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- December 3, 2022
- PCB knowledge
- (0)
- 07 mins
How does wave soldering become the efficient technology in PCB manufacturing
Wave soldering is a technology for manufacturing electronic boards. It is used to connect copper wires in electronic circuits, and as its name implies it uses a waveform as an input to the machine. The waveform has been designed to be very similar to how a human being connects wires with solder. This means that it can apply the same electrical principles as humans do but on a much more efficient scale.
The world of PCB manufacturing has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few years. This can be attributed to two dominant factors: the development of analogue technology, which has allowed for more complex circuit designs, and the development of different coating techniques which can create complex surface finishes.
What is wave soldering?
Wave soldering is a process that uses high-temperature and high-pressure to solder PCB components to a PCB. It’s a fast, efficient way of assembling electronic circuits.
The process involves an array of small nozzles that fire at different pressures and temperatures, producing the desired result in just seconds. This allows for better control over where each component lands on the board and lessens any possibility for unwanted solder bridging between pins or other points on either side of them.
The wave soldering machine
The wave soldering machine is a type of soldering equipment that uses high-frequency electricity to solder. The use of this equipment can save labour costs and time, which is the main reason why it has been widely used in PCB manufacturing.
In addition, it also has some other advantages:
It’s used to join circuit boards or conductors together, for example. The circuit board is in touch with the solder at a high temperature for a brief period of time, which can lessen the circuit board’s tendency to distort.
The merits and demerits of wave soldering
Wave soldering is a process in which the solder paste is moved through the circuit board to fill all of the joints. It’s an efficient way to manufacture PCBs, but there are some tradeoffs.
Merits | Demerits | |
1 | Wave soldering is a process that allows you to solder through the use of mechanical waves. | The process can be costly and is limited to certain components |
2 | It’s one of the most efficient and cost-effective ways to ensure good connections and it doesn’t require any glue! | Wave soldering requires high current at high voltages, which means that it will take more power from your battery than other types of soldering methods do. |
3 | Wave soldering allows you to solder without having to mask off the board area, so there’s no need for messy glueing or messy cleanups afterwards | The process results in increased post-assembly cleaning because of the need for a more precise soldering process. |
4 | It also eliminates the need for expensive reflow ovens, which are not always available in every workplace. | It requires more materials, such as flux, nitrogen, and power. |
5 | You can control the parameters of your wave solders with specialized equipment and temperature controls. | It often results in a higher defect rate than other methods because of the precision required for a good solder joint. |
6 | Each connection can be made exactly as you want it without any mistakes or wasted time. | The manufacturers have realized this and have developed a new process called selective soldering that allows them to achieve better-quality solder joints without sacrificing reliability or speed. |
The difference between wave soldering and selective soldering
★ Wave soldering is a very simple process. You can set up your workstation and start working with it in just a few minutes.
★ Selective soldering, on the other hand, is more complex. You have to select the parts that you want to solder and then prepare them for the soldering process. This takes longer and requires more attention than wave soldering does.
★ It is cheaper than selective soldering; however, there may be additional costs associated with cleaning and rework if you need it.
★ Wave soldering requires more material requirements than selective soldering; however, you can use less material required for wave soldering compared to selective soldering.
★ When it comes to repeatability for each process, no repeatability for wave soldering is required while repeatability exists for selective soldering.
Concerning factors for wave soldering
● The temperature of the wave soldering machine: The optimal wave soldering temperature is in the 265 to 270°C range. This range of temperatures is ideal for most board layouts. Then you must adjust your wave soldering temperature to increase wetting.
● Pad spacing: The space between the pads can be adjusted to control the size of the wave soldering. This is important because it will affect the overall quality and efficiency of the connection.
● Solder resist: Solder resist is a chemical used to prevent solder from flowing into nooks and crannies in a circuit board. It should be applied to all joints that have a connection, especially those where there is a component with an outer diameter that is larger than its inner diameter.
● Insufficient hole fill: When making connections between components, you may notice that there are holes where there should be solder. These holes are called “void areas” and they occur because when components are placed together on a circuit board, they may not align perfectly. This means that void areas will appear in your joints as well. To avoid this problem, ensure that all void areas are filled by applying solder resist or flux to them before soldering them together.
● Lifted components: If you notice that one component has been lifted from its position on the circuit board, then you will need to put additional flux on the joint before wave soldering it together again so that it does not fail during operation.
The manufacturing of wave soldering
The manufacturing process of wave soldering is quite similar to the process of conventional PCB assembly.
1. Setup
Start by setting up your equipment. This includes placing the PCB into a fixture, cleaning it of any dirt or debris, and ensuring that no solder is touching the component pins.
2. PCB placement
Once you’ve set up your equipment, it’s time to place your PCB into it. If you’re working on a small board, this may be easiest done by holding it in one hand while pressing down on a small button on the PCB with your other hand; if you’re working on a large board, however, you’ll need to use something with more weight.
3. Cleaning of components (Fluxing)
After placing your components onto their respective pins, clean them off using flux (also called flux paste. This helps keep solder from sticking onto the component pins during the wave soldering process (which is why the PCB is cleaned with a solvent).
4. Soldering
The next step in the wave soldering process is to solder all of your components onto their respective pins, using a soldering iron.
5. Cleaning of solder
There are two ways to clean solder off your board:
a)You can use a solder sucker, which will remove the solder from your board.
b) You can also use acetone, which is available at most hardware stores and online retailers.
Wave soldering is a process that uses high-temperature and high-pressure to solder components to a PCB. It’s a fast, efficient way of assembling electronic circuits.
The process involves an array of small nozzles that fire at different pressures and temperatures, producing the desired result in just seconds. This allows for better control over where each component lands on the board and lessens any possibility for unwanted solder bridging between pins or other points on either side of them.
The wave soldering machine is a type of soldering equipment that uses high-frequency electricity to solder. The use of this equipment can save labour costs and time, which is the main reason why it has been widely used in PCB manufacturing.
In addition, it also has some other advantages:
It’s used to join circuit boards or conductors together, for example. The circuit board is in touch with the solder at a high temperature for a brief period of time, which can lessen the circuit board’s tendency to distort.
Wave soldering is a very simple process. You can set up your workstation and start working with it in just a few minutes.
Selective soldering, on the other hand, is more complex. You have to select the parts that you want to solder and then prepare them for the soldering process. This takes longer and requires more attention than wave soldering does.
