The Engineering Projects

How to use analogWrite in Arduino?

Hey Fellas! Hope you are getting along with life pretty well. This post is another addition in this Arduino Tutorial for Beginners series. Today, I'll discuss How to use analogWrite in Arduino? The analogWrite is mainly used to update the status of analog pins and is also used to map the analog values on the PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) pins. You can check the article that I have posted previously on How to use analogRead in the Arduino - this command addresses the analog pins on the board and reads its status, while today's one does the exact opposite. In this post, I'll try to break down each and everything related to analogWrite in simple steps, so you can grab the main idea pretty well. Let's jump right in.

How to use analogWrite in Arduino?

• The analogWrite Arduino command is used to update the status of analog pins and also used to address the PWM pins on the board.
• The PWM pins are 8-bit pins, terming that you can set the duty cycle somewhere between 0 -255.

• The duty cycle is described as the amount time the signal switches between ON and OFF condition. It is mainly written in percentage.
• If the signal remains turned ON half of the total duty cycle and OFF in another half, then the duty cycle will be 50%.

• The analogWrite comes handy when you plan to control the motor speed or the intensity of any LED.
• The value you write on the PWM pins will control the speed.
• For example, if you intend to run the motor at full speed, you will set the value 255 i.e. the maximum value it can handle that will ultimately run the motor at full speed.

• Similarly, setting value as "0" will be sending no signal and motor won't start.
• And if the motor requires to be run at half speed, then you will set the value 127 or 128 -  half of the maximum value that will cause the motor to be running at half speed.
• Arduino Uno comes with PWM pins available on digital pin number 3,5,6 and 9,10,11. You can put any number, out of these pins.
• Now let's have a look at How to use analogWrite Arduino command:

Syntax

analogWrite(int pin, int value);

where:

• "pin" is the pin number you are targeting.
• "value" is the duty cycle that can be set anywhere between 0  to 255 where former indicates the OFF condition and later indicates the system is running at full speed.

Example

analogWrite(10, 175);

Note: The analogWrite command doesn't return or store any value, unlike analogRead that returns value anywhere between 0 to 1023 depending on the voltage it gets in return from the connected sensor or device. The Arduino IDE is an official software used to program the Arduino Boards. It is an open source software, giving you the flexibility to program the Arduino Board as per your technical needs and requirements. It is free of cost and help is readily available on the Arduino site in case you feel any difficulty in shaping the desired code on the board. That’s all for now. I'll be writing more articles on how to code Arduino. If you are feeling skeptical about anything, making it difficult for you to grab the basic idea, you can approach me in the comment section below. I’d love to help you the best way I can. In the coming tutorial, we will have a look at How to use Arduino PWM Pins. Thanks for reading the article.

Introduction to CR1220

Hi Fellas! Hope you are getting along with life pretty well. I am back to give you a daily dose of useful information. Today, I'll unlock the details on the Introduction to CR1220.  It is known as a lithium coin battery that comes with a high voltage around 3V and encompasses an ultra-compact design, helping you gid rid of the hassle of buying two or three extra traditional batteries, saving both cost and space required to adjust these cells in the relevant devices. In this post, I'll try to cover each and everything related to CR1220, breaking down its details in simple steps you can get a hold what is this about and how it is used for. Let's dive in and explore everything you need to know about this battery.

Introduction to CR1220

• CR1220 is a button cell, also known as lithium coin battery, that is mainly used in high power devices such as keyless entry devices, glucose monitors, heart-rate monitors, and toys & games.
• It comes in cylindrical shape and can retain power for a maximum period of time. If it is spared alone for one year, it will discharge only 1% of the total battery capacity.
• This battery is slightly different from CR2032 in terms of battery capacity, weight and lithium content as former comes with 35mAh capacity with 0.8g weight and 0.006 grams lithium content while later contains 285mAh capacity, 3gram weight, and 0.109gram lithium content.

• It features small and compact shape, making it an ideal choice for hard to reach places.
• Prior precautions are required to keep this device safe and away from the kids. If swallowed, this device can cause a severe health damage or death in some cases due to the chemical composition it incorporates.

• The output voltage it can deliver is around 3V, enough to drive some small devices like wristwatches and glucose monitors.
• Both positive and negative electrodes are stainless steel SUS430 and Nickel plated.
• It is important to note that, no coatings or other foreign objects are required on the surface of terminals that can severely affect the real use or performance of this coin cell.
• Battery compartments work best to encapsulate this battery, making it safe and away from the kids. They can be designed using two methods: an extra mechanical tool like a screwdriver is required to unlock the battery compartment or you can apply two independent movements of the securing mechanism by a single hand.
• These battery compartments come with an ability to retain different cells where capacities will vary by size.

CR1220 Features

Features of any device can help you better understand major functions associated with it, helping you make a final decision before picking the device for your relevant project. Following are the main features of CR1220.

Classification	Coin Cell Battery or Lithium Energizer
Product Name	CR1220
Output Voltage	3V
Chemical System	Lithium / Manganese Dioxide (Li/MnO2)
Capacity	35 mAh
Energy Density	153 milliwatt hr/g
Weight	0.8 gram
Lithium Content	0.006 grams
Self Discharge	1% / year
Type	Non-Rechargeable
Maximum Operating Temperature	70 °C
Minimum Operating Temperature	-30 °C

 

• Some cells are made from different chemical compositions, making them mechanically interchangeable which may directly service life voltage stability of the cell.

CR1220 Dimensions

Following figure shows the dimensions of CR1220.

• The dimensions are given in mm vs inches.
• Pay special heed while selecting the coin cell for a required device, the wrong pick can intensively affect the device performance, resulting in a sheer hindrance in the operating process.

CR1220 Applications

CR1220 comes with a wide range of applications that require temporary power on the fly. Following are some major applications of this coin cell.

• Keyless entry devices
• Glucose monitors
• Implantable cardiac defibrillators
• Heart-rate monitors
• Artificial cardiac pacemakers
• Toys & games

That's all for today. I hope you have found this read useful. If you are feeling skeptical or have any question you can approach me in the comment section below. I'd love to help you according to the best of my expertise. Feel free to keep us updated with your valuable feedback and suggestion, so we keep providing quality work and you keep visiting us for what we have to offer. Thanks for reading the article.

Final Year Project: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners

Hi Friends! I am back to entice your technical appetite with nuggets of valuable information so you keep coming back for what we have to offer. Today, I'll unlock the details on how to handle Final Year Project: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners. You may be well aware what is final year project and those of you who are not, final year project, as the name suggests, is the project you have to complete in the final year before the end of your degree. Your graduation won't be completed if you fail to develop the final year project before the due date.

• If you have enrolled yourself in any program, you need to design short-term projects every semester that may not consume enough time. Most of them are assigned to every individual, however, based on the nature and complexity of the project, two members can form a single group for the semester project which, more often than not, can be handled pretty well, nevertheless, final year project is a different story altogether.

Many things come into play that if handled properly at the start of the project, can save you a bunch of time. It is observed, students take on the final year project two ways. In the first method, students dive in right away and start working on the project without any proper planning and see how things progress as the project takes some shape.

• On the other hand, some students don't start their project at all until days before the due date comes near. They just aim to complete the project anyway, just for the sake of getting good marks and meeting the general criteria to get the degree.

You may not agree, but both ways are not practical. If you start right off the bat without proper planning in place, you won't be getting desired results at the end. At the very least, you may end up building an entirely different thing than what you have aimed at the very start. And second, if you start working on your project at the end, you won't be able to complete the project within the deadline, which may leave you with no option but outsourcing your project.

• I think I have spent enough time to scare the hell out of you before giving any practical tip to handle your final year project. Don't you worry, I'll walk you through the step by step how you can manage the final year project and the practical ways to organize it without getting overwhelmed.

Let's jump right in and explore everything you need to know about managing, creating and developing the final year project.

Final Year Project: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners

There are many ways to solve the same problem. Similarly, there are many ways to approach the final year project as long as you start with proper planning. I am going to nail down the general ways to handle the final year project, however, the sequence of the described steps may differ from person to person, rest assured, if you follow all steps, I guarantee development and execution of flawless and sublime project becomes inevitable.

Group Formation

The first step is group formation. This step can prove to be a practical scale to gauge your friendship especially when you are an average person and your friend is very intelligent who comes with an ability to understand technical things with greater pace.

• I have seen in my graduation when it comes to making a group for final year project, some intelligent students don't recognize their best friends and always sneak their eyes whenever they encounter them.

I am not saying everyone is same, some students are very faithful and they know how to pick and drive the average students throughout the completion of the final year project. Protip: Don't you worry if you are not a genius student and no one is ready to include you in their group. You also have an ability to surpass the brilliance of the intelligent ones as long as you believe in yourself.

• The genius students are never ready to think outside the box. They feel secure in the loop they have developed over the years. Whenever they try to think outside the box, the daunting circles of insecurity and fear of failure always succeed in overpowering their innovative thinking. The everlasting wish to be number one and appearing in the glaring eyes of the teachers always put them in a sheer pressure, leaving their new ideas null and void before they actually come into play.

If you are an average student, this is the best opportunity to take charge of your whole project, do things in your own way and unlock your true potential.

Picking the Supervisor

A single advisor is reserved for a single group of students.

• Most of the students intend to pick the adviser based on their likeness instead of mainly focusing on how he can be a valuable asset and who can guide you in the right direction. It is quite possible, the advisor you are aiming to work with is not an expert in the field you plan to develop your project on.

Suppose, your project is majorly covering the mechanical aspects of the industry rather than dealing with the electrical circuitry and automation and the teacher you pick is expert in the automation and instrumentation and any other field on that matter.

• It is advised to pick the teacher that can be a good fit for your project and can practically help you during the project execution. Similarly, if you want to pick the female adviser, and your project requires a lot of industrial visits per month, you may find difficult arranging the visits quite often. The female advisors are not very keen on the fieldwork and mainly focus on the projects that can be easily managed from the comfort of the office. Still, it is an observation and it all depends on the nature of the project.

Project Proposal

You need to submit the project proposal before practically working on the relevant project. The project proposal is the proposal that involves the main topic of the project you aim to work on, its scope in the industry, major applications and how this project helps you grow and excel as a better version of yourself in your technical field.

• You may have to deal with the number of rejections before your proposal actually gets accepted. It is advised to work on three or four proposals that resonate with your interest, so you come up with more options to present your idea in a better way.

Sometimes, the proposal you feel enticing and captivating turns out to be very negligible for the adviser and the one you think useless proves to be very valuable. Your advisor is a senior person and comes with more experience than you, so he has the better eye to observe technicalities in your project that you are unable to anticipate at first place. Point to be Noted: Avoid picking the project that you fail to deliver at the end. In my class, some students come up with very complex projects like automatic writing robot, and what they presented at the end was only the prototype of hand that could barely move until you manually put it aside or allowed it to follow the command manually. It is good to take an innovative approach, but make sure you have the capability to design it at the right time and your project meets the exact requirements what you have promised in the project proposal.

• Most of the students feel very energetic at the start of the project development. Nevertheless, as time passes by, they lose the real spark and fail to sustain their interest. There is a vital reason behind it. Presenting the project theoretically is very easy, but when it comes to practically implement your written strategies and walk your talk, things go complex, if not always, leaving you stuck in the middle of no man's land.

Solution: If you want to keep your natural energy alive without getting drained in the middle of the project, you must take a little break if you feel overwhelmed. This will do a lot better than forcing your mind to think out of the box and develop your project anyway.

• Don't stress and rush over things. When you think the steps you take are not going in your way, it is good to take some rest. If you fail every time to run your project properly after making too many attempts and compiling the code over and over again gives you h, it is advised to switch your field of interest.

You can try reading some novel or your favorite blog. Keep one thing in mind while switching your interest, don't break a link with your project entirely. Go with the flow and take things in a subtle way - politely, smoothly yet consistently. Following is the list of some projects you can review and make a final decision on what kind of project you can design in your final year.

• Embedded system projects
• Electronic Projects
• Arduino Projects
• PLC Projects
• 8051 Projects
• PIC Projects

Assigning the task

Once your proposal is accepted, it is your duty, if you are a group mentor, to assign different tasks as per the capabilities and expertise of every individual.

• Not every student comes with the same taste in the relevant field. Some are pro in the mechanical part, some are good at coding and some feel pleasure playing with the technical circuitry involved, and at the very least, if they are not good at anything, they enjoy writing the technical report of the project that you need to submit at the end of the project.

It is better to write down every step you take and every difficulty you face during the execution of the project.

What if you get stuck?

Some students keep themselves overwhelmed by the bundle of information spread across the web before they actually start working on the project.

• It is good to start with the proper planning and doing appropriate research pertaining to the relevancy of the project, but don't get too inundated with the research process that you feel fear starting out the project at first place. Do the thorough research, but once you are done, start off your project right away.

You can continue your researching process along the course of the project. You need to hunt down different things, and in the end, stick with the ones you find more appropriate for the project.

• It is observed, students spin their wheels on the research process and half of their semester is gone while they are still at the brink of finalizing their project topic. Keep these things into consideration, they can save you from the big loss looming upon you later.

Time Management

This word looks insignificant but bears more value you could ever imagine. Your whole project is based on how you manage your time to get down and fulfill the nitty-gritty of the project. You need to start working on the project right after your proposal gets accepted.

• In most of the universities, the whole project is divided into four presentations with each one requires you to preset the work you have completed until then.

Some students trick the teacher by showing off just the images picked up from the internet that they have entered at that stage of the project. This will affect your grade at the end when you fail to preset the actual work in physical or written form at the end.

Avoid Copying Others

The worst thing you can do during the development of your final year project is to copy your seniors. Doing this will brush away your natural thinking ability and innovation you plan to incorporate into the project.

• Yes, you can get inspiration by evaluating different projects but you can't copy the entire project and get away with it. Look for help and explore as many sites and books as you want, but at the end design your project in your own way that gives value to the potential visitors and turns out to be very handy for the industrial use.

How to Make it Economical

Whenever you plan to design your project, you cannot write off the sheer importance of managing project budget and keeping it under control. It is perceived that the more you spend on your project the more you come up with the chance to create something special that stands out. But, this is not the case in reality.

• Developing a project in the engineering field and any other field on that matter is all about creating the solution for a particular problem by using minimum resources possible and keeping it under an economical price so even a common man feels no difficulty and doesn't think too much before buying your project in order to get rid of their problems.

If you intend to develop the electrical project, more often than not, you may be requiring PCB for joining the number of components on the board. It is good practice to test your project on the breadboard first and then move to the PCB once you are sure about the final design.

• Getting help from reasonable PCB fabrication house needs some due diligence. If you pick any manufacturer without doing much research, you may end up putting your whole project under huge risk that eventually costs you both your precious time and money. But, don't you worry. I have got you covered.

If you want quality PCBs with proper copper traces that provide a solid connection between the components, I'd advise you to get services from PCBWay. This company will not only give you a quality product but also guide you in picking the right board for your project. Prompt help is readily available and they will leave no stone unturned to satisfy your technical needs.

Final Thought

Final year project is like a holy grail unless you start with proper planning. Design your project for the sake of learning, not for the sake of getting good grades only.

• If you don't put your effort layered with problem-solving skills, you may succeed in developing the project but you won't be getting something valuable out of it.

Don't you worry if you are an average student. You can do a lot better than the genius ones. Just believe in yourself and start with the unorthodox approach to deal with the same problem. If you come with the habit to keep discovering and exploring something new, you will definitely find a way or you'll find the excuse otherwise.

• Everyone is a common human being like you. No one is extraordinary but the ones who know how to work smart, if not harder.

Proper planning is what sets you apart from an electrician. Engineering is not about developing the project merely, it's all about solving the problem using minimum input that can deliver maximum output.

• Keep pushing yourself, and keep learning new things unless you get stuck. In that case, give yourself a little bit room, calm yourself, take rest, switch your interest without breaking the bond with the relevant project and then start all over again.

If you can't start documenting your project in the initial stages, write down the main points along the course of the developing process. That's all for now. I hope you have found this read valuable. If you have any question or you are facing any difficulty for picking and developing the project, you are most welcome to comment me in the section below. I'd love to help you the best way I can. And what are the tips and techniques you take into account while developing the final year project? Thanks for reading the article.

How to use analogRead in Arduino?

Hi Friends! Welcome you onboard. I have been writing these Arduino tutorial for beginners for quite a while now and today we are having the next episode. Today, I'll discuss How to use analogRead in Arduino. The analogRead is mainly used to program and address analog pins on the board. In our previous tutorial, we have seen How to use digitalWrite Arduino Command, which deals with digital pins of Arduino but today's one deals with analog pins. There are many types of boards available in the market ranging from Arduino UNO, Arduino Mega2560, Arduino Micro and many more, which you can use based on your technical requirements. Arduino Programming is made simple by the Arduino.cc - the manufacturer of Arduino Boards, providing an open source software and hardware features and give you the flexibility to modify and tweak the boards as per your requirements. In this post, I'll discuss how you can easily program the Arduino Board using analogRead if you intend to target the analog pins on the board. Let's dive in.

How to use analogRead in Arduino

The analogRead is a command mainly used to program the analog pins on the board. If you are using analogRead functions, it indicates you are making the pins as input i.e. you can connect the Arduino analog pins with any sensor and read its value by making the analog pins as input. Following figure shows the placement of analog pins on the Arduino Uno Board.

• If you have already got a hold of some features of Arduino Board, you must have known that analog pins are 10-bit pins. It means each pin can store 0 - 1023 values.

Analog pins are different than digital pins as the later can store only two values: HIGH and LOW while the former comes with an ability to store any random value ranging from 0 - 1023 where 0 will indicate the ground signal or zero volts while 1023 will be representing 5 volts. The voltage values are directly proportional to the values stored in the Arduino Pins. For example, if the sensor voltage is around 2.5 V then the value we get on an analog pin will be half the total value it can store in the pin i.e. 512. Syntax:

• The syntax of analogRead is given as follows:

int data = analogRead(int pin);

where:

• Pin defines the number of a pin you are targeting. Most of the Arduino Boards come with 6 analog pins and marked as A0 to A5 while Arduino Pro Mini and Arduino Nano come with 8 pins, marked from A0 to A7 and Arduino Mega stands out in terms of having the most number of analog pins, around 16, marking from A0 to A15 on the Mega.

Return:

• analogRead returns value anywhere between 0 to 1023 depending on the voltage it gets in return.

Example:

data = analogRead (4);

Note: 

• If you are aiming to read analog pins from digitalRead, you must write A4, instead of simply pointing the required pin number i.e. analogRead(A4).

Here's a sample code for testing the analogRead Arduino command:

int sensorPin = A0;
int sensorValue = 0;  

void setup() {
 
  Serial.begin(9600);
  pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);
}

void loop() 
{
  sensorValue = analogRead(sensorPin);
  Serial.println(sensorValue);
}

I have written an Article on Introduction to Arduino IDE - An Official Software used to program the variety of Arduino Boards. In this Article, I have broken down everything in simple steps, detailing how to select the relevant board you are working on and make it compatible with the software. That’s all for today. I hope you have got valuable information out of this read. However, if you are unsure or have any question you can approach me in the comment section below. I’d love to help you according to the best of my knowledge. In the coming tutorial, we will have a look at How to use analogWrite in Arduino, which is used to update the status of analog pins. Thanks for reading the article.

Introduction to S8050

Hey Guys! Hope you are doing well. I always strive to keep your technical needs and requirements quite in line with valuable information that helps you excel and thrive in engineering and technology. Today, I'll unlock the detailed Introduction to S8050 that is an NPN Epitaxial Silicon Transistor mainly used for push-pull amplification and general purpose switching applications. It is a low voltage and high current transistor, featuring collector current up to 700 mA and Collector-Emitter voltage around 25 V. I'll try to cover each and everything related to S8050, so you don't have to scratch your head browsing the whole internet and find all the information in one place. Let's dive in and kick off the nitty-gritty of this transistor.

Introduction to S8050

S8050 is an NPN Epitaxial Silicon Transistor that comes with low voltage and high current capabilities. It proves to be a bright spot for push-pull amplification and general purpose switching applications.

• This transistor mainly contains three terminals known as an emitter, base, and collector that are used for the external connection with the electronic circuits.

These terminals are different in terms of doping concentration where emitter terminal is highly doped as compared to base and collector terminals.

• The base terminal is lightly doped and the collector terminal is moderately doped where former controls the number of electrons and later collects the number of electrons from the base terminal. The small current at one terminal at one terminal is used to control large current at other terminals.

This transistor incorporates three layers where one P-doped semiconductor layer is encapsulated between the other two N-doped layers. The P-doped layer represents the base terminal while other two layers represent emitter and collector respectively.

• There are two types of transistors known as Unipolar Transistor and Bipolar Junction Transistors. The S8050 falls under the category of Bipolar Junction Transistor - as the name suggests it comes with two charge carriers: electrons and holes, however, electrons are the major charge carriers.

This transistor features two PN junctions: emitter-base junction that is forward biased and the collector-base junction that is reverse biased.

• It is important to note that, S8050 must be operating in a forward biased mode for a better performance. If a transistor is not forward biased, there will be no collector current, no matter how much voltage is applied at the base terminal.

The amplification is carried out a simple way when a voltage is applied at the base terminal, transistor draws small current which is then used to control large current at other terminals.

S8050 Pinout

S8050 mainly consists of three terminals. 1. Emitter 2. Base 3. Collector  Following shows the pinout of this transistor. The electron movement is mainly triggered by the voltage applied at the base terminal, resulting in the diffusion of electrons from the base to collector terminal.

• As the voltage is applied the electron from emitter terminal triggers and enters the base terminal, combining with the hole already present in the base terminal and the resulting pair disappears.

The number of electrons entering the base terminal from the emitter is greater than the number of holes diffusing into the emitter region that's why electrons are major charge carriers in case of NPN transistor.

• The base terminal is unable to handle all electrons entering it, subsequently, electrons move from the base to collector terminal.

S8050 Circuit Diagram

Following figure shows the circuit diagram of the S8050. In this NPN transistor, electrons are main charge carriers, unlike  PNP transistor where holes are major charge carriers.

• The base is more positive with respect to the emitter and the voltage on the collector must also be more positive than the base.

The collector is made physically larger than the base for two reasons: allowing a collector to deal with more heat without damage and increasing the chance of carriers that enter the collector terminal.

• Two current gain factors: common-emitter current gain and common-base current gain play a vital role to determine the characteristic of the transistor.

The common-emitter current gain is a ratio between collector current and base current. This is called Beta, denoted by ß, and more often than not ranges between 20 to 1000, however, the standard value is taken as 200.

• Similarly common-base current gain is a ratio between collector current and emitter current. It is called alpha, denoted by a, and its value mainly ranges between 0.95 to 0.99, however, most of the time its value is taken as unity.

S8050 Absolute Maximum Ratings

Following figure shows the absolute maximum ratings of S8050.  

• These are the stress ratings which if exceed from the absolute maximum ratings, can damage the device at large, which ultimately affect the project performance.

These ratings are determined on the basis of the maximum junction temperature of 150 °C.

• Additionally, if ratings are applied for a maximum period of time above normal operating conditions, they can affect the device reliability.

Applications

• This NPN transistor is mainly used for push-pull amplification.
• Some general purpose switching applications feature this transistor, aiming to control large current with a small current.

That’s all for now. I hope I have given you everything you needed to know about S8050. If you are unsure or have any question, you can ask me in the comment section below. I’d love to help you the best way I can. You are most welcome to keep us updated with your valuable suggestions, they help us provide you quality work. Thanks for reading the article.

Finding the Value in Your Utility Data

Hi Guys! Hope you are doing well. I am back to give you a daily dose of valuable information as per your needs and requirements so you can excel and grow in your relevant field. Today, I'll discuss a number of ways about Finding the Value in Your Utility Data. The expansion of technology in the business sector brings unlimited possibilities.  The business portal all corporate executives and entrepreneurs want, which contains all the data needed to monitor statistics and other data that is essential to know if a business is succeeding or failing, is available at a simple keystroke.  

Finding the Value in Your Utility Data

Utility data, or a business intelligence portal, is the way to be completely aware of assets, liabilities, capital, and expenses. Following are the number of ways you can find value in your utility data. 

Features

If you wish to get value from your utility data, be familiar with the features it entails.  Many utility data portals contain various types of data in an excel spreadsheet. 

• Some of the data you can have access to would be comparison reports, product capability reports, multiple templates, and financial reports.

Not only is management given various reports to examine to evaluate business success, but business intelligence portals also provide information to explain how a product might be breaking down as well as steps to resolve an issue. Leveraging a business intelligence portal can help streamline this.

Collect, Store, Organize

Depending on the type of framework involved, business data must be stored in the portal, and a system must be implemented to organize information collected by management or designated person.  

• A knowledgeable person must input the data required on an as-needed basis. There are a variety of software packages available from which management can choose.

Once the needed information is gathered (sales, other income, expenses, liabilities, etc.), the data is entered into the system.  At this point, the system organizes the given information.

• Depending upon the way your business has structured its utility data, your graphs, charts, reports, or statements can be arranged in a variety of ways.

Analyze and Share

Although the business intelligence portal will display various projections for you, some analyzation is up to you.  The gateway will analyze data and supply suggested strategies for you to implement; however, you will still need to make the final decision as to the steps you will take resulting from the data you have obtained from your portal.

• To get the value from your utility data, it is essential that you are sure you can rely on accurate information given from your own sources; however, it is equally important that you know when to implement the strategies offered.  

Of course, a good portal will provide you with the who, what, when, where, how, and why; yet, you will have the final say. A valuable portal will give you good projections, but those will be based on the data entered. Checking to ensure that the data presented is accurate will be up to you or your management.

Data is Everything

The data in which you supply the portal will determine the usefulness of the various reports and strategies you receive.  Several types of data can be utilized by a business intelligence portal.

• Enterprise data which is shared across locations and departments.

Structured data which is organized in a database or spreadsheet. Semi-structured data contains tags and markers to separate elements, but it is not what is found in typical databases.

• Unstructured data is that which is not organized in a predictable manner such as PDF's, Videos, or PowerPoint Presentations.

If you want both internal and external data to compare, it is essential to supply your portal with a variety of information.

• Any executive or entrepreneur wants business data that is organized and easily accessible but to get the most value from your utility data, have a wide variety of information to input from both internal and external sources.

That's all for now. I hope you have found this read valuable. If you are unsure or have any question, you can approach me in the comment section below. I'd love to help you the best way I can. Thanks for reading the article.

PCBWay - PCB Solution at Your Doorstep

Hi Guys! Hope you are getting along with life pretty well. I feel pleasure to guide you with valuable information related to engineering and technology that helps you make a final decision before selecting the relevant component or service for your next project. Today, I'll unlock the detailed Introduction to PCBWay - PCB Solution at Your Doorstep. The introduction to PCB has revolutionized the electrical field drastically where different components are to be placed on a single board with flawless wiring connection without compromising the quality of the board.

PCBWay - PCB Solution at Your Doorstep

It is good practice to shape your project using breadboards when you are in the initial stages of your project and testing different methods to meet your technical requirements.

• Nevertheless, once you are done with your initial testing of the project and have concluded the final design, it is advised to develop your design into the PCB board that turns out to be longlasting and provides both quality and authentic approach to your project where you are sure the components are interlinked with a solid connection.

The layers with broken traces will consume your lot of time and you will be wrestling your mind to hunt down the broken trace with no idea if you really succeed in the end. This is why you should pay special heed before selecting the PCB fabrication house for your project.

• If you require quality PCBs with solid copper traces placed on them and no matter how complex your design is, you get the actual result in real time, I'd prefer PCBWay. Why? I need your 5 precious min for that. Please follow along and get down to the complete review of this company.

If you are an expert you may already be getting services from someone for meeting your technical requirements related to the development of the PCB board. I won't be advising you to switch your company right away. But, I assure, if you review this company with unbiased thinking, you will definitely be ending up to secure your first order.

Christmas Gift

Christmas is near and it would be highly injustice if we fail to bring a little smile on your pretty faces. You can claim your Christmas gift with little effort. It is easy.

• Just design your Christmas PCB (it represents and conveys the idea of Christmas in any way i.e. traces are connected in such a way, they shape the Christmas tree, Santa Claus or any other way related to Christmas) and share it on this page. Don't forget to add keyword "Christmas2018" during the submission.

• Once you upload the project, you will get the generated link. Just note that link with the order number and email to eric@pcbway.com.

In doing so, you will be getting the full cash coupon of worth $40  with remaining amount paid by yourself. Time is money so don't waste it scratching your head with the project's prerequisites that you can put off as this deal will be ending on 10th December.

Top-Notch Quality

You don't want to compromise the quality anyway. Some fabrication houses spread across the web, are claiming to give you the lowest price PCBs but what they offer for a price they cover up by providing the low-quality product.

• This is where PCBWay comes handy. They stand firmly on their words and deliver exactly what they promise. They are a one-stop shop housing low price and best quality PCBs. You may be thinking I'm becoming a little bit narcissistic about this company, but you will be speaking the same, if not more than that, once you are done working with it.

PCBA Facility

Getting a quality PCB is a half work done unless you are pretty nifty about placing the electrical components on it. Apart from producing quality PCBs, they offer PCBA (Printed Service Board Assembly) service, setting you free from the hassle of placing components on board. There are two ways to connect components on PCB board

• SMT
• Thru-hole

You can pick any of them based on your technical needs. Yes, you need to pay little extra if you plan to order both PCB and PCBA services.

Types of PCBs

They come with an ability to produce almost every kind of PCB ranging from a single layer, double layer, flex, rigid-flex to high-frequency PCBs. You name it, they have it.

• Every PCB you get will come with Stencil printing and exact placement of solder mask with silkscreen. The stencil is nothing but a process that represents solder paste deposit on the board. It is available in two types: framework type and non-framework which you can use based on your requirements.

They work with third-party testing service called Huizhou Lier Laboratory that plays a vital role for thermal stress detection which is very handy for both appearance observation and section observation. This company keeps a deep eye to the manufacturing quality and strives to keep the customers' requirements quite in line with the production process.

Team of Skilled Professionals

A team of skilled professionals is available to serve you with prompt help. If you are unsure about your design, they will help you make a decision and recommend the product that best suits your technical needs.

• Be sure to highlight the complete features and requirements of the required product before securing your order. However, if you think the product you get doesn't meet your requirements, you can ask for the replacement. They will compensate you with a full refund or alternative product, what resonates with your field of interest.

Quick Delivery

More often than not, the delivery time is somewhere between 1 to 3 days, nevertheless, it all depends on the complexity of the product. Following table shows the delivery time of the PCBs with features you plan to order.

Live Chat Support

Live chat support is an amazing feature added on the site interface. Whenever you come over the site, a prompt chat window will open, asking you if you have any query to be answered quickly.

• They will help you from the citing the quotation to picking the right product for your project. You can get an instant quote from here

Summary

Finally, I have arranged the common points highlighting why you should be preferring this PCB fabrication house.

• Christmas Gift worth $40
• Priceless quality
• Outstanding PCB Manufacturer Located in China
• PCB and PCBA available at one place
• Worldwide trusted experience with potential customers
• Team with highly skilled professionals
• Quick delivery time supporting DHL
• 24 Hour Tech Support with Live Chat Support Service
• Competitive pricing

That's all for now. This is enough to get you started and make a final decision. If you are unsure or have any question, you can ask me in the comment section below. I’d love to help you in any way I can. You are most welcome to keep us updated with your valuable suggestions, we shape our content based on them, so keep them coming. Thanks for reading the article.

Introduction to USB

Hey Everyone! Hope you are getting along with life pretty well. I always strive to keep your technical appetite filled with the recent and valuable development in engineering and technology. Today, I'll unravel the detailed Introduction to USB. The USB stands for Universal Serial Bus which is an industry standard mainly developed for laying out the communication between a computer and peripheral devices. The first USB was developed in 1996 by the collaborative effort of seven companies - DEC, Microsoft, Compaq, Nortel, IBM, Intel, and NEC

• The USB device not only helps in establishing a flawless communication but also assists to power up the connected peripheral devices, setting you free from the parallel ports and the external power chargers that turn out to be costly and cover more space.

The lastest USB 3.2 is introduced in 2017 with the maximum speed capability for communication - around 20 GBits/s which is quite adequate to transfer the data from the peripheral device to the computer with some remarkable pace. In this post, I'll cover each and everything related to USB, its main features, need of use, advantages and main applications. Let's dive right in.

Introduction to USB

The USB is an industry standard mainly developed for laying out the communication between a computer and peripheral devices.

• Additionally, unlike some traditional connector, USB doesn't require any user adjustable interface setting, it serves more like a plug and play device. You just need to connect the one end of the USB cable with a peripheral device and another end to the computer and start playing and controlling the peripheral device.

Communication between the devices is an essential part of the electronics. More often than not, the computer serves as a host with which the peripheral devices are connected. It is important to note that, it is impossible to connect the two peripheral devices using USB unless there is a separate host available that controls the communication and serves as the main handling device in the whole arrangement of communication between the peripheral devices.

• The USB is unable to handle multi-master arrangement and can support one host per bus. However, the "USB on the GO" is designed with the purpose, if there is no host available, two devices collaborate with each other to define, which one is appropriate to serve as a host in the whole protocol.

USB Pinout

Following figure shows the pinout of the Universal Serial Bus.   A number of USB connectors are available. The connector attached with the host (computer) or device is called male port or receptacle, and the connector coupled with the cable is called female jack or plug. There are 7 USB connectors introduced until now

• Standard-A Type
• Standard-B Type
• Mini-A
• Mini-B
• Micro-A
• Micro-B,
• Type-C

Standard A and B type come with 4 pins while Mini and Micro-USB interface is incorporated with total five pins where four pins work similar to the standard USB connectors and the additional pin is nothing but a device indicator. Following figure shows the pinout of USB Type C connector.   Type C connector is a new connector that stands out in terms of power capabilities as it comes with an ability to deliver 100 W which far larger than its standard predecessors that can deliver in a range between 2.5 to 5 W.

• It comes very handy in a variety of fast charging applications, as it features power delivery, video, audio, and data capability in a single package.

Pin Description

As mentioned above USB is a serial bus that is housed with 4 shielded wires where two are reserved for power (+5v & GND) while the other two are used for carrying differential data signals. They are marked as D+ and D- on the pinout given above and are transmitted on a twisted pair.

• The NRZI (Non-Return to Zero Invert) encoding scheme is mainly employed to send data with a sync field while ultimately helps in synchronizing the host and receiver clocks.

Note: The half-duplex differential signaling is used to brush off the effects of electromagnetic noise where long lines are a major concern.

Capability

A single USB bus can handle around 127 devices at a time. If you plan to connect more devices, you need to add another host to the arrangement.

• The earlier USB hosts came with two ports that were enough to control the peripherals devices at that time. However, with the invention of new devices and as all workload was shifted to computer technology, it ultimately put the burden and erupted the need for more ports incorporated into the USB hosts.

Recently the USB host comes with 4 or ports on a single interface, giving you the flexibility to connect more devices on the fly. At the start, the hosts were featured with only one USB controller, where both ports sharing the same bandwidth. However, as there came a surge in the requirement of bandwidth, multiple port cards were coupled with two controllers, giving you the ease of handling individual channels.

• The USB 1.1 comes with a maximum cable length of 5 meters that can easily support peripheral devices running at speed around 12 Mbit/s, however, it varies as the cable length differs i.e. cable length of around 3 meters is a good fit for devices running at a low speed of around 1.5 Mbit/s.

Similarly, USB 2.0 is an improvised version of the USB 1.1, supporting a maximum cable length of 5 meters with devices running at high speed 480 Mbit/s.

• The USB 3.0 is not reserved for specific cable length, however, the cables used under this standard must meet some electrical specifications i.e. the maximum practical length is 3 meters for copper cabling with AWG 26 wires.

USB Versions

A number of USB versions have been released until now with every new version disguising the features of its predecessors with some added speed and connection capability. Following table shows the list of USB versions introduced till date. You can see from the table, how USB speed capability has been modified over the years ranging from 1.5 Mbits/s to 20 Gbits/s. This is a huge shift indeed.

Architecture

The USB architecture is mainly based on tiered star topology that is identical to 10BASE-T Ethernet. The topology interface supports the need of hub as per requirements. Recently, some devices like Keyboard come with a USB hub and instead of directly connecting the mouse or any digital camera with a computer, you can connect them with the hub incorporated on the keyboard and use them similar as you connect them with the computer, as eventually the keyboard will be connected to the computer at the other end.   The tiered star topology comes with a number of advantages that put it ahead of using a daisy-chaining connection for the peripheral devices.

• It is incorporated with built-in protection interface that disconnects the connected device immediately in case it comes under the radar of sheer current - more than it can handle. You can use other devices as usual with the disconnection as it won't be affecting other devices in the whole arrangement.

The USB hub comes with an ability to support both low speed and high-speed devices. As the low-speed device is connected with the hub, it will automatically block the full speed transactions, making sure low-speed device doesn't come under the influence of the high-speed signals.

How does it Work

As the peripheral device is connected to a USB host, the enumeration process is activated which is nothing but the process of detecting, identifying and loading drivers for a USB device.

• It all gets triggered by sending a reset signal to the USB device. Once the connected device is reset, it is assigned a unique 7-bit address by the host.

The reset signaling plays a vital role in determining the data rate of the connected device. No or minimal operator action is involved during this whole process as the configuration starts immediately as you connect the peripheral device, automatically loading the required drivers for the communication between USB host and device.

Advantages

The USB comes with a number of advantages that make it an ideal choice for communication purpose. Yes, parallel and serial ports come handy in some PLC programming and computational purpose, but where communication is required with a decent pace that involves no human interference, USB grooves its way brilliantly. Following are some major advantages of USB over other means of communication.

• It is a user-friendly and common person with no technical skills can easily get benefit from the sheer advantages of USB protocol. And the flexible interface of USB sets you free from the hassle of using a plethora of connector and wires at the back of your PC, that may turn your working space into a lot of mess.

As you connect the USB peripheral device with the USB hub on the computer, it starts configuration automatically and strives to keep the device quite in line with the working environment of the host, giving you the prompt signal your connected device is ready to use for the required operation. ----- For example, when you connect your phone with the computer, it gets configured automatically. And some phones which don't get connected will give you the option, indicating you need to install the specific driver in order to control the cell phone from your computer.

• Recent computers come with USB hubs that can easily support 4,5 ports as per your needs. In case your requirements surpass the given ports, you can add external USB hubs to incorporate more ports into the computer.

Low cost and power consumption are remarkable features that make USB stay ahead of its counterparts. It mainly works on 5V with little power consumption around 500 mA for USB 2.0 and 2.5 mA for USB 3.0.

• As mentioned earlier, the USB comes with a built-in current protection interface that saves the host from going over current that can ultimately put the host in a total stall. The current protection feature blocks the current that gets beyond the recommended ratings.

Limitations

There are some limitations involving the use of USB in terms of bigger perspective. The USB cables are limited in length, making them vulnerable for their use in distant areas.

• You can benefit USB protocol on the same surface, covering less distance where whole arrangement for communication between the peripheral devices and computer is laid out in a single tabletop surface.

Similarly, the USB converters may not be working as expected with they are connected with some external devices for the transformation of bi-directional data.

• For example, the USB to parallel port converter supports connection with a printer, but it doesn't work properly with the scanner due to the absence of bi-directional data pins.

That's all for now. I hope I have given you everything you needed to know about USB. If you are unsure or have any question, you can comment me in the section below. I'd love to help you the best way I can. You are most welcome to keep us updated with your valuable suggestions, we shape our content strategy based on them, so keep them coming. Thanks for reading the article.

Introduction to CD4046

Hey Guys! Hope you are doing well. Welcome you onboard. Today, I'll discuss the detailed Introduction to CD4046 which is a Micropower Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) that comes with a common comparator input and a common signal input amplifier between a low-power linear voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) and two different phase comparators. The phase locked loop, as the name suggests, is a loop where the phase of the output signal is compared with the phase of the input signal using a phase detector between two signals.

• Phase detector operates with the aim to adjust the two signal and make them quite in line with each other so they generate signals with the same magnitude.

In this tutorial, I'll walk you through the main details related to CD4046 by breaking down the whole nitty-gritty in simple steps, making it easy for you to grab the main concept. Let's jump right in.

Introduction to CD4046

CD4046 is a Micropower Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) that comes with a phase detector for comparing the phase of the output signal with the input signal and adjust them in order to make the matching signals from both ends.

• It comes with a common comparator input and a common signal input amplifier between a low-power linear voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) and two different phase comparators.

The input signal can be operated in two ways: capacitively layered with a self-biasing amplifier for creating a small voltage signal or directly coupled for a large voltage signal.

• The VCO (Voltage Controlled Oscillator) is an integral part of the IC that mainly generates oscillated frequency based on the applied input. The generated frequency is then used for phase modulation.

The chip features two phase comparators i.e. Phase Comparator I and Phase Comparator II. They are also known as Phase Detectors. Phase comparator I is nothing but an exclusive OR gate that produces a digital, maintaining 90° phase shifts at the VCO.

• It is important to note that both signal input and comparator input are set at 50% duty cycle where Phase Comparator I can lock the input frequencies that match with the magnitude of the VCO center frequency.

Similarly, Phase comparator II is known as an edge-controlled digital memory network and maintains a 0° phase shift between signal input and comparator input, providing a lock-in and digital error signal.

CD4046 Features

Following table shows the main features of CD4046.

Number of Pins	16
Min Supply Voltage	3 V
Max Supply Voltage	18 V
Number of Phase Comparators	2
VCO linearity	1%
Power consumption	70 µW at VCO Frequency= 10 kHz and VDD = 5 V
Technology	CMOS Phase Locked Loop
Operating Temperature Range	-55 to 125 ºC

• These ratings will help you make a final decision before you intend to incorporate this device into the relevant project.

CD4046 Pinout

Following figure shows the pinout of CD4046.

• VSS represents the ground voltage while VDD represents the supply voltage.
• A 5.2-V Zener diode is added with the aim to supply regulation if required.

CD4046 Pin Configuration

Following table shows the pin configuration of each pin.

Pin#	Pin Name	Pin Description
1	Phase Pulse	Phase pulse applied to the IC
2	Phase Comp I Out	An output of Phase Comparator I
3	Comparator IN	Input at the Comparator
4	VCO OUT	Output Signal at VCO
5	INHIBIT	Allows to electronically turn on or off the output voltage power supply
6	C1A	Capacitor 1 connected to VCO
7	C1B	Capacitor 2 connected to VCO
8	VSS	Ground Pin
9	VCO IN	Input Signal at VCO
10	Demodulator OUT	Extracting the original signal
11	R1	Resistor 1 connected between VCO and Supply Voltage
12	R2	Resistor 2 connected between VCO and Supply Voltage
13	Phase Comp II OUT	Generated oscillated output at Phase II Comparator
14	Signal IN	Input Signal applied to the Phase Comparator I
15	Zener	5.2 V Zener diode for voltage regulation
16	VDD	Voltage supply pin

 

• I hope this configuration will help you understand the major functions associated with each pin on the chip.

Absolute Maximum Ratings

Following figure shows the absolute maximum ratings of CD4046.

• These are the stress ratings above which the device may stop working. Before you start your project, make sure your technical requirements match with the ratings of the device otherwise it may cause more damage than good.
• As mentioned above DC supply voltage ranges between -0.5 to 18, however it is advised to keep the DC supply between 3 to 15 V for better results, similarly recommended operating temperature range lies from -55 to 125 ºC.
• The ground voltage is zero unless specifically recommended by the manufacturer.

CD4046 Dimensions

Following figure shows the dimension of CD4046.

• The dimensions in the numerator are given in inches and dimensions appearing in the denominator are given in millimeters.
• It is a low weight tiny chip that can easily stand fit in the hard to reach places.

Applications

CD4046 comes with a variety of applications aiming to compare the output signals with the input signals and produce them with the same frequencies. Following are the major applications of CD4047.

• FSK modulation
• Voltage-to-frequency conversion
• Motor speed control
• FM demodulator and modulator
• Frequency discrimination
• Frequency synthesis and multiplication
• Tone decoding
• Data synchronization and conditioning

That's all for now. I'll be writing more tutorials on some basic components mainly used in engineering and technology. If you are unsure or have any question, you are most welcome to approach me in the section below. I'd love to help you the best way I can. Feel free to feed us with your valuable feedback and suggestion, so we keep producing quality content and you keep coming back for what we have to offer. Thanks for reading the article.

Introduction to 2n5415

Hi Friends! Hope you are getting along with life pretty well. Today, I'll uncover the detailed Introduction to 2n5415 which is a PNP transistor mainly used for general purpose low-power amplifying and switching applications. It comes with three layers: two P semiconductor layers and one doped N-layer where later is encapsulated between other two P-layers. There are two major types of transistor: Bipolar Junction Transistor and Unipolar Transistor. This transistor falls under the category of Bipolar Junction Transistor as it comes with two charge carriers i.e. electrons and holes where later are the major charge carriers in PNP transistors. In this post, I'll try to nail down everything related to 2n5415: its main features, working, and applications. Let's dive in and explore the nitty-gritty of this electronic component.

Introduction to 2n5415

2n5415 is a PNP transistor that is mainly used for general purpose low-power amplifying and switching applications.

• It operates on a general amplification principle where small current at one terminal is used to control large current at other two terminals.

The 2n5415 is incorporated with three terminals known as an emitter, base, and collector which are used for external connection with the electronic circuits.

• These terminals are different in terms of doping concentration and size where a base is lightly doped and is responsible for the transistor action as it controls the number of holes flowing from emitter to collector.

The emitter is highly doped and contains 100% transistor current which then distributes between base and collector.

• The collector terminal is moderately doped and comes in a bigger size as compared to the other two terminals. It is mainly used to collect the holes emitted from the base terminal.

As the voltage is applied at the base terminal, it gets biased and starts drawing little current which plays a vital role to control large current at the emitter and collector terminals.

• The base terminal voltage has a large influence on the output current obtained at the collector terminal. This process is used for amplification purpose.

The PNP transistor is a current controlled device, also known as sinking device, where it sinks current into its base terminal and current flows out of the collector.

2n5415 Pinout

Following figure shows the pinout of 2n5415. There are three main parts of the component 1. Emitter 2. Base 3. Collector

• Holes control the conductivity in this PNP transistor similar to electrons that control the conductivity in NPN transistors.
• In PNP transistor base is more negative as compared to emitter and collector.

2n5415 Circuit Diagram

Following figure shows the circuit diagram of 2n5415.

• As mentioned earlier, the emitter terminal is highly doped and comes with 100% transistor current i.e. emitter current is a sum of current at collector and base terminals.
• When the voltage is applied, holes are diffused through the base from the emitter in this PNP transistor which eventually collected by the collector.

• Most of the professionals prefer NPN transistor over PNP transistor for amplification purpose because they consider conduction carried out by the movement of electrons is more effective and suitable than conduction carried out by the movement of holes.

2n5415 Absolute Maximum Ratings

Following figure shows the absolute maximum ratings of 2n5415.

• These are the stress ratings which directly affect the execution of electronic circuit. If these stress ratings are exceeded from absolute maximum ratings, they can damage the device at large, ultimately affecting the overall nature and performance of the project.

Similarly, if these ratings are applied for the maximum period of time above normal operating conditions they can affect the reliability of the device.

• It is preferred to examine these ratings before placing the device in the circuit and make sure the device follows the same stress ratings as defined by the manufacturer.

Applications

• It is widely used in general purpose low-power amplifying circuits.
• Many switching applications are incorporated with this transistor.

That’s all for now. I hope I have given you valuable information regarding this PNP transistor. If you are unsure or have any question, you can ask me in the comment section below. I’d love to help you in any way I can. You are most welcome to keep us updated with your valuable feedback and suggestions, so we keep producing quality content and you keep coming back for what we have to offer. Thanks for reading the article.