Design Guidelines for Flex PCB Panels on JLCPCB
2 min
- Requirements for Flex PCB Panels on JLCPCB are:
When you place orders for flexible PCBs on JLCPCB, there are some things that need to be noted. FPC panels are designed differently from rigid PCB panels which use mouse bites or V-cuts.
Requirements for Flex PCB Panels on JLCPCB are:
- 2 mm internal board spacing, preferably 3 mm when metal stiffeners are used
- 5 mm panel borders on all sides. Copper should be present throughout the borders except 1 mm clearance around fiducials and 0.5 mm around tooling holes.
- SMT fiducials should be 1 mm diameter and tooling holes 2 mm diameter. Fiducials should be 3.85 mm from centre to the panel edge. One fiducial and tooling hole should be placed in each corner of the panel, offsetting those in one corner by at least 5 mm to indicate orientation.
- Connecting tabs should be 0.7 to 1.0 mm wide.
- The overall panel size should be between 234 × 490 mm and 70 × 70 mm.
- For panels undergoing SMT assembly, add one fiducial next to each FPC unit. The board fabricator will indicate defective units to not be populated by painting over its fiducial.
FPCs with metal stiffeners: 0.8 mm slots around stiffener required for laser cutting; at least 3 mm spacing between boards.
To achieve optimal performance for your flexible PCB design, it is essential to use quality materials for PCB manufacturing. JLCPCB collaborates with leading raw material suppliers worldwide to provide top-notch, authentic A-grade boards for various PCB applications. Additionally, JLCPCB has five self-owned intelligent production bases that allow for economies of scale, resulting in reduced production costs so that be able to give back profits to customers as much as possible, letting prices no longer be an obstacle to hardware innovation. Moreover, JLCPCB offers new users up to $54 sign-up coupons. Click here to sign up on the website, upload your Gerber files, and begin ordering high-quality flex PCBs all at once!
Keep Learning
Choosing the Right Bend Radius for Durable Flexible PCBs
Key Takeaways Mastering the bend radius is essential for reliable flexible PCB design. Following IPC-2223 guidelines, maintain a minimum of 6× total thickness for static bends and 100× for dynamic applications, while using thinner RA copper, adhesiveless polyimide, staggered traces, and cross-hatched patterns in flex zones. Proper material selection, layer stackup optimization, and adequate clearance from stiffeners can dramatically extend flex life and prevent premature trace cracking or delamination......
Exploring Flexible PCB: Applications and Design Considerations
Key Takeaways Flexible PCBs (flex circuits) are revolutionizing modern electronics with their superior flexibility, lightweight design, and space-saving capabilities. From wearable devices and automotive systems to aerospace applications and foldable consumer electronics, they enable innovative form factors that rigid boards cannot achieve. Successful flexible PCB design hinges on critical factors including proper bend radius, optimized trace/space width, strategic component placement with stiffeners,......
Flexibility and Reliability: Exploring the World of Flexible PCB
Key Takeaways Flexible PCBs deliver unmatched flexibility and reliability, making them essential for modern compact and dynamic electronic designs. With high-performance polyimide substrates, 1-4 layer configurations, ultra-thin 25μm options, and precision 2/2mil traces, JLCPCB’s Flexible PCBs excel in space-saving, weight reduction, and repeated bending applications across consumer electronics, medical devices, wearables, automotive, and aerospace industries. Whether choosing pure flex or rigid-flex ......
Rigid PCB vs. Flexible PCB: Making the Right Choice
Key Takeaways Rigid PCB vs Flexible PCB: Making the Right Choice lies in understanding their fundamental differences — Rigid PCBs offer superior mechanical stability, cost-effectiveness, and multi-layer capability (up to 20+ layers at JLCPCB), making them ideal for traditional electronics, while Flexible PCBs excel in space-constrained, dynamic, and 3D applications with their polyimide-based bendability (1-4 layers) and critical design rules like minimum bending radius and stiffener placement. By care......
How Flex Coverlay Protects and Enhances Flexible PCB Durability
Key Takeaways Flex coverlay is a durable polyimide film layer applied over copper traces on flexible PCBs, acting as the flexible version of solder mask. It protects traces from oxidation, moisture, abrasion, chemicals, and short circuits while enduring over 200,000 bend cycles without cracking. Compared to standard solder mask, coverlay offers superior insulation, hermetic sealing, and long-term reliability for dynamic flex applications such as wearables, smartphones, automotive, and medical devices.......
Innovative Applications of Transparent Circuit Boards
Transparent PCB boards have a wide range of applications in modern electronic devices. Due to their unique appearance, transparent printed circuit boards are increasingly popular in consumer electronics. The application includes: smartphones, wearables, and high-end home appliances. Transparent printed circuit boards not only enhance product aesthetics but also make internal circuits visible. Which makes the inspection and maintenance process easy. Moreover, transparent printed circuit boards play a s......