Here's my weekly report, a summary of recent industry news:

Companies and Products

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin successfully launched and landed their reusable rocket, New Shepard, for the fourth time.

COMSOL released version 5.2a of COMSOL Multiphysics® and COMSOL Server™. The release adds three new solvers to improve speed and increase the efficiency of memory usage.

Fairview Microwave announced flexible waveguides — flexing in both E- and H-planes — covering 5.85 to 40 GHz (WR-137 to WR-28).

Infineon claims it will hold over 50 percent share of the 77 GHz radar IC market this year (2016), with one in 15 new cars using Infineon radar ICs.

In a crowdfunding campaign, Lime Microsystems raised over $600,000 to complete development and begin production of a software defined radio (SDR) that will handle nearly any wireless standard: Wi-Fi, ZigBee, Bluetooth, UMTS, LTE, GSM and emerging IoT protocols such as LoRa.

Mercury Systems received a $2.4 million follow-on order for GPS Selective Availability Anti-Spoofing Modules (SAASM) used on a precision-guided munition program.

For the sixth straight year, Mini-Circuits received a 4-Star Supplier Award from Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS). To receive the award, a supplier must achieve "better than 97.5 percent quality (no defects) and on-time delivery for a minimum period of one year with a minimum of ten shipments." Raytheon IDS recognizes fewer than 350 suppliers from a pool of over 3,000.

Speaking of Raytheon, the company recently produced a video on their Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR). AMDR uses GaN in the T/R modules.

Markets and Technology

Broadband — The world's first World Wi-Fi Day was June 20 and christened as a global initiative to help bridge the digital divide and "connect the unconnected."

Cellular — Doug Young reviewed May's LTE subscriber numbers from China: China Mobile is nearing 50 percent penetration at 409 million, China Telecom is at 40 percent (85 million) and China Unicom lags, at 26 percent (68 million).

Will virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) be the next killer apps? If so, their data rates — 25 to 600 Mbps — may well kill the mobile network. Sue White of Nokia discusses the coming demands from VR and AR.

5G — In a speech to the National Press Club in Washington, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler outlined a proposal to allocate "high band" spectrum in the U.S. for 5G. The commission will vote on the proposal, which includes an unlicensed band at 14 GHz, on July 14. Read the speech or a summary of the speech written by Telecom TV's Guy Daniels.

Rohde & Schwarz published an application note assessing possible 5G waveforms and comparing them to OFDM, which is the LTE/LTE-Advanced standard.

IoT — The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) announced Bluetooth 5, a release that will increase range 4x and speed 2x. The SIG wants to enhance the performance for the IoT, including full home, building and outdoor use cases. The SIG projects the timing for the release to be late this year to early next year.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Samsung will invest $1.2 billion in the U.S., over four years, for IoT R&D. Half of the funding will go to start-ups outside of Samsung.

Drones — The U.S. DOT and FAA finalized rules for drones under 55 lb that are not used for hobbyist applications. Among the requirements for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS): operators must be 16 or older and either certified (i.e., remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating) or supervised by someone who is certified. Pilots must keep the drone in view and may fly during daylight and, if the UAS has anti-collision lights, at twilight.

The Wider World — In an unexpected outcome, the British voted to leave the EU, triggering economic and political dominos around the globe: the pound dropped, Britain's prime minister announced he will step down, leaders in Scotland and Northern Ireland expressed interest in remaining in the EU and separating from the U.K. While it's much too early to understand the implications of the vote, the coming months will add further uncertainty to an uncertain world.

Few of us have the opportunity to see the humanity of those whose shoulders we stand upon. The New York Times gives us a glimpse into the life of Bradford Parkinson, known as the father of GPS. His greatest long-term pleasure is planting trees. That seems grounded in humility. A tree's lifespan, after all, is certainly longer than a satellite's.

Meetings are vexing. We can't live without them, yet they can be so frustrating. Jeff Bezos (Amazon CEO) has developed an interesting practice to make meetings (more) effective. What best practices for meetings can you recommend?

If you come across news that you think your colleagues will find interesting, email me at glerude@mwjournal.com.

Have a good week.