Optimizing the performance of a surface mount placement machine

The optimisation of the single surface mount device placement machine in printed circuit board assembly: a survey

“…On the other hand, Magyar et al (1999) encountered four sub-problems in the case of single machine optimisation, these being: feeder setup, component pick-andplace sequencing, component retrieval plan and nozzle optimisation. Some works have addressed the problems of feeder setup and placement sequence independently by making assumptions about the rest of the problem, and some prefer to solve both problems as an integrated solution (Ellis et al 2001). A hierarchical problem solving approach has also been studied (Magyar et al 1999).…”

“…For example, the component pick-and-place time of turret-type SMD placement machines (see, e.g. Gupta 1996a, b, 1997;Ellis et al 2001;Ho and Ji 2003) is determined by the maximum time taken between the turret rotational time (a type of placement head), PCB travelling time and feeder carrier travelling time. Whereas, for the multi-head placement machines that has a stationary feeder carrier, a fixed PCB table and a positioning arm head that is equipped with few pipettes (Altinkemer, Kazaz, Koksalan and Moskowitz 2000;Jeevan et al 2002), the component pick-and-place time is determined by the many other factors such as the grouping of PCB points (also referred to as placement points) to a sub-tour, nozzle assignment, gang-pickups and simultaneous vision.…”

“…Many researchers have modelled the component pick-and-place sequencing problem as a travelling salesman problem (TSP). Therefore, like the TSP, this problem is also NPHard and the majority of practical instances are difficult to solve to optimality in a reasonable time (De Souza and Lijun 1995;Ellis, Vittes and Kobza 2001). Indeed, the general PCB assembly problem is at least as complex as the TSP, which is known to be NP-complete (Nelson and Wille 1995).…”

A triple objective function with a Chebychev dynamic pick-and-place point specification approach to optimise the surface mount placement machine

“…Modern electronic products increasingly demand smaller PCB's, which are often produced using an automated assembly process in order to produce the high volumes required [1]. To remain competitive, manufacturers have to continually improve the efficiency of their assembly line [2,3]. Reducing PCB assembly time to increase the efficiency of robotic assembly machines has become a critical issue within the electronics industry.…”

“…The implementation process shows that the approximation of the problem by a sequence of TSPs was adequate to produce significant increases in throughput. Some works related to feeder setup and/or component placement sequencing can be found in [10][11][12][13].…”