ASICs for implementing functional safety in battery-powered home appliances

This block diagram shows an ASIC that facilitates battery management and motor control functions in a portable appliance. Source: EnSilica

Recent advances in battery technologies, coupled with environmental and energy efficiency initiatives, have accelerated a move toward many household appliances going cordless. While the removal of the mains supply gives users better protection against electric shock, risk is not mitigated completely, and therefore, functional safety still needs to be a core tenet of a system’s design.

In this article Enrique Martinez of EnSilica, takes a look at how functional safety can be applied in home appliances, and examines the economic tipping point to use an ASIC rather than a discrete (COTS) solution.

Read the full article at EDN (English).