-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueDon’t Just Survive, Thrive
If we are to be relevant and prosper during these next critical decades in electronics, we must do more than survive. As an industry, we can and must thrive. In this issue, our contributors explore these concepts meant to help you take your business to the next level.
Material Matters
Materials management is nuanced, multifaceted, and requires a holistic systems approach for business success. When building high mix, low volume, and high technology, managing materials and overall cost containment are even greater challenges.
Additive Manufacturing
In this month’s issue, we explore additive manufacturing technology for the PCB fabricator: where it stands today, the true benefits, and where it seems to be headed.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Dispatches from CES 2019: The Future in the Kickoff
January 14, 2019 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Press kickoff briefings at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) are no stranger to big claims and hyperboles. At the “CES 2019 Trends to Watch” presentation on Monday morning, Steve Koenig, Consumer Technology Association’s (CTA’s) VP of market research, made some pretty big claims about what we should expect to see at the show, but those claims don't seem at all to be hyperbolized.
Early in Koenig's comments, he laid out a timeline. The 2000s were the digital age, the 2010s were the connected age, and the 2020s will be the data age. Koenig then laid out a thesis that “more business decisions are backed by data."
The technology roadmap compiled by the CTA, which Koenig presented, highlighted the following emerging “ingredient" technologies: voice, robotics, biometrics, and blockchain. The technologies—applications, really—moving into the market include digital assistants, AR/VR, vehicle technology, sports innovations, digital health, and resilient technology.
Also, 5G continues to pop up as an infrastructure technology to enable the disruptive possibilities. Koenig called it “the central nervous system of the data age," and quoted Qualcomm EVP Brian Madoff as saying, "The last 30 years were connecting people; the next 30 years will be connecting things."
To make his point, Koenig made this observation: "Think of all the disruptive innovation we've seen with 4G—Uber, social media, and mobile apps of all kinds; 5G will only bring more of that." Koenig told his audience to expect to hear carrier companies provide specifics on 5G deployment plans and schedules. After the presentation, Dan Feinberg, I-Connect007 technical editor and 5G expert, pointed out that 5G isn’t even about phones, “We don’t need 5G for phone calls—4G is more than enough; thus, 5G is about connecting devices with a lot more bandwidth.”
AI technology is just as ubiquitous in the briefings, staking its place as the next layer up from 5G in the protocol stack for the data age. Koenig likened AI to a steam engine (by implication, 5G is the railroad tracks). As AI and machine learning transform business applications and user experiences, Koenig—citing reports from MacKenzie Research—sees AI exerting as much global economic impact as did the steam engine in the mid-19th century.
Layered on top of that, Koenig then turned to digital assistants, observing that adoption of voice-based user interfaces has been so quick as to become table stakes in the consumer spaces already. "Voice is becoming a legitimate option for device interaction and shows that we truly are on the cusp of a major shift in consumer behavior,” Koenig observed. “Expect more human-machine partnerships. We're also learning the limits. There are still many, many things AI and robotics cannot yet do."
At CES, it is widely known that automotive technology has historically been a show within a show. This year is no different. After showing a slide with the stages of vehicle automation:
0. No automation
1. Driver assistance
2. Partial automation
3. Conditional automation
4. High-level automation
5. Full automation
As future mobility technologies roll out including technologies like V2X communications, electric vehicles, and 5G (again), partial automation solutions will improve and proliferate. Koenig posits that autonomous vehicles are rolling out more and more Phase-3 offerings and encountering cultural issues, which has not been without controversy, he points out.
All of this led to the highest level in the stack in Koenig's presentation: resilient technologies.
Smart technologies simply must be resilient if they are to be practical, reliable, adaptable, and multi-configurable.
Suggested Items
KIC Honored with IPC Recognition for 25 Years of Membership and Contributions to Electronics Manufacturing Industry
06/24/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, is proud to announce that it has been recognized by IPC for 25 years of membership and significant contributions to electronics manufacturing.
Boeing Starliner Spacecraft Completes Successful Crewed Docking with International Space Station
06/07/2024 | BoeingNASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams successfully docked Boeing's Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS), about 26 hours after launching from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
KIC’s Miles Moreau to Present Profiling Basics and Best Practices at SMTA Wisconsin Chapter PCBA Profile Workshop
01/25/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, announces that Miles Moreau, General Manager, will be a featured speaker at the SMTA Wisconsin Chapter In-Person PCBA Profile Workshop.
The Drive Toward UHDI and Substrates
09/20/2023 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamPanasonic’s Darren Hitchcock spoke with the I-Connect007 Editorial Team on the complexities of moving toward ultra HDI manufacturing. As we learn in this conversation, the number of shifting constraints relative to traditional PCB fabrication is quite large and can sometimes conflict with each other.
Standard Of Excellence: The Products of the Future
09/19/2023 | Anaya Vardya -- Column: Standard of ExcellenceIn my last column, I discussed cutting-edge innovations in printed circuit board technology, focusing on innovative trends in ultra HDI, embedded passives and components, green PCBs, and advanced substrate materials. This month, I’m following up with the products these new PCB technologies are destined for. Why do we need all these new technologies?