Thursday 20 June 2013

Why To Use Professional PCB Design Services

By Linda Maynard


Many view electronics as little more than modern day witchcraft, as they can't actually see how things work. It can be confusing to the majority but where would modern day man be without electronics. So if you don't know a resistor from a capacitor, but still need electronics in your device it makes sense to use professional PCB design services.

Everywhere you look in modern life you can see electrical devices. The telephone that you hold in your hand, the computer that you use at work, even the checkout register at your local store when you buy your groceries. They all have one thing in common, they contain printed circuit boards.

For anyone who has ever opened up a device can not have failed to notice these printed circuit boards. The most common varieties will be either tan or green in appearance. There appears to be so many things stuck there, and this is where the bafflement starts.

To try and understand an electronic circuit in simplistic terms, maybe consider it as a very small electrical circuit. It follows the same basic rules, power enters a circuit, it does something, and then leaves, unless there is a break in the circuit. Think of the break like a light switch, when the switch is off the circuit is incomplete, and nothing happens. When you operate the switch the circuit is complete, and your light will illuminate.

It does look very confusing to the average person. Mainly because they don't recognise the components, or understand what they do. It also seems to be very small, and crammed in together.

The board is built up to an even thickness, by compressing layers of material. Closer inspection reveal metallic lines on one side. These only allow the current to flow along its designated path. The components populate the other side of the board, but their legs are fixed to the tracks. Under the components you might spot a plan inked in white.

This layout plan is a circuit that has been devised to carry out the operation that a customer wants. It also tells the engineer which device has to be placed where for the circuit to operate properly. They will also be working from a large paper schematic too, so the engineer will be checking off one against the other.

Once the arrangement has been thought out and laid down as a plan, it is time to actually build a working model. So the correct value of resistor is positioned in the correct location and soldered into position. This will carry on with the other components until the board is fully populated. Effectively this is now a full scale prototype, and can be used to ensure that it fits where it is meant to, also that it operates how the customer wishes.

It does make sense to use PCB design services. They are professional in their dealings with clients. They listen to what the client wants, and then produce a working example.




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