Industry 4.0: How can connectors break through harsh environments?

For a long time, the development of connectors in the field of consumer electronics has been like a duck to water. However, as the number of connector companies entering the consumer electronics industry continues to increase, there is a situation that there are too many monks and too few porridge in the market. Therefore, connector manufacturers have continuously increased their presence in industry, automobiles, medical and other emerging fields to ensure higher returns.

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With the advent of Industry 4.0, how can connectors break through the harsh environmental test? Cao Peihao, head of HRS China Marketing Department, said that the arrival of Industry 4.0 and industrial automation means that more intelligent equipment and robots will be widely used in various production fields, and their demand star is showing a stable and rapid growth trend. Among them, core intelligent equipment and robots have high requirements for the application of connectors, and more "high-precision, high-performance" connectors will be increasingly applied to these intelligent equipment and robot fields. Judging from the current sales performance of connector manufacturers and distributors, Industry 4.0 has a great pulling effect on the demand for connectors. Yang Siyuan, regional manager of Helian Trading (Shanghai} Co., Ltd., said frankly that Industry 4.0 does have a significant boost to connectors at present. Compared with 2015, Helian's overall sales in 2016 and 2017 have nearly double-digit growth, and industrial connectors account for 10%-15% of the company's revenue of all connectors. Compared with consumer, military, automotive and medical connectors, industrial connectors have many different characteristics, such as dustproof, water discharge, shockproof, high and low temperature, etc. These characteristics bring considerable challenges to the design and production of connectors. Yang Siyuan also told reporters that industrial connectors have strict requirements for "reliability, IP rating, operating temperature and shockproof", and even many indicators are required to meet automotive and even military standards. As a result, the original manufacturer needs a longer cycle when developing new products, more consideration and more rigorous testing, and the research and development cost will be high, which tests the comprehensive strength of the manufacturer. LindaShan, business development manager of industrial solutions at Molex, emphasized that the design of industrial interconnection systems must be able to withstand various harsh environments, including extreme temperatures, pressures, vibrations, dust, and aggressive and corrosive chemicals. Related ratings such as IP67NEMA specifies the standards under which the connector can operate. "In the era of Industry 4.0, data-centric electronic products do require interconnected systems to be flexible enough to be used in space-constrained environments, and at the same time be able to withstand harsh industrial conditions. For example, Molex's new Squba 1.80 mm pitch sealed wire-to-wire connector system design is not only suitable for use in tight spaces, but also provides protection against liquids, dust and dirt. The connectors can carry currents up to 6.0 amps, and the seals meet IP67 NEIMA rating requirements. The seal is held in place by the end cap, providing manufacturers of sensors, lighting and vending machines with a highly durable barrier against moisture and dust. The operating temperature limit ranges from-40 to + 105C. "In response to the high demands of customers, manufacturers need to meet customer requirements in super harsh and demanding environments, such as hot plug under uninterrupted power, extreme temperature tests brought by aerospace, high vibrations brought by rail transit, possible explosion accidents in oil and gas environments, and high demands of strong deep sea pressure. Some industrial connectors also require water resistance rating (IP67 or even higher), which is very high in the industry standard. Xu Menglan, general manager of PEI-Genesis Asia, said that if distinguished from the environmental requirements level of the application side, general consumer electronics circuit board connectors have the lowest environmental requirements, followed by industrial and medical, and finally high-end industrial applications such as bulldozers and electric vehicles, which require enterprises to have strong technical R&D teams. With the advent of Industry 4.0, how can connectors break through the harsh environmental test? According to the reporter's understanding, the solutions and technologies for "Industry 4.0" and "Intelligent Production", the interconnection and cooperation among product-related module areas such as "stamping, injection molding, assembly and crimping" also put forward new requirements for connector devices. Take heavy-duty connectors as an example. The increasingly demanding application environment not only requires the excellent performance of traditional heavy-duty connectors, but also has a wider range of applications and fast and comprehensive service capabilities, which can be widely applied to industrial production, especially in harsh and complex environments. It can be seen that the special application environment of industrial connectors has brought technological research and development challenges to enterprises, and the high threshold is destined to have most of the market share in the hands of a few large enterprises. In addition to the demanding requirements of the environment, moving towards "wireless" technology and "high customization" is also a major feature that makes industrial links different from other types of connectors.

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