Maxim, a Sunnyvale, CA-based manufacturer of analog as well as mixed-signal semiconductors, had participated in the 2012 Design West Conference that was recently held in San Jose, California.
In the conference, the Group President of Maxim’s consumer and automotive solutions division, Vijay Ullal shared his vision of the natural progression for manufacturers and the growing market trend for the future analog integration with sensors to redefine human interaction with devices.
Analog sensors are used to gather physical signals such as touch, pressure, motion and temperature. Sensors are being steadily adopted for transforming and adding more features to various applications such as medical electronics, smart homes, automobiles and smartphones. The future will welcome new applications enabled by affordable wireless networks and smartphones. Cell phones will enable homeowners to manage and access the safety monitoring systems, lighting, heat and air controls. Healthcare and quality of care will vastly improve with advanced, portable imaging and diagnostic devices. Clean and connected automobiles will reduce air pollution and help save millions of lives. Using integrated metering SoCs, energy usage, distribution and creation will be available for better monitoring.
Maxim develops highly integrated solutions that enable customers to market advanced, low-power and small devices. SensorDynamics, a developer of microelectromechanical systems and sensors, was acquired by Maxim in July 2011. The newest products released by Maxim in 2012 include the Teridian 78M6631 3-phase power measurement and monitoring SoC; the Teridian 78M6612 single-phase, energy and power measurement and monitoring SoC; the Teridian 78M6613 single-phase AC power-measurement IC; the MAX34446 PMBus power supply data logger as well as the Teridian 71M6534 and 71M6533 polyphase metering SoC.