Not only will silkscreen be unreadable if it ends up on a pad, but it could also affect the solderability of the board. Line widths that are too narrow may not silkscreen on the board correctly.Īnother concern is silkscreen spacing to pads or other PCB objects. Font sizes that are too small or are drawn with too wide of a line will end up looking like an ink spot instead of readable text. The first step in creating a good PCB silkscreen is to use the most optimum font sizes and line widths.
Here are some of the details to keep in mind as you finalize the silkscreen in your PCB design. Such as, it is critical that PCB designers spend time to ensure it is created correctly. Documentations: Silkscreens are also used for marking information, such as company names and contact information, the board name and part number, bar codes, date codes, and other information.Īs you can see, the silkscreen is much more important to the assembled circuit board than it is often given credit for.Special Markings: In some cases, a silkscreen may contain specific user instructions, such as switch settings or assembly instructions.Pin Markings: Many components will need their first pins marked, and in the case of large components like connectors with hundreds of pins, there may be additional markings as well.Component Symbols: While most components may have a simple rectangle or line to show how they are aligned on the board, some, such as BGA packages, may require more complex symbols to designate their orientation.Reference Designators: Each component and assembled part on the board should have a unique reference designator.The data should put into silkscreen layer(s) will usually include the following: If the sizes are too small, or the wrong font is used, it may be unreadable. It is important that the correct data be included on the silkscreen, and that the correct sizes and shapes be used, as well. These silkscreen markings are laid out in Gerber file, and the completed artwork is usually referred to simply as the silkscreen. This is accomplished with an ink that is silkscreen onto the board. Even after the PCB board is completed, there may still be maintenance, setups, or even field repairs that requires simple information printed on the circuit board. Some of this work may be done manually, and for the technicians, doing this work to find specific components, they need to be labeled.
PCB silkscreen colors are commonly green, and there are many glossy and matt colors are available.īefore a printed circuit board (PCB) is installed in a product, it must be assembled and tested first. The silkscreen is printed with non-conductive epoxy ink and cured to permanent identifiers, which form a “map”, so that assembly, rework and debug technicians can find the correct components as well as other information on the board that they are working with. On most printed circuit boards (PCBs), the designators, symbols, markings and other legends on the outor layers of the board are known as PCB Silkscreen or PCB Legend.
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