Cleaning of PCBs in SMT production lines
Applications: cleaning in the SMT line, sensors, equipped or non-equipped PCBs, panels and PCBs of various sizes, electronic assemblies on product carriers
Initial situation
The surfaces of PCBs are often contaminated by machining processes (milling, grinding, drilling, punching). Additional contamination can occur during further processing (populating, blanking) and cause short circuits or functional impairments, which lead to high scrap rates. During the various processing steps particles may be deposited on the surfaces of PCBs and populated components and surfaces may become electrostatically charged. Uncontrolled discharges can affect the function of sensitive electronic components or even destroy them. Unwanted deposits and dirt can cause short circuits between the conductor paths or impair their function.
Solution
In an SMT production line, our in-line cleaning system PCB MASTER is used to remove particles and electrostatic charges. It is a non-contact cleaning process conducted before each critical process and at the end of the manufacturing process using the integrated TAIFUN‑CLEAN® cleaning system. Unwanted dust and foreign particles are loosened by ionised compressed air using rotating nozzles, taken up by a concentrated suction airstream, and fed into an integrated filter unit. The integrated electrostatic discharge is optimized for ESD applications and conforms to the to the current version of the IEC 61340-5-1:2016 standard, residual charge (ion balance) < 35 V. The working width is adapted to the respective product dimensions. The connection to the upstream and downstream systems is via a SMEMA interface. Individual solutions for connection to a machine detection system (MES system) are possible.
