The title of this quarter’s column may sound a little obvious and patronizing, but the objective is to dig into what efficiency really means from several dimensions when observed through the lens of mobility and robotics applications. There are a lot of interesting considerations for how to apply the usual design objectives optimizing for size, weight, and power, [and] cost or SWaP-C parameters (i.e., efficiency, density, reliability, and cost). Engineers must approach their processes differently when they cut the cord and live in a bat-tery-powered environment without a limitless, stabilized grid to fall back on when things go awry.
As usual, we must also always bear sustainability and practical supply chain alignment in mind. Most battery-powered systems can have a significant, upfront embodied carbon footprint that needs to be justified by savings along with performance over the life of the product (and even beyond). Ideally, secondary (i.e., rechargeable) energy storage is used to this end. Designing for Sustainability (DfS) early in the New Product Introduction (NPI) process enables downstream partners in Supply-Chain Management (SCM) to optimize for stock keeping unit (SKU) management and streamline manufacturing quality/economics.
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