3d-printed laminated circuit board assembly and electronic device

Abstract

The present application relates to a 3D-printed laminated circuit board assembly and an electronic device. The circuit board assembly comprises a circuit board, wherein the circuit board comprises a main circuit board provided with a copper foil circuit and a sub-circuit board provide with a copper foil circuit and formed by means of 3D printing. The main circuit board comprises a wiring region and a sub-board arrangement region. The wiring region is configured to arrange a first electronic element, the sub-circuit board is located in the sub-plate arrangement region, the sub-circuit board is configured to arrange a second electronic element, and the first electronic element is electrically connected to the second electronic element. In the present application, by means of reserving the sub-board arrangement region on the main circuit board, when the function / capability of the main circuit board is subsequently upgraded, the sub-circuit board provided with a copper foil circuit is printed in the sub-board arrangement region by using a 3D printing method, and the layout, mounting and electrical connection of the sub-circuit board and the main circuit board can be realized without conflict.

Description

3D printed stacked circuit board assemblies and electronic devices Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of electronic circuit technology, and more particularly to a three-dimensional (3D) printed laminated circuit board assembly and electronic equipment. Background Art

[0002] Circuit boards are the most important components in the electronics industry. Almost every electronic device we encounter relies on them, from small electronic watches, calculators, general-purpose computers, and televisions to large supercomputers, robots, and communications equipment. The electrical interconnections between these devices all rely on circuit boards. Circuit boards provide the mechanical support for the fixed assembly of various electronic components, such as integrated circuits, and facilitate the wiring and electrical connections between these components.

[0003] Current circuit board manufacturing typically requires computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools, copper foil stripping machines, developers, and drills, among other equipment, typically purchased only by specialized circuit board manufacturers. When electronics manufacturers seek to upgrade the functionality or capabilities of a particular product, they may use smaller circuit boards to house the necessary components. In this case, the layout, installation, and electrical connection between the newly added circuit board and the product's existing circuit board must be considered. Furthermore, having the upgraded circuit board manufactured by a specialized circuit board manufacturer can be costly.

[0004] Summary of the Invention

[0005] In view of this, a 3D printed stacked circuit board assembly and electronic device are provided. The sub-circuit board made using 3D printing technology can be stacked on the main circuit board. There is no conflict in the layout, installation and electrical connection of the sub-circuit board and the main circuit board, and the production cost of the sub-circuit board is low.

[0006] An embodiment of the present application discloses a 3D printed laminated circuit board assembly, comprising a circuit board, wherein the circuit board comprises a main circuit board having a copper foil circuit and a sub-circuit board having a copper foil circuit formed by 3D printing, the main circuit board comprising a wiring area and a sub-board layout area, the wiring area being used for arranging a first electronic component, the sub-circuit board being located in the sub-board layout area, the sub-circuit board being used for arranging a second electronic component, and the first electronic component being electrically connected to the second electronic component.

[0007] In one possible implementation, the sub-circuit board is printed in the sub-board arrangement area by a 3D printing device before the first electronic component is soldered to the wiring area.

[0008] In one possible implementation, the sub-circuit board is printed on the sub-board arrangement area by a 3D printing device after the first electronic component is soldered to the wiring area.

[0009] In a possible implementation, the sub-board arrangement area is a partial area of ​​a surface of the main circuit board, or a surface of the main circuit board is provided with a groove, and the groove is the sub-board arrangement area.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the thickness of the sub-circuit board is smaller than the thickness of the main circuit board.

[0011] In one possible implementation, a surface of the sub-circuit board is provided with a plurality of first connection points, the sub-board layout area is provided with a plurality of second connection points corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of first connection points, and the main circuit board and the sub-circuit board are electrically connected through the plurality of first connection points and the plurality of second connection points.

[0012] In a possible implementation, a hollow area is provided on the main circuit board, and the hollow area runs through from one surface to the other surface of the main circuit board, and the hollow area is the sub-board arrangement area.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the thickness of the sub-circuit board is equal to the thickness of the main circuit board.

[0014] In one possible implementation, the main circuit board and the sub-circuit board are electrically connected through a connector assembly, and the connector assembly includes a first connector, a second connector and a wiring harness, the first connector is provided on the main circuit board, the second connector is provided on the sub-circuit board, and the wiring harness is used to connect the first connector and the second connector.

[0015] An embodiment of the present application further discloses an electronic device, which includes the above-mentioned 3D printed laminated circuit board assembly.

[0016] The above-mentioned 3D printed stacked circuit board assembly and electronic equipment, by reserving a sub-board layout area on the main circuit board, when the circuit board is subsequently upgraded in function / capability, a sub-circuit board with copper foil circuits is printed in the sub-board layout area by 3D printing. There is no conflict in the layout, installation and electrical connection of the sub-circuit board and the main circuit board, and the sub-circuit board does not need to be commissioned to a special circuit board manufacturer for processing, which reduces the production cost of the sub-circuit board. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] FIG1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a circuit board assembly according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0018] FIG2 is a top view of a main circuit board according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0019] FIG3 a is a schematic structural diagram of a daughterboard arrangement area according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0020] FIG3 b is a schematic structural diagram of a daughter board arrangement area according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0021] FIG3 c is a schematic structural diagram of a daughter board arrangement area according to another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

[0023] It is understood that the connection relationships described in this application refer to direct or indirect connections. For example, the connection between A and B can be either a direct connection between A and B or an indirect connection between A and B via one or more other electrical components. For example, A and C can be directly connected, and C can be directly connected to B, so that A and B are connected through C. It is also understood that the description of "A connecting to B" in this application can be a direct connection between A and B or an indirect connection between A and B via one or more other electrical components.

[0024] In the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, " / " means "or". For example, A / B can mean A or B. "And / or" in this document is simply a description of the association relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone.

[0025] In the description of this application, words such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish different objects and do not limit the quantity or execution order. In addition, words such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily mean different. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions.

[0026] The technical solution of the present application is further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0027] Please refer to Figures 1 and 2. A circuit board assembly 10 is provided in one embodiment of the present application. The circuit board assembly 10 can be integrated into an electronic device. The electronic device can be a mobile phone, a desktop computer host, a server, a television, a laptop computer, etc. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the type of electronic device.

[0028] The circuit board assembly 10 includes a circuit board 11, a first electronic component 12, and a second electronic component 13. The first electronic component 12 is electrically connected to the second electronic component 13. The circuit board 11 includes a main circuit board 101 having a copper foil circuit cw1 and a sub-circuit board 102 having a copper foil circuit cw1 formed by 3D printing.

[0029] The main circuit board 101 includes a wiring area 110 and a sub-board layout area 111. The wiring area 110 is used to layout the first electronic component 12. The sub-circuit board 102 is printed on the sub-board layout area 111, and the sub-circuit board 102 is used to layout the second electronic component 13. This application does not limit the specific component types of the first electronic component 12 and the second electronic component 13. For example, to increase the storage space or memory space of the electronic device, the second electronic component 13 can be a read-only memory (ROM) chip or a random access memory (RAM) chip, and the first electronic component 12 can be a central processing unit.

[0030] In some embodiments, the daughter circuit board 102 can be printed using digital light processing (DLP), stereolithography (SLA) technology, or metal 3D printing technology (e.g., selective laser melting (SLM)). For example, the substrate (e.g., FR-4 resin) can be printed using DLP or SLA technology, and the copper foil traces on the substrate can be printed using SLM technology.

[0031] In some embodiments, with the development of 3D printing technology, it is also possible to use a 3D printing technology to print resin material and copper material to obtain a sub-circuit board 102 having copper foil circuit cw1. For example, a 3D printer using this technology has two feeding devices, one for storing resin material and the other for storing copper material. The 3D printer prints the sub-circuit board 102 having copper foil circuit cw1 based on a slice file (G-code format or STL format file) of the sub-circuit board 102, the resin material, and the copper material.

[0032] In some embodiments, the sub-circuit board 102 can be printed in the sub-circuit board placement area 111 using a 3D printer before electronic components are mounted and soldered on the main circuit board 101. That is, before the first electronic component 12 is soldered to the wiring area 110, the sub-circuit board 102 is printed in the sub-circuit board placement area 111 using a 3D printer. After the sub-circuit board 102 is printed, the main circuit board 101 and the sub-circuit board 102 can undergo processes such as placement, reflow soldering, and testing to obtain the circuit board assembly 10.

[0033] In some embodiments, the sub-circuit board 102 can also be printed in the sub-circuit board layout area 111 using a 3D printer after the electronic components on the main circuit board 101 are installed and soldered. That is, after the first electronic component 12 is soldered to the wiring area 110, the sub-circuit board 102 is printed in the sub-circuit board layout area 111 using a 3D printer. After the sub-circuit board 102 is printed, it can undergo processes such as placement, reflow soldering, and testing to complete the installation and testing of the electronic components on the sub-circuit board 102.

[0034] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG3a , the sub-board placement area 111 can be a portion of a surface of the main circuit board 101. The sub-board placement area 111 is not covered with a coating (solder mask), so that the sub-circuit board 102 to be printed later can be attached to the sub-board placement area 111, eliminating the need for fasteners to secure the main circuit board 101 and the sub-circuit board 102 together. The thickness of the sub-circuit board 102 can be less than or equal to the thickness of the main circuit board 101. For example, the thickness of the main circuit board 101 is 1.6 mm, and the thickness of the sub-circuit board 102 is 0.8 mm.

[0035] As shown in FIG3b , a surface of the main circuit board 101 may further include a groove, which serves as a sub-board placement area 111. The shape of the groove may be square, circular, etc., and is not limited to this embodiment of the present application. The thickness of the sub-circuit board 102 may be less than or equal to the thickness of the main circuit board 101.

[0036] In some embodiments, for the daughterboard placement area 111 shown in Figure 3a or 3b, the daughter circuit board 102 can arrange electronic components on a first surface away from the daughterboard placement area 111. The second surface of the daughter circuit board 102 (the other surface opposite to the first surface) is provided with multiple first connection points, which can be in a network ball grid array (BGA) pattern. The daughter board placement area 111 can be provided with multiple second connection points corresponding to the multiple first connection points, thereby electrically connecting the main circuit board 101 and the daughter circuit board 102 through the multiple first connection points and the multiple second connection points. The main circuit board 101 and the daughter circuit board 102 can also be electrically connected via a connector assembly.

[0037] As shown in Figure 3c, the main circuit board 101 may also be provided with a cutout area that runs from one surface of the main circuit board 101 to the other. The cutout area serves as the sub-board placement area 111. The length, width, and height of the sub-circuit board 102 can be the same as those of the cutout area, allowing the printed sub-circuit board 102 to be bonded to the main circuit board 101. The thickness of the sub-circuit board 102 can be equal to that of the main circuit board 101. For example, if the thickness of the main circuit board 101 is 1.6 mm, the thickness of the sub-circuit board 102 is also 1.6 mm.

[0038] In some embodiments, for the daughterboard placement area 111 shown in FIG3c , the daughterboard 102 can have electronic components arranged on both surfaces. The main circuit board 101 and the daughterboard 102 can be electrically connected via a connector assembly. For example, the connector assembly includes a first connector, a second connector, and a wiring harness. The first connector is provided on the main circuit board 101, and the second connector is provided on the daughterboard 102. The wiring harness is used to connect the first connector and the second connector. The first connector and the second connector can be female surface mount connectors, and the ends of the wiring harness are male connectors.

[0039] The present application also provides an electronic device, comprising the circuit board assembly 10 according to any one of the above embodiments.

[0040] The detailed structure of the circuit board assembly 10 can be referred to the above embodiment and will not be repeated here. It can be understood that since the above circuit board assembly 10 is used in the electronic device of the present application, the embodiment of the electronic device of the present application includes all technical solutions of all embodiments of the above circuit board assembly 10, and the technical effects achieved are also exactly the same, which will not be repeated here.

[0041] The above-mentioned circuit board assembly and electronic equipment, by reserving a sub-board layout area on the main circuit board, when the function / capability of the circuit board is subsequently upgraded, a sub-circuit board with copper foil circuits is printed in the sub-board layout area using 3D printing, so that the sub-circuit board can be stacked on the main circuit board, and no additional fixing elements are required for fixed installation between the circuit boards. There is no conflict in the layout, installation and electrical connection of the sub-circuit board and the main circuit board, and the sub-circuit board does not need to be commissioned to a specialized circuit board manufacturer for processing, thereby reducing the production cost of the sub-circuit board.

[0042] For those skilled in the art, other corresponding changes or adjustments can be made according to the application scheme and application concept of this application in combination with the actual needs of production, and these changes and adjustments should fall within the scope disclosed in this application.

Claims

1. A circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board, comprising a circuit board, Characterized in that, The circuit board includes a main circuit board with copper foil circuits and a sub-circuit board formed by 3D printing with copper foil circuits. The main circuit board includes a wiring area and a sub-board arrangement area. The wiring area is used for arranging first electronic components. The sub-circuit board is located in the sub-board arrangement area. The sub-circuit board is used for arranging second electronic components. The first electronic components and the second electronic components are electrically connected.

2. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 1, Characterized in that, Before the first electronic components are soldered to the wiring area, the sub-circuit board is printed on the sub-board arrangement area by a 3D printing device.

3. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 1, Characterized in that, After the first electronic components are soldered to the wiring area, the sub-circuit board is printed on the sub-board arrangement area by a 3D printing device.

4. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 1, Characterized in that, The sub-board arrangement area is a partial area of one surface of the main circuit board, or a groove is provided on one surface of the main circuit board, and the groove is the sub-board arrangement area.

5. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 4, Characterized in that, The thickness of the sub-circuit board is less than the thickness of the main circuit board.

6. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 4, Characterized in that, A plurality of first connection points are provided on one surface of the sub-circuit board, and a plurality of second connection points corresponding to the plurality of first connection points one by one are provided in the sub-board arrangement area. The main circuit board and the sub-circuit board are electrically connected through the plurality of first connection points and the plurality of second connection points.

7. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 1, Characterized in that, A hollowed-out area is provided on the main circuit board, and the hollowed-out area penetrates from one surface of the main circuit board to the other surface. The hollowed-out area is the sub-board arrangement area.

8. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 7, Characterized in that, The thickness of the sub-circuit board is equal to the thickness of the main circuit board.

9. The circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to claim 7, Characterized in that, The main circuit board and the sub-circuit board are electrically connected through a connector assembly. The connector assembly includes a first connector, a second connector and a wire harness. The first connector is provided on the main circuit board. The second connector is provided on the sub-circuit board. The wire harness is used to connect the first connector and the second connector.

10. An electronic device, Characterized in that, It includes the circuit board assembly of a 3D printed laminated board according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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