How to take on Industry 4.0

TDK has the most comprehensive range of ceramic, film and aluminum electrolytic capacitors, including for power factor correction. In addition, aluminum electrolytic capacitors, which are widely used in DC links, are classic components for industrial power supplies, frequency converters and solar power inverters.

The new screw-type capacitors have a capacitance range of 1500 nF to 18.000 nF, a rated voltage range of 350 V DC to 450 V DC, a ripple current capability that is 40 percent higher than previous products, and a service life of up to 6000 hours at a maximum operating temperature of 105 °C.

Film capacitors are also becoming increasingly popular in DC links. The EPCOS brand is launching a new ultra-compact solution with dimensions of only 40 mm x 58 mm (diameter x height). It has a rated voltage of 350 V DC, a capacitance of 65 µF and an extremely high capacitance density of 0.9 µF/cm3. Compared with similar products, the capacity per unit volume has increased by 50%.

TDK has developed the CA series of vertically multilayer MEGACAP type MLCCs (Multilayer Ceramic Chip Capacitors) that combine large capacitance with low ESR. The new MLCCs have a rated voltage of 25 V to 1000 V, a capacitance of 20 nF to 150 µF, and C0G, X7T, X7S, and X7R temperature characteristics.

CeraLink™ capacitors lay the foundation for innovative solutions for DC link and snubber circuits. Based on modular flexible assembly technology, the new capacitors feature a space-saving design that increases the capacitance by connecting two, three or even ten identical capacitors in parallel on the same terminals. The new CeraLink FA capacitors are available with rated voltages of 500V DC, 700V DC and 900V DC, with capacitance values ​​between 0.5μF and 10μF, depending on the rated voltage and the number of capacitors.

The manganese zinc (MnZn) based PC200 ferrite magnetic material was developed specifically for high frequency switching power semiconductor applications based on GaN. The new core design reduces copper losses by up to 70%. The special core design with distributed air gaps enables higher operating frequencies and reduces inductive components in the power supply. Copper losses are also significantly reduced at high frequency operation by reducing electromagnetic radiation.

TDK's new compact NT14 and NT20 series of thermal fuse-protected varistors further expand the EPCOS ThermoFuseTM product family. The NT14 series (14 mm disc diameter) can absorb surge current pulses of up to 6 kA with a duration of 8/20-μs at rated voltages of 130 VRMS to 680 VRMS, while the NT20 series (20 mm disc diameter) can absorb surge current pulses of up to 10 kA with a duration of 8/20-μs at rated voltages of 130 VRMS to 750 VRMS.

LAN and WLAN networking are the basis of Industry 4.0. LAN cables are based on Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology and transmit both data and power. TDK offers new EPCOS transformers for PoE++ with an output power of up to 60 W and a DC resistance as low as 3.5 mΩ, depending on the model. TDK has expanded its ALT4532 series of pulse transformers for applications such as Gigabit Ethernet and Power over Ethernet (PoE). The new ALT4532P is designed for emerging 2.5GBASE-T (2.5 Gb/s) and 5GBASE-T (5 Gb/s) LAN applications as well as 1000BASE-T (1 Gb/s) applications using 600-mA PoE. In addition, the 4532H model is also compatible with the 10GBASE-T standard (10 Gb/s).

CeraCharge™ is the world’s first SMD solid-state rechargeable battery, ideally suited for Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) applications, and available in a compact EIA 1812 package. With a rated voltage of 1.4V, a capacity of 100µAh, an internal resistance of 200Ω, and a short-term current capability of up to 2 mA, it is ideal for pulsed operation, such as powering a Bluetooth module during data transmission.

Ultrasonic sensor solutions, such as EPCOS ceramic ultrasonic sensors, are in line with today's development trend. These disc sensors can operate at frequencies of 200 kHz to 400 kHz or 500 kHz to 4000 kHz, depending on the specific geometry. In industrial electronics applications, these disc sensors can measure the flow of fluids or gases or detect the fill level of fluids and bulk materials.

Figure 5: PowerHap™ 15G piezo actuator with haptic feedback,

The maximum force is 20 N and the displacement can reach 200 µm.

Haptic feedback, which is widely used in HMI (human-machine interface), is becoming increasingly important in the field of industrial electronics. To this end, TDK has expanded its PowerHap™ series of piezoelectric actuators with tactile feedback and launched a new miniaturized 2.5G product. The new product measures only 9 mm x 9 mm x 1.25 mm, has a maximum operating voltage of 60 V, and can achieve an acceleration of 2.5 g at the maximum operating voltage and 100 g load. In addition, the product has a maximum displacement of 35 µm and can generate a force of up to 4 N. The newly launched miniaturized product fills the application gap of the original 7G and 15G PowerHap actuators.