PCB inspection is an essential element in any electronics manufacturing process. The PCB inspection enables faults to be detected as soon after the manufacture process as possible. As such the PCB inspection process is an essential element of any PCB manufacturing process. Whether for large scale / high volume or low volume manufacturing, the PCB inspection process is essential, especially with the high level of complexity or many of today's boards.There are two main uses for a PCB inspection system:
1.High light manufacturing defects: The obvious function of a PCB inspection system is to highlight any defects so that they can be corrected before they are passed on to the next stage in the production process. Finding faults as early as PCB possible in the production process is essential because fault finding PCB and fixing costs rise by approximately a factor of ten as each stage in the production process is passed PCB. 2.Provide process feedback: An equally important function of a PCB inspection system is to provide feedback into the manufacturing process. Using a PCB inspection system on the output of the soldering process can enable any pattern faults to be seen and the process corrected almost immediately to reduce or eliminate the occurrence of a given problem PCB. It can be seen from the diagram, that the PCB inspection process allows boards with failures to be detected as well as feedback to assist the production process to be gained. Some production processes may also place a PCB inspection stage after the pick and place operation - indeed, some pick and place machines include an optical PCB inspection system. This allows PCBs to be corrected before being soldered PCB.
