Wi-Fi security has significantly improved over the years from initially being more aspirational than real until today, where Wi-Fi 6 security is considered to be on a par with the security of 5G telephony. This FAQ will answer several questions related to Wi-Fi security and encryption: What’s the difference between WEP, WPA, WPA2, and WPA3? […]
FAQ
What to consider when selecting a Wi-Fi antenna
Antennas are a critical part of the link budget in all wireless communications applications, including Wi-Fi. In addition to the numerous antenna performance and link budget issues in wireless communications, there are general architectural challenges. The architectural options are the focus of this FAQ, including; long-distance versus local Wi-Fi and the use of directional vs. […]
Wi-Fi by the numbers
This FAQ briefly reviews the generations of Wi-Fi and backward compatibilities, looks at the different frequency bands used by the latest Wi-Fi specifications, and reviews the bandwidths offered by various Wi-Fi implementations. The first five generations of Wi-Fi focused on evolutionary and incremental advancements and backward compatibility. Wi-Fi 6 changed that trajectory and is a […]
Designing voice recognition into IoT devices
More and more user interfaces now consist of a conversation. New development hardware makes it easier to ‘talk’ to devices without physically touching anything. Vikram Shrivastava, Knowles Corp. More and more IoT devices these days will understand what you say when you talk to them. Voice is still in the early phases of adoption, however, […]
Quantifying embedded MCU energy consumption
There are several methods and benchmarks for quantifying the energy consumption of embedded microcontroller units (MCUs) and related energy consumption benchmarks for common peripheral functions such as Bluetooth low energy and Wi-Fi. Over time, MCU designs have changed to support the demand for higher energy efficiency. In addition, there is another world of energy consumption […]
Specifying MCUs for satellites and spacecraft
There is not a single group of standards but a continuum of qualification criteria for the components and systems used in satellites and spacecraft (Figure 1). With the growth of low earth orbit (LEO) satellites where the environment is less demanding and where some satellites are expected to be replaced regularly with upgraded designs, the […]
How does embedded software work?
Embedded software is specialized programming on a chip, such as a microcontroller (MCU), or in firmware in an embedded MCU, to control its functions. Unlike general computer applications, designed to be installed on various computer systems or modified to provide varying levels of functionality, embedded software is generally purpose-built for a single hardware environment and […]
What’s special about embedded microcontrollers?
Embedded MCUs are purpose-built for use in various specific applications and rely on embedded peripherals, various communications protocols, conventional operating systems (OS) or specialized real-time operating systems (RTOS), middleware, application software, and development environments. While MCU stands for microcontroller unit, it could also be interpreted as mission controller unit since these devices are optimized for […]
Automobile Hands-Off Detection, Part 4: Capacitive solutions
Cars with lane-keeping assistance (LKA) also are mandated to have a hands-off detection (HOD) function; there are several ways to meet this challenging requirement. Despite the BOM advantages of torque-based HOD, it has performance issues. Capacitive-based sensing is a viable alternative approach. Capacitive sensing for HOD monitors the driver’s grip on the steering wheel by […]
Automobile Hands-Off Detection, Part 3: Torque solutions
Cars with lane-keeping assistance (LKA) also are mandated to have a hands-off detection (HOD) function; there are several ways to meet this challenging requirement. The previous part of this article discussed the need for hands-off (or on) detection (HOD) and its connection to the lane-keeping assistance feature in today’s cars. This part will look at […]
