Panasonic Industry highlighted its core competencies as a design accelerator at electronica 2018. Since its repositioning last year, the company offers a broad product portfolio on the market. Bridging the range from electronic components, devices and modules over complete solutions and production facilities to finally advanced services and training. “As an industrial partner, you have to answer to both demands: off-the-shelf products and more complex, customized solutions along with different levels of value-added services. We develop and deploy intellectual resources rather than just relying on the management of physical assets” comments, Johannes Spatz, President. Their exhibition exemplified its technological heritage, core competencies, and products in the sector of mobility, living space and business.
Mobility solutions
A smarter transport system that caters for social, economic and environmental sustainability is arguably one of the most critical prerequisites for creating a liveable future. The way to address this obstacle is by designing and delivering transport systems that provide environmentally friendly, safe, cost-effective and technologically informed travel alternatives. The company showcased its involvement and sponsorship with the Hyperloop transportation concept.
This is a new transportation concept for a high-speed train to travel in a near-vacuum tube. The vacuum-tube allows the capsule to travel at supersonic speed – faster than any commercial train or car in the foreseeable future. In pursuit of this vision, SpaceX founder Elon Musk has launched the „Hyperloop Pod Competition“. The WARR Hyperloop team from the Technical University in Munich (TUM) won the latest international annual competition this year. The Pod, as well as their levitation demo, was on display, exemplifying how Panasonic’s sensor, resistor, as well as relay portfolio, played a significant role in achieving the goals of miniaturization and increased efficiency.
This year’s pod offers a couple of superlatives: the power performance was increased from 50 kilowatts to 240 kilowatts, or 320 horsepower and it accelerates five times faster than an airplane during take-off with a maximum speed of 600 km/h. But all of this wouldn’t have been possible without external support. The materials and equipment needed to build a pod are expensive and difficult to acquire, so the team relied on sponsors, donations and the expertise of their industrial partners.
Furthermore, the company exhibited its wide range of components and devices for various applications in the mobility market. Starting from passive components like capacitors, resistors, relays, and inductors, the company delivers to all in-car electrical applications such as airbags, brake systems, lighting systems, and control panels. Input devices were also on display which are used for radio, navigation, steering wheels and where a human-machine-interface is required. Their sensors are used primarily for monitoring and detecting, while semiconductors focus on power electronics and battery management solutions.
