Silicone Rubber Keypads
Rubbertech have been manufacturing silicone rubber keypads for many years and supply into the electronics, marine, test instrumentation and medical industries.
Many instruments and electronic devices use rubber keypads as their preferred user interface as they can be designed to offer an excellent tactile operation at low cost but to a high visual standard.
Rubber keypads are generally produced using silicone rubber. Silicone rubber keypads can be colour matched easily and offer excellent UV, weathering and temperature range properties. Silicone can also be specially compounded to offer UL approved specification, luminescent qualities and can be produced to incorporate anti-bacterial additives.
These keypads can also be moulded with carbon pill contacts to operate onto PCB.
Supplied as an assembly with a membrane circuit layer or where minimal travel is required yet a positive click feel operation is needed we can supply the keypad with a metal or polydome dome switch layer.
There are many finishes available on silicone keypads. We can print multiple colours, spray coat metallic colours and backlight keypads using negative printing or laser etching processes. To further enhance and protect the print wear of the keypads we can also apply protective coatings as follows.
- Matt silicone based spray coating. This coating offers a silky feel to the keypad.
- PU based spray coating. This coating is more expensive but offers a harder smooth finish and greater protection to any printed legends.
- Epoxy resin key tops. This coating is much more expensive but offers a very high quality look the keypad and greater protection to any printing.
- Anti-microbial spray coating. This coating reduces living bacteria on the keypad surface.
The method used to manufacture rubber keypads is compression moulding. This method is much slower than injection moulding but the tools are cheaper and can be made with many more cavities to ensure low costs.
The printing methods used are screen printing and also pad printing.
Rubbertech have many years experience in producing rubber keypads and are more than happy to discuss your requirements and offer design input where needed. We can also supply any plastic injection mouldings that are part of the customer assembly.
All of our keypad and plastic tools are produced by our partner in China to ensure perfect assembly and once samples approved the keypad tools will either be shipped to Rubbertech UK or production will remain at our partners in China.
We accept 2D and 3D CAD data and only ask that you supply us with the basic model showing overall dimensions and quantities required, we can supply a quotation from this information. Once accepted we will help to refine the design to ensure the keypad offers the correct operating force and travel that our customers require.
Please contact us to discuss your design or requirement further or send us a drawing for quotation.
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