Circuit Protection

Semtech Releases New Surge Protection Product to…

Semtech Introduces the HotSwitch® Platform for…

Semtech Unveils SurgeSwitch™ System Transient…

The automobile industry, a hotbed of innovation since the first motor vehicles hit the roads, has significantly evolved in recent years. This evolution, particularly in automotive Ethernet, is crucial for the industry's progress. Today's cars boasta plethora of features, including autonomous and semi-autonomous driving capabilities, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, Omni-View systems (surround-view system, Bird's eye system, etc.)  thateliminateblind spots, and a highly interactive and intuitive infotainment system. These innovations rely on a network of advanced cameras and sensors like radar, lidar, or image sensors to collect comprehensive information about the vehicle's physical environment. This data is then seamlessly conveyed to the driver through the dashboard display, alleviating their workload across various driving scenarios. 

Evolution and Protection of Automotive Ethernet:…

Picture bustling factories filled not with massive, outdated machines but with streamlined, efficient counterparts: robots darting around, intricate sensors overseeing every process, and data seamlessly flowing for real-time control. To tackle the challenges posed by critical industrial environments, engineers actively seek integrated circuits (ICs) housed in semiconductor packages known for their resilience and reliability. These packages must demonstrate exceptional thermal and mechanical durability and robust electrical performance under demanding conditions, ensuring optimal functionality and prolonged system life.

The Tiny Titans of Modern Industry: How…

Surveillance cameras have become ubiquitous in today's world. Whether we're taking a morning jog in the neighborhood, escorting our children to school or commuting to work, chances are security cameras are monitoring us. Americans are captured on security cameras about 238 times weekly. The widespread adoption of security cameras on both private and public properties is on the rise, primarily due to ease of installation and the sense of safety they offer. Once set up, cameras promptly begin recording images and videos, allowing authorized users to access real-time video feeds over the internet via smartphones or other devices. 

Lightning Surge Protection – Surveillance Cameras

Today's automobile stands at the forefront of technological advancement with a vast array of sophisticated functions such as self-driving capability, GPS navigation, hands-free phone operation via Bluetooth further enhanced by Apple CarPlay^TM and Android Auto^TM along with many cutting-edge features that improve safety and comfort. The more features are added to an automobile, the more semiconductor components are used. The semiconductor components employed in automotive applications must satisfy the qualification criteria outlined in AEC-Q standards. This international standard specifies the qualifications necessary for packaged integrated circuits and discrete devices utilized in in-vehicle electronic systems. As more interfaces are used for high-speed signal transmission, more semiconductor components are added to automotive systems.

ESD Protection of Automotive Interfaces

Application of IoT and the Importance of ESD Protection

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of physical devices embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet. It shares the data with a Cloud server or a gateway to analyze and take corresponding actions (Figure 1). One noteworthy application of IoT is in agriculture. The amount and time of water irrigation are decided based on IoT sensors that gather information on soil moisture content, nutrients, fertilizer amount, and weather information—helping farmers make smart decisions to prevent wasting resources. IoT applications have also become very popular in manufacturing and industrial automation, from factory floors to department stores, tracking machine performance, measuring product quality, and asset tracking to real-time location systems. In smart home automation, IoT-based systems have made our homes safer and easily maintainable.

Protecting IoT Devices from Electrostatic…

The Importance of Keyboard ESD Protection

Since the dawn of computers, the keyboard has been the primary communication mechanism between human and machines. Over the years, many technologies and interfaces have changed, but the keyboard has barely changed in both form and function. Recently, I bought an exclusive wireless keyboard. Initially, it communicated with the computer via Bluetooth without any issues. However, after a month or so, it suddenly stopped. When I opened the internal circuit, I was surprised that the keys had no electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection. Any electronic device's keypad, side keys or push buttons are vulnerable to ESD due to constant human interaction with them. Adding ESD protection devices in a keyboard/keypad/side keys can avoid disastrous situations such as the failure of my keyboard. Let us discuss ESD in general and how we can protect our electronic devices from it.

Protecting Keyboards from Electrostatic Discharge…

Whether you are watching an action replay of a baseball game on a giant screen at a stadium, a movie on your large-screen TV or streaming a video on your laptop computer, a high-quality audiovisual (AV) experience is always expected. Ultra-High-Definition Serial Digital Interface (UHD-SDI) and High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) are two standards for digital AV transmission. UHD-SDI standardizes the transmission of uncompressed and unencrypted digital AV signals over coaxial or fiber optic cables. HDMI is a digital interface for transmitting high-definition, high-speed digital multi-track audio and uncompressed video signals from HDMI-compliant sources to AV displays. Even though they both can transport ultra-high-definition AV signals from a source to a display, HDMI is preferred to connect consumer gadgets such as computers, gaming consoles, Blu-ray/DVD players, televisions, projectors, etc. UHD-SDI is preferred for high-end applications such as professional indoor/outdoor video production and television broadcasts because it supports long-range transmission and a rugged connection with the help of a physical lock mechanism at each end of the cable. UHD-SDI coaxial cable can transfer signals up to 300 feet, whereas HDMI cables struggle with excessive signal degradation even within 50 feet. These two interfaces can be used together via an HDMI-SDI or SDI-HDMI converter. For example, as shown in figure 1, an HDMI display would be used for confidence monitoring of an SDI stream to avoid the need to use specially calibrated SDI-specific displays.

Circuit Protection for HDMI-SDI/SDI-HDMI…

Not too long ago, my only fitness tracker was a pedometer in my pocket to measure my daily step count. Things have since changed very quickly. I now have a smartwatch on my wrist to track my daily activities, including steps completed, distance covered, calories burned, heart rate, and breathing pattern. I also receive alerts for messages, take calls, listen to my favorite podcast, and check the weather via my smartwatch. These are all in addition to seeing the accurate time of the day. Due to all these innovative features, wearing a smartwatch and using it as a fitness tracker is the trend for the health-conscious population worldwide. While these wearables help people remain fit, extra care needs to be taken by the manufacturers to protect these wearables from electrical overstress (EOS) and electrostatic discharge (ESD) generated from the body of the person wearing these devices.

Protecting the Health of Fitness Trackers

HotSwitch® is a new product line of devices from Semtech with an integrated load switch or eFuse that protects electronics systems against typical electrical transients and steady-state fault conditions. Primarily, the HotSwitch device turns on or off the current flow to a power rail as-needed. It detects electrical surges and secures the downstream subsystem by disconnecting the load from the power source. At the same time, the devices in Semtech’s HotSwitch portfolio provide an enhanced shield against inrush current, overvoltage, under voltage, reverse current, short circuit, and over-temperature faults. Figure 1 shows how a system is protected by a HotSwitch device.

HotSwitch® – The eFuse For Your Next Design