Flat Cables Bring New Dimension to Electrical Architecture
Vehicle architectures are at an inflection point. The advent of battery electric vehicles represents an architectural break — an opportunity to rethink how we design electrical/electronic architectures — and the high amount of content in hybrid and ICE vehicles is making innovative approaches necessary there as well. Meanwhile, the move from 12V to 48V across all vehicle types also provides an opportunity to rethink the wiring and connectors used throughout.
For these reasons, flat cables have become an important option for power and signal connections in certain circumstances.
Flat cables are not new to the automotive industry. As early as the 1960s, flat cables emerged as a way to make connections within a vehicle while taking up less space. But as smaller-gauge wiring and terminals became available, OEMs found that they could meet many of their requirements with round wires instead.
Today, the density of wiring and connections needed to enable feature-rich, electrified vehicles is greater than anything the industry has ever seen, and flat cables offer some distinct advantages. Each main variety — flexible flat cables and flexible printed circuits — brings unique strengths in terms of size, weight, heat dissipation and automation.
New manufacturing techniques, components and connection systems are needed to fully take advantage of these strengths — and developing them will open the door to new levels of design flexibility.
Read our white paper to find out more.
