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While we were on Winter Break we took advantage of the time and visited a business that designs and constructs circuit boards for clients. They use the skills of electrical engineers who work out the design and solve a particular problem. Then others have the task of assembling the boards. While we were there we saw many different projects and types of machines. |
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This is Bill Mahoney, our host! He took his own time to share information with us. In this picture, he is talking about a voting machine and how it is programmed to count ballots. They were working on designing an embedded computer, one built into the machine. |
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One of the first things we saw was a completed circuit board. Parts are placed on the board. Some are surface mount parts others are through-hole parts. |
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This is what the circuit board looks like from the back. Parts are soldered from the back. |
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This device pushed solder into the board like a squeegee. This is all done automatically. From here, the part goes to the Pick and Place machine. |
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The Pick and Place machine is very precise. It is programmed to tell the machine exactly what electronic parts (computer chips, etc.) to place on the circuit board. |
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The Pick and Place machine lines up all the parts that will be placed on the board. The machine knows if the circuit board is a good board. It places parts very quickly. You program the machine to place the parts you want. |
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This display shows how the board is progressing. It lets the workers know the status of the process and shows the temperature inside of the oven. |
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This machine is jokingly known as the "Pizza Oven". A little conveyor belt takes the board and "cooks" it. After the board passes through the machine it is placed on anti-static bubble foam.
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This machine has liquid solder. A board can be placed in this machine and can be dipped in the solder. When solder is melted it is used to join metallic surfaces. It could help "glue" the computer chip's foot wires to the board. |
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This worker is placing components on a circuit board by hand. There are many different tools located at each worker's workstation. You would need to have good eyesight to see the fine details. |
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These workers are also soldering and assembling electronic components by hand. Workers need to be very careful when they work at this job. You would need patience and steady hands. |
