Manufacturing method of rigid-flexible printed circuit board and structure thereof

• US 20030173105A1
• Filed: 03/07/2003
• Published: 09/18/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Takeuchi, Satoshi, Kondo, Koji, Yamazaki, Katsumi, Yokochi, Tomohiro, Terada, Masakazu
• Granted Patent: US 7,036,214 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 174/255
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/118 specially for flexible printed circuits, e.g. using folded portions
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/0129 Thermoplastic polymer, e.g. auto-adhesive layer; Shaping of thermoplastic polymer
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/0909 Preformed cutting or breaking line
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/09109 Locally detached layers, e.g. in multilayer
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/4069 for via connections in organic insulating substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/4614 the electrical connections between the circuit boards being made during lamination
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/4632 laminating thermoplastic or uncured resin sheets comprising printed circuits without added adhesive materials between the sheets
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/4691 Rigid-flexible multilayer circuits comprising rigid and flexible layers, e.g. having in the bending regions only flexible layers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49117 Conductor or circuit manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49126 Assembling bases
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49155 Manufacturing circuit on or in base
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49165 by forming conductive walled aperture in base

Abstract

In a manufacturing method of a rigid-flexible printed circuit board, slits for defining two sides of a removing portion are formed in a part of plural resin films, and the plural resin films are stacked and bonded to form a circuit board. Then, a product portion is cut from the circuit board. Before the bonding, a separation sheet is disposed between predetermined adjacent layers of the plural resin films to separate the removing portion from a residual portion of the product portion. Accordingly, while the product portion is cut from the circuit board, the removing portion is separated from the product portion, because the removing portion are defined by the separation sheet, the slits, and a cutting outline of the product portion.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board, comprising:

preparing a plurality of printed films, each of which includes a thermoplastic resin film and a conductive circuit formed on at least one side of the resin film;

forming holes in the resin films of the printed films;

filling an interlayer connection material into the holes, for forming an interlayer connector for electrically connecting the conductive circuits between adjacent resin films;

stacking the printed films in a stacking direction; and

bonding the resin films of the stacked printed films by heating and pressurizing, so that a multi-layer printed circuit board is formed, wherein the method further comprising

a slit forming step for forming a silt at a predetermined position at least in a part of the resin films of the printed films, and the silt forming step is performed before the stacking.

2. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein, in the slit-forming step, the slit is formed continuously at the predetermined position, at least in the part of the resin films.

3. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein, in the slit-forming step, the slit is formed intermittently at the predetermined position, at least in the part of the resin films.

4. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 1, further comprising:

cutting a product portion from the multi-layer printed circuit board along an outline of the product portion, wherein;

the slit extends to have a slit length in an extending direction perpendicular to the stack direction, the slit length being equal to or larger than a dimension of the product portion in the extending direction; and

the slit extends to at least the outline of the product portion in the extending direction.

5. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 4, further comprising:

arranging a separation sheet between predetermined adjacent layers of the resin films of the stacked printed films, corresponding to a removing portion and a residual portion of the product portion, before the bonding, wherein;

the separation sheet is arranged to define a surface of the removing portion;

the slit extends in the stack direction from an outer surface of the printed films to the separation sheet, at two sides of the removing portion, so that the removing portion is defined by the separation sheet, the slit and the outline of the product.

6. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 5,

wherein the conductive circuit positioned in the removing portion is substantially eliminated by a thickness of the separation sheet in the preparing, so that a thickness of the stacked printed films in the removing portion is approximately equal to a thickness of the stacked printed films in the other portion of the removing portion.

7. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 5,

wherein the separation sheet includes a sheet portion having a non-adhesive property with the thermoplastic resin.

8. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 5, wherein:

in the cutting, the multi-layer printed circuit board is cut for forming a plurality of product portions; and

the separation sheet extends to cover each removing portion for the product portions.

9. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 4, wherein:

in the stacking, the printed films are stacked such that the conductive circuits between predetermined adjacent layers on the resin films contact to have a contact surface on which a removing portion is removed from a residual portion of the product portion;

the contact surface is arranged to define a surface of the removing portion; and

the slit extends in the stack direction from an outer surface of the printed films to the contact surface, at two sides of the removing portion, so that the removing portion is defined by the contact surface, the slit and the outline of the product.

10. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 9, wherein the conductive circuits on the contact surface is made of copper.

11. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 1, further comprising:

cutting a product portion from the multi-layer printed circuit board along an outline of the product portion; and

arranging a separation sheet between predetermined adjacent layers of the resin films of the stacked printed films before the bonding, so that an edge area of the product portion is separated by the separation sheet into first and second parts in the product portion after the product portion is cut from the multi-layer printed circuit board, wherein;

the slit extends from an outer surface of the printed films to the separation sheet in the stacking direction of the printed films to be substantially perpendicular to the separation sheet; and

the first part and the second part are separated by the slit and the separation sheet after the cutting, so that one of the first part and the second part has an approximate L-shape.

12. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board, comprising:

preparing a plurality of first printed films, each of which includes a resin film and a conductive circuit formed at least one side of the resin film;

preparing a plurality of second printed films, each of which includes the resin film and a conductive circuit formed at least one side of the resin film;

forming holes in the resin films of the first and second printed films;

filling an interlayer connection material into the holes, for forming an interlayer connector for electrically connecting the connective circuits between adjacent resin films;

forming a slit penetrating through the resin film at a predetermined position in each first printed film;

stacking the first printed films and the second printed films in a stack direction such that at least two of the first printed films are adjacent to each other in the stacking direction; and

bonding the resin films of the stacked first and second printed films by heating and pressurizing, so that a multi-layer printed circuit board is formed, wherein,

in the stacking, the slits of the at least two resin films of the first printed films are linked with each other at the predetermined position.

13. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 12, wherein, in the stacking, the first printed films are positioned outside of the second printed films in the stack direction, the method further comprising

removing a removing portion from the multi-layer printed circuit by using the slits, for forming a product portion.

14. A method of manufacturing a printed circuit board according to claim 13, further comprising:

arranging a separation sheet between two resin films of adjacent first and second printed films for defining the removing portion,

wherein the separation sheet is disposed to cover an entire surface of the removing portion.

15. A printed circuit board, comprising:

a plurality of printed films that are stacked and bonded to form a multi-layer printed circuit board, wherein each of the printed films includes a thermoplastic resin film and a conductive circuit provided on at least one side of the resin film, wherein the resin films have a plurality of holes; and

an interlayer connection material filled in the holes, for forming an interlayer connector for electrically connecting the conductive circuits between adjacent printed films, wherein;

a part of the resin films has a slit at a predetermined position; and

the slit has a length in an extending direction perpendicular to a stack direction of the printed films, that is equal to a dimension of the multi-layer printed circuit board in the extending direction.

16. A printed circuit board according to claim 15, wherein the slit is provided at the same position at least in the part of the resin films.

17. A printed circuit board according to claim 15, further comprising:

a separation sheet disposed between predetermined adjacent layers of the printed films,

wherein the slit extends from an outer surface of the stacked printed films to the separation sheet in the stack direction of the printed films.