C'mon Baby, Let's Do the Twist!

摘要

The answer could be a definitely yes, or positively no, or somewhere in between. It really depends on the circuit construction (i.e total thickness) and also the parameters of the bending and twisting. Let me start with the bending.The amount of bending that a circuit can handle is directly related to the overall circuit thickness and also to the radius of the bend. Each time the circuit is bent, the outermost layers will slightly stretch and the inner layers will slightly compress. The smaller the bend radius, the more stretching and compressing the circuit will be subjected to. Also, the thicker the circuit is, the more exaggerated these stresses become. These microscopic stresses can take a severe toll on the flex if they are not taken into account at the design stage. IPC-2223 Sectional Design Standard to Flexible Printed Boards contains formulas for minimum bend radii, but these are really aimed more at flex-to-install applica-tions and not dynamic applications like die one you have described.