>Guy Macon <http://www.guymacon.com/> writes:
>> henza wrote:
>>
>> >A newbie here.
>> >After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes
up i
>> >my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in
terms o
>> >picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to
>> >whole product?
>> >
>> >Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and developmen
>> >toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
>> >
>> >I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp
controlle
>> >project, is it a bad choice in any context?
>> >
>> >Many thanks in advance
>>
>> For a server cabinet temp controller project, price doesn't
>> matter. Choose according to which one will teach you the most.
>>
>> For the kind of things I do (quantities as high as 100,000
>> units per hour) price is everything. Do the math.
>
>I just did and find them impressive, especially if the
>manufacturing is 24/7 forever. It must be a challenge
>to find components in that quantity (0.9 Gparts/year).
>
>I didn't think IC manufacturers could turn out parts at
>that rate. If they can, I'd think you'd need to be
>mouth-of-the-factory to keep delivery logistics in hand.
>
Thanks guys for the info. Appreciate it!
Reply by Everett M. Greene●March 31, 20082008-03-31
> henza wrote:
>
> >A newbie here.
> >After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes up i
> >my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in terms o
> >picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to
> >whole product?
> >
> >Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and developmen
> >toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
> >
> >I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp controlle
> >project, is it a bad choice in any context?
> >
> >Many thanks in advance
>
> For a server cabinet temp controller project, price doesn't
> matter. Choose according to which one will teach you the most.
>
> For the kind of things I do (quantities as high as 100,000
> units per hour) price is everything. Do the math.
I just did and find them impressive, especially if the
manufacturing is 24/7 forever. It must be a challenge
to find components in that quantity (0.9 Gparts/year).
I didn't think IC manufacturers could turn out parts at
that rate. If they can, I'd think you'd need to be
mouth-of-the-factory to keep delivery logistics in hand.
Reply by Tim Wescott●March 31, 20082008-03-31
henza wrote:
> A newbie here.
> After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes up in
> my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in terms of
> picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to a
> whole product?
>
> Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and development
> toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
>
> I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp controller
> project, is it a bad choice in any context?
>
> Many thanks in advance
>
> Henry
>
>
Like Guy said: Do the math.
If you're building 100 of something, _ever_, and you can save $10000
worth of engineering time by spending $20 more per processor, you've
just saved $10000 - $2000 = $18000, and you're a hero.
If you're building 100K parts/year, then spending $10000 worth of
engineering time to save one thin dime per finished part is a
break-even. If you can save a quarter per finished part -- you're a hero.
Now go back to that first case, and ask yourself if spending $10000 of
engineering time to save $250 over the life of the product is a good
thing or a bad thing...
You should _always_ consider how many parts are going to be made, and
how much of a hurry you are in to get working devices on the market.
You'll _always_ be faced with having to spend money to save money --
it's just a question of whether the smart money gets spent on a
(relatively) huge processor larded with resources to ease the
development burden, or whether the smart money gets spent on development
to use the thinnest processor possible.
--
Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com
Do you need to implement control loops in software?
"Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems" gives you just what it says.
See details at http://www.wescottdesign.com/actfes/actfes.html
Reply by Guy Macon●March 31, 20082008-03-31
henza wrote:
>A newbie here.
>After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes up i
>my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in terms o
>picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to
>whole product?
>
>Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and developmen
>toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
>
>I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp controlle
>project, is it a bad choice in any context?
>
>Many thanks in advance
For a server cabinet temp controller project, price doesn't
matter. Choose according to which one will teach you the most.
For the kind of things I do (quantities as high as 100,000
units per hour) price is everything. Do the math.
--
misc.business.product-dev: a Usenet newsgroup
about the Business of Product Development.
-- Guy Macon <http://www.guymacon.com/>
Reply by Dave●March 31, 20082008-03-31
"henza" <hychan@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:A46dnRFYu_-2Xm3anZ2dnUVZ_oSunZ2d@giganews.com...
>A newbie here.
> After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes up in
> my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in terms of
> picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to a
> whole product?
>
> Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and development
> toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
>
> I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp controller
> project, is it a bad choice in any context?
>
> Many thanks in advance
>
> Henry
>
>
Like all things it depends on the end application. I've worked in an
Automotive environment and where we were developing a high volme product of
maybe 500k units/year for a relatively mature application then a $3 micro.
is very sgnificant for a total product selling price of maybe $40. On the
other hand I've also worked on a product with a volume of only 1000/yr and
product selling price of around $1k so then the $10-$15 micro. isn't so
significant. In this case it was a very new technology where factors such
as reliability and safety were far more important than cost.
I believe military and medical applicaions tend to be even less cost
sensitive for the individual components.
Reply by henza●March 31, 20082008-03-31
A newbie here.
After reading a small portion of the discussion, this question comes up in
my head, is the cost of microcontroller a very important issue in terms of
picking the right one? How much a microcontroller CAN contribute to a
whole product?
Or is it the functionality, speed, power consumption and development
toolchain userfriendly-ness more important in the decision?
I am thinking about using Cortex M3 for my server cabinet temp controller
project, is it a bad choice in any context?
Many thanks in advance
Henry