PCB or Printed Circuit Board is quite common these days. It is used for a number of reasons and in different fields like medical devices, lighting, industrial machinery, and more. However, before purchasing one from a PCB manufacturing company, one should be aware of the types available in the market. Knowing about these will help in understanding which can be ideally used for a product. So, without any delay take a look at the type of PCBs that are there for people to use!
- Single Layered
This is one of the easiest to design as it has components and circuits soldered on just one side. It generally means that it is available at a reasonable rate, especially if anyone orders it in high volume. High volume and low-cost model means these are used for standard PCB assembly on applications such as cameras, calculators, stereo equipment, printers, SSD, etc.
- Double layered
Double-sided or double-layered PCBs consist of base material where conductive metal of thin layer is present on both sides. By drilling holes through a board, circuits can be connected from one side to another.
The components and circuits of these types of boards are connected in either of two techniques; one is through-hole and second is using a surface mount. Through-hole generally means small wires which are called leads are fed through it. Then, it is soldered to the correct component.
In surface-mount option, leads are directly soldered to board. It means that these boards are utilised as wiring surface of different components. These are bought from a PCB manufacturing company for intermediate circuit complexity level like power supplies, industrial controls, HVAC systems, automotive dashboards, LED lighting, amplifiers, etc.
- Multi-layer option
Multiple layered ones contain three series or more PCBs of double layer. Such boards are stuck together with specialised industrial glue and put between insulation pieces which ensure excess heat will not melt any component. These come in different sizes; from just 4 layers which are small to large ones such as twelve.
These are basically used in PCB assembly of medical equipment, satellite systems, data storage, file servers, GPS technology, weather analysis, etc.
- Flexible PCBs
These are made using materials that are flexible like plastic. It comes in double, single, and multi-layer formats. Since these are printed on flexible material, it generally costs more due to fabrication.
Flexible ones are ideal for using in areas where environmental hazards are of great concern. Hence, these are built utilising materials which are shockproof, waterproof, corrosion-resistant, etc.
- Rigid PCBs
These are made from hard substrate item/material which prevents board from getting twisted. Computers’ motherboards are an ideal example of such a rigid PCB. These PCBs manufacturers consist of the highest number in the market. Like the flexible one, this is also available in different formats of single, double, or multi-layer.
These are some of the standard PCB types that one can purchase from a PCB manufacturing organization. Depending on the usage, individuals can opt for single, double, multi, or any other types of PCBs which will be suited best for the work.
ChinaPCBOne Technology LTD. is the author of this article on PCB assembly. Find more information, about PCB.
