KR102138341B1 - Film type antenna using high ductility nickel/stannum plating and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a film type antenna using high ductility nickel/stannum plating and a manufacturing method thereof, and more specifically, to the film type antenna using high ductility nickel/stannum plating and the manufacturing method thereof, which replaces an effect of the insulator and gold plating with high ductility nickel to reduce a process and costs, and includes a pattern extended to the outermost edge to improve an antenna function. To this end, the present invention includes: a pattern formation step of forming a pattern on a copper foil of a copper clad laminate (CCL); a plating step of plating high ductility nickel on the pattern of the copper clad laminate; and after the plating step, an outer shape punching step of cutting the copper foil and high ductility nickel of the copper clad laminate to the outermost edge.

Description

FILM TYPE ANTENNA USING HIGH DUCTILITY NICKEL/STANNUM PLATING AND ITS MANUFACTURING METHOD}

The present invention relates to a film-type antenna using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating and a method for manufacturing the same, more specifically, an existing method of manufacturing FPCB for an antenna adhered an insulator to the top of a copper foil laminate and plated nickel and gold, It relates to a film-type antenna using a highly flexible nickel/tin plating that can reduce the cost by reducing the process by forming the insulator and removing the gold plating process, and a method for manufacturing the same.

In general, an FPCB (Flexible Printed Circuit Board) for an antenna is called a flexible circuit board, and is a PCB manufactured to be used when a flexible circuit board and a thin board of a circuit engine are needed, unlike a conventional PCB. Therefore, FPCB responds to the trend of miniaturization, light weight, and multi-functional electronics and convergence, while also covering the shortcomings of PCB, and it is heat-resistant, flexible, thin and light, so it is initially a connector for optical pickup of DVD and computer hard disk drives. Etc.

Recently, due to the characteristics of FPCB, it is variously used for miniaturization (digital cameras, smartphones, etc.), flexibility (printer heads, hard disks, etc.), high-density wiring (precision equipment such as medical devices), and rationalization of assembly (instruments, automobile electronics, etc.). In particular, it is mainly used for mobile devices and communication devices.

Existing FPCBs adhered to the insulators that formed patterns on copper foil laminates and plated nickel and gold to serve as protection and conductors for copper foil. However, it had to go through the process of plating and bonding nickel, gold plating, and insulators, and there was a problem that the thickness of the product became thick.

In addition, as a way to protect the copper foil, there was a problem in that an insulator of a degree to which the copper foil could be protected was placed on the outermost side while forming an insulator and undergoing an external punching step.

Republic of Korea Registered Patent Publication No. 10-0947921 (Registration date: 2010.03.09.) Republic of Korea Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1152766 (Registration date: May 29, 2012)

The present invention has been devised to solve the problems of the prior art described above, and in manufacturing an FPCB for an antenna, the process of removing the structure of bonding the insulator and the structure of plating gold to remove nickel/tin and gold It is an object of the present invention to provide a film-type antenna using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating and a method of manufacturing the same to reduce the manufacturing cost.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a film-type antenna having an expanded copper foil through an external punching process in which highly flexible nickel/tin and copper foil to be plated to protect the copper foil are exposed to the outermost portion of the antenna.

In order to solve the above problems,

The film-like antenna using the highly flexible nickel/tin plating according to the present invention and its manufacturing method,

A pattern forming step of forming a pattern on a copper foil of a copper clad laminate (CCL); A plating step of plating highly flexible nickel/tin on a pattern of the copper foil laminate; And an external punching step of cutting the copper foil and the highly flexible nickel/tin of the copper foil laminate after the plating step so as to be exposed to the outermost part.

The copper foil used for the copper foil laminate is characterized by being an electrolytic foil.

It characterized in that it further comprises a silk mark printing step of printing information related to the product prior to the appearance punching step.

The copper foil laminate is characterized by having a structure in which polyimide, adhesive, and copper foil on which patterns are formed are sequentially stacked.

The copper-clad laminate is characterized in that 24.5 ~ 40.5 ㎛.

In the pattern forming step, it is characterized by forming a pattern through D/F lamination, D/F exposure, D/F development, etching, and D/F peeling.

In the plating step, it is characterized in that the upper and side surfaces of the pattern formed on the copper foil through the pattern forming step are surrounded by highly flexible nickel/tin.

The thickness of the highly flexible nickel is 1 to 5 μm, and the thickness of tin is 0.4 to 5 μm.

In the antenna produced by the method of manufacturing a film-like antenna using a highly flexible nickel plating,

It has a structure in which a tape, a copper foil laminated plate, and highly flexible nickel/tin are sequentially stacked, and is characterized in that the copper foil and highly flexible nickel are exposed to the outermost.

The film-type antenna using the highly flexible nickel/tin according to the present invention as described above and its manufacturing method eliminate the insulator forming the pattern for plating and the gold plating process to improve the protection and solderability of the copper foil, thereby producing the product production time and It can have the effect of significantly reducing the cost.

In addition, by removing the insulator and gold surrounding the copper foil and allowing the copper foil and nickel/tin to be exposed to the outermost in the external punching stage, an extended copper foil area can be provided to show an effect of improving the role of the antenna. .

1 is a view schematically showing a cross section of a film-type antenna used in the related art.
2 is a view schematically showing the structure of a film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating according to the present invention.
Figure 3 is a schematic view showing the manufacturing steps of the film-type antenna using a highly flexible nickel / tin plating according to the present invention.

The terms or words used in the specification and claims should not be interpreted as being limited to ordinary or dictionary meanings, and the inventor can appropriately define the concept of terms in order to best describe his or her invention. Based on the principle of being present, it should be interpreted as meanings and concepts consistent with the technical spirit of the present invention.

Therefore, the configuration shown in the embodiments and drawings described in this specification is only one of the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and does not represent all of the technical spirit of the present invention, and can replace them at the time of this application. It should be understood that there may be various equivalents and variations.

The film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating according to the present invention is made of FPCB (Flexible Printed Circuits Board). First, to describe the general FPCB, almost all electronic devices ranging from small home appliances, smart phones and medical equipment to advanced mobile communication devices and precision equipment have been required to be reduced in size and weight, and FPCB is used as a core component. , Among them, the most frequently used product is the antenna of the smartphone. The FPCB for antennas can be changed according to the appearance of the smartphone due to its unique flexibility. In order to protect the copper foil subjected to the propagation of the FPCB, it was common to be constructed in a form of wrapping the copper foil with a flexible polyimide, but the process required for forming a pattern and plating on the top of the FPCB adds to the production period and cost. There were a lot of problems.

Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing a film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 is a view schematically showing a cross-section of a film-type antenna used in the related art, and the conventional problems of copper foil 13 are not extended to the outermost, so that an area where radio waves can be received is narrow. In order to improve solderability, a film-type antenna manufactured through a process of plating nickel and gold by forming a pattern on an insulator also extends to the outermost portion of the copper foil 13, and it is difficult to generate the effect.

To compensate for this, the present invention disclosed a configuration as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the structure of a film-type antenna using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating; a pattern forming step (S10) of forming a pattern on a copper foil 13 of a copper clad laminate (CCL) 10 )Wow; A plating step (S20) of plating highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 on the pattern of the copper foil laminate 10; And after the plating step (S20) of the copper foil laminated plate 10, the copper foil 13 and the high-flexibility nickel (20) / tin 30 is cut out so that it is exposed to the outermost step (S40); through the copper foil laminate Insulator to protect copper foil on the top, nickel and gold are excluded, and high-flexibility nickel (20)/tin (30) is plated to bond the insulator, process to form a pattern on the insulator, and nickel to the patterned part The process of plating for a certain amount or more (to prevent the diffusion of gold into copper) and the process of plating gold disappear, and the process of plating high-flexibility nickel/tin is reduced to one, which reduces the process and enables the production of finished products quickly in time. You can profit from the enemy.

In addition, the copper foil 13 is formed to be extended to the outermost portion, and as the area of the copper foil 13 increases, the ability to transmit and receive radio waves can be improved and can be a feature capable of responding to miniaturization and weight reduction.

In the external punching step (S40), highly flexible nickel (20)/tin (30), copper foil (13), adhesive (12), and polyimide (11) are punched in this order, highly flexible nickel (20)/tin ( 30) is stretched at the same time as being cut, and is pressed onto the exposed surface of the copper foil 13 at the bottom, thereby making it possible to produce a coating effect, effectively protecting the copper foil 13, and being stable in high temperature, high humidity and salt water environments. It becomes possible.

Before the plating step (S20) includes a BBT (Bare Board Test) inspection step for inspecting the breakage and overlap of the copper foil 13 on which the pattern is formed, using a start pin and an end pin through which electricity can flow in the same circuit. By measuring the resistance and current, it is configured to judge if it is out of a certain range, as a break or overlap.

The copper foil 13 used for the copper foil laminate 10 is composed of an electrolytic foil, which is made by heating a copper plate thicker than a desired thickness to a rollable temperature and pressing it through both rolls to make it thinner. As it is pressed in one direction, the arrangement of the surface atoms also lies in one direction, which results in a relatively uniform and flat surface, after which the efficiency of the plating step and the insulator (polyimide) attachment decreases and the period of use decreases or increases. It can be easily corroded, but the electrolytic foil is coated with copper using sulfuric acid (electrolytic method). In FPCB, which requires thin copper to be stacked on a roll by atom basis by using redox reaction, FPCB requires thick copper foil. Electrolytic foils made by stacking copper foils rather than rolled foils, which are made thinner, are not only cost-effective, but when attaching an insulator using a rough surface feature, it is easy to attach an insulator through an adhesive, so that the lifespan can be reduced and life can be extended.

Before the external punching step (S40), the silk mark printing step (S30) for printing information related to the product may be further included. The product number, product direction and manufacturing maker are described, and ink is printed in the place to be printed. It can be configured to go through a process of spraying a large amount and pressing it using a squeegee. At this time, the pressure, speed and angle of the squeegee are very important. The pressure of the squeegee is 7.0 to 8.0 kgf/cm 2, the speed of the squeegee is 1 to 3 mm/sec, and the squeegee angle may be 70 to 78°. If there is a difference from the above values, the amount of ink printed on the pattern may be reduced or increased, resulting in inconsistent printing and waste of raw materials. After this, the silk mark printing step may be completed by drying at 150° C. for about 20 minutes.

The copper foil laminate 10 is characterized by having a structure in which polyimide 11, adhesive 12, and copper foil 13 on which patterns are formed are sequentially stacked. Description of the copper foil laminate 10 will be described below.

The copper-clad laminate 10 is characterized in that it is 24.5 to 40.5 μm, and the FPCB that enters therein according to the miniaturization and weight reduction of electronic products is also required to be reduced in size and light weight. Weihai copper foil laminate also became thinner. At the bottom, the insulator is constructed so that protection of copper foil is possible, and the adhesive and copper foil are sequentially stacked on top of it. In the case of copper foil, it can be at least 12 µm thick to receive radio waves, and the adhesive is generally 10 µm. It is constructed and an alkali-based or epoxy-based adhesive can be used.

In the pattern forming step (S10), a pattern is formed through D/F lamination, D/F exposure, D/F development, etching, and D/F peeling. D/F lamination uses a circuit when etching on a substrate on which roughness is formed. A process of laminating a dry film (photo resist) for protection, D/F exposure is a process of forming a circuit image by irradiating UV (ultraviolet rays) by placing an artwork film (mask) on the dry film stacked on the CCL surface, D/F F development is the process of removing the unlighted part (uncured part) from exposure using a developer. Etching is a nicking solution for the part where D/F is not left on the copper foil after D/F development to form a circuit. The process of removing and removing D/F is a process of removing D/F having a protective film during etching using an alkali solution (NaOH or KOH).

Through the above process, the copper foil laminate 10 has a structure in which the polyimide 11, the adhesive 12, and the copper foil 13 on which the pattern is formed are sequentially stacked as described above.

In the plating step (S20), it is characterized in that the upper and side surfaces of the pattern formed on the copper foil 13 through the pattern forming step (S10) are surrounded by high-flexibility nickel (20)/tin (30). It can be made of nickel plating. Electroless nickel plating is a method of depositing metals from aqueous solutions containing metal ions, including substitution plating and chemical plating. Advantages include uniform plating thickness, excellent corrosion resistance and abrasion resistance of products, and adhesion to material metals. By maintaining this very excellent and excellent gloss and beautiful surface, the adhesion to copper foil is excellent, and the corrosion resistance and abrasion resistance are excellent, so that the life of the product can be long.

The thickness of the highly flexible nickel 20 is 1 to 5 μm, and the thickness of tin 30 is 0.4 to 5 μm. In the FPCB where flexibility is important, thickness is one of the matters directly related to flexibility. If it is too thick, it will not bend well, and if it is too thin, it will be flexible, but the service life may be short, so nickel and tin thicknesses of 1 to 5 μm and 0.4 to 5 μm are recommended respectively. , Existing FPCB is plated with gold, and since it can diffuse into copper when gold is plated, the thickness of nickel/tin is essentially thicker than a certain amount (3 ~ 8㎛), but the highly ductile nickel/tin of the present invention has no gold composition. Since there is no problem of diffusion, it can be formed thinner.

In the film-type antenna using a high ductility nickel / tin plating prepared by the above method,

The tape 1, the copper foil laminate 10, and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 have a stacked structure, and the copper foil 13 and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 are outermost. It is characterized by being exposed to.

3 is a view schematically showing the manufacturing steps of the film-type antenna using a highly flexible nickel / tin plating according to the above description.

<Example>

The tape 1, the copper foil laminate 10, and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 have a stacked structure, and the copper foil 13 and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 are outermost. The following tests were performed on the antenna according to the present invention.

[Test Example]

<Test Example 1> Reliability test at high temperature and high humidity

The antenna manufactured by the method for manufacturing a film-type antenna using the high-flexibility nickel/tin plating as described above is subjected to reliability tests on whether there is no excitement in a high temperature and high humidity environment change, before and after testing, and whether there is no abnormality in VSWR measurement. Did. After the insulation adhesion and gold plating were removed from the existing FPCB, all highly ductile nickel/tin plating antennas were tested. As a test method, 120 hours were left in an 80°C/80% chamber and then 4 hours at room temperature. Thereafter, visual inspection and VSWR measurement were performed.

-VSWR (Voltage Standing Wave Ratio) is called the voltage standing wave ratio, and it means the height ratio of the standing wave generated by reflection, and the lower the value, the less reflected radio waves.

* Criteria

1) After the test, there should be no FPCB excitation

2) After the test, there should be no abnormality in appearance inspection and VSWR measurement.

Excitation was not observed in all of the film-type antennas using highly flexible nickel/tin plating, and the VSWR measurement showed good values. This is an example showing that the adhesion state of the copper foil and the insulator can be maintained in a high temperature and high humidity environment including room temperature, and that the state of the copper foil that transmits and receives radio waves is not significantly different from that at room temperature. It can be seen that the antenna exhibits an excellent effect that can be used in a high temperature and high humidity environment for a certain period of time or longer.

<Test Example 2> Reliability test in a salt spray environment

Reliability tests were conducted to determine whether the antenna produced by the method for manufacturing a film-type antenna using the high-flexibility nickel/tin plating as described above has no pattern discoloration and excitation in a salt spray environment or can operate normally. All of the film-type antennas using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating were tested, and the test method was to leave the saline of NaCl (35°C, NaCl 5%) through a salt spray tester for 48 hours in a tester, wash, remove water and remove for 4 hours at room temperature. After standing, visual inspection and VSWR measurement were performed.

* Criteria

1) There should be no discoloration or lifting of the copper foil pattern part before and after the test.

2) After the test, there should be no abnormality in appearance inspection and VSWR measurement.

The excitation phenomenon was not confirmed after the test of the film type antenna using the highly flexible nickel/tin plating, and the VSWR measurement showed that the numerical value was good. This is an example that shows that the copper foil protected by highly flexible nickel/tin plating in a salt-free environment as well as in a salt-free environment can maintain its adhesion without corrosion, and the condition of the copper foil that transmits and receives radio waves is not significantly different in everyday and salt water environments. As a result, it can be seen that the film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating exhibits excellent effects that can be used without abnormality in a salt water environment.

<Test Example 3> Reliability test after salt spray environment exposure and bending treatment

The antenna manufactured by the method of manufacturing a film-type antenna using the high-flexibility nickel/tin plating as described above is subjected to a bending test after being exposed to a salt spray environment, and then there is no pattern discoloration and excitation, or a reliability test for normal operation is possible. Did. All of the film-type antennas using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating were tested, and the test method was 180 times with a 1 mm diameter steel rod when the saline of NaCl (35°C, NaCl 5%) was left in the tester for 48 hours through a salt spray tester. After folding, water washing, water removal, and standing at room temperature for 4 hours were performed for visual inspection and VSWR measurement.

* Criteria

1) There should be no discoloration or lifting of the copper foil pattern part before and after the test.

2) After the test, there should be no abnormality in appearance inspection and VSWR measurement.

The excitation phenomenon was not confirmed after the test of the film type antenna using the highly flexible nickel/tin plating, and the VSWR measurement showed that the numerical value was good. This means that copper foil protected by high ductility nickel/tin plating in the salt-free environment and bending test as well as in the daily life without salt can be maintained without corrosion, and the condition of the copper foil that transmits and receives radio waves is not significantly different in the daily and salt water environments. As an example to show, it can be seen that the film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating exhibits excellent effects that can be used without abnormality in a salt water environment and a bending test.

The test examples presented above are exemplary and those skilled in the art will be able to make various modifications and modifications to the test examples presented without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is not limited by these modified and modified inventions.

In describing the present invention, specific shapes and directions have been mainly described, but the present invention can be variously modified and changed by those skilled in the art, and such modifications and variations should be interpreted as being included in the scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Tape 10 Copper-clad laminated board
11: polyimide 12: adhesive
13: copper foil 20: nickel
30: tin 40: insulator
S10: Pattern formation step S20: Plating step
S30: silk mark printing step S40: appearance punching step

Claims (9)

A pattern forming step (S10) of forming a pattern on the copper foil 13 of the copper clad laminate (CCL) 10;
A plating step (S20) of plating highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 on the pattern of the copper foil laminate 10; And
After the plating step (S20), the copper foil 13 and the high-flexibility nickel 20 / tin 30 of the copper-clad laminate 10 are cut out so as to be exposed to the outermost (S40); high-flexibility nickel containing; /Production method of film type antenna using tin plating
The method according to claim 1,
The copper foil 13 used in the copper foil laminate 10 is a method of manufacturing a film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating, characterized in that it is an electrolytic foil.
The method according to claim 1,
A method for manufacturing a film-type antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating, further comprising a silk mark printing step (S30) of printing information related to a product prior to the external punching step (S40).
The method according to claim 1,
The copper-clad laminate 10 has a polyimide 11, an adhesive 12, and a copper foil 13 having a pattern formed thereon sequentially stacked structure characterized in that the film-type antenna manufacturing method using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating
The method according to claim 4,
The copper-clad laminate 10 is 24.5 ~ 40.5 ㎛ characterized in that the film-type antenna manufacturing method using a highly flexible nickel / tin plating
The method according to claim 1,
In the pattern forming step (S10), a film-type antenna using high-flexibility nickel/tin plating characterized in that a pattern is formed through D/F lamination, D/F exposure, D/F development, etching, and D/F peeling. Manufacturing method
The method according to claim 1,
In the plating step (S20), the high ductility nickel/tin is characterized by surrounding the top and side surfaces of the pattern formed on the copper foil 13 through the pattern formation step (S10) with high ductility nickel 20/tin 30. Film-type antenna manufacturing method using plating
The method according to claim 6,
The high-ductility nickel (20) has a thickness of 1 to 5 μm, and the thickness of tin (30) is 0.4 to 5 μm.
Claims 1 to 8 of the antenna produced by the method according to any one of claims,
The tape 1, the copper foil laminate 10, and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 have a stacked structure, and the copper foil 13 and the highly flexible nickel 20/tin 30 are outermost. Film antenna using highly flexible nickel/tin plating, characterized by being exposed to

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