26 APPLICATION ARTICLES FRAMOS
www.framos.co.uk Photo sensor technology accelerates
medical diagnostics Many measurements in medicine are made using optical imaging so photo sensor technology is particularly important. The MT9V024 ON Semiconductor image sensor, available from Framos, satisfies medical engineering requirements both in terms of performance and availability since the manufacturer guarantees that the sensors will be available for ten years. Photo sensor technology can also be used to avoid errors when processing a medical sample. It can clearly identify samples marked with a QR code or a bar code, ensuring consistent and correct patient allocation.
Image sensors can even compensate for user errors. For example, they are used Photo sensor technology
extensively in test strip analysers. If a test strip is not fully wetted with the liquid to be tested, this can be adjusted. If the wetted part is big enough, only information from the “acceptable” portion of the image is used. If the surface area is insufficient for a meaningful measurement, an error message is sent instead of an invalid result. Image recognition thus saves time and sample materials, which directly benefits both the patient and the doctor. It replaces manual optical reading, which in turn makes the measurement easier to use, more precise and more reliable because it can now be reproduced regardless of the user’s disposition on the day or the light conditions at different times of the day.
The availability of such compact, high performance, low power consumption sensors
makes them ideally suited for portable or mobile devices that could be used ‘in the field’, as well as at a doctor’s surgery or in a hospital. This can allow a patient’s key health data to be determined in a partially automated manner with great accuracy and reliability in a short space of time without the need for a laboratory test. Diagnosis be made quicker, and treatment can start sooner and has a greater chance of success. In addition, because every second counts when a diagnosis requires an immediate response, image sensors can even save lives. Due to the sensor’s linearity all of the measured values recorded by identical devices can be compared with one another. The automation of measuring devices reduces the total cost of performing key medical readings, while the long availability guarantees that a defective device can be repaired or replaced as quickly as possible.
IDS IMAGING DEVELOPMENT SYSTEMS GMBH
www.ids-imaging.com
Right first time for PCB assembly
Getting the correct components in the right place is crucial for SMT PCB assembly. Contract PCB assembler, Norcott Technologies, are using USB 3.0 camera technology in a new, custom-built First Article Inspection (FAI) system to help automate the PCB inspection process. FAI allows a final check that the correct component is in the correct position on the board before the board goes for soldering. It ensures that the expected output conforms to the customer’s qualified process during normal production.
FAI is essentially a manual inspection process, but with boards containing hundreds Norcott FAI system
of components, locating every component by eye and comparing it to the customer’s Bill of Materials (BOM) is extremely time consuming, tedious and prone to error. Automating this process using vision technology allows the presence, positioning and identity of SMT components to be checked by directly referencing the BOM improving accuracy and saving time.. As the check is done before reflow, the inspection is non- destructive thereby increasing efficiency and 1st time pass rate.
The new FAI system uses a high resolution 5 Mpixel UI-3580CP USB 3.0 colour camera
from IDS, equipped with high quality optics. This is mounted on a motorised XY platform to allow 1st off inspections to be performed under high magnification. The versatile camera links into Norcott’s bespoke
wpf.net application soſtware using the uEye API, which is part of the IDS Soſtware Development Kit supplied with all IDS cameras. PCBs for inspection are populated with the components held in the correct location on the board using solder paste.
As each component is called up on the BOM, the camera is automatically driven to
www.ukiva.org
the correct location for inspection. The camera system produces a 50mm square field of view at a resolution capable of imaging even 0201 components. A zoom function is provided if higher magnification is required. The bespoke soſtware facilitates a myriad
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