Flex cable assembly tool

[DesignRiche]

There is a problem in our assembly line where operators use pliers to fasten a flex cable into a contact on a PCB. The operators sometimes bend the cable when assembling it, thus breaking off the copper wires.
Now I know this has to be a common problem for any company where there is a PCB involved but yet I haven't found any special tools or pliers for this job..?
My option now is to design custom pliers that can assure that the operator inserts the cable completly and without breaking it... so any input on cable assembly tools or something off the shelf here, would be appreciated!

 

[MikeHalloran]

A small woman who spends her day squeezing pliers will eventually develop substantial forearms. If that's your problem, get smaller pliers, or shorten the handles by half.

Actually, even short pliers are capable of exerting great force and moment, and that's one reason why it used to be customary to terminate cables in connectors, instead of attaching them directly to the board.

You haven't given enough detail to beyond that, except to ask the obvious question: If it's _flex_ cable, should it not withstand bending?





Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[DesignRiche]

The problem is not ergonomics. In some cases the "small woman" inserts the cable with an angle so she breaks it.

The cable is not round but flat like a bus-cable with 14 copper wires next to each other (width= 15 mm, thickness= 0.3 mm).

So yeah, pliers are really great for this job but they can apparantly also provide enough force to break the wires when using them in the wrong way.

/Richard
Stockholm, Sweden

 

[PSE]

Can the procedure or even the board be redesigned so that pliers are not necessary? We do numerous flex cable connections in our various products and at the moment I cannot think of a single flex connection that would require a tool for insertion, at the most perhaps a set of tweezers. We are doing surface mount, zero insertion force (ZIF) type connections and tools along the lines of pliers could readily overpower the cable or the connector itself.

If cable routing is part of the problem, you could look at pre-forming the cable into shape prior to assembly. Another possibility would be to look at a cable with a higher level of flexibility.

Regards,

 

[DesignRiche]

Thx for the feedback PSE,
On the board there is actually one other ZIF type connection that the hardware guys wanted to switch to this connector type that we are having problems with in quality! The problem with that type of connector is (from what I understand) price and the extra assembly time required to lock the connector. (Plus that it is hard to verify that the operator has locked the contact in place.)

Pre-formed cables is something I think might work here...

Regards