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I recently spoke with Bert Horner of the Test Connection Inc., about the current state of flex and rigid-flex assembly testing. He explained some of the differences between testing flex and rigid PCBs, the requirements for testing specialties such as high-voltage flex, and the added demands of handling flexible circuits.
Do you consider yourself to be a creative person? Do you use creativity in your day-to-day work activities? In the early days of my career in the PCB industry, I prided myself on my analytical skills. The ability to reason, analyze, problem solve, plan and organize was something I was proud of. I still am. I also have a creative side and in my spare time, I used to put that creativity to use creating home décor. In those days of frilly bows, ribbons and plastic flower arrangements, I could yield a glue gun with the best of them.
It is axiomatic that bending and folding are fundamental to flexible circuits. Reality is that most flex circuit applications are ones where the circuit is made to conform to the confines of the package that contains it to meet product design objectives. This is a matter that is often glossed over but it is often very important to get the flex circuit to take on a reasonably permanent shape to facilitate its installation into a housing.
I recently reflected upon the notion that this year marks my 50th year in the printed circuit industry. It was a bit of a shock when I looked at the calendar and realized that I have been kicking around this industry for a half-century. I was fortunate enough to find my way into the PCB industry through the analytical lab of a PCB company in Mountain View, California in the early days of Silicon Valley. The name of the company was Printex and it was one of the premier PCB fabricators in the United States.
I recently spoke with Jamin Taylor, vice president of sales and marketing at All Flex Flexible Circuits in Minnesota. We discussed the company’s recent merger with Printed Circuits Inc., and some creative new flex applications, including flexible heaters and catheters for the medical field. As Jamin explains, "It’s always interesting to see different technologies amongst different companies. We’re working on a few new applications and products, like being able to do some fine lines and flex materials, but with large format, a longer format than usual. Some of their capabilities with lasering and fine features really help with our long flex capability; when we merge the two, we see a new market being created for that technology."
