Avnet, a leading value-added distributor of electronic components and embedded solutions, has teamed with OEM provider Molex to provide complete IoT systems for manufacturers and developers. Molex was a pioneer in the “Smart House” movement of the 1990s, and has now turned its focus from devices to solutions. The partnership brings a full slate of components and expertise to connected ecosystems with the aim of creating “proactive” home technologies.

According to Avnet:

Today, we can design, make, supply and deliver for customers of every size in every corner of the world – whether your product is still a notion on a napkin, in mass production or at any point in between. Avnet combines the agility needed to get to market first with nearly a century of close-knit relationships with technology’s most trusted global companies. Turning ideas that no one’s heard of into products everyone knows.

Avnet’s extensive team of specialists offer design and solution support to engineers with interconnect, sensors, wireless, passive, power supplies and battery products. Molex offers electronic components and solutions and has acquired technologies from software to firmware. Together we bring you a portfolio of high-performing solutions and associated technologies that enable you to transform concepts into smart connected designs across a wide range of applications.

Download the white paper: Home Technology — From Connected to Proactive

EXCERPT – PROACTIVE HOME

Strategically Choosing the Right Solutions Developer

There are suppliers who focus on one segment within the ecosystem only, but there are also an increasing number of companies that are getting involved in the entire ecosystem.

The latter will be better positioned to act as strategic resources in the coming Proactive Home.

Molex, for example, has been traditionally an interconnect company and, as a result, mostly focused on the device layer. But today, we are transforming ourselves into a solutions provider. We are continuously acquiring new technologies, ranging from sensor, software and firmware developments. Additionally, we are collaborating with our own sister companies within Koch Industries to explore bringing ancillary technologies to the home.

For example, Molex has joined the EnOcean Alliance with the goal of incorporating EnOcean energy harvesting technology within the Molex Transcend Network Connected Lighting system. This low-voltage lighting system powers and controls LED fixtures to enable lighting that adapts to mood, tasks, ambient lighting and more. The system not only creates a personalized experience that supports higher productivity, it also enables digital ceiling and smart building networks to converge over IP. The applications feed sensor data to a central host, enabling the measurement of real-time energy consumption, air quality, temperature and more for increased operational efficiency.

Molex also offers the Soligie line of flexible printed electronic solutions, providing a thin, flexible, robust and economical alternative to rigid printed circuit boards (PCBs) or copper flex circuits. The Soligie line enables the use of flexible sensors in a host of applications for the smart home, including remote medical diagnostics.

As mentioned, connectivity and power consumption are critical requirements for connected home devices. Molex Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) technology uses a laser beam to create the required antenna pattern on the surface of complex 3D parts, enabling customers to achieve a higher level of product integration with fewer components at a lower cost.

Wireless charging will also be a feature of the Proactive Home. Molex is now offering both standard and custom wireless power coils with NuCurrent technology for plug-free device charging at the PowerLife standard.

The integrated wireless power coils feature a thin design and a high-power transfer efficiency (Q-factor).

Molex continues to acquire new technologies, which we can leverage as the Connected Home evolves to the Proactive Home — an important part of the larger Internet of Things innovation that will revolutionize our lives. OEMs need to leverage solution providers that not only understand the Connected Home, but where it's going.

Today's Connected Home manufacturers need to predict where technological change is heading in order to steer design in the right direction. That means they need to work with a solutions provider that not only delivers the products and solutions to help them win consumer acceptance in a crowded field, but one that understands the possibilities of underlying technologies to transform what their products can become.

Since the early days of “electronics” as we know them, Molex has been inspiring and embracing disruption. We know that the Connected Home — the Proactive Home — is a stepping stone to even bigger things as we embark on the next technological revolution. By combining data with interoperability and groundbreaking technology that's already proven reliable, Molex is part of the Internet of Things revolution, helping change society for the better.

Applications where technology is right at home

Molex is a trusted supplier to major consumer electronics, appliance and device OEMs. We are also focused on “disruptive” companies that are emerging across the market and innovating across technology categories.

Foundational Components of Connected Home Technology

Molex's participation in technology for the Connected Home, as well as the evolutions that will follow it, are dependent on several core capabilities. These include precision stamping, plating, molding and assembly. From these capabilities, almost any type of electronic product can arise — completely custom, semi-custom or off-the-shelf. Currently, our portfolio is among the world's most extensive, with over 100,000 products used across many industries — and it is growing all the time. For the Connected Home, critical Molex content includes:

Antenna

Molex designs, develops and manufactures custom antennas and antenna assemblies for wireless applications. We can support a wide range of communication technologies, including cellular, UMTS, Wi-Fi, WIMAX, Bluetooth, GPS and others.

Sensors

Measuring temperature, motion, force, flow and more are all part of the Connected Home landscape. Molex sensors, including ambient light sensors, proximity sensors and microphones, can meet your device sensor needs. Our exclusive Soligie Printed Electronic Sensor Systems utilize a uniquely integrated design and manufacturing process to produce printed sensor systems that can incorporate a wide variety of components on printed electronic substrates.

Flex assemblies

Molex has one of the industry's broadest lines of printed and flexible hybrid electronics that can fit into smaller spaces while bending to allow for movement. Thanks to a breakthrough new technique we developed, we can now accurately screen silver directly on polyester. In some applications, this Silver Flex option can save significant costs compared to copper.

Switches

Molex capacitive and metal touch switches deliver exceptional performance with superior tactile response and design flexibility.

Download the white paper: Home Technology — From Connected to Proactive

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