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Where hobbyists and makers turn design dreams into...

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Connect with TI’s Wireless experts about the latest products...

On Board with Bonnie

Navigating analog signal chain design with Bonnie...

On the Grid

Across the smart grid application spectrum, TI supports every...

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The Signal

A technical discussion on analog signal processing circuits...

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Tools Insider

Your development toolbox! Get the latest design tips, trends...

Recent blog posts

Allie Hopkins
- Dec 21, 2017
Changes to TI Launch Your Design blog

Thank you for following TI’s Launch Your Design blog. Moving forward, all new posts about TI’s low-cost, modular development kits and software solutions will be published on ConnecTIng Wirelessly, MSP low-power plays or The Process. Existing Launch Your Design content will continue to be searchable on the web and TI.com. We invite you to subscribe to one of the three embedded processing blogs for technical...
Allie Hopkins
- Dec 21, 2017
Changes to TI Tools Insider blog

Thank you for following TI’s Tools Insider blog. Moving forward, all new posts about embedded development tools and software will be published on ConnecTIng Wirelessly, MSP low-power plays or The Process. Existing Tools Insider content will continue to be searchable on the web and TI.com. We invite you to subscribe to one of the three embedded processing blogs for technical solutions, industry trends and insights...
Tsedeniya Abraham
- May 5, 2017
How to balance efficiency and settling time with highly integrated DACs

In my first post , I talked about the need for modular, flexible and smart design in analog output modules and explored methods for improving efficiency in a typical high-side voltage-to-current converter used to drive 4-20mA outputs. Figure 1 shows an implementation that involves a buck/boost converter in a simple feedback network to supply just the necessary power to the load. While this implementation makes 4-20mA...
Tamara
- Apr 21, 2017
Zero out your system error with zero drift, zero crossover and zero hassle

This post is co-authored by Richard Barthel and Errol Leon . In applications such as position sensors, data-acquisition systems and resistance temperature detectors (RTDs), it is important to design with high precision in mind. In many cases, designing with precision integrated circuits (ICs) reduces signal-chain complexity, lowers the external component count, and minimizes board space and bill of materials (BOM)...
Evan Sawyer
- Mar 24, 2017
How to enable high-accuracy CW Doppler through discrete, precision data converters

Medical ultrasound is a noninvasive method of imaging the body’s internal structures (like organs) by transmitting high-frequency waves and measuring the reflections that occur at various boundaries within, such as between bone and muscle. Ther...
Tsedeniya Abraham
- Mar 8, 2017
How new integrated DACs increase efficiency and reduce board space in analog output modules

Industry 4.0 has revolutionized the manufacturing industry, changing how factories are designed and implemented. In factory automation and process-control applications, Industry 4.0’s impact comes down to two fundamental concepts: the prolifera...
Todd Snider
- Feb 27, 2017
From the Experts: Perform cyclic redundancy checking using linker-generated CRC tables

To verify code and/or data integrity, TI’s microcontroller (MCU) Code-Generation Tools (CGTs), including the C2000™ MCU CGT, the MSP430™ MCU CGT and the TI ARM CGT, support cyclic redundancy checking (CRC). This method can greatly enhance the performance of your embedded design and is easy to use, once you understand the basics of how CRC works. The focus of this blog post will be CRC with the C2000...
Aaron Paxton
- Feb 21, 2017
Extend battery life with a LDO, a voltage supervisor and a FET

Extended battery life is a common design requirement across a variety of applications. Whether it’s for toys or water meters, designers have various techniques at their disposal to improve battery life. In this post, I will illustrate one such technique that involves strategically bypassing a low dropout linear regulator (LDO). Generating the rail Using an LDO is a common way to generate a regulated voltage...
Evan Sawyer
- Feb 17, 2017
Detecting pesky failing batteries before they cause a problem

As battery-powered systems become more common, quickly identifying a failing battery so that it can be replaced is becoming increasingly important. From an individual battery powering a mobile phone to a bank of batteries used to store renewable ene...
Cole Macias
- Feb 3, 2017
Designing a discrete wide-bandwidth, cost-sensitive instrumentation amplifier

In this post, I’ll show how to design a cost-optimized, discrete, wide-bandwidth instrumentation amplifier using the TLV3544 . Instrumentation amplifiers are used for their high input impedance and ability to convert differential voltages to sin...
Chris Glaser
- Jan 27, 2017
Power your smart lock for five years on one set of batteries

Linear regulator, boost (step-up) or buck (step-down) – these are the three power-supply topologies for most smart locks. Which do you choose for your designs? Why does it matter? The success of any Internet of Things (IoT) device hinges on its...
Ying ZHOU
- Jan 20, 2017
Achieve big board-size reductions with tiny, precision op amps

Electronics such as smartphones, tablets, notebooks and wearable products are becoming more multifunctional, smaller and slimmer. Achieving higher functionality in smaller form factors requires extremely tiny ICs. Many times, different package types ...
Fernando Lopez Dominguez
- Jan 17, 2017
How 1.2% more efficiency can help you charge faster and cooler

With portable products packed with new features and an embedded lithium-ion battery inside, one key design consideration is how to optimize the end-user experience with fast and cool charging. Most higher-current (>1A) portable electronics have ad...
ThomasCosby
- Jan 10, 2017
How do you detect battery aging in rarely discharged applications?

Battery packs are used in the products that we depend on daily. Many of our portable devices such as our cell phones, our watches and our tablet computers are constantly at our sides and running on batteries. Consequently, their batteries discharge t...
Aleksandras_Kaknevicius
- Dec 27, 2016
Don’t let your battery drain on the shelf – use ship mode

Don’t let your battery drain on the shelf – use ship mode You’ve done it; your battery-powered design is complete: a new wearable for the consumer electronics market. You’re excited, and you want your consumers to feel that same excitement when they open the box and turn the device on. But how do you make sure that happens? A Christmas present bought in advance can be sitting in wrapping paper...
Swaminathan Ramanathan75031
- Dec 16, 2016
How to choose a multicell gauge

A battery gauge is essential in most modern systems to help determine how much power a given system can draw from the battery pack. Whether batteries are the system’s primary or backup power source, in most systems reliably operate on. In most...
Evan Sawyer
- Dec 16, 2016
How to achieve higher-precision data acquisition in benchtop test equipment

The digital multimeter (DMM) is a centerpiece in any electronics lab, but as the precision of electronics continues to increase, so does the need for DMMs that can quickly and accurately measure current, voltage, resistance and other parameters. Thu...
Helen chen
- Dec 6, 2016
Make your power bank more reliable with output short-circuit protection

Lithium ion (Li-Ion) or lithium polymer (LiPo) batteries are key components in some portable systems, especially power banks. But on rare occasions, these batteries have the potential risk of catching on fire or even exploding in short-circuit, overv...
Andy Soukup
- Nov 21, 2016
A mini data concentrator for the smart grid

Infrastructure equipment such as data concentrators and broadband backhaul routers represent a large portion of the cost of electric utilities’ advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) networks. Reducing the required capex by optimizing infrastructure deployments helps improve overall project’s return on investment. Utilities deploying AMI networks with power line communications (PLC) need to determine the...
Evan Sawyer
- Nov 18, 2016
Multiplexers: not so simple

It’s simple to design a multiplexer (or mux for short) into a signal chain, right? After all, the device simply funnels multiple signals into a data converter. In reality, a mux can significantly impact the performance of a signal chain in a variety of ways. For example, the on-capacitance can cause crosstalk between channels. Signal- and temperature-dependent variations in the on-resistance can introduce signal...
Dunni Aribuki
- Nov 17, 2016
Data blocking in the C2000 MCU compiler explained

At some point, C2000TM microcontroller (MCU) compiler users might have encountered scenarios where holes are observed within memory sections, or the linker is unable to place a section even though the available memory is larger than the section. Thes...
Onyx Ahiakwo
- Nov 4, 2016
How accurate is your battery fuel gauge? Part 2/2

Step-by-step calculation of gauging accuracy and other factors affecting accuracy In part 1 of this series, I discussed the difference between measurement accuracy and gauging accuracy. I highlighted that gauging accuracy depends on the accuracy of i...
Alex Jonsson
- Nov 2, 2016
How to connect your SensorTag to the Amazon AWS cloud via a mobile app

As a follow up to last week’s article , this post will work to cover the step-by-step process for getting the solution working. Following the steps below will allow you to connect the SimpleLink™ multi-standard CC2650 SensorTag kit ( CC2650STK ) to the Amazon AWS (AWS) cloud and customize the solution for specific needs. This tutorial also provides tips for other solutions using the CC2650 SensorTag kit...
Dick Stacey
- Oct 28, 2016
Wireless power during the zombie apocalypse

Did you know, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a web page from the Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response to address zombie preparedness . They claim that it is tongue in cheek, but we all know better. Here’s ...
Matthew Poole
- Oct 28, 2016
How to build a monitor and control solution for voltage regulators

In my last post , I talked about how to use a precision digital-to-analog converter (DAC) to margin a voltage regulator like a low-dropout regulator (LDO) or switch mode power supply (SMPS), providing the ability to either precisely tune the output or allow it to swing over a wide range of voltages. In this post, I will expand upon that idea to build a closed-loop system that, alongside the compute power of a microprocessor...