In the production process, the importance of electronic board inspection can’t be denied. In fact, it’s the final step in the inspection process before the products are offered to the customers. Fortunately, we have automated optical inspection machines these days. The role of these machines is to inspect a panel of boards and notify the operator of the detected errors. Let’s consider some solid reasons to use AOIs for businesses.
1. Inspection Speed
The first greatest benefit of these machines is that they are quite fast. They can do an hour of work in a few minutes. And then the operator can take a few more minutes to validate the errors. So, inspection speed is one of the most prominent benefits of these devices. In fact, speed is paramount if you want to stay ahead of the competition in the industry. Your business depends on it.
2. Inspection Accuracy
Apart from the fast speed, precision is another great feature of these machines. An experienced operator operates the unit and detects the smallest defects in the products. After all, catching the defects and fixing them is the most important aspect of accuracy.
3. Quick Catches
Another great feature of these machines is that they allow you to catch the errors quickly. With an optical inspection unit, the SMT (Surface Mount Technology) offers great support. While the unit detects errors, the operator can inform the SMT line so that the errors could be fixed as soon as possible.
As a result, you can enjoy an awesome first-pass-yield. Plus, you won’t have to spend a lot of time on rework either.
4. Inspection Consistency
It can be difficult to remain consistent while visual inspections are in progress. Although an experienced inspector can use a quick process for all the boards, there is a lot of human error involved in the process.
With an AOI unit, it’s important to note that the captured images are in the same place. Therefore, the camera will inspect all the parts in the line. It can offer a much better consistency than a man can. The reason is that humans get tired but machines don’t.
5. Less Strain
Lastly, it’s important to keep in mind that an AOI machine can help you prevent a lot of stress. In fact, it lifts a lot of burden off the entire process. During the inspection process, quick catches can allow an efficient movement of the products. Since there are not too many errors, inspectors find it easier to catch errors and report them. Since they don’t have too much work to handle, they don’t suffer from exhaustion, which is another great benefit.
Long story short, you may want to keep in mind that visual inspection machines offer a lot of benefits. Some of the main benefits are listed above. However, they have their shortcomings as well. But it’s great to have these machines in your facility as they can reduce errors and make the entire process less stressful for the unit. Hope this helps.