Fully encapsulated electronics and printed circuit boards

A method of encapsulating and hermetically sealing electronic components of a flex cable assembly and integrating the flex cable assembly into a surgical device, comprising:

• positioning a printed circuit board portion of a flex cable assembly into a channel defined in a first housing half of an encapsulation housing, the printed circuit board portion including a substrate of a first flex cable of the flex cable assembly and electronic components mounted on the substrate;
• mounting a second housing half onto the first housing half to enclose the channel of the first housing half and form a cavity within the encapsulation housing;
• filling the cavity of the encapsulation housing with an encapsulation material through an inlet opening defined through the encapsulation housing;
• connecting an electrical contact region of a second flex cable of the flex cable assembly to a rigid printed circuit board;
• positioning a second encapsulation housing over the rigid printed circuit board such that electronic components of the rigid printed circuit board and the electrical contact region of the second flex cable are disposed within a cavity defined between the second encapsulation housing and the rigid printed circuit board;
• and
• filling the cavity with an encapsulation material through an inlet opening defined through the second encapsulation housing.

A method of encapsulating and hermetically sealing a printed circuit board of a flex cable, the method comprising:

• positioning a printed circuit board portion of a flex cable into a channel defined in a first mold half of a mold, the printed circuit board portion including a substrate and electronic components mounted on the substrate;
• mounting a second mold half onto the first mold half to enclose the channel of the first mold half and form a cavity within the mold;
• filling the cavity of the mold with an encapsulation material through an inlet opening defined through the mold;
• opening the mold after the encapsulation material has solidified within the cavity;
• removing the flex cable from the mold;
• and
• clamping outer edges of the encapsulation material to enhance the bond between the encapsulation material and the flex cable.

A method of encapsulating and hermetically sealing a printed circuit board of a flex cable, the method comprising:

• positioning a printed circuit board portion of a flex cable into a channel defined in a first mold half of a mold, the printed circuit board portion including a substrate and electronic components mounted on the substrate;
• mounting a second mold half onto the first mold half to enclose the channel of the first mold half and form a cavity within the mold;
• filling the cavity of the mold with an encapsulation material through an inlet opening defined through the mold;
• and
• attaching a rigidizing layer to the substrate of the printed circuit board portion of the flex cable prior to positioning the printed circuit board portion into the channel of the first mold half.