How to Improve Reliability & Flexibility in an 8 Layer Stackup Flex PCB?

Posted on January 7, 2020 by Love FPC

When designing a flex PCB stackup, you may face some restrictions in enhancing the reliability of the board. Today, we will discuss the ways to improve the reliability of a board by increasing the flexibility and improving design considerations of a multilayer PCB stackup. These steps can be implemented for PCB stackup designs as seen in 8 layer flex PCBs.

flexible circuits

Improve Flexibility by Reducing Overall Thickness

All or some of the below mentioned steps can be executed to lower the overall thickness of the PCB. A thinner PCB stackup will allow it to be more flexible.

1.Reduce the base copper weight.

2.Reduce the adhesive thickness.

3.Reduce the dielectric material thickness.

4.Using adhesiveless base materials can reduce the thickness of the substrate by 1-2 mils, which is almost 25-50μm.

5.Make use of selective plating to avoid copper plating the conductors.

Improve Reliability by Reinforcing the PCB

Here, the boards, components, and the layout should be designed to deliver a robust structure that can withstand flexing.

1.The weight on both sides of the PCB should be equal. This includes the weight of the conductors and the material.

2.The conductors on different layers of a PCB should not be placed on top of each other. Instead, they should be placed in a staggered pattern.

3.Conductor thickness should always be constant in and near the bend areas.

4.There should be no plated-through holes in the bend areas.

5.There should be no discontinuities near the bend.

6.Traditional copper can be proved to reduce the flexibility of a PCB. Opt for screened-on coatings like silver epoxy.

7.For slits in the circuit, reliefs or tear stops need to be built into the PCB.

flexible pcb

Tight tolerances will have to be put in place to ensure that your stacked up PCB can provide flexibility as well as reliability. Several of the above-mentioned steps can easily be incorporated in the designing process itself. Your PCB manufacturer should be able to help you with the most appropriate improvements for your application.

Do You Know the Materials Used for Constructing 6 Layer Rigid-Flex PCB?

Posted on December 30, 2019 by Love FPC

A six layer Rigid-Flex PCBs, as the name implies, is manufactured using six conductive copper layers. However, do you know the materials used for constructing 6 layer rigid-flex PCB? Now let me lift the veil for you.

6 layers rigid flex pcb

Base Materials – The most commonly used base materials for manufacturing 6 layer rigid-flex PCB is woven fiberglass impregnated with epoxy resin. The use of cured epoxy makes the board more rigid. Manufacturers also prefer Polyimide rather than normal epoxy resin to ensure extreme reliability in complicated applications. Polyimide is chosen due to their extreme flexibility, toughness, and heat resistance properties. Polyester (PET) is also another material of choice for the PCB fabrication. Manufacturers often choose the most suitable materials according to the specific application requirements of customers.

Films – Manufacturers prefer PET films for producing 6 layers rigid-flex PCB due to their corrosion and heat resistance properties. The thickness of PET films used for the PCB manufacturing vary from 1/3 mil to 3 mils.

Conductors – Copper is the most preferred conductor of choice for making 6 layer rigid-flex PCB and various types of copper are used according to the specific application requirements. Annealed copper is used when repeated creasing or movement of the flex circuit is demanded.

6 layers rigid flex PCB

Adhesives – The use of high quality adhesive is crucial to make a fine bonding between the conductor and films. Acrylic or epoxy based adhesives are the most commonly used adhesives to achieve a firm bonding, while silicones, hot-melt glues, and epoxy resins can also be used for bonding.

Manufacturers who are very familiar with the properties of the aforementioned materials can conduct their mechanical design, evaluation and testing of the PCBs better. Therefore, a manufacturer who fabricates 6 layers rigid-flex PCB for the automobile industry must quite know the moisture, chemical, shock & vibration resistance properties of the materials used in the construction. This contributes to enhancing the durability of PCBs in the case of industrial specific applications.

Best Technology Wishes You Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2020

Posted on December 23, 2019 by Love FPC

Christmas and New Year is just around the corner. Merry Christmas to everyone. As the year 2019 is coming to an end, the team at Best Technology would like to wish you a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year 2020. We believe that it is time to focus on the year that has gone and say thanks to all valuable people who helped us to become trusted and well-known PCB manufacturers in China.

Best wishes

We acknowledge that the year 2019 has been a surprise for us, wherein we got several opportunities to serve for our customers. The challenges that came along with these opportunities has helped us refine ourselves for better and stand tall among all our competitors. Being an industry-leader in flex, rigid, and rigid-flex PCB manufacturing, we could easily fulfill your orders in the specified time and in compliance with required specifications. Although technology plays a major role, we could never have achieved this success without our employees, who always made the most of their abilities to help meet our commitment of on-time deliveries.

rigid flex pcb

On this holiday season, we would love to send our warmest wishes to the team who stood by us through challenges and our valuable customers for investing their time, money, and faith in our capabilities. This helps to serve you better. We are expecting to achieve more milestones in the upcoming year. This is not possible without your supports and faith. We hope this relationship will grow stronger in the New Year.

The entire team of Best Technology Wishes you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2020 again!!!

For your easy reference, below is our holiday schedule:

Christmas Day: We will be closed on Dec 25, 2019 and resume working on Dec 26, 2019

The New Year: We will be closed from Jan 18, 2020 to Feb 1, 2020 and we will resume working on Feb 2, 2020

Rigid vs Flexible PCBs: Which One is the Best for Your Next Project?

Posted on December 16, 2019 by Love FPC

Speaking of “PCB”, many people will think of a rigid PCB. However, the term “PCB” can refer to either a rigid PCB or a flexible PCB. Flexible PCBs are more commonly known as flex circuits(flex boards, flexible circuit boards, flexible printed circuit boards and flexible electronics). Recently, Flex circuits are highly welcome in the market since they can be bent or twisted. However, in the most basic sense, rigid PCBs and flexible PCBs have the same ultimate function of connecting various electrical and mechanical components together.

When to Use Rigid and When to Use Flexible

Rigid PCBs typically cost less than flex circuits as flex circuits may eliminate the need for components such as connectors, wire harnesses, and other circuit boards. By removing these components from a design, material cost, labor and assembly cost are all reduced.

flexible pcb

Many electronic devices (laptop and desktop computers, audio keyboards, solid-state drives, flat-screen TVs and monitors, children’s toys, and various electronic gadgets) employ rigid PCBs instead of flexible PCBs. However, flex circuits may be found in ultra-compact and/or high-performance devices, including GPS units, tablet PCs, smart phones, cameras, and wearables. Flex circuit makes installation get much easier.

Finally, a flex circuit and a rigid circuit can be used together—as a rigid flex PCB(Rigid flex circuit)—if necessary. The proper application of rigid flex circuit offers optimum solutions for difficult, limited space conditions.

Rigid flex pcb

Should you have any other queries about flexible pcb, rigid pcb, rigid flex pcb, feel free to contact us. Our sales representative will reply you at our earliest convenience.

We will be exhibiting at PCB West 2020

Posted on December 13, 2019 by Love FPC

Best Technology, a China- based assembly manufacturer will be exhibiting at PCB West 2020 in Santa Clara, CA at booth No. 514 on September 9, 2020(Western Time). Actually, we have participated in this exhibition for continuous 2 years. Here are some pictures for your reference. At Best Technology’s exhibition booth, attendees will be able to learn more about our company for PCB manufacturing and assembly technology.

At the exhibition booth

Celine is talking with customers

Marina is talking with customers

Coco is talking with customers

At the exhibition booth

For interested professionals, Best Technology had on hand experts to offer detailed insights and experience on PCB assembly, covering prototype and low/high-volume production. For more information on PCB assembly and fabrication, please visit Best Technology’s exhibition booth No.514 at PCB West 2020.

You will see 10mm to 1,500 mm flexible circuit board, from 2 layer rigid-flex circuit to 50 layers, 1/2 OZ copper to 3 OZ, 0.15mm extra thin FR4 PCB to 30 OZ heavy copper, turn-key service from components sourcing,board fabrication(FPC, PCB, MCPCB, Ceramic PCB) and final assembly with programming and testing.

You are warmly welcome to talk more to see how we manage the components wastage and efficiency to help save your time, money and energy.

About PCB West

SANTA CLARA, CA, PCB WEST 2020 PCB West is an annual event sponsored by major electronics manufacturing vendors and attended by electronics engineers, technicians, managers and more. PCB West is a marketing, product launching and career enhancement event that offers a 1-day exhibit and a 3-day conference. You will get more closely connection with new Technology in PCB field from PCB West.

Welcome to visit us at Booth 514 on September 9, 2020(Western Time).

What Materials Are at the Forefront of Wearable Technology?

Posted on December 11, 2019December 17, 2019 by Love FPC

If you were to go to your doctor’s office today for a routine physical, the first five minutes would involve getting your blood pressure taken, taking your pulse, and getting your temperature. In the future, wearable technology may allow you to upload all of this crucial data to your doctor instantly from the devices and sensors already woven into your clothing or even tattooed on your body.

Wearable technology is evolving at a breakneck speed, with the help of advances in flexible printed circuit boards. One of the biggest challenges researchers and manufacturers face when devising wearable technology is creating materials that can flex and stretch while also maintaining conductivity and connections with the different circuits.

FPC in the wearable

Developing just the right materials is a crucial piece in the future of wearable technology.

What Materials Work Best with Wearable Technology?

Wearable technology is a big category and includes everything from patches that can be layered onto skin to coats, shirts, and even sports bras. Each iteration of wearable technology offers unique challenges when finding the right materials.

Graphene

Graphene is a popular material choice, because it is an excellent conductor of electricity and also very flexible. Graphene offers an important alternative to wearables that rely on rigid components that can’t flex well. Researchers are actively experimenting with ways to blend graphene-based inks into cotton cloth.

Thermoplastics

Another option is the thermoplastic polyurethane, a highly adaptable plastic material. Already, a German company is using polyurethane to develop wearable skin patches that are breathable and hypoallergenic. Another thermoplastic polymere called polyethylene terephthalate (PET) offers excellent transparency, good flexibility, and is easy to fabricate.

Soft Silicones

The latest material innovations has been the development of soft silicone elastomers. Not only do these materials offer great flexibility, but they are prized for their ability to conform to a wide variety of shapes and textures. This puts them at the forefront of stretchable, wearable sensors. Some of the top soft silicone elastomers are: EcoFlex®, DragonSkin®, and Silbione®.

The field of wearable technology materials is advancing at breakneck speed. Here at Best Technology, we are keeping on top of these trends so that we can continue providing the most advanced flexible printed circuit boards to our customers.

flexible circuits

Queries to Ask When Choosing a Flex PCB Prototype Manufacturer

Posted on December 6, 2019December 6, 2019 by Love FPC

Most of today’s flex PCB manufacturing process begins with a prototype production. There are several advantages of building a working model of the flex circuit before attempting the mass production of these boards. Building a prototype not only helps to test the board’s function but also aids in improving it as per the requirement. Additionally, prototype creation helps in detecting errors at the earliest, and decide upon the final design and other specifications of the board. Since prototype creation plays such a decisive role, it must be executed by an experienced service provider. But, how to find an experienced service provider? Do not worry, you can evaluate the competencies of flex PCB prototype making by asking a few questions such as:

flexible pcb

1.How long have you been providing Flex PCB prototypes to the customers: Although the question seems basic, it helps to evaluate the total experience of the manufacturer. A PCB manufacturer with several years of experience will be certainly equipped and professional enough to understand your prototype requirements than a startup.

2.How long will you take to complete the prototype making from the order accepted date? Although the turnaround time varies as per the capabilities of the manufacturer, the manufacturer must be able to create Flex PCB Prototypes in 24 to 48 hours or within a week’s team. More than the said time frame is not usually acceptable when it comes to prototype creation.

3.What are the quality standards you implement to get the prototype right and functional? Again, standard and certification compliance varies across the industry. Since there are several international standards formulated to ensure the boards quality, you must know the quality standards followed by the chosen manufacturer.

flexible circuits

4.Do you own a well-equipped manufacturing facility to proceed with the approved prototypes for mass production? There are some PCB production manufacturers that are specifically functioning to meet the prototype demands of the customers, and not in mass production. Lack of cutting-edge production facilities, advanced equipment, and man power are amongst a few reasons why such production houses limit their service to only prototyping. Hence, you must ensure the extent of their service.

5.What methods do you use to assure quality? It is inevitable to have the same level of quality checks throughout every stage of the flex PCB prototypes production. Hence, while choosing a PCB production manufacturer, it is extremely significant to ensure that they are performing the inspection stringently utilizing the best of techniques such as visual inspection, X-ray inspection, and Automated Optical Inspection.

Flex PCB prototypes can be extremely helpful as they help both the manufacturers and customers to check the board against various parameters before the mass production. Best Technology, your best supplier of flex PCB prototyping services with consistent good quality. Contact us to get a free quote today.

Space Is Money – How Flex PCB Can Help You Save Big

Posted on November 26, 2019 by Love FPC

In the electronics industry, the name of the game is lighter and smaller. Consumers want sleek, beautifully designed computers and gadgets that still pack a big computing wallop. That is to say, for designers, at least, space is money.

If you can make your product smaller and less bulky than the competition, you will gain the market advantage. Flex printed circuits boards (aka flexible circuits or flexible pcb) are designed to give you all the space you need to create innovative new product designs.

Now let me talk about the trouble with Rigid Printed Circuit Boards

If you’ve ever had to work with rigid printed circuit boards before, you know how much of a nightmare they can be. You have to find space for them and work the rest of the components around them. Flex printed circuit boards give you back control over your design. Because they can flex, you can fit them into smaller spaces, which frees up space for more components, that can make your product more powerful, more efficient, or both. They fold, twist, and roll, making it easy to find a spot for them. This also gives you the opportunity to place other parts in a better order for the most efficient sub-assembly possible. Better part placement refers to less energy waste, a longer battery life, a more solid overall configuration, and a better operating product. It also means you have control over how you map out the inner workings of your product for optimum setup.

In the fierce electronics industry, even a slightly better assembly can put you ahead of your competition and turn your product into a bestseller, while they get left in the dust.

Flex PCBs also weigh less. Even shaving off a few ounces on your product could make a noticeable difference that will make it easier for your customers to use it, wear it, and carry it. The more they want to interact with your device, the more hooked they’ll become.

Want to learn more about flex PCBs? Just contact Best Technology. Do not hesitate any more. We can explain how they work and help you determine if adding them to your next product will save you space and money.

Introduction to A Flexible Circuit Coverlay

Posted on November 20, 2019 by Love FPC

During the flexible printed circuit board manufacturing process, a flex circuit coverlay (aka coverfilm) is used to encapsulate and protect the external circuitry of a flexible circuit board.
A flexible circuit coverlay serves the exact same function as solder mask that is used on a rigid printed circuit board. The difference with a flex coverlay is the needed element of flexibility and durability it provides to the flex PCB design.
The coverlay consists of a solid sheet of polyimide with a layer of flexible adhesive that is then laminated under heat and pressurized to the circuit surfaces. The required component feature openings are mechanically created using drilling, routing, or laser cutting.
Typical coverlay thickness is 0.001″ polyimide with 0.001″ of adhesive. Thicknesses of 0.0005″ & 0.002″ are available, but only used as needed to meet specific design requirements.
For more information visit our website to learn more about our flex & rigid-flex PCB manufacturing process!

The Future of Flexible Circuits

Posted on November 12, 2019 by Love FPC

As predicted by Best Technology Co.,Ltd., the market for flexible circuits is going to continue to expand steadily in the future, just as it has been doing for the past three decades. The reasons for this are not hard to find, as, on one hand, flexible circuits continue to support the existing technology so important to different industries, while on the other hand, advanced flexible circuits are able to comfortably meet the futuristic demands being made by up-coming industries, including the military, avionics, aerospace, telecommunication, consumer electronics, medical, and automotive.

One of the latest applications that flexible circuits have independently triggered as an explosion is the wearable electronics market. Wearing electronics on the body essentially calls for comfort, and flexible circuits guarantee this. Some examples of wearable electronic applications prevalent on the market are wrist-worn activity and body function monitors, foot-worn sensors, wearable baby monitors, medical sensors, pet monitors, and electronics on worn clothing. By bending and forming flexible circuits to suit the curve of the human body, the applications provide comfort for long wear and use.

Since establishment on June 28, 2006, Best Technology has been dedicated to being your best partner of flexible circuits solutions for our customers. We prefer to lose quantity rather than lose quality and with adhering to the company culture for so many years, more and more customers have been attracted by us. We are so grateful for what we have obtained so far and we will insist on providing the most satisfactory products and services for our customers. Welcome to Best Technology.