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Molex is the largest worldwide manufacturer of custom user interface products. With facilities
located in Naperville, Illinois; Guadalajara, Mexico; and Dongguan, China; Molex manufacturing
capabilities can supply even the highest volume needs from consumer to medical to industrial
markets. Every Molex switch assembly is custom made according to our customers’ needs.
From cell phones to household appliances, cash registers, keypads and monitoring devices,
Molex switch assemblies can be simple or extremely sophisticated. In a cell phone or calculator,
for example, pushing a tactile switch results in an audible and mechanical snap that signals
the user that the button has been actuated. That snap is created from depressing a dome
placed between the layers to complete the circuit. In non-tactile applications such
as microwave ovens, pressing the decorative graphic overlay will result in the user hearing
a beep and no snap feel. With the addition of integrated LEDs, resistors or capacitors,
simple flexible substrates evolve into more complex front panel assemblies. For applications
such as washing machines where many LEDs need to be positioned on the front panel, placing
them on a flex substrate eliminates a conventional printed circuit board layer, increasing usable
Z axis space and reducing manufacturing costs. If a membrane switch requires integrated components
like LEDs, they’re added to the flex circuit by one of two types of conductive adhesive.
Omni Axial conductive epoxy is a high volume bonding process used in applications like
home appliances. It allows automated assembly of components and materials that have been
encapsulated in adhesive and dried. Z Axis adhesive designed for lower volume runs like
medical equipment and bar code scanners uses conductive particles suspended in epoxy applied
to the substrate. Components are then compressed onto it. Depending on the final product, further
assembly may be required. For membrane switches, spacers are applied to the bottom flex layer.
Metal dome contacts are automatically placed. Other final components like connectors are
added and the top layer and overlay are bonded together as a final step. Whether the customer
application requires a simple membrane switch or a complex control panel assembly, Molex
has the technology, capacity and imagination to turn ideas into finger tip functionality.