First article inspection (FAI) prior to SMT assembly [1] is a design verification methodology that provides a reported verification and validation of details of a product on the shopfloor per its manufacturing procedure and requirements. There are various ways to perform FAI, from both supplier’s and customer’s side, making it a very dynamic process. This means that each organization can tailor its FAI method to benefit itself and consequently, its customer, yet maintain rigid performance standards at the same time. FAI involves qualitative and quantitative measurement. FAI is also highly effective since it can potentially fulfill process validation requirements of ...
INTRODUCTION Solder pastes are amorphous putty-like soldering materials used to solder surface-mounted components to the Printed Circuit Board. [1] The effect of solder paste on the PCB’s structural and functional integrity is the paramount factor to consider when deciding on selection of solder paste for application. Many factors which contribute towards the strength of the solder joint and its conduction efficiency need to be addressed as well. This is not just a discussion on what measures and precautions to take during PCB assembly and reflow, but also to put into question what a PCB design [2] engineer should consider ...
One of the technologies that have allowed electronic products to shrink in size and provide increasingly higher performance is the ball grid array (BGA) IC package. The BGA allows higher density Printed Circuit Board [1] layouts because of simple geometry. The number of pins that can be accommodated on the perimeter of a quad pack increases linearly with package size. The number of connections that can be accommodated on a BGA increases with the square of the package size. BGA packages now routinely exceed 1000 connections, and the ball pitch has shrunk from 1.0 mm to .8 mm to a growing ...
The time from concept to prototype has accelerated remarkably in the past decade. 3D printed prototype components in a wide variety of materials are available in hours. Machined or sheet metal components are available from rapid prototype shops in only one or two days. Prototype Printed Circuit Board Fabrication [1] and assembly companies like PNC have followed this trend towards faster prototypes and can now provide complete assemblies in less time than ever before. PNC can fabricate and deliver a bare 10-12-layer PCB in just three days, and a simple double-sided board in just 24 hours. However, even with the streamlining ...
A metal core (MCPCB) is a PCB with an aluminum or copper sub straight laminated directly to the PCB. Metal core PCBs are becoming the go-to solution for small footprint, high power components such as ultra high brightness LEDs. The metal core in the PCB acts as integral heat dissipater, conducting heat away from components through the thermally conductive metal core to a remote heatsink. Although UHB LEDS applications are the most common use of MCPCBs, PNC has fabricated Metal Core PCBs for compact DC to DC converters, high power MOSFET and solid-state relay applications along side their standard ...