Effects of 3D shapes in PWB design

Nowadays the outlook of any device can be a more important issue than the technical features inside it. Inevitably all these new and interesting features must be covered with a successfully designed package. Traditional rigid printed wiring board (PWB) can be a restriction for the designer, and, therefore, in some futuristic and novel designs, it is not used any more. A formable 3D multilayer PWB can be an answer for a faddish package without a traditional PWB. Formability brings 3D shapes into the PWB that will introduce new challenges to overcome. This paper discusses the role of 3D shapes in PWB design, and presents one solution to overcome these challenges. By designing a unique support structure for each 3D shape the inconvenient distortions can be controlled. Support structures enable the designers to use formable multilayer structures effectively, and the design freedom is one step closer.