Efforts to improve automotive safety are trickling down to the smallest vehicles, including those that never hit the roads. Automated Vehicles The quest to develop safer cars is also influencing the design of smaller vehicles, benefitting manufacturing companies, warehouses, and the people who work in them. A new generation of autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs), alsoRead More

A mentorship program builds the skillsets the industry needs to build to achieve greater innovation and success. Innovation and change are the driving force of the electronics industry, and that spirit of change extends to the people that make up today’s electronics companies. As more women are drawn to all areas of the industry, aRead More

A new wave of optometry equipment relies on sensors, high-speed connectors, and the Internet of Things. Until recently, a routine visit to the eye doctor included a series of tests conducted using mostly mechanical tools. The standard optometry devices have continually evolved since their historical origins, but upgrades have been incremental — modern lighting systems,Read More

Electromagnetic interference poses a threat to product functionality as well as patient health. The right shielding architecture can help avoid it. By Zachary Blanden, Industrial Engineer, Nicomatic LP EMI, or electromagnetic interference, is a branch of EMC, which stands for electromagnetic compatibility. EMI refers to the study and mitigation of interference of noise signals toRead More

The electronics industry must respond to constant shifts in technology, product development, and market growth. Some companies nurture that capability in-house, while others gain expertise through strategic acquisitions. Here’s a brief history of that strategy as enacted by and upon connector companies. Since 1985, Bishop & Associates has recorded 589 mergers and acquisitions in theRead More

Autonomous machines and the Internet of Things have brought sensors to the forefront of electronics design. As the Internet of Things continues to expand and more applications feature autonomous functions, sensors have become an integral part of many electronic products. They capture the information that brings capability, autonomy, and precision to products in markets rangingRead More

The possibility of battery-free cell phones poses an existential threat to connector makers — or a new challenge. By Neil Shurtz Ask anyone what the biggest flaw is with their smartphone, and they’ll probably say it’s the battery. Relative to their massively expanded computing power and functionality, cell phones have actually come a long wayRead More

IoT technology has enabled life-changing innovations in medicine, security, transportation, and communication. But it’s also unleashed a wave of unnecessary or downright goofy devices. Are we in the Age of Wisdom or the Age of Foolishness? There is little doubt that the Internet has had a huge impact on our daily life. Some have evenRead More

As data rates increase, designers are encountering performance limits, signal loss, and higher costs, and congested PCBs. High-speed internal cable assemblies offer a potential solution. By I-PEX Connectors The increased complexity of enterprise computing equipment is one of the many factors that make today’s computing environment challenging. These complexity issues are further exacerbated by theRead More

Heat, shock, vibration, and radiation are all in a day’s work for the special components that explore worlds beyond our own. by Ann R. Thryft The most mission-critical of military/aerospace systems are the ones that go into space, where they encounter the toughest environments. Mil/aero systems must be tough enough on Earth to withstand theRead More

In critical mil/aero applications, a connector’s dependability begins where the pins and sockets meet: the contact system. By Robert Kleinschmidt, Senior Vice President, Air & Defense Business Unit, AirBorn, Inc. Many electronic systems in the military, defense, and aeronautics industries are designed to excel in some of the harshest environments imaginable. Deep-sea systems must endureRead More

For more than a century, the UL mark has helped inspire confidence in a product’s safety and quality. For UL, facilitating the standards development process, developing standards and certifying to those standards helps ensure that quality starts at the component level. UL is a premier global independent safety science company that has championed progress forRead More