Expertise
The basis of expertise at AeVee Labs is a solid foundation of Engineering principles. Circuits always behave predictably if you apply the laws of physics. Software and digital hardware can be understood with logic and timing analysis. We have experience applying these principles in the areas described here as well as many others.
- Microcontrollers
Simple microcontrollers are ubiquitous in products that need cost effective ways of performing innovative applications, often under battery power. We can help you pick the right micro for your job and design the cost effective PC board to make it a success. We can then use the resources it offers to write efficient, maintainable software.
- Embedded Software
High quality software is the key to making any system run reliably and smoothly. It must be designed to be testable and maintainable to allow for added functionality throughout a product’s life. It should be portable and modular so that a change of hardware can be handled easily and so that a successful design can be used as the basis for new, more advanced designs. Software must also be written with awareness of real-time constraints. We have developed methods and procedures to ensure that all of these goals are met. We can help you choose an implement the proper level of complexity from a Real-Time Operating System to a simple background loop.
- Digital Signal Processing
DSPs are the backbone of digital audio, communications and motor control. We have used fixed and floating point DSPs from Analog Devices, TI, Motorola and FPGAs from Xilinx to solve problems in consumer electronics, telecommunications, and industrial appliacations. We understand how to apply the right amount of math for the project and how to get the most out of any chosen architecture. We do this without forgetting that like all software, DSP code needs to be readable, testable, reliable, and maintainable.
- FPGA
Field Programmable Gate Arrays are now powerful enough to handle many tasks in a very small space and cheap enough to use in volume production. We have been designing with Xilinx chips since their inception in the late 1980s. We know how to use their tools to get the most out of the architecture and produce reliable, flexible designs. We are also familiar with architectures from all major FPGA manufacturers and can help you choose the right part for you. We can design an FPGA to your specification for a board that you designed or incorporate it into a board we design for you.
- Analog Audio
AeVee Labs has extensive expertise in all aspects of analog audio including D/A conversion, A/D conversion, line-level and power amplification. We understand what it takes to deliver products with the highest quality possible within any budget.
- Digital Audio
The staff at AeVee has experience back to the dawn of the CD era. We have used digital signal processors for audio coding from Dolby to G.728, audio processing from bass management to equalization. We understand how to get the most out of available dynamic range through bit management and dithering. We know the effects of jitter on digital conversion and transmission as well as the most effective solutions.
- High Power AudioHigh power amplifiers present additional problems to the product designers. Thermal Management, circuit protections, signal integrity and safety concerns are all much more difficult. We have designed amplifiers capable of supplying 2400 watts of power into 1 ohm to drive the most difficult speakers with low distortion.
- HDTVHigh Definition television is fast becoming widely available and affordable. We have been actively involved in HDTV since it was first conceived. We can help you sort out the standards and requirements for HDTV and bring your application to this growing market.
- VideoAeVee can help you sort out the many flavors of video and their associated issues, from bandwidth and resolution choices to colorspaces and transmission methods. We have designed equipment that can smoothly handle inputs ranging from unstable composite video from VCRs and games through the highest resolution HDTV in analog and digital form. We also have experience with overlaying digital graphics onto multiple formats of video for seamless user interfaces.
- HDMI
HDMI has become the accepted standard for secure digital transmission of audio and video in consumer electronics. We have successfully implemented HDMI designs that are in use today. We can help you avoid common pitfalls and understand the choices that need to be made to maximize the potential of HDMI in your product.
- User InterfaceOperation of a product should be obvious whenever possible and logical enough to be memorable after one use. A good user-interface, programmed well, allows your customer to get the most our of your product. A badly conceive U/I makes it something your customer dreads having to use. At AeVee Labs we have experience making the choices to find the right types and arrangements of buttons, indicators and displays to make complex products a pleasure to use. We can help you with design your user-interface from the start, or help you get the most out of what you have.
- TelecomOur Staff has experience designing network switches transmitting data at multi-gigabit/s rates and doing so within a system following strict agency requirements. We have also worked with standard POTS telephone lines, modems, T1 and ISDN.
- RFI/EMCToday’s high speed electronics can cause severe problems with radiated and conducted emissions. Agency (FCC, CE, etc.) requirements keep getting more strict. System and board design must be done with this in mind to ensure that product introductions are not delayed as the result of inadequate upfront preparation. We can help during the initial development phase to understand current flows and radiation patterns to ensure that products are in compliance from the start. If you are having problems with an existing design we can help you understand how to identify and reduce the sources of your emissions as well as how to best contain them through proper grounding and shielding.
- Bluetooth/WirelessThere are many options for wireless communications from IR to Zigbee. We can help you choose the one that best fits the needs of your application, be it high transmission speed, low cost, or quickest time to market. We have added class 1 Bluetooth to an inaccessible instrument to allow remote maintenace with an ordinary laptop.
- ROHS ComplianceAfter July of 2006 all circuit boards and ICs sold in Europe must be lead free. Most current products will not meet this requirement. We have experience reviewing boards and BOMs for compliance and making minimal redesigns to bring products into compliance.