Dec 02 2010
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Engineering and Design

Is Lawrence Expressway the Geek Center of the Universe?

Palo Alto generally lays claim to the birthplace of Silicon Valley: the famous garage where Hewlett and Packard started their oscillator business.  Having walked by that garage nearly every day for seven years, I have to say it certainly doesn’t stand out in this present day. Perhaps that’s because the center of the Valley has moved south to Sunnyvale.  More specifically, to Lawrence Expressway.

When I moved to the Valley about 16 years ago, I knew the giants of National, Intel, and the like, but not the secret spots where “my kind” would gather away from the office.  These had to be learned from the locals as there were no wiki sites to list them, or stone markers to show the way.

Fast forward to today, and one can find geek paradise all along Lawrence Distressway – enough to declare it the Geek Center of the Universe.

Exit for Geek Central on SB101

 

Hidden in the cloverleaf of Central Expressway is Halted, (HALL-ted), officially named HSC Electronic Supply, though I’ve never heard it called by that name.  Picture a giant warehouse chock-full of every electronic component imaginable, but with a strong bias toward things that have been out of production for decades, and are happy to live in open-face cardboard boxes with a sharpie-written price on the front.  Need a 36V round muffin fan?  It’s here.  Need a 100ft of braided copper wire?  It’s here.  Picture a whole grocery store aisle of wall-warts for your every need.  And of course, there’s always the daily sale rack out front with a promise of anything for a dollar.

Not into the surplus scene?  Go a couple blocks north and drop in on HRO, Ham Radio Outlet.  In this world of ubiquitous mobile phones many believe that the world of amateur radio has long since gone the way of the eight-track, but a step into this shop will reveal otherwise.  Here is a world where everyone can be an RF engineer, designing their own special tweak on a proven antenna design.  Stop in for a little yammering with the locals, those who might still own eight-tracks, or to take in the latest in high-end RF transceivers that will allow you to talk around the globe even after the zombie apocalypse.

In the same building with HRO is another place that shouldn’t be missed: St. John’s Grill.  This place seems to have not changed a bit in the fifteen years I’ve known it, and if you go at lunchtime, expect to see a 50ft long line of people waiting to order their signature burger and fries.  Don’t let the line scare you though, as these folks have mastered the art of the assembly line and mass-production.  Perhaps the proximity of Applied Materials has something to do with that. This is a place where you’re as likely to hear arguments over alternative gate topologies in deep sub-micron design as you are a discussion of the latest Sci-Fi movie.

Now that you’re fed, you’re ready to adventure into Weird Stuff, at the very north end of Lawrence after it turns into Caribbean.  This pit trap for pack rats is much like Halted, jammed to the walls with the surplus and the obsolete.  Their take is different though, as they are like a museum of every product every made in the PC industry with an emphasis on weird.  Looking for that B&W tank game from the 70’s on a CRT?  It’s there.  Need a replacement 1200baud modem?  Yep, it’s right there next to about 50 other types of modems.  Scared to visit?  Then check out their web cam where you watch people navigate one of the more modern parts of the store.

And lastly, no talk of geek-land in the Valley would be complete without at least a nod to Fry’s Electronics, more or less across the street from HRO and St. Johns.  Fry’s has come to be the poster-child store for the geek world, celebrating it with every remodel of their store.  If one knows of any geek gathering ground, it’s Fry’s.

So, the next time you’re traveling to the San Francisco Bay Area and are looking to find the essence of Silicon Valley, don’t opt for SFO and the Palo Alto garage.  Instead, fly into SJC and take the short trip up to Lawrence Expressway where your every geek need will be indulged.  Word of warning, though:  Either leave your wallet at home, or plan for boxes full of souvenirs that’ll likely cause the rolling of eyes from 99% of the world — and big knowing smiles from the rest of us as we contemplate our next trip to geek corridor that is Lawrence.

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Nov 23 2010
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Engineering and Design

Piezoelectric Polymers — not just another tongue-twister

There’s a whole class of devices nowadays that are striving to take advantage of “parasitic power”.  Much like the name implies, the goal is to have something live off something else without destroying the host.  A self-winding watch is an example that’s been around for decades, as have crystal radios and the spark igniters on some gas grills.  A much newer example is the nPower PEG that can charge your mobile phone from the motion of a walker’s backpack.

The PEG works like the shake-type flashlights, using magnets and coils to convert motion into current — something we’ve done since the days of Faraday.  The igniter, however, does something much more interesting.  It uses the “whacking” collision of a spring-loaded metal bar against piezoelectric crystal to generate a high voltage, which then produces a spark.

The target of this “whacking” in the ignitor is typically a crystal or man-made ceramic, which can be fragile in large sizes. Recently, however, there has been much interest in polymers which are more flexible and generate higher voltages.  Additionally, they can be less expensive since they can be created as films or thin sheets.  Currently, the front-runner is polyvinylidene fluoride, AKA PVDF.

So, how do you use these devices today in this field of parasitic power?

The answer is any place where you can get access to abundent disposible kinetic energy.

You put them in places where they get periodically compressed, or even better, frequently compressed (as in vibrated).  In a road they would generate energy every time a vehicle crossed over.  They’re doing this in Israel now.

Or on a sidewalk, every time a person stepped on them there would be a pulse of energy released.  The big question is: How much energy do they generate, and why do you want that energy?

In most cases, the desire for use is in a place where it’s inconvenient to use other sources of power and you don’t need much of it.  Blinky lights on shoes is a good example.  Another use being investigated is sensors placed on shipping containers where they can use the vibration of the truck or ship carrying them.

This isn’t getting power for free, but rather, taking a little energy from something that probably won’t notice it’s missing.

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Apr 06 2010
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Engineering and Design

Captain, can I use my iPad now?

Ah, today we all basked in the glow of the iPad, Apple’s most recent entry into the world of consumer gadgetry. Though there was much to delight in about it, we noticed that the Airplane Mode setting was conspicuously missing from its feature set. As a result, lucky iPad owners will need to either individually turn off the Bluetooth and WiFi radios, or simply turn the whole iPad off when in-flight.

Well, of course this touched off the whole debate about the use of electronic devices in the plane. Do they really interfere with the navigation instruments? Or, is it a conspiracy to force you to use the ridiculously expensive ($1-2/min) air phone service. It was amazing how passionate people were on their positions.

Let’s take a moment to survey the situation a bit. It’s tricky because both the FAA and FCC have things to say about this one.

Here’s the official word from the FCC as of 2007, with comments on the FAA’s position: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/cellonplanes.html

And on March 15th, 2006, in episode 49 the local Mythbusters team tackled this one as well: http://mythbustersresults.com/episode49

There are two issues in play. The first is the idea of interference with the navigational equipment on the aircraft. In practice, with clear weather, this is probably a non-issue as even if interference occurs, since a pilot would likely recognize it and recover. However, in IMC (instrument meteorological conditions), the lives of all aboard the aircraft hinge on the successful reception and interpretation of received radio signals, some of which (GPS for example) are incredibly weak and require very sensitive receivers. This is the reason that all electronic devices must be turned off during take-off and landing phases of flight because when we’re close to the ground those signal interruptions could have catastrophic results.

The second issue is one of interfering with ground equipment. This is primarily a cell phone issue since a large number of cell towers (many more than usual) can see your signal when you’re in the air, and you consume far more voice channels that would be normal, thus clogging the system. Good for you, not so good for others.

So, in short, best to follow the captain and make absolutely certain your electronic devices (with wireless radios or not) are turned off during take-off and landing phases of flight (especially in IMC) as these are the most critical moments from a safety standpoint. In good weather, using your cellphone is likely more annoying to other phone users on the ground than it is harmful to you in the air.

In recognition of this, the FCC and other agencies are actively looking for ways to allow users to use cell phones in the air, and enjoy those wonderful gadgets as fully as we enjoy them on the ground. Until then, though, the rules say no, and the captain of the aircraft still has the final say.

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