Printed Circuit Board Design and Prototyping in Undergraduate Electronic Program

随着全球市场竞争的加剧，电子设计师必须尽快将产品投入生产。 数控加工的最新进展使得在使用印刷电路板计算机辅助设计（CAD）软件对设计进行建模后的几个小时内生产出生产质量的印刷电路板原型成为可能。 该项目提供了一个安全，现代和高效的印刷电路板设计和原型实验室。 该项目取代了目前的电路板制造方法，包括使用自粘垫和迹线的设计，复印到热转印膜，以及暴露于对学生和环境有潜在危害的显影剂和蚀刻剂化学品。 该项目提供的现代印刷电路板CAD软件和快速原型雕刻机用于培训我们的电子工程技术学生从概念到原型阶段的电子设计的各个方面。 设计过程中补充了已经在实验室实施的模拟和自动化测试能力。 该设备具有足够的质量，因此也可以通过直接纳入电子设计和制造课程实验室部分的学生项目来支持当地行业的需求。 该项目的潜在影响与最终用途或用作复杂设计中的组件的电子产品的开发一样广泛。 出于环境和安全方面的考虑，大多数制造商都使用为数不多的现有电路板厂房进行生产，甚至是印刷电路板的原型制作。 电子专业的学生必须能够制作董事会所需的文件，甚至是他们自己公司的原型和模拟设备。 因此，该项目使学校能够通过原型设计阶段促进电子设计的各个方面;同时，学生能够利用现有的工具来验证他们的设计，即在原型设计之前对其设计进行模拟，并在原型设计之后对其设计进行测试。 该项目通过直接服务于工业的学生项目提供用于加强电子设计和制造理论的可靠设备。

With increased competition from the global market, electronic designers must move their products into production as quickly as possible. Recent advances in numerically controlled machining make it possible to produce a production-quality printed circuit board prototype a few hours after the design has been modeled using printed circuit board computer-aided design (CAD) software. This project provides a safe, modern, and efficient printed circuit board design and prototyping laboratory. The project replaces current board fabrication methods composed of designs using self-adhesive pads and traces, photocopying to a thermal transfer film, and exposing to developer and etchant chemicals that are potentially hazardous to students and to the environment. The modern printed circuit board CAD software and rapid prototyping engraving machine provided by this project are used to train our electronic engineering technology students in every aspect of electronic design, from conception through the prototype stage. The design process is supplemented with the simulation and automated testing capabilities already implemented in laboratories. The equipment is of sufficient quality so that it can also be used to support local industry needs through student projects that are incorporated directly into the laboratory component of electronic design and manufacturing courses. The potential impact of this project is as widespread as is the development of electronic products for end use, or for use as components in a complex design. Because of environmental and safety concerns, most manufacturers use one of the few existing board houses for production, and even prototyping of printed circuit boards. Students in electronics must be able to produce the files required by board houses, or even their own companies' prototyping and simulation facilities. This project, therefore, enables the school to foster every aspect of electronic design through to the prototyping stage; at the same time, students are able to take advantage of the available tools used for verifying their designs, namely, simulation of their designs before prototyping and testing of their designs after prototyping. This project provides reliable equipment used to reinforce electronic design and manufacturing theory through student projects that directly serve industry.