3. Panel Breakouts

What Are Panel Breakouts?

In mass production—or when dealing with compact or irregularly shaped PCBs, it's common to integrate panel breakouts into the design. These are intentional, easily removable sections—typically tabs or perforations, that allow the boards to be separated from the panel after assembly, a process known as depanelisation.

Breakouts are also essential when a PCB must fit into a non-standard enclosure. In such cases, extra material is added around the PCB to ensure the panel maintains mechanical stability throughout manufacturing.

For very small PCBs or designs with insufficient border area, a board carrier may be used instead. This is a temporary assembly aid that provides stability during production. However, because custom carriers can be costly and require special tooling, they are not offered as a standard service by NOTE unless specifically requested via a manual quote.

Best Practices for Designing Panel Breakouts

Always keep components clear of breakout zones. In low-volume production, depanelisation is often performed manually using tools like nibblers or rotary cutters, which require unobstructed access to both the top and bottom sides of the assembly.

Non-rectangular or round PCB outlines can introduce complications. If the gap between the PCB and the surrounding material is too narrow, depanel tools may not be able to fit or operate safely.

V-scoring is highly effective for PCBs with straight edges and no overhanging parts. When combined with well-considered panel design, V-score breakouts provide clean, consistent, and tool-free separation—a reliable option in most high-speed assembly lines.

For tab-style breakouts, place tabs in areas free of copper. Ideally, the tab should break within the board profile to eliminate post-processing work like sanding or de-burring.

Breakout locations should also be designed with balanced mechanical force in mind. When panels are snapped apart, uneven stress can result in cracks, delamination, or lifted components. Align breakout paths along board edges wherever possible to reduce upward or torsional stress.

As a general rule: avoid designing breakouts that require significant force to separate. The cleaner and easier the breakout, the better the yield.

A simple design check: print out your panel layout on paper and fold along the intended breakout paths. If folds intersect, cross, or converge at sharp angles, these are potential stress points. Aim for clean, uninterrupted fold lines to reduce the chance of board damage during separation.