Fresh PCB Concepts: Resilience and Renewal in Domestic PCB Manufacturing
Designers Notebook: Power and Ground Distribution Basics
Elementary, Mr. Watson: Heat—The Hidden Villain of Power Electronics
The Shaughnessy Report: Car Talk
October 7, 2015 | Andy Shaughnessy, PCB Design007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
My girlfriend Rita doesn’t like to drive in traffic. As an Atlanta resident, this is a problem for her, because Atlanta has some of the worst traffic jams in the U.S. (I think it’s worse than Los Angeles; I’ve never sat for three hours in the same spot in LA.) So, after her last motoring miscue, she bought a new Mazda 3—the cheapest car Mazda makes—but it’s tricked out with every anti-collision feature available.
Now, it’s almost impossible for Rita to trade paint. Hit the turn signal when another car is passing, and all kinds of alarms go off. If you drift over and touch the yellow line on either side, the car starts beeping like crazy. If the car ahead of you slows down when cruise control is engaged, the car applies the brakes automatically and keeps you a certain number of car lengths behind Mr. Slowpoke. And if the reverse video doesn’t do the trick, the car starts beeping if you’re about to back out in front of a vehicle that you can’t see.
Yes, I poked fun at Rita for having all of these countermeasures beeping and pinging, but they work great. You can even turn them off, which I would do if I had to drive her car for any length of time.
Plus, the entertainment system has a great GUI; you feel like you’re sitting in your couch at home, flipping through the channels. You barely have to take your eyes off the road (or the handy speedometer in the heads up display) to find another CD on your phone’s Bluetooth, which is the point.
All of these electronic features come at a price, though: about $5,000, in this case. But we’re willing to shell out extra cash for features that will make us feel safe, or offer us greater convenience or entertainment.
Yes, the automotive electronics segment has exploded. Early cars didn’t have much in the way of electronics. Even in 1950, electronics made up only 1% of a car’s cost. (That was probably just the Philco AM radio.) But that figure is expected to hit 35% in 2020, and 50% in 2030. The global automotive electronics market is forecast to hit $314.4 billion by 2020, and that means a whole lot of PCBs.
And that’s where we come in! This issue of The PCB Design Magazine features a cover story “Automotive Systems Design: a Support Engineer’s Perspective,” written by Monica Andrei of Continental Automotive Systems. As a design support engineer, she supports 1,700 PCB designers across dozens of countries, speaking a variety of languages. In this article, Andrei explains in detail how Continental transitioned from a traditional PCB design structure to a true systems design approach.
To read this entire article, which appeared in the September 2015 issue of The PCB Design Magazine, click here.
Share on:
Testimonial
"The I-Connect007 team is outstanding—kind, responsive, and a true marketing partner. Their design team created fresh, eye-catching ads, and their editorial support polished our content to let our brand shine. Thank you all! "
Sweeney Ng - CEE PCBSuggested Items
Henger Microelectronics Expands Global Footprint with Major Equipment Shipment to Southeast Asia
10/31/2025 |Henger Microelectronics has reached a major milestone in its global expansion strategy with the successful shipment of advanced plasma etching and cleaning systems, along with automation equipment, to multiple countries and regions across Southeast Asia. This achievement marks a significant step forward in the company’s international growth and reinforces its position as a leading force in the global plasma equipment industry.
TTCI Brings Hands-On Test Engineering and IPC Training Expertise to PCB Carolina 2025
10/31/2025 | The Test Connection Inc.The Test Connection Inc. (TTCI), a trusted provider of electronic test and manufacturing solutions, and The Training Connection LLC (TTC-LLC) will exhibit at PCB Carolina on Wednesday, November 12, 2025, at the McKimmon Center at NC State University in Raleigh, North Carolina. Attendees can visit Table 4 to say hello to Bert Horner and Bill Graver, and learn more about their test engineering services and technical training programs.
Cephia Secures $4M Seed Funding to Revolutionize Multimodal Sensing with Metasurface Technology
10/31/2025 | PRNewswireCephia, a startup building products using advanced AI computational imaging technologies and silicon sensors made from advanced metamaterials, formally launched with several pilot customers and $4 million in seed venture capital funding.
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
10/31/2025 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007Last week, the IMPACT conference took place in Taipei, bringing together advanced packaging experts from around the globe to share their knowledge. We’ll be bringing you post-conference coverage over the next few weeks, so look for that in our newsletters, and in the Advanced Electronic Packaging Digest. Other news seemed to have the U.S. at the center of the global discussions. My picks start in Phoenix, where TSMC, NVIDIA, and Amkor are all scrambling to establish new capabilities. There’s nothing like a strong demand signal to cause build-out, and AI chips are doing exactly that.
NEDME 2025 Draws Strong Northwest Crowd, Builds on Tradition of Regional Collaboration
10/31/2025 | NEDMEThe NW Electronics Design & Manufacturing Expo (NEDME) 2025 once again brought together the Pacific Northwest community for a full day of learning, networking, and industry connections.