A client asked me, how to decide on tolerances to write on a drawing, when giving a technical file to a Chinese manufacturer? I always suggest to importers that they define a product specification sheet. And they often struggle with setting the right tolerances. Many considerations need to be taken into account. This is not a formal how-to guide, but I jotted down a few ideas. First, you might not need to specify every dimension on your product. And on those dimensions you end up … [Read more...]

This is the last article in our series about what it takes to develop a complex electronic product in China. We'll look at ways to save on the costs of electronic components, and how to make assembly easier. Ideally, your Chinese contract manufacturer would help you on this topic. Especially with making assembly easier, since it translates into fewer quality issues and delays. In reality, it is up to the buyer & designer to come up with these types of improvements. 1. Cost Saving … [Read more...]

This is the next article in our series that aims at giving readers an idea of what it takes to develop a complex electronic product in China. So you have prototypes. Before you start to work toward mass production, you probably want to refine the design. It usually takes one of the following two forms: Optimizing the material selection Miniaturizing some elements (This is not exhaustive. Many other aspects can be optimized -- for example power consuption, performance of the product, … [Read more...]

This is the fifth article in our series about what it takes to develop an electronic product in China. Let's look at the prototyping stage. The imaginary example we thought of, the Drone Intruder Interception System, is a complex design. It would require many different prototype models which would require different prototyping methods. For each element, there needs to be functional prototypes that not only work and function on their own but also as a system. This allows for individual … [Read more...]

After the design of the PCBA schematics comes the time to choose a chip set and to start working on the firmware. (If you are not inclined to read technical how-to articles, this will be quite boring to you... But we are trying to give a complete picture of what it takes to develop an electronic product.) Let's look at these 2 steps one by one. 1. Chip set selection A microprocessor uses microelectronic fabrication techniques to shrink the Central Processing Unit (CPU) to a very small … [Read more...]

The board schematics and the choice of chip set are an important step when developing an electronic product. Let's look into this, in this third article in our series (part 1 is here, part 2 is here) In a complex product system like we are discussing with the drone intruder interceptor, there will be multiple printed circuit board assemblies (PCBA), each having a specific function within the system. Some of these PCBAs will be size sensitive, which may require dedicated miniature or micro … [Read more...]

A friend shared an interesting article from The Economist with me. It is entitled Shenzhen is a hothouse of innovation. What really allowed Shenzhen to become so economically successful? Because of the open policy that started there? Because it is close to Hong Kong? Yes but also for other reasons. The official story attributes Shenzhen’s success to brave party leaders and far-sighted policies. Deng Xiaoping is lauded for liberalising the region’s economy. Later political leaders receive … [Read more...]