Next-generation military and aerospace applications require increasingly rugged connectors to handle ever-higher data rates with utmost reliability in even the harshest environments. New levels of connector ruggedization can take two forms: an entirely new connector or an upgrade to an existing connector.   Expanding a Strong Foundation: Ruggedizing Connectors for Next-Generation Mil/Aero Applications A TERead More

Ruggedness and durability are mandatory requirements in the railroad market, but Ethernet and other commercial technologies see an expanded role as riders demand services like WiFi   The global train control and management system market is growing steadily as more digital equipment is deployed on trains and infrastructure sites, creating a solid market for connectorsRead More

Check out this week’s product roundup for information about some of the latest and greatest high-speed connector and cabling products.   High-Speed Connector Product Roundup Ideally suited for board-to-board applications that require high-density, high-speed, single-ended or differential signaling, Amphenol InterCon Systems’ Lynx™ board-to-board and mezzanine connectors feature low profiles, narrow footprints with 40 – 240Read More

In demanding fields like military and transportation, connectors are helping VME and VPX developers push performance to new levels.   Connectors are Critical for VME to VPX Transitions The harsh, high performance fields that have used VME technologies for decades are making the transition to its successor, the VPX bus. As this evolution occurs, connectorsRead More

Check out the latest interconnect innovations in our New Interconnect Product News roundup.   Mill-Max announced the release of low-profile target connectors with an above board height of .087” (2.21mm). Target connectors are used in place of SMT pads on a PCB as the mating surface for spring-loaded pins. These provide increased durability and areRead More

Two conferences highlighted the ongoing changes in wiring, thermals, backplanes, and many more connector technologies. Bob Hult provides the buzz from VITA’s 2017 Embedded Tech Trends forum, and then another look at DesignCon 2017.   Embedded computers have existed in the shadow of much larger computer markets for commercial and communication applications. Unlike general purposeRead More

Several trends were apparent at last week’s DesignCon 2017 conference. Foremost among them was the advance of copper solutions that include wiring as an alternative to PCB traces.   DesignCon 2017 opened amid a thoroughly drenched Bay Area, but did not deter more than 5,000 attendees to this premier exhibition of leading edge electronic design,Read More

Innovative industrial interconnect products drive new designs capable of satisfying ever-increasing productivity, embedded computing, power distribution, energy efficiency, and always-on communications demands in a range of critical industrial applications, including: alternative energy (EVs, wind power, and solar power), broadband communications, factory automation, heavy equipment, instrumentation, motion control, mass transportation, and natural resource exploration. Check out thisRead More

Joint efforts ensure compatible products from multiple sources   The complexity of high-end electronics creates many opportunities for hardware and/or software problems, while pricing and time to market pressures create problems for those tasked with setting up the supply chain. For the connector world, the merger of these trends often means that second sources needRead More

Use of VME connectors expands via smaller mezzanine cards, fiber optics, and coax.   Worldwide Standardization Drives Acceptance Changing requirements for faster processing and reduced size/weight, scalability, and power (SWaP) are resulting in newer form factors that include increased use of mezzanine connectors (cards), BGAs, and both larger and higher-density backplane/daughtercard connectors, plus fiber optics andRead More

FCI took the next step in the development of high-speed backplanes when it developed a cost-efficient way to deliver higher speed and density. While Teradyne and its partner Molex were increasing speed with successive generations of large, expensive, heavily shielded waferized connectors, FCI was listening to its large base of telecom, storage, and low-end computingRead More

Teradyne Connector Systems’ innovative VHDM connectors combined ground-plane and lead-frame wafers. You may remember that AMP’s patent associated with the Z-pack 2mm HM (hard metric) with ground planes between wafers was not tooled for the 2mm HM connector, primarily because it was difficult to justify the additional cost and complexity with just two pairs per chicklet.Read More