What is FPCB
FPCB (Flexible Printed Circuit Board), also known as flexible circuit board, you can often see it in MP3, MP4 players, portable CD players, home VCD, DVD, digital cameras, mobile phones and mobile phone batteries, medical, automotive and aerospace fields to it.
I believe that people who work in the electronics industry are still familiar with circuit boards.
But most people may only have contact with ordinary circuit boards, and have never seen or even heard of FPC soft boards and soft-rigid boards.
After reading this article, you will understand what is FPC soft board and soft-rigid combination board, what is the difference from ordinary circuit boards, and what needs to be paid attention to when designing PCB.
（Picture of Wonderful PCB）
Rigid-flex board
FPC soft board and soft-rigid combination board also belong to the category of circuit boards, which are only used in special cases. Before introducing FPC soft board and soft-hard combination board, let’s first understand what a circuit board is.
Circuit boards can be divided into: ceramic circuit boards, alumina ceramic circuit boards, aluminum nitride ceramic circuit boards, circuit boards, PCB boards, aluminum substrates, high frequency boards, thick copper boards, impedance boards, ultra-thin circuit boards, ultra-thin circuit boards, etc. Thin circuit boards, printed (copper etching technology) circuit boards, etc.
It can be found in any electronic device, and it plays a role in fixing and connecting the electronic devices in the circuit.
（Picture of Wonderful PCB）
FPCB
FPC circuit board is also called flexible circuit board flexible circuit board.
It is a highly reliable and excellent flexible printed circuit board made of polyimide or polyester film. It has the characteristics of high wiring density, light weight, thin thickness and good bendability, and is mainly used for connection with other circuit boards.
FPC soft board can save the internal space of electronic products to a certain extent, and the assembly and processing of products are more flexible.
For example, LCD/OLED and AMOLED screen display panels in smartphones are connected through FPC soft boards, which are widely used in notebook computers, digital cameras, and medical, automotive, aerospace and other fields.
After we understand the soft board, let’s understand the soft and hard board. Rigid-flex board refers to a flexible circuit board and a rigid circuit board, which are combined together according to relevant process requirements through pressing and other processes to form a circuit board with FPC characteristics and PCB characteristics.
Rigid-flex boards have both the characteristics of FPC and PCB. Therefore, it can be used in some products with special requirements, both in a certain flexible area and a certain rigid area.
It is of great help to save the internal space of the product, reduce the volume of the finished product, and improve the performance of the product. However, the production of the rigid-flex board is difficult and the yield rate is low, so its price is relatively expensive and the production cycle is relatively long.
What should we pay attention to in design?
The device needs to be placed in the hard area, and the flexible area is only used for connection, which can improve the life of the board and ensure the reliability of the board. If the device is placed in the flexible area, it is easy to cause the pad to crack or the characters to fall off.
When the device is placed in the hard area, there must be at least a 1mm distance from the soft and hard area.
What do we need to pay attention to when wiring?
The graphics in the soft area should be at least 10mil away from the edge of the board, no holes can be drilled, and the distance between the via hole and the joint between soft and hard is at least 2mm.
The lines in the soft board area should be smooth, and the corners should be connected by circular arcs. At the same time, the straight lines and arcs should be vertical, and the pads should be treated with teardrops to avoid tearing.
At the edge of the flexed area, copper foil is required to reinforce the connection at the bend of the connection.
In order to achieve better flexibility, the bending area should avoid changes in trace width and uneven trace density.
The wiring at the bottom of the table should be staggered as much as possible to avoid overlapping the lines at the bottom of the table.
（Picture of Wonderful PCB）
Advantages of FPCB
flexibility
A significant advantage is that it can be routed more easily in three-dimensional space, and as long as it is within the allowable range, it can withstand thousands to tens of thousands of uses without damage.
reduce size
The conductor section of the flexible PCB is thin and flat, which reduces the size of the wire, makes the structure of the device more reasonable, and reduces the volume. Compared with rigid PCB, the space can be saved by 60~90%.
reduce weight
In the same volume, compared with the rigidity, the weight is reduced by about 90%.
consistency
Eliminates errors when connecting wires and cables, and does not cause wrong connections when installing connecting wires.
low cost
The structural design is simplified, it can be directly adhered to the component, reducing the clip and its fixing parts.
At the same time, for wires that need to be shielded, the price of flexible PCB is lower.
Disadvantages of FPCB
high initial cost
Because it is designed and manufactured for special applications, the initial circuit design and wiring costs are relatively high.
It is difficult to change and repair the flexible PCB
Once the flexible PCB is made, it must be changed from the base map or the compiled light drawing program.
So it is not easy to change. Its surface is covered with a layer of protective film, which needs to be removed before repairing and restored after repairing, which is relatively difficult work.
size limited
FPCB is usually limited by the size of production equipment and cannot be made very long and wide.
Improper operation is easy to damage
Improper operation of the assembly and connection personnel can easily cause damage to the flexible circuit, and its soldering and rework need to be operated by trained personnel.
About Wonderful
Shenzhen Wonderful Technology Co., Ltd. is China’s top model and small batch circuit board manufacturer.
The company targets precision circuit board samples and small batches as the main target market. Since its establishment, it has adhered to the development concept of good quality and important reputation.
Invest huge sums of money to introduce advanced equipment, strictly regulate the operating standards and QC standards for incoming and outgoing materials, to ensure that the shipped products reach Seiko quality.
The self-developed ERP management system can realize the whole process of paperless operations such as online ordering, online payment, online production progress query, online logistics tracking, and online statistical report production, which greatly improves work efficiency.
It ensures that each order can be shipped quickly. After more than ten years of development, the company’s products and services have been well received by the market.
As well as the opening of an electronic component mall, integrated circuits, semiconductors, resistors, capacitors and other products are sold.
The company’s scale is developing rapidly, and the sample and small batch shipment capacity reaches 500 models/day.
The products are widely used in communications, medical equipment, industrial control products, aviation, military products, testing instruments,Automotive, computers and other peripheral products.
We will continue to pay attention to customers, with efficient delivery speed and perfect after-sales service, to become the most trusted brand supplier in the PCB industry.
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