Mixing
PCB enclosure tolerances
Clash Royale CLAN TAG#URR8PPP
up vote
3
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favorite
I can imagine problems of PCBs not fitting into their enclosures or misaligned screw/hole pairs. Are these type of problems common, especially with the dirt cheap enclosures?
I am planning to use one that has a "0.8 mm tolerance". It does not specify where exactly this tolerance comes in though.
pcb enclosure tolerance alignment
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
favorite
I can imagine problems of PCBs not fitting into their enclosures or misaligned screw/hole pairs. Are these type of problems common, especially with the dirt cheap enclosures?
I am planning to use one that has a "0.8 mm tolerance". It does not specify where exactly this tolerance comes in though.
pcb enclosure tolerance alignment
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
favorite
up vote
3
down vote
favorite
I can imagine problems of PCBs not fitting into their enclosures or misaligned screw/hole pairs. Are these type of problems common, especially with the dirt cheap enclosures?
I am planning to use one that has a "0.8 mm tolerance". It does not specify where exactly this tolerance comes in though.
pcb enclosure tolerance alignment
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
I can imagine problems of PCBs not fitting into their enclosures or misaligned screw/hole pairs. Are these type of problems common, especially with the dirt cheap enclosures?
I am planning to use one that has a "0.8 mm tolerance". It does not specify where exactly this tolerance comes in though.
pcb enclosure tolerance alignment
pcb enclosure tolerance alignment
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
edited 54 mins ago
JRE
19.8k43666
19.8k43666
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
asked 1 hour ago
kellogs
29017
29017
add a comment |
add a comment |
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
up vote
3
down vote
accepted
Just leave generous clearances and you should be fine. Even with well designed and made boxes (eg. Hammond) it's not unusual to allow a couple mm overall clearance (1mm all around). Eg. (from above datasheet- maximum recommended PCB size)
Maybe you want to allow 1.5mm rather than 1mm if it looks a bit rough. Shrinkage in injection-molded parts is affected by resin choice and processing parameters so it's more likely to vary if the manufacturer is swapping resin types after the mold is designed or is pushing for high production rates.
Keep in mind that there are always draft angles in molded parts (not always shown on drawings) so the inside will be smaller at the bottom (top of the mold core) than at the top. Otherwise the part would not come out of the mold easily (or at all).
Similarly, allow generous hole sizes for mounting holes- use at least the "loose fit" diameter in mechanical engineering sources$^1$. As well as linear shrinkage, bosses can bend a bit (the part is a bit soft coming out of the mold) if it is not handled perfectly.
$^1$You can find that information online- look for "tap drill" tables, but the real bible, in North America anyway, is Machinery's Handbook.
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
4
down vote
If you have the tolerance stack you can usually design things to work with it (for example by adjusting the size of the mounting holes in the board).
0.8mm is massive for a typical project box sized enclosure however, you might want to find a better vendor.
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
I have also the same problem, I bought several enclosures from OOTDTY AliExpress, like below (they have them in different sizes).
What I found out is that M3 (self tapping) screws are too big for the holes to put the PCB in (the 18 holes in the bottom). M2 are too small (with tape around them they fit, but only works for metal screws, not plastic screws or PCB spacers), so probably M2.5 is the correct fit.
The holes do not fit with generic 4x6, 5x7 etc PCB sizes. However, I bought a small multitool and just drill extra holes in the PCB to fit them in the enclosure.
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
add a comment |
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
3
down vote
accepted
Just leave generous clearances and you should be fine. Even with well designed and made boxes (eg. Hammond) it's not unusual to allow a couple mm overall clearance (1mm all around). Eg. (from above datasheet- maximum recommended PCB size)
Maybe you want to allow 1.5mm rather than 1mm if it looks a bit rough. Shrinkage in injection-molded parts is affected by resin choice and processing parameters so it's more likely to vary if the manufacturer is swapping resin types after the mold is designed or is pushing for high production rates.
Keep in mind that there are always draft angles in molded parts (not always shown on drawings) so the inside will be smaller at the bottom (top of the mold core) than at the top. Otherwise the part would not come out of the mold easily (or at all).
Similarly, allow generous hole sizes for mounting holes- use at least the "loose fit" diameter in mechanical engineering sources$^1$. As well as linear shrinkage, bosses can bend a bit (the part is a bit soft coming out of the mold) if it is not handled perfectly.
$^1$You can find that information online- look for "tap drill" tables, but the real bible, in North America anyway, is Machinery's Handbook.
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
accepted
Just leave generous clearances and you should be fine. Even with well designed and made boxes (eg. Hammond) it's not unusual to allow a couple mm overall clearance (1mm all around). Eg. (from above datasheet- maximum recommended PCB size)
Maybe you want to allow 1.5mm rather than 1mm if it looks a bit rough. Shrinkage in injection-molded parts is affected by resin choice and processing parameters so it's more likely to vary if the manufacturer is swapping resin types after the mold is designed or is pushing for high production rates.
Keep in mind that there are always draft angles in molded parts (not always shown on drawings) so the inside will be smaller at the bottom (top of the mold core) than at the top. Otherwise the part would not come out of the mold easily (or at all).
Similarly, allow generous hole sizes for mounting holes- use at least the "loose fit" diameter in mechanical engineering sources$^1$. As well as linear shrinkage, bosses can bend a bit (the part is a bit soft coming out of the mold) if it is not handled perfectly.
$^1$You can find that information online- look for "tap drill" tables, but the real bible, in North America anyway, is Machinery's Handbook.
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
accepted
up vote
3
down vote
accepted
Just leave generous clearances and you should be fine. Even with well designed and made boxes (eg. Hammond) it's not unusual to allow a couple mm overall clearance (1mm all around). Eg. (from above datasheet- maximum recommended PCB size)
Maybe you want to allow 1.5mm rather than 1mm if it looks a bit rough. Shrinkage in injection-molded parts is affected by resin choice and processing parameters so it's more likely to vary if the manufacturer is swapping resin types after the mold is designed or is pushing for high production rates.
Keep in mind that there are always draft angles in molded parts (not always shown on drawings) so the inside will be smaller at the bottom (top of the mold core) than at the top. Otherwise the part would not come out of the mold easily (or at all).
Similarly, allow generous hole sizes for mounting holes- use at least the "loose fit" diameter in mechanical engineering sources$^1$. As well as linear shrinkage, bosses can bend a bit (the part is a bit soft coming out of the mold) if it is not handled perfectly.
$^1$You can find that information online- look for "tap drill" tables, but the real bible, in North America anyway, is Machinery's Handbook.
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
Just leave generous clearances and you should be fine. Even with well designed and made boxes (eg. Hammond) it's not unusual to allow a couple mm overall clearance (1mm all around). Eg. (from above datasheet- maximum recommended PCB size)
Maybe you want to allow 1.5mm rather than 1mm if it looks a bit rough. Shrinkage in injection-molded parts is affected by resin choice and processing parameters so it's more likely to vary if the manufacturer is swapping resin types after the mold is designed or is pushing for high production rates.
Keep in mind that there are always draft angles in molded parts (not always shown on drawings) so the inside will be smaller at the bottom (top of the mold core) than at the top. Otherwise the part would not come out of the mold easily (or at all).
Similarly, allow generous hole sizes for mounting holes- use at least the "loose fit" diameter in mechanical engineering sources$^1$. As well as linear shrinkage, bosses can bend a bit (the part is a bit soft coming out of the mold) if it is not handled perfectly.
$^1$You can find that information online- look for "tap drill" tables, but the real bible, in North America anyway, is Machinery's Handbook.
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
answered 39 mins ago
Spehro Pefhany
198k4142394
198k4142394
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
add a comment |
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
1
1
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
This is gold! Your best answer in all stackexchange :D
– kellogs
30 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
4
down vote
If you have the tolerance stack you can usually design things to work with it (for example by adjusting the size of the mounting holes in the board).
0.8mm is massive for a typical project box sized enclosure however, you might want to find a better vendor.
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
4
down vote
If you have the tolerance stack you can usually design things to work with it (for example by adjusting the size of the mounting holes in the board).
0.8mm is massive for a typical project box sized enclosure however, you might want to find a better vendor.
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
4
down vote
up vote
4
down vote
If you have the tolerance stack you can usually design things to work with it (for example by adjusting the size of the mounting holes in the board).
0.8mm is massive for a typical project box sized enclosure however, you might want to find a better vendor.
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
If you have the tolerance stack you can usually design things to work with it (for example by adjusting the size of the mounting holes in the board).
0.8mm is massive for a typical project box sized enclosure however, you might want to find a better vendor.
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
answered 1 hour ago
Dan Mills
10.6k11023
10.6k11023
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
add a comment |
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
I don't think I have a tolerance stack, just that particular tolerance value. Referring to the PCB fitting in the case / bumping into obstacles, would I be fine with a 1mm clearance around all the PCB edges for this enclosure ?
– kellogs
1 hour ago
1
1
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
Probably, but what is the tolerance of your PCB house when it comes to cutting out the boards? This is what I mean by a tolerance stack, the things add up sometimes, sometimes they don't add, sometimes you get weird things that need a little maths... And sometimes you decide that a few percent of units where things just don't work is acceptable and you get into monte-carlo methods to model the statistics.
– Dan Mills
52 mins ago
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
I have also the same problem, I bought several enclosures from OOTDTY AliExpress, like below (they have them in different sizes).
What I found out is that M3 (self tapping) screws are too big for the holes to put the PCB in (the 18 holes in the bottom). M2 are too small (with tape around them they fit, but only works for metal screws, not plastic screws or PCB spacers), so probably M2.5 is the correct fit.
The holes do not fit with generic 4x6, 5x7 etc PCB sizes. However, I bought a small multitool and just drill extra holes in the PCB to fit them in the enclosure.
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
I have also the same problem, I bought several enclosures from OOTDTY AliExpress, like below (they have them in different sizes).
What I found out is that M3 (self tapping) screws are too big for the holes to put the PCB in (the 18 holes in the bottom). M2 are too small (with tape around them they fit, but only works for metal screws, not plastic screws or PCB spacers), so probably M2.5 is the correct fit.
The holes do not fit with generic 4x6, 5x7 etc PCB sizes. However, I bought a small multitool and just drill extra holes in the PCB to fit them in the enclosure.
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
add a comment |
up vote
3
down vote
up vote
3
down vote
I have also the same problem, I bought several enclosures from OOTDTY AliExpress, like below (they have them in different sizes).
What I found out is that M3 (self tapping) screws are too big for the holes to put the PCB in (the 18 holes in the bottom). M2 are too small (with tape around them they fit, but only works for metal screws, not plastic screws or PCB spacers), so probably M2.5 is the correct fit.
The holes do not fit with generic 4x6, 5x7 etc PCB sizes. However, I bought a small multitool and just drill extra holes in the PCB to fit them in the enclosure.
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
I have also the same problem, I bought several enclosures from OOTDTY AliExpress, like below (they have them in different sizes).
What I found out is that M3 (self tapping) screws are too big for the holes to put the PCB in (the 18 holes in the bottom). M2 are too small (with tape around them they fit, but only works for metal screws, not plastic screws or PCB spacers), so probably M2.5 is the correct fit.
The holes do not fit with generic 4x6, 5x7 etc PCB sizes. However, I bought a small multitool and just drill extra holes in the PCB to fit them in the enclosure.
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
answered 1 hour ago
Michel Keijzers
5,46562360
5,46562360
add a comment |
add a comment |
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