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Discussing internal battery design would be incomplete if we did not write on the subject of integrated circuits. Batteries for PDAs, MP3s, Digital Cameras, and Laptops have designed within them integrated power management circuits that insure that the deliverance of reliable power is properly managed. Without these power management integrated circuits even fine tuned handhelds will exhibit problems such as over-voltage, and under-voltage conditions.

Taking a step back a moment let’s build a platform with which to discuss power management integrated circuits. At its most basic level an integrated circuit in general is a miniaturized electronic circuit. An electrical circuit is a network that has a closed loop, giving a return path for current. The goals of integrated circuits are multifaceted, for example when designing for signal processing integrated circuits apply a predefined operation on potential differences (measured in volts) or currents (measured in amperes). Typical functions for such electrical networks are amplification, oscillation and analog linear algorithmic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, differentiation and integration.

For batteries the use of integrated circuits with the goal of power management is integrated battery management which include voltage regulation and charging functions. Power management integrated circuits offer other key benefits as well including maximizing battery life between charges, minimize charging times, and improve battery life.

The other critical aspect of power management integrated circuits is their functioning design to detect and monitor voltage levels in batteries. When certain parameter thresholds are exceeded or dangerous conditions exist, these “supervisory circuits” react through a programmable logic design to protect the monitored system and correct problems as programmed. Supervisory circuits are known by a variety of names, including battery monitors, power supply monitors, supply supervisory circuits and reset circuits. They perform critical functions including power-on-reset (POR) protection to ensure that processors always start at the same address during power-up. Without POR, even well-functioning systems can exhibit problems during power-up, power-down, overvoltage, and undervoltage conditions.

A real example of a battery pack protector circuit is a Texas Instrument two-cell lithium-ion (Li-Ion) and lithium-polymer (Li-Pol) battery pack protector device. The device’s primary function is to protect both Li-Ion and Li-Pol cells in a two-cell battery pack from being either over-charged (over-voltage) or over-discharged (under-voltage). It employs a precision band-gap voltage reference that is used to detect when either cell is approaching an over-voltage or under-voltage state. When on-board logic detects either condition, the series FET (field effect transistor) switch opens to protect the cells.

I won’t be getting anymore technical as this topic is better left to engineers. But suffice to say power management integrated circuits are a critical design aspect of your handheld battery. Without these integrated circuits your handheld device would have died along while back.

Dan Hagopian of Batteryship.com authored this article. http://www.Batteryship.com offers PDA Battery Replacement Kits with tools and instructions for iPod battery, iPAQ battery, Clie battery, Palm Battery, Axim battery, Treos, and Blackberries.

Buying a new computer is an exciting event for most people. Many consumers find it fun to unpack and put together their new PC, expecting it to look clean and flawless. But many are disappointed when they find tacky Microsoft and Intel stickers cluttering an otherwise sleek design.

The stickers either fade and peel themselves off over time-making the computer look even worse-or the consumer has to delicately and painstakingly peel off the stickers by hand in order to make the obtrusive logos disappear.

Finally a company with some influence is doing something about it. Dell, the PC giant, is having talks with both Microsoft and Intel about omitting vicarious advertising from its machines.

Dell doesn’t care that other companies’ logos are seen on their computers as much as it cares about saving some extra dough. For them, putting the stickers on each computer takes a lot of time, and therefore money, especially considering Dell is the world’s largest PC maker, currently supplying more than 16 percent of the worldwide PC market. As the Chinese and Latin American markets continue to grow, putting those pesky stickers on each machine becomes what Dell has called “a significant bottleneck.”

Certainly Intel and Microsoft are going to fight to keep their logos on every machine they power-including Dell’s-so stay tuned. But perhaps our days of picking off pesky logo stickers are numbered.

Jonathan Munk writes articles for major Logo Design companies such as LogoDesign.com and LogoWorks.com.

Visit LogoDesign.com, an excellent resource for Logo Design news, articles, tips and information.

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Wireless keyboards:
The most obvious difference between a wireless keyboard and a normal one is that the former uses infrared beams to transfer data to the computer as opposed to the latter, which uses a wire. As you type, a beam of data is sent from your keyboard to a receiver on the computer. The major advantage of this is that it eliminates one wire from the entangled web of wires from behind your desk. Many people also prefer to have a wireless mouse along with a wireless keyboard.

It may not be possible for a corded keyboard to be kept in a particular place that is most comfortable to you. This is possible with a cordless keyboard, provided that it is placed in a position where the infrared beam is easily reachable by the computer. This distance can be different for different computers, so it makes sense to check the specifications before buying a wireless keyboard. This feature can be a problem for the user if an object or person happens to block the path of the infrared beam or the angle of the keyboard is not right.

A wireless keyboard can be a valuable component is you are certain that the space between your keyboard and computer will remain free of physical obstructions. It will provide freedom and flexibility.

Ergonomic keyboard
The ergonomic keyboard has been designed to relieve some of the stress caused by repetitive typing and make for more comfortable typing. Prolonged usage of the keyboard can cause carpal tunnel syndrome or repetitive stress injury, which can be very painful. The specially designed, contoured ergonomic keyboards are helpful in such cases and even recommended by doctors.

There is also a view that the traditional QWERTY layout is more stressful on the fingers and arms. Hence, the unconventional Dvorak keyboard layout has been designed for those who subscribe to this theory.

While there are no design specifications for ergonomic keyboards, they generally have a contoured design for greater typing comfort, as opposed to the standard flat keyboard.

Illuminated keyboards
Much like mobile phone keyboards, these keyboards are backlit so that the keys are more visible even in poorly lit conditions.

Often, when working at night, you may like to work only with the light of the monitor to prevent the glare of another light. An illuminated keyboard would be just the thing for you in such a situation. It is also great for multimedia presentations in boardrooms with dim lighting.

When buying an illuminated keyboard, look out for the options of being able to turn off the illumination when not required and to adjust the level of brightness.

Visit http://your-personal-computer.info for more info.

Logan writes about various topics. This article is free to re-print as long as nothing is changed, the bio remains, all hyper links remain intacked and the rel=”nofollow” tag isnt added to any links. Thank-You