Getting Closer...

So my summer vacation is unfortunately over and I'm getting back into the finishing stages of the VIUD preparation. All I can do before actually selling them is to do the coating of all the USB boards I currently have.

Through all the various testing I've done, mainly the shock testing, I've narrowed down a good combination of coatings and epoxies that seems to maximize the durability of the USB. I start with two layers of Silicon conformal coating.

Silicon Conformal Coating a USB

This is thin, flexible coating that gets into all the small nooks and crannies on the circuit board and even by itself seems to help a lot in minimizing damage caused by shock. Each coat requires at least a day to dry out.

Drying Out the Conformal Coating

Once the two conformal coatings are dry it is time for another two coatings of a thicker and more flexible insulating coating.

Coating a USB in Insulating Varnish

This gives the USB circuit board a considerably thicker and flexible coat to help absorb even more shock. It also helps prevent epoxy from leaking through the USB connector and making a considerable mess which is difficult and time consuming to clean up. Like the conformal coating each insulating coating takes a day to dry.

Drying Out the Insulating Coating

Next step is to just create an online store and actually start selling things!