Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1163814
SEPTEMBER 2019 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 9 monize" IPC standards with other global orga- nizations' standards. Karel Tavernier of Ucamco provides an arti- cle explaining why so many PCB designers still use Gerber, and how Ucamco has continued to update the tried-and-true format. Max Clark of Mentor, a Siemens Business, traces the de- velopment of ODB++ and breaks down the ad- vantages of using this format that's already in- stalled at many manufacturing facilities. Linda Mazzitelli of PTC offers details about the IPC- 2581 and how DPMX will help optimize In- dustry 4.0. And columnist Tim Haag explains why you should listen to your boss if they say, "Check the standard." We also have a great article by our columnist John Coonrod, "Insertion Loss Performance Differences Due to Various Plated Finish and Circuit Structures." Further, we bring you col- umns by our regular contributors, including Stephen Chavez, Bob Tise, and Phil Kinner. And let's all congratulate Barry Olney on his 100 th "Beyond Design" column. It's hard to believe Barry has been writing this popular column for over eight years. Time flies when you're having fun! See you next month. DESIGN007 Andy Shaughnessy is managing editor of Design007 Magazine. He has been covering PCB design for 19 years. He can be reached by clicking here. a lot of overlap in international standards; some of IPC's documents are duplicated by organiza- tions, such as ANSI, IEC, and JEDEC. Stream- lining these documents worldwide would elim- inate a lot of unnecessary work. Of particular interest for me at the IPC Sum- mer Meetings was one group charged with the melding of the IPC-2581 design data for- mat with IPC's Connected Factory Exchange (CFX) manufacturing standard into DPMX. As you'll see in this month's issue, the heavy lift- ing is over; DPMX will create a front-to-back flow of data from the schematic through final assembly, in a free, open-source process. I ex- pect you'll be hearing a lot about this effort in the fall. This month, we untangle the often-confus- ing world of standards. We start with a con- versation with Karen McConnell of Northrop Grumman, who offers an update on the com- mittees she chairs. Then, Gary Carter of XPLM and Michael Ford of Aegis Software discuss their work merging IPC-2581 with IPC's CFX into DPMX, a design-through-assembly stan- dard. Next, Leo Lambert of EPTAC address- es the move by IPC to change the way stan- dards and training documents are developed, including some methods for eliminating errors and duplicated comments during revision. We also have a conversation with Emma Hudson of Gen3 Systems who explains her work on a committee that seeks to streamline and "har- Researchers at KTH have developed the smallest ac- celerometer yet reported, using the highly conductive nanomaterial graphene. The latest step forward is a tiny accelerometer made with graphene by an international research team involv- ing KTH Royal Institute of Technology, RWTH Aachen University and Research Institute AMO GmbH, Aachen. Among the conceivable applications are monitoring systems for cardiovas- cular diseases and ultra-sensitive wearable and portable motion-capture technologies. Max Lemme, professor at RWTH, is excited about the results. "Our collaboration with KTH over the years has already shown the potential of graphene membranes for pressure and Hall sensors and microphones," says Lemme. (Source: KTH Royal Institute of Technology) World's Smallest Accelerometer Points To New Era In Wearables, Gaming