2010 Connector Product Review
By Bob Hult, Bishop & Associates Inc.

The January 2010 announcement of the Apple iPad embodied all of the design trends that have shaped the electronic device industry over the past five years. These include:

  • Increased packaging density

  • Improved power efficiency

  • Increased speed

  • More functionality

  • Portability

  • Ruggedness

  • User-friendly interface

  • Lower cost and greater functionality

The iPad has become an example of a disruptive technology, not only changing our expectations of personal computing devices, but generating a wave of competitive products that will further define communication and infotainment devices well into the future.

Many of the new interconnect products introduced in 2010 reflect demand for these attributes and will likely continue to set the direction of next-generation connectors for years to come. In many cases, these new interfaces are more evolutionary than revolutionary. They may exhibit a degree of improved high-speed performance; expanded granularity to more closely fit the needs of specific applications; become a ruggedized/environmentally-resistant version of a standard product; or represent an incremental reduction in form factor.

Demand for greater signal speed in smaller packages continues to push designers to find smaller, more flexible high-performance interfaces both within the box as well as I/O. Molex introduced their 36-position iPass+ HD I/O connector that enables either 4X or 8X plugs to mate with the same 2- or 4-port host board receptacle.

The Baby King Cobra circular connector family from Positronic Industries combines rugged, lightweight composite housing with the ability to accept signal, power, and coax contacts. This connector is environmentally sealed to IP-65 standards.

Anderson Power Products introduced the PowerMod HP line of high-current power connectors that feature touch-safe contacts in the female housing. Connectors are rated to 450 amps.

Electronic devices are being deployed in many uncontrolled environments, including manufacturing floors, cellular communication towers, and buried equipment vaults. Standard connectors that meet the sealing requirements of IP-67 allow these interfaces to survive.

Deutsch RJ-45 connectors integrated into tough composite circular shells are completely sealed and permit reliable Ethernet connections in railway, military vehicle, and heavy industrial applications.

Tyco Electronics introduced the Fortis Zd backplane connector to address next-generation equipment that demands high speed in rugged defense and commercial aerospace applications.
Even fiber optic connectors have been adapted for challenging environments. The LC2+ connectors from Molex utilize a metal connector body and latch while remaining fully compatible with standard plastic LC connectors.

Growing consumer interest in energy conservation and earth-friendly energy generation sparked the development of connector systems designed specifically for harsh environments associated with wind and solar power collection.

 The Amphenol Helios H4 connector is designed to survive intense UV radiation, dust, and moisture typical of outdoor solar array applications.

Adopting mezzanine card architecture can increase packaging density of traditional card cage designs. The TwinMezz mezzanine connector from FCI Electronics combines high-speed performance with increased signal density.

Following the trend of miniaturization of consumer electronics, FCI introduced the XL series FPC connector that features a contact pitch of 0.20mm and a height of only 0.90mm.

Samtec has been particularly prolific in introducing new products in 2010. An example is a new high-speed dual stacking edge card connector system. This unique connector accepts two .062-inch thick PCB cards with .276-inch space between them. High-speed impedance controlled Edge Rate® contacts are on 0.8mm centerlines, and are available in 30, 40, and 50 positions.

The HDMI is dominating high-definition flat screen TV and audio interconnect markets. Molex is targeting video applications in mobile devices with the release of its new Type D miniature HDMI connector.

 

Demand for higher speed I/O ports resulted in the development of SuperSpeed USB 3.0. Designed with a raw signaling speed at up to 5 Gb/s (10X improvement over current 2.0 interfaces), this connector provides plenty of performance headroom to support next-generation peripherals. Connector suppliers G&K and Samtec are the first to introduce these products, but many more are expected to enter this market.

The new JAE FFC-to-PCB connector addresses ever increasing demand for higher pin counts in less space, and feature 0.20mm contact pitch and connector height of 1.0mm. This zero insertion force, surface-mounted connector is offered in six sizes that range from 28 to 81 positions.

Amphenol TCS responded to requirements for high-speed backplane connectors with greater packaging density. The new XCede® HD connector offers scalable performance to 25+ Gb/s, while consuming 35 percent less space than standard XCede connectors.

XCede HD connectors are compatible with hard metric design practices.

The race to develop higher performance cable assemblies at a lower cost continues. Meritec released their Printed Direct Attach (PDA) technology for 4X and 12X InfiniBand cables. Signal conductors in the cable are directly attached to the PCB, which then transitions to become the mating interface.

Light emitting diodes for applications in general lighting have opened the market for entirely new socketing opportunities.

 

Major suppliers, including Amphenol, AVX, Molex, and Tyco Electronics, have actively introduced a series of connectors and accessories optimized for solid-state illumination.

Additional Ongoing Connector Industry Trends:

  • High-speed backplane connectors with a nominal impedance of 85 ohms, such as the Amphenol TCS XCede, Molex Impact, and Tyco Z-Pack TinMan platforms.

  • Increased licensing of proprietary connectors among suppliers to assure electrically and mechanically identical competitive products from multiple sources.

  • Growing adoption of fiber optic interconnects as cost of the electro-optic conversion devices continues to decline, and the cost of active copper high-speed cables operating at 10+ Gb increases.

  • Introduction of products that offer design headroom, assures engineers that one family of interfaces is capable of supporting current as well as several future generations of equipment without a connector change.

  • 10 Gb Ethernet is becoming the target speed for many systems, as more engineers are developing expertise in achieving this in reliable circuits. The next target appears to be 25 Gb/lane as the building block to next-generation 40 and100 Gb Ethernet.

Robert Hult
Director of Product Technology, Bishop & Associates Inc.
Robert Hult has been in the connector industry for more than 36 years. Hult began his career as a sales engineer for Amphenol. He joined AMP in 1972 and served in several management positions through 1996. In 1997, Hult joined Foxconn as group marketing manager for Intel in Chandler, Arizona, U.S. Prior to joining Bishop & Associates, Hult was the regional application engineering manager for Tyco Electronics.

Hult graduated in 1968 from Bradley University with a bachelor of science degree in electronics technology and a minor in business.

  


Bookmark and Share

 
 

 
 
 

Bishop & Associates, Inc. © 2010