Printed Circuit Boards In Everyday Life

By Author: Irma Greer
Total Articles: 53
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A printed circuit board (PCB) is an essential part of our everyday lives; we make use of them on a regular basis, perhaps without even knowing how they're helping us.

So what actually is a printed circuit board? A PCB is basically a thin sheet of material (usually made of fibreglass), on which are 'printed' electrical wires that connect the central processor to chips and other electrical components on the board. The main purposes of the PCB are to mount the components of the device, and to supply an electrical current between each component through the use of copper pathways. The main PCB in any system is called a 'motherboard' or simply 'system board', with some smaller versions being referred to as 'cards' or 'adapters'.

The printing process is complex, and requires a printed design to be transferred onto the board. Whereas some electronic hobbyists make their own printed circuit boards, there are many companies out there who offer a custom service to both companies and individuals, covering a huge range of electronic devices. Board designs start with the single sided and go through to complex multi-layer PCBs, ...
... and specialists will be able to advise you further on the kind you need.

There are many different types of printed circuit boards in regular use, from motherboards to expansion boards, network interface cards to controller boards, RAM chips to daughtercards, video adapters, and many more.

PCBs are used in a wide range of electrical items such as televisions, personal computers, monitors, radios, laptops, video games consoles and portable music players (their thin size makes them particularly useful in smaller devices). Even some mobiles, tablets and parts of cars rely on the involvement of one or more printed circuit boards. In fact, most of the everyday technology we use has to have some kind of PCB in order to work.

These boards are therefore important not only to large companies or technology enthusiasts, but they're also vital to our everyday living - even if we don't realise it. We simply wouldn't be able to watch TV, listen to the radio, play video games or do any computer-based work without them.

If you have specific PCB design needs, or just want to find out more about them, companies like Hampshire's Cistron Ltd can offer you a comprehensive service for all your printed circuit board requirements.

Cistron offer a comprehensive printed circuit board design service with particular expertise in the field of RF design from our office in Horndean, Hampshire. Our design team can also offer a mechanical design service.