3D Inspection of unpopulated PCBs

Micro-Epsilon: For fully automated inline inspection of unpopulated PCBs, 3D snapshot sensors from Micro-Epsilon are used. Unlike conventional test systems such as microscopes, they are more cost-efficient and work significantly faster. For high-end ceramics substrates, manufacturing tolerances up to 2 µm apply which can be monitored using surfaceCONTROL sensors.

With the surfaceCONTROL 3D 3510 snapshot sensor, fully automated inline inspection of geometry, shape and surfaces of unpopulated PCBs are possible. The sensor achieves best measurement results on matt objects with a repeatability of up to 0.4 µm. The measurement with subsequent calculation and evaluation takes only 1.5 seconds.

Unpopulated PCB substrates serve as basic elements for PCBs that are integrated, for example, into sensors, smartphones and computers. If the evenness of the substrate does not meet the specifications, assemblies cannot be placed exactly during assembly.

The high-precision 3D snapshot sensor surfaceCONTROL 3D 3510 measures directly in the production line on the matt surface of the substrates. The working distance is 120 to 140 mm. The recorded measurement values are calculated in the sensor and output to an external PC via the integrated Gigabit Ethernet interface. Further processing, evaluation and logging of the 3D data is possible with the powerful 3DInspect software.

The evaluated data is transferred via Modbus to the 2D/3D gateway from Micro-Epsilon, which receives the signal and forwards it via EtherCAT to the control unit of the conveyor belt. If defects are detected on the substrates, the control unit automatically sorts out the bad part.

The surfaceCONTROL 3D 3510 snapshot sensor enables fully automated geometry inspection without manual insertion of the parts by a production worker. The sensor achieves best measurement results on matt objects with a repeatability of up to 0.4 µm.

The entire inspection with subsequent calculation and evaluation takes only 1.5 seconds. The robust housing is rated IP67 and therefore ideally suitable for industrial applications.