You might not be, unless youre applying the pcb layout design rules we share. This is one of many important 2 layer pcb design rules. Automating interlayer indesign checks in rigidflex pcbs. Meeting flex and flexrigid design challenges mentor. Learn about the specific design guidelines, materials and uses that you should. As flexible pcb fabrication technology has matured in response to demands for smaller, lighter products, new design challenges have emerged. The all flex design guide is a significant tool that you will find very helpful in designing a highly reliable flexible circuit optimized for all flex manufacturability. We would be pleased to help you in delivery panel design for rigid flex solutions. The top pcb layout design rules for rigidflex pcbs tempo. The standard layer buildups for rigidflex circuit boards are as follows.
The rigid flex valu build program offers the lowest overall material costs for rigid flex design, while also providing a very safe starting point for designers who are new to rigid flex design. Rigid flex circuits have been used in the military and aerospace industries for more than 20 years. This ebook discusses common flex design issues and how to catch them. This rigidflex guide book, and the new design capabilities within altium designers pcb editor for rigidflex design, reflect a commitment to that openness. The course was written by john michael pierobon, who has an advanced engineering degree from purdue university. Flex pcb design has many advantages, but with these come new design challenges that werent present in standard 2d pcbs. Below you will find the minimum data information requirements needed to place your flex or rigid flex circuit board order. Similarly to hardboard layouts, a rigid flex fabrication package will include gerber layers, along with drill files, solder mask layers, nomenclature, perimeterrout files, coverlayer, etc. Rigidflex circuits a guide book for designers 6 flexcircuit materials. Rigidflex pcb is a circuit board that has both rigid circuit section and flex circuit. Advanced flex and rigidflex design support reason 1 of 10 cadence allegro rigidflex overview on. Flexible circuits provide four major benefits over rigid pc boards. However, if you choose the rigid flex option, then it is up to you to select which layer to be the flex one in your design layer stackup. Rigid flex circuits, rigid flex circuit boards flexible circuit.
As a result, designers have to do many more manual checks in order to benefit from the advantages of this technologyand to ensure that their designs can be fabricated according to their intent. The purpose of this webpage is to describe the minimum data and information required to generate the tooling for your order. The differences between rigid, flex, and rigidflex. The circuits must then use additional films usually pi or pet, sometimes flexible solder mask ink for coverlay. Rigid flex pcb design guidelines candor industries. Top 5 pcb design guidelines every pcb designer needs.
Rigid flex circuit designs could entail any of the following. As its name suggests, the rigidflex pcb is a hybrid of both rigid and flex pcbs, and features the great qualities of both while eliminating many of their. John michael has taught hundreds of technical courses throughout the. Designers in rigid flex applications start with rigid flex because it is the only method of achieving their product goals. Keeping in mind that it is advised to have the flex layer in the middle, when that is applicable. In fact, the global market for flex rigid flex boards more than doubled in the past 4 years alone. An example might be a flex cable from a rigid board that will attach to a connector on a second pcb. Mar 19, 2014 rigid flex uses stiff and flexible materials to create the circuitry needed for a product. Whether youre designing a pure flex circuit, flex cable, or rigidflex combination there may be requirements for certain areas of the design for rigid backing.
Freeform integration of electronic elements through all three dimensions of space is. Plated throughholes extend between the flexible and rigid sections and electrically connect multiple conductor layers. I am guessing the stiffener or rigid section would be defined by the dimension layer. Learning advanced flex and rigidflex design support in. An introduction to rigidflex pcb design best practices. We go where others willflexible circuit not and heater. Flexible design options at flexible circuit technologies, we pride ourselves on taking on the most complex of design challenges. Successful flex circuit design guidelines green circuits. Basic designs of flex rigid printed circuit boards by markus wille, ruwel. The printed circuit designers guide toflex and rigidflex fundamentals american standard circuits new ebook the printed circuit designers guide toflex and rigidflex fundamentals is a must have desk reference for any pcb designer, oemodm, contract manufacturer and pcb fabricator.
Flex and rigidflex fundamentals, the new book on flexrigidflex printed circuit boards by american standard circuits is a must have desk reference for any pcb designer, oemodm, contract manufacturer and pcb fabricator. Practical design guidelines for flex chapter 5 introduction flexible circuits are obviously unique among electronic packaging technologies in that they o. The main difference is that the certain regions of the rigid layers will be blank in the design file. Test out our design team with simple singlesided board to your most complex multilayer flex circuits. Early in the rigid flex pcb design process, its essential to give ample.
Rigid flex printed circuit boards are boards using a combination of flexible and rigid board technologies in an application. As a first step, rigidflex designs require closer collaboration between the designer and fabricator than traditional boardandcable designs. Figure 524 patent drawings of a novel high density flexible circuit based connector. Book binder rigidflex technology is a special rigidflex design where the outer flex layers are increased in length, compared with the inner. Without the right knowledge to design a rigid flex pcb however, these boards could prove to be a challenge. So its wise to first understand how flex circuits and rigidflex boards are actually made. This rigidflex guide book, and the new design capabilities within altium. Even though, the above mentioned tips rules seem basic, they help producing. Meeting flex and flexrigid design challenges mentor graphics. Jun 22, 2018 flexible pcbs flex rigid flex make it possible to create a variety of products that require small form factors and light weight, such as wearable, mobile, military, and medical devices.
The constructions are put together to help you get the lowest possible cost, while the design rules have been optimized to give you the best possible yield in volume. Staggered length circuits bookbinder construction for ease of. An accurate definition of rigidflexrigid design can also be passed on to mcad systems using idx data exchange, eliminating unnecessary mcadecad iterations. I am designing a rigid flex that uses a hirose df172. Flexible pcbs flex rigidflex make it possible to create a variety of products that require small form factors and light weight, such as wearable, mobile, military, and medical devices. Image courtesy to wurth elektronik flexrigid design guide. Design rule checks, the fab usually has to call the designer or engineer to clarify. Altium designer rigid flex guidebook for pcb design.
Rigidflex pcb design best practicesdownloadjaapson blog. There are basically different ways to create a system. That is why we have our rigid flex pcb design guidelines to break down the steps of creating a rigid flex pcb and what it all entails. Flexible pcbs flexrigidflex make it possible to create a variety of products that require small form factors and light weight, such as wearable, mobile, military, and medical devices. To learn more about how to incorporate rigidflex into your design, download with free design guide. For ease of flexing multilayer and rigid flex designs, the use of staggered length design. Are you maximizing your rigidflex pcba board development. John michael has taught hundreds of technical courses throughout the world, and speaks several languages fluently. Iconnect007 the printed circuit designers guide to. By allowing vias to basically connect to any possible layer, designs can have a smaller footprint by utilizing extra space in in the inner layers of a multilayer pcb. If your component placement forces horizontal trace routing on one side of the board, then always route traces vertically on the opposite side.
This rigidflex guide book, and the new design capabilities within altium designer s pcb editor for rigidflex design, reflect a commitment to that openness. Business business, international computers and office automation circuit printing printed circuit boards printed circuits. Rigid flex pcb design guidelines engineering technical pcbway. We have put together a set of rigid flex constructions and design rules to help you get the most value out of your first rigid flex project. Foreword sierra protoexpress amit bahl sierra protoexpress december 20 the past year or two have been very challenging in the printed circuit board industry. The slide show below represents the artwork levels of an 8 layer rigid flex.
The experienced green circuits team of pcb engineers devised these layout guidelines for each rigidflex circuit project our team undertakes. Rigidflex pcb design guidelinesdownloadjaapson blog and. Variations from these defaults are of course also possible, please contact us. We go where others willflexible circuit not and heater design guide. Automating interlayer in design checks in rigid flex pcbs by ed hickey, product engineering director, cadence flexible pcbs flex rigid flex make it possible to create a variety of products that require small form factors and light weight, such as wearable, mobile, military, and medical devices. An accurate definition of rigid flex rigid design can also be passed on to mcad systems using idx data exchange, eliminating unnecessary mcadecad iterations. Rigid flex pcb san francisco circuits rigidflex circuits. There are some standard guidelines to be considered when designing and manufacturing rigid flex circuit boards. In its most typical configuration, the rigidflex is a series of rigid pcbs. And from there, we can find a clear path to discover the best practices for rigidflex pcb design. Fabrication basic designs of flexrigid printed circuit boards.
Rigidflex pcb design solves wearable medical device. When it comes to designing rigidflex, the approach is the same way as the other circuit boards. Printed circuit board design rules and pcb layout guidelines become more complex as the number of layers in your stackup increases. They may often prototype as a rigid design for proof of concept, but later create rigid flex versions for production. Today, however, flex and flexrigid designs are becoming more and more complex so its vital that modern design tools. Rigid flex design is even more complicated than flex design because each layer is partially outlined before it is laminated into a multilayer panel, and there are many added outline tools and routing programs to be designed, compared with ordinary pcbs or flex circuits. Learn more about rigidflex and pcb design tools at. Please keep in mind the following design rules for your flex or rigidflex circuit boards for designers of flexible circuit boards we recommend the ipc2223 guideline design guidelines for flexible circuit boards, which is available from the ipc online store or in german, from the fed website. Rigid areas provide excellent hard mount points for.
Our team of experienced engineers and designers help small to large businesses solve their flex and rigid flex pcb design and technical challenges. If you would like to get a quick estimate on how much your rigid flex design might cost, try our rigid flex cost estimator. The standard layer buildups for rigid flex circuit boards are as follows. Decide on the manufacturing processes and materials in advance, based on how much flex is needed. To ensure correctbyconstruction design, designers need indesign interlayer. Common flex circuit material stackup below you will find some examples of common material stackups for flex and rigid flex circuit board construction. Top pcb design guidelines for pcb designers pcb design. Great for measuring curved seams and designing curved quilt border patterns. Rigidflex is built just like all rigid and flex boards with the method of layers stacked on top of layers.
The technical information details our standard manufacturing capabilities but note, we also consider various flex designs. Ensuring reliable products with new rigidflex design rules. Rigidflex, like altium rigid flex, can have many benefits, and many designers are at least considering it today who previously did not have to. In this example, the display components are mounted directly on the flex circuit with a stiffener and require new design rules.
Rigid flex circuits can be designed to meet highly complex and unimaginable configurations while utilizing a rigid substrate. Only one set of drawings is needed and only one article is purchased and kept in stock. Flexrigidflex while most of todays electronic devices are flexible, efficient, and lightweight, have also have another thing in common each includes at least one flexible printed circuit board. Broadly speaking, a rigid flex design will closely resemble a hardboard design, with the flexible layers fully extending into the rigid areas of the board. Designing flexible circuits is sponsored by all flex. Rigid flex design suggestions flexible printed circuits.
Design, fabrication and assembly book by dr r s khandpur. The following golden rules for the project aim for successful production and eliminating preventable respins. Quotegenerated cost comparison of rigidflex design versus rigidcablerigid pcb assembly. Rigid flex circuits, rigid flex circuit boards flexible. In design rules coupled with this enhanced definition ensure that the design is correct by construction.
As suggested earlier, any successful rigidflex design requires that the design team work closely with the fabricator. The tradeoffs required to produce a successful rigidflex design translate to a set of design rules the designer can develop with the fabricators input. We would be happy to provide you with indepth consultation to determine the optimum solution. Rigid flex pcbs drive additional rules when the flex circuit is folded or bent inside an enclosure.
More pcb designers are facing higher pressures to build ever more densely populated electronics, and with that comes additional pressure to reduce costs and time in manufacturing. Rigidflex pcb design solves wearable medical device challenges. Common flex and rigidflex printed circuit board material. Documents for manufacturing flex rigid circuit boards basically, standards must be regarded such as ipc2223, ipc60, the basic design guide from wurth elektronik, as well as variantspecific design rules and our drying recommendations.
With the differences between rigid and flexible pcbs in mind, we will now compare these pcb types with their hybrid counterpart, the rigidflex pcb. Features a common design guideline for a rigid flex pcb is the four layer process. Pcb designers working with flex or flexrigid technology face many challenges, every one of which has the potential to derail a project and cause costly design failures. Applications which go beyond our standard design rules require technical clarification with our product management. Rigidflex pcbs design guidelines by rigiflex technology. More designers are considering flex and rigid flex combinations as a total solution approach. Pi and pet films, as well as thin flexibleepoxyandglassfibre cores, form common substrates for flex circuits. Multiple pcbs connected with cabling which used to be the normal design are now constructed into one threedimensional pcb body. If you are looking for more information about flex circuit construction methods, we recommend seeing our technical article on the latest material and construction methods provide the highest. A 14 width with drawing lip for marking accurate lines and quilt seam allowances. Use the subscriptions box at the top of this page to subscribe to this pcb design blog to get updates. Altiums guidebooks provide indepth insights and education for pcb design. American standard now offers book binder rigidflex printed. Four layers are rigid layers and four are flexible.
Rigid flex circuits medical, aerospace and military. One such example was a project completed at fluke corp. Typical rules for compound designs mechanical constraints. The following guidelines can act as a checklist to produce rigid flex circuit board without any design and manufacturing defect. The vast majority of pcbs in the world today are basically rigid plates to connect circuitry. From there we can look at the design issues imposed by the materials used, and the fabrication processes employed by most rigidflex pcb manufacturers. This e book discusses common flex design issues and how to catch them. Flexible circuit designs share many of the same challenges as rigid pcb designs, but there are. Indesign rules coupled with this enhanced definition ensure that the design is correct by construction. The design engineer prepares only one layout including the interconnections.
We follow these rules in our rigidflex fabrication process. November 10, 2017 by nick davis learn about rigid pcbs vs. As the name suggests, the rigidflex circuit boards offer both flexibility and rigidity, which are important requirements in several applications. We take steps to insulate the rolled copper cladding used for the flex layers of a rigidflex pcb. For example, in the circuit below, you will see 2 rigid copper layers on the top and bottom outside, and 4 flex copper internal layers. Circuits designed primarily as flex circuits have great opportunities to increase your design capabilities when integrated rigid areas are added. By mark forbes, director of marketing content with altium october 12, 2016.
Rigid flex circuits are characterized by having conductors on both the flexible and rigid layers of the circuit. Simplify the process of creating complex rigidflex designs with pads. To deal with these challenges and drive project success, designers have had to rely on their individual skill and experience, as traditional pcb design tools dont provide much help in avoiding flexrigid pitfalls. State of the art design of rigidflex substrates, a manufacturer.
We would be pleased to help you in delivery panel design for rigidflex solutions. Fabrication basic designs of flexrigid printed circuit. Most rigid flex boards consist of multiple layers of flexible circuit substrates attached to one or more rigid boards externally andor internally, depending upon the design of the application. In fact, the global market for flexrigidflex boards more than doubled in the past 4 years alone. Advantages of using flexible circuit boards over the usual rigid types include. Use updown arrow keys to increase or decrease volume. A blend of rigid and flex emphasizing the best of both constructions, adding synergistic capabilities neither possess alone. Many other authors have great books and resources on rigid flex design as well. In most rigid flex circuit boards, the circuitry consists of multiple flexible circuit inner layers selectively attached together using an epoxy prepreg bonding film, similar to a multilayer flexible circuit. However, my new project requires of a rigidflex design. Along with those benefits come new design challenges that. Flex design rule is a vinyl covered 20 lead flexible design curve that is easily positioned for designing and drafting different shapes. It is highly recommended to do a balanced construction.
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