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How R&B Plastics Integrates Motion Control Functionality Publication Date: 12/11/2008 By Jim McMahon Like most blow molding original equipment manufacturers, R&B Plastics Machinery, LLC (R&B) has to coordinate different machine motions very closely. Its machines had been using closed-loop hydraulic motions with dedicated motion control cards, which are not only expensive, but also somewhat difficult ... Bluetooth® Integration Made Simple Publication Date: 10/31/2008 By Dave Rizzo, Technical Writer, droadmap@pacbell.net The demand for Bluetooth® technology can be attributed to a number of factors including maturation of the technology, the lower cost of Bluetooth implementation, and the convenience and cost savings of going wireless. As a result, while Bluetooth technology has already made serious inroads in such consumer areas as cell phones and video gaming, it is now prime for other markets as well. Fields where Bluetooth can be used to advantage include automotive, security, aerospace, defense, monitor and control systems, factory automation, transportation, point-of-sale and other transaction-related systems, as well as consumer electronics... Core Competencies Drive Business Strategy and Success Publication Date: 10/1/2008 By Nolan Johnson, EDA/CAD Product Manager, Sunstone Circuits, Mulino, OR The U.S. PC board industry has been working its way through a well-documented softening in the market during the past few months, and the data is concerning. Since 2001, the number of PCB fabrication companies has declined steadily as approximately 30 U.S. fabricators close each year. This trend is not just a consolidation of the industry. Growth in total PCB fabrication sales year-on-year in the U.S. is marginal. The industry's current dynamic is not of healthy U.S. companies absorbing the lesser performers (consolidation), but of business moving overseas, making the U.S. manufacturing pie smaller overall. Flying Probe Testers Filling Production Needs Publication Date: 8/20/2008 By Mark Harding, Digitaltest Inc., Concord, CA When flying probe test systems were introduced, it was to address the need for an in-circuit prototype test system. Prototype testing requires detection of shorts and opens, as well as the verification of the presence and value verification of all analog components. Until the flying prober, pre-launch designs needed costly modified or brand new test fixtures. Accurate Part Reading Using High-Performance Vision Publication Date: 7/23/2008 Sensor used to identify location co-ordinates or fiducials. By Anna Allen With the overriding market trend for smaller products across many industry sectors, companies are obliged to review and redesign their products on a regular basis. Particularly relevant for devices such as mobile phones and Personal Navigation Devices (PND), the demand for more compact units is continually on the rise. This was the situation for Sarantel Ltd. Outsourcing Rework, Reball & X-Ray Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Gary Miller, President, Mini Micro Stencil, Inc., San Marcos, CA Our motto is "Rework Solutions" and it is the very essence of what Mini Micro Stencil is all about. Ask us which branch of our business is the fastest growing, and the answer is simple: contract rework. This is an area that is becoming increasingly cost-prohibitive for OEMs and EMS providers to do in-house. Tester Helps Airbase Services Keep Airlines Flying Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Tom Popolo, Director of Military and Avionics Accounts, DiagnoSYS Systems, Inc., Kissimmee, FL Imagine another flight delay because the in-flight coffee maker or cabin intercom doesn't work? It's happened. With seat-back video, on-demand movies, more audio channels and pending in-flight WiFi access, passenger cabin electronics are rapidly becoming more complex than cockpit systems. Add in the already vital flight systems and communications systems needed to deliver passengers and crews safely to their destinations. Web Marketing: 250,000 Electronic Components Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Scott Fawcett, Head of eCommerce, Electrocomponents plc, Oxford, UK How do you make purchasing your products easy and accessible for review when you are the global supplier of almost 250,000 electronic components with over one million product attributes? How do you sort and update the mass of data without losing sight of the overall picture — your customers? And how do you make your data available to the market before your competitors? 3D on a Budget Pays Big Dividends Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Greg DeMars, Director of Business Development, Alibre, Inc., Richardson, TX It's been over 10 years since Cliff Griffin left the corporate world to start his own firm. A veteran user of AutoCAD and fluent in 2D design, Griffin selected AutoCAD LT in 1995 when he launched Griffin Laboratories based in Temecula, California. Specializing in small medical devices for speech pathologists, Griffin found 2D to be adequate for most of his design work. The drawbacks, he notes, were mostly with supplier communications. Tactile Pressure Sensor Film Helps Hold Tolerances Publication Date: 6/10/2008 Capacitors after being pressed. By Arlene Gleicher, Technical Information Specialist, Sensor Products, Inc., Madison, NJ As an innovator of film capacitor technology, SB Electronics designs and manufactures products that are on the cutting edge of today's demanding electronics applications. To maintain continuous improvement of its manufacturing processes, David Bryan, Manufacturing Engineering Manager for SB Electronics, Touch Screen Technology: Managing Multiple Choices Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Ed Sullivan, Hermosa Beach, CA Though increasingly widespread and user-friendly, touch screen technology is still very much a specialty, and is therefore outsourced by equipment manufacturers. But outsourcing any electronic subassembly can be a slippery slope for OEMs, since ultimately the end product will have their brand name on it. Global manufacturers in the automotive, aircraft and other major industries are experiencing quality issues that will certainly testify to that.  Software Partner Reshapes Marketing Program Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Bruce Cameron, Senior Vice President for CRM Solutions, CDC Software, Atlanta, GA Sharp Electronics Corporation's business products division was in an enviable position at the forefront of a new technology. It was the industry leader in a market with just four or five competitors, and it sat in the driver's seat for eight years before the market became more competitive. Cutting Costs with VISI Software Hybrid Tooling Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Laura Carrabine J&M Mold (Fairport Harbor, OH) is a precision tool and die maker for the plastic, aluminum, and zinc injection industries. Owner David Martin is a mechanical engineer who says he has been working in the die casting industry since he was 13 years old. He has been using the full suite of VISI Series software from Vero International since he opened his operation seven years ago. Partnering to Combine Embedded Passives Publication Date: 6/10/2008 Resistance and capacitance core. By Bruce Mahler, Vice President, Ohmega Technologies, Inc., Culver City, CA Embedding passive components within PC boards is not a new science; at Ohmega, we've been doing it for 35 years. But the technology has evolved dramatically in that time period, and today's inside-the-board possibilities are more diverse than ever. Ohmega Technologies, Inc. manufactures OhmegaPly®, the U.S. Industry standard for thin film embedded resistive materials for printed circuit boards. Oak-Mitsui, Inc. manufactures FaradFlex®, an embedded capacitive material for printed circuit boards. There have been serious collaborative (partnering) efforts by both companies to develop a recently patented combined embeddable resistor/capacitor layer called Ohmega/Faradflex. Finding Good Offshore Partners for Software Publication Date: 6/10/2008 By Steve Mezak, CEO, Accelerance, Inc., Redwood City, CA A bad experience with offshore outsourcing of services like software development or testing can make manufacturers hesitant to try it again. If you roll your eyes when you hear the "O" word, consider that in many cases, unsatisfactory performance is the result of a poor outsourcing vendor selection process. Custom Plastic & Metal Parts Made Quickly, Inexpensively Publication Date: 6/10/2008 An electronic housing rapid prototype for Dwight, made by the Quickparts/CES partnership. By Robert Powell, Market Development Manager, Quickparts, Inc. Quickparts and Contract Engineering Services have formed a partnership to design and produce products with molded plastics, sheet-metal and most materials used in electronic applications. "Quickparts is an entirely new way to obtain custom-manufactured plastic and metal parts," said Ronald L. Hollis, Ph. D., President and CEO, Quickparts. "A more traditional method of obtaining custom parts takes too much time, leaves room for error and is often a bigger hassle than anticipated."