The British National Physical Laboratory has completed a comprehensive benchmarking of six automated optical inspection (AOI) systems, using lead-free assemblies. This work has clearly shown that current AOI systems are just as capable of inspecting lead-free boards as they are for SnPb-based ones. Some concerns were expressed that the change in reflectivity experienced with lead-free joints could be an issue. In the NPL-industry collaborative study, a comparison revealed that all the systems in this examination proved capable of inspecting lead-free assemblies with the same algorithms as used for the inspection of SnPb joints. Indeed, the results achieved with lead-free assemblies were similar or even better than those for SnPb assemblies, measured in a previous benchmarking project. Potential users can now approach system acquisition with increased confidence, knowing that when their production lines change over to lead-free, their AOI equipment should cause no problems beyond programming. Participants included Agilent, DiagnoSYS, Machine Vision Products, Teradyne, Viscom and ViTechnology.
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