Other selective soldering machines incorporate various types of automatic solder nozzle cleaning to minimize machine downtime by eliminating manual nozzle cleaning. These different methods include ultrasonic nozzle cleaning, spraying or brushing the solder nozzle with adipic acid or organic acid, or spraying a liquid or powdered flux directly onto the outer surface of the solder nozzle. While these methods clean the solder nozzle by removing residues, they do not necessarily perform a re-tinning of the solder nozzle which is critical to improving the flow characteristics of the molten solder.
An alternative method is to have the flux encased within a solder wire until the moment it is presented to the solder nozzle which is cleaner for the machine and provides a more precise placement, which is critical when cleaning and re-tinning smaller diameter solder nozzles. To resolve the issue of ineffective nozzle cleaning and re-tinning, the company developed an automatic solder nozzle tinning system that eliminates spraying altogether. This patent pending system uses a proprietary flux core solder wire to meticulously clean and re-tin the solder nozzle in a single integrated operation.
The advantage of the automatic solder nozzle tinning system is that it removes oxides and residues from the solder nozzle improving solder flow to ensure consistent soldering quality. Since the automatic solder nozzle tinning system does not produce overspray or contamination of the printed circuit board assembly or selective soldering machine, it is advantageous for clean production shop floor environments where caustic materials are not permitted.
