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14 The PCB Design Magazine • April 2016 book about fields in PC boards, or run, don't walk, to the next PCB West Design Conference. This is not a sales pitch for PCB West, but it hap- pens to be a great venue for such training. There are other excellent conferences, as well as books and other publications that can provide this in- formation. Are engineers taking over board design? Those able to stay awake when Maxwell's equa- tions hit the blackboard, who were conscious when field theory was introduced, do have a leg up over folks who do not possess this knowl- edge. Many of the new board designers will likely come from the EE community, but it is certainly not necessary to be an EE, as long as you understand the real issues. As mentioned, items associated with el- emental field theory can be learned at confer- ences or from books. This and how it applies to PC board design is what you most need to know to be a great board designer, one who lays out 'noise free' circuits. Aside from field theory, as mentioned earlier, every good designer needs knowledge of manufacturability, testability, etc. So, you want to get along at work? Have the EE and PCB groups collectively learn how and where energy travels in PC boards (field theory). Using that knowledge, decide how the boards should be properly stacked, routed, etc., to take advantage of the natural condition of EM wave movement. Once you do this, designs will work and pass EMI testing and there will be no more tension between the EEs and board designers, at least not over board layout, and you can both stop designing from app notes, rules of thumb and voodoo techniques. And remember: We're all in this together! PCBDESIGN Rick Hartley is the founder and principal engineer of RHartley enterprises, through which he teaches and consults to eliminate SI, noise and eMI issues in PC board design. Rick can be reached by clicking here. Working With circuit Design engineers "Integrated Industry - Discover Solutions" is the slogan of this year's Hannover Messe, which will open its doors on 25 April. Member companies and the VDMA can pres- ent a great number of so- lutions for the workings of the factories of the future and for making Industry 4.0 a reality in Hanover. "Industry 4.0 has become a reality with intelligent products, production lines and value chains," says VDMA executive Director Thilo Brodtmann. new business models for digi- tal and interconnected production are being de- veloped across the board and will be put on dis- play in Hanover. "Anything you see at the stands there can be profitably deployed in your business. Thanks to its specific and profound knowledge of production and customer needs, German me- chanical engineering has the edge here," Brodt- mann points out. In numerous presen- tations, discussions and press conferences at this year's Hannover Messe, the VDMA will make it clear that mechanical en- gineering stands at the heart of the tremendous changes that will shape commercial life in the years to come. The modernisation of the economy is also being promoted forcefully in the partner country of this year's Hannover Messe, the USA, under the catch- phrase "Internet of Things." "But we have nothing to fear from the Americans," stresses Brodtmann. "We are in a good position in this race, and at some point the approaches on both sides of the Atlantic will coalesce into one giant whole." Hannover Messe: Industry 4.0 Has Become a Reality