A method of manufacturing a pallet for use during manufacture of a printed circuit board assembly includes determining optimal solder flow for establishing connections between lead pins of a plurality of pin-through-hole components arranged on a circuit board, designing a pallet to include geometries configured to provide the optimal solder flow when the pallet, supporting the circuit board thereon, is passed through a wave solder machine, and creating the pallet based on the design. Pallets configured for optimal solder flow and methods of manufacturing printed circuit board assemblies using such pallet are also provided.

Systems and methods are disclosed herein relating to eliminating solder bridges between adjacent leads of small-pitch through-hole electrical components soldered to circuit boards using wave-soldering techniques. Several wave solder pallet insert patterns are disclosed. Each wave solder insert may include an insert pattern of peeling members is intended to eliminate solder bridges from various small-pitch component lead layouts.

A method of making a printed circuit board pallet is provided. The method of making the pallet illustratively includes the steps of: providing a base in a form of a polymer sheet stock; applying a fluid onto the base at selective locations where the pallet will be built-up to a three-dimensional form; depositing a polymer powder onto the base at the selective locations applied with the fluid; removing any excess amounts of the polymer powder not adhered to the fluid; and heating the pallet to fuse the polymer powder together and to the base.

Support blocks for printed circuit boards (PCB's) and printed circuit board assemblies (PCBA's), wherein the support blocks are produced from a 3D printing process. The support block including a bottom surface having a vacuum connection; a top surface having at least one vacuum hole; at least one recessed surface that is offset from the top surface; and at least one vacuum channel extending from the vacuum connection to the at least one vacuum hole.

Disclosed are highly scalable fabrication methods for producing electronic circuits, devices, and systems. In one aspect, a fabrication method includes attaching an electronic component at a location on a substrate including a flexible and electrically insulative material; forming a template to encase the electronic component by depositing a material in a phase to conform on the surfaces of the electronic component and the substrate, and causing the material to change to solid form; and producing a circuit or electronic device by forming openings in the substrate to expose conductive portions of the electronic component, creating electrical interconnections coupled to at least some of the conductive portions in a selected arrangement on the substrate, and depositing a layer of an electrically insulative and flexible material over the electrical interconnections on the substrate to form a flexible base of the circuit, in which the produced circuit or electronic device is encased.

A component support fixture having a plurality of oversized compartments of the same size mounted on a top surface of an anisotropic adhesive film such that each of a plurality of burned-in components of different heights and widths are accommodated within a compartment. Patterned traces are formed on the bottom surface of the anisotropic film. The leads of the burned-in components are in electrically communication with those traces through the anisotropic film.

A method of making a printed circuit board pallet is provided. The method of making the pallet illustratively includes the steps of: providing a base in a form of a polymer sheet stock; applying a fluid onto the base at selective locations where the pallet will be built-up to a three-dimensional form; depositing a polymer powder onto the base at the selective locations applied with the fluid; removing any excess amounts of the polymer powder not adhered to the fluid; and heating the pallet to fuse the polymer powder together and to the base.

An apparatus for holding a printed circuit board when mounting components thereon, said apparatus comprising a base plate, a mounting device for mounting a printed circuit board spaced from and substantially parallel to the base plate, a plurality of elongate support pins extending through respective holes within the base plate to extend transversely from the base plate, the support pins being independently positionable in height with respect to the base plate to define a configurable support surface for supporting components mounted on the printed circuit board during soldering, wherein the height that each pin extends from the base plate can be adjusted such that the support surface defined by the support pins can correspond to the topography of the circuit board and the components mounted thereon, a locking mechanism being provided for selectively locking the position of each support pin with respect to the base plate, wherein said locking mechanism comprises at least one elongate flexible member arranged to extend around a plurality of said support pins in convolute manner, tensioning device being associated with said at least one flexible member, whereby said tensioning device is adapted to selectively apply tension to said at least one flexible member to grip the pins around which said flexible member extends to lock the position of said pins with respect to the base plate.

A method of manufacturing a pallet for use during manufacture of a printed circuit board assembly includes determining optimal solder flow for establishing connections between lead pins of a plurality of pin-through-hole components arranged on a circuit board, designing a pallet to include geometries configured to provide the optimal solder flow when the pallet, supporting the circuit board thereon, is passed through a wave solder machine, and creating the pallet based on the design. Pallets configured for optimal solder flow and methods of manufacturing printed circuit board assemblies using such pallet are also provided.

An Occam process (solderless manufacturing) that employs a component support fixture that provides permanent or temporary support for components during subsequent processing in a solderless process for electrically connecting the components to circuits. The component support fixture provides oversized compartments for housing the components which may have varying sizes. The compartments are provided with vent holes or apertures for venting air or excess glue as the component support is pressed against the components during manufacture.