Intermediate level modelling tools for electromagnetic compatibility design

Principal Investigator: Professor C Christopoulos

Starts: 1 August 1998
Ends: 31 July 2000

Value: £94,822

Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) is the ability of electronic systems to operate in proximity to each other without suffering interference. Early consideration of EMC is necessary because it depends in a complex way on many electrical and mechanical features of a design. The cost of fixing EMC problems increases rapidly as the design progresses. Currently design rules and good practices are widely published but give little quantitative information on the actual performance of a design. Many rules of thumb are available in the literature, but these are sometimes oversimplified or simply wrong. Tools to predict emissions are available from software vendors but a similar degree of immunity prediction has not yet been achieved. Furthermore, the level of detail required for such tools tend not to be known at early stages of the design process. In the project we shall take an intermediate approach, developing quantitative prediction methods that require knowledge only of the simplest design parameters. Important aspects of the work will be the determination of error bounds of the methods and validation against complex systems from the industrial partners. The work will enhance understanding of EMC interactions and provide tools enabling industry to meet EMC requirements cost effectively.