Valley Services Electronics

Outside of video games, shortcuts and corner-cutting have a more negative connotation. We tend to view shortcuts as cheating, whether the person performs the action or the recipient. Typically, a shortcut invokes risk, which might momentarily solve a problem but lead to issues in developing knowledge or skills that can later undermine the shortcut user.…

The Association Connecting Electronics Industries (IPC) publishes the industry standard for PCB manufacturing—IPC-A-610. It is a comprehensive document that outlines the criteria and requirements for the acceptability of electronic assemblies, guiding manufacturers on quality assurance and inspection processes. The standard lists three classifications of PCB manufacturing requirements: Class 1, 2, and 3.  Frequently, designers may…

Any electrical system with considerable speeds or sensitive/aggressive lines must keep EMI as a primary concern. Systems can experience poor or intermittent performance due to noise-induced signal distortion without carefully placing components, traces, and cables. While there are numerous methods to prevent EMI, one of the simplest and most efficient methods is twisted wire pairs…

For decades, Moore’s Law was a defining experimental rule defining the rate at which the customer demanded significant improvements in computing power and how fast manufacturers were able to furnish this request.

Design area is precious in PCB layout. Designers often must get creative towards the end of the layout when component placement on the outer layers and planes and signals on the inner layers occupy most of the routable area. Smaller components—when available—are a possibility but may be limited by either supply or package constraints. For…

For the safety of consumers during the service life and after disposal, material restrictions relating to electronics manufacturing help prevent the excessive buildup of environmental contaminants. While a necessary regulation, this legislation complicates an already intricate and challenging manufacturing process. Maintaining this compliance is important to prevent downstream issues like revisions or costly recalls, so…