From personal automobile to large commercial fleets, transportation is undergoing significant technological advances, especially in the areas of electrification and advanced driver assistance systems. Explore our resources to stay up to date with transportation trends and technology.
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Fibre optics - the hidden enabler of our daily lives
August 3, 2023
Fibre optic systems are well-known for their role within the telecommunications industry.
When your next tractor is a Tesla
By
Alessandro Mastellari
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January 25, 2022
The automotive industry is rapidly shifting toward Electric Vehicles (EVs), but there’s another category of vehicles ripe for electrification: ‘Non-Road Mobile Machinery’ (NRMM), as the regulators put it.
Investigating the design challenges of EV charging
March 10, 2023
As we emerged from lockdowns across the region, the shift in consumer preferences for buying an electric vehicle became very apparent.
An introduction to EV charger design: the power stages
September 19, 2022
EV chargers operate in a sometimes-harsh environment, but must be efficient and reliable with a long service lifetime. This blog picks out and discusses some components that are critical to achieving these goals.
What does miniaturisation mean for connector selection?
By
Paul Jones
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February 9, 2022
As electronic systems become smaller, they also require more component parts in increasingly space-constrained environments to meet extra expectations on functionality. Here Paul Jones explores what they means for connector selection across markets.
Engineering better railways
By
Philip Lechner
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January 25, 2022
The pressure to decarbonise the economy affects every aspect of our lives, from what we eat to how we travel. It is driving innovation throughout the transport sector, and particularly in railways.
The robots are coming
By
Hagen Goetze
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January 25, 2022
Industrial robots can be enormously effective for automating high-value, repetitive, and often unsafe processes, such as handling heavy castings or welding body seams on vehicle production lines.
Making farming smarter with next generation connectivity
By
Paul Jones
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January 18, 2022
Paul Jones looks at how the latest technological advances will help to make the global agriculture sector function more efficiently - and what the implications will be on connector selection.
How will connectivity enable next generation autonomous vehicles?
By
Sascha Spillner
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December 6, 2021
It’s clear that the car of the future is autonomous, but what does that autonomy look like, and how will connector technologies play a role in enabling it?
Next Generation PCB-mounted relays in EV charging systems
2021 is shaping up to be the year in which adoption of the Electric Vehicle takes off. First half sales in the key markets of China, the USA and Europe, accounted for 26% of all new vehicle sales, globally and, in the UK alone.
What to consider when specifying cable assemblies for high reliability applications
By
Marco Enge
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August 10, 2021
Sourcing or building cable assemblies for high-reliability applications isn't always a straight forward process. Here, Marco Enge takes a look at the options.
How can relays keep your electronic systems safe?
May 27, 2021
Relays play a key role in switching electrical signals, but with the right specification, these devices can also provide safety and circuit protection.
Product compliance after Brexit: UKCA and what you need to know
By
Andrew Hutton
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March 17, 2021
From the end of 2021, the CE mark will no longer be recognised in the UK. Andy Hutton gives a run down of what you need to know about the new UKCA mark.
Connecting the IIoT: an introduction to single-pair Ethernet
By
Martin Keenan
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February 17, 2021
Single Pair Ethernet is the perfect power delivery and data networking method for IIoT. Learn why in this introduction to SPE.
From trace to interconnect: a quick guide to optimising high-speed signal-path design
By
Martin Keenan
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November 23, 2020
In high-speed applications, effects such as common-mode noise, crosstalk, and losses due to signal-path impedances can challenge signal integrity. Here Martin Keenan explains how connector choice and signal path design can offset these issues.
How automotive Ethernet and 5G will power autonomous driving
September 22, 2020
Automotive Ethernet and high-performance 5G communication systems will form the backbone of autonomous vehicles, enabling safety, and increased comfort for drivers and passengers.
An introduction to EV charging infrastructure design
February 7, 2020
With demand for faster charging of EV vehicles increasing, the design of charging stations and infrastructure becomes ever more important.
V2X: The future of vehicle communications
By
Martin Keenan
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December 10, 2019
Vehicles are about to become a lot more communicative: with other road users, with the infrastructure they pass on their journeys, with cloud-based services, and even with the energy grid. This communication should make vehicles more economical to operate...
Switching high voltages and currents with PCB-mounted relays
By
Martin Keenan
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November 8, 2019
The growing demand for safe, robust and energy-efficient ways to switch relatively large amounts of power means that relays have an important role to play in a wide range of modern applications.
The shift to 48V in automotive systems: What you need to know
October 18, 2019
The complex electronic architectures of hybrid and electric vehicles have required engineers to rethink power requirements. Here's why 48V DC systems are key to modern automotive systems, and some considerations on powertrain component selection.
4 factors steering connector choices in today's automotive applications
September 16, 2019
Connectors are critical components in any automotive systems, and their selection can make or break a design. Here, Mathias Goebel looks at the four main factors affecting connector choices in modern automotive applications.
How can combining different types of sensors result in more accurate data?
With more and more applications combining data from multiple sensors, Alessandro Mastellari looks at how sensor fusion is being applied with pressure sensors.
Pressure sensors: Why you should consider going digital
By
Martin Keenan
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May 9, 2019
To give the electronic systems we design the ability to detect changes to what is around them we need analogue sensors. But the processing that sits behind those sensors is in almost every case going to be in the digital domain.
Pressure sensor miniaturisation: How smaller sensors are enabling better healthcare
In the second installment of our pressure sensor series Alessandro Mastellari explores how manufacturers are developing smaller and smaller devices.
What the growing pressure sensor market means for electronics
By
Martin Keenan
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May 8, 2019
Pressure sensors became to automotive systems in the early 1990s, but as the rate of adoption of these components increases Martin Keenan investigates why.
Design trends: Automotive passives
By
Martin Keenan
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November 29, 2018
Cars used to be little more than four wheels, four seats, an internal combustion engine, and enough electronics to get a spark to each plug at the right time. Today’s vehicles are radically more complex.
DC-DC power conversion challenges in transportation applications
By
Andrew Hutton
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November 22, 2018
Transportation vehicles pose a challenging environment for the power supply designer. DC-DC converters are used to power on-board sensors, communication radios, positioning and location sensing, lighting, and information systems. Huge voltage variati
3 reasons to visit Avnet Abacus at electronica 2018
November 12, 2018
As electronica 2018 prepares to open its doors, here are three reasons you should visit Avnet Abacus on stand C5 101 this week.
A supercapacitor in every system? Potential is turning to probability
By
Ekaterina Rachel
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August 24, 2018
Traditional battery technologies are being challenged by a relatively new kid on the block, the supercapacitor, and forcing developers across a range of battery-powered applications to examine just what and when power is needed for their system.
Identifying ‘hot spots’ before they cause thermal runaway
By
Juliette Whithair
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August 16, 2018
Thermal runaway can happen as a direct result of component failure and cause a lot of damage, but there are ways to protect against it.
