Rugged Packaging
The much-publicized COTS initiative by Dr Perry (former US secretary of Defense) provided a siren call to the packaging/enclosure industry (among others) to capitalize on a potentially lucrative market that caters to the needs of a voracious military industrial complex. The manufacturers of commercial electronics and enclosure/systems have to ensure that their "Off The Shelf" products meet the Mil spec requirements relating to performance as mandated by the specifications. Since this is anything but an ideal world, an "Off The Shelf" product will invariably require some modifications in order to meet the specific requirements of an application.
Given the fact that the military environment in which these systems have to perform their mission critical applications consistently and successfully, is undoubtedly hostile, it is heartening to note that the enclosure industry has risen to the occasion and proven itself equal to the task. The key to accomplishing the above depends on efficiently filtering the specification down to the basic and essential requirements that then lends itself to careful analysis, design and a viable solution.
This paper will attempt to present a structured, albeit brief design approach that has and should continue to aid in development of compliant ruggedized enclosures, thereby meeting the objective of the COTS initiative. The following summarizes the presentation.
Electronic packaging serves to accomplish five essential functions
1. It provides a reliable structure that physically supports and protects circuit boards
2. It cools the electronics by maintaining the proper temperature range and air quality for operation.
3. It accommodates communication with other electronic devices via I/O cabling.
4. It supplies and distributes power.
5. It furnishes proper shielding to make the electronic device electromagnetically
compatible with other devices.
Therefore, the key aspects to a ruggedized packaging solution are shock and vibration resistance, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), thermal management, I/O cabling, resistance to harsh environments and reliability/maintainability. The challenge is to design a modular enclosure that is flexible enough to meet the varied COTS demands, without sacrificing system performance. It is the author's hope that this presentation which recommends some guidelines to adhere to in each of the aforementioned areas will serve to reinforce the intent behind the COTS initiative in some small measure.
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