The All Important Printed Circuit Board

Innovators drive technology. Think of all the electronic advances over the last twenty years. Devices getting small with greater functionality, new devices that perform in extreme conditions or new medical devices; they are are born out of innovative minds that had a vision of something new and different. Their are many great innovators that have grand ideas, right now, but need to get their idea into a tangible form. 

With electronics, the circuit board is possibly the most important component. You can find circuit boards in every electronic device that you can think of. All electronic devices have circuit boards because the circuit board is the way that electric current moves from power-source to and through all the electronic components that make and enable a device to perform it's desired function.

Though great idea-men can create their electronic innovation in theory, many do not have the equipment, materials or know-how to create multilayer PCBs. PCB stands for printed circuit board. In order to create a working prototype of an electronic device, you will need circuit boards and if you plan to mass-produce a device, you will definitely need a printed circuit board. Populating a printed circuit board can be done relatively quickly. In terms of labor costs, there is a significant cost benefit to use a PCB. Using a PCB allows the circuit to be quality tested at the completion of the build with ease,as opposed to a wire wrapped or hand built unit. A PCB is usually coated to resist corrosion and handle environmental conditions. Using a PCB greatly reduces the chances of build errors like missed connections, miss components, and various other issues.