Browse Articles By
Technologies
Markets
Development Stage
Corporate Updates
Training & Events
See how Smart Hall effect sensors ease automotive design
Date:
Location: Virtual Series
Sensors
Filter By
Advances in sensing technologies are increasing the functionality of devices in many industries including consumer, wearable devices, medical, industrial and automotive. Explore our resources to get technical expertise and stay up to date with sensor trends and sensing technology.
Navigating the Future: How Avnet is addressing challenges in AMR Design
By
Jamie Pederson
-
April 16, 2024
Autonomous Mobile Robots are performing tasks that are too dangerous, tedious, or costly for humans. Designing AMRs involves many technical and business challenges. This article covers these challenges and how Avnet will help you overcome them.
The future of EV charging: revolutionary developments are closer than you think
By
Harvey Wilson
-
October 4, 2023
Electric vehicles (EVs) are big business. You only need to look at Tesla’s share price to see just how big. Imagine how much more valuable the market would be if EVs could charge in a few seconds, not minutes or hours.
Explore options for choosing an optical rotary encoder for motion control and position sensing
By
Avnet Staff
-
June 20, 2023
Rotary position sensing is used in motor control and user interface panels. It comprises various encoding methods. Optical encoders can offer advantages. We look at the options and how to choose the right one for your application.
How are magnetic rotary encoders used in industrial automation?
By
Avnet Staff
-
June 15, 2023
The Hall effect is used in rotary encoders to monitor position, speed and direction in electric motors and rotary dials. The encoder designs vary, so it is helpful to understand the main features and how they affect performance.
Optical sensing heart-rate monitors may move from the wrist to the clinic
By
Avnet Staff
-
March 27, 2023
Optical sensors deliver a non-invasive solution for monitoring the body below the skin, especially the cardiovascular system. The way tissue absorbs light is the principle, but sensors provide the accuracy.
Solutions for transportation design pain points don’t have to be daunting
By
Jamie Pederson
-
March 21, 2023
Transportation engineers seeking solutions to overcome today’s most common design pain points can look to the industry’s long history of innovation for inspiration.
Choosing the right image sensor for machine vision applications
By
David Hustler
-
January 6, 2023
The core component in any machine vision system, the image sensor has a major influence on product performance—but there's no universal right fit. There are many aspects to consider, and every manufacturer's product is different.
How engineers cut development time in half for an EV fire warning system
December 5, 2022
Through rapid prototyping, Amphenol developed sensor modules that reliably detect carbon dioxide and hydrogen from cell decomposition venting for early warning of lithium cell thermal runaway.
It’s good to be back! Reunited at Embedded World 2022
By
Philip Ling
-
July 26, 2022
With some new solutions from leading suppliers, and a major announcement between Amazon Web Services and Avnet, the Embedded World exhibition and conference reflects what’s important to the wider industry.
How robust testing forms part of the SiC supply chain
June 10, 2022
In high reliability/availability applications, SiC semiconductors are seen as emerging technology. This article explains their benefits and how an end-to-end supply chain with robust testing makes SiC a safe design option.
New technologies could make building management, HVAC systems even smarter
By
Philip Ling
-
May 12, 2022
The IoT has connected buildings in new and enabling ways. The next stage, already started, is to use AI to make buildings even smarter. AI relies on data, and data comes from sensors essential to these systems.
Simulating the sun: Considerations for grow light design
By
Cameron Coward
-
May 9, 2022
The ability of the LEDs in today’s horticultural systems to accurately simulate the sun, and in fact any desired portion of the light spectrum, is leading to higher crop yields and profits. Here is a look at some of the key design considerations.
Prevent facial recognition spoofing with stereo vision
By
Cameron Coward
-
May 2, 2022
Without any additional protection, image sensor-based facial recognition is easy to spoof with a printed photo. We explore hardware options to prevent this spoofing, including Avnet’s own dual-camera mezzanine for Ultra96-V2 development boards.
How to use structured light and image sensors for range detection and identification
By
Philip Ling
-
April 25, 2022
Today’s most popular 3D imaging technologies are Time of Flight (ToF), stereo vision and structured light. This article overviews the basic operating principles and the relative strengths, weaknesses and trade-offs associated with each option.
Smarter lighting makes for healthier people
March 23, 2022
Lighting can have an important effect on our well-being and effectiveness. In fact, lighting matters so much that UNESCO designated May 16 as the annual International Day of Light to recognize its role in healthy living.
Putting the smarts into building automation
March 21, 2022
Smart building automation can augment the capabilities of today’s building management systems and create new data flows that reveal insights about how a building is functioning and used. It can also enable new revenue streams for building managers.
Technologies for drones, robots and autonomous vehicles
February 17, 2022
When we talk about autonomous applications, devices such as drones, robots and driverless vehicles come to mind. What they all have in common is the ability to gather information on their surroundings, process this data, interpret it and act on it.
Vision systems: Processing at the edge, in the cloud, or both?
February 17, 2022
Computer vision perfectly exemplifies the conundrum developers face when comparing processing data in the cloud or at the edge. That is, should the data generated by the camera be processed locally, in the cloud or both?
A comparison of vision sensing technologies in autonomous systems
By
Philip Ling
-
February 15, 2022
Electronic sensors provide autonomous systems with essential information. The type of sensor used determines how this information is captured and how useful it is. This data-driven approach brings with it some tough design decisions.
How electronic sensors mirror nature
February 15, 2022
Recent research puts sensors at the top of the list of technologies of interest to engineers. Find out how the latest electronic devices replicate some of the most amazing sensory capabilities found in nature.
How no-code design could accelerate Industrial IoT development
By
Philip Ling
-
January 14, 2022
Developing large numbers of new and diverse devices for an Industrial IoT solution can challenge your engineering resources. Using a no-code approach to development can reduce the size and complexity of that challenge.
Time-of-flight cameras make patient monitoring secure and private
January 14, 2022
A growing need exists for alternative solutions to patient monitoring applications in healthcare facilities. Time-of-flight cameras enable sensors to read position data of scenes within the field of view, but without identifying patient information.
To fight EV fires, focus is on early detection of battery cell thermal runaway
August 11, 2021
Sensing solutions that focus on decomposition gases are being used to focus on early detection of battery cell thermal runaway.
How touch sensing is gaining traction in automotive design
By
Jason Struble
-
December 9, 2020
Engineers have been flirting with cap touch (CT) and its potential for automotive applications for a while now. Most drivers are familiar with how over the last few years, capacitive touch sensing replaced mechanical buttons in infotainment applicat
Making sense of sensors
March 26, 2019
If creators still don’t think that sensors are getting the attention they deserve now, then there really is no limit to where the IoT can go.
AI From A-Z: The biggest buzzwords around artificial intelligence
November 28, 2018
Companies across markets from consumer electronics to factory floors are finding power in the introduction of two letters: AI (artificial intelligence).
Choosing A Pressure Sensor
October 12, 2018
When comparing pressure sensors, there are a number of physical and performance attributes to be considered.
Wearables: Tracking, Computing and Making Sense of Context Awareness
April 15, 2017
Wearable devices are moving quickly from concept to reality based on evolving technologies such as sensor fusion, communications and vision. Wearables have evolved to become perceptually aware agents that learn through users’ experiences, activitie
Wearable Electronics: Four Approaches to Implement a Sensor Hub and Save Power
March 17, 2017
As more sensors are added to nearly every electronic device including smartphones, tablets and wearables, more power is needed to run sensor data and turn it into useful information.
MEMs Revolutionizes Sensor Landscape
March 8, 2017
Until fairly recently—roughly 15 to 20 years ago—sensors for ubiquitous physical parameters such as pressure, motion and magnetic fields were relatively large, costly, power-hungry and electrically incompatible with standard circuitry.