Page 3 - ConnectorSupplier.com 2019 Mil/Aero eBook

In our 2019 Mil/Aero eBook, connector industry experts share their insights into the design, materials, special features, and adjacent technologies that are guiding the continuous development of high-tech military and aerospace applications. The articles collected here will provide designers with in-depth information about the wide variety of connectivity products that serve these demanding markets.
Contemporary applications across the military/aerospace market are driving innovations in connectors and cable assemblies that can meet the requirements of power-hungry, data-driven equipment in some of the most severe environments. Connector and cable manufacturers are meeting these challenges with connector and cable products that not only ruggedly withstand conditions like severe vibration and shock, fluctuating temperatures, and exposure to chemicals, but also offer protection from electromagnetic and radio frequency interference (EMI and RFI). In addition, components destined for military and aerospace applications must meet rigorous regulatory standards to achieve required MIL-spec or customer-approved status.
In vehicles ranging from small amphibious military ground vehicles and drones to large aircraft carriers and space-bound vehicles, connectivity is key to maintaining secure and instantaneous contact with command, control, communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems. Modern military and aerospace vehicles are equipped with navigation, control, computer, lighting, thermal management, infotainment, autonomous, and other advanced electronics systems that require considerable connectivity, and legacy equipment needs continuous updating to operate within current networks.
Soldier-worn and portable electronics are also critical to modern military activities, making ease of use an important element of these future soldier technologies. Striking the right balance of size, weight, and power (SWaP) in such equipment is crucial for achieving desired functionality while minimizing the already considerable burden placed on personnel, and has driven connector and cable manufacturers to develop a plethora of new products, as well as to update an array of tried, tested, and field-proven products.
Designers who work outside of the military or aerospace sector can also learn from the work being done within these sectors. Rugged military vehicles are closely related to equipment used in industrial applications. Soldier-worn portable units have utility in first response, medicine, and sports and recreation equipment, and unmanned aerial vehicles, underwater vehicles, and ground vehicles (UAVs, UUVs, UGVs), as well as unmanned spacecraft, have all found applications in government and retail applications. Opportunities abound for military technologies to cross over into civic applications, and learning more about the design strategies, shielding solutions, wiring requirements, contact design, and impressive capabilities of today’s military connectors will ultimately yield benefits for product design in every aspect of society.
Amy Goetzman, Managing Editor, Connector Supplier, and Lynda Nolen, Director of Databases – Regions, Products, and Markets, Bishop & Associates, Inc.
We hope you enjoy our latest special issue eBook, and we welcome you to share your comments on our LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook pages, and to share the issue link on yours.
Alice Tanghe Christine Stieglitz
Vice President and Managing Director
Associate Managing Editor
3