PCB News - Why should the circuit board factory reserve the process side for the production of PCB boards?​

Why should the circuit board factory reserve the process side for the production of PCB boards?

The PCB process edge is also called the working edge, which is a long blank board edge set to reserve track transmission positions and place imposition Mark points during SMT processing. The width of the process side is generally about 5-8mm.

In the PCB board production process of the circuit board factory, the reservation of the process edge is of great significance for the subsequent SMT chip processing. The process side is the part added on both sides or four sides of the PCB board to assist SMT patch, DIP plug-in, and soldering. It is mainly used to assist PCBA production and processing. It is not part of the PCB board. The circuit board factory manufactures and produces in PCBA. It can be removed after completion.

Because the process side will consume more PCB boards and increase the overall cost of the PCB board, it is necessary to balance economy and manufacturability when designing the PCB process side. For some special-shaped PCB boards, the original PCB board with 2 process edges or 4 process edges can be greatly simplified through the method of splicing. In SMT patch processing, when designing the splicing method, it is necessary to fully consider the track width of the SMT placement machine. For splicing boards with a width of more than 350mm, be sure to communicate with the process engineer of the SMT placement machine supplier.

The main purpose of reserving the process side is because the SMT placement machine track is used to clamp the PCB board and flow through the placement machine, so the electronic components that are too close to the track side are sucked and pasted by the SMT placement machine nozzle. When it is installed on the PCB, it is prone to collisions and cannot complete the production process. Therefore, a certain process edge must be reserved with a width of about 5mm. Similarly, the reserved process edge is also suitable for some plug-in components to prevent similar phenomena from occurring during wave soldering.

The flatness of the PCB process edge is also an important part of the PCB production of the circuit board factory that needs to be controlled. When removing the PCB production process edge, the circuit board factory needs to ensure that the process edge is flat, especially for PCB boards that require high assembly accuracy. Any uneven burrs will cause the mounting hole position to shift, which will be processed for subsequent PCBA assembly. Bring great trouble.