I have a PCB that needs some large holes put in the board to make room for switches. Can SFE handle a board edge inside the board? Donut like?
If you use BatchPCB, you cannot have any inside routes. You can have any board shape/outline, just no internal routing…
Just to back that up, if you look in the [BatchPCB FAQ - under “Can I route really exotic shapes?”](OSH Park ~)
Pete, the guy that made the tutorial with the ‘funny’ self-locking headers, has been making test jigs that need to have a space cut out in the middle for holding a board under test. To make this void, I have started having him make a puzzle piece shape out of his boards, the border goes in to encompass the test area. Gold Phoenix has had no problems making those boards. Sometime when things slow down, I may try to see what I can get GP to do, like overlapping drill hits (think slots).
Slots would indeed be very nice!!
Hi there,
The last batch of boards I sent to Goldphoenix used overlapping drill hits to make slots for the side tabs on a USB host connector. I was worried they wouldn’t do them, but they did! The forum post is here: viewtopic.php?t=11348&highlight=
best of luck 
Been there and done that through BatchPCB! DelightedBatchy:
Sometime when things slow down, I may try to see what I can get GP to do, like overlapping drill hits (think slots).
with the results! In an ironic twist the part needing
slots was also found in round pin and SMT versions
after the slotted boards came back from China.
Oh, well…
But I guess the only real way to get a smooth slot if to do a route? I have never really looked into how much extra GP charges for this…
If you need a cavity for an RF resonator, and thegussy:
But I guess the only real way to get a smooth slot if to do a route? I have never really looked into how much extra GP charges for this…
PCB slots are critical, you probably can’t use
BatchPCB or GP anyway.
For mounting the tabs on a connector the slightly
wavy edges of the chain-drilled slots work well.
After all it’s going to be filled with solder. The
only criterior is that the component’s tab fits in,
and there is enough metal on the PCB to solder
it well.
If the PCB design has two or more layers then
connectivity between layers is critical to avoid an
open circut later (as soldering a blind contact
under a component body is not possible).
I guess the “teeth” left by overlapping drill holes would be good to hold the “tab” in place.
One thing I did notice is that boards like the SFE Package Tracker and Weather Station, have an internal route around the temperature/humidity sensor.
I assume this is done as an extra “addon” to the normal GP service?
Although I don’t really see how you couldn’t just use the border file to do this, and have it cut out when the border is being cutout.
gussy:
I guess the “teeth” left by overlapping drill holes would be good to hold the “tab” in place.
Yes, but the risk remains that the part’s tab won’t fit
the final plated slot (hole chain). Better to go oversize
and flood the space with solder.
gussy:
One thing I did notice is that boards like the SFE Package Tracker and Weather Station, have an internal route around the temperature/humidity sensor.
I’d assume that’s not a BatchPCB board but rather a
special from GP (or even another vendor).
gussy:
Although I don’t really see how you couldn’t just use the border file to do this, and have it cut out when the border is being cutout.
There’s a risk of damage to the PCB if the inner
route generates waste that flies up and/or falls into
the router bit. The current scheme expects all PCB
‘clients’ to nest together and be singulated by one
pass of the router. The outcome is a pile of sized
‘clients’ and a waste frame (and lots 'o dust).
I have not seen the GP factory and I’m taking a wild
guess on their work flow. For simple and cheap they
probably just said ‘no’ to BatchPCB on internal routing.