William Ribbens
Published by Newnes

Electronics has taken over the modern motorcar, so much so that it is difficult to tinker with the car as we used to do in the old days. Now, a computer does it all. All the key functions are, or can be, controlled with electronicsÑa great benefit to drivers.

The book has 11 chapters and over 450 pages illustrated with diagrams, circuits and performance graphs, but sadly few photographs of the electronics. The chapters guide the reader through the fundamentals of combustion, controls, engine and motion control and diagnostics. After each chapter is a multiple-choice quiz. You have to read the text in detail to answer the questions, not just skim.

This is an interesting textbook, ideal for education on the topic. The book was easy to read and informative, explaining how electronics works to improve the safety and performance of the automobile. There is little coverage of the componentry, wiring or reliability of different forms of assembly, so it would only of interest to manufacturing engineers if you want to understand the reasons behind the circuits we build.

Gregg K Hobbs
Published by John Wiley & Sons

This book has 220 pages illustrated with diagrams and pictures and is divided into 10 chapters. It also features a glossary of terms which new readers on the subject will find useful. After all, the use of these test methods can be used in a wide range of industries.

The book is an ideal introduction to the concepts and benefits of environmental testing. It provides an overview of problems and limitations and provides solutions. It highlights many of the tests conducted in the industry, indicates where they can be ineffective and suggests alternatives. The author is certainly passionate about the subject.

The first chapter is very informative, offering the basic concepts of failure, an overview of highly accelerated life testing (HALT) and highly accelerated stress screening (HASS), the history of screening and the equipment requirements. The following chapters detail HALT and HASS strategies. Environmental testing has lead to views that passive testing is very ineffective. Using temperature in combination with mechanical testing is far more beneficial in showing design and assembly faults.

Finally, this book shares a familiar criticism among the books I review: too few examples. Illustrating the types and the way failure occurs can be beneficial to explain why we do accelerated testing or in process product stressing. However, the text is easy to read and follow, and it does make the reader want to find out more.

Produced by Teknoflex
Interactive CD-ROM Format

Teknoflex has been through a number of transitions over the years, but is one of the most established producers of flexible circuits in the UK. They have one of the few reel-to-reel flexible manufacturing lines in Europe, which is impressive to watch in action. Their engineering team has a lot of experience in flex and is passionate about the technology. This free CD-ROM has been a long time in the making and includes much of the information that the company has provided to design engineers over the years in two volumes of well-illustrated text. Although it may just be a sales tool, few CDs like this provide so much useful information.

Flexible circuits are unique as a packaging solution, intriguing to manufacture because of the expansion and contraction of the base materials and a pain to assemble unless you follow correct design rules. Some specific guidelines are included on the CD, but the assembly section could have been more specific since tooling is the key to assembly. Some of the assembly section is weak and very few soldering issues are covered (Although I've found this to be true of the flexible circuits textbooks on the market as well).

It is nice to have a reference to many of the "do's and don'ts" of flex design and manufacture in one place. The material will certainly benefit design departments, but a direct discussion with a flex supplier is still the best approach.

The CD is split into key sections covering: Technologies, Design, Electrical Considerations, Material, Assembly, Quality, Design Checklists, and a Glossary of terms.

The CD-ROM is text-and drawing-based and should have incorporated more photographs to illustrate good and bad design. Video footage of the reel-to-reel facility would have been interesting to many engineers and those with a passing interest in flex. The company does include useful capability information alongside the parameters of the flex materials.

Any design or process engineer will benefit in reviewing the information on this CD. If you want to move on to a book on the subject, try the manuals by Joe Fjelstad.

Lead-Free Electronics—2004 Edition
Edited by Sanka Ganesan & Michael Pecht