Latest Industrial Automation Technical Articles

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H-bridge DC Motor Control Using Complementary PWM, Shoot-through, and Dead-time

Learn about the role of non-overlapping or complementary pulse width modulation (PMW) in DC motor control using an h-bridge circuit, taking into consideration PWM shoot-through and dead-time PWM.

August 29, 2022 by Jake Hertz

Finding Summary Statistics and Probabilities with the Binomial Distribution

Article two in our binomial distribution series, this article explains the process of calculating mean, standard deviation, and probabilities after integrating your analytical task into the binomial framework.

August 17, 2022 by Robert Keim

Thermocouple Basics—Using the Seebeck Effect for Temperature Measurement

Learn about the Seebeck effect and how the Seebeck voltage and Seebeck coefficient come into play within the scope of thermocouples and temperature measurement.

August 14, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Offset Error and Gain Error in a Bipolar ADC and Differential ADC

Concerning analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), learn about offset errors and gain errors in a bipolar ADC and differential ADC as well as offset error single-point calibration.

July 24, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

The Binomial Probability Distribution in Electrical Engineering

This article, the first in a series, introduces the binomial distribution, a powerful statistical tool that is useful for reliability analysis, quality control, and other engineering applications.

July 22, 2022 by Robert Keim

ADC Offset and ADC Gain Error Specifications

Learn about the offset and gain error specifications for ADCs, like the ADC transfer function and work through an example of an ADC offset error and ADC gain error.

July 17, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Thermocouple Principles—the Seebeck Effect and Seebeck Coefficient

Learn about the Seebeck effect, the Seebeck coefficient, and their relationship with temperature.

July 10, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Introduction to Allan Variance—Non-overlapping and Overlapping Allan Variance

Learn about non-overlapping and overlapping Allan variance and how the Allan variance curve can be used to identify different types of random errors present in a signal.

July 08, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Piezoelectric Accelerometers: IEPE Sensors vs. Charge Output Sensors

Learn about integrated electronics piezoelectrics (IEPE) sensors, powering them, and how they compare to charge output (non-IEPE) systems.

June 26, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

IoT Communication Protocols—IoT Data Protocols

Dive deeper into the Internet of Things (IoT) communication through a brief overview of the different IoT data protocols.

June 16, 2022 by Ignacio de Mendizábal

What is Machine Learning? An Intro to ML Basics

This article aims to contextualize machine learning (ML) for hardware and embedded engineers, what it is, how it works, why it matters, and how TinyML fits in.

June 05, 2022 by Brandon Satrom

Accelerometer Specifications: Measurement Range, Sensitivity, and Noise Performance

Learn about capacitive MEMS accelerometer specifications for measurement range, sensitivity, and noise performance for both digital- and analog-output accelerometers.

March 13, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Accelerometer Mounting Methods: Types, Effects, and Solutions

In this article, learn about the different methods for mounting accelerometers, their effect on accelerometer frequency response, and solutions for mounting a MEMS accelerometer.

February 20, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

What Does an Accelerometer Output When It Isn’t Moving? Zero-g Bias

In this article, learn about zero-g offset and zero-g bias level, how it pertains to capacitive MEMS accelerometers, as well as accelerometer offset calibration to trim out offset error.

January 23, 2022 by Dr. Steve Arar

Deriving the Transfer Function of a Capacitive Sensing Accelerometer

In this article, we'll learn about deriving the transfer function of a mass-spring-damper system used in a capacitive MEMS accelerometer.

December 19, 2021 by Dr. Steve Arar

Introduction to Capacitive Accelerometers: Measuring Acceleration with Capacitive Sensing

In this article, we'll discuss how to use capacitive sensing to measure acceleration.

December 12, 2021 by Dr. Steve Arar

Introduction to Linear Variable Differential Transformers (LVDTs)

Looking for a succinct intro to LVDTs? This article will explain LVDT basics, including structure, circuit, transfer function, linear range, sensitivity, and more.

May 09, 2021 by Dr. Steve Arar

Assembly vs. C: Why Learn Assembly?

This article discusses two programming languages, namely, C and Assembly, and presents the need to know Assembly language for programming embedded systems.

September 20, 2019 by Colin Walls

Special Topics in Schematic Capture

Learn about heterogeneous and homogenous buses, special IC packages, and more!

August 23, 2019 by Stephen Colley

Error Checking Schematics

This article presents tools and practices in reducing errors in your schematics.

August 22, 2019 by Stephen Colley