:: TIDC 2007 CONFERENCE AND EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES

Register Today for TIDC Worldwide 2007
Don’t miss the opportunity to network with industry experts, academic peers and TI engineers and business managers at this annual conference, March 7-9 in Dallas. Take advantage of a myriad of opportunities, including pre-conference technical workshops, panel discussions and sessions presented by TI, educators and industry partners such as The MathWorks and National Instruments. Indulge in the Education Track, filled with curriculum-building tools for teaching real-time signal processing, analog, microcontroller and systems courses. Share best practices with academic presenters and colleagues from all around the globe as well as TI University Program staff.

Don’t miss the popular panel session “What is a System?” hosted by Gene Frantz, TI principal fellow. Frantz will lead a panel discussion with industry and academic experts as they explore how to prepare students for the future that awaits them.

Register online and get $900 off the full price! Educators only $295, and students only $149.

Free DSP Pre-Conference Workshop Included in TIDC Registration Fee
Whether you’re just getting started or you’re a real-time DSP expert, this workshop has something for you! Join professors Mike Morrow, Thad Welch and Cam Wright on Tuesday, March 6, for a full six-hour pre-conference hands-on workshop offering both beginning and intermediate level instruction in real-time processing using TI's TMS320C6713 DSP Starter Kit (DSK) enhanced with an eDSP HPI daughter card. Instruction will include getting started with a talk-through application and proceed to FIR filter implementation and signal generation. This workshop has received excellent reviews at several conferences. The instructors bring a wealth of experience to the topic. and the material is excerpted from their textbook. Academics will be able to qualify for a grant for the equipment used in the course. Access Content Catalog and enter S285192 as the Session ID to get more information on this workshop. Once you’ve registered, use Schedule Builder to add this session to your agenda. Seating is limited, so register today!

:: SOFTWARE TOOLS AND RESOURCES AT TIDC 2007

The MathWorks Presentation: Prototyping Video and Image Processing Systems on the DM642 EVM Platform Using Simulink
This session will show attendees how to create prototypes of algorithms on hardware at a fraction of the time it normally takes and without sacrificing quality. This technical tutorial shows how to model video and image processing systems in Simulink using the Video and Image Processing Blockset. Enter S285236 as the Session ID in Content Catalog to get more information on this session.

National Instruments Presentation: Fixed-Point DSPs for Introduction to Engineering Classes
Teach your students about commonly used fixed-point DSP platforms that are often faster and more cost-effective for volume production than floating-point platforms. This session shows how to leverage the TI TMS320C6416 DSK with NI LabVIEW to help students visualize theory, see the advantages of graphical programming and actually build a signal processing application. Learn more about this session by entering S284932 as the Session ID in Content Catalog.

:: TI IN THE NEWS AT TIDC 2007

Exciting Keynotes at TIDC Worldwide
TIDC Worldwide opens in Dallas next month with a keynote speech by TI executive Greg Delagi. David Deas of Bell Labs speaks on day two, and TI President and CEO Rich Templeton gives the final keynote March 9. Don’t miss their insights into the latest technologies.

Tap Into Connexions e-Publishing Opportunities for Academics
You can now take advantage of a unique Web-based teaching and learning environment that’s destined to change the way educational materials are developed and used. Connexions is an e-publishing platform that adapts the open-source software concept to scholarly academic content and combines unique document creation and management software with an innovative legal framework that enables anyone worldwide to freely publish and share educational materials. Learn more about Connexions, winner of the 2006 Tech Museum of Innovation Laureate, and its wealth of signal processing and microcontroller content using TI technology.

:: THE DAVINCI EFFECT AT TIDC 2007

The Video System Chain: From Analog to Digital and Back Again
Don’t miss this detailed discussion of every stage in a typical video stream. Using a video security system application example, instructors examine the hardware and software aspects of the complete video chain as it moves through the capture, process and display links. Learn more about this session by entering S284006 as the Session ID in Content Catalog.

TI Delivers New Processors Based on DaVinci Technology
Four new DSP-based digital media processors are optimized for cost-sensitive applications, including automotive and machine vision, video security, IP set-top boxes and video telephony. Learn more on the exhibit floor at TIDC Worldwide 2007.

:: UNIVERSITY SPOTLIGHT

The State University of Santa Catarina in Joinville, Brazil
The Electrical Engineering Department (DEE) of the State University of Santa Catarina (UDESC) in southern Brazil offers graduate and undergraduate programs in electrical engineering, with less than 100 new students admitted each year. TI’s University Program has enabled key research in control and automation at DEE-UDESC since the school joined the program in 1999.

In 2000, for example, researchers designed a platform for digital system control analysis in real-time. The system is based on two TI DSPs connected in a master-slave configuration. The TMS320F24x digital signal controller, optimized for motor control, and the TMS320C6000™ platform of high-performance DSPs, used for management and execution of computationally intensive algorithms, are combined for an optimal digital control system.

Other research projects include the development of the communication between embedded systems based in the two layers of CAN network. To validate results, the department developed a CAN network using F24x controllers and applied them to an automated guided vehicle application. Some of its more elementary functions were emulated in the DSP network by developing specific libraries.

In the power electronics arena, projects have focused on the design and assembly of a reversible current rectifier with high-power factor that leveraged the real-time values calculated by an F24x controller. A second project examined a regenerative, three-phase switching rectifier design with high-power factor and control in “dq0” coordinates implemented on a TMS320F28x controller.

DEE research also includes study of the control techniques used in single-phase induction motors (i.e., direct-torque control, field-oriented control and sliding-mode control). Simulations were carried out to analyze the dynamic performance of these techniques. Future projects are planned to implement these techniques using the F28x controller to compare theoretical and experimental data.

The partnership between DEE-UDESC and Texas Instruments allows technical research that contributes to the development of the Joinville area, a growing hub of technology and commerce in Brazil.