GM's driverless podcar portends age of autonomous vehicles

At this month's World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, in anticipation of an impending age of global megacities, GM unveiled its EN-V concept vehicles, with an autonomous driving demonstration for spectators at the event's outdoor pavilion. Incorporating a 3.2kWh lithium-ion battery pack, an 18kW electric motor, the latest in GPS and vehicle-to-vehicle connectivity and an array of sensors and cameras, the EN-V vehicles "showcased their ability to react quickly to unforeseen obstacles and changes in driving conditions, as well as their great maneuverability and agility empowered by dynamic stabilization technology," according to GM.

"EN-V represents another major step forward in GM's leadership in the development of advanced vehicle technology," said GM China Group President and Managing Director Kevin Wale. "By creating a new automobile DNA through the convergence of electrification and connectivity, EN-V offers the promise of eliminating traffic congestion, crashes and vehicle emissions in tomorrow's urban communities."

Well, I hate to say it, but I feel like I've heard this one before. But who knows? GM has been on a roll lately, so I guess we'll see where this thing goes -- no pun!

Kudos to Molex for Connector.com

As one of the undeniable 800-lb. gorillas of the connector industry, Molex has now come up with a great portal aimed squarely at connector suppliers and engineers and others involved in the field of connector assembly. The social media website Connector.com is billed right up front as The place to connect with the connector experts. Well OK, Molex! And indeed, the site launches with a trio of insightful articles housed in topic areas for Power, Environmental and Connectors 101.

On the topic of Power, Molex product development manager Ken Stead talks about the time-honored practice of derating power connectors -- and why it has always been absolutely critical to do so, nothwithstanding the industry's present flash ahead to the 21st century where space and cost are king. Stead notes that if a backplane or I/O connector blows up, you're looking at a call to the Help Desk...but that power connectors can literally go up in flames, resulting in a different kind of call...like to 911.

On the Environmental front, Molex product compliance expert Joe Stainbrook asks the questions: So what's the big deal about halogens, and what is Molex doing in terms of raw materials choices?

Finally, in Connectors 101, Molex director of technology marketing Herbert Endres tackles questions of applied cost and design. I won't try to paraphrase too much now, but will say that it is fascinating to read an in-depth take on this subject matter from a true industry veteran.

I spent a significant portion of my morning today reading all three of these articles. So, kudos to Molex for coming forth with a great conduit for getting their people's connector expertise out there in a big way. From an audience standpoint, you can bet that other connector manufacturers and distributors will be following suit with similar sites.

Case in point, Farnell-Newark's element14. Another great resource...and subject for a forthcoming blog post!

'Interesting times' for connector manufacturing industry

Longtime industry analyst firm Bishop Associates has said it best: for the period spanning 2009 and 2010, there has been nothing approximating the definition of “normal business conditions” for the global connector manufacturing industry.

According to recent analysis from the firm:

In the first half of 2009, bookings were down 36.6 percent, and sales were down 33.9 percent. In June 2010, bookings are up 50.2 percent, and sales are up 37.5 percent. Both years set a historical low and a historical high for the halfway point.

The rest of Bishop's 2010 industry forecast assumptions reflect the firm's that opinion substantial orders and sales will continue in the second half of 2010, but demand will soften.

We shall see. But hey...interesting times!

Data center space: Build, or buy? Former Google honcho weighs in

In an economic climate that's been tough and maybe is going to stay tough, IT managers are hard pressed to know whether the better option now is to build afresh, or simply buy into existing data center facilities. In an effort to illuminate this conundrum, Simon Tusha, former Google data center exec and CTO of Overland Park, Kansas-based colocation firm Quality Technology Services (QTS), and QTS COO Brian Johnston, both weigh in on data center outsourcing trends in this very informative Q&A session, posted by Ryan Arsenault at IT Knowledge Exchange.