Smart cameras inspect dense interconnect sockets

An IBM iSeries Model 890 high-end server requires up to four interposers—flexible array interconnect sockets that mount single-chip-module components onto multilayer PCBs (Figure 1). The interposers measure 36x36 mm, exhibit nonuniform backgrounds, and vary in size, shape, and color. Some have 4000 contacts measuring less than 1 mm in diameter and spaced 1 mm apart.

Figure 1 A 36X36-mm interposer can have 4000 contacts spaced 1 mm apart. Courtesy of IBM.

The Model 542C forms the heart of a system that also includes a robot and controller from Intelligent Actuator (Torrance, CA; www.intelligentactuator.com). For IBM's application, the 542C's color-matching tool distinguishes gold wire from a black background, enabling detection of single-wire faults that black-and-white cameras can't identify.

Figure 2 A robotically positioned color vision sensor inspects componenets under test and logs data over an Ethernet link. Courtesy of IBM.