The "faster, bigger, further" principle no longer applies to all aspects of human and technological development. The classic example is electronic component developers, who are racing to fit smaller and smaller components into their devices. The capabilities of many devices continue to expand, but must not take up more space, necessitating the use of tighter-packed components to mount the board. Whether in medical technology or the smartphone in your hand, electronic components are being miniaturized, which can only be achieved with suitable manufacturing processes.
Small electronic components are assembled on circuit boards using surface mount technology (SMT). Compared to previous methods, this technology eliminates the need for complex drilling for wiring, so not only a greater number and smaller size of components can be mounted on the board, but also under the board. Manufacturers use fully automated processes such as reflow soldering to ensure that passive components, microcontrollers or voltage regulators are securely fastened to circuit boards.
In this process, glue is applied to the circuit board before assembly and heating. This is done by a dispenser or the like similar to that used in ink jet printers. The high-speed coater can now complete 100,000 dispenses per hour. With precise positioning, smaller dispensing diameters, and faster dispensing speeds, they are widely used in semiconductor manufacturing and as a flexible alternative to solder paste printers.
Turck installed a liquid level monitoring system in the limited space of the user's high-speed dispensing system. To prevent unplanned downtime and keep compound losses as low as possible, employees must be notified when the cartridge level reaches critical levels. This is especially difficult to achieve given that the elements of a production machine can be very small. Only very small sensors that can detect different densities of glue can be used to monitor the level of the glue cartridge, and the sensor must also withstand severe vibrations separated by only a 1 mm thick layer of plastic.
In order to use the dispensing head in parallel, the manufacturer can install 2 sensors within a small spacing. The flexible adaptability of these capacitive switches is also impressive: customers can use potentiometers for fine sensor calibration depending on the adhesive or glue used. "The compact sensor not only allows us to overcome installation problems, but also enables us to quickly repair failures in the field or respond to changes in glue," and ultimately the sensor helps users avoid costly loss of adhesive or glue.
Small sensors that also feature non-contact detection For a manufacturer of dispensers, coaters and encapsulators, it was critical to fit sensors into smaller installation spaces. The company uses Turck's compact Q08 capacitive sensor with a length of only 32 mm, which is completely customized for the customer for non-contact liquid level detection. Bright LED lights can indicate operating voltage status or switching status with different colors. BC5-Q08 also enables users to directly detect the liquid level at the machine end, and output a switch signal when the glue liquid is low to notify the equipment to fill in liquid agent or glue material in real time.
High-speed precision dispensing machine, automatic high-speed precision dispensing machine is not limited to dispensing solder paste. For example, many different types of adhesives or potting compounds can be applied using different dispenser bodies and heads. Some electronic components require special coatings, while others use resinous polymers, using a so-called underfill process, with more stable fixtures on the circuit board. In addition, there is a distinction between contact (small quantities) or jet (high speed) dispensing.
