Our expert contributors discuss how PCB designers can utilize standards to save time and money, not to mention frustration. We also spotlight the newly updated version of the IPC Checklist, a handy guide that illustrates which standards cover which topics, from front-end design through assembly.
In this month’s issue, our expert contributors share their best tips, tricks and techniques for designing rigid-flex circuits. If you’re a rigid board designer considering moving into the 3D world of rigid-flex, this issue is just what the doctor ordered! Rigid Flex PCB Board
Getting today’s designs “right the first time” is critical, especially with costly advanced PCBs. Simulation and analysis software tools can help you in the fight to eliminate respins. They’re not magical, but they can predict the future of your design.
In a recent interview with Design007 Magazine managing editor Andy Shaughnessy, he asked me about rigid-flex and its new popularity. This seems like a perfect opportunity to dig into the topic and discuss the differentiation between rigid-flex, rigidized flex, and what I am calling a hybrid flex.
Rigid-flex technology was developed years ago for military and aerospace applications. But rigid-flex has become more popular in recent years. Open a cellular phone, for example, and more than likely the internal electronics are mounted on a rigid-flex.
In case you’re not familiar with the technology, a rigid-flex is a blend of a rigid printed circuit board and a flex circuit. To manufacture a rigid-flex, a flex circuit is compressed between layers of a rigid PCB design, which leaves the flex area exposed to, well, flex. The rigid areas are, in most cases, used for placing components. The vias/through-holes in both the rigid and flex areas are aligned and plated just like a normal multilayer circuit solution, creating a hybrid, one-piece integrated solution.
Designers of products are learning the advantages of rigid-flex:
Soldering Circuit Boards To read this entire article, which appeared in the June 2023 issue of Design007 Magazine, click here.