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6:01 On Track: PCB Design and Its Role In Internet-of-Things Watch Video

For PCB Designers, Makers and Innovators: OnTrack Newsletter April 2017

For PCB Designers, Makers and Innovators: OnTrack Newsletter April 2017 On Track Newsletter April 2017 VOL. 1 No 1 Welcome to the first edition of the Altium^® newsletter, On Track. First and foremost this has been created with you in mind–the PCB designer, the Maker and the Innovator. This monthly publication has been designed to elevate, inspire and equip designers everywhere to do their magic and to help unleash the next generation of technology. When a company like Altium begins to “grow up” it’s easy to forget Read Article

Advantages of Flexible Circuits for Space Applications

Advantages of Flexible Circuits for Space Applications Flexible circuits reduce weight in spacecraft and can be used in enclosures where there is minimal available space. Read Article

PCB Design Guidelines for High-Frequency Circuits in Car Radar & 5G Applications: PCB Design Tips & Tricks - Altium Audio

PCB Design Guidelines for High-Frequency Circuits in Car Radar & 5G Applications: PCB Design Tips & Tricks - Altium Audio Altium Audio Bites, giving you bite-sized information that's easy to digest and apply to your everyday design tasks. From our PCB Design Tips & Tricks audio series here is: PCB Design Guidelines for High-Frequency Circuits in Car Radar & 5G Applications. All our audio series are from real PCB designers in the field, detailing their day to day problems and experiences. We hope you can learn from this as much as we have. Give it a listen and let us Read Article

What Are Molded Interconnect Devices or MIDs?: PCB Design Tips & Tricks - Altium Audio Bites

What Are Molded Interconnect Devices or MIDs?: PCB Design Tips & Tricks - Altium Audio Bites Altium Audio Bites, giving you bite-sized information that's easy to digest and apply to your everyday design tasks. From our PCB Design Tips & Tricks audio series here is: What Are Molded Interconnect Devices or MIDs? All our audio series are from real PCB designers in the field, detailing their day to day problems and experiences. We hope you can learn from this as much as we have. Give it a listen and let us know what you think in the comments Read Article

How Component Placement and Routing Helps Protect Your PCB from ESD

How Component Placement and Routing Helps Protect Your PCB from ESD I organize certain things with a reportedly alarming neuroticism. In grad school, there was a line of demarcation between the edge of my side of the desk and the pile of sample containers and papers that began on my neighbor’s side. This same tendency, though annoying to deskmates and boyfriends, especially since it doesn’t extend to bathrooms, makes me an ace at optimizing component placement on PCBs. Not only does this keep things neat, it also Read Article

How to Use a Ferrite Bead in Your Design to Reduce EMI

How to Use (and Not Use) a Ferrite Bead in Your Design to Reduce EMI EMI and EMC can be a tricky subjects, and it's often tempting to mis-apply design guidelines to try and reduce EMI. One of these areas relating to EMC in PCB design is the use of ferrite beads. These components are basically filters, and they do perform a useful function on power cords in many electronics. You're probably reading this article on a laptop that uses a ferrite to filter out conducted EMI from the supply line. A problem begins to Read Article

Using ESD Grounding Techniques to Protect Your PCB from Electrical Damage

Using ESD Grounding Techniques to Protect Your PCB from Electrical Damage ESD grounding needs to be implemented in the PCB layout and in the enclosure to ensure devices can be protected from damage. Read Article

Risk Management for Embedded Software Development

Risk Management for Embedded Software Development Find out how embedded software development companies can take advantage of the exploding ADAS and autonomous driving market while reducing business risk by following these best practices. What do successful downhill skiers, Formula One racers, and mountain climbers have in common? They learn as much as they can about their sport and they use the very best equipment available. By taking this approach, they transform pure risk into calculated risk Read Article

PCB 2020: Altium Brings International Roadshow to a Close

PCB 2020: Altium Brings International Roadshow to a Close We have officially wrapped our two-month international roadshow, PCB 2020: Altium’s Roadmap to the Future, which gave attendees a glimpse into the future of electronics design. With nine cities on the roster, the event featured live presentations and hands-on demonstrations from the industry’s leading experts discussing the latest trends and technologies that are shaping the course of the electronics design industry. With the support of technical Read Article

How FRAM Memory Simplifies Embedded System Data Logging I’ve always found it easier to make decisions when the options were clear cut. Choosing between black or white, right or wrong, you could make your decision and never regret it. However, decisions that involve picking black, white or one of many shades of gray really stress me out. I was happy abiding by my binary logic until Ferromagnetic Random Access Memory ( FRAM ) came on the commercial market and I was forced to embrace one of the shades of Read Article

How Do Ferrite Beads Work and How Do You Choose the Right One?

How Do Ferrite Beads Work and How Do You Choose the Right One? Ferrite beads are sometimes overused in PCB design, but they can perform important functions in a PCB if you know how to use them. Read Article

How to Send the Most Complete Documentation Package to PCB Fabrication

How to Send the Most Complete PCB Documentation Package to Fabrication Getting through the PCB design and development stage is always cause for celebration. You just cleared through the last PCB documentation and fabrication project hurdles, whether it was securing quantities for new components, finalizing environmental testing, or getting that green light from your EMC (Electromagnetic Compliance) engineer. Your PCB project is now in the “released” status with all approval signatures in place, and it’s time to hand Read Article

The Correct PCB Routing and PCB Layout to Help Protect Your Board From ESD

The Correct PCB Routing and PCB Layout to Help Protect Your Board From ESD When I started running, I went with a friend who had finished several ultramarathons. She would run miles from her house, do a short loop with me, and then carry on without me. When I got faster, instead of getting to go home sooner, she made our loop longer. She was tricky about it, too. She always planned a route where it would be boring for me to turn around early, or on new trails so I’d get lost trying to take a “shortcut” back. As an urban Read Article

How to Setup and Interface with WS2812B LEDs Are you in the mood for a good laugh? Well, I have a story for you. I’m a design engineer with decades of experience, but a LED project recently almost brought me to my knees in despair. I used to think that LEDs were as simple as getting the light emitting diode connected to a limiting resistor and a power supply. Aren’t they? That’s exactly what went through my mind as I worked on an architecture model lighting project a couple of years ago. On Read Article

The Most Important Features for PCB Layout Software Comparison: PCB Design Tips Tricks - Altium Audio Bites

The Most Important Features for PCB Layout Software Comparison: PCB Design Tips Tricks - Altium Audio Bites Altium Audio Bites, giving you bite-sized information that's easy to digest and apply to your everyday design tasks. From our PCB Design Tips & Tricks audio series here is: The Most Important Features for PCB Layout Software Comparison. All our audio series are from real PCB designers in the field, detailing their day to day problems and experiences. We hope you can learn from this as much as we have. Give it a listen and let us know what you Read Article

How Parasitic Inductance Can Impact Your ESD Protection

How Parasitic Inductance Can Impact Your ESD Protection When I was a kid, I was certain I was going to be a biologist. I collected all kinds of lizards, tadpoles, and insects, and spent most of my allowance on aquariums for my various creatures to live in. However, one thing really held me back. I am super grossed out by parasites. I will let a mantis or snake crawl all over me, but even looking at a tapeworm gives me dry heaves. Eventually, I went into engineering, where nothing needs weekend Read Article