Single board computers are those little circuit boards with the necessary components to be used as a digital computer and ideal for an outsourced IT specialist. They are not commonly seen as they are and that is the reason why most of us can’t recognize them even if we have one in front of us. However, a lot of people have used single board computers because they are often embedded in gadgets like mobile phones, facsimile machines, GPS and other computer technological products.

Single board computer is what a printed circuit board with memory, a processor, input – output and a digital clock is called. Single board computers (otherwise known as SBCs) look a lot like the motherboard inside an ordinary personal computer but with a small design.

Because they are really small, they are also known as embedded computers. SBCs may come in different sizes, too. In fact, they are used from aero planes to sky rockets. In a more general sense, they can be present in toys or highly technological shoes. It is easy to assume that everyone has used single board computers without realizing that they exist.

Nowadays, smaller versions of computers are becoming very common. While they can accommodate full versions of operating system like Windows XP, SBCs have their own internal operating systems which don’t occupy much space. It is a fact that simpler operating systems mean not costing a lot. Without affecting processor performance, input/output, capability to store some files and its wireless connection, single board computers can do the basic functions of a personal computer.

The Good and Bad about Single Board Computers

Like any other products, SBCs have two sides, too. The decision to whether or not to employ the technology of single board computers is influence by how important the application is and how much it costs.

Below are the positive factors to consider:

1. The high technological advancement nowadays have improved the capabilities of single board computers as they become smaller and less costly.
2. Internet access using the SBCs has been made possible with the use of Wireless technology.
3. Because of it is now available in the competitive market, better functions and variety of single board computers are also made available to the users.
4. Highly developed computer technology presents dependability for industrial producers and the quality of their products using SBC’s.

On the other hand, employing SBCs may not be cheap or reasonable when incorporated with products of high volume and other applications. Also, there are some of these applications that need made to order sizes. Another possibility is that the input/output of certain devices are not compatible with single board computers.

Despite these possibilities, though. A lot of companies opt to use SBCs in the production of their high end devices rather than make their customized industrial single board computers, which is why a lot of organizations use a managed services provider to maintain them.

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Since this fast system enables transmission in the form of voice and other data as well it has wide implications. Since most forms of communication today require separate hard wiring it is convenient to use PLC which can employ the pre-existing power cables within the house. Since the power in these cables is AC (alternating Current), it can be employed for various bidirectional modes of communication as well.
Such a communication system can be used for the monitoring and also the controlling of various fundamental functions like energy management, security, and safety control applications at homes, factories, offices, aircraft etc. The Transmission companies use this type of transmission to synchronise the operations in various substations and to monitor the power supply at the consumer end. PLC systems include a transmitter unit competent of sending (transmitting) communication signals over the Power line signal and also have a receiver unit at the receiving end which separates the communication signal and the power signal.
The transmitter generates modulated RF signal at the sending end this signal is then demodulated at the receiving end. A power line communication modem is used to convert digital data from an information processing unit like a computer to analog data; these modems play a crucial role by helping the sending and receiving units to communicate with one another.
Like any modern technology the PLC system also suffers from various constraints, the technology is still not sufficiently advanced to take advantage of all the benefits that it has promised. Also since the PLC network is a electrical supply network and telecommunications network it comes under certain jurisdictions and legal frameworks. But since the technology is new there are not enough guidelines in place, for its proper running and installation. Interference issues are also a major concern that is since the signal is over lapping with lower frequency power signal; there is always an issue of improper decoding. The power wiring system was formerly intended for the transmission of Power, the power wire circuit usually has limited ability when it comes to carrying higher frequencies in which the data signals are encoded.

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2. Beginning guide to RS-485 bus.

Modbus is a communication protocol which is used with programmable logic controllers. This communication protocol was published by a firm named Modicon in 1979. It has now become the most de facto standard protocol in the industry. Modbus is now very commonly used as a means to connect the industrial electronic devices. This protocol is very easily available as it is very extensively used. There are certain important reasons for the use of Modbus rather than use of other communication protocol. These are as follows:

1.This protocol is published openly and is royalty free.
2.It is an easiest way to setup an industrial network.
3.This protocol moves raw bits without any restrictions.

modbus webserver

Modbus can be used for various communications. It can be used for communication between devices which are connected to a particular network. For example, a system measuring the speed of the wind will transmits the data collected to a computer for records. Modbus as a communication protocol is used as a connection between the main computers and it is done with the help of Remote terminal unit (RTU) and data acquisitions (SCADA) systems.

There exist many editions of the Modbus. Various Modbus versions are used for Ethernet and also for the serial port. It is also used for the networks which support the IP, i.e. the internet protocol. Many of the Modbus devices commune with the help of a serial EIA-485 physical layer. Various versions of Modbus are as follows:

1. Modbus RTU – it is used for serial communications. This version of Modbus is normally implemented for use in communication.
2. Modbus ASCII – It is as a serial communication and the message transmitted are framed by a colon and a trailing new line.
3. Modbus TCP – this version is used for the communication between TCP networks.

The function calls and data model are same for these versions. The only difference between them is that the encapsulation varies for all. And also the frame formats varies for each of them.

Every device which communicates uses Modbus with a particular address. A Modbus command is used in various networks. This command has the particular device address and that device will only act on this command. All these command have the checking information and it make sure that the message comes undamaged. There is also a Modbus member organisation which can be joined by the large and small suppliers, system developers etc.

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PIR sensor

PIR or the Passive Infrared sensor is an electronic device which is used to measure infrared light radiating from a body in its field of view. The sensors are known as Passive since they do not have an in built IR source like active sensors and detect the natural radiation of the body.

All objects have a certain body temperature and at any specific temperature there is a certain radiation that the body emits, this is called the Black Body Radiation phenomenon. The infrared radiation is undetectable to the human eye but can be detected by a PIR sensor. These sensors are commonly used as motion detector that is whenever a different body of different temperature passes from ahead of it, there is an apparent change in the infrared frequency detected due to different temperature of each body. This application is widely used in security equipments and other photo sensing equipment. The PIR sensors are very often paired with other devices to increase their range to encompass even human body sensors.

The PIR sensor is designed such that the light enters through the front of the sensor, which is known as the sensor face. This sensor face usually is made up of smaller sensor components which basically consist of pyroelectric materials in the form of thin films. These thin films may be made of Caesium nitrate or cobalt phthalocyanine and since these materials are pyroelectric they convert the light energy falling on them into small electrical signals. The IR sensor is contained within a fully sealed metal box so as to improve immunity towards noise, humidity, temperature and other effects. The window is the face, which is always made of IR-transmissive substances and is typically covered with silicon which is not only cheap but keeps the sensing element protected. At the rear of the window the balanced sensors are situated.

The device usually has 2 sensors connected to a differential amplifier so that useless signals are cancelled out and only valid inputs are detected. Though the range of PIR sensors is typically up to few 10s of feet but with some modifications, larger detectors using mirrors can sense changes in infrared signals up to a hundred feet away.

These sensors are often used to make other devices as well like PIR based remote thermometers; here a non differential PIR output is used. As the temperature of the body increases the radiation frequency changes and the sensor is able to detect that and a simple circuit attached to the output if properly calibrated can easily read the body’s temperature. In modern robotics such sensors are often installed in autonomous bots for motion sensing and path detection like in the case of line followers.

For more information, please take a look at
http://www.ladyada.net/learn/sensors/pir.html

Thank you
Jitkasem Pintaya (Admin)

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T-engine hardware

T-Engine is project that standardize the hardware part of development board (not the standardization of main processor).
This project is well-known amongst the processor manufacturer company in Japan. You can buy T-Engine development kit directly from Japanese
microprocessor manufacturers such as Renesas Technology or from electronics company like Personal Media Corp.I list websites where you can
find T-Engine development board to buy as below…

1. T-Engine4u (Personal Media Company)
2. T-Engine forum
3. T-Engine development kit from Yokogawa

T-Engine also has 3 subtypes. They are micro T-Engine, nano T-Engine and pico T-Engine.
Nano T-Engine is small size embedded platform (smaller that micro T-Engine). Its size is not bigger that the coin-size (view applications of nano T-Engine
and its development board here). Pico T-Engine is the smallest platform. It’s generally used for developing small device like switch, sensor or lighting equipment.
It can be used as the sensor node in wireless sensor network application too. If you want to know more about pico T-Engine , please visit this page.

Nowadays, there are various T-Engine development kits on the embedded system market. The difference between each one is the hardware
assembled to be the dvelopment kits. However , when you buy T-Engine board , it usually come along with Software Development Kit such as
Operating System , Driver for the peripheral devices , compiler , toolchains and extension of standard T-Kernel such as Virtual Memory module ,
Process Support Unit and File System , etc. Now , let talk about T-Kernel.

T-Kernel is the kernel for T-Engine platform. It’s one of the real-time operation system that was released by T-Engine forum.
T-Kernel only implement core source code of the kernel that can be commonly used in any T-Engine hardware platform.

It doesn’t include the drivers for specific hardware but it has only one sample driver source code you can use as the reference to make your own driver.

You can download T-Kernel source code directly from T-Engine forum (you need to subscribe to the source code or specification that you want to download).
The document that describe T-Kernel Specification is also available in English too.
However , the implementation guideine for porting T-Kernel to some processor (such as SH7751, VR5500, SH7727 , etc.)
is not written in English (it only availible in Japanese so you need to translate them by yourself ). The objective of T-Kernel is to provide software standard
for T-Engine platform. It also has the subsidiary called “micro T-Kernel or μT-Kernel”. T-Kernel is suitable for large embedded system that has 32-bit main processor
and it can be used in the system that has MMU (memory management unit) while μT-Kernel is proper to use in smaller embedded system like 16-bit CPU system
that has small amount of RAM and ROM and was designed to support the CPU that don’t have MMU.
On the other hand , we can said that μT-Kernel is small version of T-Kernel that cut off some unnecessary functions that will become an overhead in small system.
It has been optimized for efficiency and gain the best performance when using it on small embedded system.

For more information about T-Engine platform , I suggest you visit these sites…
1. http://t-engine.onghu.com
2. http://www.personal-media.co.jp/
3. http://www.t-engine.org

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GPS Locator is GPS used for indentify the position at the point that receiving the signal. This article is about the review of SUP500F ,
small GPS receiver module with built-in antenna.
SUP500F module receives signal from satellite in order to find the coordinate on the earth. It’s cheap and suitable for study or apply
for practical use. The antenna is located inside its body so you don’t need to connect addition external antenna to this module.
It’s small and can be enclosed in the box , however due to it use internal antenna , the efficiency of signal receiving will decrease if
you use it inside the building (it prefer to use outdoor).

In general, GPS module cannot adjust any setting value.It can only receive the signal from satellite and send coordinate value to other devices.
SUP500F is different. It allow user to adjust its setting values such as update rate (maximum update rate is 10 Hz), baud rate by using GPS Configuration software and send
command to update module’s setting value via UART communication.

SUP500F can be connected to microcontroller that use 5 Volt or 3.3 Volt Power Supply. It also can connect to computer via MAX3232 IC too.
Click here to view the outline circuit of SUP500F connecting to 5 Volt microcontroller, click here for connecting to 3.3 Volt microcontroller and
click here for connecting to computer.

From the datasheet of SUP500F , input voltage for VDD pin can be in the range of 3.0 – 5.5 Volt DC
but the maximum input voltage level that can supply to Rx and Tx pin of SUP500F is only 3.3 Volt
so when you connect SUP500F module to MAX3232 IC , you must make sure that you supply not over 3.3 Volt to the VCC Pin of MAX3232
because if you supply more than 3.3 Volt, it will make the signal level of Rx and Tx pin of MAX3232 to be more than 3.3 Volt , therefore cannot
connect directly to SUP500F.

SUP500F module use GPS chipset from SKYTRAQ (IC name : Venus634FLPx) so you can use SKYTRAQ software to read the data from SUP500F.
The data sent from SUP500F is in NMEA-0183 format. You can use Map Software that able to receive the data in NMEA-0183 protocol
together with SUP500F in order to plot your travelling route or show your current position on the earth. The example Map software that can use with SUP500F
is MapKing. You can download MapKing at here.

SUP500F is suitable for make the applications like PND (personal navigation device) , Automatic Vehicle Location , Personal Tracking , Geo-Tagging , Smartphone
and much more. It’s easy to use and easy to interface with other devices. To view more information about SUP500F , please visit this Sparkfun page.

Reference site : http://www.thaieasyelec.com/Review-Product-Article/Easy-GPS-Locator-using-SUP500F-EGPS013.html

Thank you,
Jitkasem

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1. How to choose Xbee module

Wi-Fi direct is technology that developed from original Wi-Fi technology (it’s developed by
WiFi Alliance). This technology enable two mobile device to communicate to each other with ease
and safty.It’s also known as “bluetooth killer” because it can substitute for bluetooth technology
in every function of bluetooth. Otherwise it support more applications and more effective than
bluetooth technology.So bluetooth technology may come to an end in the next few years.

Although Wi-Fi direct was invented base on the original Wi-Fi technology , it require different working condition that is
” Wi-Fi direct doesn’t require network or signal distribution system because it make the devices able to connect with
each other by peer-to-peer technique and at the same time , it also make the internet connection of PC through smartphone
has better throughput and more secure that the current “ad hoc” method. “Ad hoc” is one mode exist in Wi-Fi technology that allow
the device to transfer data from device to device directly (Peer-to-Peer) but it is difficult to set up and its data transfer rate is around 11 Mbps only.
Wi-Fi direct can search for nearby equipment
without joining the network. It can inform you about services that end-point device can communicate data with.

Prominent point of Wi-Fi direct is its data communication speed up to 250 Mbps. This speed is sufficient for send
high resolution image to the printer or send high definition video from one mobile phone to another one fluently.
The working range of Wi-Fi direct is wider than the range of bluetooth. Its security system is WPA2 encoding
(Wi-Fi Protected Access 2) that can link with multiple devices in the meantime , for example , you can send an image
from your mobile phone to two mobile phones simultaneously.

A more convenient connection will also make the benefit to business organization, especially the businees that
concern with wireless communication. The WPA2 encoding can concisely protect user’s data from hacking.
The security system of Wi-Fi direct (WPA2) is better than bluetooth because it use AES 256-bit encryption method while
bluetooth 4.0 use AES 128-bit encryption.

Wi-Fi direct also backward compatible with ordinary Wi-Fi devices (or the device that support 802.11x networking starndard)
That mean you can connect your Wi-Fi direct supported device to notebook , netbook or printer without upgrading its hardware or software.
Nowadays, there’re many Wi-Fi certified devices such as Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6200 WiFi card , Samsung Galaxy S (World’s first smartphone
that support Wi-Fi direct).

Wi-Fi direct is new technology and I think it’s more effective than both “Ad hoc” and Bluetooth. This technology will be well-known in the near future and you will
see more and more Wi-Fi direct supported devices released to the market.

Thank you,

Jitkasem (admin@embedsoftdev.com)

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How to choose Xbee module.

Two steps you should consider when you want to buy Xbee module.

1. Range of send/receive signal of Xbee module.

Xbee module can be separated obviously into two series in term of “The range of send and receive signal”.
The word “PRO” was used to indicate the difference between each series. Xbee series without word “PRO”
is designed for short-range wireless communication (around 100 metre when use outdoor) with power output between 1 – 2 mW.
Example of Xbee module in this series is XBee 802.15.4 .
Xbee series with word “PRO” is more powerful. It’s designed for long-range communication (up to 1600 metre when use outdoor) and
have power output between 50-60 mW. Example of Xbee module in this series is XBee-PRO 802.15.4 .

However, the practical range that Xbee can operate may depend on many factors such as the environment of system , type of antenna , type of obstacles , etc.
Xbee use frequency band at 2.4 Ghz that is the same as Bluetooth or Wireless Lan so when you use Xbee in the environment that Bluetooth or Wireless Lan exists,
signal of Xbee may be disturbed by these devices and cause the data loss during communication.

The 2.4 Ghz frequency band is arranged into the Microwave band (S Band). One important characteristic of Microwave is
“The power of transmission is highest when placement of sender and receiver device is in line-of-sight (no obstacles between them)”. Therefore , the Xbee “PRO” series that
have the range of communication up to 1.6 Km is only in case that you place the devices in line-of-sight with the best quality of antenna and no interference signal, other
conditions will reduce the signal strength and make the range that Xbee can communicate to be less than 1.6 Km.

2. Series of Xbee

Xbee has two series , Series1 and Series2. The difference between Series1 and Series2 can be concluded as following
2.1 Series2 is designed to use in mesh network while Series1 cannot be used in mesh network (Series1 is suitable for point-to-point or point-to-multipoint task).
2.2 They use different chipset , different firmware and different protocols so you can’t use Xbee Series1 together with Series2 in the same time.
2.3 Zigbee protocol is only supported on Series2 and no longer supported on Series1.
2.4 Series2 can be separated into 2 sub-series , Znet2.5 and ZB. The difference between Series2 Znet2.5 and Series2 ZB is
“Series2 (ZB) can upgrade firmware over-the-air while Series2 (Znet2.5) and Series1 can upgrade firmware with X-CTU via serial communication only”

Please see the article on ladyada or faludi website for more information about upgrading Xbee module.

So before you buy Xbee module , you should consider about the application and environment of your system first.
For example, in agriculture , suppose you have 10 Acre strawberry garden and you want to apply wireless sensor network (WSN) technology in order to measure the tempurature
in each cultivated area , in this case you should select the Xbee “PRO” series because your area is wider than the range that normal Xbee series can operate.
Otherwise if you want to build the WSN network that consist of many sensor nodes (Xbee node) and data communication in your network is very complicate,
you should select to use Mesh Network instead of Star Network (I will talk about Xbee Topology in the next article) .

The next article will be about Xbee Topology , comparison of each antenna type that affect to the range of signal transmission , interference signal and
Xbee applications.

Thank you,
Jitkasem

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Common features summary of Xbee
1. Operating Frequency ISM Band 2.4 GHz
(ISM Band is the frequency band that reserved for use in scientific , medical and industrial purpose. To know more
about ISM Band , please visit this wikipedia page)
2. Supply Voltage between 2.8 – 3.4 Volt
3. Can use together with various types of antenna such as Chip Antenna , Whip Antenna and connector like
U.FL connector , RP-SMA connector (but you have to find the 2.4 GHz antenna in order to use with these connectors).
4. Power Down Current < 10 uA
5. RF data rate of Xbee is about 250 Kbps (this is the data rate of signal that sent via the air)
6. Serial interface data rate is between 1200 - 115200 Bps (this is the data rate of communication between Xbee module
and microcontroller)

Xbee has 20 pin (you can see pin-arrangement in the above picture).The function of each pin is described in page 7 of this datasheet.
Xbee also has Digital I/O line and 10 bits Analog to Digital converter module.

The distance between adjacent pin of Xbee is 2.0 mm so it cannot attach to the protoboard directly because
in general , standard distance between each pin of IC (Pitch) is 2.54 mm or 1 mil. However there’re many
tools used for convert the 2mm-10pin of Xbee into standard pitch (2.54mm) such as “2mm 10pin XBee Socket” or
“Breakout Board for XBee Module”.You should try to search for them at Sparkfun.com.

Kind of antenna that able to connect to Xbee module (I explain only four antenna kinds).

Chip antenna.

This kind of antenna is suitable for use in small project that restrict in size or dimension because its antenna is small single chip.
You can pack it in the box but only plastic box (don’t enclose it with steel box because the signal cannot spread through the steel).

Wire antenna.

With this kind of antenna, the range of the signal and stability is conformable with specification. However, the antenna that extrude from the Xbee module
may look untidy and you cannot pack it into the box too. If you want to use Xbee module in general task and don’t have limitaion in space or size of the workpiece
, I recommend this kind of antenna.

UFL antenna.

This kind of antenna is suitable for the task that designed to place the Xbee module inside the box but allow the antenna to emerge from the box. With UFL antenna ,
you need to connect the UFL to SMA wire from the Xbee module to antenna. At this point , it may reduce the signal strength , however , at the antenna,
the signal can be amplified again so you should consider the expansion radio (Gain) at the antenna too.

SMA antenna.

With this kind of antenna , the range of the signal and stability is in line with Xbee specification and is the best when compare to other types.
The signal can be amplified again at the antenna too.
The only disadvantage of SMA antenna is “it’s so difficult to adapt this kind of antenna to use inside the box”.

The next article will be about “how to choose the Xbee module to befit your embedded project”.

Reference : www.thaieasyelec.com , www.thaieasyelec.net

Thank you,
Jitkasem

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Arduino new revolution

1. Arduino has a new logo (as you can see in the picture above). I thing it is “Atom” or “Infinity”. The new logo is easy to remenber than the old logo.
2. Arduino.cc will open their own webstore on 18 October, this year. New webstore will eliminate the difficulty in ordering arduino board that made by
Arduino.cc. In the past , they sold their arduino board via distributors or electronics shop only. There’re many electronics shop in the world that sold
arduino board (some shops sold real board while some shops sold clone board). For this reason the people may confuse about how to find the electronics shop
that sold the real arduino board of Arduino.cc.

3. They released the new arduino board named “Arduino Uno” and “Arduino Mega 2560″.
Both board still use AVR chip as their main processor.
(Arduino Uno use ATmega328 as main processor while Arduino Mega 2560 use ATMega2560 as processor).
Arduino Uno is special board that replace ft232 chip (FTDI USB-to-serial chip) with ATmega8U2 (8-bit microcontroller with Programmable USB
controller).
4. They launched Tinker Tookit, the new sensors development module that can connect and use with arduino board.
5. They plan to release Arduino Ethernet board. This board isn’t the ethernet shield but it is board that include ethernet interface equipment
(such as ethernet chip , ethernet port , etc) into main PWB. So in the future , user can upload program to the board via ethernet
interface (this feature is exist in mostly embedded linux board that you can upload anything to the development board via FTP or TFTP).

To view more information , please visit Arduino.cc website and Arduino.cc blog.

I am the one who like Arduino so much and I hope this change will bring a lot of good things to Arduino developer and Arduino user all over the world.

Thank you,
Jitkasem

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