Printed Circuit Board: a story of innovation and simplicity

Martina Russo

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We are constantly surrounded by electronics. From the morning when we wake up until the moment our head touches the pillow.No, that’s not an exaggeration, it’s really true!If you think about it, today we have countless electronic solutions that we use in our daily lives, starting from Smart Living devices like Alexa, to the Smartwatch that monitors our heart rate, to the on-board computer in our car.If we then travel on our minds and begin to fly with our imagination a bit further, we realize that electronics are really everywhere, all the way to space! Who knows how much electronics are in satellites in space or in shuttles launched to explore uncharted areas of infinity.

I mean, truly everywhere.But do we know where it all comes from? Do we know what the object behind every electronic device is? I will explain it to you!

This “thing” from which everything starts is called Printed Circuit Board, a board on which tracks are etched that will be used to interconnect the various components assembled on it. Yes, I didn’t understand what it was at first either, but then a friend of mine said, “You know when we used to drop the remote control as kids and when we opened it up, you could see that green board? That’s a Printed Circuit Board.”

It is from that so simple but at the same time complex green board that our remote control works.It is by that holder that our telephones work, streetlights turn on, and the coffee machine makes coffee.

Who invented this solution and revolutionized forever in the world of electronics was Austrian inventor named Paul Eisler, born in Vienna on August 3 in 1907.

After studying electrical engineering at the Vienna University of Technology, Paul Eisler emigrated to England in 1936 to escape the Nazis. During his career, he worked in several companies in the field of electronics and contributed to the development of various inventions.

But his most significant contribution came in 1943, when he obtained a license for the invention of the PCB for a radio application. This product represented a major breakthrough in the manufacture and assembly of electronic components, as it allowed components to be connected on an isolated, flat board rather than using articulated wiring systems. It was an approach that greatly simplified the process of manufacturing and assembling electronic devices and that went hand in hand with the need to miniaturize devices to increase their level of usability.Just think how complex it might have been before to connect all those components and avoid all that tangled wiring.

Compared with 1943, the PCB has changed and mutated to meet the growing needs of the market, which requires that its dimensions be smaller and smaller and, above all, be able to accommodate more powerful components and sustain very high temperatures and voltages.

Isn’t that fascinating?

That behind a simple object actually lies a universe of technology that evolves and changes every day to adapt to the needs of human beings, their ideas, and their ambitions. A story, the PCB story, that began as a response to a logistical problem and is now one of the pioneering inventions of the 20th century.

Who am I and why am I writing this?I am Martina and I am the Head of Marketing at Piciesse Elettronica, an Italian company that actually manufactures printed circuit boards!When I joined the team, I knew about PCBs exactly as much as my friend had told me about them with the remote control example. But then, as I grew in the company, talking to customers, attending meetings and events, I realized the greatness of this component. And not only that.Consider that it can take weeks and weeks to produce a PCB, through numerous processes that also involve testing to test if the product work. Our PCBs for example, find their application mainly in Automotive. We can only imagine then, the expertise of this company-and its very great responsibility-to produce something that must be perfect.And although, speaking of market value, the PCB has a relatively low cost, it is an essential element that we cannot do without.

If you liked the article and are looking for a PCB manufacturing partner, please add me on LinkedIn :) I will be happy to chat with you!

And you, did you know what a circuit board was? Let me know!