Industry-Specific EMI RFI Shielding Applications

Why EMI/RFI Shielding Has Increased Over the Years

The increasing demand for EMI/RFI shielding is a direct consequence of the omnipresent role electronic devices play in all aspects of industry and society. The widespread adoption of wireless communication technologies and the Internet of Things (IoT) has intensified electromagnetic environments, increasing the potential for interference that can compromise device functionality.

Today, EMI shielding is extremely important in all areas and sectors, with demanding applications ranging from medical equipment to autonomous vehicles, from factory systems to consumer products.

This growth is driven by several key factors:

• Device Complexity: Modern electronics feature intricate circuits and higher processing speeds, making them more susceptible to EMI/RFI, thereby necessitating advanced shielding solutions.
• Regulatory Compliance: Stringent standards set by organizations such as the FCC, ISO, and MIL-STD require products to meet specific EMI/RFI criteria, compelling manufacturers to incorporate effective shielding to ensure compliance.
• Material Advancements: Innovations in shielding materials, including graphene-infused conductive elastomers and nano-metalized fibers, have enhanced performance while reducing size and cost, making shielding solutions more efficient and accessible.

Industries That Rely on Effective EMI Shielding Applications

As mentioned above, EMI shielding has become essential in many industries to ensure optimum performance and reliability of electronic systems. By mitigating the disruptive effects of EMI, these solutions preserve the integrity of sensitive equipment and the safety of users. The following sections explore the importance of EMI shielding in key sectors and provide application examples that underline its critical importance in today’s interconnected world.

Medical Devices and Healthcare

In the medical sector, EMI/RFI shielding ensures the accuracy and reliability of diagnostic equipment and the safety of patients who depend on life-critical devices.

• Diagnostic equipment

Diagnostic equipment like MRI machines and CT scanners are extraordinarily sensitive to interference that can disrupt and even cause distortions in imaging results that create false diagnoses.

Various leading hospitals and patient-experience research teams have reported improved diagnostic accuracy after integrating enhanced EMI shielding into their imaging equipment using flexible conductive fabric gaskets. These gaskets served to enhance signal quality and reduce the risk of false positives.

• Patient monitoring systems

Patient monitoring systems use high-grade shielding, such as fingerstock gaskets, to protect the integrity of vital signs data in ICU monitors.

• Implantable devices

Implantable devices such as pacemakers and auto-defibrillators require robust shielding to prevent potentially fatal malfunction from unpredictable external electromagnetic sources a patient may encounter.

Aerospace and Defense

In aerospace and defense, EMI RFI shielding applications are critical for ensuring mission success and the reliability of communication and navigation systems.

• Aircraft avionics systems

Aircraft avionics systems have extensive and often multi-layered shielding, including lightweight metalized fabric gaskets, that prevents interference in and between critical flight systems such as radar, flight and engine controls, cockpit indicators, and GPS navigation systems.

Aerospace engineers commonly employ mesh gaskets in satellite communication systems to ensure uninterrupted signal transmission during atmospheric reentry. EMI is at its peak during this time due to plasma rolling off heat shielding as air is massively heated by vehicle friction. This includes shielded enclosures for avionics, typically sealed with thermal/vacuum chamber-tested conductive elastomer gaskets, a highly specialized and exacting test routine required for spacecraft.

• Military equipment

Military equipment such as communication devices, radar, and electronic warfare systems require robust EMI protection in harsh environments. This can include protection from deliberate swamping signals and jamming, as well as electromagnetic pulse weapons, which are under development.

Telecommunications and IoT

The telecommunications and IoT sectors depend heavily on EMI shielding to maintain signal clarity and separation and prevent interference between densely packed devices that are both highly susceptible and commonly intentional transmitters in their own right.

• Cell towers

Cell towers require intensive shielding solutions to protect signal amplifiers and transmitters from cross-channel interference, which would otherwise destroy call clarity and data integrity.

Major telecom providers systematically improve network reliability by deploying metalized fabric-over-foam gaskets in their 5G infrastructure equipment, ensuring minimal interference between densely located and high-power base stations.

• IoT devices

IoT devices such as smart-home devices, wearables, and industrial IoT sensors often rely on conductive foam gaskets for shielding and consistent performance. This is critical in devices that are both susceptible to interference and also intentional and even unintentional transmitters if poorly shielded.

Automotive Industry

The automotive sector has implemented an exponential increase in the use of electronic components in vehicles, especially with the advent of electric and autonomous cars. The onboard processing power, sensor arrays, and local networked data this demands are extensive and create greatly increased susceptibility to emissions. EMI shielding is vital for ensuring these systems function properly.

• Infotainment systems

Infotainment systems require shielding to prevent static or distortion in audio and video systems. Ignition systems are a significant source of irritant transmissions and can have profound impact on audio and video signals in particular.

• Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS)

Advanced driver-assistance systems are heavily shielded to ensure the reliability and accuracy of sensor data, which is critically required for autonomous driving.

• Battery management systems (BMS)

BMS protect the integrity of electric vehicle (EV) battery systems from interference. These are often EMI-shielded and sealed in one, using conductive elastomer gaskets.

Electric vehicle manufacturers resolve sensor calibration issues by integrating conductive foam gaskets in their battery enclosures, which reduces interference by stray transmissions from high-voltage switching components. Shielding components include shielded cable harnesses and conductive elastomer seals/shields for ADAS sensor enclosures.

Consumer Electronics

The consumer electronics sector depends on EMI RFI shielding applications to enhance the performance and longevity of devices like smartphones, laptops, and gaming systems. Stray audio, video glitches, processor disruptions, and transmission/reception quality all rely on shielding to keep signals differentiated and clear and audio/video free of interference and disruption.

• Mobile/cellular devices

Mobile and cellular devices require shielding to prevent interference between functions, such as antennas and processors.

Smartphone manufacturers increase battery life and signal stability by integrating lightweight conductive mesh gaskets in device enclosures, reducing internal interferences and delivering high-grade shielding without product bloat. Solutions include compact conductive foam gaskets and multi-layer shielding films for displays and PCBs.

• Wearables

Wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers require compact EMI shielding solutions to ensure data/sensor integrity and accurate, stable performance.

• Gaming consoles

Gaming consoles require shielding to eliminate static and distortion in audio and visual outputs.

• Consumer audio

Consumer audio requires shielding to exclude stray cellular chirping and gross crackle/spikes from inductive load switching – such as refrigerator compressors.

Conclusion

As virtually all product sectors continue to increase the integration, functionality and complexity of electronic systems, the performance requirements for EMI/RFI shielding increase exponentially.

From life-critical medical devices to increasingly powerful consumer electronics, shielding enhances the reliability, safety, and signal integrity of virtually all technologies. Understanding the unique demands on a sector-by-sector basis enables manufacturers to design closely tailored EMI RFI shielding applications that address the specific challenges of each product type, pushing the scope and deliverables of innovations while maintaining electromagnetic compatibility and integrity that meets the regulatory and compliance demands of complex and EMI/RFI crowded product spaces.

At The ID Group, we know all about EMI/RFI and effective ways to reduce it. Our experts are ready to advise and help you find the right EMI RFI shielding solution for your application. We offer a variety of EMI products, such as conductive foam gaskets, conductive elastomers, honeycomb vents, and many more. Contact us for expert advice or more information about our EMI products.