For the companies that make and supply them, testing automotive connectors is an important step in their design and production. Electronics make up over 35% of the cost of a modern car, with tens of thousands of electronic components inside each vehicle. If any of them fail to withstand the harsh environmental conditions of theRead More

This week’s Product Roundup highlights headers from leading suppliers. Headers Avnet supplies Molex’s MX150 sealed and unsealed connector system. This field-proven platform offers high-quality, reliable connections in harsh environments to support compact automotive and commercial vehicle applications. With an USCAR interface, class 4 temp ranges (-40 °C to +150 °C), a 22.0 A current rating,Read More

As personal medical devices follow the path of consumer electronics, product miniaturization has made it easy for patients to integrate these technologies into their lives. Medical machines for hospital settings are also scaling down and becoming available to more facilities. Micro and miniaturized interconnects play a key role in enabling these medical equipment trends. TheRead More

As automotive manufacturing advances, high-speed, press-fit, and other connector technologies evolve to meet current industry demands. Today’s cars are essentially high-end computers on wheels. A decade ago, vehicle electronics centered on basics like power windows, anti-lock braking systems (ABS), and satellite radio. Today’s cars contain a full suite of safety, comfort, and convenience features suchRead More

After a year off due to pandemic disruption, VITA’s open standards event returned to share the latest developments in embedded computing, high-performance interconnects, and standards that impact application development. Although 2022 marked the 40th anniversary of the VITA trade organization, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of its celebration and annual Embedded Tech TrendsRead More

Learn how to design systems that minimize signal integrity loss and interference and maximize performance. The bar is higher than ever for high-speed performance, and PCB components have the potential to be either a great asset or an Achilles’ heel, especially if signal integrity is not given the foremost consideration while testing the design. WhatRead More

Meet the Connector: PCIe Connectors Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCle), also called PCI Express, is a high-performance and high-bandwidth serial communication I/O interconnect bus standard. Interconnects that meet the PCIe standard include mezzanine and board-to-board connectors, over-the-board solutions, high-speed edge card sockets that support 1, 4, 8, and 16 PCIe links, and PCIe optical cableRead More

This week’s Product Roundup highlights compression connectors from leading suppliers. Compression Connectors for Datacom Applications Amphenol Communications Solutions offers compression-type surface mount connectors for hard disk drives (HDD). These customizable single-piece solutions facilitate read & write functions in traditional low-cost bulk-storage HDDs and helium HDDs. Their small footprint saves PCB real estate. The single pieceRead More

Meet the Connector: Wire-to-Board Connectors Wire-to-board connectors bring power and signal to a printed circuit board (PCB) by connecting a group of discrete wires to the board. There are no standard wire-to-board connectors; the various types are specific to the manufacturers who produce them. Wire-to-board connectors can be specified based on several features. These includeRead More

Connectors that once were market leaders now are too large for most consumer applications. The next level of refinement in design comes in the form of fine-pitch alternatives. The world of consumer electronic devices has expanded enormously in the last decade. With applications in the leisure market as well as personal healthcare and industry, handheldRead More

Heavy and complex cables present a problem in today’s efficient vehicle designs. As more operational functions move to the screen, automotive display standards help streamline connectivity solutions. Soon, nearly every new vehicle will include at least one screen. Cars built since May 1, 2018, for the North American market feature a mandatory backup camera systemRead More

Drones and other unmanned aircraft play a critical role in military operations. Five key attributes guide military and aerospace designers as they specify interconnects for these systems. The U.S. Army’s vision statement in its 2010–2035 roadmap for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) begins, “Army UAS employed across all tactical echelons supporting Army and Joint operations provideRead More

New-to-market connectivity products, including interconnects, wire, cable, and cable assemblies, sensors, antennas, materials, accessories, tools, and development kits. May 2022 New Connectivity Products II May 2022 New Connectivity Products > Interconnects, etc. TTI Inc. stocks the XW4M and XW4N Series from OMRON. OMRON XW4M and XW4N 3.5 mm pitch push-in pluggable terminal block PCB connectors have a unique connector engagement structure for easy insertion andRead More

Space constraints within small devices create challenges for component placement on the boards. Innovations in ZIF-style flex connectors offer designers a possible solution.   By Jeff Combs, Director of Sales, CE Segment at Hirose Electric USA  Hardware designs for IoT, consumer, modular, and other complex applications often leave limited space for the mating and assembly ofRead More

New-to-market connectivity products, including interconnects, wire, cable, and cable assemblies, sensors, antennas, materials, accessories, tools, and development kits. May 2022 New Connectivity Products I  May 2022 New Connectivity Products > Interconnects, etc. Harwin has introduced horizontal backshells for its Gecko-Screw-Lok (Gecko-SL) series of lightweight, high-reliability connectors. These backshells ensure a fully EMI/RFI shielded connection for horizontal 1.25 mm pitch board-to-cable connections. Previously Gecko EMI/RFIRead More

This week’s Product Roundup highlights connectors used in wearables from leading suppliers. Connectors for Wearable Applications   Omnetics Connector Corp. offers a wide range of circular connector body types, from overmolded breakaway cable connectors to full metal shielded cable and connectors with threaded latch, quick-turn latch, and breakaway metal shells to suit the needs of variousRead More

Minimizing Electromagnetic Compliance (EMC) is a challenge for designers of digital systems who must pass FCC system tests for radiated emissions. The study of radiated electric field pattern simulations, often used for antenna analysis, helps evaluate the radiation properties of individual interconnects and aid in the selection of properly shielded products. Electromagnetic Compliance By AlanRead More

As bandwidth grows and speeds continue to accelerate, conventional PCB solutions are reaching their limits. Over-the-board cable solutions alleviate heat and signal integrity concerns while allowing systems to reach ever higher performance levels. By Jim David and Vishal Chandrasekar, Amphenol Communications Solutions In today’s data driven world, manufacturers of switch, server, and router hardware areRead More

This week’s Product Roundup highlights connectors used for medical diagnostic equipment from leading suppliers. Connectors for Medical Diagnostics Applications MINIDOCK Series Connectors from I-PEX are optimized for use in rugged docking applications and ruggedized applications with low-insertion-force cable plug terminations, like the cable plug mating end in ultrasound probe assemblies. Ultrasound equipment designers have severalRead More

Online configuration tools are changing the way we specify connectors. 3D modules help designers create the right product for their application. Board-to-board connectors are designed to connect two PCBs with precisely controlled spacing in between. For example, when customizing a pin header, numerous parameters must be considered, such as number of pins, pin length, andRead More