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When it comes to achieving vehicle safety gains, does size really matter?
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Insight
Mar 3, 2022
When it comes to achieving vehicle safety gains, does size really matter?
In nature, there is a common view that bigger always equates to better. What you might not know, however, is that there is significant evidence that human brains have been shrinking gradually over the course of the past several thousand years. Far from becoming less intelligent, human ingenuity and creativity have been the driving force behind the dawn of civilization, transforming every facet of our daily lives at an exponential rate.
The consensus is that this offers us an evolutionary advantage over our ancestors, since having fewer neurons and less body mass meant we needed to consume less calories to survive. Over time our brains learned to become more efficient, doing more with less, and the results are plain to see.
The transition towards smaller components in ADAS
A similar evolution has also taken place in the field of autonomous vehicle technology. The amount of processing capability required to sustain the demands of real-world applications continues to grow exponentially. As the complexity of such systems and in-car applications increases, so too does the number of components required, which can compromise performance and efficiency, adding weight and consuming more power. Smaller spacing between input and output joints in components has forced better designs and the miniaturization of the PCB. Ever smaller electronics, specifically the circuits and their supporting advanced packages, are the bedrock of innovation in ADAS systems and play a decisive role in the overall safety of a vehicle and its occupants.
The joining materials used for connecting components to circuit boards used in ADAS systems are critical to overall vehicle safety and performance. They must therefore be able to withstand the aggressive conditions they are continually subjected to throughout the regular operation of a vehicle. The biggest issue in this regard is thermal fatigue. Thermal mechanical forces - resulting from alternate cycles of heating and cooling - place stress on the solder joint interface. This can lead to cracks and in the worst case scenario, electrical failure. Increased processing power inevitably leads to higher temperatures and as components become smaller, there is more pressure on joining materials.
Tough environments, tougher component materials
The best way to alleviate the risk of joint fractures is via alloy enhancement, which can be achieved through a variety of methods including solid solution strengthening, diffusion modifiers, grain refinement and precipitate strengthening.
Given the importance that is placed on ADAS system safety and reliability, these must undergo particularly stringent testing to ensure they are able to withstand the demands that are placed on them over time. Testing carried out by MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions found that its Innolot alloy offers significant reliability advantages over a tin-silver-copper alloy. While the Innolot alloy can withstand up to c. 2,500 thermal cycles, the other test material fell significantly short of this benchmark. These results clearly demonstrate that the Innolot alloy meets the necessary reliability requirements to support ADAS applications such as lane departure sensors, lane centering sensors or blind spot sensors.
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An autonomous future
But there is still work to be done. The advent of fully-fledged autonomous vehicle technology will demand even more intelligence, placing electrical components under greater demand than ever before. As electrical components continue their evolution, becoming smaller and more powerful in the process, solder joint interfaces also need to evolve to cope with increased strain to prevent costly electrical faults which place the vehicle and its occupants at risk. The use of specialist alloys such as Innolot can offer automakers a major advantage in terms of vehicle safety and reliability.
Bigger doesn’t always equal better. Even with a smaller brain, you would almost certainly beat one of your neolithic ancestors in a game of Sudoku, living proof of the value of miniaturization!
