The Printed Circuit Board and Its Applications
The printed circuit board , or PCB, has revolutionized the electronics industry. Devices using this technology are in constant use at all times. The sheer scope of devices using PCBs is so vast as to be almost incomprehensible. The sheer variety of devices in which a printed circuit board resides boggles the mind. Contrary to popular belief, PCBs are not limited to digital devices. While circuit boards have shrunk and the circuits upon them have become increasingly complex over the years, they go back all the way to the radios found in the Second World War. Since listing all applications of printed circuit boards would be an arduous task, below is a small sampling of devices which employ these electronic marvels.
Modern communication is dependent on the PCB . While a rotary telephone may not contain such a board, everything from cellular phones to the towers that transmit their signal to two-way radios and their repeaters utilize PCBs . Thanks to the advent of multilayer PCBs, communication devices have shrank still further, culminating in the various gadgets now in common use.
Aviation is another industry in which the printed circuit board features prominently. In fact, military aviation was the catalyst for some great strides in modern PCB design. One system which came out of these breakthroughs was called Fly-by-Wire. The advent of vehicles which needed to travel into space meant that their electronics would need to be able to stand up to the extreme conditions found in this area. Hence, new PCB layout techniques were created to help shield components from these conditions. Hence, PCB layouts needed to be modified so that the onboard components could stand up to these environmental conditions.
PCBs are also the backbone of the automobile, especially the modern variety. From as far back as the late 1970’s, cars and trucks contained some form of computers to regulate the engine and other vital components. miniaturization over the past 30 years has changed the role of computers in cars considerably, to the point where cars have built-in internet access and smartphone connectivity.
Indeed, a convincing case could be made that today’s world would not be the same if not for the printed circuit board.
