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Michel van Schie
When a product contains electronics, effective thermal management is essential. Not only for safety, but also to extend the lifespan of LEDs or batteries, and to ensure other electronic components stay within their specified limits. Every product that generates heat requires a thermal management strategy. It’s important to integrate this aspect.
To achieve a well-integrated product design, it is crucial to gain an understanding of the product’s thermal performance early in the development phase. This allows the rest of the design process to be aligned accordingly. In the initial stages of a project, we focus on conducting a broad analysis, while later phases involve benchmarking similar products for their thermal behaviour and conducting extensive thermal testing.
As products often need to be as compact and cost-effective as possible, components are placed close together. However, every centimeter of saved space makes heat dissipation more difficult. Making a product waterproof also impacts thermal performance. If a product is sealed too tightly, it can lead to heat-related issues. The key is to find the optimal balance between all these variables.
By combining thermal calculations, testing, and prototyping, we can identify areas where heat tends to accumulate. This enables targeted design interventions, such as adding heat sinks, integrating active cooling systems, or strategically positioning components near the product’s edges to improve heat dissipation into the surrounding air.
Many products must remain within specific temperature ranges to comply with regulations. At Spark, we have the tools, such as thermal cameras and thermocouples, and the expertise to measure product performance. This allows us to verify that components continue to operate safely, without the risk of overheating, damage, or danger to the user.
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