Page 45 - EE Times Europe November 2021 final

From a design chain perspective, Arrow’s in-house CUSTOMER USE CASE
engineering staff helps customers address many types of
design challenges, including identifying substitutes for Temperature Control: Bringing
parts in short supply. Because of their knowledge of IP&E Batteries in from the Cold
building blocks and system design, our application design
experts are adept at optimizing designs and speeding Advanced lithium batteries can be extremely complex.
time to production. Arrow also offers a wide range of Larger battery systems consist of many cells that require
IP&E-related services to provide value at every stage in sophisticated control by a battery management system
the development cycle — from concept to architectural (BMS) and that BMS must monitor the charge and
design to new product introductions and on through next- discharge of each individual cell depending on its charge
generation modification or end of life. These include cable level and temperature. The BMS is crucial to extending
assembly, component preparation and testing, marking, the life of the overall system and preventing dangerous
device programming, and taping and reeling. Sourcing both situations from occurring during operation.
products and services through Arrow allows us to defer
the point at which customers take inventory ownership of Recently, a customer from the industrial sector asked
serviced parts, resulting in considerable cost savings. Arrow to consult on a temperature control issue with an
outdoor energy storage application, which necessitated
Arrow’s engineering expertise and value-added services a wide operating temperature range. In the original
are complemented by industry-leading supply chain design, cell management and temperature control were
management capabilities that deliver predictive information implemented in separate assemblies on rigid boards and
and actionable insights to avoid production delays. Arrow with complex cabling, resulting in a less-than-optimal
ensures that processes for flowing down orders and solution that was too rigid and not scalable.
forecasts is accurate, stable, and built for the long-term.
It’s a well-established fact that the efficiency of lithium
cells is strongly influenced by temperature. At low
temperatures, the internal resistance of the cells
increases significantly, and the power that can be drawn
IP&E PRODUCTS and brought decreases as temperatures drop. As a
• Connectors • Batteries and result, charging at sub-zero temperatures damages the
• Antennas Accessories cell chemistry and reduces service life, which makes
• Cables & Cable • Sensors monitoring and correcting the temperature as important
Assemblies • Switches as balancing the state of charge of each cell.
• Power Supplies • Resistors Technology field application engineers (TFAEs) at
• Electromechanical • Circuit Protection Arrow were tasked with advising the customer on the
Components … and much more development of a unique, customer-specific solution
Explore Arrow’s wide portfolio of IP&E components that involved heating lithium batteries and hinged
at arrow.com/ipe. on providing sound product recommendations from
a host of available standard products from various
manufacturers. After some initial brainstorming, the
IP&E RESOURCES TFAE team began to focus on flexible printed circuit
Read the latest in IP&E news from Arrow. boards (FlexPCB) from Amphenol and brought together
Contact one of the branch offices [Find an Arrow a design team comprised of engineers from the customer
Office | Arrow.com] or set up a face-to-face meeting and Arrow, along with factory experts from Amphenol.
with one of our knowledgeable representatives. During the search for solutions, it was discovered that
FlexPCBs from Amphenol have an integrated cell heater,
along with nickel tabs used to weld the aluminum
contacts of the battery cells. These features made
Sourcing parts, calculating lead times, balancing inventory, the FlexPCB ideally suited for the application — and
and managing logistics are what we do best. They’re all part easily adapted to a myriad of other applications. What
of delivering a successful hardware product — but they all followed was development of layout drafts and detailed
take focus away from our customers’ core business. Arrow construction drawings. After numerous changes to the
can handle global supply chain and logistics for you, using design requirements, multiple rounds of revisions, and
our decades of expertise, our global network of suppliers, production of a pilot series — over the course of three
and our proven, efficient processes.
years — the batteries went into serial production. And
With Arrow at your side, you’re free to focus on developing even after three years, the customer was pleased to have
world-class technology solutions. shortened the design cycle and arrived at a unique and
innovative design that required fewer components and
For additional information, or if you need technical support helped customers save space and reduce assembly time.
for a new or existing design, simply contact your local This approach and process exemplify how Arrow can
PEMCO field application specialist, who would be happy to assist customers with the development of new products,
guide you through our large range of possibilities. both technically and commercially.

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