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58 The PCB Magazine • September 2017 technology that includes the reliability needs for automotive and other industries, such as aerospace. For more information on IPC's standards development initiatives including those for the automotive industry, visit our standards website [2] . PCB References 1. IPC Announces Development of a Press- fit Pin Standard for Automotive Requirements 2. IPC.org/Standards John Mitchell is president and CEO of IPC—Association Connect- ing Electronics Industries. To read past columns or to contact Mitchell, click here. In conjunction with that, France has an- nounced that as part of their plan to be carbon neutral by 2050, they are rolling out a plan to eliminate gas powered vehicles by 2040. IPC will continue to work hard to drive the proper manufacturing required to ensure electric vehi- cles are produced to correct standards. In the coming weeks, we will have a certifi- cation program available for IPC-6012DA: Auto- motive Applications Addendum to IPC-6012D, Qualification and Performance Specification for Rigid Printed Boards, which provides documen- tation/drawings for rigid printed boards that must survive the vibration and thermal cycling environments of electronic interconnects with- in the automotive industry. And, as of last year, IPC began the devel- opment of a press-fit standard for automotive requirements [1] . This standard, which was re- quested by the European automotive electron- ics industry, intends to cover the qualifications and acceptance requirements for press-fit pin THE FUTURE OF ELECTRONICS IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY A team of engineers has developed stretch- able fuel cells that extract energy from sweat and are capable of powering electronics, such as LEDs and Bluetooth radios. The biofuel cells generate 10 times more power per surface area than any ex - isting wearable biofuel cells. The devices could be used to power a range of wearable devices. The epidermal biofuel cells are a major break- through in the field, which has been struggling with making the devices that are stretchable enough and powerful enough. Engineers from the University of California San Diego were able to achieve this breakthrough thanks to a combi - nation of clever chemistry, advanced materials and electronic interfaces. This allowed them to build a stretchable electronic foundation by using lithogra- phy and screen-printing to make 3D carbon nano- tube-based cathode and anode arrays. The biofu- el cells contain an enzyme that oxidizes the lactic acid present in human sweat to generate current. This turns the sweat into a source of power. Engineers report their results in the June issue of Energy & Environmental Science. In the paper, they describe how they connected the biofuel cells to a custom-made circuit board and demonstrat- ed that the device powered an LED while a person wearing it was exercising on a stationary bike. Professor Joseph Wang, who directs the Center for Wearable Sensors at UC San Diego, led the re- search, in collaboration with Patrick Mercier, elec- trical engineering professor and center co-direc- tor, and Sheng Xu, professor of nano-engineering. Stretchable Biofuel Cells Extract Energy from Sweat to Power Wearable Devices