Most modern laptop or desktop computers have their peripheral devices (storage, media, or cameras) connected to the main processor through a peripheral bus such as PCIe or USB.  Windows or Linux operating systems running on the computer can discover the connected peripherals through a process called enumeration or ‘plug and play’.  This provides information about device type, manufacturer and device configuration thus enabling the OS to load the appropriate drivers for the device and making device operational.  

However, in embedded systems, this is not the case as many peripherals are connected to the main processor using busses such as I2C, SPI, and UART which do not support enumeration.  

To enable the system to recognize the peripheral devices in an embedded system, developers use a Linux Device Tree which is used to provide the hardware description for the operating system.  Prior to using device tree, developers would compile the hardware description into the linux kernel and modify the kernel for each change in platform or peripheral device.  

What is a Device Tree?

A Device Tree is a tree data structure with nodes that describe the devices in a system. Each node has property/value pairs that describe the characteristics of the device being represented. Each node has exactly one parent except for the root node, which has no parent.

In the Device Tree each node is named according to the following convention: <name>[@<unit-address>].

• <name> is a simple ASCII string and can be up to 31 characters in length. In general, nodes are named according to device type it represents. A node for a 3com Ethernet adapter would use the name ethernet, not 3com509.
• <unit-address> component of the name is specific to the bus type on which the node resides. The <unit-address> must match the first address specified in the reg property of the node. If the node has no reg property, the @<unit-address> must be omitted and the <name> alone differentiates the node from other nodes under the same level in the tree hierarchy. In case <name> is used without @<unit-address>, the <name> shall be unique within the same level in the tree hierarchy.

Figure 1 represents simple tree:

• The nodes with the name cpu are distinguished by their unit-address values of 0 and 1.
• The nodes with the name ethernet are distinguished by their unit-address values of fe002000 and fe003000.

A node in the Device Tree can be uniquely identified by specifying the full path from the root node, through all descendant nodes, to the desired node.

The convention for specifying a device path is: /node-name-1/node-name-2/node-name-N.

Each node in the device tree has properties that describe the characteristics of the node. Properties consist of a name and a value. A property value is an array of zero or more bytes that containz information associated with the property.

With the Linux Device Tree, the developers can create a single linux kernel image specific to a processor architecture and create multiple device tree images specific to a platform or a product.  This makes it much easier to support and update the peripheral changes in various products and platforms that one desires to support.

In x86 based platforms, ACPI is commonly used to describe the hardware peripherals and it can be used with or without the Linux Device Tree.  However, in non-x86 platforms such as ARM based systems, Linux Device Tree is becoming the common method of enumerating hardware peripherals.

How is Device Tree data managed?

Data from the Linux Device Tree can be shown in multiple different ways. Usually, the device tree data is in a format that is readable to humans in .dts or .dtsi source files. The Linux kernel pre-processes the dts files before passing them to the device tree compiler.  The source code of the device tree is compiled into a .dtb blob file in a binary format, this format is generally called a Flattened Device Tree (FDT). With this data, the Linux OS is able to find and identify devices in the system. The raw form of the FDT is accessed by the OS during very early stages of the system booting up, but is then further expanded into a kernel data form called the Expanded Device Tree (EDT) so that it can be accessed later during and after the booting up of the system more efficiently. 

As of today, device tree support is enabled in linux kernel for Microblaze, Sparc, ARM, PowerPC and x86 architectures. To unify the handling of description of platforms in various kernel architectures, there is interest to extend device tree support to other platforms.

Device Tree Advantages and Disadvantages:

In summary, here are the advantages and disadvantages of Linux Device Tree.

Advantages of the Linux Device Tree include:

1. It makes changing the configuration of parts of the system very simple without having to recompile any of the linux kernel source code.
2. Easier support for new/additional hardware.
3. Can reuse .dts files that are already existing within the system and can override old functionality. 
4. It makes it easier to understand the descriptions of hardware peripherals.

However, disadvantages include:

1. Creation of .dts files require extensive knowledge of hardware and thus may not be easy to create.
2. Figuring out all the necessary syntax to match the intended system function may be difficult even if the user knows all the bus and device details.

We trust this generic insight into Linux Device Trees is helpful for your system development. Tauro Technologies implements and customizes device trees as part of Board Support Package (BSP) development and board bring-up. 

Interested to know more? Get in touch with us for details

The post Introduction to Linux Device Tree appeared first on Tauro Technologies.

Ultrasonic testing (UT) with gauges and transducers is one of the most important non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques available today, and it has multiple powerful applications across various industries. Just recently, Tauro Tech’s engineers have finished an important project in this field, designing and producing a new ultrasonic thickness gauge device that implements IoT and other tech innovations to achieve a new level of industrial inspection effectiveness. 

Today, in the era of digital transformation, we have unprecedented opportunities to empower already advanced techniques, such as ultrasonic testing, with latest technological solutions and automation capabilities, producing a new generation of devices able to perform processes with greater efficiency. 

What is Ultrasonic Testing? 

Ultrasonic testing is a non-destructive testing technology that is based on the propagation of high-frequency sound waves in the material or object tested in order to detect internal flaws or gather information about the state and character of the materials. Normally, UT is conducted by transmitting ultrasonic pulse-waves (frequencies typically ranging from  0.1-15 MHz up to 50 MHz) with ultrasonic transducers or thickness gauges.

• What is an ultrasonic transducer? 

An ultrasonic transducer is basically any device that is able to convert electrical energy into high-frequency sound waves, as well as detecting sound waves with ultrasonic sensors and converting it back to electrical energy. There are three types of ultrasonic transducers: 

• Transmitters (they convert electrical signals into ultrasound),
• Receivers (they convert ultrasound into electrical signals),
• Transceivers (they can do both). 

Today typical ultrasonic transducers are small hand-held devices that can come in various forms, shapes and with different sensors depending on the specific type of ultrasonic testing they are used for. 

• What is an ultrasonic thickness gauge? 

Ultrasonic thickness gauge is a type of ultrasonic testing device that works on the same principle and is used to check material properties, for all kinds of thickness measurements primarily. Various types of ultrasonic thickness gauges are used to test the thickness and other parameters of common materials such as metal, cement, glass, ceramics, etc. 

Applications of Ultrasonic Testing 

Ultrasonic testing is commonly applied across industries for two types of measurements: 

1. Detection of fractures, cracks and other kinds of defects in objects.
2. Measuring the thickness of the material. 

Today, UT is the primary way of testing industrial installations and facilities made from materials with dense structures such as metals and alloys. But UT can also be used to test multiple other materials, including plastics, composites, ceramics, concrete, wood, and others. 

Ultrasonic transducers can detect a wide variety of structural integrity problems with an object or material, including voids, cracks, disbounds, etc. Here are some of the most typical applications of ultrasonic transducers when it comes to specific products: 

• Railroad rails, 
• Metal pipelines and tanks,
• Steel beams,
• Structural welds,
• Aircrafts (frames and engines)
• Automobiles and heavy machinery,
• Ship hulls.

Ultrasonic gauges are typically used to measure the wall thickness in metal pipes and tanks, but have multiple other applications in areas where a precise measurement of a wall thickness needs to be done without the access inside or emptying a pipe/tank. To name a few examples: 

• Precision machines or cast parts,
• Molded plastic containers,
• Small diameter medical tubing,
• Rubber tires and conveyor belts,
• Contact lenses. 

Pros and Cons of Ultrasonic Testing 

As you can see, ultrasonic testing is quite a unique technology that has a wide range of extremely useful applications across industries. Naturally, like any solution, it has its set of strengths and weaknesses. 

Pros of UT

1. High sensitivity. UT allows to detect even micro flaws and cracks in objects/materials. 

2. Great penetration power. Thanks to high penetration of UT, even flaws deep in the part can be successfully detected. 

3. High precision. Ultrasonic testing is more accurate than most other nondestructive testing methods.

4. Safety. UT is also completely safe both for human personnel and equipment or materials, which makes it easy to use UT for inspection without the need to stop the production or operations of the facility. 

5. Quick results. Another strength of UT is the fact that testing results are available immediately.

6. Portable and automated. Ultrasonic testing is also a very portable and easy to automate technology, which is an important factor for many large-scale projects. 

Cons of UT 

UT as a technology also has a number of weaknesses, and when designing a new IoT thickness gauge device we at Tauro Technologies were aiming at eliminating or minimizing them as much as possible. 

1. Trained operator is required to set up and conduct the inspection procedure. 

2. Inspection of complex, irregular or rough objects can be challenging. 

3. UT testing devices must be separately calibrated to every material measured. 

4. Surfaces need to be prepared for inspection by cleaning and removing some types of coating and paint. 

5. Complex measurement projects typically require multiple setups. 

6. Ultrasonic testing equipment normally is more expensive compared to mechanical measurement devices.

Ultrasonic Non-Destructive Testing Process

When it comes to the actual UT inspection, it requires an ultrasonic transducer equipped with a set of sensors necessary to conduct the testing, and a display device. The transducer is then connected to the diagnostic machine and applied to the tested object/material. The surface of the tested object should be separated from the transducer with a couplant such as oil or water. 

During the operational stage, ultrasonic waves penetrate through the tested object and reflect back when they hit the boundary with another medium. Being recorded and interpreted by the measurement devices, this data allows qualified technicians to identify flaws and cracks in objects, as well as to measure their thickness. 

Ultrasonic IoT Thickness Gauge Device by Tauro Technologies 

As it should be clear from the above, one of the most crucial challenges about the non-destructive ultrasonic testing process the way it is typically conducted today is that it requires a trained technician walking around the facility and manually measuring the thickness of pipe walls and other installations. Needless to say, this makes ultrasonic testing a tedious process, requiring a lot of time and manual labour. 

And this is the problem we at Tauro Technologies wanted to solve by developing a new battery-powered ultrasonic IoT thickness gauge device that uses off-the-shelf ultrasonic transducers such as Yushi PT-8.

Our UT device can be permanently installed in predefined locations on the manufacturing floor. The IoT sensor will be activated during fixed time intervals that can be set up by the user to perform thickness measurements using echo-to-echo detection technique. 

• What is echo-to-echo?

There are two primary methods used for the ultrasonic non-destructive testing process: echo-to-echo and pulse-echo.

1. Pulse-echo

In the pulse-echo technique, an ultrasound wave is excited and detected by two transducers (transmitter and receiver) that are glued to polished opposite sides of a sample. When a radiofrequency (RF) signal is applied to the transmitter, it generates an ultrasound pulse spreading across the sample and producing an RF pulse in return, which then propagates back and forth creating additional RF pulses at the receiver. The sound velocity and attenuation are then used by the device to obtain the material measurement results. 

2. Echo-to-echo

The echo-to-echo technique uses gates set around two consecutive backwall echoes and measures the difference between them, which allows to extract the coating thickness from the measurement results and return just the part thickness. 

As the coating can add a significant error to the measurement results, echo-to-echo is the method that supports non-destructive ultrasonic testing with highest level of accuracy. 

Once the measurements are collected, the IoT thickness gauge developed by Tauro Technologies automatically performs all the necessary calculations to come up with the measurement results based on the selected material type. The measurement report is then being transferred to a cloud-based server where all this data can be safely stored, accessed and visualized if needed. 

Summary 

Thanks to its multiple strengths, today UT is a truly indispensable way to conduct non-destructive testing of objects and materials. And with new-generation UT devices, such as the IoT thickness gauge by Tauro Technologies, ultrasonic testing gets more accessible, reliable and cost-effective than ever before.

Interested to know more? Get in touch with us for details.

The post Ultrasonic Testing. New Generation of Non-Destructive Inspection Devices appeared first on Tauro Technologies.

Lateral flow tests (LFTs), also known as lateral flow assays or rapid tests, are currently widely used in medical diagnostics due to simplicity of this technology and the fact that LFTs don’t require complex and expensive equipment. Today, with a new generation of connected smart devices, this technology gets even more accessible, and the number of its applications in various fields of healthcare and beyond is growing rapidly. 

What is lateral flow testing? 

Lateral flow tests are designed to analyze various body fluids in order to detect the presence of target substances in these samples automatically, without the need to use complex laboratory equipment and trained staff.  

Most LFTs operate in the following way: a liquid body fluid sample runs along the surface of a pad with reactive molecules that make the pad show a visual result (either negative or positive). The pads are made of a series of paper and polymer-based capillary beds that are able to transport fluid. They act as a sponge and hold fluid, which then moves to the second conjugate pad, which contains the reagents required for the chemical reaction between the targeted molecule and its antibodies to take place. 

The reaction produces particles that pass through the pad and end up on the test and control lines for the LFT. The test line shows a signal, typically colored, to specify the result of the testing. Home pregnancy tests would be a good example of such an LFT, where the reactive molecules are targeted to detect a certain hormone, and the result is shown in the form of colored lines.

This technology makes it possible to produce simple, cheap and very effective test devices that are able to show results within a 5 to 15 minute time frame, which is much faster compared to other medical testing methods, which often take days to get the results.

Lateral flow tests production and usage is on the rise 

For the reasons stated above, such as simplicity, affordability, and flexibility (LFTs can be utilized to diagnose various diseases and used in other fields beyond medical diagnostics), the adoption of lateral flow tests is growing globally, and rather quickly. 

According to a new report by ResearchAndMarkets.com, the global lateral flow tests market is projected to reach US$10,2 bn by 2025 from US$8,2 bn in 2020, at a CAGR of 4.5% during the forecast period. Growing prevalence of infectious diseases globally, increasing aging population, growing demand for point-of-care and home-based LFT devices, and increasing demand in food and environment safety and veterinary diagnostics industry are the major factors driving the growth of this market, researchers found. 

Today lateral flow tests are widely used to conduct rapid COVID-19 testing as they are capable of detecting even people with COVID-19 who are not showing symptoms.

The technological development is another major reason why LFTs are growing in popularity. 

Digital lateral flow tester by Tauro Technologies 

At Tauro Technologies, we enhanced lateral flow testing technology with the power of modern-day IoT solutions by creating a smart lateral flow tester able to detect various diseases with high accuracy.  

Available at a retail price as low as $10, our digital tester can be integrated with any lateral flow test assay, automating lateral flow testing and reporting the test results. The test is augmented with a mobile application and cloud based data management enabling seamless and secure reporting of the test results with public institutions and hospitals. Rapid test results combined with digital monitoring enable institutions to rapidly respond to health crisis such as pandemics.  

Digital lateral flow test devices by Tauro Technologies can house any type of any fluid-based (saliva or other body fluids such as urine and blood) lateral flow test assay which makes it a universal solution for turning a regular lateral flow test into a cloud-connected solution. It takes 5 to 15 minutes for the test to show the result, making it a desirable and easy to implement solution for various kinds of medical testing, such as COVID-19 tests. 

As LFT is a flexible and universal technology, our digital lateral flow testing devices can be custom designed to be a perfect fit for application specific deployments in different fields. 

Common applications of lateral flow testing

Lateral flow tests usage is broadly segmented across several fields, with new application areas being added to this list on a regular basis as LFTs are able to handle a wide variety of samples and perform many sample-handling tasks, such as filtration, concentration, and removal of cross-reactive elements.

These are the most common application areas for lateral flow testing devices today. 

• Medical diagnostics; 

• Clinical testing;

• Drug development & quality testing;

• Veterinary diagnostics;

• Food safety & environment testing.

Naturally, LFTs applications in medical fields are the most common, and are normally divided into market segments based on the type of sample fluids they are designed to test (blood, urine, saliva, and other samples).

But today other fields and industries are also increasingly adopting this new technology. According to ResearchAndMarkets’ LFT market analysis, the food safety and environment testing segment of this market is projected to grow at the highest rate in the next five years. This is due to the fact that LFTs are emerging as simple and rapid alternatives to traditional methods for the detection of foodborne pathogens and contaminants. 

In case of environment testing, LFTs are finding wide applications due to their ability to handle a wide variety of environment-related samples, detecting different kinds of substances, such as industrial waste elements or toxic substances in water.

Summary 

As the lateral flow testing technology is gaining adoption across different industries and is getting increasingly utilized to serve various purposes, it is important to make sure that all the advantages and capabilities of this technology are supported, and empowered, by the hardware, which has to be not just consistently accurate and reliable, but also affordable. 

We believe that Tauro Technologies has developed such an LFT device. Our digital lateral flow tester, supported by a powerful mobile app, can be adopted to a variety of applications in various fields, being used to perform highly accurate tests at low costs. Get in touch for further information.

The post Digital Lateral Flow Testing and Possible Applications appeared first on Tauro Technologies.

Conformal coating is most commonly used to prevent corrosion damage and provide humidity protection to printed circuit boards in harsh environments.  However, there are other benefits to conformal coating, and we are often asked if your products should add this to the manufacturing process. 

What is conformal coating?

• It is a manufacturing process that a applies a layer of engineered polymeric product that forms a thin film on printed circuit boards that are populated with components.  The film protects electrical circuits and components from environmental contaminants including moisture, static, mold growth, chemicals, and sea salt. 
• There are many varieties of conformal coating products and most fit into 5 main categories based on their chemical composition: Urethane Resin (UR), Epoxy Resin (ER), Acrylic Resin (AR), Silicone Resin (SR), and Parylene (XY). 

What are the benefits of conformal coating?

• Protection from harsh environments is the main objective of most products that are conformal coated in manufacturing.  Extremely harsh environments that expose the PCB to chemicals or salt spray can quickly deteriorate the copper traces and solder and cause field failures.  Products in more benign environments experience the standard oxidation of the components over time and it results in shortened product life-cycles. 
• Products that are subject to shock and vibration also benefit from conformal coating.  Boards without vibration protection inevitably form microscopic cracks in the solder joints over time and will eventually exhibit intermittent failures.  For example, AR coatings will cure hard and offer cost-effective mechanical support.
• Conformal coating can be used to improve insulation between components on heavily populated printed circuit boards.  Reduced spacing gives designers the ability to shrink product sizes.  Further, conformal coating protects the PCB assembly from failures due to Foreign Object Debris (FOD) such as metal shavings or dirt.
• Black colored coatings are an inexpensive method for Intellectual Property (IP) protection by obscuring component part numbers.

Are there drawbacks to conformal coating?

• After boards are coated, it is difficult to remove the coatings and rework the boards.  Typically, conformal coating is employed after products are released to production.
•  Conformal coating increases the production costs especially in products that require lots of masking for components such as connectors.

How do I evaluate if conformal coating is needed for my project?

• Tauro Technologies uses many types of conformal coating chosen to fit the end application requirements. 

Get in touch with us for details.

The post Conformal Coating FAQs appeared first on Tauro Technologies.

Modern day warehouses are like a complex living organisms with rapidly moving machinery, products, robots, and personnel. Real-time tracking of the locations of the moving pieces is necessary for efficient and effective functioning on a minute-by-minute basis.

Tauro Technologies also employed this technology to address emergency situations. They are often dynamic and in a frenzied state for police, fire fighters, and medical personnel.  Fast, accurate decisions can save lives, keep the first-responders safe and are dependent on accurate real-time information to make mission critical split second decisions.   In partnership with a client, Tauro Technologies developed the hardware and triangulation software system for indoor location tracking to meet these requirements.

Providing real-time location and bio-metric feedback allows the first-responders to rapidly make informed decisions based on the health and status of their teams as they respond to the dynamic evolution of the emergency event.  The tracking system was designed with the following features:

1. It supports various RF technologies including UWB radio (ultra-wideband), BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and LoRa simultaneously operating on the same board.  Utilizing LoRa technology enables long range reliable communication of several kilometers and enables remote management of the operations.
2. The design is compact and is optimized for low-power operation in harsh environments  and features long battery life.  The batteries are recharged wirelessly reducing the need of cabling and increasing the flexibility of the system. 
3. Location detection is accomplished via multiple beacons dropped around the emergency site and personnel location is calculated on ToF (Time of Flight) from the individual RF tag to the beacon.   In addition, the location and biometric data is uploaded to the base unit in real-time.  

Tauro Technologies’ experience in power management, wireless communication, and RF hardware, firmware, and software design is keeping our first responders safe. Tauro Technologies has experience in a wide variety of applications, including military, scientific, medical, industrial robotics, and communications. Get in touch with us for more information.

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