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ONNECTIION ON A WELL APPOINTED SOLUTION


In a Q&A session with Electronics, Gabriel Guglielmi, VP business development & strategy at Smiths Connectorsexplores the latest needs of the medical market and how the company is working to address these challenges with its high reliability,connector solutions


however, due to this miniaturisation, the management of key factors that include clearance and distance for signals, must be done with higher voltage. There is an expectation that, in the years ahead, different technologies from different industries will be thrown into the overall mix of medical requirements. These would include scanning/imaging


1


. How is the company involved in the medical device sector?


. How is the company involved in the medical device sector?


Smiths Connectors and, as A: The medical market is s


health needs trategic for


continue to evolve, technology is now playing an increasingly larger role in how people are treated across the worldwide patient care spectrum.


We are focused on developing and


bringing to market solutions that deploy leading-edge connector technology across key areas such as patient monitoring, MRIs, electrophysiology- catheters, X-Rays as well as a wide arra y of therapeutic devices ,


2. How do the company’ s product s facilitate medical trends?


2. How do the company’s products facilitate medical trends?


A. The rules of the road, and the accepted standards and practices, are changing rapidly in the medical device industry. Today, medical devices are vastly more sophisticated and


complicated than they used to be not all that long ago, and they are now often electronic. Smiths Connectors offers several different approaches to


disposable connector designs, each of which delivers features that benefit designers of disposable medical devices. Our HyperGrip connector, for example, is designed to meet medical industry sterilisation requirements, including autoclaving, Gamma, EtO and Sterrad. Equipped with our renowned Hypertac hyperboloid contacts, it is now also available with alternative contact technologies including Smi Connectors’ high density s ,


pring probe ths


contacts which deliver a number o f benefits including space saving by more than tripling contact density, size and shape, which incorporate well into medical device designs, easy push-pull mating, longevity up to 20k insertions, constant contact resistance and hig h current ratings.


28 2 8 JUNE 201 JUNE 2016 | ELEC RO ELECTRONICS CS


An impending new, and very interesting, contact technology fromSmiths


Connectors deploys a high performance double edge card contact systemto providemore reliable connectors for effective and safe disposablemedical device applications. Although edge card connectors are well known in other industries, they are not typically being used in disposablemedical applications. This new technology provides the


reliability of up to 10,000 mating cycles. Additionally, it provides for an integrated pc board, which saving, mass ter


mination of fine gauge allows faster, cost


wires and simple incorporation o f


embedded electronic components on the board. This represents real progress in bringing to market an innovative technology that assists physicians in critical procedures while delivering


scalability, serviceability and affordability – all of which are required by the disposable medical device market .


3. What advances can we expect to see emerging in the near future?


3. What advances can we expect to see emerging in the near future?


A. That’s really a question for the Medical Device Manufacturing community. However, medical standards are having an impact on the development of new products and connectors must be able to address the specific requirements associated with various medical


applications – from MRI applications, which require non-magnetic materials, to disposable devices, which must work reliably, but only for a limited time, and connectors which must resist liquid ingress while being easy to clean an d sterilize. Today, the growing call for portable medical devices and home devices, has amplified the need for smaller sized and lighter weight


,


equipment. As such, the connectors in question must follow suit.


Smaller connectors are required , Figure 1: Figure 1:


HyperGrip Connector with Spring Probe contacts


HyperGrip Connector with Spring Probe contacts


technology from the medical community, industrial robotics, 3D optical scanning and high-speed signal and data


4. What does the company offer in terms of technology in response to these demands?


processingmanagement. The environmen t is, to reiterate, becoming more complex and sophisticated, and in the end, this spells good news fo r patient care . 4. What does the company offer in terms of technology in response to these demands?


A. The entire scope of our product line has been, and continues to be, developed and marketed on a platform of industry- leading reliability, long life cycles, immunity to shock and vibrations, high density smaller and lighter-weight offerings, uninterrupted signal integrity, and of course, compliance to accepted industry standards. One thing that is important to note here, and it’s


,


important to underscore this again, is the undeniable reality that the landscape of the global medical device industry is shifting in a way that is both rapid, dramatic in nature and really exciting in terms of the benefits it affords to patients and global health providers . 5. Are there any ne w technolog y


additions planned for the near future? A. No viable player in today’s global medical device arena can ever afford to rest on their laurels, and as such, Smith Connectors is committed to constantly researching, developing and testing new solutions that are based on cutting-edge technology, and that these are designed to deliver a competitive edge to customers while protecting their patients So yes there are always new additions in the pipeline, and Smiths Connectors will certainly be unveiling them at the appropriate time.


5. Are there any new technology additions planned for the near future?


. , Smiths Connectors


www.smithsconnectors.com T: 44 20 8236 2400


www.smithsconnectors.com


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