AND Technology Research's CEO & Consultant, Val Thorn presented in the Design track at ESC 2009.

Covering the topic of creating IP & assets from development projects Valerie spoke about the need for a change in corporate mind-set if engineers are to create more value for their companies. Also speaking at the show was David Whale from Thinking Binaries Ltd. - one of AND's HotHouse partners. Referencing material from an AND research project into IP management, David's extensive experience in embedded systems integration was presented in a class addressing the difficulties in 'unpacking IP'.

Both papers are available online from the ESC website or from the AND website - Technology Consultancy, White Papers section.

Useful links
ANDtr white papers [andtr.com/site/TechnologyAndFocus/TechnologyConsulting/WhitePapers]
Thinking Binaries [www.thinkingbinaries.com]
ESC 2009 [esc-uk.techinsightsevents.com]

AND has recently become a member of the Federation of Small Business (FSB).

The federation offers a number of benefits to members including access to business services. Representation in government however is a key factor for AND. Val Thorn CEO said "As a small business it is difficult sometimes to get your message across to government agencies. The FSB is one way".

AND were visited by the FSB earlier in the years as part of the judging for the Essex Business Awards. Val continued "The FSB were impressed with what they saw at AND that day, but it turned out to be more beneficial as it gave AND a chance to debate general business issues from a small business perspective not just from an electronics perspective."

Useful links
Federation of Small Businesses [www.fsb.org.uk]
Essex Business Awards [www.essexbusinessawards.co.uk]

The Digital Home Business Group of Renesas Technology Europe and their Platinum Alliance Partner, AND Technology Research, have today announced a collaboration to develop an "In Home Energy
Monitor" demonstration system.

Built around AND Technology Research's expertise in electronic system design, load profiling and ZigBee networking, coupled with leading edge semiconductor solutions from Renesas, the In Home Energy Monitor (IHEM) demonstration makes use of leading-edge technology, such as zero power LCD displays, ZigBee communication and load profile analysis to facilitate monitoring of energy consumption within the home, to identify the appliances that are consuming the energy and to enable intelligent decisions to dis-connect and re-connect loads. Using the IHEM it is possible to identify specific load types (e. g. lamp, iron, kettle etc.) that are connected to the in-home power network, and the point at which they are connected, and then to remotely disconnect the load, if desired, using a relay within each power outlet.

The communication within the IHEM utilises the ZigBee wireless communications standard and can be further developed to use Renesas' acclaimed DCSK PLC solution, if desired. The zero power LCD is based on bi-stable crystal technology, which retains an image without any voltage being applied. This type of display makes it ideal for battery-operated, portable devices that do not require high refresh rate. The reflective nature of the technology provides wide viewing angles, high brightness and contrast, as well as sunlight readability.

The IHEM is capable of measuring both mains current and voltage, providing the ability for mains timing and quality calculations to be made. Each of the IHEM Load Monitor modules has a relay fitted inside, allowing remote power-off of the attached appliance.

At the heart of the IHEM is the Renesas M16C/28 high-performance MCU, offering up to 128K flash with 12K RAM and 4K of data flash (running the ZigBee network stack) and the low cost, highly integrated R8C/25 Tiny (running load profiling on a 20MHz 8-bit CPU with up to 64K flash, 3K RAM and a 2K data flash).

The IHEM set is available on loan from both AND TR and Renesas or may be purchased directly from AND TR. Customer-specific implementations can be prepared by AND TR. AND TR is preparing an applications note based on coded examples prepared for the R8C/M16C microcontroller families. This will explain the load profiling work that has been done and illustrate the analysis
technique used.

Looking to the future, the IHEM will be expanded to offer powerline connectivity using Renesas' acclaimed DCSK PLC solution, to accept data from smart gas and electric meters and to intelligently read the mains cycle and determine when the grid is under load, automatically switching off non-essential appliances.

Renesas Technology Europe focuses on supplying microcontroller-based solutions for a wide range of applications within the digital home, such as white goods, small appliances, utility metering, in-home displays, HVAC, security, healthcare and audio visual. Peter Kliegelhoefer, Renesas' Marketing Manager for Energy Management, comments that "The average household creates around 5.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year(1) and there are more than 200 million homes in the Eu25 group of countries. No wonder that the European Union and member states are focused on achieving increased energy efficiency in the home. This usually means increased demand for electronics and Renesas' role is to provide our customers with the microcontroller and communications solutions that are the perfect fit for their application." The IHEM is an excellent example of how electronics can be used to monitor and understand energy consumption within the home, as well as to take intelligent decisions on the information analysed.

Part of Renesas' global marketing team, the Digital Home Business Group is responsible for defining product roadmaps and solutions which will enable product differentiation and speed time to market.

Early in 2008 AND's directorial team made a key decision to invest internally in green technology research, seeing this as not only the next big thing to shake-up the electronics industry, but as Steven Kear, Programmes Director at AND, explained "with over 40% of the UK's carbon dioxide emissions actually originating from the energy we use everyday - at home & when we travel(2), it was clear to us that businesses, industry and consumers were soon going to be demanding solutions to help tackle and manage these issues. When Renesas approached us with the idea of jointly developing a form of energy monitor, the timing was perfect. AND utilised Renesas's technology solutions and fused it together with its own research and innovations to produce the IHEM".

[1, 2] Energy Saving Trust. Energy Saving Trust [www.energysavingtrust.org.uk]

* Product names, company names, or brands mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

About Renesas Technology Corp..
Renesas Technology Corp. is the world's No.1 supplier of microcontrollers and one of the world's leading semiconductor system solutions providers for mobile, automotive and PC/AV (Audio Visual) markets. It is also a leading provider of Power MOSFETs, Smart Card microcontrollers, RF-ICs, High Power Amplifiers, Mixed Signal ICs, System-on-Chip (SoC), System-in-Package (SiP) and more. Established in 2003 as a joint venture between Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE:6501, NYSE:HIT) and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TSE:6503), Renesas Technology achieved consolidated revenue of 702.7 billion JPY in FY2008 (end of March 2009). Renesas Technology is based in Tokyo, Japan and has a global network of manufacturing, design and sales operations in 16 countries with 25,000 employees worldwide. For further information, please visit Renesas Technology Corp. [www.renesas.com]

Headquartered in Buckinghamshire, UK, Renesas Technology Europe has offices in Denmark, Finland, France, Germany (3 offices), Italy, Spain, Sweden, and representation via related companies in the Czech Republic, South Africa and Russia.

In Europe, Renesas focuses on automotive (control, networking, infotainment), wireless (GSM, CDMA and Bluetooth), smart card and microcontroller applications such as white goods, motor control, metering, energy management, building security and healthcare. It employs over 150 engineers to develop solutions for the European market and to assist customers with application development. Renesas is a leading supplier of smart card ICs in Europe. Europe is the world's largest market for automotive electronics and microcontrollers, and is the region of most design influence for wireless electronic products. Feedback from customers in Europe has great influence on Renesas' product development.

For further information, please visit Renesas Technology Corp. [www.renesas.com] or for Europe visit Renesas Technology Europe [www.renesas.eu]

About AND Technology Research Ltd.
For over twenty-eight years AND Technology Research Ltd., (AND) has been at the cutting edge of technology design & innovation; developing electronic & software products for clients in addition to offering professional, expert advice in both these fields.

Based in 'leafy' Theydon Bois, a village just outside London (UK), the team of highly professional, multi-disciplined engineers have a fantastic ability to solve problems & design challenges simply & effectively. The company works with individuals & businesses, consulting & researching into emerging technologies, designs & concepts. Working across a broad range of sectors covering automotive, broadcast, aerospace , medical, consumer & most recently green tech, the company offers services from PCB layout, to software programming, to product prototyping; the one-stop-shop for development. For further information please visitAND Technology Research [www.andtr.com]

AND continues to grow - late March saw the appointment of a new non-executive Director to the company board at AND Technology Research Ltd., Dr. Marcel Dissel.

Back in late 2008, AND's board of directors identified the need for an additional member to join the new directorial team; a role that would be essentially outward-facing but ultimately would provide the company with valuable input into securing success, improving processes & stimulating growth - & so the search began.

Marcel Dissel was soon identified by AND's CEO Valerie Thorn & following the necessary review process by the board of possible candidates, Marcel was appointed to the new role.

CEO at the AO Foundation, a medically guided global non-profit organization dedicated to improving patient care by fostering & expanding an interdisciplinary network of currently more than 10,000 healthcare professionals in research, development, clinical investigation, & education specialised in the treatment of trauma & disorders of the musculoskeletal system; Marcel is also the founder & director of Dissel Ltd.(GB) & Dissel GmbH (CH) - which provides consultancy & interim management services.

A senior research associate at the University of Cambridge, England, Marcel also teaches at the Steinbeis University Berlin & provides courses for various executive MBAs.

Gaining his experience as a management consultant as a senior partner at PRO4S & Partner GmbH. Marcel has an MSc in business administration from the Rotterdam School of Management & a PhD in technology & innovation management from the aerospace faculty of the University Bw Munich

On Marcel's appointment Val commented "I'm delighted that Marcel has joined us at AND. We have always been forward looking but particularly at this time, clear direction for sustainable growth is essential. Marcel's input in this will be invaluable in helping us achieve our goals."

Useful links
AO Foundation [www.aofoundation.org]
University of Cambridge [www.cam.ac.uk]
Steinbeis University Berlin [www.steinbeis-icrm.eu]

The autumn of 2008 saw AND's rapid expansion plans come to fruition with 3 new staff joining the team; last, but by no means least, was Tapashree Bhattacharya.

A recent graduate of the University of Sussex, Tapashree brings with her contemporary ideas, skills & knowledge in the fields of digital communication & embedded systems engineering, in addition to specialised expertise in software design & simulation programming.

Having gained a Bachelor of Technology degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering (1st class) at SMIT (Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology) India, Tapashree decided she wanted to challenge herself further. With a long standing interest from young in different cultures & a passion to expand her knowledge further in top quality education system, Tapashree decided to come to the UK & after some hard study obtained an MSc in Modern Digital Communications Systems from the University of Sussex.

Shortly after completing her Bachelor degree course, before travelling to the UK to study for her MSc, Tapashree worked as a Programmer Analyst for Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, India. Working in a close-knit team of 12, Tapashree's primary role was to work on various design/modelling software issues for the company, with a view to providing solutions to their multi-national client base.

During her spare time Tapashree is a keen artist & enjoys both sketching & painting in addition to being a proactive member of a handful of voluntary groups including HelpAge India & Greenpeace.

On Tapashree's appointment Steven Kear, Programmes Director at AND commented: "Even though UK PLC is in the mists of an economic slowdown, ANDs 40% growth this year is as of a direct result of increase in demand for our design & development services. Tapashree is a highly-motivated, talented individual who along with our other recent recruits will be a key member in providing solutions for our expanding customer base". Tapashree said "My dream for a long time has been to work for a company that is at the cutting edge of technological innovation, I'm really excited about applying my knowledge & interests into real world challenges".

Indeed Tapashree has already been hard at work, playing a lead research role in customer project involving Carbon Trading & the technology to drive that process in addition to developing & integrating firmware into a suite of energy efficiency products for a major client…we'll keep you updated on her progress.

All the staff at AND welcome Tapashree & wish her much success in his new role.

Useful links
Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology (SMIT), India [www.smit.smu.edu.in]
University of Sussex [www.sussex.ac.uk]
HelpAge India [www.helpageindia.org]
Greenpeace [www.greenpeace.org.uk]