Allow experienced drivers from war-torn countries to skip driving-test waiting period similar to other newcomers in OntarioToronto, ON – Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation should revise its policy and allow experienced drivers from war-torn countries to skip the one-year waiting period before their final driving tests — an exemption available to other newcomers in Ontario as well […]

System integration strategies vary by industry and project scale. Success relies on thorough planning and execution, especially in machine vision technology. Here are key integration elements for success with vision technologies.

Serving as the Chair of the ASQ Inspection Division has been a remarkable journey of leadership, collaboration, and growth. It has been both a privilege and a responsibility to guide the division through strategic initiatives aimed at empowering our members and elevating the quality profession.

The global HVAC market is forecast to post a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of close to 7 percent by 2020, according to the latest report from Technavio. The research study covers the present scenario and growth prospects of the HVAC market from 2016 to 2020.

The advent of smartphones has made life both simpler and more complicated for people around the world.

Increased cooling capacities, remote monitoring technology, and the need for backup units are all part of the mix in the portable a/c market, experts say.

Is reducing a facility's energy consumption by over 130,000 kWh annually through HVAC optimization possible?

Whether you are thinking about exploring strategic alternatives for your business or simply want to take it to the next level, private equity investors and strategic buyers are looking for tech-enabled companies.

This e-book includes a summary of sustainable HVAC developments, in particular of heat pumps and refrigerant changes to address climate change.

To meet the ambitious environmental goals being proposed at all levels of government, residential air-to-water heat pumps are emerging as a transformative solution to lower carbon emissions, enhance energy efficiency, and reduce utility bills.

The smart network will set up a virtuous cycle for distributed generators and energy storage devices. It will grow the market by opening up more niches where distributed energy is economically competitive. This growth will lead to economies of scale... Read more

The post Driving Distributed Energy with Smart Networks appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

CPG companies are turning to warehouse automation solutions such as palletizers and mobile robots, according to the PMMI report.

Fundamental Overview

The puzzling weakness in the US Dollar following Trump’s victory looks more and more like it was just a “sell the fact” reaction. The greenback is now back in the driving seat, and we might also be seeing some pre-positioning into a potentially hot US CPI report tomorrow.

At the latest Fed’s decision, Fed Chair Powell said that they expect bumps on inflation and that one or two bad data months on inflation won’t change the process. This keeps the 25 bps cut in December in place even if we get higher inflation readings.

The market though is forward-looking, and the rise in Treasury yields showed that the market sees risks to the inflation outlook. Moreover, the red sweep could increase those fears if the progress on inflation stalls, or worse, reverses.

USDJPY Technical Analysis – Daily Timeframe

On the daily chart, we can see that USDJPY continues to consolidate above the key 152.00 support zone maintaining a bullish bias. If we were to get another pullback into the support, we can expect the buyers to step in once again to position for a rally into the 160.00 handle. The sellers, on the other hand, will want to see the price breaking lower to pile in for a drop into the 148.00 handle next.

USDJPY Technical Analysis – 4 hour Timeframe

On the 4 hour chart, we can see that we have a minor upward trendline defining the current bullish momentum. The price recently bounced near the trendline and we can expect the buyers to keep leaning on it, while the sellers will look for a break lower to gain more conviction for a bigger correction to the downside.

USDJPY Technical Analysis – 1 hour Timeframe

On the 1 hour chart, we can see that we have a minor support zone around the 153.40 level. This is where the buyers are stepping in with a defined risk below the zone to position for the continuation of the uptrend. The sellers, on the other hand, will want to see the price breaking lower to target a pullback into the trendline. The red lines define the average daily range for today.

Upcoming Catalysts

This week is a bit empty on the data front with the most important releases scheduled for the latter part of the week. Tomorrow, we have the US CPI report. On Thursday, we get the latest US Jobless Claims figures. On Friday, we conclude the week with the US Retail Sales data.

See the video below

Functional architecture of network-based driving assistance for autonomous vehicles

NET2030-DF - Driving forces and vision towards Network 2030

By Carlos Osuna, Head of R&D, Panasonic Connect Europe.

The retail industry is at an inflection point. Booming e-commerce volumes and changing consumer behaviour on the back of economic pressures are making customers more price-sensitive and less brand loyal.

Domino Printing Sciences (Domino) is supporting the industry’s transition to 2D barcodes as an innovation sponsor of the GS1 Global Forum 2024.The largest annual GS1 event, which takes place from 19th–22nd February in Brussels and virtually, brings together GS1 member organisations from across the globe to collaborate....

Cordell Schachter, the Transportation Department CIO, said the agency’s DevSecOps capabilities are maturing as part of its digital transformation effort.

The post DoT driving IT modernization to meet enterprise, local needs first appeared on Federal News Network.

Hear from federal sales executives who are thought leaders in our space. They will share their insights on 3 important areas for successful federal sales and marketing organizations.

The post Episode 24: Insights from expert Federal Sales Leaders: Standing up your federal sales organization and effectively driving revenue at end of fiscal year first appeared on Federal News Network.

Mark Kitz, the program executive officer for the Army’s PEO-C3T, said a major priority is rethinking command posts and command and control applications.

The post Army now driving network upgrades to higher echelons first appeared on Federal News Network.

Sara Tenney talks about how ACS creates digital primers to bridge the gap between undergraduate-level depth and scholarly articles. 

Pedal power replaces horse power on London 2 Paris charity bike ride.

Seeking a driving upbeat Pop song along the lines of Fire by Barns Courtney. The songs must be 100% owned by the writer/writers.

Pop-Up Music is a PRS registered music library and publisher located in London. We pride ourselves in providing undiscovered music and bespoke music for advertising, film, TV, gaming and corporate.

Many thanks
- The Pop-UP Music Team

Deal Type: Catalog Inclusion
Decision Maker: I'm the final decision maker
Deal Structure: Non-Exclusive
Compensation: Negotiable
Song Quality: Fully mastered, Broadcast ready
Similar Sounding Artists: Fire by Barns Courtney

I often have thoughts or ideas when I'm in the car, but I have no easy way to capture them. I have an iPhone, but I don't want to fiddle with it while I'm driving. I'm seeking an app (or possibly a standalone device) that I can safely use while driving. Is there some app that is voice-activated (i.e., without unlocking the phone) and will transcribe short memos? Ideally, I'd like those transcripts to be available in some cloud site, so I can access them via a web browser on my office computer or home computer.

I'd even consider buying a standalone recorder that I can activate just by pushing a button. I looked on Amazon, but I didn't really see anything that can make transcripts and upload them to a cloud site. Just the audio files might work, but it would be much better for me to have transcripts that I can easily access from a computer.

Eleven motorists “failed the alco-analyser test at Hamilton Police Station and were arrested for an impaired driving offence” during checkpoints held from February 23 to February 26. Acting Superintendent Robert Cardwell, Tactical Operations Division said, “As advertised, road side sobriety testing was enforced between last week Thursday, 23rd February 2023 and Sunday, 26th February 2023 […]

A male motorcyclist was arrested on suspicion of driving while impaired after he “lost control of his motorcycle and crashed by mounting the sidewalk” after trying to flee the police. A police spokesperson said, “Shortly after 3:45 a.m. Saturday, 25th November 2023, police officers on mobile patrol on Reid Street observed a disturbance, in the area […]

Six people were arrested for driving whilst impaired over the weekend with at least two of them involved in road traffic collisions. A police spokesperson said, “Troublingly, six people were arrested for driving whilst impaired over the weekend with at least two of them involved in road traffic collisions. “One person recorded a minimum reading […]

Karen Rios Soto explains how mathematics illuminates the link between air pollution from motor vehicle emissions and asthma. Air pollution causes the premature deaths of an estimated seven million people each year, and it makes life worse for all of us. People with asthma can experience chest tightness, coughing or wheezing, and difficulty breathing when triggered by air pollution. One major source is gas- and diesel-powered cars and trucks, which emit "ultrafine" particles less than 0.1 micrometers across. That's about the width of the virus that causes COVID-19, so tiny that these particles are not currently regulated by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Yet ultrafine particles can easily enter your lungs and be absorbed into your bloodstream, causing health issues such as an asthma attack or even neurodegenerative diseases. Mathematics can help us understand the extent of the problem and how to solve it.

Gender-smart Procurement: Policies for Driving Change Research paper sysadmin 14 December 2017

Governments should use public procurement policy as a strategic lever to accelerate gender-inclusive economic growth through the application of state spending power.

• Governments need to rethink public procurement policy. They need to use it as a strategic lever to accelerate gender-inclusive economic growth through the application of state spending power, while maintaining rigorous governance standards. Reform of public procurement to make it more gender-inclusive could create a ‘diversity dividend’ through increased job creation and economic growth. Gender-smart procurement policies could also mitigate economic and business risk by rendering supply chains more diverse.
• In 2014, G20 members agreed to reduce the gender gap in the labour market by 25 per cent by 2025. Procurement policy is one of the most powerful tools governments have to achieve this goal. All G20 members, regardless of the differences in their legal frameworks, can implement measures that will increase the ability of women to benefit from procurement policy.
• Public procurement accounts for around one-fifth of global gross domestic product (GDP). It is estimated that women entrepreneurs supply only 1 per cent of this market. Women’s businesses face considerable barriers to accessing procurement tenders and winning procurement contracts. The inadequate design of many procurement processes prevents more inclusive gender outcomes for citizens. Governments should redefine procurement policies to make explicit the requirement that increasing women’s workforce participation, through greater use of female suppliers, is a key objective when selecting bids for procurement contracts.
• Through the use of policy and spending levers, governments can play four primary roles in encouraging procurement from enterprises owned by women, or from businesses committed to promoting female labour participation. These roles are:
  - To direct reforms of government procurement – reviewing procurement policies and practices to ensure sustainable and inclusive procurement;
  - To reduce barriers to women’s participation in the economy – creating the support mechanisms to ensure an environment in which businesses owned by women can flourish;
  - To help scale up gender-smart procurement in the private sector – expanding government’s role in encouraging private companies to spend more of their procurement budgets with women’s businesses; and
  - To encourage increased transparency on the issues – creating and sharing procurement databases and lessons learned, especially at the regional level.
• Companies can also benefit from having more diverse supply chains and volunteering for accreditation schemes. They can start conversations with government about national regulation that encourages diversity in procurement, leading by example.
• The G20 should set measurable and time-bound targets in the area of gender-smart procurement, to build on the momentum of UN reforms and incorporate good practice in supply chain management.

Art car designers tour the country with their cars, some thousands of miles a year, not for fame or money, but just to make people smile. (Produced by: Abby Callard and Ryan Reed)

Watch this exclusive clip from the upcoming Ric Burns documentary about the "Green Book"

People who want to support the well-being of youth and families in their communities can register for free online courses through Penn State’s Prevention Learning Portal. The portal offers instruction and resources on how to choose, implement and sustain programs and practices that promote healthy communities.

DELAWARE OFFICE OF HIGHWAY SAFETY LAUNCHES “BE ALERT AND ARRIVE ALIVE” CAMPAIGN DURING NATIONAL DISTRACTED DRIVING AWARENESS MONTH Integrated campaign strategy leverages the reach and influence of Delaware businesses, community partners, and law enforcement to maximize distracted driving awareness  DOVER, Del. (April 8, 2021) — The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is leveraging the […]

Secretary Nathaniel McQueen Jr., DATE Director John Yeomans, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Communications Manager Denée Crumrine, Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long DOVER, DE – The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement (DATE) was joined by Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long, Safety and Homeland Security Secretary Nathaniel McQueen Jr. representatives from the Office of Highway Safety (OHS) […]

The holiday season is upon us, and this year, the Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) wants you to give others the gift of holiday safety by pledging not to drink and drive.

Governor John Carney has terminated the State of Emergency and Level 2 driving restriction in Kent and Sussex counties, effective at 6:00 p.m. A Level 1 Driving Warning will be in effect for Kent and Sussex counties after 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, January 30.

Talk to Teens About the Importance of Driving Safety During National Teen Driver Safety Week   DOVER, Del. (Oct 14, 2022)— National Teen Driver Safety Week is October 16-22, 2022 — the perfect opportunity to talk with teens about safe driving habits. The Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) is teaming up with its traffic […]

The annual Safe Family Holiday campaign seeks to prevent the holidays from “getting ugly” by helping Delawareans avoid dangerous driver, passenger, and pedestrian behaviors. DOVER, Del. (Nov. 17, 2022) — Starting on Nov. 18, the Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) will begin its annual holiday safety campaign, designed to reduce crashes, injuries, and deaths […]

Winter storms can occur anytime and anywhere, sometimes with fatal consequences. Heavy snow, high winds, freezing rain, and extreme cold can knock out heat and power to homes and offices and cause hazardous driving conditions. Preparing now can help to greatly reduce any potential impacts from severe weather. The Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) is urging everyone to take action: make a plan, build and stock home and car emergency kits with winter weather items, and stay informed on the latest conditions. Be sure to visit PrepareDE.org for additional resources.

The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) has recently installed a wrong way driving detection and alert system on the Exit 95 off-ramp from SR 1 northbound to Bay Road and SR 10 (E Lebanon Road) near the Dover Air Force Base North Gate. The alert system is the first of its kind in Delaware to […]

The Delaware Office of Highway Safety is partnering with local and state law enforcement agencies across Delaware from April 1st – 30th  to conduct high visibility enforcement and support several mobilization initiatives during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month such as the Delaware State Police “Drive to Save Lives” initiative that took place Saturday, April 1st through Monday, April 3rd, 2023. This mobilization brought together multiple law enforcement agencies from Florida to Maine to focus patrols up and down the I-95 corridor, which aimed at keeping motorists safe and reducing fatalities on our roadways.

DOVER, Del. (April 26, 2023) The Delaware Office of Highway Safety is teaming up with NASCAR Drivers Ross Chastain and Chad Chastain to encourage Delawareans to “Use Your Melon” and Drive Sober. On Friday, April 28th, OHS and Ross will be at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Dover 680 S Bay Rd, Dover, DE 19901 […]

With temperatures forecasted to fall well below freezing tonight, the Delaware Emergency Management Agency has issued a Level 1 Driving Warning statewide for the overnight hours of Tuesday, January 16, 2024, to Wednesday, January 17, 2024, due to the likelihood of icing occurring on roads and bridges statewide tonight. A Level 1 Driving Warning is […]

The Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) is rescinding the Level 1 Driving Warning as of Wednesday, January 17 at 7:00 a.m. The warning was issued on Tuesday, January 16 due to the likelihood of icing occurring on roads and bridges statewide overnight. A Level 1 Driving Warning is an advisory against unnecessary travel due to road conditions.

As vehicles transition into interconnected ecosystems, artificial intelligence and advanced technologies become increasingly crucial. Infotainment systems have evolved beyond mere music players to become central hubs for connectivity, entertainment, and navigation. With global demand for comfort, convenience, and safety rising, the automotive infotainment market is experiencing significant growth. Valued at USD14.99 billion in 2023, it is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.9% from 2024 to 2030.

To keep pace with this evolution, infotainment systems must accommodate a range of workloads, including audio, voice, AI, and vision technologies. This requires a flexible, scalable Digital Signal Processor (DSP) solution that acts as an offload engine for the main application processor. Integrating a single DSP for varied functions offers a cost-effective solution for high-performance, low-power processing, which aligns well with the needs of Electric Vehicles (EVs).

If you missed the detailed presentation by Casey Ng, Product Marketing Director at Cadence at CadenceLIVE 2024, register at the CadenceLIVE On-Demand site to access it and other insightful presentations. Stay ahead of the curve and explore the future of innovative electronics with us.

Cadence Infotainment Solution: Leading the Charge

Cadence Tensilica HiFi DSPs play a crucial role in enhancing audio capabilities in vehicle infotainment systems. They support applications like voice recognition, hands-free calling, and deliver immersive audio experiences. This technology is also paramount for features such as active noise control, which reduces road and cabin noise, and acoustic event detection for identifying unusual sounds like broken glass. One notable innovation is the "audio bubble," enabling personalized audio zones within the vehicle, ensuring passengers enjoy distinct audio settings.

Cadence HiFi DSP technology enriches the driving experience for electric vehicles by mimicking traditional engine sounds, while its advanced audio processing ensures optimal performance across various digital radio standards. It significantly contributes to noise reduction, hence improving the cabin experience. Integrating a Double Precision Floating Point Unit (FPU) stands out, as it upgrades audio performance and Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) through efficient 64-bit processing, allowing control over numerous speakers without hitches.

These advancements distinguish the DSP as an essential tool in evolving infotainment systems, offering unmatched performance and adaptability. Tensilica HiFi processors, crucial to advanced infotainment SoCs, serve as efficient offload processors, augmenting real-time execution and energy efficiency. Cadence’s ecosystem, with over 200 codecs and software partnerships, propels the evolution of innovative infotainment systems. Introducing the HiFi 5s DSP marks a new era in connected car experiences, setting the stage for groundbreaking advancements.

Exploring Tomorrow with HiFi 5s DSP Technology

The HiFi 5s represents the apex of audio and AI digital signal processing performance. Built on the Xtensa LX8 platform, it introduces capabilities like auto-vectorization, which allows standard C code to be automatically optimized for performance. This synergy of hardware and software co-design marks a significant step forward in DSP technology. By leveraging its extended Single Instruction, Multiple Data (SIMD) capabilities alongside features like a double-precision floating-point unit (DP_FPU), the HiFi 5s delivers unparalleled precision and speed improvements in signal and audio processing tasks. Equally notable are its branch prediction and L2 cache enhancements, which optimize system performance by refining the control code execution and recognizing codec efficiency. The application of such enhancements are particularly beneficial in real-world scenarios.

AI-Powered Audio

Cadence's focus on AI integration with the HiFi 5s demonstrates significant improvements in audio clarity through AI-powered solutions.

• AI models learn from real-world data and adapt dynamically, while classic DSP algorithms rely on fixed rules.
• AI can be fine-tuned for specific scenarios, whereas classic DSP lacks flexibility.
• AI handles extreme and marginal noise patterns better, generalizes well across different environments, and is robust against varying noise characteristics.

Cadence's dedication to artificial intelligence marks a pivotal shift in audio processing. Traditional DSP algorithms, bound by rigid rules, are eclipsed by AI's ability to learn dynamically from real-world data. This adaptability equips AI models to tackle challenging noise patterns and offer unmatched clarity even in noisy environments, making them ideal for automotive and consumer audio applications.

Realtime AI-Optimized Speech Enhancements by OmniSpeech and ai|coustics

OmniSpeech

Our partner, OmniSpeech, has advanced AI-based audio processing that enhances the performance of audio software, specifically for omnidirectional and dipole microphones. Impressively, their technology operates with less than 32MHz and requires only 418kB of memory.

Test results show that background noise is significantly reduced when AI employs a single omnidirectional microphone, outperforming non-AI solutions. Additionally, when using a dipole microphone with AI, there is a 3.5X improvement in the weighted Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and more than a 28% increase in the Global Mean Opinion Score (GMOS) across various background noise.

ai|coustics

ai|coustics, a Cadence partner specializing in advanced audio technologies, utilizes real-time AI-optimized speech enhancement algorithms. They leverage an extensive speech-quality dataset containing thousands of hours and 100 languages to transform low-quality audio into studio-grade audio. Their process includes:

• De-reverb, which eliminates room resonances, echoes, and reflections

• Removing artifacts from downsampling and codec compression

• Dynamic and adaptive background noise removal

• Reviving audio materials with analog and digital distortions

• Providing support for all languages, accents, and a variety of speakers

Applications include:

• Automotive: Enhances clarity of navigation commands and communication for driver safety

• Consumer audio: Improves voice clarity for better dialogue understanding in TV programs. Optimizes speech intelligibility in communication for both uplink and downlink audio streams

• Smart IoT: Boosts voice command detection and response quality

Performance Enhancements

The advancements in branch prediction and L2 cache integration have significantly boosted performance metrics across various systems. With HiFi 5s, branch prediction increases codec efficiency by an average of 5%, reaching up to 16% in optimal conditions. L2 cache improvements have drastically enhanced system-level performance, evidenced by a 2.3X boost in EVS decoder efficiency. Adding MACs and imaging ISA in imaging use cases has led to substantial advancements. When comparing HiFi 5s to HiFi 5, imaging ISA performance improvements range with >60% average performance improvements.

The Crescendo of the Future

As Cadence continues to blaze trails in DSP technology, the HiFi 5s emerges as the quintessential solution for consumer and automotive audio use cases. With a robust framework for auto-vectorization, an unmatched double-precision FPU, AI-driven audio solutions, and comprehensive system enhancements, Cadence is orchestrating the next era of audio processing, where every note is clearer, every sound richer, and every experience more engaging. It is not just the future of audio—it's the future of how we experience the world around us.

 Discover how Cadence Automotive Solutions can transform your business today!

Staying ahead of the curve is essential to meeting customer needs. Cadence has consistently demonstrated its commitment to innovation, and its latest IP portfolio available on TSMC's 3nm (N3) process is no exception. Today, rapid advancements in AI/ML, hyperscale computing (HPC), and the automotive industry are driving significant changes in technology. Let's explore the impressive array of IP that Cadence offers on this advanced node.

Memory Solutions: High-Speed and Power-Efficient

Cadence's DDR5 12.8G MRDIMM IP supports the highest speed grade Gen2 MRDIMMs and features a fully hardened PHY optimized to the customer's floorplan. The LPDDR5X IP is silicon-proven at 9.6Gbps and is ideal for power-sensitive applications, offering a fully integrated memory subsystem.

GDDR7: Leading the Way in Graphics Memory

Cadence has achieved a significant milestone with the world's first silicon-proven GDDR7 IP, supporting data rates up to 32Gbps. This IP offers the best price/performance ratio for AI interfaces, making it a game-changer in the graphics memory domain.

PCIe and CXL Solutions: Robust and Reliable

Cadence's PCIe 3.0 IP is a mature and production-proven solution available across a wide range of process nodes from 28nm to 3nm. It offers a versatile multi-link architecture for optimum SoC configurability and flexible use cases. The PCIe 6.0 and CXL 3.x solutions are silicon-proven, power-optimized, and highly robust, with jitter-tolerant capabilities. These IP are the only subsystem proven with eight lanes of controller and PHY in silicon, ensuring interoperability with leading test vendors and OEMs.

UCIe PHY: Setting New Standards

The UCIe PHY IP from Cadence are set to be generally available after successful silicon characterization in both standard and advanced package options on the TSMC N3 (3nm) process. These IP demonstrate significantly better power, performance, and area (PPA) metrics than the specifications, with a bit error rate (BER) better than 1E-27 compared to the spec of 1E-15. The power consumption is also notably lower than the spec limit, ensuring a simpler integration with a best-in-class power profile.

112G PHY IP: Pushing the Boundaries of Performance

Cadence's 112G PHY IP are designed to meet the demands of high-speed data transmission. The 112G-ULR PHY IP, characterized in the 3nm process, showcases exceptional performance with support for insertion loss over 45dB at data rates ranging from 1.25Gbps to 112.5Gbps. This IP is optimized for both power and area, making it a versatile choice for various applications. The 112G-VSR/MR PHY IP also stands out with its excellent power and performance metrics, making it ideal for short-reach applications and optical interconnects. Additionally, the 112G PAM4 PHY solutions cater to hyperscale, AI, HPC, and optics applications, featuring a mature DSP-based SerDes architecture with advanced techniques such as reflection cancellation.

Cadence's IP portfolio on TSMC N3 shows innovation and expertise to solve today's design challenges. From high-speed PHY IP to robust PCIe and CXL solutions and advanced memory IP, Cadence continues to lead the way in semiconductor IP development. These solutions not only meet but exceed industry standards, ensuring that customers can confidently achieve their design goals. Stay tuned for more updates on Cadence's groundbreaking advancements in semiconductor technology.

Learn more about Cadence IP and other silicon solutions.

This blog introduces the new Voltus-XFi Custom Power Integrity Solution, a transistor-level EM-IR tool that enables designers to complete comprehensive analysis and debugging easily and quickly.(read more)