IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - December 2021 - 4

From the Editor
by Ashok Bindra
Employing Strategies to Ensure
Manufacturability of Complex Boards
D
esigning and fabricating
complex multilayer printed
circuit boards (PCB) inhouse
is often not practical for a
variety of reasons. For instance, creating
precise specifications for a
complicated PCB may not be simple.
Plus, it is also a critical component
of a system that is not easy to
revise, and manage inventory. So
many companies outsource such
projects. But finding the right vendor
is not trivial. For that, it is
important to understand the process
and fabrication constraints of the
PCB manufacturer, allowing the
designer (the company) to correctly
and precisely communicate design
requirements to the PCB vendor.
Besides guaranteeing accuracy, it
allows designs to be interchangeable
across several manufacturers.
In the cover feature of this issue
of IEEE Power Electronics Magazine,
Grant Pitel and Adam Pitel of MagnaPower
Electronics discuss design
principles and processes to ensure
manufacturability of complex PCBs at
high-voltage and high-current. In the
article " Power Electronics Hardware
Design for Manufacturability, " the
authors share strategies within the
power electronics design process that
the company has iterated during its
40-year history, which includes PCB
design and vendor selection, protoDigital
Object Identifier 10.1109/MPEL.2021.3124256
Date of current version: 16 December 2021
type and design controls, and electromechanical
integration. " While design
consistency has remained constant,
the strategies to achieve this principle
have (and continue) to evolve as
the company grows. Software-based
tools were presented that enforced
constraints on the design process,
shared component and rule libraries,
validated prototype workflows, and
automated production records checks
against design files, " according to
the authors.
In the second feature " Cost-effective
Arduino-based SPWM Control
of an Inverter for Training, " Antonio
Menacho, Manuel Blazquez, Pedro
Plaza, Elio Sancristobal, Sergio Martín,
Clara Perez, Manuel Castro and
Ramon Borrego investigate a costeffective
sine pulse-width modulation
control of an inverter which has been
implemented using Arduino UNO microcontroller,
and can be used with
various power stages. The proposed
model is focused on power electronics
training or learning. It allows
users to practice the control of an
inverter without the need of a physical
laboratory. In essence, this model
facilitates remote experimentation to
acquire the knowledge and control of
an inverter.
The third feature " Enabling 99.3%
Efficiency in 3.6 kW Totem-pole PFC
using new 750 V Gen 4 SiC FETs " by
Ke Zhu, Anup Bhalla, and Jonathan
Dodge explains how the breakthrough
performance of a 750 V Gen 4 SiC FET
4 IEEE POWER ELECTRONICS MAGAZINE z December 2021
enables a simple design of highly efficient
totem-pole PFC. Insight into the
losses is provided by the new FET-Jet
calculator on-line tool, which shows
to match the actual measurements
quite well. In addition, this article discusses
how the high efficiency of SiC
FETs allows further BOM cost reduction
for totem-pole PFC.
Finally, in the fourth feature " Thirteenth
Annual ECCE Delivers the Latest
Innovations in Energy Conversion,
Electric Machines and Drives " coauthors
Ashok Bindra, Mark Scott and
Jean-Luc Schanen describe the complete
conference technical program,
including the four plenary talks. Plus,
the coauthors highlight few special
sessions and select products introduced
by some exhibitors.
Columns, Society News and More
In the column " President's Message, "
Liuchen Chang sheds light on PELS
growth and excellent performance
this year. He unveiled plans to build
stronger and more resilient conference
portfolio, while expanding educational
and digital offerings. Likewise,
in the " Expert View " column ""
Jimmy Liu highlights the role of GaN
FETs in designing and building more
efficient automotive traction inverters.
According to Liu, GaN based traction
inverter offers many benefits, including
mileage extension, permitting
lower temperature rise, and lowering
system cost. Similarly, the " Entrepreneur
Viewpoint " by Prof. Issa Batarseh
IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - December 2021

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