Molex Incorporated announces its Ruggedized Backplane Cable Assemblies, ideal for defense and aerospace contractors looking to deliver high-speed data transfer between commercial backplanes or servers, to commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) connectors including Impact™, Impel™, VHDM® or full military-qualified interfaces. Customized backplane cables have gone through extensive engineering testing to ensure they meet their respective application-specified data rates and performance requirements and are designed to mate to a large variety of ruggedized connectors.

“Expanding communication capabilities and data processing speeds through state-of-the art technology is a fundamental goal for the U.S. Department of Defense and aerospace contractors. But, these customers want to be able to increase the data rates without incurring the high cost of re-designing their systems with an optical solution,” said Mark Joseph, business development manager at Molex. “Our Ruggedized Backplane Cable Assemblies solve this challenge by not only increasing data rates between the server and rugged input/output connectors, but also by offering multiple interconnect options and performance ranges all with a rugged and reliable construction.”

The assemblies reduce high transmission losses caused by long trace lengths on circuit boards and offer data throughput ranges of 2 to 25 Gbps depending on the configuration. Optional metal backshells provide 360˚ Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) shielding and reduce crosstalk at the mating interface for improved system performance. A positive latch feature facilitates a solid connection in shock or vibration situations and offers an intuitive squeeze-and-pull mechanism for ease of use. The blind mate capability allows for misalignment and provides a "float" between mating surfaces.