_IndEmbeddedSystemsAd1 1 4/9/2010 4:16:30 PM IES2010RG.indd 2 4/19/10 7:34 AM Conference: June 7-9, 2010 • Exhibits: June 8-9, 2010 Donald E. Stephens Convention Center • Rosemont, IL • www.sensorsexpo.com Find the Solutions to Your Sensors & Sensing Technology Challenges! Gain the knowledge you need from leading experts and peers in the sensors industry. This year’s Conference Program includes more than 40 Technical Sessions in 8 Tracks covering: • Energy Harvesting • Bio-Sensing • Novel Approaches to Measurement • Low-Power Sensing • MEMS & MCUs • Power/Smart Grid Monitoring & • Wireless Networking • Monitoring Tools & Applications Control Identify specific solutions to your most difficult detection and control-related challenges on the expo floor. Sensors Expo brings together the largest and best-in-class Expo Floor Highlight: showcase of sensing technologies and systems for Open to All Attendees! attendees to evaluate and make informed decisions. The Pavilion Area consists of vendors who provide Energy Harvesting & Power Management solutions capable of capturing, converting, storing and delivering energy in a form that can be used to provide the power needed by the system it serves. The Pavilion also includes an Application Theatre area where vendors will provide demonstrations, and education content, and around Energy Harvesting & Power Management for all Sensors Expo attendees. Sponsors include: Visit www.sensorsexpo.com for a complete list of participating vendors! Register Today at the Early Bird Rates & Co-located with the Embedded Save up to $200 on Your Conference Pass! Systems Conference Chicago! Or, Register Now for a FREE Expo Hall Pass! Subscribers: Visit: www.sensorsexpo.com to register or call 877-232-0132 or 972-620-3036 (outside U.S.). Use discount code F307M for an EXTRA $50 OFF a Gold or Main Conference Pass! PRODUCED by: OffiCial PUbliCatiOn: SilvER SPOnSOR: mEDia SPOnSOR: Sensors2010_IndEmbeddedSystemsAd1 1 4/9/2010 4:16:30 PM IES2010RG.indd 3 4/19/10 7:34 AM Follow us: @industrial_mag @dondingee www.industrial-embedded.com Vo l u me 6 • Nu mb e r 1 2010 r e s o u r c e Gu id e COLUMNS Resource Guide 5 Foreword Thinking more than signed up for 9 Computing By Don Dingee 44 Networking 48 Sensors/Control DEPARTMENTS 54 Profile index 52 Editor’s Choice Products By Don Dingee FEATURES E-LETTER www.industrial-embedded.com/eletter Featuring coverage on microcontrollers, MCU reference designs Computing and development kits, energy harvesting 6 multidisplay technology: Not just another sign E-CASTS ecast.opensystemsmedia.com By Keate Despain, RadiSys AdvancedTcA delivers When High Performance is mission-critical 7 oPc uA technology enables greater RadiSys, Astute Networks, LCR Electronics • May 20, 2 p.m. EDT interoperability By Roy Kok, Kepware Technologies Android commercialization – making Android ready for Your device Networking MontaVista Software • May 25, 1 p.m. EDT 38 G.hn: The key to the connected home By Reuven Franco, Sigma Designs EVENTS sensors expo & conference 41 connecting the ‘smart’ in the smart grid June 7-9 • Rosemont, IL By Kurt Hochanadel, Eurotech www.sensorsexpo.com ATX east Sensing June 8-10 • New York, NY 46 energy-harvesting sensors combine best of www.atxeast.com wired and wireless worlds ISA Automation Week Q&A with Jim O’Callaghan, President, EnOcean October 4-7 • Houston, TX www.isaautomationweek.org COVER In our annual in-depth look at the new shape of industrial computing, networking, and sensing, WEB RESOURCES the 2010 Resource Guide features expanded Subscribe to the magazine or E-letter: sections with technical articles and products for www.opensystemsmedia.com/subscriptions industrial needs, plus a special feature on how digital signage is standing out today and where Industry news: it is going in the future. www.industrial-embedded.com/news Submit news releases, new products, 2010 OpenSystems Media ® © 2010 Industrial Embedded Systems white papers, and videos at: All registered brands and trademarks in Industrial Embedded Systems are property of their respective owners. submit.opensystemsmedia.com ISSN: Print 1932-2488 Online 1932-2496 4 / 2010 Resource Guide Industrial Embedded Systems enviroink.indd 1 10/1/08 10:44:38 AM IES2010RG.indd 4 4/19/10 11:09 AM Follow us: @industrial_mag @dondingee foreword thinking >> By Don Dingee More than signed up for Digital signage is starting to take on more than just what one entering the picture. Implementing a vision system (similar to would expect a sign to do. HD display and graphics? Yawn, those we described in our September 2009 issue) and using rec- it’s expected – everybody has that in their house. Networking? ognition techniques, one could detect the presence of viewers, A given – content comes in from the cloud, maybe even over record the number of seconds they watch the screen, and maybe 4G wireless. Rugged and maintainable computer and display? even indicate if they dwell on a particular part of the screen. Again, a given to play the digital signage game. Think bigger. Certainly, touch interaction would give valuable data. Here are three trends coming soon to a digital signage system near you. There have been rumors of video analytics going farther – detect- ing a viewer’s gender, race, age, and similar characteristics, Touch displays anonymously of course – and then presenting targeted content. Applications that used to be just signs are now expected to be That is probably a way off, for both legal and behavioral reasons. interactive, more like a kiosk but with the striking, large format (How good are your Amazon recommendations? Good, but not multimedia content of a digital signage system. The multitouch perfect, I’ll bet. We are used to that with Amazon, but not with experience has captivated every potential signage consumer, and signage.) Digital signage systems need better analytics, requiring the expectation is for a very similar but scaled-up experience a substantial amount of integrated vision systems processing. with digital signage. Augmented reality The problem is touch technology hasn’t scaled very well to large This is the Google Maps experience dropped into the retail envi- format displays. Projected capacitive touch is great on a small ronment, with a bit more information. You see the sign and scan a display and highly rugged since it’s behind glass, but how do you displayed 2D barcode with your phone; it tells you the item is on get it on a large platform? Some of these signage systems have aisle 7 on the third shelf 40 feet from the endcap, then guides you 52-, 65-, or even 80-inch displays, and some are being projected with a virtual path, in addition to indicating the number of items holographically onto a glass panel. remaining on the shelf, offering a coupon, and revealing items you’ll be passing on your way that might interest you. On page 53, you’ll see one of our Editor’s Choice selections tar- geting this exact problem. Projected capacitance touch and hap- Under the strict definition of augmented reality – 3D registered tic interface technology will soon be a mandatory component of data, real-time interaction, real and virtual views – this is a fit. digital signage, and the lines between a kiosk and a digital sign The possibilities for enhancing the shopping experience are will quickly blur to immateriality. incredible, and it’s all about the intelligence required to plug the virtual cloud of information into the shopper’s real world. Video analytics A retailer would like to know what content drives what behavior. Excited yet? Let me know if you see other big picture things It’s not all that different a problem from measuring Web visitor going on. It’ll be fun to watch. conversion. Content can be varied based on time of day, time- sensitive offers, or other parameters. Studies say the first 3-7 sec- onds are critical, but maybe there’s an offer in second 14 that is the real objective. What works? How do we do more of that, cap- turing more impressions and ultimately conversions into sales? The need for video analytics makes sense – what’s on the sign, @dondingee, @industrial_mag how many viewers saw it, how long they watched it.