The greater demand for manufacturing equipment and the arrival of Industry 4.0 have prompted suppliers to come up with more advanced selective conformal coating and dispensing machinery.
By Baishakhi Dutta
Printed circuit board (PCB) components require various types of equipment for different procedures, such as dispensing, coating and curing. All of these procedures go hand in hand, especially in batch operations for mass production. Today’s applications require advanced dispensing and coating machines with high precision and repeatability. Some of the recently released dispensing, coating and curing equipment are featured here.
| Model: TS550R; Manufacturer: Techcon |
| The TS550R is a smart controller capable of controlling all valves from the Techcon pneumatic series including the following: TS1212 pinch tube valve, TS941/TS5322 spool valve, TS5420/TS5440 needle valve and the TS5620/TS5622 diaphragm valve. With a universal power supply, it is a fully ‘plug and play’ system and can be used anywhere in the world, claim company sources. - Advertisement -
The TS550R features an intuitive touchscreen interface for easy setup and operation. Dispensing parameters can be precisely configured directly on the touchscreen or remotely through the networking options. Additional advanced features include a digital timer to provide accurate and repeatable dispense times, and a digital pressure regulator with dual-unit display to allow precise pressure control. The user friendly interface provides an option to program up to 50 varied, sequenced or individual shots. Key features:
Contact details: www.techconsystems.com |
| Model: Conexis CX-3040; Manufacturer: Nordson Asymtek |
| The Conexis CX-3040 conformal coating system provides both speed and flexibility. It is ideal for mid-volume, high accuracy applications. Linear encoders enable the system to reach a maximum speed of 700mm per second and an overall accuracy of 50 microns. Additional features and options can be added to the coater as production needs change. The Conexis system’s software provides an easy-to-use interface with its offline programming capability. The software’s dispense library can store and monitor information about different materials, dispense valves, and other necessary criteria for ready access. Also, the software can monitor all air pressures (main air pressure, tank pressure, and atomising air pressure) to provide expanded process control.  The Conexis system can be configured with many different dispense and spray valves, including the high-speed airless curtain valves. Up to three valves can be mounted on the independent Z-axis, with two capable of tilting (4-axis) and rotating (360 degrees).Key features:
Contact details: www.nordson.com |
| Model: PDS 2060PC; Manufacturer: Speciality Coating Systems |
| Designed for high-capacity production where output is critical, the SCS PDS 2060PC can be configured with your choice of chamber size, with options ranging from 23cm x 61cm to 61cm x 81cm. The system can be manufactured for virtually any operating power, claim company sources, and includes a communication port to upload process data for system and coating run analysis.
Key features:
Contact details: www.scscoatings.com |
| Model: Precisioncoat; Manufacturer: Speciality Coating Systems |
The SCS Precisioncoat is a total system solution that ensures accuracy, repeatability and high throughput for a wide range of automated material applications. The Windows based software gives you total control over the coating process, ensuring consistent application. The Precisioncoat is compatible with a variety of materials, including acrylics, silicones, epoxies and urethanes. Its conformal coating valves move smoothly along the three-axis system, with an option to add the fourth and fifth axes for tilt and rotation capabilities. The system’s multi-valve technology allows for the application of dots, lines, fills, glob tops and spray coat areas with the following capabilities —two-part mixing and dispensing, dot dispensing, jetting, radial material application, one and two part metering, flow coating, low to medium speed solder paste dispensing, atomising spray and non-atomised filming.The software allows you to customise each program based on material and pattern. Users achieve consistent application with a high degree of accuracy and repeatability. And with its offline-programming feature, downtime is kept to a minimum.Key features:
Contact details: www.scscoatings.com |
| Model: Thermal Cure Module (TCM) oven; Manufacturer: Nordson Asymtek |
| The in-line Thermal Cure Module oven is available in three different lengths. It provides the flexibility to match production requirements, and features robust construction and a streamlined appearance.
The oven chamber achieves a thermally uniform atmosphere with IR heat panels and consequent convection by the induced exhaust draft. In a CE-compliant package, process uniformity is assured with precise, independent temperature controlled heat zones. Rapid response times, a closed-loop conveyor and Windows based software are an integral part of the thermal cure control process.
The TCM oven includes operation-friendly features like the motorised width adjustment of the chain conveyor, SMEMA compatibility, and ample clearance above and below for tall and complex PCB architectures. In addition, the oven comes with two popular temperature profiling software tools—KIC and ECD. Key features:
Contact details: www.nordson.com |
The SCS PDS 2035CR is designed with a dual-access chamber; so parts can be loaded from the clean room while the machine body and particulate sources remain outside the clean area. It enables you to maintain cleanliness and maximise your clean room floor space, while coating your critical components with ultra-thin Parylene conformal coatings.
The TCM oven is equipped with a downdraft exhaust design. Plenums below the conveyor rails, close to the coated substrate, remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) efficiently. This provides a safe operating environment when coupled to an external, customer-supplied exhaust system.
