With the first half of 2016 behind us, Bishop & Associates’ Dave Brearley takes a look at the hot products and technologies that are dominating the year so far.   The Hottest Connector Technology of 2016 (So Far!) Writing about connector innovations is always fun; recent developments are no exception. Innovative connector solutions have beenRead More

Chicklets revolutionized automation by increasing the overall speed and efficiency of designing in backplane connectors. The Germans are renowned for developing and enforcing mechanical standards that are used worldwide. German companies developed the DIN 41612 connector family and the Eurocard chassis standards, which remain the basis for many other standards, such as VME architectures usedRead More

A new direct-plug solution makes connecting LED strips almost as easy as screwing in a light bulb.      Electronics designers and developers are always looking for suitable connection solutions for flexible LED strips. Reliability, functionality, size, and electrical requirements are important considerations in connection systems for electronic assemblies involving LEDs. A new direct-plug solutionRead More

As autonomous vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems become mainstream, LiDAR sensors become smaller, cheaper, and consumer-friendly. Will this impact automotive connector design?   Light Detection and Ranging, or LiDAR, is a core source of data for driverless car systems like that being developed by Google, and the huge, expensive, mechanical LiDAR units used onRead More

Since the modern automobile was invented, its basic functionality and shape has remained essentially the same. However, the environment in which vehicles operate and the data to which they connect are changing dramatically, and components will play a significant role in the automotive revolution.   The connected car has the power to shake up theRead More

The increasing complexity of and demands on networks may be solved with USB technology, but to simplify installations, be sure to follow these 10 rules.   As an industrial, medical, laboratory, or field services interface, USB has many benefits that outweigh the risks. However, you can reduce your odds of disaster with simple fixes – likeRead More

High-performance polyamides provide improved reliability and safety in next-generation USB-C connectors.     USB-C connectors will need to carry more power than previous generations in a much smaller form factor, which makes the performance properties of the materials used for holding all the conductive elements together especially critical. Reliability is a key requirement, so theRead More

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh are giving light fixtures the ability to transmit data to digital devices, with the goal of turning lamps everywhere into access points. For LED components, this could mean elevation from humble light bulb to essential wireless technology.      LED lighting is finding a new and somewhat surprising applicationRead More

Researchers from University of Tokyo have successfully built fundamental components from the semiconductor germanium for integrated photonic circuits that work at mid-infrared wavelengths and could improve Internet speeds.      Mid-infrared light, which has a wavelength longer than visible light but shorter than microwaves, has many important applications in remote sensing and communication technologies. ResearchersRead More

Using AEM10940 technology, IoT power sub-system designs can benefit from elevated conversion efficiencies up to 94%, accelerated supercapacitor charging, and the industry’s lowest cold-start power.      Ultra-low power semiconductor developer e-peas has introduced the first in a series of products with the objective of revolutionizing power delivery in Internet of Things (IoT) applications, suchRead More

Now that 100G networking equipment is being deployed in both local and wide area networks, it is time to seriously consider what lies beyond.   There are many research and development projects currently underway to answer the question of how high data rates will go, as well as what they will require of the hardware that makes them possible. TheRead More

Once again, Apple is changing the way we communicate. The new Smart Connector, launched in the iPad Pro last November, utilizes two-way conductive communication that creates an instant connection.   Apple’s recently released iPad Pro is changing (once again) how we communicate. The built-in 12.9-inch Retina display is not the big news. The real excitementRead More