With component sizes shrinking and board complexity rising, maintaining a quality standard is challenging. Luckily, the systems responsible for identifying quality defects have also undergone technological advancements. As a contract manufacturer, we have to identify trends early and adopt the technologies that create value for us and ultimately, our customers. Here are some of our quality and testing processes that we implement that help deliver great results for customers.
Electrical and Mechanical Inspections during SMT component placement
VR’s SMT machines perform electrical and mechanical verification on the parts it places before soldering occurs. This is an important step because components frequently appear similar or are so small that manually identifying markings is not feasible. We rely on SMT verifications to confirm the right components are placed. During the programming of the machine, both electrical and mechanical tolerances are set for each component. As the components are placed, the machine runs a test, checking mechanical and electrical tolerances for each component. Any failure alerts the machine operator to make a correction.
Relying on SMT machines to place the correct components saves time and prevents rework that would need to take place if components were improperly placed.
X-Ray Inspection
High resolution x-ray inspection is an important technology that is utilized in the PCBA quality process. Since components are growing increasingly smaller as surface mount technology replaces thru-hole mounting, it is difficult to rely on older methods of inspection. This is especially the case when solder connections cannot be visually inspected.
X-ray inspection is utilized for the following instances:
Automated Optical Inspection
AOI machines have experienced many technological advancements within the past 5 years. Camera resolutions, 3D imaging, and machine learning have created new technologies and ways to inspect components. We’ve recently upgraded our AOI machines to the new MIRTEC CoaxPress. This allows us to capture more complex inspection details and move product through the facility faster.
Previous technology did a great job of looking down on components, examining boards in a 2D model. With new cameras and machine learning, we can now look at boards and create a 3D environment to capture better images related to solder joints, voids, component markings, and tilt. With more images at a higher resolution, AOI machines are now capable of “learning” and identifying problems early on.
Test
Oftentimes, customers request that we provide functional tests for their printed circuit board assemblies. Customers need to provide the test parameters and equipment, or they can consult with us to build the necessary testing procedures. However, some equipment such as multimeters, power supplies, and oscilloscopes are available at our facility.
Here is a listing of some of the testing VR conducts: