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Electronics => General Electronics => Topic started by: thetrueman on April 28, 2011, 08:33:47 20:33



Title: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: thetrueman on April 28, 2011, 08:33:47 20:33
Hi,

I've made some digital controller which has one display and some push buttons.
Now I made it fit in a plastic box and made plastic flex front panel by screen printing.
Everything is OK but I just want to know that how can I emboss the plastic flex sheet on the place where there is push button mounted down on the pcb. Please suggest any way.\

Thanks.

Sorted wizpic


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: LabVIEWguru on April 29, 2011, 01:29:03 01:29
Forgive me if I don't correctly understand, but I do something like this for one-of-a-kind projects.

I purchased "rub-on" lettering and lettered the plastic faceplate. Then I purchased a sticky clear plastic sheet used to preserve photographs, and carefully sealed the panel with the sheet. This was a prototype/demo unit and it worked well.

If you want actually a raised area for tactile feedback, they sell those *really sticky* silver stickers (I don't know the trade name) that are on all types of products. You could cut one up with an exacto knife and a little practice. They are impossible to get off. If you want to spend a few dollars, I've seen ads in Nuts and Volts and Circuit Cellar for companies that will laser-cut a front panel for you out of just about anything. Tell them it's for a possible commercial product you are working on and they'll give you a price break on 1 or 2 with a quote for a few hundred.

Depending on the properties of the plastic you are using for the front panel. office supply stores have a machine to heat-seal documents or photographs that may work.

I laser-printed labels, heat sealed them and glued them onto recessed metal faceplates. It looked very professional, considering the minimal effort involved.

If you want to get really fancy, go to office depot (in the US) and they will order you little custom signs like for desk nameplates or office doors. You can get them up to about a foot square. The plastic is layered, so when they cut the letters in it comes out a different color. You'll have to cut the holes for the display yourself, but again, all it takes is practice.

Then again, maybe I've completely misunderstood what you want, in which case you can just ignore me.


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: thetrueman on April 29, 2011, 05:39:57 17:39
Please look at attached images and I hope you'll got clearly that what I need.


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: Wizpic on April 29, 2011, 06:29:25 18:29
I  understand what thetrueman wants to do, May becasue I wrote the wizpic decoder  ;D

Basicily he wants to rasie part of the front panel where there is a tactile switch underneath the front panel he has made so that he has a clear press rather than the front the front panel been flush on the case , becasue this can casue fasle switching which depends on how close the switches are together.
Sorry I can't really help I know what you mean because I had the same problem once, I did try to heat and moulde the panel but this made a mess,
This may be a simple idea not tried it myself use a small thin say M3,M4 or may be M5 washer glued over the hole to rasie the front panel. Both posts above also give some good ideas
wizpic


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: pickit2 on April 29, 2011, 07:09:35 19:09
Using wizcoder I was able to show this  ;D

The wizzer washer is black to stop the blue sheet pressing down on the switch.


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: thetrueman on April 29, 2011, 08:52:39 20:52
But how professionaly it is bumped out? Is there any machine or tool? How we can search on google i.e. search words etc...


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: Wizpic on April 29, 2011, 09:41:11 21:41
Yes there may be a tool but it depends on how much money you want to spend and quantity required, Why don't you just try it and see the washers I've got here are only 0.2-.3mm thick.
You have quite a few susgestions now. You just need to try it or like you said look on goolge ohterwise this will just go round and round


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: pickit2 on April 29, 2011, 11:15:39 23:15
I have only one left from here.
the hight from pcb to top of button is 2.50mm and button travel is 0.20mm sorry I have no model number
http://www.schurter.com/var/schurter/storage/ilcatalogue/files/document/datasheet/en/pdf/typ_PMS.pdf


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: bbarney on April 30, 2011, 03:24:12 15:24
try keypad membrane switch

http://www.google.ca/#hl=en&xhr=t&q=keypad+membrane&cp=9&pf=p&sclient=psy&newwindow=1&source=hp&aq=0&aqi=&aql=&oq=keypad+me&pbx=1&fp=4b49d733da93cd58

or keypad membrane overlay

http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/graphic-overlay-membrane-keypad.html


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: thetrueman on May 02, 2011, 08:31:57 20:31
Thanks bbarney and all.

I have some idea to make some small male-female bump and dome tool and press sheet with it like a plier and may apply some heat, perhaps it should work. Just to do some experiment. Thanks to all.


Title: Re: Digital Meter Front Flex Panel Sheet
Post by: alien on May 08, 2011, 07:46:56 07:46
Dear,
As per discussions above what I observed is that you want Dome Switches with compatible stickers...in that case you can take help of some professional designer

EDIT : please check your message box sent a web link of a company which can do this all......