One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

...Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott · Jul 16, 2004

Jim said:
One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

...Jim Thompson

So you _are_ working for Microsoft -- no, wait -- this is probably much
more reliable.

Never mind.

John Larkin · Jul 16, 2004

One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

...Jim Thompson

So, what's your estimate of the total number of JT-designed ICs that
have ever been produced? I mean actual individual chips, not designs.

John

John Woodgate · Jul 16, 2004

I read in sci.electronics.design that Jim Thompson
4ax.com>) about 'One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip
Design', on Fri, 16 Jul 2004:

One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

Have you got versions for elderly electronic engineers that emit 'sawing
Ebonite', 'hot Paxolin' and 'selenium dioxide'? (;-)

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

So, what's your estimate of the total number of JT-designed ICs that
have ever been produced? I mean actual individual chips, not designs.

John

I wouldn't know where to begin.

Probably the 1488/1489 RS-232 chip set would have had the highest
volume.

Although my alternator regulator chips would be up in the millions
also.

The PLL stuff would be high volume but not astronomic.

Then I have probably 100 custom chips, designed for
application-specific use, probably each in the 10K/year category.

But this latest one for SC Johnson will probably be an all-time
high... only way the volume could be any better would be if it fit
into a TP dispenser ;-)

BTW: This design runs off a single cell, boosts its own VDD, and has
also a HV output to drive a piezo actuator that drives the pump. Also
counts the time between "squirts" ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott · Jul 16, 2004

Jim said:
I wouldn't know where to begin.

Probably the 1488/1489 RS-232 chip set would have had the highest
volume.

Although my alternator regulator chips would be up in the millions
also.

The PLL stuff would be high volume but not astronomic.

Then I have probably 100 custom chips, designed for
application-specific use, probably each in the 10K/year category.

But this latest one for SC Johnson will probably be an all-time
high... only way the volume could be any better would be if it fit
into a TP dispenser ;-)

BTW: This design runs off a single cell, boosts its own VDD, and has
also a HV output to drive a piezo actuator that drives the pump. Also
counts the time between "squirts" ;-)

...Jim Thompson

I suppose this is going to be even more volume than those cheezy $5.00
calculators -- but how about $1.98 wristwatches?

Which PLL stuff did you design, and are there any useful Motorola (sorry
-- freonscale) chips that you _haven't_ designed?

John Larkin · Jul 16, 2004

I wouldn't know where to begin.

Probably the 1488/1489 RS-232 chip set would have had the highest
volume.

Although my alternator regulator chips would be up in the millions
also.

The PLL stuff would be high volume but not astronomic.

Then I have probably 100 custom chips, designed for
application-specific use, probably each in the 10K/year category.

But this latest one for SC Johnson will probably be an all-time
high... only way the volume could be any better would be if it fit
into a TP dispenser ;-)

BTW: This design runs off a single cell, boosts its own VDD, and has
also a HV output to drive a piezo actuator that drives the pump. Also
counts the time between "squirts" ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Hey, Here's my latest gadget:

http://www.highlandtechnology.com/DSS/P400DS.html

Actually, three of us here worked on this for about three years as
sort of a background project, when we didn't have a paying customer
screaming for delivery on something. I never appreciated how much
hassle a benchtop instrument would really be until this got serious. A
VME or PCI board is blindingly simple compared to all the stuff you
have to put into a box like this. And by the time you finish it,
things have changed so much you're dying to redesign it again from
scratch. m.u.s.t..r.e.s.i.s.t..t.e.m.p.t.a.t.i.o.n.

John

Roy McCammon · Jul 16, 2004

Jim said:
One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

...Jim Thompson

must be one of those obscure definitions of "contribution"
with which I am not familiar.

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

I suppose this is going to be even more volume than those cheezy $5.00
calculators -- but how about $1.98 wristwatches?

Which PLL stuff did you design, and are there any useful Motorola (sorry
-- freonscale) chips that you _haven't_ designed?

I laid myself off in 1970, so anything after that is someone else's
work.... although there's really nothing new, just process
improvements on designs by Ron Treadway and myself.

...Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

Hey, Here's my latest gadget:

http://www.highlandtechnology.com/DSS/P400DS.html

Actually, three of us here worked on this for about three years as
sort of a background project, when we didn't have a paying customer
screaming for delivery on something. I never appreciated how much
hassle a benchtop instrument would really be until this got serious. A
VME or PCI board is blindingly simple compared to all the stuff you
have to put into a box like this. And by the time you finish it,
things have changed so much you're dying to redesign it again from
scratch. m.u.s.t..r.e.s.i.s.t..t.e.m.p.t.a.t.i.o.n.

John

ROTFLMAO! That's a constant problem with circuit designers... when to
let it loose and call it completed... I'm always in a quandary with
"perfection" ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

I read in sci.electronics.design that Jim Thompson
4ax.com>) about 'One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip
Design', on Fri, 16 Jul 2004:

Have you got versions for elderly electronic engineers that emit 'sawing
Ebonite', 'hot Paxolin' and 'selenium dioxide'? (;-)

I don't think SC Johnson would find those odors acceptable ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

must be one of those obscure definitions of "contribution"
with which I am not familiar.

'Twas tongue-in-cheek. It's my chip in the product. But it's this
sort of thing that makes more money than PLLs, for instance.

...Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott · Jul 16, 2004

Jim said:
I laid myself off in 1970, so anything after that is someone else's
work.... although there's really nothing new, just process
improvements on designs by Ron Treadway and myself.

...Jim Thompson

I've never laid myself off, but I've fired the boss three times now.

Julie · Jul 16, 2004

Jim said:
One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

Nice.

Just out of curiosity (I'm not after $$ figures), but how is a chip project
like that handled?

Did you design that chip specifically for SC Johnson, under contract?

On what are your payments based? Was it a fixed-amount one-time payment,
per-piece license fee? Who owns the rights to the design?

Finally, who handles your licensing/contract agreements?

Thanks for any info --

Martin · Jul 16, 2004

Jim Thompson said:
One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design...

http://www.glade.com/wisp.asp

...Jim Thompson

That's pretty cute. My wife wants to know if you could add a sensor to it
that would increase the squirt frequency when I need a shower.

Joerg · Jul 16, 2004

Hi John,

Have you got versions for elderly electronic engineers that emit 'sawing
Ebonite', 'hot Paxolin' and 'selenium dioxide'? (;-)

How about "drilling bakelite"? Or "overloaded carbon resistor", "eau de
electrolytics" and "parfume de tubes with dust on them"?

Regards, Joerg

Joerg · Jul 16, 2004

Hi Jim,

Probably the 1488/1489 RS-232 chip set would have had the highest
volume.

If you count the "C" siblings that came after your original I probably
added another boat load of consumed chips here ;-)

Regards, Joerg

Mark Valery · Jul 16, 2004

ROTFLMAO! That's a constant problem with circuit designers... when to
let it loose and call it completed... I'm always in a quandary with
"perfection" ;-)

...Jim Thompson
I don't know what ROTFLMAO stands for, but an old engineer once
said to me "Shoot the engineer, deliver the product".

Mark

Jim Thompson · Jul 16, 2004

...Jim Thompson
I don't know what ROTFLMAO stands for, but an old engineer once
said to me "Shoot the engineer, deliver the product".

Mark

ROTFLMAO => Rolling On The Floor Laughing My Ass Off ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Chris Carlen · Jul 16, 2004

John said:
Hey, Here's my latest gadget:

http://www.highlandtechnology.com/DSS/P400DS.html

Actually, three of us here worked on this for about three years as
sort of a background project, when we didn't have a paying customer
screaming for delivery on something. I never appreciated how much
hassle a benchtop instrument would really be until this got serious. A
VME or PCI board is blindingly simple compared to all the stuff you
have to put into a box like this. And by the time you finish it,
things have changed so much you're dying to redesign it again from
scratch. m.u.s.t..r.e.s.i.s.t..t.e.m.p.t.a.t.i.o.n.

John

I like that more than the air freshener, I'm afraid.

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One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design

One of My High Technology Contributions to Microchip Design

Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott

John Larkin

John Woodgate

Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott

John Larkin

Roy McCammon

Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson

Tim Wescott

Julie

Martin

Joerg

Joerg

Mark Valery

Jim Thompson

Chris Carlen

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