New-Tech Europe | March 2017 | Digital Edition

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F1 telemetry purposes. While the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 cars were on track during Friday practice sessions, the system gathered and processed thermal imaging of the tires. As soon as the cars entered pit lane, the system would begin wirelessly transmitting the data to the team’s Garage. The process is orders of magnitude faster than the traditional method of waiting for the car to stop in the pit box, pushing it

yet. The technology and its hardware first needs to be

tested in extreme and unforgiving environments before it can be expected to endure years of use (and abuse) in consumers’ cars. And what better place than the F1 arena, where there’s more data being downloaded in a few hours than most of us will need in a week. And the hardware is subjected to the elements: the extreme heat of Abu-Dhabi, the humidity of Malaysia, the rain at Silverstone, the physical structure density at Monaco, the heavy radio-traffic of fans in the U.S., and more. Because of its ultra-fast speeds, which allow for simultaneous 4K video streaming to multiple devices and lag-free screen mirroring between smartphones and in-car displays, 802.11ad is expected to emerge as the “go-to” for automotive infotainment. The 60- GHz band is high-frequency millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum band. Such bands are the stepping stone to 5G and provide huge bandwidth for delivering multi-Gbps data rates. The learnings from the Qualcomm/Mercedes development phase will certainly accelerate the arrival of 60-GHz 802.11ad Wi-Fi for everyday users and contribute to the evolution of 5G connectivity. FAST FACT: During the 2016 Formula 1 season, the Mercedes- AMG Petronas Motorsport cars could transmit on average the data equivalent of 12 music albums while moving from the beginning to the end of pit lane via the 802.11ac Wi-Fi solution from Qualcomm Technologies. Last season, Qualcomm Technologies and Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport pioneered the use of 802.11ac Wi-Fi for

into the garage, and plugging in a download cable. The new system being tested will operate similarly. Upon entering pit lane, the cars will begin transmitting data via 802.11ac in the 5-GHz band. However, once the cars get within 4 meters of an overhead unit in the garage, a special handoff feature will enable the cars to switch to 802.11ad in the 60-GHz band seamlessly and continue the download. The updated system also features a considerable step up in hardware and connectivity, including the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor with up to 128GB of Universal Flash Storage memory to collect data while the car is on circuit, and a Qualcomm QCA9500 chip to support the 802.11ad Wi-Fi. Ultimately, the system should translate to less time in the garage and more time on track, giving the Silver Arrows a tremendous edge over their rivals. Beyond that, expect the lessons learned working with 11ad to trickle down to your future auto technologies, and the lessons learned in mmWave to trickle down to future 5G experiences.

Rohde & Schwarz forges new paths in the monitoring of the battery life of wireless devices

Long battery life is a key criterion for mobile devices as well as for embedded systems and chips for Internet-of-Things and machine-to-machine applications. Rohde & Schwarz now provides a complete solution for testing battery life in all operating modes. It consists of an R&S CMW radio communication tester, the new R&S RT-ZVC power probe and the R&S CMWrun sequencer software. The radio communication tester manages the communications with the DUT and also places the DUT in the various operating modes. The power probe acquires current and voltage readings

at defined test points on the DUT. The sequencer software controls the entire process and delivers detailed measurement reports to the user. The user can precisely correlate the events occurring at the mobile interface with the DUT’s power consumption. Thanks to the R&S RT-ZVC probe’s high dynamic range, this is possible over the entire measurement range – from low currents in standby or sleep mode to large currents when the DUT transmits at maximum power. The multichannel design of the probe makes it possible to simultaneously acquire and correlate the power at up

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