Phone:086 13823387338
FPC (Flexible Printed Circuit) refers to the flexible printed circuit board, simply called the flexible board. It is a printed circuit board with high reliability and excellent flexibility made of polyimide or polyester film as the base material. It features high wiring density, light weight, and thin thickness, and is mainly applied in many products such as mobile phones, notebook computers, PDAs, digital cameras, and LCMs.
High bendability: It can be freely bent, wound, and folded. It can be arranged arbitrarily according to the requirements of the spatial layout, and can move and stretch freely in three – dimensional space, realizing the integration of component assembly and wire connection.
Small size and light weight: The use of FPC can greatly reduce the volume and weight of electronic products, meeting the requirements of electronic products for development towards high density, miniaturization, and high reliability. It is widely used in fields such as aerospace, military, and mobile communication.
Good heat dissipation and solderability: It has excellent heat dissipation performance and solderability, is easy to assemble and connect, and has relatively low overall costs. The design of combining rigid and flexible materials compensates for the slight deficiency of the flexible substrate in component bearing capacity.
High initial cost: As it is designed and manufactured for special applications, the initial costs for circuit design, wiring, and photographic negatives are relatively high. It is generally not recommended for small – scale applications.
Difficult to change and repair: If changes are needed after production, it has to start from the base map or the photoplotting program. There is a protective film on the surface, so it is quite difficult to remove and restore it before and after the repair.
Size limitations: In the case of non – popularization, it is usually manufactured by the batch process. Limited by the size of production equipment, it cannot be made very long and wide.
Easily damaged: Improper operation by assembly and connection personnel can easily cause damage. Soldering and rework should be carried out by trained personnel.
Design stage: According to the product requirements and functional requirements, use professional circuit design software to carry out the circuit layout design.
Material Selection: Select appropriate base materials, conductive materials, insulating materials, etc. according to the design requirements. Commonly used base materials include polyester film (PET), polyimide (PI), etc.
Film production: Convert the designed circuit pattern into a film for the subsequent exposure process.
Make a photolithography plate: Convert the film into a photolithography plate for exposure on the substrate.
Exposure and Development: Place the photomask on the substrate coated with photoresist. Transfer the circuit pattern onto the substrate through ultraviolet exposure and development.
Etching: Use a chemical etching solution to etch away the metal parts that are not protected by the photoresist, thus forming a circuit pattern.
Film removal: Remove the photoresist and the unwanted metal layer.
Inspection and Testing: Conduct quality inspections and performance tests on the fabricated FPC circuit boards to ensure they meet the design requirements.
During the design process, fully consider the environmental conditions and mechanical stresses of actual applications to ensure stability and reliability.
Select appropriate materials to ensure the properties of the circuit board such as temperature resistance, moisture resistance, and chemical corrosion resistance.
Strictly control the process parameters during the production process to avoid quality problems such as wire breakage and short circuits.
Conduct strict quality inspections and performance tests on the fabricated circuit boards to ensure that each one meets the design requirements.
With its unique flexibility and high reliability, FPC circuit boards show great potential in multiple fields. Especially in the fields of wearable devices, medical electronics, automotive electronics, etc., they will become an important part of future electronic products. In addition, they are also widely used in the fields of electronic products such as industrial control, communication devices, computer peripherals, and household appliances.
The flexible printed circuit (FPC) industry first emerged in Japan around 2002. In 2006, the competition became fierce, with supply exceeding demand. Profits and gross profit margins declined, and many enterprises faced operational difficulties, with a large number of small factories closing down. However, it began to recover in early 2008. With technological progress and the diversification of consumers’ demands for electronic products, its application prospects are broad. Meanwhile, the development and improvement of proofing technology will reduce production costs, improve production efficiency, and promote its application in more fields.
