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In January 2023 I started working on a PCB pick, which would have used multiple circuit boards soldered together as a coin cell holder. Via a reply to this tweet, I was introduced to a method of holding a coin cell battery with single PCB, using a fork-like contact arrangement. What’s presented in the video below isn’t a pick per se, but can be used as one, and can be assembled without any solder whatsoever. Precision Cnc Machining

Light PCB Requires No Solder - Hackster.io

I "creatively" call this new PCB the LED-No-Solder, and in addition to its baked-in coin cell holding, it also features a rather unusual method of attaching the LED leads. Instead of solder, the PCB allows one to thread the leads in and out of two long through holes, finally bending them into non-conductive holes at the end. LEDs to stay in place without solder, though one can optionally use it to ensure a solid connection. Several 3D-printed prototypes were generated to quickly improve hole positioning.

My fork design differs slightly from the design that inspired it (18.5mm in length for the middle, 17.5mm for the sides, vs. 19mm for both in the reference design). Whether this is the reason or not, they do not make solid electrical contact with the battery all of the time, typically only with a light touch or even vibration.

This turned out to be a bit of a fortuitous accident, enabling the PCB to act as a switch, and even sense when it contacts a guitar string. It also picks up on vibrations, which might unlock all sorts of possibilities for this sort of PCB setup. LED-No-Solder PCBs are available on Tindie by themselves or as a kit if you'd like to try one out yourself.

Light PCB Requires No Solder - Hackster.io

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