A quantum leap towards the factory of the future

The factory of the future begins with the ‘Smart Factory’ of today. Once a futuristic concept, but now a developing reality, Industry 4.0 is emerging from the chaos of creation and its development is being driven on many fronts and in many ways. In the vanguard of this quantum leap forward are innovations including Koh Young Technology’s Ksmart Solution, which helps customers achieve the most effective process management for flexible, agile manufacturing. Industry 4.0, after all, will only be realized with a totally integrated and optimized manufacturing process. Total integration enables communication, which is the literal nexus of the ‘smart factory’. But it isn’t simply enough to drive the production process. For true Industry 4.0 productivity and efficiency, the process must be optimized as well, and communication is the key, linking the production elements together with feedback from inspection, measurement, and quality recognition and analysis systems.

As the global No. 1 leader in true 3D measurement and inspection (AOI and SPI), the company has learned to apply true 3D measurement and defect detection information to benefit the entire manufacturing line, and Ksmart Solution is the advanced system that ties everything together with ‘Smart’ process analysis plus fast and easy remote monitoring and control of the process in real time. With the solution, a factory manager can monitor defects, analyze root causes, and apply changes to inspection programs ‘on the fly’ as needed even from remote locations. An increasing number of industrial manufacturers are adopting automation for ‘Smart’ factories to be in place to maximize production efficiency and enhance yields. But what is Ksmart Solution and how does it work to benefit the factory manager?

Koh Young Technology’s Ksmart Solution is an integrated, comprehensive productivity and process control center. The success of the implementation results from the convergence of new company software technologies working in concert with 3D AOI and SPI capabilities. These technologies include the Ksmart Remote Monitoring System (RMS), Ksmart Link, and others.

Ksmart Solution incorporates a software module ‘Intelligent Platform’ that ensures the highest level of connectivity for all the inspection stations, enhancing overall automation capability. This unique Intelligent Platform is a software module using an Artificial Intelligence (AI) machine algorithm. The Intelligent Platform supports a high level of flexibility since it can connect all the inspection machines (AOI, SPI, peripheral) in a given SMT line or lines. It also has the capacity to collect and analyze a great amount of measurement data from the SMT process.

Ksmart Solution is the child of Koh Young Technology’s long-term vision to help customers realize maximum production efficiency and control for today‘s advanced electronics manufacturing. Today‘s production environment confronts the manufacturer with various challenges; new (smaller) components being introduced for reduced product size, greater flexibility requirements for high-end/high-mix productions, and much higher standards for equipment that must communicate in real time. Ksmart Solution comprises an easy-to-use, but powerful integrated toolbox designed to meet these challenges. It enables real-time analysis of defects, beginning with simply providing true 3D inspection data obtained from Koh Young‘s 3D inspection systems. This data is essential for finding root causes of defects, and achieving process optimization. Further, it achieves ‚Copy Exact‘ for multiple production lines and even different sites, as it provides the ability to control multiple inspection systems with standardized conditions and recipes.

In addition to carrying out real-time analysis of defects with SPC@Ksmart, some other functions of the Ksmart Solution include the following:

Ksmart Remote Monitoring System (RMS@Ksmart) is the first software product to encompass the total Ksmart solution. With RMS@Ksmart , Koh Young inspection machines‘ status, production line yield information, and real time defect information from all Koh Young SPI and AOI machines in multiple production lines can be directly communicated with and operated efficiently. Factory managers can track root causes of defect issues and apply changes to inspection programs in real time. Real Time defect information is also shared with remote operators who can confirm the information. Koh Young‘s trusted 3D measurement-based inspection dataset is the underlying enabling technology that allows users to optimize processes based on such data, provided by Koh Young systems. RMS@Ksmart is followed by Link@Ksmart, which allows customers to analyze all 3D inspection results from Koh Young 3D SPI and 3D AOI systems. RMS@Ksmart shares crucial Information such as yield data, machine condition, and defect data from different SPI and AOI systems to one location. Fewer engineers and operators are required for real-time multi-line management, which is now easier and centralized for higher productivity. Process status and analysis from individual production lines can also be managed from a remote location.

Ksmart Library Manager (LM@Ksmart) provides process risk management by recovery and automatic process condition backup. Library Manager is the best risk management solution for AOI; For SPI, it provides easy management of JOB files, including inspection conditions. Additionally, a Real-time SPC Chart feature provides real-time management of multiple lines, enabling Process Engineers to check data such as status, model, yield, availability, alarm, etc., selectively; it also provides analysis and comparison data visualization by specific need, e.g., yield, availability, production count, and more.

Ksmart is an easy-to-use, powerful integrated toolbox that helps factories to control and optimize their manufacturing process to ensure the lowest possible defect rates, based largely on reliable 3D measurement data.

With unique Ksmart functions including SPC@Ksmart and Link@Ksmart, manufacturers can trace the root cause of defects and process deviation by carrying out essential analyses of reliable full 3D board data. Additionally, monitoring and analysis can be ongoing even when fine-tuning is carried out with OLD@Ksmart. This ultimately results in achieving process optimization; the net result will be zero escapes. ‘Zero Escape’ performance capability prevents hard-to-catch defects from slipping by. Since no defects pass through undetected, the process is optimized and robust, manufacturing is efficient and products reliable.

Ksmart Process Optimizer connects all process-related information gathered from all production lines for analysis and comparison, enabling process optimization. Ksmart Process Optimizer connects all process-related information gathered from Koh Young Inspection systems in the line, and provides analysis data for real-time multi-line management, e.g., providing comparison data for each machine and for every line. Machine status for all production lines can be managed from remote locations.

The development and implementation worldwide of the Ksmart Solution is ongoing, and the company has invested significant resources and energies toward furthering its evolution. The company is expanding its R&D centers worldwide, and has invested in new facilities as well as partnered with others in complementary fashion. For example, Koh Young has partnered with Binghamton University’s (SUNY at Binghamton) Integrated Electronics Engineering Center (IEEC) which has its own Smart Electronics Manufacturing Laboratory, and in South Korea, the Ksmart Solution division collaborates with the KAIST R&D Center to research and develop AI solutions using machine learning and deep learning.

Koh Young has also opened an AI Center in San Diego, California as to establish a foundation of AI platforms for manufacturing process optimization.

This should not be surprising for an inspection technology leader that has held the position of No.1 in global market share for 11 consecutive years, is No.1 in SPI market share (49 %), and holds 25 % of the total SPI & AOI market share worldwide. The company has 10,000 inspection and measurement machines installed worldwide, an extraordinary figure for the SMT inspection industry. With the continued emergence and development of the Ksmart Solution, pushing the industry forward into Industry 4.0 levels of optimized automation in PCB assembly, this number is only likely to increase.