The Shocking Truth Behind Electromagnetic Interference

As consumer products get smaller and more complex, the product design requirements get tighter and tighter to ensure all of the performance requirements are met. I’ve talked in the past about how some of the solutions available to our customers can help solve thermal management issues or product design issues, but today we’ve also got a new set of requirements to worry about: Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) requirements.

What is Electromagnetic Interference?

Electromagnetic Interference is the tendency of two electrical devices to interfere with each other and cause issues when they are brought into close proximity or operated together. This phenomenon occurs because of the magnetic waves produced by electric currents. If these effects are not accounted for, products might not operate as intended; the worst-case scenario is that they do not operate at all.

How can we screen for Electromagnetic Interference?

The traditional way to test for EMI is the same traditional way to benchmark any device: build a physical prototype, test it, and measure the response. However, this cycle is time-consuming, expensive, and requires a dedicated testing space free of any additional background Electromagnetic Interference.

How does the Electromagnetics Engineer Role help?

One of the new tools available on the 3DExperience Platform is a role called Electromagnetics Engineer which gives users access to industry-leading CST Studio Suite from SIMULIA to test their products across a wide range of applications and EMI requirements virtually- no expensive prototypes or testing environments necessary. The CST Studio Suite tools allow for a variety of applications including both low and high-frequency ranges for:

  • Motors
  • Sensors
  • Magnetics
  • Antenna Design
  • And more!

The results are automatically saved into the 3DExperience Platform for easy access, and the design is fully associative to SOLIDWORKS CAD, so any design changes automatically get propagated to the simulation environment. Contact us today if you’d like to learn more!

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