Abstract:
Magnetic devices, and associated methods of manufacture, using flex circuits. Conductive flex circuit traces, or combinations of such traces with conductive printed circuit board or other substrate traces, form windings around toroidal ferromagnetic cores. Bending the flex circuit into a partial loop or a full loop forms partial or full windings respectively. Bonding or flow soldering electrically connects the windings together and to a printed circuit board or other substrate. The methods yield transformers with high conversion efficiency, are compatible with conventional printed circuit boards and readily available high-volume assembly equipment, and avoid the higher cost of manually made windings.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to provisional application U.S. Ser. No. 61/993,942 entitled “Magnetic Devices And Methods For Manufacture Using Flex Circuits”, filed on May 15, 2014. The subject matter of the aforementioned provisional application is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0002]    The subject matter of this application relates to inductors and transformers and methods to manufacture these electrical devices, and in particular to methods of using flexible circuit connectors or “flex circuits” for simplified low-cost assembly of transformers and inductors with magnetic cores. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Transformers transfer electrical energy by inductive coupling between conductive windings. For example, a transformer may allow alternating voltages and/or currents of magnetically coupled inductor windings to be stepped up or down. The ratio of turns in a primary winding to those in a secondary winding determines the stepping ratio in ideal transformers. The windings may encircle a toroidal core comprising ferrite or other easily magnetized ferromagnetic material. A toroidal ferromagnetic core provides a closed magnetic loop to more efficiently contain the magnetic flux and inductively link the windings. 
         [0004]    Manufacturers create transformers in various sizes, depending on the relevant application. If the transformer is sufficiently large, e.g., greater than three inches in size, a conventional winding machine may be used to place conductors around the toroid. If the toroid is comparable to one inch in size, conventional pull-and-hook machinery may be used to aid the hand winding process. For smaller toroids, the windings are typically all wound by hand, leading to significant manufacturing costs. 
         [0005]    One known method to avoid hand winding a toroid is to use a split ferromagnetic core, which allows machine-made windings to be inserted. The manufacturer may then mechanically attach the ferromagnetic material pieces. This assembly method may however degrade the magnetic efficiency of the resulting device, compared with one made with a continuous unbroken toroid. Other methods embed ferromagnetic materials into a printed circuit board, which may further increase manufacturing costs compared with the use of conventional printed circuit boards. Thus, while toroidal ferrite inductors or transformers are used in many applications because of their high efficiency, difficulties related to manufacturing costs and complexities remain unsolved. 
         [0006]    Accordingly, there is a need in the art for inexpensively winding small toroidal inductors and transformers, such as those designed for attachment to conventional printed circuit boards. 
       SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0007]    In certain embodiments, a magnetic device is provided that discloses a single-piece toroid and at least one flex circuit comprising at least one conductive trace that forms at least one turn around the toroid in order to inductively couple at least one electrical current to the toroid. In certain embodiments, a method of manufacturing a magnetic device is provided that discloses producing an assembly by wrapping a flex circuit comprising at least one conductive trace around a single-piece toroid to form at least one turn for inductively coupling at least one electrical current to the toroid. In certain embodiments, a transformer is provided that discloses a substrate having a plurality of trace segments formed therein, a toroidal magnetic core, and a pair of flex circuits, each flex circuit wrapping around a respective leg or angular sector of the core, and having a plurality of trace segments formed therein, wherein a first subset of trace segments from the first flex circuit, a first subset of trace segments from the second flex circuit, and a first subset of trace segments from the substrate are electrically interconnected to each other to form a first winding of the transformer, and a second subset of trace segments from the first flex circuit, a second subset of trace segments from the second flex circuit, and a second subset of trace segments from the substrate are electrically interconnected to each other to form a second winding of the transformer. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is a diagram depicting an exemplary transformer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a diagram depicting a second exemplary transformer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a diagram depicting a third exemplary transformer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is a diagram depicting a fourth exemplary transformer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is a diagram depicting a fifth exemplary transformer according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a diagram depicting exemplary toroidal ferromagnetic cores of different cross-section according to one aspect of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  is a flowchart describing flex circuit magnetic device manufacturing methods according to one aspect of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    This description discloses toroidal inductors and transformers based on flex circuits and printed circuit boards, and methods for their manufacture. Flex circuits comprise flexible dielectric films having at least one flexible conductor layer therein, and are widely used in industry. The windings in these magnetic devices may be created by bending the flex circuit material into a partial loop or a full loop around the toroidal ferromagnetic core. Portions of the windings or turns may comprise conductive traces on a printed circuit board or other substrate such as another flex circuit. Bonding or solder flow methods for example may electrically and mechanically interconnect the flex circuit windings and/or conductive pads or traces on a printed circuit board or other substrate. 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  illustrates a transformer  100  according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 1(   a ) illustrates a plan view of the transformer  100 .  FIG. 1(   b ) illustrates a cross-sectional view of the transformer  100  taken along line (b)-(b) in  FIG. 1(   a ).  FIG. 1(   c ) illustrates the transformer  100  components prior to assembly. The transformer  100  may include a pair of flex circuits  110 , a ferromagnetic core  120 , and a substrate  130 . The ferromagnetic core  120  may be mounted on the substrate  130 . Each flex circuit  110  may wrap around a portion of the ferromagnetic core  120 . The flex circuits  110  and the substrate  130  may have conductive traces  106  and  108  formed therein that may be electrically connected to each other to form a pair of windings about the ferromagnetic core  120 , which complete the transformer circuit. 
         [0017]    In this embodiment, the substrate  130  may comprise a dielectric material with at least one conductive layer, shown here as an outer surface for simplicity. The conductive layer may actually be located under an outer dielectric layer through which access paths have been opened, by etched vias, drilling, or other manufacturing techniques. The substrate  130  may include multiple conductive layers therein which may each be electrically accessed from outside at predetermined locations, again through vias or other structures. In one embodiment, the substrate  130  may be a printed circuit board. In another embodiment, the substrate  130  may be a substrate flex circuit. 
         [0018]    The substrate  130  may include one or more of the conductive traces  106  that are arranged to interface with the traces  108  in a corresponding flex circuit  110 . In the example of  FIG. 1 , the traces  106  are shown as parallel line segments of equal length with each line segment separated by a predetermined distance. The end of each conductive trace  106  is shown to align with the opposite end of a neighboring trace  106  in this embodiment. When the traces  106  are connected to the traces  108  of the flex circuit  110 , they complete a multi-turn winding that loops around the ferromagnetic core  120 . 
         [0019]    The flex circuit  110  may comprise a dielectric film, made of materials such as polyimide for example, with one or more flex circuit conductive traces  108 . Six flex circuit conductive traces  108  are shown in this example. The flex circuit conductive traces  108  may be parallel, equally spaced, and aligned longitudinally with the flex circuit  110  as shown in this embodiment. The flex circuit conductive traces  108  may be made of ductile metal layers like copper or gold, which may be ten to twenty-five micrometers in thickness for example. The flex circuits  110  may have a minimum bending radius of approximately ten times the flex circuit conductive trace  108  thickness, to prevent cracks from forming in the flex circuit conductive traces  108 . 
         [0020]    The geometries of the flex circuits  110  may be interrelated, with the flex circuit conductive traces  108  often spaced apart by twice the flex circuit  110  conductor thickness. The flex circuit conductive traces  108  may be spaced periodically at pitch intervals P of fifty microns, for example. The geometries of the flex circuits may also be related to the substrate feature dimensions, with the flex circuit conductive traces  108  often spaced apart by twice the trace  106  widths to help ensure proper interconnection. 
         [0021]    The flex circuit conductive traces  108  may be located on one or both sides of the flex circuit  110  dielectric film. The flex circuit conductive traces  108  are usually embedded between various dielectric layers and may be electrically accessed from outside at particular locations. Contact openings may be formed photolithographically or through laser ablation or other conventional production methods for example. In this figure, two such contact openings  112  and  114  may be connected to substrate contact pads  116  and  118 , respectively. Contact openings and pads are generally shown oversized for clarity, but may be substantially the same size as flex circuit conductive trace  108  widths. 
         [0022]    The ferromagnetic core  120  may be attached to the substrate  130  using for example glue or other means familiar to those in the art of circuit manufacturing. The flex circuit  110  may be wrapped substantially longitudinally around the ferromagnetic core  120  and attached to the substrate  130  using bonding, flow soldering, or other known manufacturing methods. The flex circuit  110  is assembled such that the flex circuit conductive traces  108  are electrically connected to corresponding conductive portions of the substrate  130 , such as the conductive traces  106 , the contact pads like  116  and  118 , or related vias. 
         [0023]    The result of the assembly of the flex circuit  110  and the substrate conductive traces  106  is the formation of an inductive winding that may conduct an electrical current through the substrate conductive traces  106  and the flex circuit conductive traces  108 . The current in the assembled winding depicted in this figure may for example proceed from the contact pad  118  through the contact opening  114 , up through a first flex circuit conductive trace  108 , right across the ferromagnetic core  120  and down to a first printed circuit board conductive trace  106  and left through printed circuit board conductive trace  106 , etc., until reaching printed circuit board contact pad  116 . The current may thus encircle the ferromagnetic core  120 , for approximately 5.75 full turns for example, to induce a magnetic flux. The flex circuit  110  may be mechanically attached to the ferromagnetic core  120  as well, using glue for example, to help prevent flexure or vibration from damaging bonded or soldered connections. 
         [0024]    While  FIG. 1  shows a transformer  100  with two windings, the principles of the present invention permit the techniques described to be applied to an inductor with a single winding by wrapping a single flex circuit  110  around one leg or angular sector of the ferromagnetic core  120 . Alternatively, an inductor may have multiple windings that are electrically connected to each other to form a larger inductor element. Additional windings may be formed around an opposite side of the ferromagnetic core  120 , as shown in the cross-sectional view, though the inventive embodiments are not limited to such an arrangement. One or more windings may be formed around one or more adjacent sides of the ferromagnetic core  120  as well. Indeed, multiple windings may generally be formed around any particular side or sides of the ferromagnetic core  120 . Further, while  FIG. 1  shows a transformer  100  with two windings, each on a separate flex circuit  110 , embodiments with multiple windings all on a single flex circuit  110  are also within the scope of the present invention. 
         [0025]    Ferromagnetic cores  120  having a straight wall may enable tighter wrapping of each flex circuit  110  than would be feasible with a ferromagnetic core of circular cross-section. This straight wall feature may enable more individual flex circuits  110  to be tightly wrapped around a given side of the ferromagnetic core  120 . Such ferromagnetic cores are shown in  FIG. 6  and described below. 
         [0026]      FIG. 2  illustrates a second transformer  200  according to another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the transformer  200  may include a pair of flex circuits  210 , a ferromagnetic core  220 , and a substrate  230 . The ferromagnetic core  220  may be mounted on the substrate  230 . Each flex circuit  210  may wrap around a portion of the ferromagnetic core  220 . The flex circuits  210  and the substrate  230  may have conductive traces formed therein that may be electrically connected to each other to form a pair of windings about the ferromagnetic core  220 , which complete the transformer circuit. 
         [0027]    This embodiment may differ from that of  FIG. 1  in that the substrate conductive traces  206  may be angled so that every other substrate conductive trace  206  may be aligned, as shown. Other angles or substrate conductive trace shapes may be chosen so that every n th  conductive trace may be aligned, in general. In this embodiment, a portion of the traces  208  of the two flex circuits  210  interface with corresponding traces  206  in the substrate  230  to form a first winding. A remaining portion of the traces of the two flex circuits  210  may interface with corresponding traces in the substrate  230  to form a second winding as previously described, or may remain unused as shown. 
         [0028]    The variation in conductive trace  206  angle may enable the formation of baluns or transmission line transformers. In this example, the windings formed may each comprise three full turns, because not all the flex circuit conductive traces  208  or the substrate conductive traces  206  are used to carry current. Note again that it is possible to use some of the flex circuit conductive traces  208  of a flex circuit  210  for a first winding, and other flex circuit conductive traces  208  of the same flex circuit  210  for a second winding, so that a single assembled flex circuit  210  alone may form a transformer  200 . 
         [0029]      FIG. 3  illustrates a third transformer  300  according to another embodiment of the present invention. This transformer embodiment may comprise a flex circuit  310  wrapped substantially completely around one side of the ferromagnetic core  320  to produce an inductive winding. A second winding, shown here as a non-limiting second flex circuit  310 , may complete the transformer  300 . No substrate conductive traces are required to serve as part of a winding turn, as was shown with previously described embodiments. 
         [0030]    Full flex circuit loop transformers like  300  may be assembled from the ferromagnetic core  320  and a number of flex circuits  310 , and stored for later attachment to a substrate, such as a printed circuit board or another flex circuit. This distinction may enable circuit assembly operations to be parallelized and/or distributed geographically to some extent, which may be of particular utility. Alternatively, assembly of full flex circuit loop transformers may involve substantially contemporaneous component attachment to a printed circuit board or another flex circuit serving as a substrate. While this latter approach is subsequently described in more detail, the inventive embodiments are not so limited. 
         [0031]    The flex circuit  310  may differ from the flex circuits of the partial loop transformer embodiments previously described in that its flex circuit conductive traces  308  are not necessarily aligned longitudinally with the flex circuit  310  edges. Instead, the flex circuit conductive traces  308  may be angled such that the beginning end of a given trace  308  is aligned with the opposite end of another trace  308 . In this embodiment, the beginning end of a given trace  308  may be aligned with the opposite end of an immediately neighboring trace  308 . The result is that a spiral winding may be formed when the flex circuit  310  is wrapped around a side of the ferromagnetic core  320 . In the example shown, the resulting winding comprises six full turns, as each of the six flex circuit conductive traces  308  carries the same electrical current around the ferromagnetic core  320 . 
         [0032]    Contact pads  312  and  314  on flex circuit  310  are again shown oversized for clarity, and may be used for connecting the flex circuit  310  not only to itself but also to specific contacts on a printed circuit board or other substrate (not shown). As with previous embodiments, patterned contact openings in the flex circuit  310  may enable external electrical connections between the various flex circuit conductive traces  308  as desired. Similarly, bonding, flow soldering, or other known manufacturing methods may form permanent electrical and mechanical connections between the ends of each flex circuit  310  and/or to a printed circuit board or other substrate. 
         [0033]    In one embodiment, particular ends of the flex circuits  310  may be secured into position on a substrate, then opposite ends of the flex circuits  310  may be fed through the ferromagnetic core  320  substantially longitudinally and wrapped around the ferromagnetic core  320  to form full loops. The order of operations may also be reversed during manufacture, so that one end of each of the flex circuits  310  may be fed through the ferromagnetic core  320  first, prior to the wrapping. Each flex circuit  310  may be secured to the ferromagnetic core  320 , using glue or other known means, to prevent disconnection due to flexure or vibration prior to bonding or soldering. 
         [0034]      FIG. 4  shows a fourth exemplary transformer  400  according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the transformer  400  may include a pair of flex circuits  410  and a ferromagnetic core  420 . This transformer embodiment may comprise a flex circuit  410  wrapped substantially completely around one side of the ferromagnetic core  420  to produce an inductive winding. A second winding, shown here as a non-limiting second flex circuit  410 , may complete the transformer  400 . No substrate conductive traces are required to serve as part of a winding turn. 
         [0035]    This embodiment may differ from that of  FIG. 3  in that the flex circuit conductive traces  408  may be angled so that every other flex circuit conductive trace  408  is aligned. Other angles may be chosen so that every n th  flex circuit conductive trace  408  may be aligned, in general. The variation in the flex circuit conductive trace  408  angle may enable the formation of baluns or transmission line transformers. In this example, the outermost winding formed may comprise three full turns, because only the two outermost and center flex circuit conductive traces  408  are used to conduct its electrical current. A second winding formed by the same flex circuit  410  as shown comprises only two full turns, because only the second and fourth flex circuit conductive traces  408  shown are used to conduct its electrical current. Any number of flex circuit conductive traces may be placed on any flex circuit of any embodiment, as long as sufficient space exists in the central cavity of the ferromagnetic core. 
         [0036]      FIG. 5  shows a fifth exemplary transformer  500  according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the transformer  500  may include a pair of flex circuits  510  and a ferromagnetic core  520 . This transformer embodiment may comprise a flex circuit  510  wrapped substantially completely around one side of the ferromagnetic core  520  to produce an inductive winding. A second winding, shown here as a non-limiting second flex circuit  510 , may complete the transformer  500 . No substrate conductive traces are required to serve as part of a winding turn. 
         [0037]    This embodiment may differ from that of  FIG. 3  in that flex circuit conductive traces  508  may have pads  512  and  514  (again shown oversized for clarity) spaced laterally around the center of flex circuit  510 . Each separate end of the flex circuit  510  may be wrapped “upward” around the ferromagnetic core  520  for connection on the opposite side (or “top”) of the ferromagnetic core  520 . Thus, the placement of the flex circuit conductive trace  508  contact points on the flex circuit  510  may generally be varied to best locate connections for most easily managing manufacturing operations and reducing costs. 
         [0038]      FIG. 6  shows exemplary toroidal ferromagnetic cores  602 - 608  of different cross-sectional plan views, according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, the cross-sections are taken through each ferromagnetic core along a plane that is perpendicular to the axis of the central cavity; that is, with the ferromagnetic core cavity facing upward, the cross-section is taken through a horizontal plane. The toroidal ferromagnetic cores described herein are not necessarily circular, but rather may be more square or rectangular in shape. For example, while toroid  602  features entirely rectangular corners, toroid  604  has both rounded inner corners and rounded outer corners. Toroid  606  is rectangular except for one end, which is rounded on both inside and outside corners. Toroid  608  is oval in shape, but has two straight sides. The toroids may comprise ferrite polymer or similar known ferromagnetic materials, and may be mechanically rigid. 
         [0039]    In this description each of these exemplary and non-limiting ferromagnetic cores is referred to merely as a “toroid”, and may be used for construction of any of the embodiments described. These ferromagnetic cores may have at least one side that has a straighter shape than would be the case with a circular cross-sectioned ferromagnetic core. The straight-edge ferromagnetic core feature may be particularly advantageous, and thus of particular utility, for manufacture of transformers using flex circuits as described. Nonetheless, ferromagnetic cores of circular horizontal cross-section are also within the scope of the inventive embodiments. The dimensions of the typical toroid may be less than one centimeter along the outer edge, and may be as small as approximately one millimeter along an inside edge, although larger toroids are also within the scope of the inventive embodiments. 
         [0040]    Referring now to  FIG. 7 , a flowchart describing manufacturing methods for the devices previously described is shown according to one aspect of the present invention. The flowchart may describe operations carried out by a processor by following executable instructions stored in a non-transitory computer program product, for example. The instructions may control the manufacture of the magnetic devices of various exemplary embodiments described above. 
         [0041]    At  702 , the method may determine from input data whether a partial loop magnetic device or a full loop magnetic device is to be assembled, the number of flex circuits, the number of windings, and the number of turns for each winding. Relevant geometries for the flex circuit(s) and ferromagnetic core selected may also be discerned. At  704 , the method may selectively attach a ferromagnetic core to a printed circuit board or other substrate and attach a certain number of flex circuits to form partial loop flex circuit magnetic devices. At  706 , the method may selectively wrap a certain number of flex circuits around a ferromagnetic core to form full loop flex circuit magnetic devices. At  708 , the method may perform bonding or flow soldering or other manufacturing operations to electrically connect flex circuits according to input design data. 
         [0042]    While particular embodiments of the present invention have been described, it is to be understood that various different modifications within the scope and spirit of the invention are possible. The invention is limited only by the scope of the appended claims. 
         [0043]    As described above, one aspect of the present invention relates to magnetic devices and their methods of manufacture. The provided description is presented to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the invention. For purposes of explanation, specific nomenclature is set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Description of specific applications and methods are provided only as examples. Various modifications to the preferred embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and steps disclosed herein. 
         [0044]    As used herein, the terms “a” or “an” mean one or more than one. The term “plurality” means two or more than two. The term “another” is defined as a second or more. The terms “including” and/or “having” are open ended (e.g., comprising). Reference throughout this document to “one embodiment”, “certain embodiments”, “an embodiment” or similar term means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of such phrases in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner on one or more embodiments without limitation. The term “or” as used herein is to be interpreted as inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, “A, B or C” means “any of the following: A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C”. An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive. 
         [0045]    In accordance with the practices of persons skilled in the art of computer programming, embodiments are described with reference to operations that may be performed by a computer system or a like electronic system. Such operations are sometimes referred to as being computer-executed. It will be appreciated that operations that are symbolically represented include the manipulation by a processor, such as a central processing unit, of electrical signals representing data bits and the maintenance of data bits at memory locations, such as in system memory, as well as other processing of signals. The memory locations where data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties corresponding to the data bits. 
         [0046]    When implemented in software, the elements of the embodiments are basically the code segments to perform the particular tasks. The non-transitory code segments may be stored in a processor readable medium or computer readable medium, which may include any medium that may store or transfer information. Examples of such media include an electronic circuit, a semiconductor memory device, a read-only memory (ROM), a flash memory or other non-volatile memory, a floppy diskette, a CD-ROM, an optical disk, a hard disk, a fiber optic medium, etc. User input may include any combination of a keyboard, mouse, touch screen, voice command input, etc. User input may similarly be used to direct a browser application executing on a user&#39;s computing device to one or more network resources, such as web pages, from which computing resources may be accessed.