Gold fingers versus plated board edges
Distinguish gold finger face contacts from plated PCB sidewalls and document their different geometry and inspection requirements.
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Category: Blog
Design decisions, manufacturing details and practical specification guidance.
Why contact geometry must follow the connector
Review changes to gold finger geometry against the selected connector, rather than treating contact pads as freely adjustable artwork.
Read article ↗Contact numbering on opposing board sides
Prevent mirrored bottom-side numbering errors with explicit board views, pin maps and independent fixture checks.
Read article ↗Key notches and polarization features
Specify key-notch position, width, depth and clearance for a controlled card-edge interface.
Read article ↗Contact engagement length and wiping distance
Distinguish PCB pad length, final engagement and wiping travel using a worked contact-position example.
Read article ↗Reading connector card-thickness tolerances
Read connector card-thickness tolerances as intervals and compare finished PCB ranges without confusing overlap with containment.
Read article ↗Defining finished board thickness at the connector
Define finished PCB thickness at the card-edge contact region, including measurement surfaces, stackup conventions and inspection locations.
Read article ↗Choosing a board-edge datum
Choose clear references for card-edge contact geometry and avoid conflicting chained dimensions in PCB fabrication drawings.
Read article ↗Contact pitch and finger width are different dimensions
Calculate gold finger gaps and contact-array spans without confusing pitch, pad width and finished tolerances.
Read article ↗Single-sided versus double-sided edge contacts
Separate contact-face count from PCB layer count, verify opposing pads and calculate plated area for single- and double-sided edge contacts.
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