SAN FRANCISCO, USA: To extend its leadership in delivering photonic integrated solutions with disruptive cost per bit and unmatched energy efficiency, Santur announced the general availability of its 100Gbps CFP Optical Modules compliant with 10X10 MSA.
The 2Km reach of this new version of Santur’s 100Gbps CFP Optical Modules bridges the gap between 100m multi-mode and 10Km Single Mode Fiber (SMF) solutions enabling the roll-out of new networks capable of delivering exponentially higher bandwidth at a significantly lower cost per bit. Unlike 100m Multi Mode based on ribbons of fiber, this solution operates on a conventional Single Mode Fiber (SMF) enabling extended reach of 2Km. Compared with other 4x25G 100Gbps implementations for single-mode fiber, this approach does not require 25Gbps electronics such as gearbox ICs to convert 10Gbps data streams to intermediate 25Gbps lanes.
“For more than 20 years, we have been discussing the possibility of integrating multiple active optical components on a single chip to reduce cost and power. Over time, several companies have tried but none offered such high level of integration that allowed us to meet our cost and power targets,” said Paul Meissner, president and CEO of Santur. “The hybrid integration platform scales to higher data rates and wider WDM lanes to create many product variants based on a common architecture targeted at cost effectively meeting the needs to expand the global Internet infrastructure.”
Santur’s new 100Gbps CFP Optical Modules, which entered full-scale production in early June, deliver disruptive cost per bit at 100Gbps comparable to that of 10G XFP modules shipping today. Based on volume production pricing, the new 100Gbps CFP module will have an entry point of below $5K in 100 units or higher volumes. In addition to enabling lower cost, the new modules further improve the energy efficiency by slashing max power dissipation down to 13W to match power per bit metrics comparable to 10Gbps SFP+ optical modules.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Imbalanced panel supply-demand continues under gloomy European and US economies
TAIWAN: According to the survey announced by the research institute WitsView under TrendForce on latest shipment of large-sized panels in June, the total shipment of large-sized panels in June 2011 are 59.53 million units with MoM regression of 2.8 percent and YoY growth of 8 percent.
Surprising YoY -1.2 percent and -3.3 percent of shipments of large-sized panels in May and June
However, as indicated by the WitsView analyst Jien-Ann Chen, if we exclude the shipment of red hot Tablet PC panels this year and only compare shipments of LCD TV/LCD monitor/large-sized NB/Netbook panels in the first half of this year with the number during the same timeframe in 2010, we will see the YoY -1.2 percent and -3.3 percent of panel shipments in May and June, respectively.
According to WitsView’s observation on the panel shipment trend from 2006~2010, there have been positive growths among YoYs of every May and June. This year the market scales of LCD TV, LCD monitor, and large-sized NB have also been predicted to have positive growths. Therefore, the YoY regressions in May and June this year is an indication of the lack of consumer confidence in European and US markets in the first half of 2011 due to the debt crisis in Europe and high unemployment rate and pending debt ceiling issue in US, while worsening global inflation issue has also led to weak buying power of end market.
In this gloomy atmosphere, downstream customers have been much more conservative than usual with their stock preparation attitudes under the pressures of quarterly and semi-annual financial reports.
Sufficient endurance of tablet PC demand led by i-Pad
From the perspectives of applications, even with promotion slogans of 3D features and LED stylish design, the sales performances of all TV brands have been mediocre under the effect slow economic recoveries in Europe and US. The TV panel shipment in June is around 16.76 million units, which is almost identical with the shipment in May.
The latest prediction of global LCD TV demand by WitsView has been modified downward to 203~205 million (unit) from 211 million (unit); IT market has also been weak with monitor panel shipment at 16.13 million units in June with MoM regression of 7.2 percent; the shipment of NB panels is 15.71 million units with MoM regression of 4.3 percent. The only application product with contrarian growth is tablet PC panel with shipment at 7.23 million units and MoM growth of 8 percent. The shipment of Netbook is 3.68 million units with MoM regression of 8.9 percent.
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.
Key for operations of panel makers in Q3: performance of utilization rate, and steady outlet
WitsView analyst Jien-Ann Chen has pointed out that downstream brand customers have been taking conservative procurement strategies with respect to large-sized panels (excluding Tablet PC panel) in Q2 this year.
There are four major reasons for the YoY shipment regressions in May and June this year:
1) the ensuing production capacity expansions were too large to be digested by growing panel demand, leading to imbalance between supply and demand;
2) the introduction of Tablet PC has been attracting both the attentions and buying powers of global consumers such that the growths of demands for other LCD application products have been directly or indirectly squeezed;
3) buying powers among end consumers have been suppressed because recovery of the global economy has been impeded by various natural and man-made calamities such as debt crisis in Europe, global inflation, and the earthquake in Japan;
4) asymmetric variation of regional demand where the growth of demand for LCD devices in the emerging market has not been enough to fill the blank created by slowed down demands for LCD products in European and US markets. All these factors have led to low panel prices with no signs of recovery in recent months.
For panel makers, to modify their operating strategies for facing the hot seasons in the second half of the year, steady panel outlet and reasonable utilization have been the most crucial factors in Q3. Korean panel makers have their own brands for support; on the contrary, panel makers in Taiwan and China will face great challenges in their wisdom and determination in order to blaze new trails in terms of price, utilization rate, and operating profit.
Surprising YoY -1.2 percent and -3.3 percent of shipments of large-sized panels in May and June
However, as indicated by the WitsView analyst Jien-Ann Chen, if we exclude the shipment of red hot Tablet PC panels this year and only compare shipments of LCD TV/LCD monitor/large-sized NB/Netbook panels in the first half of this year with the number during the same timeframe in 2010, we will see the YoY -1.2 percent and -3.3 percent of panel shipments in May and June, respectively.
According to WitsView’s observation on the panel shipment trend from 2006~2010, there have been positive growths among YoYs of every May and June. This year the market scales of LCD TV, LCD monitor, and large-sized NB have also been predicted to have positive growths. Therefore, the YoY regressions in May and June this year is an indication of the lack of consumer confidence in European and US markets in the first half of 2011 due to the debt crisis in Europe and high unemployment rate and pending debt ceiling issue in US, while worsening global inflation issue has also led to weak buying power of end market.
In this gloomy atmosphere, downstream customers have been much more conservative than usual with their stock preparation attitudes under the pressures of quarterly and semi-annual financial reports.
Sufficient endurance of tablet PC demand led by i-Pad
From the perspectives of applications, even with promotion slogans of 3D features and LED stylish design, the sales performances of all TV brands have been mediocre under the effect slow economic recoveries in Europe and US. The TV panel shipment in June is around 16.76 million units, which is almost identical with the shipment in May.
The latest prediction of global LCD TV demand by WitsView has been modified downward to 203~205 million (unit) from 211 million (unit); IT market has also been weak with monitor panel shipment at 16.13 million units in June with MoM regression of 7.2 percent; the shipment of NB panels is 15.71 million units with MoM regression of 4.3 percent. The only application product with contrarian growth is tablet PC panel with shipment at 7.23 million units and MoM growth of 8 percent. The shipment of Netbook is 3.68 million units with MoM regression of 8.9 percent.
Source: WitsView, Taiwan.Key for operations of panel makers in Q3: performance of utilization rate, and steady outlet
WitsView analyst Jien-Ann Chen has pointed out that downstream brand customers have been taking conservative procurement strategies with respect to large-sized panels (excluding Tablet PC panel) in Q2 this year.
There are four major reasons for the YoY shipment regressions in May and June this year:
1) the ensuing production capacity expansions were too large to be digested by growing panel demand, leading to imbalance between supply and demand;
2) the introduction of Tablet PC has been attracting both the attentions and buying powers of global consumers such that the growths of demands for other LCD application products have been directly or indirectly squeezed;
3) buying powers among end consumers have been suppressed because recovery of the global economy has been impeded by various natural and man-made calamities such as debt crisis in Europe, global inflation, and the earthquake in Japan;
4) asymmetric variation of regional demand where the growth of demand for LCD devices in the emerging market has not been enough to fill the blank created by slowed down demands for LCD products in European and US markets. All these factors have led to low panel prices with no signs of recovery in recent months.
For panel makers, to modify their operating strategies for facing the hot seasons in the second half of the year, steady panel outlet and reasonable utilization have been the most crucial factors in Q3. Korean panel makers have their own brands for support; on the contrary, panel makers in Taiwan and China will face great challenges in their wisdom and determination in order to blaze new trails in terms of price, utilization rate, and operating profit.
NI announces closing of AWR acquisition
INDIA: National Instruments announced the successful completion of its acquisition of AWR Corporation (AWR) as planned and as previously announced on May 23. Effective July 1, AWR, a leading supplier of electronic design automation (EDA) software for designing RF and high-frequency components and systems for the semiconductor, aerospace and defense, communications and test equipment industries, will operate as a wholly owned NI subsidiary under the leadership of the existing management team.
The fast design cycles and increasing complexity of RF and wireless systems demand more integration between design and test. RF system designers need to validate their simulations with actual measurements, while RF test engineers need to increase test reuse and decrease test time through more design integration. By increasing the level of integration between AWR design tools and NI test software and hardware, NI and AWR can significantly improve customer productivity through increased connectivity between design, validation and production test functions.
“We are excited to welcome AWR into the National Instruments family,” said Dr. James Truchard, president, CEO and cofounder of National Instruments. “The full suite of AWR design tools in combination with a complete RF testing platform from NI will give customers a solution to decrease the time to market of their RF designs.”
NI and AWR both understand and embody the value of high-quality software design tools and world-class customer support. The acquisition strengthens both core software brands – primarily NI LabVIEW and AWR Microwave Office – as it reinforces their breadth and credibility while positioning both as unique but complementary tools in the RF design flow. Additionally, the companies can better service key accounts that use both companies’ tools through a worldwide sales infrastructure that provides local support, a critical requirement for multinational customers.
Customers should continue to contact each company through their respective channels.
The fast design cycles and increasing complexity of RF and wireless systems demand more integration between design and test. RF system designers need to validate their simulations with actual measurements, while RF test engineers need to increase test reuse and decrease test time through more design integration. By increasing the level of integration between AWR design tools and NI test software and hardware, NI and AWR can significantly improve customer productivity through increased connectivity between design, validation and production test functions.
“We are excited to welcome AWR into the National Instruments family,” said Dr. James Truchard, president, CEO and cofounder of National Instruments. “The full suite of AWR design tools in combination with a complete RF testing platform from NI will give customers a solution to decrease the time to market of their RF designs.”
NI and AWR both understand and embody the value of high-quality software design tools and world-class customer support. The acquisition strengthens both core software brands – primarily NI LabVIEW and AWR Microwave Office – as it reinforces their breadth and credibility while positioning both as unique but complementary tools in the RF design flow. Additionally, the companies can better service key accounts that use both companies’ tools through a worldwide sales infrastructure that provides local support, a critical requirement for multinational customers.
Customers should continue to contact each company through their respective channels.
CSR wireless audio platform brings HD voice, noise reduction and music streaming to new LG HBM-260
CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND & SAN JOSE, USA: CSR announced that the new LG HBM-260, the first Wideband Speech enabled Bluetooth mono headset from LG, was created using the CSR BC6145 Bluetooth audio platform, the first such solution to be qualified to the new Bluetooth HFP 1.6 profile.
In addition to its high-quality HD voice capability, the LG HBM-260 headset also benefits from the BC6145’s support for CSR’s sixth-generation CVC bi-directional noise reduction technology and audio enhancements for superior call clarity, as well as A2DP1.2-based music streaming.
“We determined that one of the things consumers most want from a headset is crystal-clear voice calling quality, and have worked to develop a headset with HD voice support as quickly as possible,” said Harris Ahn, general manager of LG Accessory Product Business Leader Group. “Our continued close collaboration with CSR has helped us secure early entry to the market for HD voice enabled headsets and allowed us to concentrate on the attractive design of our headset and ensure the high build quality our customers have come to expect from LG.”
The CSR BC6145 was the first mono headset platform in the world to support the newly-ratified HFP 1.6 Bluetooth profile, which includes Wideband Speech, often referred to as high definition voice or HD voice. As major wireless operators roll out HD voice services across their networks, the LG HBM-260 will rely on the mSBC Wideband Speech codec in the CSR BC6145 Bluetooth audio platform to give consumers one of the first products offering the benefits of HD voice’s significantly clearer and more natural speech quality, and the intelligibility improvements that result from this.
"CSR’s platform philosophy is to make it as easy as possible for customers like LG to offer consumers a superior audio experience with the latest features," said Anthony Murray, senior VP of CSR’s Audio and Consumer Business Unit. "The early provision of Wideband Speech technology in our audio platform supports the roll out of HD voice and coupled with CSR’s latest 6th Generation CVC audio enhancements we are able to meet demands for the highest quality audio, even in very noisy environments."
CSR’s BC6145 brings the enjoyment of music listening to the consumer using the mono A2DP streaming capability featured in the LG HBM-260. Consumers can now conveniently listen to music on their voice headset.
CSR’s BC6145 is built to deliver advanced Bluetooth audio functionality to a wide range of consumer audio devices. As well as mono headsets, the BC6145 is also suitable for after-market car kits and speakerphones, where it can greatly reduce the impact of speaker distortion and enhance the echo cancellation performance in the demanding noise environment of a car.
In addition to its high-quality HD voice capability, the LG HBM-260 headset also benefits from the BC6145’s support for CSR’s sixth-generation CVC bi-directional noise reduction technology and audio enhancements for superior call clarity, as well as A2DP1.2-based music streaming.
“We determined that one of the things consumers most want from a headset is crystal-clear voice calling quality, and have worked to develop a headset with HD voice support as quickly as possible,” said Harris Ahn, general manager of LG Accessory Product Business Leader Group. “Our continued close collaboration with CSR has helped us secure early entry to the market for HD voice enabled headsets and allowed us to concentrate on the attractive design of our headset and ensure the high build quality our customers have come to expect from LG.”
The CSR BC6145 was the first mono headset platform in the world to support the newly-ratified HFP 1.6 Bluetooth profile, which includes Wideband Speech, often referred to as high definition voice or HD voice. As major wireless operators roll out HD voice services across their networks, the LG HBM-260 will rely on the mSBC Wideband Speech codec in the CSR BC6145 Bluetooth audio platform to give consumers one of the first products offering the benefits of HD voice’s significantly clearer and more natural speech quality, and the intelligibility improvements that result from this.
"CSR’s platform philosophy is to make it as easy as possible for customers like LG to offer consumers a superior audio experience with the latest features," said Anthony Murray, senior VP of CSR’s Audio and Consumer Business Unit. "The early provision of Wideband Speech technology in our audio platform supports the roll out of HD voice and coupled with CSR’s latest 6th Generation CVC audio enhancements we are able to meet demands for the highest quality audio, even in very noisy environments."
CSR’s BC6145 brings the enjoyment of music listening to the consumer using the mono A2DP streaming capability featured in the LG HBM-260. Consumers can now conveniently listen to music on their voice headset.
CSR’s BC6145 is built to deliver advanced Bluetooth audio functionality to a wide range of consumer audio devices. As well as mono headsets, the BC6145 is also suitable for after-market car kits and speakerphones, where it can greatly reduce the impact of speaker distortion and enhance the echo cancellation performance in the demanding noise environment of a car.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Freedom of choice in platforms
David Owen, Business Development Manager, and Bob Stasonis, Marketing Manager Pickering Interfaces USA
USA: This year has seen three test platforms continuing to develop their market message and attract new users from older platforms such as GPIB and VXI, the choices seem to continue to expand for users. From a professional and a business standpoint, we see the choices as good for both vendors and customers as it allows for a broader range of applications to be supported by a greater number of products and platforms that address every budget and requirement. In this short article, we point out where the various platforms appear to be headed and why, from a Pickering standpoint, the freedom of choice is a good thing.
LXI milestone
The LXI Consortium has announced that by May 2011 it has certified more than 1,500 products from 35 different vendors since products were first launched in December 2005. That is particularly impressive since the consortium requires third party certification of LXI Devices to ensure vendors maintain the interoperability standards set by the specification for Ethernet (LAN) controlled instruments.
What does that mean for the vendors and users of LXI products? First of all, it certainly ensures that complete test systems can easily be assembled with a number of LXI products. Second, certification reinforces the robustness of the Ethernet interface and its widespread availability on computing platforms and ensures that it has the same feel and stability associated with GPIB systems. For vendors, it validates that their product line is compatible with all LXI products.
For Pickering Interfaces the core of our business is PXI based switching systems, but we have invested heavily in the LXI platform for good business reasons.
Doing the impossible in LXI
Many of our dedicated LXI solutions were simply impractical to implement in a PXI form factor. PXI imposes modular mechanical constraints on product design and when there is a requirement for a large and/or very complex switching system, it simply will not fit. Creating a cross-point matrix for example with 4,000 off 2A rated relays requires a great number of modules to be interconnected, often completely filling or exceeding the capacity of a single PXI chassis.
Some products require the use of large components such as microwave relays which simply take too much of the space in a PXI chassis, in doing so inflating the real cost of the switch and taking up valuable rack space. Each PXI module has its own overhead from the PCI interface it carries and the slots it occupies in the chassis.
In comparison the LXI platform requires its own LAN controller interface – Granted, a higher cost than the PCI interface on PXI – and its own case system to support its switch payload which is typically much lower cost than the PXI chassis. An added advantage is that external cabling is usually greatly simplified as any inter-module is eliminated as it is handled internally. In the case of a large complex switching application, the overall cost advantage can be a 40 percent saving or even more.
So, for Pickering Interfaces, the advantages of LXI are clear, they enable us to provide switching systems with LXI which are hard, impossible or uneconomical to do in PXI. It is not just switching systems these arguments apply to, in almost all product categories of test and measurement there are clear differences in what can be achieved in one platform compared to another. The differences may lie in measurement traceability, accuracy or particular areas of performance and they vary from one category to another.
PXI and AXIe market growth
PXI continues with its own milestones and the entry into this market of Agilent Technologies is certainly a very major event that will ensure the continued adoption of that platform into wider markets. We believe it is a very welcome event and one that will help expand the overall PXI market size and increase its adoption as the primary modular standard.
PXI is not the only modular standard that is growing. AXIe also has its adopters for higher performance systems and has embedded interfaces based on both LXI and PXI. More options on the platform of choice arise with Pickering Interfaces supporting its PXI switching modules in an LXI controlled modular chassis, so sales of Pickering PXI switching modules can be placed in an LXI or or a PXI controlled environment.
Summary
It is unusual to have three relatively new (in terms of test and measurement) standards making market progress at the same time, but it seems the future for test and measurement is principally with these growing instrumentation standards. Users have more choice, that is good news for the industry and vendors have the opportunity to promote the platform that best suits their products knowing that all three standards will have their place in test systems.
USA: This year has seen three test platforms continuing to develop their market message and attract new users from older platforms such as GPIB and VXI, the choices seem to continue to expand for users. From a professional and a business standpoint, we see the choices as good for both vendors and customers as it allows for a broader range of applications to be supported by a greater number of products and platforms that address every budget and requirement. In this short article, we point out where the various platforms appear to be headed and why, from a Pickering standpoint, the freedom of choice is a good thing.
LXI milestone
The LXI Consortium has announced that by May 2011 it has certified more than 1,500 products from 35 different vendors since products were first launched in December 2005. That is particularly impressive since the consortium requires third party certification of LXI Devices to ensure vendors maintain the interoperability standards set by the specification for Ethernet (LAN) controlled instruments.
What does that mean for the vendors and users of LXI products? First of all, it certainly ensures that complete test systems can easily be assembled with a number of LXI products. Second, certification reinforces the robustness of the Ethernet interface and its widespread availability on computing platforms and ensures that it has the same feel and stability associated with GPIB systems. For vendors, it validates that their product line is compatible with all LXI products.
For Pickering Interfaces the core of our business is PXI based switching systems, but we have invested heavily in the LXI platform for good business reasons.
Doing the impossible in LXI
Many of our dedicated LXI solutions were simply impractical to implement in a PXI form factor. PXI imposes modular mechanical constraints on product design and when there is a requirement for a large and/or very complex switching system, it simply will not fit. Creating a cross-point matrix for example with 4,000 off 2A rated relays requires a great number of modules to be interconnected, often completely filling or exceeding the capacity of a single PXI chassis.
Some products require the use of large components such as microwave relays which simply take too much of the space in a PXI chassis, in doing so inflating the real cost of the switch and taking up valuable rack space. Each PXI module has its own overhead from the PCI interface it carries and the slots it occupies in the chassis.
In comparison the LXI platform requires its own LAN controller interface – Granted, a higher cost than the PCI interface on PXI – and its own case system to support its switch payload which is typically much lower cost than the PXI chassis. An added advantage is that external cabling is usually greatly simplified as any inter-module is eliminated as it is handled internally. In the case of a large complex switching application, the overall cost advantage can be a 40 percent saving or even more.
So, for Pickering Interfaces, the advantages of LXI are clear, they enable us to provide switching systems with LXI which are hard, impossible or uneconomical to do in PXI. It is not just switching systems these arguments apply to, in almost all product categories of test and measurement there are clear differences in what can be achieved in one platform compared to another. The differences may lie in measurement traceability, accuracy or particular areas of performance and they vary from one category to another.
PXI and AXIe market growth
PXI continues with its own milestones and the entry into this market of Agilent Technologies is certainly a very major event that will ensure the continued adoption of that platform into wider markets. We believe it is a very welcome event and one that will help expand the overall PXI market size and increase its adoption as the primary modular standard.
PXI is not the only modular standard that is growing. AXIe also has its adopters for higher performance systems and has embedded interfaces based on both LXI and PXI. More options on the platform of choice arise with Pickering Interfaces supporting its PXI switching modules in an LXI controlled modular chassis, so sales of Pickering PXI switching modules can be placed in an LXI or or a PXI controlled environment.
Summary
It is unusual to have three relatively new (in terms of test and measurement) standards making market progress at the same time, but it seems the future for test and measurement is principally with these growing instrumentation standards. Users have more choice, that is good news for the industry and vendors have the opportunity to promote the platform that best suits their products knowing that all three standards will have their place in test systems.
Eurotech selected by DRS Defense Solutions for ultra low-power embedded computing platform
COLUMBIA, USA: Eurotech, a leading supplier of embedded technologies, products, and systems, has been selected to supply embedded computers to DRS Defense Solutions. The program is expected to require some thousands of embedded computers over a three-year period, for a program value estimated at more than $2 million.
The Eurotech Catalyst TC modules will provide the embedded computing platform, along with carrier card, for communications equipment for security applications from DRS Signal Solution. Initial deliveries begin this year with production volumes anticipated in the following two years.
"We selected Eurotech for this program for several reasons, including their ability to deliver products based on the latest technology in time to meet our development commitments. In addition, we have consistently found Eurotech to offer the most efficient products when it comes to power management and low heat dissipation," said Aaron Hankins, VP, Tactical Terminals for DRS ICAS, a DRS Defense Solutions business unit.
"Eurotech values the long-term relationship we have with DRS," explains Greg Nicoloso, CEO for Eurotech North America. "Together we have worked on many programs, and Eurotech is committed to delivering the embedded products and high-quality support DRS requires and deserves. With this strong history and firm commitment, we look forward to the successful, timely launch of this new program as well."
The Eurotech Catalyst TC modules will provide the embedded computing platform, along with carrier card, for communications equipment for security applications from DRS Signal Solution. Initial deliveries begin this year with production volumes anticipated in the following two years.
"We selected Eurotech for this program for several reasons, including their ability to deliver products based on the latest technology in time to meet our development commitments. In addition, we have consistently found Eurotech to offer the most efficient products when it comes to power management and low heat dissipation," said Aaron Hankins, VP, Tactical Terminals for DRS ICAS, a DRS Defense Solutions business unit.
"Eurotech values the long-term relationship we have with DRS," explains Greg Nicoloso, CEO for Eurotech North America. "Together we have worked on many programs, and Eurotech is committed to delivering the embedded products and high-quality support DRS requires and deserves. With this strong history and firm commitment, we look forward to the successful, timely launch of this new program as well."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
