System and method for manufacturing flexible laminated circuit boards
AssigneeDuetto Integrated Systems, Inc.
InventorsAnthony Faraci, Gary N. Sortino
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention relates to an improved system and method for manufacturing flexible circuit boards (FSBs) using optical alignment and various bonding systems. The invention provides an improved process to connect together the layers of rigid-flex, flexible, and printed circuit boards while maintaining alignment of the layers prior to and possibly after a lamination step. An optical alignment system is provided, a preferred arrangement is enabled as an automated pinless bonding system (PBS), for securely gripping, aligning, transferring, and clamping, bonding and moving a bonded FSB employing a multi-axis orientation. An alternative manual optical alignment and bonding system is provided.
Claims8
A registration system for positioning a rigid-flex panel layup of a plurality laminate elements in a selected stack orientation, the system comprising:
- a rigid layup template member bounding an interior opening for receiving said panel layup;
- at least two retractable pin members each positioned on opposing sides of said rigid layup template member from said other said retractable pin member;
- said retractable pins being extendable above a template contact surface of said rigid layup template member to releasably engage a panel layup and retractable below said template contact surface to release said panel layup from said rigid template member;
- said panel layup including at least flex circuit portion;
- said panel layup including a plurality of interior bond site positions distal from a periphery of said layup;
- a bonding system including a support surface for slidably supporting said rigid layup template member along said support surface;
- said bonding system including a top bonding head member and a bottom bonding head member;
- whereby said top and said bottom bonding head members enable an axially aligned bonding of said interior bond site positions distal said periphery of said layup.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.