Front End I News
Professional and industrial display design: the key is the lifetime
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ne of the biggest differences between professional and consumer electronics designs is the life-cycle. Whilst most people change their phone every couple of years, a professional system, for example in pro-audio, has a design life of 10 to 15 years. This fact has big implications for the display choice. Paul Hooper, display sales manager, andersDX tells us more. Calrec, a world leader in broadcast audio mixing consoles, was a pioneer in the inclusion of displays in its equipment to improve the level of information available to users and to make the consoles easier to operate. Initially, they used mono LED and LCD displays, and subsequently they were one of the first to introduce colour to allow information to be presented in a clearer, more attractive way. Calrec decided to upgrade the colour
screen in its Apollo and Artemis mixing consoles, and presented andersDX with the challenge. Andrew Timme, product engineering manager at Calrec, outlines the project parameters. “Each console has 48-96 fader strips, with up to nine small 1.1” diagonal displays per strip. Consoles are a big investment for studios, and are often in use for 10 or more years, so lifetime was a key requirement. Viewing angle is a further major issue, as operators sitting at large desks often view the display from the side and below. Finally, the display needed to match the electrical and mechanical characteristics of an existing
screen as closely as possible, to minimise the design changes involved.” Looking at the project, the andersDX team saw that the unusual size made this a custom project. Although consoles are made in limited volumes, the number of displays on each console meant the volume was high enough to make a custom TFT solution economic. To address the lifetime requirement andersDX recommended manufacturing on the Truly industrial line. The LED backlights on Truly industrial displays have a rated typical life of 50,000 hours (to half brightness) – that’s 11 years at 12 hours per day. The display itself can last 100,000 hours. “Initially, we ruled out TFT displays because of their comparatively limited viewing angle, but andersDX, with its partner Truly, were able to supply a solution that met the required spec.” continued Timme. andersDX were able to achieve the viewing angle needed using IPS technology, which has a 70-85° viewing angle from all four directions. IPS technology offers a lot of other advantages too – better contrast, a deeper black, and a very sharp image. It really is a fantastic looking display technology. Having identified a technology that
addressed the main points of Calrec’s requirements, the andersDX team and Truly set to work to create a display that was mechanically and electrically a drop in
replacement for the existing display. Discussing the finished solution,
Timme said, “andersDX did a really great job coming up with a drop-in replacement for our existing display. They created a module that was almost exactly the same physical size as the existing display – just very slightly thicker, so that only the very smallest adaptation was needed to the enclosure to accommodate the new display.” He continued, “Display lifetime is an issue with many technologies, but andersDX convinced us that their solution would address our requirements. This has
Avnet appoints Graham McBeth as president of Premier Farnell
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vnet, a leading global technology distributor, has announced the promotion of Graham McBeth to the role of president of Premier
Farnell, effective immediately. McBeth will report directly to Gerry Fay, president, global business units, Avnet. In his new role, McBeth will be responsible for the strategic direction, day-to-day operations and performance of Premier Farnell. McBeth, who most recently served as president of
Avnet Abacus, the Avnet business specialising in interconnect, passive and electromechanical (IP&E) products throughout Europe, replaces Premier Farnell’s interim president Steven Webb. Webb, a 16-year veteran of Premier Farnell, has played an integral role during the last several months in overseeing Premier Farnell’s integration into the Avnet organisation. He will remain with the company until January 31, 2017, to assist in the leadership transition.
“Graham is an accomplished leader who knows how to win in the market. With his strong commitment to team building, Graham grew the Avnet Abacus division into one of the most well- respected IP&E businesses in Europe,” said Fay. “His deep understanding of Avnet’s global business will enable Graham to serve as a great bridge for the Premier Farnell team, its customers and suppliers.” “Since Avnet first announced its intent to acquire
Premier Farnell, I recognised what a tremendous opportunity this would be to advance Avnet’s strategy of
4 December 2016/January 2017
providing customers with a differentiated digital experience throughout the entire product lifecycle,” said McBeth. “This is the start of an exciting new chapter for both Avnet and Premier Farnell and I am thrilled to have the chance to help drive further success for our organisation and our design and supply chain partners.” A native of Scotland, McBeth is a results-oriented leader with extensive industry experience. He graduated from Glasgow University in 1984 and spent 11 years at National Semiconductor in a variety of roles, from product marketing to distribution and sales management. McBeth joined Abacus Group Plc in 1995, was appointed to the main board as technical director in 1997, and later became group managing director of Abacus with responsibility for the company’s sales and marketing strategy. In 2009, following the acquisition of Abacus Group by Avnet, McBeth became president of Avnet Abacus and led the IP&E specialist to a top position in the European market. Headquartered in Leeds, United Kingdom, Premier
Farnell is a global distributor of electronic components that utilises a digital platform to provide innovators and engineers with the latest products, services and development software. Avnet offered to acquire Premier Farnell in July 2016 and completed the acquisition in October 2016.
www.avnet.com Components in Electronics
indeed proved to be the case – I’ve had one of their displays switched on 24x7 on my desk for nearly five years now and it’s not showing any noticeable degradation in performance.” The project with Calrec demonstrates perfectly that a custom or customised display can be very economic even at low to medium manufacturing volumes. It is crucial, though, to partner with a specialist industrial display manufacturer that can support the very long service life required of this kind of system.
www.andersdx.com
CHERRY becomes ZF Z
F Friedrichshafen AG has completed the rebranding of the long established switch and sensors manufacturer CHERRY Industrial Solutions to ZF brand. From 1st January 2017, all products sold via the Industrial Solutions product line will be branded ZF. By utilising the ZF brand, with its strong presence in the automotive and industrial markets, the intention is to strengthen the company’s efforts to develop new potential markets, with a focus on industry and building automation. With a comprehensive switch product portfolio, sensors, and the recent introduction of innovative switch products incorporating energy harvesting technology, these new markets offer excellent growth potential. Customers are assured that apart from the brand name nothing else will change. All company information, customer’s contacts, product names and part numbers, will remain unchanged. New product introductions will be branded ZF.
Along with the change comes a range of newly branded marketing materials such as brochures and also a freshly designed new website receiving a complete new domain. But nobody will miss anything as customers still using the old domain will automatically be redirected. ZF switches, sensors and controls are synonymous with
quality, precision and reliability, and can be found in a broad range of applications and markets such as white goods and appliances, automotive, gaming, vending, drives, switchgear, control engineering and power tools. To support this idea, the new website also offers famous advanced features such as CAD-data downloads, tutorial videos and stock checks via ZF’s distribution network.
www.switches-sensor.zf.com www.cieonline.co.uk
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