HOW TO USE AOI EQUIPMENT FOR QUALITY CONTROL DURING MANUFACTURING PROCESSES.

Board inspection through all work stages is more cost efficient than inspection only at the end of the entire process. A 100 percent inspection can be accomplished in no more time than it would take to do a random inspection. With leasing programs a system may cost less than one operator costs per month. And, the return on investment by using optical inspection equipment may be less than one year. Other variations of the aforementioned automated PC board optical inspection equipment are also being used to check for opens and shorts, and to measure board warpage by 5/100mm by using a laser light and special prism lens. These units are expected to become more popular as the industry moves toward surface mounting. Quality and yield - not just expensive labor - are reasons for some manufacturers to go offshore. Through 100 percent optical inspection the United States can achieve the high quality and yield, to bring production back home.