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Round Up: Test and Inspection
December 31, 1969 |Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
This article is based on responses received to a questionnaire sent to test and inspection equipment suppliers. We asked vendors for their perspectives on equipment evolution and contemporary challenges. Part II appears online.
By Gail Flower, SMT
How has your test/inspection equipment improved in the past year?
"We have been able to increase inspection speed for soldered components without accuracy loss, and reduce the programming time required to set up an AOI machine," said Chris Speck, AOI business unit manager at Omron Electronics, summarizing the AOI industry's direction. With the VT-S700 in-line AOI machine, Omron improved inspection speed and eliminated optical distortion problems, using a telecentric lens with a 2MP camera. The system is designed for up to 10µm resolution for components as small as 01005 and down to a 12 mil pitch. Solder shape recognition accuracy, characterization of lead-free solder joints, auto-teaching, and other inspection advances were acheived. CyberOptics Corporation recently launched the SE500 for speed and accuracy in SPI, said Parito Lee, global marketing manager. The system can inspect the most demanding assemblies at >80 cm2/sec inspection speeds without compromising measurement and repeatability. The SE500 can inspect pad sizes down to 01005 component size while keeping up with line speeds. "Also in the pipeline is a series of new AOI product platforms, which will be unveiled in the forthcoming months," added Lee. The new platforms target a higher level of speed and modularity.
Users want to shorten initial inspection program generation times. Omron offers the EzTS, easy teaching software, for VT-RNS and VT-S700 inspection systems, avoiding skilled programmer requirement. CAD-based x|act high-precision µAXI technology in the phoenix microme|x and nanome|x 180 kV X-ray inspection systems links specific inspection strategies from a library to each pad type, then automatically creates the inspection views and runs the program. Programs can be generated off-line and are portable to all systems of the same type.
Mirtec Corporation invests in R&D for optics, lighting, and laser technology in the development of inspection systems, said Brian D'Amico, president. The MS-11 in-line SPI system uses shadow-free moiré phase shift imaging technology to inspect solder paste deposition post-print. It can inspect for insufficient solder, excessive solder, shape deformity, shift of deposition, and bridging better than lasers.The MV-3L desktop AOI is a 5-camera desktop AOI system and uses an Intelli-beam laser system for the ability to precisely measure the Z-height of a region of interest. It is used for co-planarity testing of BGA and CSP devices and solder paste measurement. Dage Precision Industries, a Nordson Company, also invested in R&D, focusing on challenging applications, said Paul Vere, managing director, noting X-ray systems with software routines to automatically identify head-in-pillow (HIP) failures and high strain rate bond testing that assures JEDEC standards compliance.
A temperature-stabilized GE DXR flat panel detector with 30 frames-per-second enclosure high-dynamic live imaging enhances 2D inspection capabilities, said Tobias Neubrand, Ph.D., product manager, 2D inspection at GE, Sensing & Inspecting Technologies, phoenix | x-ray.
Figure 1. X-ray inspection of BGA balls. Courtesy of Dage.
"Agilent has put tremendous energy into in-circuit test capabilities to reduce user costs," said Janet Smith, North American PR manager, Agilent. The i3070 Series 5 ICT system comes with a measurement engine and 12-MHz pin card; 30% faster than the previous generation. It allows manufacturers to plug in external tests for added test coverage and power handling.
Agilent's ICT helps customers reduce cost with improved throughput, new levels of coverage, and reduced test steps. Robert Boguski, president of test service provider Datest said, "The addition of Windows/Unix (dual boot) interface to Agilent's (HP) 3070 ICT platform is our largest improvement."
Agilent champions limited access test like Bead Probes and Cover-Extend technology. "We're looking at new breakthroughs with boundary scan, and next-generation functional manufacturing test with flexibility and scalability for industrial and automotive segments, besides the electronics."
In XRF, RMD Instruments is introducing the ability to identify substandard/counterfeit components via focused software on an XRF analyzer. "Substandard parts are a huge problem that can only get worse if not abated at the various stages of the component distribution process," said Steve Glass, RMD. XRF suppliers typically "cross over" their technology from another industry, but RMD started with an electronics focus, Glass added. "Using Co57 as the energy source for X-rays is superior to tube-type energy for RoHS, as it allows for a quantitative measurement of the scanned area and prevents false positives or negatives by showing true values." Adding new features and capabilities is industry-driven. These include the "adjusta-beam," adjusting the scan area from 1.5 to 3.0 mm as the application requires; portability; and ESD-safe equipment housing.
Test socket manufacturers have to meet market needs for smaller pitch devices, noted Bill Sinclair, CEO, Aries Electronics. Aries' two-piece spring probe reduced socket pitch from 0.5 to 0.4, 0.3, and now to 0.2 mm, shrinking spring and screw-machined probe contact form factors. The spring for the 0.2 mm tester is 0.52-mm outer diameter, while the probe is only 0.078 mm. "Devices are also becoming smaller in length by width size, with some devices at 0.3 mm2. To adjust, we introduced a 6.5-mm molded, hinged lid frame to accommodate 0.3–6.5 mm devices."
What are test and inspection challenges today?
Datest's Boguski points to smaller components, board features, and pad geometries. Users need greater throughput with increased accuracy and traceability. There's a growing need for in-depth failure analysis. A challenge for the test provider and EMS provider alike is finding a way to remain cost competitive in an extremely challenging economic environment. The biggest challenge is how to convert inspection data into process improvements.
Figure 2. AOI images of paste print errors. Courtesy of Omron.
According to Speck, Omron, users are challenged when finding the root cause of assembly problems. "We are seeing assemblers address only about 50–60% of post-soldering problems," said Speck. "Using Omron's Q-upNavi analysis software tool, users can mine inspection data, trace specific faults, and correct them." Automotive electronics assemblers, consumer product makers, and others find this software effective, experiencing up to 80% defect reduction compared to AOI alone. Upstream design-for-test (DfT) capabilities such as coverage analysis can help provide test coverage analysis to optimize production test strategies, even at the design stage. This optimization process saves production test costs by shortening production test planning time and reducing overall test cycle time and resources.
Mirtec's D'Amico says that AOI systems must be quickly and easily programmed so that managers can run multiple products in a given production day. Engineering resources are at a premium in today's lean environment; AOI programming should require minimal technical expertise.
To contend with today's complex PCB assemblies, AOI machines must provide technically advanced optics, lighting, and measurement systems for extreme accuracy and repeatability. "Electronic components are increasingly miniature and even more complex," observes Neubrand of phoenix|x-ray. "Similarly, quality requirements are growing. For industries like automotive or aerospace, zero defects are essential. New and automated testing methods ensure high quality. With common in-line AXI, inspection depth is normally determined by SMT line throughput. To hit zero defect quality requirements, inspection with small fields-of-view (FOV) with micrometer resolution, 360° rotation and oblique viewing up to 70° is essential. X-ray inspection takes more time, and the higher the defect coverage, the more inspection time required.
Cost of ownership (COO), high inspection performance at increased line speeds, and working with line-level operators are our challenges, said Lee, CyberOptics. Shrinking EMS profit margins sharpen the focus on equipment COO, necessitating good price, simple use, exceptional uptime, and low support costs. "From a business perspective, the challenges have not really changed – the key has always been cost. Customers expect more value and capabilities to be packed into the same dollar," noted Agilent's Smith.
"Industry experts estimate counterfeiting cost at $100 to $200 billion annually, nearly 10% of all electronic equipment sold worldwide. The problem is escalating. Although the federal government and industry associations have taken measures to limit counterfeiting, it continues to plague the components industry," warned RMD's Glass. Counterfeit suppliers are becoming more sophisticated, making detection difficult. No one method guarantees 100% detection when it comes to counterfeits. Some components are pried off e-waste boards intact and relabeled, making X-ray less effective. Some are missing die but labeled with skill and processes like laser etch and are expertly blacktopped, making them virtually undetectable with optical tactics.
3D packaging, with devices containing more bumped die and brittle lead-free solder, increases failures at the solder ball-to-pad interface, said Vere, Dage. High strain rate bond testing is a reliable indicator of drop test performance, and has become an established technique for detecting brittle fracture failures in lead-free materials.
Sinclair, Aries, sees test socket manufacturer's biggest challenge as how to deliver finished custom sockets in short turns. Customers want to design their device-under-test (DUT) boards and must know the socket footprint as well as the pad size. To speed this process, Aries provides software that delivers a complete detailed socket drawing for approval in four hours, before sockets arrive. Also cutting wait time, Aries stocks several outer frames and pressure pads, leaving only the device-specific interposer set and pressure pad to be machined.
Conclusion
Certain themes have emerged in the test and inspection sector. Cost of ownership is critical. Test speeds are increasing. Components and pads are shrinking. Accuracy, traceability, ease of use, and capability can make all the difference when choosing equipment. Producing quality boards with low failure rates requires modern equipment. SMT
Gail Flower, editor-at-large, SMT, may be contacted at gailflower@gmail.com. Read her related article, "Test and Inspection Round Up: The Equipment Users' Needs," at smtonline.com.