EIPC Summer Conference 2019, Day 2

Estimated reading time: 11 minutes

Juan then described how the study’s objective was to determine the attribution of different copper foil types and surface treatment on insertion loss by using two copper foil treatments and three alternative oxide treatments. The test setup used a vector network analyser (VNA) for loss measurements up to 40 GHz and an optical surface profiling technique. The results of the study showed a small (2%) improvement by using the lower profile foil, but that the largest effect was seen from the surface treatment, the best of which coupled with the lowest profile foil showed a 13% improvement from the baseline. Juan concluded that roughness of copper foil and surface treatment play important roles in future high-speed applications and that surface treatment is critical to the electrical performance even when using smoother copper foil in ultra-low-loss PCB design.

After a networking break, EIPC Board Member Hubert Zimmermann of Dyconex introduced “Automation of Fabrication Technology.” The first presenter was Peter Walshe of Notion Systems who returned to the theme of inkjet in his presentation on solder resist printing. He started by showing that five process steps could be eliminated by using inkjet over conventional technology and claimed that a typical inkjet system could save over 124.000 €/ year over a conventional solder resist line.

Walshe went on to compare inkjet with laser direct imaging (LDI), curtain coating/spray coating, and screen printing, highlighting the advantages of inkjet.

Then, he extolled the additional advantages of inkjet, including locally adaptable height, which could be used for the formation of dams or other structures and user selection of surface reflection level. Walshe ended his presentation ended with a video of an automated inkjet installation incorporating 6-axes input and output robots.

The next speaker was Víctor Lázaro of Chemplate Materials SL, who introduced a novel laminating technology. After some information on Chemplate, he introduced their lamination press machine using induction to produce the necessary heat to cure the laminates, which was described as being radically different from the standard methods used to date (i.e., no oil, electrical heaters, or steam). Lázaro described the novelty of the Chemplate system as the heat energy to cure the composite resins is produced only at the laminate material in each panel, and at the same time, with the same temperature magnitude and without any thermal conduction delays. The system offers extremely high temperatures at very high ramp-up rates with high energy efficiency in a very elegant package using minimal space.

Lázaro also explained the operation of the inductive heating as converting induced electric energy into heat directly in the separator plates. This generates heat on every plate immediately to the laminate in contact both above and below, allowing quick thermal transfer throughout the entire stack height. He continued by summarizing the advantages of the new system and detailing the technical capabilities. Lázaro concluded that he saw the potential for the system for standard laminates, fast cycle lamination, advanced materials, and R&D of new advanced materials to be industrialized.

Uwe Altmann of Orbotech was the next presenter with his paper entitled “AOI to AOS Workflow.” He began with an overview of state-of-the-art automated optical inspection (AOI) systems. Altmann went on to describe the function of automatic optical shaping (AOS) systems, which show great promise for improving workflow efficiency by the elimination of the verification station. He also explained that panels are scanned and defects are sent to remote multi-image verification (RMIV) before shaping starts, and high-quality images of all defects are taken and sent to a shaping defects classification (SDC) station. SDC stations serve several AOS systems where the operator classifies all defects and selects only true defects, resulting in a 60–70% reduction in false alarms and providing a one-stop solution for opens and shorts. Altmann ended his presentation by demonstrating the resultant workflow improvement by removing the need for a verification station with resultant savings in manpower and floor space plus reduced capital equipment and less panel handling.

Outi Rusanen of Tactotek delivered the final paper of the day and conference with her presentation entitled “Smart Molded Structures Bring Surfaces to Life.” She started with a comparison of a teardown of a conventional automotive lighting cluster requiring 25 tools and with more than 60 assemblies to a functionally equivalent structure produced with in-mold structural electronics (IMSE), which required two tools, was a single assembly, weighed over 70% less, and was 95% thinner. Rusanen explained that with this technology, developers could eliminate complex multi-part electronics assemblies and replace them with one-piece solutions that are thin, light, and strong, without compromising functionality.

Rusanen continued by describing the process of forming the IMSE component as comprising printing, surface mounting (on flat film), shape-forming, and final injection molding. She shared that the reliability test data for rapid change of temperature (-40°C to +85°C) and steady-state temperature-humidity of 85°C/85% RH showed excellent results. Rusanen concluded with the statement that IMSE has huge growth potential and offers a reliable alternative to conventional electronics with the advantage of significant weight and thickness reduction.

Conclusion

I brought the conference to a close after the final panel discussion and thanked the sponsors AT&S, Adeon Technologies, Dyconex, Dupont, I-Connect007, Isola, Orbotech, Polar Instruments, and Ventec International Group for their kind support with a special thank you to the City of Leoben and AT&S for making the conference so special. Thanks were also extended to the session chairs, speakers, and delegates for attending. Final thanks were saved for Kirsten Smit-Westenberg and Carol Pelzers again for their excellent organisation of the conference where—despite being in Austria—everything ran as smoothly as a Swiss watch!

Technical editor’s note: I most gratefully acknowledge the support of EIPC Chairman Alun Morgan for preparing this review and providing the photographs. Many thanks!—Pete Starkey

• < Previous Page