Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are the heart and soul of each electronic gadget. Designing PCBs requires meticulous planning and a method that will not fail. In the course of PCB prototyping, you’ll come across a variety of common and even reoccurring errors. Mistakes in circuit board design undermine the entire objective of the design and make the board resemble a scruffy chunk of metal with components soldered on it. If you can avoid making these blunders throughout the PCB manufacturing process, you’ll save time and effort later on when fixing the boards.
Lack of Proficiency in the Design Process
PCB designers must create intricate layouts in order to create devices that are both smaller and faster. PCB designers are being forced to employ smaller components because of the increased need for circuits with reduced footprints. Close proximity to each other is the norm. Choosing an inefficient layout technique increases the risk of connections going awry. When working with components that have a smaller pitch and more pins, it’s critical to use the right board layout method.
Extremely Tight Design of High Current-Carrying Traces
In order to handle currents greater than just a few milliamps, the high current carrying traces must be spread as far as possible. It’s important to understand that the outer layers can’t tolerate more current than the inner layers. Because of the increased airflow, the outer ones are better at dissipating heat. Trace width is therefore critical to avoid an explosion caused by overheating when designing.
Structural Damage
A common mistake in manufacturing is physical damage to the PCB. The best solution for reducing it is to guarantee that the PCB manufacturing process is handled carefully, preferably by robots. When a PCB is accidentally dropped, it is not uncommon for it to suffer structural damage as a result. The primary issue is that physical damage cannot be repaired, necessitating the replacement of the entire item.
An Inadequate Annular Ring
To create a via, holes are drilled through pads on both sides of a board and then plated to join them. As a result of the drill hole consuming a larger portion of the design’s pad size, it is possible for vias to fail. The DRC procedure frequently calls for a minimum diameter of the annular ring. Missed drill strikes on prototyping boards are a typical occurrence, so we’re bringing it up because of that.
Long High-Speed Traces
Signals traveling at high speeds should take the quickest and most direct route available. This includes routing any high-frequency crystals in most designs.
The majority of microcontroller-based solutions require only a small number of extremely fast signals. The trace path is critical for products with high-speed microprocessors and external data as well as address buses.
Minimizing Errors
The complete design of a PCB necessitates meticulous attention to detail and careful planning. The best way to ensure that the PCBs you require for your company are designed, arranged, and manufactured correctly is for you to outsource the work to an experienced PCB prototype provider. Remember that the top organization ensures that the manufacturing process is error-free and minimizes the flaws that are commonly observed in the process.
ChinaPCBOne Technology LTD. is the author of this article on PCB prototype. Find more information, about PCB manufacturing.
