ICT Christmas Seminar 2022: The Caliber of a ‘World Cup’ Event

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

Bodegom has observed growing integration between design and the PCB, IC substrates, and EMS industries, with an increased demand for overlap between equipment, materials, and processes. He believes that the future lies in building strong teams and open partnerships with technical know-how to better support the entire electronics industry. 

A fundamental element of future success is the sharing of data, and this, Bodegom said, must begin at the design stage. The vast majority of PCB design data is passed to the fabricator in Gerber format, which is an open ASCII vector format invented over 40 years ago that was intended to drive a photoplotter with basic machine commands. Using this format, all the intelligence built up during the design process is effectively lost at the output stage, forcing the PCB fabricator to try and recreate some of that intelligence at the CAM stage in order to create outputs for equipment like direct imagers, drill machines, AOI machines, electrical testers, etc., as well as chemical process lines. All this equipment not only uses data—it creates it. “What do we do with it?” Bodegom asked. “Practically nothing, other than occasionally using it retrospectively for tracing and identifying the cause of manufacturing defects.”

Adeon, together with some of its suppliers, has begun a project to gather that data, analyze it, and then feed it back into the loop—beginning with the design stage—to learn from the equipment how to control the manufacturing process. Bodegom re-emphasized that strong and open partnerships are a prerequisite for the real-time integration of design data and production results. Currently, much of the important data is not made available due to being blocked by machine suppliers for license reasons. Yet if that data could be read, it could be converted into a uniform communication link back into production. Artificial intelligence could then be used to analyze where improvements are needed. Bodegom gave several examples of equipment companies who are cooperating in the project.

Flexible Circuits Overcome Length Constraints
Back to flexible circuits—Philip Johnston, CEO of Trackwise Designs, introduced the intriguing concept of “Length-Agnostic FPC Manufacture.” The company, based in Tewkesbury UK, has developed a globally unique capability to produce multilayer flexible printed circuit boards of any length. In fact, they recently established a world record with an example circuit measuring 72 metres long. Johnston commented that the total length was governed only by the availability of suitable material.

Trackwise’s key markets are in the automotive, aerospace, medical and scientific & industrial sectors. In automotive applications, flexible PCBs are suited to EVs in battery modules, battery packs, and battery management systems. Examples include 6-ounce copper weights, which can carry high-voltage power. In aerospace, large-scale flex (LSF) offers a 70% to 90% weight reduction in data cables and a 10% to 20% weight reduction in power cables. They can be used for fuselage-length or full-wing-width interconnects and are qualified for high temperature operation in harsh environments. At the other end of the scale, long, ultra-flexible, and finely-etched printed circuits have become key enablers for catheter-based distal electronics, with tracks and gaps as small as 50 microns.

Although Trackwise has started to adapt rigid-board manufacturing equipment, their proprietary technique is based on roll-to-roll processing and digital imaging. The company successfully transitioned from technology based upon repeated and separated images to a machine-intensive manufacturing processes capable of non-repeated and non-separated images. To do this, significant challenges had to be overcome in software development. Plating was achieved by adapting continuous plating lines built for volume manufacture; pressing, on the other hand, was achieved by adapting a continuous press built for the manufacture of copper-clad laminate. Ultimately, equipment suppliers who were prepared to “buy in” to Trackwise’s vision made this transition possible. Trackwise’s process is patent-protected worldwide. Their standard practice is to panelize all circuits, regardless of size, into a 100-metre production roll. 

Whereas roll-to-roll flexible circuits are primarily used in passive interconnect applications, Trackwise also has the capability to carry out roll-to-roll assembly, which opens up the potential for active interconnect, “smart harnesses,” and flexible hybrid electronics.

Trackwise is extending their manufacturing capacity via a new factory, which is nearing completion and is fully equipped for length-agnostic roll-to-roll flexible circuit manufacture and flexible circuit assembly.

A Greener Future Through Recyclable PCBs
Recyclable PCBs was the topic of the final presentation by Steve Driver on behalf of Jiva Materials. He gave an update on the evolution of Jiva’s Soluboard material and its current positioning in the world of PCBs. “I also want to encourage you to think a little differently about how this technology may fit in our world in future,” he said.

Driver acknowledged that the Institute of Circuit Technology has always been an effective platform for launching new ideas. His challenge was how to change the mind-set: “Everybody always wants to talk about what things can’t do. I’m an optimist and try to make everything positive. This might not become commercially viable within our lifetime, but it could be just the start of something good!” He call on the industry to engage with the Jiva philosophy and to cultivate a “It might just work” mindset.

Discussing recycling issues in the context of a throwaway society, and the pollution created by end-of-life electronics where the typical recycling process involve shredding and incineration, Driver made it clear that people are looking for alternatives. The leading edge of the laminate industry currently appears more concerned with high-speed and high-power performance than with recyclability. But at the other end of the spectrum, innovators are looking for something new to get excited about.

So why Soluboard? Driver referred to the 57 million tons of waste electronic and electrical equipment produced every year and used the mobile phone, which is commonly replaced every two years, as an example. Although a phone can be recycled, chargers are generally thrown away. A charger contains a simple single-sided PCB that can be made on a Soluboard substrate. According to Driver, 1.3 billion chargers equate to 4.3 tons of PCB waste. 

Producers of electronic goods are legally required to deal with waste. A case in point is TV set-top boxes, the disposal of which is an expensive responsibility; recyclable PCBs can be an economically attractive alternative. Jiva has continued to receive inquiries from interested companies and has successfully provided many solutions. Although Soluboard currently represents only a tiny segment of the laminate industry, its market share is growing steadily as Jiva continues its mission to tackle electronic waste with naturally-derived printed circuit board materials by reducing carbon emissions and waste electronic and electrical equipment levels.

Martin Cotton Wins Honorary Fellowship
A very welcome seminar delegate was Martin Cotton, long-term supporter of the Institute and regular past presenter, who was determined to attend while continuing his slow recovery from serious illness. Everyone was delighted to see him and showed their sincere appreciation as he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship.

And the football score turned out to be 3-0 in England’s favour!

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