The membrane switch is an operating system that integrates key functions, indicating components, and instrument panels. It consists of four parts: panel, upper circuit, isolation layer, and lower circuit. When the membrane switch is pressed, the contacts of the upper circuit deform downward and make contact with the plate of the lower circuit. After releasing your finger, the contacts of the upper circuit bounce back, the circuit is disconnected, and the loop triggers a signal. The membrane switch has a rigorous structure, beautiful appearance, and good sealing performance. It has the characteristics of moisture resistance and long service life. It is widely used in electronic communications, electronic measuring instruments, industrial control, medical equipment, the automobile industry, smart toys, household appliances, and other fields.
As a membrane switch has three layers or more. However, most membrane switches include three to four layers, but also different applications, and different layers structure.
The buttons on the membrane switch use different colors to indicate the position, shape, and size of the key body, which is more common in the initial stage of membrane switches. Three-dimensional membrane switch: Usually, the buttons on the membrane switch just use color to express the position, shape, and size of the key body. In this way, the accuracy of the operation can only be identified by the operator’s vision. Since there is no appropriate feedback information to indicate whether the finger is pressed within the effective range of the switch to make the switch operate, this affects the confidence in monitoring the entire machine and the speed of operation. A membrane switch that makes the switch key body slightly convex and slightly higher than the panel to form a three-dimensional shape is called a three-dimensional key switch. Three-dimensional keys can not only accurately determine the range of the key body, improve the recognition speed, and make the operator’s touch more sensitive, but also enhance the decorative effect of the product’s appearance. Production of three-dimensional keys.
Non-tactile membrane switch
The buttons of the non-tactile membrane switch are not embossed or printed only with ink on the button frame. The realization of the function lies in the combination of the power-on point on the panel or the power-on point of the upper circuit and the power-on point of the lower circuit to form a line conduction. The main difference from the tactile membrane switch is that when the button of the graphic overlay is pressed, there will be no obvious sound and no tactile feedback is provided. The main way to judge the realization of the function is whether there is an optical change in the LED or LCD window. You can also use LED backlight technology to determine whether the function is realized by judging whether the button or font is lit.
Working Principle of flat membrane switch
The basic working principle of the membrane switch is as follows: When the membrane panel is not pressed, the membrane switch is in a normal state, with its upper and lower contacts in a disconnected state, and the isolation layer isolates the upper and lower circuits; when the panel is pressed, the contacts of the upper circuit deform downward, It coincides with the lower line and makes the line conductive.The conductive line sends a signal to the external connection instrument (substrate) to realize its corresponding function; when the finger is released, the upper circuit contact rebounds back and the circuit is disconnected. The loop triggers a signal.
Shanyo’s Membrane Switch Manufacturers Services
Excellent Waterproof Process ( IP67 )
Shanyo’s unique waterproof technology with 3M300LSE,
it can reach the waterproof grade of IP67 that
can be used in humid environments.
Modern Silkscreen Printing with Top design Custom the product as your need
High Quality Delicate Tactile
Easy to carry and disassemble Original 3M adhesive
Shanyo Guarantee Consistent Quality of Proofing & Batches
Shanyo membrane switch life up to 2 million times
High Quality The lifetime can reach
Shanyo offers the low cost with high quality
The total thickness is only about 1mm Weighs only a few grams to ten grams
Waterproof Membrane Switch Keypad Technical Parameters:
Membrane switch keyboard is a sealed multi-layer structure non-self-locking key switch composed of a flexible insulating material layer and a conductive material layer. It is an internationally popular type in recent years that integrates panel and switch function markers, display windows, and indicator lights. The new micro-current electronic switch, which integrates the transparent window, the inner edge of the switch, and the lead-out wire of the switch circuit, forms an electronic control system assembly. Compared with conventional mechanical switches, it has a beautiful appearance, long life, resistance to bending, strong sealing, and waterproofing. , oil-proof, shock-resistant, drop-resistant, small size, ultra-thin, light weight, and other advantages that conventional switches cannot match. The main product models include flat non-tactile type, dome convex tactile type, convex tactile type, LED light-emitting tube type, EL backlight type, frame line raised type, and hard circuit board type membrane switch.
| No. | Electronic properties | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Circuit grade: | 35V (DC), 100mA, 1W |
| 2 | Contact resistance: | 10Ω~500Ω (depending on lead length(Varies depending on the temperature and materials used) |
| 3 | Insulation resistance: | 100MΩ 100V DC |
| 4 | Dielectric withstand voltage: | 250V DC/1 minute, 1mA, No breakdown or arcing phenomenon after testing |
| 5 | Contact bounce time: | ≤5ms |
| 6 | Service life: | flat type ≥ 5 million times Tactile type≥1 million times |
| 7 | Mechanical properties | |
| 8 | Operating pressure: | Flat type 57~284g (2~10oz) Tactile type 170～397g (6～14oz) |
| 9 | Switch stroke: | Flat type 0.1～0.3mm Tactile type 0.4～1mm |
| 10 | Environmental parameters | |
| 11 | Operating temperature: | -40℃～+80℃ |
| 12 | Storage temperature: | -40℃～+80℃ |
| 13 | Humidity: | 40℃, 90%~95%, 240 hours |
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Basics of PET Membrane Switch: Structure
Membrane switches are two main structures
- Raised structure:
The switch button is slightly raised, slightly higher than the panel, forming a 3D membrane switch. The convex is helpful to stimulate the operator’s sensitive touch, to help the operator accurately determine the position of the button, and to improve the recognition speed. The convex membrane switch can be designed into a variety, improving the decorative effect of the product and achieving a perfect appearance.
- Flat structure:
A flat structure was common in the initial stage of the membrane switch. The buttons on the membrane switch simply use color to express position, shape, and size. The accuracy of the operation can only be identified by the operator’s vision, and there is no appropriate feedback information to indicate whether the fingers press the effective range of the switch to make it work, thus affecting the confidence of the whole machine monitoring and control, and the speed of operation as well.
Membrane Switch Metal Dome Tactile Type
waterproof membrane switch supplier Materials Selection PC/PET
Membrane Switch and Tacitle Panel
Membrane panel is a type of HMI, in which the structure is generally PET, PC as the base material, DT, Nitto, or 3M as the adhesive material to assemble them. A membrane switch and panel is a kind of HMI with more prominent performance and lower prices.
The membrane touch panel is the operating system on many electronic controllers, medical accessories, and agricultural products, and it is also the first interface. Color matching and design are particularly important. Fortunately, as one of the most professional membrane switch manufacturers, Shanyo’s engineers and designers are very good at this type of membrane control panel. At the same time, we will strictly review whether the customer’s drawings and ideas can be realized.
Membrane Keyboard Switch Materials Selection PC/PET
1. Panel material:
Generally divided into two categories: PC (Polycarbonate) and PET (Polyester).
There are bright and matte surfaces (fine sand, medium sand, coarse sand) Commonly used thicknesses are 0.125, 0.175, 0.25mm. Special treatment includes HP series (such as HP40, HP60 and HP92S, etc.) Advantages of PC material: good ink adhesion. Disadvantages of PC material: poor corrosion resistance, difficult to use in outdoor products. Generally, those with Windows use a glossy PC, and those without Window use a matte PC. Matte PC is scratch-resistant.
There are bright and matte surfaces:
Matte:
Autotype (thickness 0.15mm and 0.20mm) Kimoto (thickness 0.125mm and 0.188mm)
Bright side: Autotype (thickness is 0.18mm and 0.25mm) Izaya (thickness is 0.125mm and 0.188mm) The above PET is treated PET.Autotype PET has excellent adhesion to ink. Its material molecular structure has a combination of softness and rigidity and has a good appearance and dimensional stability.
Advantages of PET materials: good corrosion resistance, resistance to harsh environments, bending resistance, good temperature resistance, and good elasticity.
Disadvantages of PET materials: Compared with PC materials, the adhesion of ink is slightly worse.
Matte PET is scratch-resistant.
Line materials:
PET has good insulation and heat resistance, high mechanical strength, transparency, especially bending resistance, and high elasticity. Therefore, PET is an ideal material for making membrane switch circuits.
- Generally, untreated PET is used;
- Thickness is 0.075, 0.1, 0.125mm.
- It is generally appropriate to choose 0.125mm. If it is too thick, the response will be slow and the switch sensitivity will be poor. If it is too thin, it will have insufficient elasticity and will not be conducive to the plug-in of the lead wire end.
Key piece (isolation layer) material:
Generally 0.1, 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25mm thick double-sided tape.
The thickness of the key sheet depends on the size and shape of the key, which is directly related to the operating pressure of the membrane switch and the sensitivity and reliability of the switch. Therefore, the size of the keyhole should be consistent with the size of the key pattern. When the size of the keyhole is larger, the thickness of the keysheet will also increase.
Membrane Push Button Switches Material Used In The Circuit Layer
Membrane Key Switch Material Used In The Circuit Layer
The base material of the circuit should be polyester(polyethylene phthalate) Film (Polyester referred to as PET).
It has good insulation and heat resistance, high mechanical strength, transparency, and airtightness, especially folding resistance and high elasticity.
Membrane Switch China Thickness of The Plastic
The thickness of the plastic substrate is 0.25mm or below and is called a membrane. It is mainly used as the panel layer of the membrane switch. Various indicative patterns and text are printed on the back to indicate the operation area of the corresponding key switch. Depending on the size of the button, the material is thick, the touch force is increased, and the response is slow; the material is too thin, the feel is poor when touched, and the rebound is not obvious. Thickness above 0.25mm is called a plate, which is not suitable for three-dimensional key forming. It can be used as an indicative sign panel in the keyless operation area, and can also be used as a lining for membrane switches to increase its hardness.
Custom Membrane Switch Circuit Ventilation Slot
- For the key sheet, in addition to punching the key sheet hole, it is also necessary to process the air guide groove, that is, the ventilation groove. The function of the ventilation groove is to conduct the air sealed in the membrane switch.
- The design of the ventilation slot is not arbitrary. It should be based on the relationship between adjacent key positions and the amount of air absorbed by the keyhole to determine the direction of the shunt. This way, we can better use aerodynamic force to force the relevant key positions to reliably separate. The ventilation slot is generally 2mm wide, and there are no less than 3 keyholes connected to the ventilation slots. 4-6 key connections have better effect. If the number of keys is less than 3, the key ventilation slot must be ventilated to the outside. It is ventilated to the outside and the buttons feel good to the touch.
The ventilation slot is generally 2mm wide, and there are no less than 3 keyholes connected to the ventilation slots, and 4-6 key connections provide better results. If the number of keys is less than 3, the key ventilation slot must be ventilated to the outside. It is ventilated to the outside and the buttons feel good to the touch. - The minimum line width is 0.3mm, generally 0.8-1.0mm.
- The line routing should generally be within 2mm of one side of the line shape.
- The circuit shape is generally 0.5mm smaller on one side than the panel shape (easy to assemble).
- The finger area of the lead wire needs to be covered with silver paste with carbon paste.
Carbon paste is a non-metallic conductor paste that does not combine with oxygen in the air and can protect the underlying silver paste from oxidation. Carbon also has high wear resistance, which is convenient for plugging and unplugging leads and connection terminals.
Wholesale Membrane Switch Company Inks
It is divided into conductive ink, insulating ink, matte ink, and color ink.
- Conductive ink: silver paste, carbon paste, and silver-carbon mixed paste ;
- Insulating ink: plays an insulating role and is generally used for jumper insulation and entire surface insulation;
- Matting ink: window matting, panel matting;
- Colored ink: Due to different materials, the inks used are also different, including inks for PC materials and inks for PET materials.
Membrane Switch Dome Type
Shanyo can provide various types of custom membrane switches embossed keys, as shown in the picture below.
The default is circular relief (1st from left). If you need other types, please indicate it in the remarks or drawings when custom.
Membrane Switch with Metal Dome Key
This type of membrane switch uses a metal dome as the upper circuit layer of the switch. By pressing the key, the metal dome central point will connect the lower circuit, and then trigger with a signal. Metal dome is usually made of stainless steel, which is flexible and can be pressed more than one million times.The keys of the metal shrapnel have a good button tactile and provide good tactile feedback to the operator. Shanyo uses a stainless steel cross dome and is available in specifications of 8.4mm, 10mm, 12mm, 14mm, and 16mm. The metal dome size of 10mm – 12mm is generally recommended, which is more suitable for the actual finger press.
Membrane Switch with LED
This type of membrane switch can be installed with LEDs inside. When the corresponding button is pressed, the LED will light up and be used only as the operating area of the switch. The LED light is welded on the circuit under the membrane switch to assemble it as a whole. The LED light window is often bumped. This type of product is mainly used for the function keyboard of the industrial control equipment of the man-machine interface. Shanyo this product can be welded with LED lights of various colors according to customer needs.
Flat Membrane switch
Neither the upper circuit silver pad nor the circuit layer is embossed. The entire panel layer is flat, the keys are insensitive to touch, and the service life of the keys is more than 2,000,000 times. It can be used as a functional membrane switch for industrial control equipment and household appliances.
Membrane Switch with Electrostatic Shield
Membrane switch with an Electrostatic Shield is seated up electrostatic protection components (ESD) inside the device, The main principle is to use electromagnetic shielding to shield space from electromagnetic interference, thereby reducing and eliminating electromagnetic interference from space. Generally, it is used in fields and products that have high requirements for electromagnetic interference EMI and EMC, such as laboratory equipment, scientific research equipment, and military products. The membrane switch used in the above will use a shielded electrostatic membrane switch, which has complicated art and high cost, and it is especially suitable for products with requirements for anti-electromagnetic interference performance and low-cost requirements. Features:It has anti-static protection for product devices Reduce the damage of static electricity of surrounding devices
Waterproof Membrane Switch
The waterproof membrane switch can be used in rainy or humid environments with a waterproof and moisture proof effect. Shanyo’s unique waterproof technology with 3M300LSE adhesive, the waterproof grade can reach IP67. This product is more used in the kitchen medical, and outdoor devices.
Plug-in-Card Membrane Switch
Plug-in-Card membrane switch, It will design a colorless transparent window in the graphic overlay, If the bottom of the graphic overlay is isolated, then it is ok to plug in the cards from the card slots on the edge side. The membrane switch is the main body, the cards can be designed in various ways, and the cards can be replaced according to actual use, which can be more flexibly used. This type of membrane switch is mainly suitable for supermarket electronic weighing devices.
In this kind, the Membrane switches can be used repeatedly. Only the graphics and text of the card need to be changed. Shanyo designs key content, color, effect, etc. according to customer needs, The Plug-in-Card Membrane Switch can only change the design of the cards in the future, it can be used more widely.
Membrane Switch with Die-pressing Key
This type of membrane switch uses silver paste as the upper circuit layer of the switch. By pressing, the center of the silver paste point is connected to the lower circuit to achieve conduction and trigger signals. Through “molding”, the silver paste plate of the upper circuit button is pressed into a certain dome shape with a mold, and a certain elasticity is generated, so that when the button is pressed, it can rebound and the circuit can be opened or closed.
It’s also noticeable enough to feel like the switch is off. The bumps of silver paste require the use of molds, especially for batch orders. Customized bump molds can greatly improve production efficiency and product quality stability.
The stamped silver pad can be designed from 5mm to 11mm, and the recommended size is 8mm to 10mm. The button size will be more suitable for finger pressing.
LED and metal dome keypad membrane switch specifications
Check whether the information provided by the customer is complete:
a. Engineering drawings (mark complete dimensions and tolerances, clearly mark windows, punching holes, LED polarity, color, etc.)
b. Color card.
c. *.ai or *.cdr image file
d.Matrix
e. Arrangement of lead wire PIN pins
f. Chassis or sample
Shape inspection: Check the shape and internal slots and windows according to the product design drawings.
g. Appearance inspection: check the graphics of the panel layer， the logo text, etc, and whether there are defects, omissions, stains, etc. Whether the window and press position are offset. If there is a protective film attached to the window.
h. Check the peel strength of the adhesive: check whether the adhesive is the adhesive selected according to the order, and test that the peel strength of the adhesive is not less than N/25mm.
Are you a Trading Company or Manufacturing?
- We are a Professional Metal dome manufacturer, we have our own factory, and we are based in Qingdao, China, Shanyo Precision Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. is a professional manufacturer of mobile phones and digital product components. It was established in 2004 and has more than 200 employees. The main business is applied in consumer electronics, remote controls, mobile phones, automobiles, medical care, smart products, outdoor products, etc. The main products are metal dome array, Remote control buttons, die cutting, LGF, UV bumps, FPC, panel buttons, PCB lines, thin film flexible lines, etc. The Qingdao factory covers an area of more than 3,500 square meters. Currently, it has offices in Shenzhen, Shanghai, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore, fully implementing the global marketing strategy. sell to Southern Europe (10.00%), Domestic Market (10.00%), Northern Europe (10.00%), Central America (10.00%), Western Europe (10.00%), Eastern Europe (10.00%), South America (10.00%), North America (10.00%), South Asia (5.00%), Southeast Asia (5.00%), Eastern Asia (3.00%), Oceania (3.00%), Mid East (2.00%), Africa (2.00%). There are a total of about 51-100 people in our office.
How do I request samples of your products?
- Stock Samples: If you paid the freight cost, we could provide free samples for you.
- Customized Samples: We will offer you 5 pcs free samples after we receive the setup cost.
- To request product samples, please email us at shanyonod@shanyo.com.
How do I request a quote?
- You can easily request a quote by filling out our Quote Form, or by sending us an e-mail at shanyonod@shanyo.com.
How can we guarantee quality?
- We process and produce products in strict accordance with the list of raw materials.
- Many of our engineers have many years of experience and are very responsible.
Always a pre-production sample before mass production;
Always final Inspection before shipment.
And video confirmation of packing with the customer.
Can you offer OEM Service?
- Surely Okay, we have Seasoned OEM service experience.
What is the Lead time of the sample?
- It takes 2-7 working days depending.
How fast can I get the Quotation?
- 30 mins ~ 24 Hours depends.
How to place an order?
- Please tell us your material, artwork design, logic circuit schematic diagram, size, surface, usage, etc. It is best to send us the design drawings or samples and other detailed data, and then we will customize the metal dome and metal dome array according to your requirements.
What services can we provide?
- Accepted Delivery Terms: FOB, EXW；
Accepted Payment Currency: USD, EUR, HKD, CNY;
Accepted Payment Type: T/T, L/C, MoneyGram, PayPal, Western Union, Escrow;
Language Spoken: English, Chinese
What products are die-cut?
- The die-cutting process is suitable for a variety of materials, including metal, plastic, paper, fabric, foam, wood, and composites.
Advantages of metal dome technology:
- Durability: Metal domes are highly durable and can withstand millions of actuations without failure. This makes them ideal for use in devices that are used frequently, such as keyboards and keypads.
- Consistency: Metal domes provide a consistent tactile response, which means that users can rely on the same level of feedback every time they press a button. This can improve user experience and accuracy.
- Cost-effectiveness: Metal domes are relatively inexpensive to manufacture, which makes them a cost-effective solution for manufacturers.
Space-saving: Metal domes are small and can be placed close together, which makes them ideal for use in compact devices. - Customization: Metal domes can be customized with different shapes, sizes, and force requirements to suit the specific needs of a particular device or application. This allows manufacturers to create unique user experiences for their products.
