Advanced manufacturing technologies (DC/DC convertors)

The author details the design steps and manufacturing processes used in the development of DC/DC converters with power densities as high as 36 W/in/sup 3/. By combining multilayer thick-film technology on ceramic, surface-mount components, and active laser trimming, together with simultaneous engineering, design for manufacturability, total quality management, and basic just-in-time manufacturing methodology, it was possible to achieve substantial improvements in product performance, reliability, and cost. The application of advanced design and manufacturing technologies resulted in power-density improvements of 5-10 times and a 10* increase in MTBF (mean time between failures), to 1.1 million hours.<
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