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A higher level of power in smaller parts – this is undoubtedly the overriding direction where the electronic component market is currently heading.
That also applies for resistors, being the smallest and most accessible components in any electronic design. When looking, for instance, at a standard resistor in 1206 case size with a power range of 0.25W, there is a constant demand from the market to achieve this range in a case size not larger than 0603.
For established suppliers of high quality resistors like Panasonic, this means to continuously strive for innovation in order to meet the customers’ demands for a contemporarily advanced resistor portfolio.
Image 1: Construction of Panasonic Industry wide terminal resistors
Panasonic Industry's blueprint for meeting those resistor downsizing requirements would be the wide terminal resistors.
The name is based on two innovative constructive principles:
First, the terminals on this type of resistor are found on the long side of the resistor whereas they are on the short one at conventional products (cf. image 1).
So, when having conventionally a 2010 case size, the wide terminal type would be correspondingly 1020 case size. This increases the amount of current being able to pass through the resistor which results in a significantly higher power range.
Second: Instead of using one block of resistive element, two or three blocks are used. Each of these smaller elements is trimmed by laser. This supports the heat dissipation throughout the alumina substrate elements and avoids hotspots in one area, as illustrated in image 2.
Image 2: Heat generation in Panasonic wide terminal resistors vs. conventional wide terminal resistors
As a result, the power range can be increased. Depending on the case size of the wide terminal resistor types, they contain two or three resistive elements.
Panasonic Industry wide terminal resistors with lower resistance values are particularly popular for replacing metal shunt resistors. If the replacement is technically feasible, resorting to these resistors helps saving space on the PCB.
Last but not least, wide terminal resistors are much cheaper compared to metal shunt resistors, rendering them the perfect solution for current sensing with higher power requirements.
The field of suitable applications for wide terminal resistors is wide: From automotive and industrial applications to building automation and many other applications where a higher power range is as essential as a compact case design.
In the automotive sector, wide terminal resistors can be used in electrical control units (ECU), anti-lock braking systems, headlights, EPS, motors and many other applications whereas in industrial contexts, wide terminal resistors are the perfect solution for power supplies, DC/DC converters or motor controls.
Whilst mostly focusing on low ohmic values, Panasonic Industry wide terminal resistors are available in three different categories: the conventional type with the widest range as ERJA/B series, anti-sulfur wide terminal resistors as ERJC and low TCR type as ERJD series.
Get a glimpse on the following overview on the company’s wide terminal resistor series – and keep them in mind if you are looking for a new resistor meeting your downsizing needs without any compromises in terms of power handling.
Series | Description | Resistance range | Power range |
ERJA/B | current sensing and conventional wide terminal resistors | 5 mΩto 1 MΩ |
|
ERJC | current sensing and anti-sulfur wide terminal resistors | 10 mΩ to 1 Ω | 2 W |
ERJD | current sensing and low TCR wide terminal resistors | 10 mΩ to 200 mΩ | 1-2 W |
Pure tantalum capacitors – also in modern electronics design they stand for extremely high capacitance values for any given volume. But as beneficial as their constructive principle appears - it also reveals pitfalls that make engineers investigate suitable alternatives. Learn why Polymer capacitors could be an appropriate substitute.
We remember: Regularly, pure tantalum capacitors consist of a tantalum anode and a liquid or solid electrolyte as a cathode. This constitutes a certain behaviour that can be eventually outperformed by Polymer-based caps, that use conductive polymers to form the entire electrolyte – or conjunction with a liquid electrolyte, which is known as a hybrid capacitor. Let’s have a look at some key performance aspects:
Although pure tantalum capacitors are being offered in many different sizes, they do not come with a very high ripple current which disqualifies them for being employed in applications requiring different levels of current to be passed.
Additionally - albeit they do not suffer from any DC-Bias ageing – the relatively high ESR makes it hard for designers to use those types as smoothing capacitors. By contrast, Polymer caps achieve a very low ESR (e.g. 3mΩ for SP-CAP) with ripple currents up to 10.2A.
In recent years, there has been an increase in the use of low ESR capacitors including POSCAP. The ability to reduce the ripple voltage is introduced here as one advantage of low ESR capacitors.
The following figure below illustrates an example circuit of a general step-down DC-DC converter:
When a capacitor is used for the output smoothing capacitor “Cout”, there is some residual ripple voltage. The graphs above compare residual ripple voltage of different ESR POSCAP capacitors (Fig.1-2 and Fig.1-3) to that of conventional tantalum capacitors (Fig.1-4 and Fig.1-5).
That means, the smaller the capacitor’s ESR, the smaller the ripple voltage becomes.
Keeping that in mind will help designers to reduce part counts on the PCB where many tantalum capacitors are connected in parallel to deliver a specific output ripple. Consequently, this saves precious PCB space.
Important: tantalum capacitors cannot resist excess voltages - and a very small spike might destroy them and even cause ignition which might affect the surrounding area on the PCB.
That’s why those types are not recommended for applications that are likely to be suffering from higher spikes.
Moreover, as conductive polymer – an organic material - is used as an electrolyte in POSCAPs, it acts non-conductive and as an insulator against leakage current at a temperature of approximately 300℃.
The conductive polymer used for the electrolyte of the POSCAP contains no oxygen molecules. In the unlikely event of a crack forming on the conductive oxide layer, a significant oxide reaction will not occur between sintered tantalum and electrolyte because there are no oxygen molecules. That means POSCAP won’t be exposed to ignition in case of overvoltage.
Polymer capacitors are ideal as decoupling capacitors to remove noises because their impedance shows ideal frequency characteristics. Using a high conductive polymer for the electrolyte greatly improves the ESR characteristics and enables the POSCAP to clearly outperform pure tantalum capacitors at higher frequency levels.
To sum it up briefly: There is more than one rather clear reason for replacing the pure tantalum types with their polymer alternative in some cases: The specs in terms of ESR, ripple current and frequency characteristics are convincingly better while the overall level of circuit safety is undoubtedly higher.
And last but not least: The polymer caps are the first choice when it comes to saving space on the board – a true ace up the sleeve when acknowledging the unstoppable trend of keeping things safe in ever-smaller designs.
Doubtlessly, there is a shift towards an entirely new and more environmental-friendly perception of individual mobility. Apparently, we are talking of electric vehicles and the corresponding charging infrastructure. The goals are set – more and more car manufacturers state their promises to discontinue the production of combustion engines.
There are plenty of visions – that, however, can only be brought to life when there are matching technologies and components available that make EVs catch up with their petrol-driven predecessors. In terms of reach, in terms of safety and in terms of voltage.
All that still causes some headache for automotive engineers, as next-gen mobility widely depends on next-gen components.
Let’s exemplarily look at capacitors and see what Panasonic Industry has to offer along the driveway to the future:
Figure 1: Main in-vehicle application for xEV
OBC & DC / DC converter
As the most essential part of an electric vehicle, batteries’ increasing capacity is the key for development nowadays. This requires design for EV chargers (on-board chargers) with higher and higher power output.
Ready to meet this need, Panasonic Industry offers its film capacitor ECQUA (AC rated), ECWFG (DC rated) and ZPV (DC rated) series featuring large current handling ability, high reliability and high safety, contributing to high-power OBC and DC/DC converter design and development.
Figure 2: OBC (on-board charger) & DC/DC converter circuit
Taking into account that reliability i.e. humidity resistance is critical for this application, Panasonic Industry has developed its proprietary enclosure sealing technology and aluminium vapour deposition to achieve humidity resistance along with compliance to AEC-Q200.
Figure 3: High humidity-resistant vapour deposition film & sealing technology
Taking ECQUA series as an example, it has the following guaranteed THB (temperature humidity bias) testing data:
・AC275V rated product : 85℃, 85%RH, AC240V, 1000h; 85℃, 85%RH, AC275V, 500h
・AC310V rated product : 85℃, 85%RH, AC275V, 1000h
Have a look at those two reliability tests to compare Panasonic’s technology with the conventional one:
Figure 4: Humidity resistance load test
Figure 5: High-frequency step-up loading test
Without an iota of doubt, the safety and security of automobiles are certainly also two of the most critical areas of automobile engineering today.
Taking it into account, Panasonic Industry has been providing its automotive-grade film capacitors with patterned metallization technology (also well known as “fuse function”), which ensures the safety of the electric circuit with open failure mode.
Figure 6: Comparison of general and patterned metallization
Demo video for fuse function
Figure 7: Safety limit AC step-up test
Thanks to this excellent impact deduction Panasonic Industry automotive-grade film capacitors are the ideal solution for high-stress application such as onboard chargers, DC/DC converter, electric compressors and inverters.
Briefly said - one less worry: In terms of capacitor reliability, the way to future mobility should be paved.
For more information on the automotive-grade film capacitor product line-up and the respective specs and advantages, please visit the Panasonic Industry website:
The growing demand, popularity and hence markets in the field of renewable energy, such as solar power plants and battery storage systems evoke an ever stronger interest in high voltage and high current switching devices that meet the contemporary requirements in terms of safety, productivity – and efficiency.
With the HE-V series, Panasonic Industry has developed a compact and low cost but highly efficient relay capable of switching a load of up to 1,000VDC 20A and 40A inrush current, focusing on arc parameters to minimize size and cost with a very effective blow-out mechanism and an optimized extinction gap.
During the past two decades, energy supply systems have undergone substantial changes. More and more systems with DC power generation like photovoltaic plants have entered the market. Global solar power production has increased exorbitantly – and is expected to further grow. Solar cells produce direct current (DC) power which fluctuates with the sunlight's intensity. For practical use this usually requires conversion to certain desired voltages or alternating current (AC) by using solar inverters. Solar cells are connected in series or parallel to modules and then wired together to increase the output voltage. These arrays are connected in so called string combiner boxes. The typical load of one solar string lies in the range of 10-12A / 600-1,000VDC, is then tied to an inverter which produces AC power at the desired voltage, frequency and phase.
By far the highest power is generated in residential systems: In Europe alone, there are already millions of DC/AC inverters installed with a typical power between 2 and 10kW. They are directly connected to the grid as single-phase or as three-phase system. For the entire safety of the grid systems, these inverters must fulfill several international and local standards and regulations. To achieve full galvanic isolation, a DC main switch as a protective device is required in photovoltaic (PV) systems between the DC side of the inverter and the solar generator. Details are regulated in the IEC 60364-7-712:2017 standard. Most existing inverters use a manual switch to fulfill this requirement and protect humans during installation and maintenance.
Most installations are in residential buildings, containing only one or two inverters, and manual switches are sufficient to fulfill basic safety requirements. With the recent trend in larger PV installations in solar plants or on top of roofs of industrial buildings, there are new regulations from the utilities to control power generation. Due to overcapacity on sunny days, power plants with more than 100KW need a shutdown function to reduce the production capacity. Therefore a high number of inverters requires a remote control function to be connected or disconnected from the grid.
With its HE-V relay series, Panasonic Industry offers a dedicated DC breaking relay designed for solar power installations. Several DC breakers are already available on the market, but they are quite often developed for hybrid and electric vehicles’ battery disconnect modules. However, there is a big difference in the output power of a solar cell and a battery system. While relays for battery systems must withstand high short circuit currents, the solar cells’ relationship to their operating environment and the maximum power they can produce is more complex. For any given set of operational conditions, cells have a single operating point where the values of the current (I) and voltage (V) of the cell result in a maximum power output. This is known as the maximum power point (MPP). A solar inverter with a maximum rating of 1,000V and 30A has a typical operating point in the range of 500V and 20A.
The primary purpose has been to develop a failsafe relay that is well suited for use in solar inverters and string boxes as well as a general purpose relay for a wide range of DC applications.
Characteristic | Performance |
Contact rating | 20A 1,000 VDC |
| 1,000V DC |
| 40A |
Surge breakdown voltage | 12kV |
Nominal operating power |
|
Contact gap | >3.8 mm |
Holding power | 210mW |
Dimensions (L×W×H) |
|
Ambient temperature | -40 to +85o C |
To fit into an inverter or a DC junction box and replace manual switches, size is an important criterion. Up to six relays are used to cut both polarities in the DC input strings. Another important factor is power consumption. Inverter manufacturers are interested in a high yield rate and using a relay instead of a manual switch causes additional loss because the relay is always in an on-state. 210mW continuous holding power is enough to keep the HE-V relay switched. Only during the short switching act the power is 9 times higher.
Manual switches use screw terminals for wire connection. For currents up to 40A, it is more convenient to use soldering terminals and plug the cables directly to the PC board, which is an additional cost saving factor and also a space saving feature for the end user.
There is no generally valid definition of the term switching or breaking capability for a relay contact. So we use the highest value of current which an output circuit is capable of making and breaking successively under specified conditions. The maximum power to be interrupted by an opening contact mainly depends on the clearance distance (distance between the open contacts) and the contact material. In a DC circuit, the minimum voltage to maintain an arc normally rises above the source voltage and the arc is extinguished. If, however, the supply voltage is sufficiently high to maintain a stable arc across the open contacts, the relay will be destroyed as it cannot withstand the prolonged high temperatures generated by the arc. In the worst case, fire can result or the switching devices explodes. A typical method to define the required arc extinction length is the graphical method using empirical arc characteristics voltage plotted against the current with the arc length as parameter. For higher voltage and current scenarios, empirical data are only available for copper contacts. Hence we use the AYRTON equation to describe this voltage dependency of a steady arc as a function of current and arc length [3].
with the coefficients a, b, c and d, the arc length g and the arc current I. The coefficients are obtained by experimental data and vary with contact material. For copper electrodes in air we find following values in the literature [4]:
a [V] = 17; b [V/cm] = 22; c [VA] = 20; d [VA/cm] = 180.
It is obvious that a contact gap of more than 200mm will not fit in a 40x50x40mm³ relay. One of the most common methods to overcome this would be the use of several opening contacts in series. For each additional opening contact, the breaking voltage is divided by the number of opening contacts. This will also split the total arc energy into smaller units and therefore reduce stress to the contact surface. A further advantage is the increased opening speed by a factor of four compared to a single contact. When interrupting a direct current, the relay must be able to dissipate the total stored energy in the circuit.
Another prominent way to improve the breaking capacity of DC relays is a transverse magnetic field by making use of the Lorentz force of the current, to blow the arc out of the contact region. The redirecting of the electrical arc is carried out by permanent magnets. The permanent magnets are reinforced by pole plates to enable the magnetic field to function throughout the complete contact and extinguishing area.
Hydrogen plasma is known to cool down electric arcs during interruption due to its high thermal conductivity. Special DC breakers use a sealed vacuum chamber filled with hydrogen to cool the arc, like Panasonic EP relays (zum Produkt verlinken). This technique is very efficient but lavishly, even in mass production. A simpler approach is to use the water of the plastic housing in the arc environment. Thanks to the high arc temperature we have a high outgassing rate of the water from the surrounding plastic, which provides an additional cooling effect.
For the sake of cost efficiency it is based on a coil and the armature system of a conventional 2 Form A power relay with two double bridge contacts. The outer dimensions are 41.0 × 50.0 × 39.4mm (L×W×H).
The main difference between the body block of the standard relay and the HE-V relay would be the reinforced contact area. Four separate arc chambers provide space for four permanent magnets. To reach the targets for energy saving, the coil bobbin and the magnetic circuit have been modified. This results in a coil holding voltage reduced to 33% of the nominal operating voltage. This amounts to a permanent power of only 210mW. The armature block is slightly changed to fulfill the requirements for reinforced isolation up to 10kVDC. With this construction, a minimum clearance distance of more than 10mm between coil and contact and a surge breakdown voltage of 12kV is achieved.
The movable contacts are directly connected to the armature by insertion molding via the contact spring. The armature is connected to the coil block via the release spring.
In typical solar inverter applications, normal switching cycles are without load. However, a continuous current up to 20A has to be conducted. Therefore the voltage drop on the closed position has to be extremely low to keep losses low. This means a contact resistance of not higher than a few mΩ, which mostly depends on two characteristics:
The prototypes have been tested with two Regatron TopCon Quadros in series as power supply. To keep the current constant, 800V 60mF capacitors are connected in parallel to a Fritzlen resistor type BW81. For the contact opening test, the relay contact is firstly closed, then current and voltage are adjusted to the requested ratio by adjusting the Fritzlen resistor to the whole circuit. Breaking current and voltage behavior are monitored with an oscilloscope. For all tests shown in this chapter only one bridge contact is used to break the load. After measuring the limit curve for the bridge contact without cover and therefore without magnet, the time limit for the burning arc has been set at 5ms. Each measuring point is the mean value of minimum 3 breaking operations. The arcing time shows a variation of more than 20% so the relay is to be changed for each measuring point to get a stable result, as illustrated in the following diagram:
This load limit curve corresponds to the characteristic curves of an arc for a contact gap between 3 to 5 mm. When measuring the breaking behavior with relay cover and magnet, there has been an increase in breaking power by a factor of 10 for higher currents with more than 20A and a factor of 15 times for the region between 5 and 10A. The breaking capacity of the relay is 40A at 800VDC voltage for series connection. To achieve 1,000VDC, the arcing time limit had to be
extended to 10ms. The result:
Arc duration versus switching cycles
The distance between arc and cover is very critical. The outgassing of hydrogen has a good cooling effect but only for a few switching cycles. The fast erosion limit’s a guaranteed safety breaking for higher number of operations. The following graphs show the increasing arcing time. In a) we see the arcing time for the first breaking operation for a load of 500VDC and 30A and in b) the arcing time after 25 breaking operations.
Arc voltage and current at break; at a)1st operation and b) after 25 operations
The HE-V test results demonstrate that even extremely miniaturized, low power consumption relays can handle high DC loads. The AgNi contact material permits both, a high endurance at medium load making and braking and low contact resistance to avoid losses in a solar inverter. The idea to use a double bridge contact, with arc-driving magnets and a highly resistive plastic cover provides a compact, reliable, quiet and cost-effective air break method for interrupting high DC voltage loads. Especially in solar applications with typical dry load switching the relay can replace manual breakers and bring further performance by remote control function. By using a 2 Form A type construction the contacts can be used either in series or in parallel connection.
For mass production types, the load characteristic is to be reduced compared to previous experimental data. With two contacts in series, a reliable on and off switching of 1,000VDC 10A with a self-extinguishing arc (<5ms) can be reached throughout 1,000 switching cycles. The recommended range of switching cycles is plotted in the left-hand section of the following figure for various combinations of voltage and current with a number of guaranteed switching or breaking cycles. The goal of 1,000V 40A can be reached when we expand the arcing time to 20ms.
For further information please contact the author:
Dr. Dieter Volm, New Business Development Components & Devices, Panasonic Electric Works Europe AG
In a nutshell: the HE-V relays series
Panasonic Industry HE-V relays feature a compact design (L: 41 × W: 50 × H: 39.4mm), maximum rated load of 20A at 1000VDC, and contribute to energy savings in equipment thanks to reduced voltage in the self-holding coils. The HE-V relays are specifically designed for the solar market, for DC applications with high loads including photovoltaic power generation systems, battery charging and discharging systems, inverters and DC load controls.
Find the HE-V relays at Farnell:
When the talk is about a device’s overall reliability, we know that is first and foremost a question of the components it is consisting of. Next to the ability to withstand rough operational conditions such as vibrations and shocks, it is high voltage stress that can pose a severe risk of damage to components such as capacitors in high power designs – as found in automotive applications, industrial power supplies, DC/DC, AC/DC converters, solar inverters and many more.
In those contexts, high voltage stress cannot be abolished – but there are to avoid overall and fatal product failure: The fuse function is an integral part of the Panasonic Industry Film Capacitor technology which is worth a closer look for everyone designing next-gen high voltage applications.
Film capacitors, commonly also known as plastic film capacitors, or polymer film capacitors, are electrical capacitors utilizing an insulating plastic film as the dielectric. The dielectric film materials vary depending on required dielectric strength, primarily Polypropylene (PP), Polyester (PET), Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) etc. The electrodes could be metallized aluminium, zinc or Al-Zn alloy applied directly to the surface of the plastic film. So far concerning the constructive essence.
To a certain but remarkable extent, metallized film capacitors have the ability to “repair” themselves. This so-called "self-healing" ability applies when a capacitor with metallized films has the foils exposed to each other due to dielectric breakdown under voltage stress. The combination of the foils’ thinness and the high energy density at the damaged area causes the foils to vaporize - and the capacitor stays in operation. However, when too many of such damaged areas fail in a very short period of time, metallized film capacitors short circuit upon failure. In pursuit of higher safety and higher reliability for most of the industries’ innovations, the market correspondingly shows an increased demand for film capacitors to also open upon failure.
Responding to this growing demand, Panasonic Industry has developed film capacitors with a specific patterned metallization technology – better known as “fuse function” that emerges from a segmented thin layer of vapour-deposited aluminium.
Those segments isolate the failure caused by overvoltage, therefore the damage is only encapsulated in a few areas of the capacitor. In case too many of those areas fail in a very short period of time, the capacitor will then open in a safe manner.
The difference is apparent: When “treating” dielectric material with high- or overvoltage, the un-patterned version reveals far more severe damage than the patterned fuse function film cap concept from Panasonic Industry.
To have a closer look, watch our comparison in motion:
This patterned fuse function should be a core criterion for everyone involved in high voltage application design and looking for the ideal type of capacitor. Or – shortly said: Better patterned than sorry!
The have been the coil of choice for generations of engineers - despite a number of immanent weak spots: Ferrite inductors. With the rise of metal composite inductors, however, there has finally been a leap in overcoming the disadvantages of this 20th-century technology.
But what exactly are the key differences between these two types of inductors? In the following, we try to answer this question by explaining the different characteristics that emerge from different material and structure, looking at the range of metal composite inductors from Panasonic Industry – one of this technology’s pioneering companies.
Metal composite inductors come with a remarkably higher energy density compared to their ferrite predecessors. This leads to 30% - 50% smaller case sizes which, for example, serves the trend for downsizing high current ECU power circuits. Furthermore, smaller case sizes also have the pleasant side-effect of being less prone to get damaged in harsh or vibrating environments. A true plus in terms of long term reliability.
Excellent magnetic saturation characteristics of metal composite inductors (i.e. Ferrite core = 0.4T vs. Metal Composite Type = above 1.5T) render it difficult to magnetically saturate, which in turn is resulting in good inductance vs. current performance, without a substantial drop off. In comparison, ferrite inductors do not only suffer from a fairly quicker inductance drop off. Their inductance also suffers the undesirable effect that it varies with temperature, whereas the performance of their metal composite counterparts is stable over the entire specified temperature range. Naturally, the qualification of applications using ferrite inductors needs increased effort compared to metal composite inductors due to consideration of different temperature ranges.
Ferrite inductors consist of several sintered parts being constructively composed with an air gap inside the body, whereas metal composite inductors are based on a monolithic design without air gap. Due to that assembled structure, the ferrite types’ resistance to vibrations is limited to <4G to maximum 10G. Opposed to that, the monolithic structure of the Panasonic Industry metal composite inductors leads to a significantly higher vibration resistance - up to 50G, depending on the inductor type.
Also in terms of a lower leakage flux outside the power inductors, the point goes to the metal composite types: Their monolithic structure causes by far less leakage as the magnetic flux simply is concentrated inside the inductor housing.
To briefly summarize: Modern metal composite inductors clearly outperform the rather archaic ferrite technology in many regards. Hence, they are more and more finding their way into contemporary application design, in particular in the automotive industry.
Small package sizes, a stable inductance over DC current and temperature, high reliability as well as mechanical robustness and not at least a low EMI noise are nowadays essential prerequisites for next-gen product design. In all these aspects, metal composite inductors make their ferrite ancestors look as old as they are indeed: Basically a post-WWII technology that hasn’t been questioned for many years – until Panasonic Industry succeeded in becoming a pioneer for establishing metal composite types as a 21st-century coil of choice, suitable for a vast field of modern designs.
Let it be automotive innovations, industrial robotics or a new era of communication infrastructure, just to name a few, applications are taken to ever higher levels.
The more omnipresent and complex devices and applications get, the more important is their immaculate reliability – which is first and foremost depending on the components they consist of.
Although these applications are getting more digital with each new generation and many functions are defined and fulfilled by implemented software, passive components still play a very key role in avoiding any quality risks, let alone the fact that none of a device’s essential functions would work without, for example, premium quality chip resistors.
A traditional source of failure
One of the most common reasons of failures or quality problems of conventional chip resistors is solder joint crack. This means that while the resistor is still working without any problems, the solder connecting it to the PCB cracks and therefore, the resistor disconnects from the circuit. This phenomenon often happens because of the difference in the CTE (coefficient of thermal expansion) of the PCB and the resistor. Taking an FR4 PCB as an example, it would have a CTE value of about 15 ppm/K.
A chip resistor’s most prominent piece of construction is the alumina substrate - the ceramic material which dissipates the heat generated by the resistor and transfers it to the PCB. Depending on the ceramic of course, the CTE of the alumina substrate has typically a value of about 7.6 ppm/K.
No matter the resistor technology (thick film, thin film, etc.), the alumina substrate is connected to the outer terminal by the inner electrode. This connection can be made using various technologies; to name a few, sputtering, hard resin, soft resin. Due to the difference between the CTE of the alumina substrate and the PCB, the solder joint and the terminals experience high levels of stress with every temperature cycle. This in time causes the solder joint to form micro cracks which as a result cause the chip resistor to disconnect from the PCB.
Decreasing the risk
Panasonic Industry’s original technology eradicates this problem - or at the very least significantly delays it. As opposed to sputtering and hard resin, Panasonic chip resistors use a soft resin in the connection between the alumina substrate and the outer electrode. This renders the connection between these two just flexible enough so that a significant amount of the stress on the solder joint can be eliminated. Consequently, the solder joint does not crack or cracks much later in its lifetime, decreasing the risk of any failure or quality issues.
This technology is developed by Panasonic Industry and is used in every chip resistor manufactured by the Panasonic group. Thus, the Panasonic Industry chip resistors take reliability and risk-free operation to a new and unrivalled level, which is of vital necessity in an era of electronic applications being as countless, complex and capable as ever before.
Modern automotive applications are more than ever subject to the primacy of miniaturization and efficiency. Particularly talking about switching options, the design of modern automotive applications is increasingly turning to PCB-mounted products in the context of smart junction boxes that come to use in applications throughout the vehicle.
Relays on PCB architecture don’t only promise a significant saving in space – but also an entirely new level of maintenance-free reliability compared to conventional plug-in switching components.
“Those state-of-the-art junction boxes”, as Michael Immle from Panasonic Industry Europe summarizes, “are a downright leap in terms of switching structure: The overall ratio of relays employed is currently increasing significantly – as well as the overall share of PCB-mounted relays.”
Fig. 1: A significant increase in the share of PCB-mounted relays – next to the ever increasing numbers of relays employed per vehicle.
With the new 60A-rated TT series, coming @14VDC with a double make 2 Form A (1 Form U) contact configuration, Panasonic Industry meets the increasing demand for PCB-based miniaturized automotive relays.
Fig. 2: Compact housing and available heat-resistant (110°C) or pin in paste compliant types: New TT automotive relays from Panasonic Industry
Coming in miniaturized housings 17.8 x 13 x 16 mm, TT relay series is expected to save between 15% to 29% board space in comparison to similar products.
With available heat-resistant (110°C) or pin in paste soldering compatible types, the TT series of Panasonic Industry is now a first-choice product for high capacity switching in many car applications – such as defoggers, head lamps, seat heaters, fog lamps, fan motors, the ignition and many others.
Speaking of inductors, the specific portfolio from Panasonic Industry is widely associated with coils tailored to the requirements of automotive applications – and designed to function immaculately under the typical, rather harsh conditions inside a car: The impact of high temperatures, shocks, vibrations, dirt and grease demands a lot from the electric components’ characteristics in terms of robustness, safety and longevity.
So, the automotive sector has become sort of a supreme discipline for the employment of passive components over the last decades – even more in the light of automotive applications lately being expected to be designed as powerful, multifunctional and miniaturized as never before.
Image 1: An increasing number of automotive applications has become the domain of Panasonic's inductor portfolio - a blueprint for other contexts?
That’s why it is worth a look, whether the experience and success of Panasonic Industry’s optimized range of passives in car environments could be a blueprint for a wider field of applications.
To some extent simplified, the requirements towards components in other areas and products are different - and in many cases less demanding than in the automotive industry. But doubtlessly, the broad knowledge gained from the “conditions under the hood” is a solid base for successfully equipping new fields of products with suitable passive components.
E-Bikes, drones and even garden robots would be considered prototypical for those “new types of things” that have emerged as popular consumer goods in our neighborhoods. And indeed, these markets have grown significantly and steadily over the past years and are expected to keep doing so.
Image 2: General circuit of a DC/DC-converter - Panasonic Industry inductors can be positioned both in filters and the DC/DC part.
For both, e-bikes and drones, inductors may be used in DC/DC-converters and input-output-filters for power actuators, battery charging or ECU controllers. Here, the Panasonic Industry inductors stand out with a high power efficiency of their inductors, which leads to an increased battery lifetime of the device. The metal-composite SMD-type coils save space and therefore suit the trend of miniaturized designs: Due to the increased magnetic density (compared to ferrite inductors), space-savings of up to 50% are achievable and ease the life of every designer who has to fit his circuit into a certain limited mounting-space. Panasonic Industry offers inductors ranging from case sizes of 4x4mm, up to 12x12mm. The smallest height in the portfolio is 2mm, allowing to fit the inductor into low installation space.
Image 3: The inductor's inside: Robustness thanks to metal composite core and monolithic molding structure - and just half the size of ferrite types
Image 4: Smaller than conventional THD-types: Panasonic Industry inductors are available as SMD-types, thus saving circuit space.
Coming back to inductors functioning reliably under harsh automotive conditions: They have turned out to be the perfect choice when it comes to dealing with vibrations and shocks on an e-bike, a drone or a garden robot. All of them require miniaturized components for an altogether lightweight product design – and inductors like the ones of Panasonic inductors that are able to withstand 10-30G, some even 50G.
Image 5: Low center of gravity: A constructive concept for withstanding vibrations the best way possible.
The reason for withstanding up to 50G can be found in the terminal structure. In comparison to conventional designs, the Panasonic high-vibration-resistant series has the lead wire leaving the core at a lower level. Therefore the self-resonance frequency drops, which decreases the swinging - as illustrated in the follwong simplified animations:
So neither rugged mountain bike-tracks, permanent robot shakes while mowing or crash-landing a drone will cause harm. At least not on the inductor of Panasonic Industry.
Abbreviated as PaPIRs, Panasonic Industry pyroelectric infrared motion sensors have convincingly conquered their position in the respective markets – first and foremost because of their unique design concept, optimal detection performance and lens dimensions ranging from at least compact to spectacularly ultra-small. Thanks to the special design of the small pyroelectric elements, it is possible to use a smaller lens size while keeping the same detection area and distance compared to conventional sensors.
The PaPIRs support a straightforward and trouble-free design-in process due to their integrated amplifier/comparator circuits inside a TO-5 metal can (digital type), preventing interferences caused by electromagnetic fields, such as those generated by cell phones and wireless devices. A special differential circuit design is introduced for the EKMB 6μA type for applications where a high noise resistance is required (up to GHz range).
Now, Panasonic Industry has broadened its offer of EKM series PaPIRs with two new models both coming with a 14mm small lens diameter and same pinning structure, each type has a unique and specific detection performance:
The Wide Area Detection type has a maximum detection area of 12.9m at a typical ceiling height of 3m – an unrivaled performance in the market in a package that small. Thus, it renders the perfect motion sensor for large areas, such as entrance halls, open space offices, corridors or parking lots and many other public spaces.
The Ultra Slight Motion Detection type on the other hand impresses with an extremely high and almost gapless switching zone density and an exceptionally high sensitivity. A perfect choice wherever small objects and movements need to be reliably detected, for example in meeting rooms, waiting rooms or single offices.
This is good news in the light of an ever growing demand for automated surveillance and monitoring applications within the smart building automation and public security infrastructure.
All such devices in these sectors depend on modern sensor technology that is expected to function reliably and to appear as unobtrusive/non-visible as possible.
Particularly worth mentioning would be here the area of contemporary lighting control technology, such as retrofit built-in sensors for luminaires or built-in/surface-mounted wall or ceiling sensors. PIR sensor solutions are furthermore of increasing relevance for HVAC or Smart Home devices: Air conditioning, air purifiers, thermostats, exhaust and circulating air fans or – if we speak about smart home convenience – IP cameras, intrusion sensors, AI devices or automated lighting control.
Both sensors suit indoor and outdoor environments thanks to a UV-stabilized lens. Because of the same sensor dimensions, different applications can be realized with one standard housing. Lens colors are available in white, pearl white and black.
EKMB types have a digital output (open drain) and a very low standby power consumption of 1μA, 2μA, 6μA. EKMC types offer a digital or analog output (op-amp) of 170μA.
Whoever is looking for next-gen multipurpose sensor technology - respectively a swift and cost-efficient design process will provide future customers with unobtrusive functionality they can rely on.
