Patent Application
20130319730
This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2012-0058090 filed on May 31, 2012 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Technical Field
Example embodiments of the present invention relate in general to a printed circuit board (PCB) and a manufacturing method thereof, and more specifically, to a fabric-type multilayer PCB and a manufacturing method thereof.
2. Related Art
With recent advancements in the electronic industry, electronic products are becoming miniaturized, thin, and highly densified. In PCBs on which electronic parts included in electronic products are mounted, in order to increase reliability and design density, the structure of a circuit pattern in each layer has a tendency to change into a complicated multilayer structure.
With recent advancements in computing technology, a ubiquitous computing concept is established, and efforts are being made to establish a computing environment independent of time and place. By means of such efforts, an individual carries digital equipment, and moreover, research into wearable computing technology that applies digital equipment to products such as clothes, shoes, etc. that people wear in daily life, is being extensively conducted.
In the field of wearable computing technology, fabric-type PCB technology for applying a circuit to fabrics is proposed as technology for maximizing wearability. Such technology is technology that applies a circuit to the same fabric materials as those of clothing, etc.
Fabrics have excellent flexibility, but, due to such flexibility, it is difficult to apply a circuit to fabrics. Also, users wear clothes in which a fabric-type PCB is formed and lives a daily life, and thus the line of a circuit pattern is easily broken due to interaction with an external environment.
Accordingly, a method that applies a precise circuit having high reliability to fabrics is required.
Accordingly, example embodiments of the present invention are provided to substantially obviate one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
Example embodiments of the present invention provide a method of manufacturing a fabric-type multilayer PCB that introduces a conductor between a plurality of unit circuits, and couples the conductor to the unit circuits by applying compression, in forming a multi-layer unit circuit on a fabric material, thus simplifying a manufacturing process, saving the manufacturing cost, and enabling precise junction.
Example embodiments of the present invention also provide a method of manufacturing a fabric-type multilayer PCB that directly joins a conductor to circuit patterns of each unit circuit to electrically connect the circuit patterns, and thus enables efficient electrical connection and, even when a shape is deformed by the torsion of flexible fabrics, can maintain an electrical connection.
In some example embodiments, a method of manufacturing a fabric-type multilayer PCB includes: providing a first unit circuit formed on a fabric material, a first circuit pattern being exposed on the first unit circuit; providing an insulating layer and a second unit circuit that includes a second circuit pattern disposed under the insulating layer; providing a conductor between the first and second unit circuits; and directly joining and electrically connecting the first and second circuit patterns by compressing the first and second unit circuits with the conductor therebetween to introduce the conductor into the insulating layer.
The providing of a conductor may include: disposing a mask layer on the insulating layer, a hole corresponding to the second circuit pattern being formed in the mask layer; disposing the conductor in the hole of the mask layer; joining the mask layer, in which the conductor is disposed, onto the insulating layer; and removing the mask layer.
The insulating layer may be an adhesive resin layer.
The insulating layer may contain a thermoplastic resin.
The compression may be thermo-compression.
The insulating layer may be an adhesive resin layer. Temperature of the thermo-compression may be higher than or equal to softening temperature of the insulating layer.
An operation of forming the second unit circuit may include: forming the second circuit pattern on a carrier substrate; and forming the insulating layer on the second circuit pattern.
The method may further include removing the carrier substrate of the second unit circuit after electrically connecting the first and second circuit patterns.
In other example embodiments, a fabric-type multilayer PCB includes: a fabric material; a first unit circuit disposed on the fabric material, and including a first circuit pattern; a second unit circuit including a second circuit pattern disposed on the first unit circuit; an insulating layer charged between the first and second circuit patterns; and a conductor joined directly to the first and second circuit patterns to electrically connect the first and second circuit patterns, in the insulating layer.
The insulating layer may be an adhesive resin layer.
Example embodiments of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail example embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Various embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which some embodiments are shown. These inventive concepts may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure is thorough and complete and fully conveys the inventive concept to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the sizes and relative sizes of layers and regions, and particularly, a conductive material, an adhesive, etc. may be exaggerated for clarity. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description of the figures.
The invention may have diverse modified embodiments, and thus, example embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and are described in the detailed description of the invention. However, this does not limit the invention within specific embodiments and it should be understood that the invention covers all the modifications, equivalents, and replacements within the idea and technical scope of the invention.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
Hereinafter, example embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
A circuit pattern 3 is formed on the carrier substrate 1. A conductive layer may be formed on the carrier pattern 3, and, by selectively removing the conductive layer, the circuit pattern 3 may be formed. The conductive layer may be a metal layer. The metal layer may be formed of one selected from among Cu, Au, Ni, Pd, In, Ti, and Sn. However, the present embodiment is not limited thereto, and the metal layer may be formed of one selected from among various materials through various processes, within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art. The conductive layer may be formed by a metal plating process, a process of fixing a metal thin film with an adhesive, or a vacuum evaporation process such as sputtering. Also, the circuit pattern 3 may be formed by depositing a conductive material after a mask may be disposed on the carrier substrate 1.
Before forming the circuit pattern 3, a release layer 2 may be formed on the carrier substrate 1. For example, the release layer 2 may be an insulating polymer material layer. As an example, the insulating polymer material layer may contain polyimide, polyester, or polypropylene.
Referring to
The insulating layer 4 may be an adhesive layer. In this case, the insulating layer 4 can be reliably adhered to the circuit pattern 3. Furthermore, the insulating layer 4 may be an adhesive resin layer. For example, the insulating layer 4 may contain a thermoplastic resin. As an example, the thermoplastic resin may be polystyrene, polyethylene, polyallylate, or polycarbonate. However, the present embodiment is not limited thereto, and the insulating layer 4 may be formed of one selected from among various materials, within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art.
The insulating layer 4 may be formed by using a vacuum press process, or a heat laminate process and a baking process together.
The circuit pattern 3 and the insulating layer 4 may configure a unit circuit UC. However, a process of forming the unit circuit UC is not limited thereto, and the unit circuit UC may be formed through various processes, within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art. Also, as described below, the release layer 2 may facilitate separation between the unit circuit UC and the carrier substrate 1.
Referring to
The fabric material 10 may include a fiber fabric with no conductivity. The fabric material 10 may be one of various fabric products such as clothes, shoes, hats, etc. Also, the fabric material 10 may be a fiber fabric having a certain size, and have a type that is adhered to various fabric products.
The first unit circuit 100 is transferred onto the fabric material 10. In detail, the fabric material 10 may be coupled to the first unit circuit 100, and the carrier substrate 20 may be removed. In this case, when the insulating layer 14 is an adhesive layer, adhesive intensity between the fabric material 10 and the first unit circuit 100 can increase. Also, the release layer 16 can facilitate the removal of the carrier substrate 20 from the first unit circuit 100.
Referring to
Referring to
A mask layer 40 may be disposed on the insulating layer 24 of the second unit circuit 200. The mask layer 40 may have a plurality of holes corresponding to at least one portion of each of the second circuit patterns 22. The mask layer 40 may be a metal mask or a ceramic mask. The holes may be formed by photolithography and etching. However, the material of the mask layer 40 and a patterning process may be variously selected within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art.
Subsequently, a conductor 30 is disposed in the hole. For example, the conductor 30 may be a metal ball, and specifically, the conductor 30 may be a solder ball. The conductor 30 may be disposed in the hole by using squeegee. However, the conductor 30 may be variously disposed within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art.
Subsequently, the mask layer 40 and the insulating layer 24 are disposed to face each other.
Referring to
As described above, when the insulating layer 24 is an adhesive resin layer, the conductor 30 may be adhered onto the insulating layer 24. On the other hand, before the conductor 30 is introduced, a separate adhesive layer (not shown) may be further formed on the insulating layer 24. When the temperature for the thermo-compression process is set to higher than or equal to the softening temperature of the adhesive resin layer, the conductor 30 may penetrate into a portion of the surface of the insulating layer 24. In performing the thermo-compression process, a process temperature may be variously set according to the physical properties of the insulating layer 24 and conductor 30 that are joined.
Subsequently, the mask layer 40 is removed. The mask layer 40 may be removed by an etching process. However, the present embodiment is not limited thereto, and the mask layer 40 may be removed by various processes within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art.
Unlike the above-described, the conductor 30 may be provided onto the first unit circuit 100.
Referring to
Subsequently, the first unit circuit 100 and the second unit circuit 200 are compressed. Due to pressure that is given in the compression operation, the conductor 30 may penetrate into the insulating layer 24 and may be joined to the second circuit pattern 22. Furthermore, the compression may be thermo-compression. The thermo-compression may be performed through a vacuum heat press process. In this case, temperature for the thermo-compression process may be higher than or equal to the softening temperature of the insulating layer 24.
As described above, the insulating layers 14 and 24 included in the unit circuits 100 and 200 may have adhesiveness. Therefore, the insulating layer 14 of the first unit circuit 100 is adhered to the insulating layer 24 of the second unit circuit 200 through compression. The insulating layers 14 and 24 are disposed between the first and second unit circuits 100 and 200, and insulate layers. Also, the insulating layers 14 and 24 are charged between the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22, and thus prevent a multilayer PCB from being stripped.
Moreover, since the insulating layer 24 is an adhesive resin layer, the insulating layer 24 near the conductor 30 is softened by heat that is generated in the compressing of the first and second unit circuits 100 and 200, and thus, the conductor 30 may penetrate into the insulating layer 24. Therefore, the conductor 30 reaches the second circuit pattern 22 that is disposed under the insulating layer 24, and is directly adhered to the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22, in which case the circuit patterns 12 and 22 are connected electrically. In this case, for an efficient connection, distance between the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22 may be shorter than the diameter of the conductor 30.
As described above, the conductor 30 is introduced into the insulating layer 24, and electrically connects the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22. Accordingly, a separate hole for an electrical connection between layers is unnecessary.
Moreover, the conductor 30 is directly adhered to the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22 and electrically connects the circuit patterns 12 and 22, thus enabling more precise junction. Furthermore, the conductor 30 is introduced into the insulating layers disposed between the unit circuits and supported by the insulating layer, and thus, even when a shape is deformed by the torsion of flexible fabrics, an electrical connection can be maintained.
Referring to
A multilayer PCB according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to
A fabric material 10 disposed at a base may include a fiber fabric with no conductivity. The fabric material 10 may be one of various fabric products such as clothes, shoes, hats, etc. Also, the fabric material 10 may be a fiber fabric having a certain size, and have a type that is adhered to various fabric products.
A first unit circuit 100 and a second unit circuit 200 stacked sequentially on the fabric material 10, the first unit circuit 100 includes a first circuit pattern 12, and the second unit circuit 200 includes a second circuit pattern 22.
The first circuit pattern 12 is disposed on an insulating layer 14, and the second circuit pattern 22 is disposed on an insulating layer 24. The shapes of the circuit patterns may be the same or differ.
The insulating layers 14 and 24 are disposed between the first and second unit circuits 100 and 200, and are charged between the first and second circuit patterns 12 and 22. Therefore, the insulating layers 14 and 24 insulate layers, and prevent a multilayer PCB from being stripped.
Each of the insulating layers 14 and 24 may be an adhesive resin layer. For example, the insulating layers 14 and 24 may contain a thermoplastic resin with adhesiveness. As an example, the thermoplastic resin may be polystyrene, polyethylene, polyallylate, or polycarbonate. However, the present embodiment is not limited thereto, and the insulating layers 14 and 24 may be formed of one selected from among various materials, within the scope that is obvious to those skilled in the art.
The conductor 30 is directly adhered to the first circuit pattern 12 of the first unit circuit 100 and the second circuit pattern 22 of the second unit circuit 200, and electrically connects the circuit patterns 12 and 22. Furthermore, the conductor 30 is introduced into the insulating layer 24 disposed between the first and second unit circuits 100 and 200 and supported by the insulating layer 24, and thus, even when a shape is deformed by the torsion of flexible fabrics, an electrical connection can be maintained.
The conductor 30 may be formed of a conductive material. For example, the conductor 30 may be a metal ball, and specifically, the conductor 30 may be a solder ball.
As described above, the method of manufacturing the multilayer PCB having two unit circuits is illustrated, but is not limited thereto. By repeatedly performing the operation that has been described above with reference to
Referring to
In this way, a conductor that is introduced into an insulating layer disposed between circuit patterns is directly joined to respective circuit patterns of upper and lower unit circuits, and thus electrically connects the circuit patterns.
As described above, the method of manufacturing the fabric-type multilayer PCB according to the present invention forms the multi-layer unit circuit on the fabric material, and thus can maintain wearability and flexibility of fabrics and enables electronic parts to be mounted on various products made with fabrics. Also, the method of the present invention introduces the conductor between the unit circuits and then couples the conductor to the unit circuits by applying compression, thus simplifying the manufacturing process and saving on manufacturing cost. Furthermore, a conductor is directly joined to the circuit patterns of each unit circuit, and thus, more precise junction is made, and electrical characteristics can be sufficiently shown with the flexibility of the fabric material.
Moreover, in the multilayer PCB according to the present invention, the circuit patterns of each unit circuit are physically and electrically connected by the conductor, and thus enables efficient electrical connection. Furthermore, the conductor is introduced into the insulating layer that is disposed between the circuit patterns of each unit circuit, and thus can be supported by the insulating layer, and even when a shape is deformed by the torsion of flexible fabrics, an electrical connection can be maintained.
While the example embodiments of the present invention and their advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations may be made herein without departing from the scope of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2012-0058090 | May 2012 | KR | national |
