If you’ve ever heard the term “PCB jungle,” you know that designing and manufacturing integrated circuit devices can be complex and stressful. That is especially true when your design calls for two or more devices in the same package. In fact, it is so challenging that an entire industry has been built around simplifying the process of designing dual-inline packages (DIPs). So what is a DIP? It is a chip packaging structure consisting of two or more integrated circuit chips mounted one on top of another with their leads facing outward.
The opposite end of each DIP package has a small hole that allows electrical connections between its internal circuitry. DIPs have become popular as they allow designers to quickly prototype and test new designs without having to go through the arduous process of creating and selling discrete PCBs. This article will discuss some important design tips for DIP Assembly so that you can save time, money, and frustration while designing these types of integrated circuit packages.
What is a PCB?
What's in this article...
A printed circuit board (PCB) is a flat, flexible sheet of material onto which circuitry has been printed. Electronics circuits are patterned onto a PCB using a variety of manufacturing processes. The board is then cut out to create individual circuit boards. PCBs are used mainly in engineering and manufacturing industries to make products such as telecommunication networks, computers, audio and video equipment, electric motors, and satellite dishes. Electronic equipment that requires more advanced wiring is more likely to use PCB. For example, computer motherboard boards are much more advanced than an audio or video equipment PCB.
Don’t reinvent the wheel
If you’re designing a DIP, you’ll want to take advantage of some of the design benefits of DIPs. This includes forming straight-line electrical connections between the internal circuitry of the DIP and the external pins. You can save time and money by not having to create and test a PCB design from scratch.
In fact, there are already PCB manufacturers who have made DIP-to-DIP PCB adapters that can help you to easily integrate your designs into a PCB. However, in order to take advantage of the benefits of a DIP, you need to first understand some of the design considerations of DIPs. These include:
The PCB height – Because of the small size of DIP boards, their height is limited to 8 cm or less. Therefore, designers need to account for less vertical PCB space on the board.
The PCB depth – The depth of a DIP PCB is set at 6 mm. Therefore, it is crucial that the PCB’s horizontal and vertical dimensions are equal. – The PCB footprint – The PCB footprint is the area of the circuit board that is used to create the printed circuit. Because of their small size, DIPs have a very specific PCB footprint of 7.5 x 6 mm. It is important that the PCB footprint is not too large because it could lead to a weak signal transmission.
Know your design limitations
As with most engineering projects, you should first create a prototype PCB design to test the design and ensure it is functional. However, it is important to understand the limitations of your prototype PCB design before you move on to the design of an actual PCB.
For example, a PCB design that works fine in a test environment may not work well in an actual PCB due to differences in design and PCB manufacturing. While you may be tempted to quickly create a prototype PCB as you move through your PCB design process, you should instead take the time to consider the following design limitations:
PC board height limitations – The height of a PCB is limited by the height of the circuit board itself. Therefore, if you have a design with a tall circuit, it will have a short PCB height.
PC board depth limitations – The depth of a PCB is limited by the width of the board. If a PCB design has a tall circuit, it will have a short PCB depth.
PCB footprint limitations – The footprint of a PCB is limited by the size of the PCB material. Therefore, if you want to fit a tall circuit, the PCB footprint will be small.
Consider surface mount technology
Surface mount technology (SMT) is a PCB fabrication process that uses a chip carrier to hold integrated circuits (ICs) on a PCB. In contrast, Through hull (THT) is a PCB fabrication process where a circuit board is created by creating a pattern on a copper sheet that is then pressed into a PCB shape. The advantages of SMT over THT include the following:
Higher Throughput – The throughput of SMT is much higher than THT. Therefore, it is ideal for high-volume production.
Better Price Performance – Compared to THT, there is less cost for the same production rate with SMT.
Better Scrap Removal – THT is a scrap-creation process. Therefore, there are high scrap costs.
Better Designation – There is no need for the complicated PCB marking process with SMT.
Better Reliability – SMT is much more dependable than THT.
PCB Assembly and Manufacturing tips
There are many factors that go into PCB assembly and manufacturing, including:
The PCB inspection process – It is crucial that the PCB inspection process is done correctly to ensure that the design is not flawed.
PCB material – The PCB material has a significant impact on the design and the assembly process. Therefore, it is important to select the right PCB material.
PCB cutting and drilling – Due to the small size of the features on a PCB, the PCB cutting and drilling process needs to be done accurately to ensure that the desired circuit pattern is formed.
Conclusion
The PCB industry has evolved significantly over the last two decades. Modern PCBs are designed using a wide range of advanced technologies, such as surface mount technology (SMT), high-density interposers (HDIs), and low-cost component-based designs. These advanced technologies and manufacturing processes have greatly simplified the design and assembly process of PCBs. As the popularity of DIP designs has grown, the industry has responded by developing DIP-to-DIP adapters that can help designers integrate their designs into a PCB for testing and production purposes. These adapters have greatly simplified the process of designing DIPs, which is why DIPs are such a popular PCB packaging technology.
