A Case Study on GORE® Pressure Vents in a Smartphone

Learn how design enhancements of our pressure vents improved the robustness and reliability of a phone by preventing water ingress.
Case Study
image of water droplet splashing

Challenge

While performing their design validation process, a world-renowned smartphone OEM detected that their product would not meet the required standards for robustness and reliability. Technically speaking, the device failed the water entry pressure performance test and the corresponding water ingress led to increased susceptibility to errors and system failures. Hence, the company decided against a global distribution of the smartphone because of an imminent demand for replacements or repairs, which would have decreased market revenue and blemished the OEM’s reputation.

Subsequently, the quality management team of the company consulted the specialists at Gore in an effort to determine what caused the water entry pressure failure. Furthermore, the client asked Gore to find an adequate solution for the issue that would also lead to increased consistency in the device’s manufacturing process.

graphic representing water ingress on mobile device

Solution

After receiving samples of the defective parts, the Gore engineers immediately examined the smartphone components and were able to detect why the pressure vent was malfunctioning.

The water ingress was caused by a maladjusted design concept, which did not allow an ideal integration of the pressure vent into the phone. To prevent the harmful water ingress during future production, the Gore experts quickly came up with a new and optimized pressure vent design that would bridge the gap and ultimately lead to exceptional improvements in terms of robustness and reliability.

During the trials, the client and the Gore engineers collaborated closely, giving our experts a deep understanding of the OEM’s production process. This knowledge helped our specialists to adjust the newly configured pressure vent design to the client’s existing installation method without requiring any further adaptations.

The new pressure vent design was tested rigorously and found to be fully functioning. To top it off, a new design guideline was created so the customer could evaluate all the improvements within the development process.

mobile phone with gore venting content on the screen

Results

The broad expertise of the Gore engineers not only allowed them to figure out why the smartphone was malfunctioning, but also to quickly develop an optimized pressure vent concept that would avoid the harmful water ingress. Soon after our cooperation, the smartphone OEM was able to deliver the device to customers worldwide.

Thanks to our support, the smartphone OEM was able to

  • eradicate all the product defects and improve its reliability and robustness
  • provide customers with a superb quality phone that had no reported issues in a six-month period
  • gain a better understanding of its own development process thanks to the new design guideline
FOR INDUSTRIAL USE ONLY 

Not for use in food, drug, cosmetic or medical device manufacturing, processing, or packaging operations.