a2 e overview

7585 Ronson Rd.San Diego, CA 92111

Tel: (858) 560-6600 www.A2eTechnologies.com

Introduction

Capabilities Overview

Program Management

Representative Projects

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A2e Intellectual Property2

www.A2eTechnologies.com

Who is A2E Technologies?Who is A2E Technologies?

A2E Technologies is an Electronic Design Services (EDS) & IP development firm providing turnkey custom embedded design, application software, and product development services to Industry and Government.


What We ProvideWhat We Provide

• Research• Specification development• Electronics design• FPGA design• Software design• Industrial design• Mechanical design• Certification and safety testing• Manufacturing


One stop shopping for product developmentOne stop shopping for product development

LocationsLocations

A2e Technologies (San Diego)7585 Ronson Road

San Diego, CA 92111

A2e Technologies (Boston)155 Middlesex TurnpikeBurlington, MA 01803

A2e Technologies (Mexico)Col. Fracc. Colomos Providencia

Guadalajara, Jalisco. Mexico


Methods of EngagementMethods of Engagement

• Time & Materials– Provide schedule and budget estimate and track to that– Invoice twice monthly

• Fixed Priced– Provide schedule and budget estimate along with billable

milestones– Invoicing: Start of Project, Milestones, Sign-off

• Hybrid:– T&M during research/specification phase– Create fixed price estimate at the end of the research/spec phase– Fixed Price for project design and debug


Research Specification PrototypeTesting &

CertificationManufacturing

Where We Fit InWhere We Fit In


A2e Intellectual PropertyA2e Intellectual Property

• FPGA– H.264 Encoder– H.264 Encoder-Decoder– JPEG Encoder

• Software– Low-latency RTSP server


H.264H.264

• Markets: RPVs, IP surveillance, IR systems, periscopes• Smallest and Fastest H.264 Encoder/Decoder on the market• 1.5 Clocks/Pixel processing capability• Baseline profile• Available as Encoder only or Encoder/Decoder core• Supported in Xilinx (Altera support coming)• 10K LUTs in Xilinx for Encoder. 11K LUTs for

Encoder/Decoder• 1080p30 with one core• Available as encrypted net list or source code


A2e H.264 Zynq 7020 Reference DesignA2e H.264 Zynq 7020 Reference Design



• Zynq 7C02 Evaluation Board• Zynq 7020 All Programmable SoC

– ARM Core– DDR Controller– DMA– RGB to YUV & YUV to RGB color space conversion– Ethernet MAC– USB

• A2e H.264 Encoder core• FMC DVI card

– HDMI input: Supports up to 1080p30 video– HDMI output: Displays decompressed video

• A2e RTSP Server running on Linux for video streaming


JPEGJPEG

• Smallest and Fastest JPEG encoder on the market• 1.5 Clocks/Pixel processing capability• Supported in Xilinx • 1,300 LUTs in Xilinx for Encoder. • Available as encrypted net list or source code


RTSP Server-ClientRTSP Server-Client

• Supports RTP industry standard• Low latency (< 2mS for server)• Supports multiple client connections• Low latency Client


Program ManagementProgram Management

• Full time program managers• Technical leads• Formal processes and procedures for:

– Execution– Reviews– Engineering Change Orders (ECOs)– Sign-off/Validation


Program Management: FinancesProgram Management: Finances


Program Management: Gantt ChartProgram Management: Gantt Chart


Program Management: ReportingProgram Management: Reporting


Technical Capabilities Overview


Embedded Electronics DesignEmbedded Electronics Design

• FPGA/EPLD Design– Design: VHDL, Verilog– Verification– Altera, Xilinx, Lattice

• Board Design– RISC & CISC μP, Memory, High-speed I/O, Signal Integrity

• Analog & RF Design– Low noise, High current, Power supplies, 802.11x, UWB, ISM, AtoD & DAC,

Power Amplifiers, Synthesizers, Antennas• Manufacturing and Certifications

– Fab & Assembly– FCC/CE, UL/CSA, Shock and vibration and environmental

• PCB Layout– 20+ layer, hand-routed, hidden via boards


Embedded Software DesignEmbedded Software Design

• Real Time Operating Systems (RTOS)– ThreadX, VxWorks, pSOS, ECos, Nucleus, RISC & CISC μP

• Embedded Operating Systems– Linux, Android, Windows CE.NET, QNX, Symbian

• Custom Device Driver Development– Network & Communications

• (802.11x, IPV6, Bluetooth, USB, RS-232, IrDA NDIS/HCI)– Storage

• (MicroSD, HDD, FDD, Flash, File Systems [UDF, ISO 9660], Smart Media, Linear Flash Disk, Compact Flash)

– Buses • (PCMCIA, PCI-E1 & 2,SPI, I2C, ISA, PCI)

– Peripherals • (Blu-ray,CD, CDRW, DVD, Keyboard, Mouse, Printer, Touch Screen, Power

Management)– Video & Audio

• (MP3, MPEG 4, H.264)


Application ProgrammingApplication Programming

• High-Level Programming– C#, C++ (MFC), C (Win32 SDK), JAVA, etc.

• Operating Systems– Windows® 7, Vista, XP, CE, Android, Linux, Mac,

ThreadX, etc.

• Programming Methodologies– COM, DCOM, ActiveX, DOM, ATL, OLE, STL, etc.


Lead Acid Battery ExperienceLead Acid Battery Experience

• Full-time Power/Sensor/Analog engineer on staff• Charge and monitor system for lead acid ‘SeaBatteries’ used to light the

wreck of the Titanic for filming of the movie• Charge and monitor systems for batteries used in UPS applications• Off-The-Shelf charge controllers• Custom embedded microprocessor charge controllers• Linear and switch mode lead acid chargers• Life and load testing and monitoring for lead acid batteries• Battery protection circuitry • Solar powered lead acid battery chargers• Lead acid battery applications in hostile environments


ControlsControls

• Design of multi-axis precision DC and stepper motor control systems– High speed and high-accuracy control systems experience– High-current motor, H-bridge, etc. drive circuitry– System cost reduction strategy by integration of multiple

functions into one unit to eliminate motors

• Temperature Control Systems– Heating– Active heating and cooling


Optics & LASER ExperienceOptics & LASER Experience

• Detailed experience with laser diode illumination, including beam circularization and homogenization.

• Designed many high Numerical Aperture light collecting optical systems and color splitters for both visible and IR

• Knowledgeable in detector radiometry and noise.• Optical feedback controlled, linear laser power supply for

imaging system with Photo Multiplier Tube detector• Laser illuminated imaging system with micro-channel

plate/CCD detector• Pulsed diode laser positioning system with Avalanche Photo

Diode detector


Representative ProjectsRepresentative Projects


Test & MeasurementTest & Measurement


Handheld Spectrum AnalyzerHandheld Spectrum Analyzer


Handheld Spectrum AnalyzerHandheld Spectrum Analyzer

• Plug-in card for hand-held test equipment used by cable industry

• RF front-end• Xilinx FPGA with DSP logic for spectrum analysis• Single chip μController for control/data serial

interface to Linux based xScale board• μController software written in C


8 Channel Arbitrary Waveform Generator8 Channel Arbitrary Waveform Generator


8 Channel Arbitrary Waveform Generator8 Channel Arbitrary Waveform Generator

• 8 channels arbitrary waveforms• 8 channels of timer-counter• Programmable output levels• Altera Stratix II FPGA• High speed static RAM• Complex state machines for arbitrary waveform

generation• Proprietary backplane interface• WinXP Drivers written in C#


2 Channel 1.5GHz DSO2 Channel 1.5GHz DSO


2 Channel 1.5GHz DSO2 Channel 1.5GHz DSO

• 2 channel 1.5GHz ADC• RF front end design with all discrete, OTS

technology• Altera Stratix III FPGA• DDR III deep buffer• Proprietary backplane interface• WinXP Drivers written in C#


64 Channel Mixed Signal IC Pin Tester64 Channel Mixed Signal IC Pin Tester


64 Channel Mixed Signal IC Pin Tester64 Channel Mixed Signal IC Pin Tester

• 16 channel prototype. Final version is 64 channels• Mixed signal pin driver ICs• Xilinx Spartan FPGA for PCIe, pattern generation,

etc.• Power supplies• Relay matrix• C++ running on PC to control tester


VideoVideo


5 CMOS Sensor Surveillance Camera5 CMOS Sensor Surveillance Camera


5 CMOS Sensor Surveillance Camera5 CMOS Sensor Surveillance Camera

• A2e H.264 encoder• 5 x 1Mpixel CMOS sensor• Lattice FPGA provides electronic stitching & H.264

compression• 10/100mbit PoE• DaVinci controller running Linux• RTP/RTSP video servers • Custom client-camera protocol for communication and

control of events using XML language• Live video display at clients interface using custom IE

ActiveX/ Mozilla plugin


Video Display ControllerVideo Display Controller


Video Display ControllerVideo Display Controller

• Designed for handheld, battery operated system• Altera Cyclone controls all video processing• Altera Video Image Processing (VIP) Suite• Alpha blending, rotation, scaling• 3 channel input digital video input• Linux drivers



• Zynq 7C02 Evaluation Board• Zynq 7020 All Programmable SoC

– ARM Core– DDR Controller– DMA– RGB to YUV & YUV to RGB color space conversion– Ethernet MAC– USB

• A2e H.264 Encoder core• FMC DVI card

– HDMI input: Supports up to 1080p30 video– HDMI output: Displays decompressed video

• A2e RTSP Server running on Linux for video streaming


Zynq SoC H.264 SystemZynq SoC H.264 System


Zynq SoC H.264 SystemZynq SoC H.264 System

• A2e H.264 encoder/decoder • 6 * IP or NTSC cameras• Linux drivers• I/O: SATA drive for storage, Gbit Enet, USB 2.0, NTSC CODEC• Zynq All Programmable SoC 7030:

– 2 x A2e H.264 cores– Scaling– De-Interlacing– On Screen Display– Color space conversion– Audio compression– 1 NTSC scaled output with OSD


3D HD Video & Audio Streamer3D HD Video & Audio Streamer


3D HD Video & Audio Streamer3D HD Video & Audio Streamer

• Streams high-speed video from RAID V array to PCIe card and out HDMI port

• I/O: SATA, HDMI• Xilinx Virtex VI PCIe card

– PCIe– DMA– H264 decompression core– Audio processing core– 2 separate DDR III banks

• Security uController• Linux drivers and self-test code


2 Camera Fleet Vehicle DVR2 Camera Fleet Vehicle DVR


2 Camera Fleet Vehicle DVR2 Camera Fleet Vehicle DVR

• TI OMAP μProcessor running Linux. DSP used for MPEG-II compression of video

• Dual CMOS sensor (forward & back facing)• 3D accelerometer for impact sensing• 12V battery powered• Designed for extended temperature range• Compact Flash storage• Wi-Fi


Battery Powered JPEG CameraBattery Powered JPEG Camera


Battery Powered JPEG CameraBattery Powered JPEG Camera

• A2e JPEG encoder• Xilinx Spartan FPGA• 1600 x 1200 CMOS Sensor or NTSC Input• TI MSP-430 μController operates on 2 AA batteries for

1 year• FPGA provides JPEG compression using A2e JPEG core• Images stored to SD card that can be uploaded over a

wireless radio or USB• GPS for tagging image location and sensors for

detecting camera movement


Radio FrequencyRadio Frequency


EOL Redesign of 5W Radio Man-PackEOL Redesign of 5W Radio Man-Pack


EOL Redesign of 5W Radio Man-PackEOL Redesign of 5W Radio Man-Pack

• Re-design of a 1980’s vintage 5W FM radio transceiver 30-88MHz with 25KHz channel spacing

• Seven boards designed using modern SMT parts• Significant reduction in tunable L, R, C components

to decrease end-of-line adjustments• Each board backwards compatible with old units


4 Channel 8VSB Studio Grade HD Tuner4 Channel 8VSB Studio Grade HD Tuner


4 Channel 8VSB Studio Grade HD Tuner4 Channel 8VSB Studio Grade HD Tuner

• 4 channel Tuner-Demodulator• Altera Cyclone FPGA for controlling MPEG streams

and interfacing to proprietary backplane• 1Gbit/s backplane• API interface in VxWorks Tornado


Power ElectronicsPower Electronics


Medical Grade 600W Power Factor CorrectorMedical Grade 600W Power Factor Corrector


Medical Grade 600W Power Factor CorrectorMedical Grade 600W Power Factor Corrector

• Power Factor Corrector (PFC) Power Supply • 600 Watts, Continuous Boost Mode • High power factor, high efficiency • Small physical space constraints • Universal Input : 85VAC – 265VAC • Outputs : 380VDC, 15VDC, 12VDC and 9VDC


Medical Grade Power SupplyMedical Grade Power Supply


Medical Grade Power SupplyMedical Grade Power Supply

• Convection cooling in small enclosure• Multiple groups of outputs for different portions of

the system:– Pressure transducer: +/- 15VDC– Digital: 3 x +5VDC,+3.3VDC, +1.8VDC– Analog: +5VDC, +/-15VDC


3KV Pulsed Power Supply3KV Pulsed Power Supply

• 3,000V pulsed power supply• μController monitors-controls power supply• Serial interface to main board used for receiving

commands• Square and Exponential waveforms of programmable

width, voltage, number of repetitions• Different capacitor banks used for different voltage

ranges• Real time monitoring of pulse to verify it meets

programmed parameters


30A Lithium-Ion Battery Charger30A Lithium-Ion Battery Charger


30A Lithium-Ion Battery Charger30A Lithium-Ion Battery Charger

• Designed prototype platform to charge chain of large lithium battery cells using isolated constant voltage/constant current charging algorithm

• Charging currents 2-30A with feedback and data logging

• Software written in C


Software Only ProjectsSoftware Only Projects


Networked Casino Terminal DeviceNetworked Casino Terminal Device

• Multiprocessor Atmel SAM9 design using ThreadX RTOS• Custom multiprocessor architecture and messaging scheme • Touchscreen and keypad GUI using PEG with downloadable

resources• Secure network connection using NETX/uSSL to back end

casino accounting servers• Thermal printing of tickets/vouchers/reports• Ticket bar code scanner and employee card reader• Application business logic software• USB and over the network firmware update


Temperature Control SystemTemperature Control System

• Disk drive tester system with active heating and cooling

• μController based system to sense temperature and control heaters and coolers

• μController software developed to characterize system impulse response

• Modeling of system performed with MatLab• Control loop implemented on μController and then

verified


Power Strip Voltage-Current MonitorPower Strip Voltage-Current Monitor

• 5 channel, current, voltage, power monitoring power strip for server rooms

• TI DSP• Web server for status• Ethernet interface


OtherOther


Handheld Chemical Weapons DetectorHandheld Chemical Weapons Detector


Handheld Chemical Weapons DetectorHandheld Chemical Weapons Detector

• Battery powered, hand-held• Xilinx Spartan FPGA• DSP and analog sensor electronics board• Power supply board• 12KV board for generating plasma• Software written in C


Outdoor Video LED DisplayOutdoor Video LED Display


Outdoor Video LED DisplayOutdoor Video LED Display

• Scalable outdoor LED video display up to 640x480 pixels with 60Hz update rate

• Xilinx Virtex FPGA• Daylight visible with sizes to 80’x 104’• Video and status data transmitted using a highly

redundant fault tolerant approach• Power distribution design for safe operation• 30KW 3-phase power supply


Water Softener Controller & Wireless DisplayWater Softener Controller & Wireless Display


Water Softener Controller & Wireless DisplayWater Softener Controller & Wireless Display

• Control Panel programmable through UI• Daughter cards:

– Wireless connection to remote display– POTs modem connection to central server to firmware

updates and data logging– High-voltage/current drivers for motors, solenoids,

relays, etc.

• Wireless Remote Display card will show status of water softener unit


Ethernet to Coax BridgeEthernet to Coax Bridge


Ethernet to Coax BridgeEthernet to Coax Bridge

• Reference design for high-volume production• Bridges Ethernet to coax in household• Compatible with analog TV, digital TV, cable

modem• Intel xScale μProcessor• RF front end and diplexer for coax interface• Linux driver and applications


IR Moisture SensorIR Moisture Sensor


IR Moisture SensorIR Moisture Sensor

• Wearable, battery powered device which determines when moisture content is above a threshold

• Device included real time clock to time stamp events and store data for subsequent analysis

• Adaptive sensor able to establish thresholds dynamically in order to detect multiple events

• Capable of generating immediate alarm or logging data.• Small remote sense head allows placement in exact target area• Microprocessor based with GUI to allow researchers to

reconfigure for optimal performance• Powered by a single coin cell


Wireless Leak Detector SystemWireless Leak Detector System


Wireless Leak Detector SystemWireless Leak Detector System

• Wireless, battery operated leak detectors with 10 year battery life

• Wireless Control Panel that will shut of water main valve should a leak be detected

• Custom RF protocol


PCR ControllerPCR Controller


PCR ControllerPCR Controller

• Designed hardware platform to monitor and control temperature for a real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction device

• Atmel 91SAM7S356 microcontroller • 0-13A current source to drive Peltier TEC through H bridge• 20 bit RTD thermal monitor for PCR block• Interface to fluorescence sensor• 3 * 10 bit thermistor monitors• Hardware Safety Shutdown circuit• Fan controllers, PWM heater driver, DC & stepper motor

drivers


Temp Control System for Nuclear ReactorTemp Control System for Nuclear Reactor


Temp Control System for Nuclear ReactorTemp Control System for Nuclear Reactor

• Couldn’t manufacture due to EOL components• Must be form/fit/function compatible to original 1970’s

design to mitigate re-licensing issues• All loading, ranges, adjustments, slew rates, and

system responses need to match original design• Floating front end with thermocouple compensation• Design verification against original test procedures

with additional thermal and seismic testing to meet current requirements


A2e TechnologiesA2e Technologies

We work with you to design and implement the right solution for you and your customer


How To Get StartedHow To Get Started

• Meet with A2E to discuss your project requirements and review any existing documentation.

• A2E then provides a Rough Order Magnitude (ROM) estimate for the project including schedule broken out by task and costing

• Review ROM with you to assure alignment on tasks, responsibilities, project costs and schedule.

• After agreement, A2E will provide a complete Statement of Work (SOW)

• Put contract in place and go!


What can we do for you?


FPGA Design CapabilitiesFPGA Design Capabilities


FPGA Design-ToolsFPGA Design-Tools

• Floating licenses for Altera & Xilinx tool sets• Floating licenses for ModelSim PE simulators• Mixed mode simulation capability with ModelSim• Source Gear Vault for revision control• Xilinx-Altera evaluation boards


FPGA Design CapabilitiesFPGA Design Capabilities

• Experience with Xilinx and Altera devices/Tools:– Xilinx: Spartan, Virtex, Zynq, AXI– Altera: Stratix, Cyclone– Hand placement

• Verilog and VHDL• IP Integration: Soft Core μP, PCIe, DMA, DDR II/III,

GigE, USB, H.264, JPEG, Scalers, Rotators, De-interlacers


FPGA-VerificationFPGA-Verification

• Regression Testing• Self-checking test benches• Creation (or inclusion of) of Bus Functional Models

(BFM) where required• C-Models for bit accurate verification• Command line communication protocol: Tcl scripts

that run on PC during debug, also run during simulations


Examples: Xilinx Zynq Based SystemExamples: Xilinx Zynq Based System



• Create top-level testbench:– Used as a simulation framework for the different tests. Testbench instantiates

the DUT (FPGA or module), instantiates all BFMs (memory models, ICs, processors, etc) makes all interconnections and generates the clocks, resets and other board signals.

– Testbench also provides some useful tasks, for example to read input files, read/write buffers to external memory, simulate registers accesses, etc.

• Creation of additional test benches: – Top test bench as a framework. This test bench is actually a program that

contains calls to the framework tasks and probably new tasks or code specific for this test.

– Reduces duplicated efforts, allows for changes to BFMs or clock speeds and automatically updates all test benches (since only the top test bench is modified) and guarantees that everyone is using the same setup.


Example: Tcl Scripts for Spartan 6 - PCIeExample: Tcl Scripts for Spartan 6 - PCIe



• Created a common core of tests written in TCL that can be used in a variety of ways both for physical hardware verification and simulation modeling

• System is mixed signal IC tester with PCIe communication through backplane to PC running a control application

• Spartan 6 contains PCIe soft core



• PC Application : Run Tcl on PC to connect as a normal test application. – Uses the same calls as PC drivers and (undocumented API) application code would use. This runs the

core scripts against real hardware in real-time. A full diagnostic takes 20 seconds to run.• JTAG Intervention: Connect a JTAG cable to a laptop running the JTAG Tcl script.

– This connects the TCL core against the FPGA directly (no PCIe required) through the JTAG port. – Allows verification of register settings after complicated software operations are completed and without

altering those software applications. – Can also take direct control of UPU64 hardware if testing requires this.

• Fast simulation: Run TCL scripts from the Modelsim (a VHDL/Verilog) simulator command line. – The core library turns complex commands (e.g. write a block of data to the non-volatile memory) into

simple commands that are passed to the Fast simulation shim which directly forces a simple 32-bit bus within the FPGA model (in VHDL and Verilog) and conducts transactions.

• PCIe simulation: – Use the TCL core library in Modelsim with a shim to connect to the FPGA through a virtual host side PCIe

transaction. – In simulation, this enumerates the PCIe bus at startup, allocates resources and allows all PCIe

transactions to be fully simulated.


Cooling & ModelingCooling & Modeling


Cooling & Thermal ModelingCooling & Thermal Modeling

• Design Experience– Heat Sinks– Flex Heater Circuits– Space Telescope– PID Temperature Control– Optical Enclosures / Media

• Analysis Experience – (Conduction, Natural/Forced Convection, Manual and FEA Calculations)

– Cooling and Heating (Heat Sinks, Flex Heater Circuits, PID Temperature Controllers, Optical Media)

– Thermal Uniformity (Optical Media, Heat Sinks, Flex Heater Circuits)– Thermal Distortion (Optical Enclosures, Space Telescope)– Thermal Stress (Space Telescope)– Fluids (Inkjet Printer)


Analysis Capabilities – Solidworks Simulation FEA– Altair Hypermesh/Radioss FEA– Altair Accusolve CFD

Test Capabilities– Testbed Development– Thermocouples– Laser Temperature Probes– Resistive Temperature Detectors



Cooling & ModelingCooling & Modeling1. Thermal Circuit Modeling

2. Finite Element Analysis &

Computational Fluid Dynamics

3. Design of ExperimentsModel Refinement and

Validation

4550556065

30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Tmax

(deg

C)

h (W/m^2K)

CoolingRequirements



Modeling– Quantify System Requirements: space, noise, temperature, power, etc.– Develop 1D Steady State and Transient Resistive and Capacitive Models

• Consider conduction, convection, and radiation– Develop Finite Element Models For Preliminary 3D System Models– Obtain Convective Heat transfer coefficient from Experiments and from FEA model.– Refine and Validate FEA Using Design of Experiments and Physical Prototypes

Design Hardware and Control System– Design the required hardware needed to achieve the thermal system goals (such as heaters,

flexes, PCBs, system components, custom hardware, fans, cooling fins, thermal limit switches, RTD sensors).

– Develop Control algorithms using PID control parameters to help control the heating and cooling of the system

– Build prototypes for testing– Design for manufacturing



Testing and Validation– Refine control parameters through testing– Calculate heat/cool rates for the system from model as well as prototypes– Optimize fan, heat sink and thermal interfaces:

• Materials Selection (Aluminum, Copper, Ceramics, Thermal Interface Materials)

• Fin Design: Number, Area, Thickness

• Flow: Inlet and Outlet Locations, Area, Velocities


a2 e overview

Technology