Nov 24, 2009 
In a perfect world, every printed board would be a good board. But manufacturers are challenged daily by a long list of print process variables. That list includes platform considerations, process hardware, process parameters, printing materials, post-print inspection and even the impact of people, which means that mistakes or oversights can happen.
Now DEK is changing that with the launch of its new Sentinel system at Productronica. Sentinel is designed to improve yield without impacting on cycle time, by allowing printing and high-speed inspection to run concurrently. It is exceptionally easy to use and simple to set-up, and is unusual in having been specifically developed for use by print platform operators, not engineers.
Deploying next-generation inspection technology based on DEK’s acclaimed HawkEye® post-print inspection tool, Sentinel integrates the company’s renowned platform expertise with 100% inspection at the line beat rate to fully safeguard productivity. What this means is that Sentinel keeps an eye on everything for you.
Sentinel not only delivers confidence in the print integrity of boards heading to downstream assembly processes, but also lowers the cost of doing so by deploying advanced technology that incorporates innovative features such as full input and output verification along with 100% inspection.
In addition, Sentinel includes DEK’s Verification & Traceability to enable complete traceability of materials, processes and the printed boards themselves – a mandate in many high value and accuracy-critical applications typical of the automotive, medical, defense, aerospace and subsea equipment sectors. With Sentinel, board and pad level traceability data is available for post print analysis and process trend identification.
Sentinel is controlled by DEK’s award-winning Instinctiv V9 user interface, which delivers uncomplicated and rapid set up along with its intuitive operator prompts and guidance. It offers high speed paste on pad, bridge detection and alignment capabilities. Vision coverage of the Sentinel inspection technology operates at an unequalled 36,000 mm2 per second performance – an impressive figure that is instrumental in permitting the inspection process to keep pace with the fast cycle times of DEK’s print platforms.
In addition, Sentinel’s intrinsic closed loop control takes charge of alignment, automatic understencil cleaning operations using Cyclone, and paste dispensing using DEK’s Paste Roll Height Monitor to provide optimal process efficiency. It also rejects bad boards automatically without interrupting production.
Sentinel is available factory configured on DEK’s three primary automatic printer platforms: Horizon, Europa/Photon, and Galaxy. It is also available as an upgrade to selective DEK platforms manufactured over the past four years.
DEK is a global provider of advanced materials deposition technologies and support solutions including printing equipment platforms, stencils, precision screens and mass imaging processes used across a wide range of applications in electronics pre-placement subassembly, semiconductor wafer manufacture, and alternative energy component production. For more information, visit DEK at http://www.dek.com.
