Chinese Spring Festival Schedule

December 20th, 2011

Time always flying so fast! 2011 will pass some and new 2012 will come to us soon. We’ve saw global economic crisis in 2011, but things were warming up and we believe everything will be better in 2012, with the support and help of our customers, suppliers, colleague, friends.

Here we glad to announce our Spring Festival Schedule in 2012.

Facility Closed: Jan 16th- 31th, 2012

Resume: Feb 1st, 2012

During this period, we will not produce any samples or volume products, so please help to check your warehouse to make sure you’ve enough metal dome, metal dome array to keep safe stock.

And the lead time in Jan and Feb will be longer than normal because of heavy production line and lack of manpower.

Our sales reps. will try best to keep receive and reply email during the holiday, but cannot promise an immediately reply within 12 hours as before.

Let us know if you have special request for metal dome, metal dome array during this period.

Wish everybody has bright future and healthy body!

Best Technology

2011. 12.20

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Metal Dome Activation Force Conversion

November 18th, 2011

Thanks to the big Earth we live on, so we can see different culture around the world, so we can see different measure method on the same thing, so different results. When we discuss metal dome, people use various units, here are how to convert different unit of activation force of metal dome.

Ounces (OZ)     Grams Force (GF)      Newtons (N)

4.00                         114.00           1.11

6.00                       170.00             1.66

8.00                       227.00              2.22

10.00                     284.00             2.78

12.00                     340.00             3.33

14.00                     397.00            3.89

16.00                      454.00            4.44

18.00                       510.00           4.99

20.00                      567.00            5.54

You can also easy convert them by yourself.

1OZ=28.35 g

1GF  = 9.80665 Newton

In fact, OZ is the unit for weight, seemed no business relationship with activation force, but  you can easy treat them as the unit for force, if you’re know little physics.

And Gram force (GF), or KGF (Kilogram Force) has never become the unit of International System of Unit (SI), but it’s popular here in China and Europe.

In our company, the default unit for metal dome activation force we used is GF (Grams Force), but it’s no problem for customer to use other different unit to measure the force of metal dome.

Leave a message or write email to us if you’re interest or has comment for activation force of metal dome.

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PCB PAD Finishing for Metal Dome

October 10th, 2011

If it is the first time you try to use metal dome or metal dome array on circuit board (PCB or FPC), then probably you want to know what kind of surface finishing of circuit board should be used if metal dome will be assembled on.

Basically there’re two types of surface finishing can be chosen: Gold (immersion or plating) and HASL (Tin). In most of time, we suggest using Gold. Why?

As you know, function of metal dome or metal dome arrayis to act like a switch, to make circuit to be closed or opened. And low contact resistance will be helpful for smooth, stable currency. All of us know Gold bas much better performance than Tin on electric conductivity. This is why we recommend Gold.

Gold-plating-PAD-on_PCB

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whatever metal dome will be assembled on Rigid PCB, or flex circuit, gold is primary choice. Here are some pictures.

Gold-plating-PAD-on_FPC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But when you need lower price, does not need strict stable currency or don’t care too much on switch on/off time, and then you can choose HAL (Tin). For most of circuit board used in ESU pencil are of HAL (LF). Here are pictures.

HAL-finishing-PAD-on_PCB

 

 

 

 

HAL-finishing-PAD-on_PCB

I hope above is clear for everybody. If still have question, leave your comments or send an email, we will reply very soon.

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Metal Dome in Tube

September 26th, 2011

Regarding the Four-leg metal domes, for small-medium volume production,
if people want a high assembly speed, but don’t have Automated SMT machine, we recommend us our metal dome in tube, as well as Peel & Place dome. And here,  I’d like to say more words about metal dome in tube. Next article we will discuss another.

metal dome in tubemetal dome tube packing

To use metal dome in tube, you must have a dome placement pen, or auto-pick-gun. You insert the tube into that device, then move the device above the place where you want to place a metal dome, then push a button, a dome will come out, to fall on that position.

Using tube dome, you only need to push the button to place the metal dome, and don’t need to pick a dome by a tweezers, so it’ll make dome placing become a easy job. You can put about 1,000-2,000 pcs per hour. In fact, some expert guy can reach up to 3,000 pcs, 5,000 pcs or more.

Also if you can send back the empty tube to us, we will give you some discount, but in most case, oversea customers will not do that, because shipping fee is more expensive than tube itself. But I think if some days later, the cost of tube increased and shipping cost lower down, people will consider to re-use them, in a green way. Just make sure the tube is clear, fresh from any dirt, dust.

All right, leave comments if you like this, or have some comments, or better idea to improve the tube metal dome.

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Tape & Reel Metal Dome – On Sales

September 26th, 2011

After more than one year R&D, we are going to release our new Tape and Reel metal dome, a new packing method of metal dome which is suitable for automated SMT machine.

Each metal dome is sealed in a socket on a continued tape and packed on a reel, so it can be picked and place like normal components such as resistor, capitor, on SMT machine. Metal dome packed in this way named as “Tape & Reel Metal Dome” Also someone name it as “Pick & place metal dome”.

Tape & Reel metal dome

Please note even this metal dome is used in SMT machine, we don’t recommend to solder them like normal components.

Now we provide 8.4mm, 12.2mm  Four-leg metal dome in this packing. 5,000 pcs and 4,000 pcs each reel, respectively. We will give you some discount if you  order them in Sep and Oct. It’ll save a lot of your assembly time and money!

Please visit our website for more information about Tape and Reel metal dome!

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Happy Mid-Autumn Festival & Teachers’ Day

September 9th, 2011

Tomorrow is Sep 10th, Teachers’ Day in China! Here we express our sincere respect, thankfulness to honor teacher whom dedicated her life to bring-up students, teach us the knowledge, skill, how-to-be-a-person. Wish all of kind teachers happy, healthy every day and night!

Next Monday (Sep 12) is Mid-Autumn Festival in China (Aug 15, according to Chinese Lunar Calendar). People will eat the Moon-cake, drink the tea, enjoy the bright Moon under the sky. Maybe you cannot back home with your family members, but you can also spend that joy time with your friends, lover, neighbor, colleague.

We will close on Monday and re-open on Tuesday. Wish all of your wish come true!

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Metal Dome Array – B3D 5112

August 5th, 2011

People always know different company make different products, and many customers ask us whether we can make a dome array with low profile, like Omrom B3D-5112.

Of course it’s no problem for us to make, this is one of our standard single key dome arrays, but what we used is different in some parameters, but has the same function.

B3D 5112 Similar Dome Array

Here are some parameters:

Name: Single key Metal Dome Array  (similar like Omron B3D 5112)

Parameters:

Dome diameter:5mm;

Dome force: 160gf

Dome surface finishing: Nickel

Travel (Stroke): 0.2+/-0.05mm

Height (thickness of whole product):0.3mm+/-0.05mm

Dome material: stainless steel

Array material: PET with glue

Structure: Top Mylar (clear) + Bottom Spacer (clear)

Life cycles: 500,000-1,000,000 times

Color: Transparent (clear)

Switch capability: 12 VDC, 10 mA

RoHS compliant: Yes

Package: 144 pcs/sheet

(Pease order in multiples of 144 pcs dome array)

Lead time: 7-10 days

 Here are basic price list for this dome array

Q’TY(pcs)  Price       Extended

1         $0.30         $0.30

25        $0.25         $6.25

50        $0.22         $11.00

100       $0.20         $20.00

144       $0.18         $25.92

288       $0.16         $46.08

576       $0.15         $86.40

1,000     $0.12         $120.00

1,728     $0.10         $172.80

3,456     $0.09         $311.04

For small order, you can buy it directly from our online shop: http://metaldome.ecrater.com/p/12096959/b3d-5112-dome-array, and payment can by Paypal, or credit card (register a Paypal A/C and then pay). For more quantity, please contact us for a better price for that single key, low profile dome array, B3D 5112.

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Four-Leg Dome with Legs

July 5th, 2011

As we know, there’re already four legs for our Four-leg series metal dome, and this is why it named four-leg dome, or cross metal dome. So what do you means “four-leg dome with legs”?

Let me firstly see the looking of a normal four-leg  (Cross) metal dome.

Normal four leg metal dome

We can see there’s no extra legs except these four legs which will be put on contact PAD of PCB, FPC, or membrane.

As we don’t recommend soldering metal domes on the board, so how do I adhere the dome, except normal “dome array“, “single key dome array“, or in the socket? Can I fix it on like triangle metal dome using two legs insert into the board hole? That’s the reason whey there’re extra legs for F series (cross) dome. You can see pictures.

four-leg dome with legs

four-leg dome with legs

Now is everything clear? There’re two extra leg, and you can insert the into the holes of board like triangle metal dome do. Currently on our Dia 11.4mm four-leg dome, these extra legs length is 1.2mm and width 0.9mm.

If you need more information about this special four-leg (Cross) dome with legs, contact BEST and we will give details to you. We can also make new tooling to make new diameter four-leg metal domes.

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Circle Metal Dome with Leg

June 5th, 2011

Previous we have discuss how to assemble triangle metal dome, some people told me they also want a circle dome with a leg. But for most of circle (round) series metal dome, there’s no leg.

So when assemble with a circle metal dome dome, you need to put it on a printed circuit board, or a flex circuit, by a adhesive tape,  or put it in a socket.

For 1st method, you can use our “standard single key dome array“; for 2nd way, just buy dome in bulk. it’s easy, but if you also want to fix circle dome in the socket, then you will hope this circle dome with a leg. Am I right? Hooo, dream comes true. Here are some pictures for them.

Circle dome with leg details 1

circle dome with leg details 2

Currently, there’re few circle domes has leg, because this kind of requirement can be replaced by triangle dome. So now only Diameter 5mm is available in the market now. Force 160gf, 180gf  are standard, 130gf and 200gf also no problem to be made.

If  you need other legged circle metal dome, we can set up new tooling to make the special dome. Contact BEST if you interest in this circle metal dome with leg.

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Large Metal Dome

May 28th, 2011

Recently we saw some people search for large metal dome and ask me whether we can make 500mmx500mm metal dome, or even bigger, such as 1,000mmx1,000mm.

The answers are No, we don’t make metal dome in such big dimension. For four-leg series metal dome, Max one is Diameter 20mm; you can see from below pictures, it’s small.

20mm metal dome

For Oblong series metal dome, we can make is 50.8×12.7mm.

If you compare 20mm dome with a coin (50 cent, RMB) and you will find it is very small.

20mm metal dome VS coin

It remind me thinking one articles we posted on Aug 4, 2006: , url is: http://blog.metal-domes.com/2006/08/04/metal-dome-vs-steel-dome/ which is post in our old blog.

I am wondering maybe some people still confused metal dome and steel dome. I hope above words will enhance their understanding and solve some potential mistake.

Anyway, if someone really big, large metal dome, less than 50x50mm, which we treat it as custom metal dome, just write your purpose and sketch,  we can discuss to see the possibility to develop that new model for you, to meet customers’ requirements of various metal domes are what we working for.

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