

Designing any PCB is a three-dimensional design process, but for a flex or rigid-flex design, the three-dimensional requirements are much more important. Mechanical Rigid-Flex Designĭesigning a flex or rigid-flex circuit is very much an electromechanical process. There are a number of layer stackup configurations that can be fabricated as rigid-flex, each with its own electrical, physical, and cost advantages. This distinction is important as it affects both the material selection and the construction methodology. Dynamic flexible circuits (also referred to as use B), are those that are designed for frequent flexing, such as a disk drive head, a printer head, or as part of the hinge in a laptop screen. Static flexible circuits (also referred to as use A), are those that undergo minimal flexing during assembly and service. It is popular today as it not only saves space and weight - making it ideal for portable devices such as mobile phones and tablets - it can also reduce packaging complexity, improve product reliability, and reduce cost.įlexible circuits are normally divided into two usage classes: static flexible circuits, and dynamic flexible circuits. Rigid-flex is the name given to a printed circuit that is a combination of both flexible circuit(s) and rigid circuit(s), as shown in the image.įlexible circuit technology was initially developed for the space program to save space and weight. 3D Movie Maker Support for Rigid-Flex DesignsĪs the name suggests, a flexible printed circuit is a pattern of conductors printed onto a flexible insulating film.Displaying and Folding a Rigid-Flex Design in 3D.Designing a Board with a Flex Region Inside a Cutout (Advanced mode).Designing a Flex-only PCB (Advanced mode).How Output is Generated for Coverlay Layers.Graphical Editing of a Coverlay Polygon.Defining Bends in the Flex Region (Advanced mode).
