In 2014, a new Gerber format was released call Gerber X2 (or version 2) by Ucamco, owners of the Gerber standard. If this is news to you, Ucamco has put together an excellent 5 minute intro video which can be …
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Blog
Reshoring of Printed Circuit Board Manufacturing
For many people, the words “Made in the USA” have become a rallying cry. In fact, a survey done in 2012 found that 83% of US citizens disapprove of companies that manufacture their goods overseas and they are interested in …
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Basic PCB Design Tips & Tricks
Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) are made from fiberglass reinforced plastic with the copper wiring in trace form. All the circuit board components are held in position by soldering the components into place after drilling holes in the demarcated areas on …
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5 Electronics Design Tips for Beginners
The topic of Electronics Design can cover a vast array of technical options. This article will focus on some of the basics. A schematic drawing is only one part of creating a design in electronic engineering. Your schematic should be …
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An Introduction to PCB Arrays
What is a PCB Array? What do you think of when you hear the word “array”? Perhaps you think of an antenna array, or possibly some type of mathematical array or maybe even Video Graphics Array (VGA like the adapter …
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Countersinks and Counterbores for Printed Circuit Boards
In this post, we’ll introduce the concept of Countersinks and Counterbores and how these are used in Printed Circuit Boards (of course, countersinks and counterbores are not anything unique to printed circuit boards and are used in a variety of …
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An Inside Look at Manufacturing Circuit Classics PCBs
There's no doubt that we, at Bay Area Circuits, get to work with some very talented individuals working on some pretty incredible projects. Star Simpson is one of those individuals and Circuit Classics is one of those projects! Star is bringing to life classic circuit drawings from Forrest Mims' "Getting Started in Electronics" and recently made the designs available via Crowd Supply.
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The Rebirth of Silicon Valley Hardware Manufacturing
Are we experiencing a rebirth of Silicon Valley hardware manufacturing? High volume manufacturing of hardware is not something commonly done in Silicon Valley, with much of that work finding its way to places around the globe. But a large amount of new product development, prototyping and low volume production seems to be firmly positioned in the Valley.
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The Gerber Format; an Interview with Ucamco
For engineers new to PCB design, the term ‘Gerber files’ will quickly become a part of their everyday vernacular. And as such, it’s a topic we’ve covered frequently and will cover again today by going straight to the source via …
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Standard Gerber Declared Obsolete
In May 2014, Ucamco, the company that maintains Gerber specifications, released an “Open Letter to the Gerber User Community” and stated “Standard Gerber is now technologically obsolete.” Here Is Why There have been a number of important updates to the Standard …
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Introduction to InstantDFM; Reduce PCB Prototype Failures
Has this ever happened to you? You have spent hours designing a new circuit board. You have checked and double checked every net, component and trace on the board and you’re confident your design is solid. Off to a PCB …
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PCB Protection Can be Compromised by Ground Structure
Abstract Printed Circuit Board designers sometimes place protective devices on external signals as they enter a PCB and shunt the current from these devices to a separate “noise” ground distinct from the board signal ground. An analysis is given that …
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RS274D vs RS274X Gerber file format
Gerber File Extension For those that are not familiar with the Gerber file extension designation of rs274d vs rs274x we put together some basic information to help you understand the difference and why it is important in the PCB ordering …
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