PCB Unlimited offers printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) tooling including SMT carriers, wave solder pallets, and a number of other fixtures and tools to meet your process requirements.
We manufacture our PCBA fixtures using three different types of materials:
We use the term “production fixtures” to refer to the fixtures fabricated with the thermoset plastic material. They are specially designed for production runs. We use the term “prototype fixtures” to refer to the ones fabricated with high Tg FR4 or stainless steel. They are specially designed for prototyping and short runs. Production fixtures last longer than prototype fixtures but they are more expensive and take longer to make.
SMT Carriers can be used during the entire SMT process (printing, placement and reflowing) to support, protect and transport printed circuit boards of different sizes and shapes including flex and rigid-flex PCBs. SMT carriers can help reduce soldering defects, improve repeatability and reduce labor cost.
| Stainless Steel | FR4 Tg180 | Thermoset Plastic | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printing | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Placing | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Reflowing | No | Yes | Yes |
Because of its cost effectiveness and reliability, wave soldering still remains a popular process used in the manufacture of printed circuit boards to solder through-hole components. Wave solder pallets are used during wave soldering on circuit boards that require thermal or solder protection. Our wave solder pallets are custom made to meet your particular job requirements.
| FR4 Tg180 | Thermoset Plastic | |
|---|---|---|
| Printing | Yes | Yes |
| Pick & Place | Yes | Yes |
| Oven | Yes | Yes |
Selective soldering is mainly used for soldering small number of boards with mixed technology (SMT and through-hole components). Selective solder machines use a miniature wave that can solder one though-hole component at the time so there is no need for wave solder pallets. However, sometimes it is necessary to use a selective solder fixture to provide PCB support and improve the overall process.
| FR4 Tg180 | Thermoset Plastic | |
|---|---|---|
| Printing | Yes | Yes |
| Pick & Place | Yes | Yes |
| Oven | Yes | Yes |
Press fixtures support fixtures are used to provide alignment and support to the printed circuit boards during the insertion of press fit connectors. Without a press support fixture, the printed circuit boards and/or the connectors can be damaged due to the insertion force necessary to press the connectors into the boards.
Learn More
In addition to the traditional SMT carriers and wave solder pallets, PCB Unlimited can help you design and manufacture any type of custom fixtures for your PCB assembly projects. For a custom quote please email your files to support@pcbunlimited.com
The data needed to complete a tooling project varies but in general we are going to need the following: