Aerospace

Space and weight constraints

As well as delivering the highest possible levels of reliability, aircraft electronics hardware cannot take up too much valuable space or impact on payload that can be carried by being too heavy. On this basis, components will be selected that are lightweight and have compact physical dimensions so they can be densely packed together. These limitations will apply to all types of airborne vehicle, but they are even more critical when dealing with UAVs, drones, launchers and satellites.

Emerging trends

Among the key trends in avionics currently is electrification, with an increasing number of electrically-powered aircraft now in the process of being developed. These will call for innovation with regard to the powertrains used, requiring ultra-high efficiency MOSFETs to be employed. The large-scale distribution of monitoring devices throughout new aircraft designs is allowing their structural health to be continuously checked. This means that any indications of possible fatigue can be seen early on - before they become a danger. Based on the same principles, predictive maintenance can be done to replace parts that are coming to the end of their working lives. All this requires sensors for data acquisition, along with accompanying LPWAN wireless communication technology.

Another major trend gaining momentum is ‘New Space’. Instead of missions being restricted just to the established space agencies (like NASA and ESA), lower launch costs have meant that there are now many commercial ventures placing hardware into orbit. The vast majority of these projects will be Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite deployments at altitudes below 2000km, rather than deep space missions. A multitude of exciting electronic design opportunities are now being presented, but these require the specifying of appropriate components from a trusted source.

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