Embedded Computing Design’s Best-in-Show at electronica 2022 Winners

November 15, 2022

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Embedded Computing Design's bi-annual Best-in-Show at electronica reviews solutions on display at the conference based on Design Excellence, Relative Performance, and Market Impact/Disruption.

Judged by the Embedded Computing Design editorial staff, here are this year's winners in the categories of:

• Microcontrollers, Microprocessors & IP
• Power Electronics
• Wide-Band Gap Semiconductors
• Memory & Storage
• MEMS & Sensors
• Computer Boards, Systems, Components & Peripherals

 

Microcontrollers, Microprocessors & IP Category

GigaDevice Semiconductor Inc’s GD32F470 High-Performance 32-bit MCU Family

The GD32F470 MCU family is a high-performance product of the GD32 general-purpose microcontroller product portfolio. The GD32F470 MCU series provides excellent flexibility and a more competitive price-performance ratio to meet the various challenges involved in designing industrial and consumer applications. It has a powerful MCU core with low power consumption, large capacity Flash and SRAM memories, and provides rich peripherals that add high-speed connectivity, display, and analog interfaces.

The combination of modules within the MCU delivers an edge to support many complex applications, such as PV inverters, charging piles, digital power, transducer, PLC, HMI, motor control, robotics, drones, home appliances, and more innovative solutions.

 

Key Features:

• Main frequency up to 240 MHz based on Arm® Cortex®-M4 core, DSP and FPU
• Memory up to 3072 KB of Flash and 768 KB of SRAM
• Power supply range from 2.6 to 3.6V
• Operating temperature from -40 to +85°C / 105°C
• 3 power-saving modes for maximum power consumption optimization
• 3 x 12-bit high-speed ADCs with a sampling rate of up to 2.6MSPS, 2x 12-bit DACs, and multiple 16-bit and 32-bit timers
• Standard and advanced communication interfaces: 8x USARTs/UARTs, 6x SPIs, 3x I2Cs, 2x I2Ss, 2x CAN 2.0B, 1x SDIO, 1x 10/100M Ethernet, USB FS, and USB HS
• Additional peripherals: Digital camera interface (DCI), EXMC interface with SDRAM extension support, TFT-LCD Interface (TLI), and Image Processing Accelerator (IPA)

 

Power Electronics Category

onsemi’s Automotive Power MOSFETs with innovative ‘Top Cool’ packaging

New ‘cool’ MOSFETs from onsemi feature innovative top-side cooling to assist designers in challenging automotive applications, such as motor control and DC/DC conversion. Housed in a TCPAK57 package measuring just 5mm x 7mm, the new Top Cool devices feature a 16.5mm2 thermal pad on the top side. This allows heat to be dissipated directly into a heatsink rather than via a typical printed circuit board (PCB). One of the key benefits of utilizing the TCPAK57 is the increased power density by enabling the use of both sides of the PCB and decreasing the amount of heat going into the PCB.

 

Key Features:

• Design game changer - top cool package, unlike existing designs, enables the usage of both PCB sides without sacrificing thermal performance.
• Provides a different cooling method path while decreasing the amount of heat going into the PCB (Most of the heat going through the top).
• Top Exposed pad – allows heat dissipation from the top rather than on the board resulting to lower board temperatures thereby increasing system lifetime.
• Compact and simplified design for a more cost-effective solution
• Cu clip connection to minimize package resistance.
• Gullwing leads for superior board-level reliability
• AEC-Q101qualified and PPAP capable

 

Wide-Band Gap Semiconductors Category

Navitas’ GaNSense™ Half-Bridge Power ICs

GaNSense™ power ICs, use next-generation gallium nitride (GaN) to replace silicon chips to enable 3x faster charging and 3x more power in half the size and weight for mobile chargers, consumer electronics, solar, data centers and EVs, replacing silicon in a $13B market by 2026.

Navitas’ new family of GaNSense Half-Bridge power ICs integrates drive and control, with sensing and autonomous protection, providing intelligence and autonomy for the device to self-protect. This complete solution is configured as a ‘half-bridge’ stage, a fundamental building-block in power electronics. This revolutionary one-package solution enables superior performance with highest efficiency, power density, and reliability.

Key Features:

• Integrates a complete half-bridge stage, and incorporates drive, control, protection, and real-time autonomous sensing, in a low-profile, low-inductance 6x8 mm PQFN package.
• Offers a high level of integration, performance, and efficiency not seen before using legacy silicon and discrete GaN solutions.
• Enables 6x faster fault detection, 60% fewer external components, and 24% smaller footprint, compared to its closest competitor.
• Features precision sensing of system current, voltage and temperature and real-time control and protection, which eliminates external monitoring components - such as large, lossy sense resistors, which contribute to system power loss, increased complexity and cost.
• Provides lower component count , simplified design, and increased reliability.
• Ideal for ultra-fast mobile fast chargers, 8K LCD TVs, to 1kW motor drives.

 

Memory & Storage Category

Swissbit AG’s Data Center SSD N4200

The Swissbit N4200 is designed specifically for the application profiles and requirements of data centers. The firmware optimally matched to the workload profile keeps write amplification low and improves endurance. In addition, the SSD has the unique ability to measure its workload on the fly, providing comprehensive data for firmware adaptability. Utilizing this information, Swissbit can offer an optional in-depth workload analysis and tailored firmware configuration. The 2.5-inch U.3 SSD is based on enterprise-grade 3D TLC NAND (eTLC) and features a 4-lane PCIe interface to PCIe 4.0 specification. Storage capacities are 8 TB and 16 TB, respectively.

 

Key Features:

• Provides an innovative approach, optimized to specific application profiles rather than outdated standard benchmarks.
• Employs advanced software algorithms layered over a stable, flexible base, the N4200 can quickly be adapted to changing workloads.
• Delivers two- to five-times faster constant write speed while maintaining low latency and two-times greater endurance over its lifetime, without any host modifications.

 

MEMS & Sensors Category

onsemi’s NCS32100XMNTXG

This product is an innovative new product that raises the bar for rotary position sensors in industrial applications. The combination of accuracy, speed, integration, ease of use, robustness, insensitivity to almost all forms for contamination or interference make this a very attractive solution for customers. Not only is this solution better, but it is cost effective also. This is a significant innovation in the industrial rotary position encoding space.

 

Key Features:

• Dual inductive rotary sensor IC that can provide the accuracy generally associated with mid to high end optical encoders.
• NCS32100 enables 50 arcseconds or better accuracy at speeds of up to 6,000 RPM.
• Supports speeds up to 100,000 RPM (with a reduction in accuracy).
• Insensitive to almost all forms of contamination or interference.
• Utilizes a new approach to inductive position sensing to overcome historical limitations and enable a new breed of high-accuracy rotary position encoders in high-speed industrial applications.

 

Computer Boards, Systems, Components & Peripherals Category

Digi International's Digi ConnectCore® MP1

Embedded device security is a critical design aspect for the growing number of connected IoT applications. As the industry’s smallest STM32MP1 SOM that integrates Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and wired connectivity, Digi ConnectCore MP1 SOMs respond to the challenge of building intelligent, connected, and secure wireless products in strongly regulated markets such as the healthcare, transportation, and industrial sectors.

Unlike other SOMs, Digi ConnectCore MP1 provides a scalable, highly integrated solution that encompasses a complete set of development tools, design support, software, and security building blocks to accelerate time to market, making it an extremely cost-effective wireless solution for OEMs.

 

Key Features:

• The industry’s smallest STM32MP1 SOM that integrates Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and wired connectivity without comprising design flexibility.
• Delivers a highly integrated and secure connected SOM solution.
• Built on the STM32MP157C microprocessor with dual Arm® Cortex®-A7 and a Cortex-M4 core, the module is the intelligent communication engine for today’s secure connected devices.
• Seamlessly integrates pre-certified dual-band Wi-Fi 5 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac) with Bluetooth® 5 and Gigabit Ethernet connectivity.
• Includes a Connected Device platform, development tools, and design support.
• A cost-effective wireless solution for OEMs seeking to reduce risk and effort in their product development.