Printed Circuit Board Assembly & PCB Design SMT Electronics Assembly Manufacturing Forum

Printed Circuit Board Assembly & PCB Design Forum

SMT electronics assembly manufacturing forum.


Solder paste inspection

Owen Bratten

#14745

Solder paste inspection | 10 August, 1998

I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one over the other. Thank you for your help. Owen Braaten

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Justin Medernach

#14750

Re: Solder paste inspection | 10 August, 1998

| | I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one over the other. | Thank you for your help. | Owen Braaten Owen, I use the Cyberoptic's LSM2. Ball park pricing is between 14 and 18k. System works extremely well and is very reliable. New software is in the works and due very shortly to completely eliminate operator variability (number one complaint as of now). Overall, it's a nice system, I'm happy with the service, look hard at the "built in" SPC option as it may not be worth it for you. Regards, Justin Medernach

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Wayne Bracy

#14749

Re: Solder paste inspection | 10 August, 1998

| | I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one over the other. | Thank you for your help. | Owen Braaten Owen: You mignt want to take a look at I Systems and speak with Steve Pimpis (978) 657-0149. Willmington, MA. Has a real neat table top semi-automatic solder measurement system. Have attached their web-site. wayne

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Mike Moninger

#14747

Re: Solder paste inspection | 10 August, 1998

| | I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one over the other. A previous thread on this forum (July archives) mentioned a table top measuring microscope that can be obtained from Start International (800.259.1986). It will measure depth and one axis of width. we use it several times daily as a process control device, taking measurements at five different points on the printed area. Very cost effective. A bright light source at a flat (near horizontal) angle helps to define the tops of the solder balls.

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Steve Gregory

#14748

Re: Solder paste inspection | 10 August, 1998

>I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for >solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top >models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. >Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one >over the other. | A previous thread on this forum (July archives) mentioned a table top measuring microscope that can be obtained from Start International (800.259.1986). It will measure depth and one axis of width. we use it several times daily as a process control device, taking measurements at five different points on the printed area. Very cost effective. A bright light source at a flat (near horizontal) angle helps to define the tops of the solder balls. Hi Owen! There's a depth-measuring microscope system made by what used to be Screen Manufacturing Technologies (now AlphaMetals), that I think is one of the most cost effective ways to reliably measure solder paste. It's called a SmartMeasure...I just recently bought my third one at the latest company I'm working at, the other two I bought while working at other companies. It's a machined aluminum base with a 100X microscope mounted on a arm that has a Mitutoyo digital Z-axis micrometer incorporated into the focusing mechanism of the microscope. The whole thing works just like a Vision Engineering system if you've ever seen one of those units. You print your board, find a area of a pad that you can focus on, zero your micrometer, then focus on the top of the printed paste, and read your height off of the micrometer...piece of cake! It's good for plus or minus a half a mil...same specs that the laser ones tout as well. It's probably something similar to the system that Mike was talking about from Start, 'cause this one has a micrometer that can measure one other axis besides "Z" too. If you want, you can also have them put another micrometer on it and then it can do X,Y, and Z. There's also an optional mini-processor/printer that you can get with it that will plug right into the Mitutoyo and log the readings that you get by pushing a button once you've focused at the top of the paste, and then use that data to chart SPC. The price? A whopping $1,600 bucks! The accessory microprocessor will run ya' another $575, and if you want another micrometer so you can do X, Y, and Z, that's another $400. The units I've bought have all been the bare-bones stock jobs... I never needed any of the other stuff they sell with it. I gotta tell ya', it works like a champ! Sure, it ain't got those fancy "Luke Skywalker" lasers in it, and you do gotta little more to do than push a button, but when you look at this: $15,000.000 versus this: $1,595.00 ...it tends to make your mind up pretty easy. Call (408) 562-2033 and ask for Jim Vaughn. Tell him I said howdie! -Steve Gregory-

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Dave F

#14746

Re: Solder paste inspection / Gauge R&R Study?? | 12 August, 1998

| | I am trying to get an idea of what system seems to work best for solder paste inspection. I am looking for basic table top models with he capabilites of height and width measurements. Can anyone give me suggestions, pricing and why you prefer one over the other. | Thank you for your help. | Owen Braaten Hi All: I just found the gauge R&R study on the Cyberoptics LSM2. After excluding operator error, the study indicates the LSM2 is not very repeatable. Certainly we can quibble about anyone's test methodology and method, but what were your assements of the repeatabilty of measurements with the instruments used to measure paste? Dave F

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