Muhammad Awais

[email protected]

So you have an idea – the “next big thing” in the technology or consumer electronics area. You may have developed it alone, or with a group of friends or colleagues. Over many sleepless nights and busy weekends it was developed into a working example. Or your small company worked on it non-stop. You overcame the design challenges, early bugs and faults. Now you’re at the stage where the prototypes are performing as required and you know it’s ready to convert into a product.

At this juncture the project may have hit the largest stopping point there could be – funding and commercialisation. More money is required to further development, however as an individual, small group or business there’s no way the bank will lend you the money. Furthermore with almost everyone “feeling the pinch” you don’t want to ask family or friends.

However there is a solution – “Crowdfunding”. Until recently crowdfunding was unheard of, but like most great ideas has spread like wildfire and is now a legitimate form of fund-raising for great projects. How it works is very simple – you describe your new product in as much detail as possible, showing the features and benefits just like any other sales tool.

However you then offer people the ability to pay in advance to either sponsor or back the product development and purchase the final product. You will set in advance a goal amount. Different monetary amounts are set, each with a ‘reward’ of the product and other extras – and the higher the amount, the greater the reward. At this point is is supremely important to accurately state the delivery date. People will wait if they know when to expect their product. These amounts are pledged, and not received unless the financial goal amount has been met at a set cut-off date.

If the total amounts pledged fall short of the goal amount, the project remains unfunded and you’re back to try again. However – if the goal is met – the backers funds’ are transferred to your organisation, less a fee by the crowdfunding facilitator. And this is when the next challenge arises – bringing the product to market.

For inspiration, two recent examples of crowdfunding success were developed locally here in Australia. The first of these is “Ninja Blocks”, a hardware and cloud-based solution to interface all sorts of objects interactively with the Internet. Their goal was $24000 however ended up receiving just over $100000. The product captured the imagination and enthusiasm of so many people the founders have had a second round of VC funding.

Another is a current project – the “LIFX Light Bulb”. It’s an RGB LED energy-efficient light bulb that can be controlled via wifi and therefore an Internet-connected device. Although the end date hasn’t been reached, and the goal is $100000 – they have already received over one million dollars in backing.

As you can see – with the right product, pricing and promotion – crowdfunding can be a raging success. However before moving forward and examining further development, who are these crowdfunding facilitators?

The largest and most popular is known as Kickstarter. Based in the United States, they have a huge range of products and projects being funded. If you need to reach a global audience, this would be the facilitator to consider. They collect the pledges via the Amazon payment system and capture a small percentage, around five to ten percent. But there is one drawback – projects must be based in the United States. However this can usually be worked around by having a representative in the US who can act on your behalf.

Another choice is Pozible, although not as large as Kickstarter they’re based locally which makes the process so much easier. However as a domestic facilitator you may not reach the global audience due to foreigner trust issues and being far from the majority of the target market.

Back to your project – let’s say you’ve successfully gained your funding. Where to next? You could be staring a huge bank balance, a prototype on your desk and have several thousand people waiting for their reward. Do you understand the processes of taking a design from prototype to actual manufacture? Perhaps it could be redesigned for a cheaper cost price – not only components but making it cheaper to make. And where will you have it made? Locally? You’ve heard about how cheap it is to offshore to East Asia – but who do you contact? Who can you trust? Do you feel confident sending your designs and a large payment offshore – hoping everything will work out? Or do you have the time, knowledge, language skills and savvy to research in country?

If the answer to even one of those questions is “no” – to ensure success you need a partner who understands your product, will take the time to work together with you from your initial contact right through to delivering the final products to your backers. That is where you can take advantage of our experience and success to bring your product to market.

LX has experience in successfully taking electronic products from concept through the commercialisation process. There are many factors to consider before commencing product development and LX can provide expert advice throughout the process, lowering your commercial risk.

Some of the services offered by LX include:

Development of business cases and business plans
Competitor research and analysis
Evaluation of proposed solutions
Intellectual Property (IP) landscaping
Market research and feasibility studies
Rapid market testing
Surveys and focus groups
Development of marketing strategies
Starting a business – LX Business Quick-Start pack
Assistance in raising funding (investment and government grants)
Product versioning strategies and technology road mapping

For more information or a confidential discussion about your ideas and how we can help bring them to life – click here to contact us, or telephone 1800 810 124.

LX is an award-winning electronics design company based in Sydney, Australia. LX services include full turnkey design, electronics, hardware, software and firmware design. LX specialises in embedded systems and wireless technologies design. www .lx –group .com .au

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

At the LX Group we say that smart energy is an exciting and important growth technology area, and that it encompasses and enhances a wide variety of existing and new technologies. Although many people consider energy to be a resource only limited by one’s capacity to pay the supplier invoice every three months – the ability to reduce energy consumption in an increasingly complex world is a communal goal.

Smart energy technology can be applied to a wide variety of devices used in the domestic, commercial and industrial areas – and benefits can of course be found in not only reduced energy consumption, but also in some cases by a reduction in the costs of installation and maintenance of smart energy hardware. In saying that let’s examine a variety of smart energy applications and their benefits.

Smart street lighting

Since their first installation, the use of electric street lighting has been a prime candidate for the smart energy devices due to the sheer volume of lamps and their combined energy use. Recenlt the ability to determine the ambient light level and illuminate accordingly provides light when necessary as well as saving energy. Further enhancements include replacement of lamps with lower-power LED equivalents that allow for a wider range of display levels. Finally by taking advantage of Zigbee wireless networking – lamps can not only be controlled remotely, they can also report lighting status data as well as error situations to a central computer. This removes the need for public response to broken lights and regular patrols – saving the utility time and money.

Energy harvesting

As more industrial and commercial applications rely on sensors, wireless transceivers and small microcontrollers for monitoring and data transmission, one of the design challenges has been powering and connecting these items to their required host. With regards to data transmission itself – the challenges have been overcome with the proliferation of low-power wireless mesh and point-to-point networking. And microcontroller manufacturers have reduced consumption by great lengths – in some cases down to micro amps by reducing CPU speed and smart sleep modes. These sleep functions can help when the power harvesting is sporadic, or takes time to generate enough energy for operation – for example when enough is available, the microcontroller can “wake up”, perform an operation such as transmit sensor data, then resume sleep until the energy levels resume at which point the process repeats itself.

Energy to run these devices can be harvested in many ways, however the three prevalent methods are:

Solar energy – a simple solution when the device is outdoors or can be wired to an external panel. A proven technology that can be used to charge various battery types and allows for 24/7 operation when the power drain is matched with an appropriate storage cell.
Mechanical energy – it is possible to transfer the energy from vibration and deformations into electrical currents suitable for low-power devices. An idea solution for constantly moving situations such as line-haul freight trains, mining system conveyor belts, and wave/tidal energy generators. These would also include a rechargebale battery to avoid power loss during short periods of down-time.
Thermal energy – Using sensors that consist of hundreds of tiny thermocouples, energy can be harvested from the difference between the ambient temperature and an external source of heat. These can include waste heat from industrial processes, climate-control systems and engine block heat. For example – with a sensor mounted on an area of 90 degrees Celsius, and an ambient temperature of 25 degrees – 10 mW of energy can be harvested – the equivalent according to sensor producer Micropelt of thirty AA cells per annum.

The Smart Energy Home

Domestic energy consumption is an issue for every householder, apart from rising energy bills the debate over climate change due to fossil-fuel energy sources and global warming has increasingly educated the population to reduce the energy consumption. The requirements to monitor consumption can be detailed due to the time of use and requriements for various appliances. Although utilities are installing smart meters which can offer various tariffs depending on the time of day – more can be done to assist the consumer.

The greatest advantage can be found by replacing appliances with new, energy-efficient units such as heat-pump electric hot water systems, however the cost can be substantial. A cheaper way is to offer real-time monitoring of each appliances’ energy use. This can be provided by a smart meter which can wirelessly transmit data to a receiver linked to a consumers’ PC or device – showing real-time consumption data. An option of increasing popularity is to sense the consumption of each major device in real-time – and in conjunction with time-of-use tariffs a true running cost can be shown – the greatest incentive to reduce energy use. These sensors can be fitted externall between the device and power outlet, or over time hopefully included within the device and working on a common Zigbee wireless standard.

As you can see there are many methods of smart energy use, including generation, intelligent consumption and better devices. All of these methods and more can be harnessed and modified for your individual requirements. Here at the LX Group our team has a range of experience in smart energy key technologies, including:

Displays and various user interfaces
Logging and data management
Remote monitoring and control
Ultra-low power wireless systems including mesh networking topologies
ZigBee-based networking, using Ember, TI, Jennic and Microchip platforms
Low unit cost design and BOM cost optimisation

And the team at LX has won national and international awards for past ZigBee-based systems.

For more information or a confidential discussion about your ideas and how we can help bring them to life – click here to contact us, or telephone 1800 810 124.

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

No matter the size of your next project, from the creation of a simple tool to the most complex embedded hardware designs – documentation is a key requirement at all stages of development. It allows for a constant reference to the project details during development, offers an articulate form of progress during project development to the stakeholders, helps with project hand-overs, and once completed provides a useful reference for all stages of the project and of course the end user or client.

Various organisations may use different project management styles – however the requirement for documentation encompasses all stages of the project. And the definition of documentation can vary at different stages of the project, for example some may consider documentation to just be end-used instructions; whereas it can encompass many forms. Using the “waterfall” method of project management as an example, we will consider documentation requirements for each stage of the project.

Before moving forward with the project, the forms of documentation required should also be considered. During the processes there will be a constant stream of internal notes, designs and other forms of record that need to be indexed and filed for later reference and modification. This is the ideal time to formalise the record-keeping structure of documentation and decide on the medium of record.

In the requirements specification stage, it is important to invest time into not only determining the requirements and goals of the project, but to ensure that every point of interest, detailed specification and requirement is recorded and made available to the project team. The customer must be made aware that this is the key stage in setting the project goals and requirements, as any changes further on will alter the final cost and completion timeline.

The design stage of the project will involve conversion of the requirements into a formalised foundation that gives engineers a starting point with which to develop the product or service. All team members working on the project must not only refer to the customers’ requirements and keep them at the forefront, but also make detailed notes and document their work at all times. This not only includes the usual tasks such as documenting software, or creating circuit schematics – but also notes written after designing, explaining how things work in their own language.

Although some may find this tedious and a distraction from “real work”, by not doing so they will automatically create time-consuming problems for themselves when required to revisit existing work in the future. Furthermore (if required) when the time comes to write end-user documentation, the author can refer to the engineers’ notes on how the product or service works which helps minimise the time taken at that stage.

During the implementation stage of the project, the need to refer to documentation created in earlier stages will be crucial for the implementation team. They may have been introduced to the project after the starting point, and need to familiarise themselves quickly. Furthermore during implementation the documentation will need to be updated to allow for the addition of end-user instructions, possible variances to the original specifications, and unexpected possibilities made available by project features. Through the implementation process, existing documentation can also be updated with the goal of creating the start of external documentation for the end user and client.

Once the project verification stage has commenced, the quality and detail of internal documentation will be one of the major factors in the success of the process. As staff move in and out of the project – knowledge can be lost or opposing viewpoints and experience introduced due to the personality of different people. Only by having everything documented will you have concrete information with regards to “how things should be”.

Furthermore at this point the need for end-user documentation will need to be finalised. By referring to the design documentation and notes, an accurate representation can be viewed by the author allowing them to create overviews, instructions, tutorials, sales material and other output for the public face of the project. At this stage the output for external use should also be reviewed by an independent editor – someone not involved in the day-to-day workings of the project, but whose speciality is documentation itself.

Although it may be simpler to print and index everything as it is created, the use of a secure internal “wiki” – or online website that allows users to add and update content may also be considered. As well as providing revision tracking and recording of all versions of information created, they can provide a fast method of information retrieval and speed up the final documentation process. However the success or failure of using internal online methods will rely on the strength of the organisations IT security policies and the proficiency of the team creating it.

It is the task of an editor to not only check the documentation for spelling, grammar, and form it into the required layout – they must also ensure the documentation “makes sense” and is approachable for the target user. As part of this process the editor can also liaise with the client and include them in this process in order to mould and create documentation in all forms that satisfied their requirements.

Although this is only a small precis of the full requirements of documentation in any project, we hope this highlights the importance of quality documentation in your projects.

And in saying that, LX recognises the importance of accurate and thorough documentation. The depth and form of documentation can vary depending on the requirements of the client and project. LX can develop documentation including:

Software and firmware documentation including commented source code and flow charts to professional and industry standards
Design documentation including using abstraction tools to produce traceable design decisions
User, installation and maintenance documentation
IP documentation to develop and secure intellectual property
Due diligence and functional safety documentation
Certification and testing reports

The team at LX has developed a number of systems in this area and has extensive experience with the core technology requirements of such systems. We understand the importance of high availability, accuracy and integrity of the systems, combined with the need for future proofing infrastructure rollouts.

For more information or a confidential discussion about your ideas and how we can help bring them to life – click here to contact us, or telephone 1800 810 124.

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

LX Design House has been recognised for its business innovation, passion and entrepreneurial prowess by being named in the Smart50 list for the SmartCompany Awards 2012.

Criteria to making it on the Smart50 list includes average annual growth over the past three financial years, positive business culture, sustainability and future business vision.

LX Group is a multi-award-winning Australian electronics design house specialising in wireless and low-power electronics designs. LX’s motto, “we take your concept and make it a reality”, reflects their passion for innovative electronic product development.

The SmartCompany Smart50 awards recognize and celebrate Australia’s fastest-growing SMEs in 2011-2012 and the entrepreneurs who are changing the Australian business landscape. The awards are based on average annual revenue growth over the past three financial years.The top prize, number one on the Smart50, is awarded to the business with the highest growth over that period.

The winner of the 2012 SmartCompany Smart 50 Awards will be announced at the Victorian Investment Centre, Melbourne on Wednesday, 12 September 2012.

Tracking and locating the assets, stock or items of any worth is always a challenge for businesses of all sizes. Whether it be small items such as garments or printer cartridges, spare parts inventory to larger items such as whitegoods or even pallets – identifying, tracking and following such items through the business can be a logistical nightmare.

This situation can be improved upon greatly with the application of RFID technology. RFID is an acronym for Radio Frequency IDentification, and in simple terms is a wireless method of receiving data from a tiny tag affixed to an object via an electromagnetic field.

RFID systems will comprise of three main items. The first is the RFID tag which contain electronically-stored information that can be read using various RFID reader devices up to ten or more meters away. The information store is generally a long number, similar to the UPC barcode number – and is a unique identifier for the object which has the RFID tag attached. The second is the RFID reader – which can read the data on the tag and pass it to other systems. And the final item is the data processing system which can utilise the data in a useful manner.

The type of data stored on the tag will relate to the item itself, and the data processing system can then store matching item data including fixed properties like model number, size, colour, etc. Every time a tag is read, event data can be generated such as item location, time and date, or sale status. As RFID tags are read by radio signal and not a visual device such as a barcode reader – you don’t need a line of sight to read the tag data.

And thus the selling point for RFID – when items have the tags embedded or attached, they can be read while still within packaging, multiple units or behind other items in storage. Mobile computers with RFID readers connected to inventory systems can immediately match item tag data with the full record for that item, in the same way as a barcode reader.

If you’re still unsure of the benefits of RFID technology, consider the following situation. Imagine having a supplier embed an RFID tag into their product at the point of manufacture. Once the items are delivered to your warehouse, an employee can read the RFID tag using a portable reader, and assign your internal stock code to that item. As more items are received, they can be added to inventory as they pass by the RFID reader. When counting stock, an employee can merely waving the RFID reader near the items – all tags can be read and stock accounted for. And when an item leaves the warehouse, it can be read once more and removed from the system.

Thus with using RFID technology an organisation can track items from the moment they arrive until they leave. In doing so they will have an accurate knowledge of their stock levels and also reduce expenses, such as:

the cost of labour when stocktaking and locating items in storage
reduce write-offs due to inaccurate stock level recording
removing the possibility of incorrect product shipments
reducing the possibility of internal theft
missed sales due to stock retrieval delays

Furthermore, in organisations with multiple sites – tracking RFID tags can provide accurate information with regards to stock location and movement. This gives a complete picture of where items are located geographically in the organisation at all times from initial receiving to the point of sale.

Over time stock movement data can be analysed to find further efficiencies in the supply chain, including reducing the level of surplus stock (or “buffer” stock – when an organisation purchases more stock than should be necessary to make up for shortfalls with inventory management) and also understand transportation times again which can be used to reduce the stock on hand requirements.

All this and more can be made possible with RFID technology. The level of RFID integration is determined by the end-user, however once an organisation commits to accurately logging incoming items – the rest is simplicity.

LX engineers are very well-versed in a range of key technologies in this area, including active and passive RFID systems. For more information or a confidential discussion about your ideas and how we can help bring them to life – click here to contact us, or telephone 1800 810 124.

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

For over one hundred years the development of automotive technology has constantly improved the performance, fuel-efficiency, comfort and safety of motor vehicles. Safety in particular has certainly improved, however the development of proactive safety systems has fallen behind other features. The greatest laggard of this is collision avoidance. Clearly the greatest obstacle to collision free driving is the human element, and therefore the technology to help the driver avoid a collision is worthwhile.

Currently the avoidance systems available generally fall into the following categories:

GPS-based systems that communicate their position with similarly-equipped vehicles, which can then detect an impending collision by comparing their relative positions;
Simple ultrasonic distance-sensing systems that take action as the forward distance between vehicles reduces to a dangerous level such as adaptive cruise control;
Intelligent systems that constantly measure steering angle, braking force, lateral acceleration and vehicle yaw whose results can help determine upcoming collisions;
Lateral collision avoidance that detects and warns of objects in the driver’s blind spot.

Currently the final actions of the systems described above usually involve one or more of the following: braking the vehicle, activating seat-belt pre-tensioners, closing windows and sunroofs, activating other passenger-protecting devices, or simply warning the driver. However not all of the systems on their own will provide an ideal collision avoidance system, and a combination of several plus an embedded intelligent system will be necessary.

The correct action for a system to take will be a function of the individual circumstances of the potential collision, and that the requirement for a vehicle to “just stop” may not be the only sensible option – as doing so could interfere with other vehicles still on the move. The intelligence to avoid collisions also needs to take into account the movements of surrounding vehicles and location of fixed obstacles.

Although some prestige and high-end manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz and Lexus are implementing their own in-house collision avoidance systems, each system falls into one and not all of the categories listed above – and therefore doesn’t consider all factors that lead to a collision with another vehicle, pedestrians or other obstacles.

For example in mild situations, warning the driver is appropriate – such as the car in front decelerating from a high speed. Or if a vehicle approaches at speed from another lane, and the system detects it is safe to do so, it could automatically move away into another lane. The combinations of situations and responses needs further research, but can be achieved.

The cost of any system is more than offset by the real financial and human cost of any collision, and although the initial price of a suitably-equipped vehicle will be more, the total cost of ownership should be reduced due to decreased insurance premiums, reduction in repairs from collisions and increased vehicle resale value. This is especially true for heavy vehicles – the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads conducted a study this year and found that although the cost of existing collision-avoidance systems can vary between $1400 and $5000 per vehicle, the average financial benefit was around $13000. Nevertheless the driver must be educated to understand what the system does and does not do – replace them as a responsible driver. Collision-avoidance systems are an aid to the driver, and not a replacement for one.

A huge opportunity exists in the form of a challenge to develop and manufacture a complete avoidance system still has not been accepted (publicly) by any major manufacturer. This would involve a higher level of artificial intelligence that constantly uses data from all sensor types to determine possible negative driver outcomes. Furthermore, once such as system has been developed – it will trickle down from the high end models before being made available to mid-range and budget vehicles.

Therefore any organisation who can successfully develop and market a complete OEM collision-avoidance system to the automotive industry at a reasonable price can only find success.

At the LX Group we have experience in the Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) area, including technologies and systems such as:

Variable messaging signs and traffic control systems
Collision avoidance systems and driver safety systems
Dynamic traffic light sequencing
Vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications
Advanced telematics and location tracking systems

For more information or a confidential discussion about your ideas and how we can help bring them to life – click here to contact us, or telephone 1800 810 124.

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

Today’s global economy has allowed the easy flow of goods from one country to another. However, with this free movement of goods also comes other consequences, and one such repercussion is the grey market economy. The grey market is defined as “the trade of a commodity through distribution channels which, while legal, are unofficial, unauthorised, or unintended by the original manufacturer.” Basically, these are goods purchased by people outside the normal channels authorised by the manufacturer. For example, if a visitor purchased a dozen of Converse shoes in the US and sold them to friends or acquaintances in Australia, that would be considered “grey market.” Of course, this is a simplistic view of grey market items, and it’s not always this straightforward. As companies become more and more watchful of their bottom line, many have to make sacrifices to protect themselves. Many firms turn to the grey market to cut on costs, but are grey market components really worth it?

Increased Fail Rate
It would be great if buying grey market electronics components and equipment was as straightforward as buying those Converse shoes. After all, it’s all the same in the end, right? Not always. Grey market doesn’t just mean buying goods that are cheaper in another country and smuggling them inside suitcases. It’s not just about ‘greedy’ suppliers wanting to monopolise prices or governments wanting their slice of the pie. Grey market goods can mean poorly assembled electronic components, or old chipsets used on new bodies. They can be hardware with older software (that can’t be upgraded) or they can even be stolen goods. Grey market goods can’t be vetted by the electronics manufacturers or OEMs, and therefore one can never be sure of the quality of the products. Also, various countries may have different safety standards, so purchasing hardware meant for another country could mean legal and safety ramifications for the company using the equipment.

Impact on the Bottom Line
Many companies are feeling the pinch of higher prices or increased costs of operating expenses. It’s only natural that before trying to cut back on staff or other expenses, they start looking at where they can decrease costs on electronic equipment and components. However, lower costs of purchase don’t always mean low costs in the long run. Manufacturer prices have other things built in. Aside from marketing, promotions and advertising, there’s also customer support, service and warranties. Purchasing from grey markets mean that the price you pay don’t contribute to these things and that means higher costs, not just on the costs of purchasing goods, but it can mean higher costs for the buyer. Grey market goods rarely carry warranties and support, and they must often rely on the grey market suppliers or third parties for the support. Repairs and services can run companies much more than if they were to purchase the equipment from the manufacturer or authorised suppliers.

Prevalence of Fake Goods
Grey market goods aren’t necessarily counterfeit, but they do pave the way for counterfeit goods to flood the market. That’s because in many cases, testing equipment and inspections just cost too much money. With such lax standards of testing, makers of fake goods can be confident when they flood the market with their products. And, in the bigger picture, counterfeit goods amount to worldwide losses, from the electronics manufacturers or OEMs to the end business consumers themselves. The overall economic, not to mention social costs could cripple the market.
The allure of “going grey” is strong, especially when companies all over the world face such tough economic times. Yes, grey market components are cheap, but they, in the long run, aren’t very reliable and can end up costing more. For electronics designers and electronic manufacturers, the incentive of grey market parts may be tempting. But why would you spoil a beautifully designed and crafted product with inferior quality components?

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

Testing is one of the most crucial parts in the manufacture of any product. It can also be expensive, and in many cases, faulty products can cost the company even more money in loss of customers and litigation. This is perhaps why in-line test jigs are so important. It just doesn’t make sense to wait until a product is fully assembled to test it. So, before a product is fully assembled, the inner workings and parts can be tested with a device (jig) to reduce the chances that it will fail. These devices make sure that each and every product on the line works 100%. Test jigs can be made to test a variety of things in any product, from television screens to microwave ovens, before it is fully assembled. There are many reasons why test jigs are important in electronics manufacturing, but these are perhaps the most compelling.

Reduce Production Time and Cost
Testing each and every product as it rolls out of the electronics manufacturing line can take time, but it can’t be avoided. In cases where a manufacturer produces hundreds or thousands of units in a day, timing is critical. If it took too long to test each and every product, it could hold up the line and delay production. Automatic test jigs can ensure that production flows smoothly by quickly weeding out any defective parts and products. They can also reduce costs, because it allows even non-technical people to perform the testing, thus saving on labour costs.

Suitable for High or Low Volume Output
Test jigs can be built and customised for any type of electronics manufacturing and almost any volume of output. They can be most helpful in mass production, especially when taking into account economies of scale. However, the great thing is, test jigs can also be modified to suit small to medium scale electronic manufacturers. These electronics manufacturers can also benefit from test jigs, without the increased cost of doing business at a large scale. In fact, many smaller operations rely on test jigs to keep costs down and quality tight.

Increased Quality
In the end, the customers are the ones who benefit most from test jigs and QA. Catching mistakes and defects early on ensures that they don’t make it into the box and into end-users’ hands. Electronics manufacturers want to ensure that they keep a stellar reputation when it comes to the quality of their products, and in-line test jigs can help them do that. Great products mean repeat customers and a better reputation in the industry.

Published by LX Pty Ltd for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

LX Group has been named as a Telstra Australian Business Awards NSW finalist in the MYOB Small Business Award category

Prestigious and coveted, the Awards program celebrates the country’s entrepreneurs and innovators. It offers a unique chance for small to medium businesses to be recognised for their hard work, commitment and of course, success.

The Awards operate in every state and territory and are open to all Australian small and medium businesses to enter, offering five Award categories.

In addition to promotional opportunities, businesses that enter the Telstra Australian Business Awards receive a 70-page report evaluating their business performance against independent benchmarking of core business indicators. The Business Health Check helps entrants to grow their business knowledge – growing their business tomorrow by knowing where it is today.

Simon Blyth, director and founder of LX, and his team received the finalist confirmation call during a recent business strategy and marketing meeting at their headquarters in Eveleigh Sydney. He said: ‘…we were all incredibly excited and honoured to find out we’d been selected as a finalist in the Telstra Business Awards, the calibre of the entrants was high and the criteria for the awards set the bar high’.

The winners of the Telstra Business Awards categories for New South Wales will be announced at the New South Wales Gala Dinner on 25 July 2012 at The Westin Hotel, Grand Ballroom.

To read more, please visit http://www.telstrabusinessawards.com/mobile/pressrelease.aspx, http://www.telstrabusinessawards.com/highlights/2012-finalists/nsw-145.aspx

–End–

Contact:
LX Group, Neala Fraser, Operations Manager, Tel: (02) 9209 4133 Email: [email protected]

More Information:
About LX Group, visit www.lx-group.com.au
About Telstra Business Awards, visit www.precedent.net/champions

Published by LX Group for itself and the LX Group of companies, including LX Design House, LX Solutions and LX Consulting, LX Innovations.

ANY manufacturer or entrepreneur who has brought a product to market knows that just having a great idea is not enough. Progressing a product from a simple idea or customer demand to commercialisation is a long, uncertain one, and for those who do not have the engineering expertise, the path can be even more daunting.

Contract design firms can help smooth the road from concept to commercialisation, but as with any form of outsourcing, along with the opportunities come some potential pitfalls.

Electronics News talked to three electronics design contract firms, Successful Endeavours, LX Design House and RTD Circuit Design, for their perspective on how companies utilising their services can maximise their value for money, and perhaps revolutionise their product in the process.

What they do
Whether it’s an innovative start-up, entrepreneurial individual inventors who need a prototype, companies needing a next-generation iteration of an existing product, or anyone in-between, at the core of every product is a seed of an idea or need. But a special set of design and engineering skills are needed to nurture the seed and grow it into a real product.

But those skills are in short supply. “A lot of clients have let their technical capability go,” says Ray Keefe, owner and managing director of Melbourne-based Successful Endeavours. “Many don’t even know how to put a product specification together anymore.”

Industry statistics are hard to come by, but according to the Andrew Pollock of the Surface Mount & Circuit Board Association (SMCBA), figures held by the association indicate there are between 150 to 200 electronics design engineering companies in Australian industry, with around 30 percent of them being small contract operations.

The rest of the country’s design engineers are employed by larger organisations like BAE,Cochlear, Black Magic Design and CSIRO. Despite this good design base, the fact remains that a lot of development work (especially for global companies) has moved overseas. The migration of in-house engineering and product development expertise, especially from the small to medium enterprises (SME), has left gaps that electronic design contractors now attempt to fill.

The type of clients seeking contract design services can vary in size, capability and work requirements. Depending on how far along a they are in the product development process (for example, some have an idea of what the product needs to do; others may already have a schematic or partly working product), clients may subcontract part or the whole of the design process, from product specification to engineering analysis, schematic design, PCB layout, prototyping, software development, and post production support and revision.

However, outsourcing, while common, is not the only way contractors get involved with projects. According to Keefe, around a third of his company’s clients ask the contractor to augment the client’s existing design teams, to provide specialty skills. In the case of Successful Endeavours, that includes analogue design, low power design and embedded software.

Simon Blyth, director of LX Design House, says his company adopts a similar approach for a number of its clients because some cannot completely outsource their projects. “With some projects, there’s so much internal knowledge that it’s hard to write a spec and outsource it,” Blyth explained. “We go on site to act as a resource to help them complete the project and provide a specialist skill set.”

Due to the diversity of the projects contract design firms have to deal with, it’s a constant challenge for companies like LX Design House to find engineers with the right skills.

“I don’t mean [just] good engineers,” Blyth told Electronics News. “I mean engineers who are exceptionally passionate and exceptionally talented, at an elite level. As a design house, I don’t think we can afford to have mediocre engineers.

“In a design house, you are expected to go into any different company, or industry or technology, and be able to perform at a very high level. You really do need high calibre engineers to make that work.”
The quote
For many first-time clients, the quote is seen as a key part of the process, and some may pick and choose design contractors according to price.

Rob Leslie, manager of RTD Circuit Design, focuses on printed circuit board (PCB) layout services. His company also provides consulting on component selection and product manufacturability.

Leslie uses a spreadsheet to work out the amount of man hours a project will take, which he then multiplies with the hourly rate. The spreadsheet takes into account the difficulty involved in laying out the PCB (for example, a long and skinny format is harder to work with than a square or circular board with the microcontroller in the middle), placement and layering specifications, as well as constraints on things like track impedances.

Successful Endeavours understands that most customers see products as an investment, on which a return is expected. The firm offers hourly rates as an option, but derives 80 percent of its business from a fixed price for fixed deliverables model. Larger projects are usually broken up into phases, with the client buying one phase at a time, and estimated costs reviewed between phases.

According to Keefe, customers are fairly intolerant of price hikes, so contract design firms tend to be very assiduous when delivering quotes and estimates. That said, the price may be revised if during the course of the project, previously unknown factors and issues arise.

Crystal clear
Quote revisions and scope ‘creep’ are the stuff of project nightmares, and are usually symptoms of outsourced projects where the two parties have different notions of what the other wants. The solution is having clear communications from beginning to end. The responsibility for this lies with both the client and the contractor.

Contractors utilise various processes from the get go to ensure they are ‘on the same page’ as their clients. LX Design House, for example, has a formal specification procedure.

The firm draws up a separate document called an acceptance test criteria, based on the specification of a proposed product. This document clearly explains how the resulting product will be tested to ensure the objectives have been met. It is critical for a client to read, understand and agree to this document, as it will largely determine the final performance and function of their product.

“I believe that specs are … only half of the equation,” Blyth explains. “It’s only fair that once the client receives the product, if the product doesn’t meet the acceptance test criteria, then it’s something that we need to remedy.

“But if the product does meet the acceptance test criteria, and the client dreams up or realises there’s a new criteria that they want to add, that’s a change request,” he says. “It’s a fair line in the sand where both parties can agree if something is a change, or a prior requirement.”

Successful Endeavours applies a similar approach, with the specificity of the design work clearly demarcated according to stages, starting with the general user requirements progressing to product requirements (specifications and features), and engineering requirements, which guide the design team to the specific outcomes the product must deliver.

Any requests are documented and returned to the client for confirmation, and quotes are always accompanied with a clearly defined description of the work involved and the expected outcomes.

During the day-to-day workings of projects, all three contract design firms contacted by Electronics News emphasised the importance of regular face-to-face meetings, telephone calls, emails and other forms of communication to ensure both sides were fully aware of the progress of the work.

It’s clear that contracting a design job is much more than just writing a specification document and letting the contractor get on with it. Both sides must be engaged throughout the process to ensure everyone understands what needs to be done.

Equally important is for clients and design contractors to break down the ‘silo’ mentality, especially when it comes to internal and proprietary product information. If the design contractor is reputable and has signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), its engineers should be allowed to access the product information that is critical to the success of the project.

“Even if you’re subcontracting work, you’re essentially still part of the same team trying to achieve the same objective,” Blyth says.

Keefe agrees, but points to a larger challenge concerning the mindset of many companies “One of the issues for the Australian marketplace is that many companies are very insular,” he explains. “They don’t collaborate very well with other companies, and treat everyone with suspicion. This has really worked against the Australian industry.”

First to market
The concept of working as a team can yield tangible benefits for clients, not just in terms of the final product spec, but also from a business perspective. All three companies Electronics Newsspoke to have methodologies in place to accelerate the product development process.

For example, RTD Circuit Design utilises a quick circuit milling machine to engage in a rapid prototyping process. This is especially useful if the customer stipulates the use of a pre-manufactured enclosure without providing schematics.

“We make a dummy board on the machine with no tracks, just the profile and the critical mounting holes, solder some components on and make sure it fits on the box,” Leslie says. “That’s a way to make sure odd-shaped boards fit when they come back from the factory.”

LX Design House adopts an accelerated approach for clients who have a lower budget and prefer less documentation. “We can take the general needs of the client, deliver something quickly with a low document approach, and give it to them,” Blyth says. “They can play with it and see what they do and don’t like, then we do a new spin … and give them a quote for the changes.”

Getting the product into the customers’ hands during the development process is an effective way to short circuit issues that might come up later. While Successful Endeavours may modify a spare piece of hardware to create an early prototype, the same approach also applies to the software functionality of the product.

According to Keefe, with the proliferation of low-power, high throughput processing chips, software has become a very important part of product development, with many functionalities moving from being hardware-based to being embedded in software. There’s no longer a clear division between software and hardware development: embedded developers are working with both.

Keefe says his firm uses PCs to create and run a complete emulation of the system, utilising high-level language to build a ‘shell’ on which the firmware or embedded software can run. Clients can then run development versions of the on-chip software on their computers and test for functionality. This can be a real life saver in some scenarios.

“One of the customers we worked with had nearly finished their circuit board design, so we were just developing software for them. We introduced this software methodology to them as part of the development process,” Keefe recalls.

“At the point where their PCB was about to be finalised, they received news from the supplier of the main processor that the component was now on 52 weeks lead time.

“They had a final PCB, but now needed to change the chip,” says Keefe. “Our process allowed us to keep developing and testing the software while they picked a new processor.

“Three months later, when they finally had a circuit board to run everything on, we had fully working software ready to load onto their system. That saved them quite a number of months in terms of time-to-market.”

Trend savvy
Because of the exposure that contract designers have to a wide variety of projects, they have a good idea about the latest technologies and capabilities on the market, and can bring a fresh perspective to a project.

While many businesses will have a fairly detailed idea of how a project should pan out, having an open mind to new ideas suggested by the contract design engineers could make the final product better, or reduce the cost of development.

“Companies come to without realising all of the options that are available to them. They can get the most value out of us by allowing us to introduce some of these ideas into the product early [in the schedule],” Keefe says.

One way to reduce the cost of the final product is to have a modern user interface. Products that use a lot of buttons and indicators LED as the interface can be expensive to manufacture, with a bulky and complex final design. “We are tending to move clients towards LCD-based interfaces with soft menus, because it makes it easier to give the user more information about the selections. It’s also more flexible to upgrade in the future,” Keefe says.

With an LCD-based interface, new features can be added in a software upgrade as additional menu options, whereas button-heavy interfaces might have to resort to complicated combination button presses.

Keefe cited another example of a company he is working with who had a development roadmap for their product, and an idea of what it should be capable of doing in three years’ time. A month into the project, he had a conversation with the client on its final goal.

“I asked them didn’t just aim for the final product now and they said because it was too much work, but I told them it’s no more work than what they’re already asking for, because there was a whole bunch of things they didn’t know [adding to the work load of the current project],” Keefe says.

“We’ve changed direction, and in about four weeks’ time, they’re going to have the product that they thought they couldn’t have for another three years,” he adds. “There’s a big advantage to being to market much earlier with the product you really wanted rather than going through a series of stages.”

If a contract design company can help differentiate a client’s product then it can result in increased sales. For example, in 2011, Successful Endeavours won the Industrial Electronics category ofElectronics News’ Future Awards for its work on the ABB CQ900R power systems controller.

The controller is commonly located on the top of poles in remote areas. Previous versions required power technicians to drive up to the pole, deploy a ladder, climb up to the unit with a laptop, and plug it in to interrogate the controller.

Recognising the possibilities afforded by low-power wireless for the application, the design contractor suggested the feature to ABB. “They asked how much it cost, and when we told them, it became a ‘no-brainer’,” Keefe told Electronics News. “The development and hardware costs were low, and it’s an up-sell option.”

The wireless feature allowed technicians to interact with the units from their vehicles, and became a winning function of the product helping win extra customers. ABB was also able to sell versions of the product with and without the wireless feature for increased market differentiation.

Contract designers are also privy to other trends that can help improve the design of products. For example, devices are increasingly being designed with self-test features which can reduce production line costs. Additionally, design contractors like LX Design House are seeing a shift from stand-alone devices to platforms which can be adapted to different functions.

“There is still a place for very specific product,” LX’s Blyth says. “But for some projects we take the approach of developing it as a platform that can be built upon in the future as opposed to just being a ‘one-hit’ wonder.”

Blyth emphasised the importance for design contractors to proactively invest in keeping up with changes. This not only helps with value adding, but can be a serious advantage when pitching for projects.

“We buy development kits or new technologies when they come out, so our guys get to [understand] them,” Blyth explains. “[So] we can speak meaningfully about it and have some experience … to take on the first project [that uses the technology].”

Transition to manufacturing
Since any successful product development cycle culminates in the manufacture of the device, design contractors place a lot of focus on manufacturability. Fortunately, new manufacturing capabilities and technologies such as 3D visualisation and increased machine precision have made designer’s job easier.

For example, RTD Circuit Design’s Rob Leslie says if need be, components can be placed at odd angles, and pick and place on both sides of the board is fairly normal these days.

“Back in the old days, components had to be loaded in boards by hand, and designers were asked to put diodes facing the same way round so the operator could check easily to make sure they’re right,” Leslie says. “Those things don’t apply anymore with machine placement and machine inspection.”

Like other design houses, Successful Endeavours employs a few basic and conservative design rules to accelerate and enhance an initial design.

“We tend to work with larger track-to-track clearances and groundplane-to-track clearances than the industry average,” Keefe explains. “Unless the PCB design is really tight on space, its better to put more work into making sure it’s easy to make [rather than densely packed].”

While Keefe is knowledgeable about the capabilities of a number of different equipment manufacturers, he will consult with specific firms about design rules to suit their production processes. This includes considerations such as the smallest track size, clearances and SMD ‘neck-downs’ among others.

“A big constraint is called shadowing,” Keefe says, noting one typical manufacturability challenge. “For SMT boards, if you have a large, tall, or bulky component, there will be a shadow area around it where [manufacturers] don’t want us to place small flat components on the boards [because they won’t solder properly]. We will want to know what those rules are so we can lay out the board appropriately.”

Once manufacturability has been covered, testing and certification needs to be agreed. LX Design House’ Simon Blyth likens this process to insurance for the product.

“Everyone hates ‘homing pigeons’: you don’t want to get a product out there that’s going to come back,” Blyth says.

Testing is a three-stage process, starting with firmware, then standards and certifications, and finally environmental testing.

In the first stage, the software running on the unit is put through integration testing and automated test scripts to ensure proper functionality and useability. Exceptions may be included in the test procedure ensure proper error handling.

The hardware is then tested to ensure compliance with standards or certification requirements. If the device is destined for safety applications, the appropriate diligence studies must be performed. Similarly, the relevant industry standards must be tested for, as well as country-specific certifications.

The final stage, depending on the intended operating environment for the device, may involve tests for vibration, shock, thermal cycling, mean time between failure and UV exposure.

As product tests can be costly, testing usually takes place when the development process is at the material prototype stage, with few or no design changes remaining. Timing tests properly eliminates the need for re-testing.

Off-shoring
With constant communication and expertise such a critical part of product development, there’s a strong case for keeping the work with local contractors, even though design firms in regions like Asia may offer highly attractive pricing. Perhaps for this reason, work for local electronics design firms is by no means thin on the ground.

Australian contract designers have done enough rescue work for “botched” jobs to know that problems like fraud, delays or non-functional final products can have costs in lost opportunities far outweighing the initial price advantage.

However, local design companies are by no means hostile to the notion of helping clients with off-shoring the work. According to Blyth, for example, the focus at LX Design House is to ensure the client gets the best outcome, and if using an overseas design house is the solution, so be it.

“I would encourage someone who is looking to offshore to engage a local design house to help them manage the process or even ask the right question,” Blyth explains. “We’ll help them figure out whether it’s a good thing to do for a project or not. [But] there are some [mission-critical] projects that you just can’t send offshore.”

At the end of the day, effective communication and accountability is the key to successful development, whether it’s done in-house, outsourced, or off-shored.

But choosing the right contract electronics design engineer with the expertise and experience could be the difference between an ordinary product as originally specified, and a value-added, differentiated result which blows initial sales expectations out of the water.

http://www.electronicsnews.com.au/features/how-to-contract-electronic-design-work