LynxTester https://lynxtester.com/ Thu, 12 May 2022 08:44:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.7 Pinout short-circuit detection with combined functional EOL tester https://lynxtester.com/pinout-short-circuit-detection-with-combined-functional-eol-tester/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pinout-short-circuit-detection-with-combined-functional-eol-tester Tue, 23 Nov 2021 09:43:54 +0000 https://lynxtester.com/?p=4928 Productivity correlates with quality: the cost of the outcome depends on how optimal the manufacturing process is. And a key factor is the price of the EOL
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engineering pinout short circuit

Illustration by Àngels Pinyol

Pinout short-circuit detection with combined functional EOL tester

Article by Albert Escala

Productivity correlates with quality: the cost of the outcome depends on how optimal the manufacturing process is. And a key factor is the price of the EOL assets. Among all those implemented for an EOL validation, such as ICT or AOI. Read here how to reduce the cost of the functional testers.

Product quality as a way to differentiate from other competitors.

Industrial companies put special effort on the validation of their manufactured products. Quality policies, especially for automotive Tier 1, define test procedures, test requirements and acceptance criteria for all device under test (DUT) before any delivery to their customer: the original equipment manufacturer (OEM).

However, quality is not free. The more detailed the test process is, the higher both fixed and variable costs are. Issues such as test coverage, test time, first pass yield (FPY), EOL tester acquisition cost and automation degree are a few examples of variables that affect overall company competitivity. Due to these, the test process represents a considerable cost to the manufactured product.

On the other hand, quality is not negotiable. It is not acceptable to delivery any part without having run the specified test process. Customer claims are an obstacle in the overall competition for excellence.

Functional EOL tester cost and performance are key factors on competitivity.

Certain markets have specific coverage requirements. Automotive electronics manufacturers are especially concerned about it. Each single function of the DUT must be tested to guarantee that it is error free once assembled in a vehicle. Due to high production volumes, testers become bottleneck. Therefore, in a long-term run, a reduced test time is preferred in opposition to purchasing cost. This can be seen in the graphic below, where high volumes justify the acquisition of faster functional EOL testers.

Certain test requirements make the EOL tester more complex. An example is the short-circuit detection at the connector pins. As this combines in-circuit features (ICT) with functional EOL, current relay matrix test boards are not specifically designed to meet this requirement. Therefore, test become more complex and expensive.

Lynx53 relay matrix test board. CAN controlled, 3 to 1 multiplexed connection.

The solution to overcome these issues is simple: base your EOL designs with the Lynx53. It features less cables, less connections, higher integration, higher switching speed because of solid state relays (SSR), lower overall cost and easy control. Each Lynx53 pin has the option to divert the connection to Backplane1, Backplane2 or to bypass from an external excitation device:

lynx tester dut os

Hence, if Backplane lines are connected to a DMM, impedance between two or more pins can be monitored. Once short-circuits between pins are discarded, an excitation signal can be run thorough the third relay and Backplane1 can use the DMM to monitor that the excitation signal is correct.

Ready to be better than your competitors?

Lynx53 test board is used to combine ICT and functional test features at the EOL test. With the proper equipment design, both fixed and variables costs are reduced whilst quality requirements are not jeopardized.

Ask us for more information about this product that will reduce the complexity of your functional EOL tester. We can propose you a turn-key solution that will make your end-of-line not to be a concern anymore.

albert

Albert Escala

Albert is the Business Development Manager of Lynx Tester and GenerationRFID, a fanatic reader, and strives to make the world a little bit happier. You can find him on Linkedin.

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]]> An EOL tester for NiMH batteries https://lynxtester.com/eol-tester-for-nimh-batteries/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=eol-tester-for-nimh-batteries Tue, 16 Nov 2021 13:59:59 +0000 https://lynxtester.com/?p=4852 This success story describes how performance and financial figures improve with the help of custom embedded electronic developments in EOL...

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eo-tester-analysis

Illustration by Àngels Pinyol

An EOL tester for NiMH batteries

Article by Albert Escala

This success story describes how performance and financial figures improve with the help of custom embedded electronic developments in EOL testers

Lynx Tester mission is to turn customer problems into solutions. In this case, our client wanted to test all type of batteries they manufacture before delivering them to the end customer. The key factors we had to overcome in this development were:

        1. Test time for large current capacity batteries.
        2. Possibility to test multiple batteries in parallel.
        3. Measurement of the internal resistance.

Quality issues rise when the manufacturing process is out of control

Battery construction features many incidences. Due to outsourcing or manufacturing plant offshoring, the quality of the end product may be poor. Potential issues such as discharged batteries, operating voltage out of the specifications or even high internal resistances are problems that can be easily overcome with the proper control levels (EOL tester).

Customer image gets affected

As a consequence, our customer was facing many returns, per the non-standard parameters of some of the batteries they sold to the end customers. This not only means financial inefficiencies due to the product replacement, but also an undermining of the product and brand image in the social media.

Avoid problems with an EOL tester, based on Lynx Scheduler and custom test boards

This EOL tester is not immediate to build. If it were built with standard test equipment, it would be slow, big, expensive and inflexible. For this reason, our engineers found the solution: they developed a specific, custom embedded electronics to perform the test. Both hardware and software are unique and property of the customer. The main features of the solution are:

        1. PCBA is controlled by CAN bus.
        2. Battery charger based on state of there are IC.
        3. Smart control from the board, which allows the control PC to be less occupied.
        4. Embedded circuitry to implement the algorithm for the battery internal resistance calculation.

Our customer wins in quality, reputation, flexibility and, … savings!

lynx-scheduler-eol-battery-charger-test-rack

Now our customer has an automated EOL tester that filters any bad part to be delivered to the end user. But not only this. With the customized embedded electronics solution, they have:

        1. Optimized the test time at the minimum necessary to test each battery type.
        2. The flexibility to configure new battery tests by software. They can add different batteries without any cost impact.
        3. Eliminated the number of returns from customers due to NiMH battery bad quality, as 100% of the parts are charged and tested before the delivery.

albert

Albert Escala

Albert is the Business Development Manager of Lynx Tester and GenerationRFID, a fanatic reader, and strives to make the world a little bit happier. You can find him on Linkedin.

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]]> Lynx Trace Dashboard for Electronic Manufacturing Companies https://lynxtester.com/lynx-trace-dashboard-for-electronic-manufacturing-companies/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=lynx-trace-dashboard-for-electronic-manufacturing-companies Wed, 08 Sep 2021 07:14:44 +0000 https://lynxtester.com/?p=4765 A dashboard sorts and analyses test reports from production lines. Test manager now has a global view of the manufacturing quality and info...

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lynx-tester-trace-evolution-eol

Illustration by Àngels Pinyol

Lynx Trace Dashboard for Electronic Manufacturing Companies

Article by Albert Escala

A dashboard sorts and analyses test reports from production lines. Test manager now has a global view of the manufacturing quality and information to detect its weakest point, where improvement efforts should be done.

Imagine how complicated was in the third Century b.c. to access the documentation. Millions of manuscripts, in different languages and formats, spread around the discovered world. Thousands of translators made the original scripts readable into Greek language, so that the information could be catalogued and stored at the former library of Alexandria. This was an admirable solution, at that time. This may happen nowadays in your organization at the manufacturing line. The lack of standardization yields into a multitude of test reports, in different formats and stored in a unique server without an intuitive way of sorting them.

Doesn't the following situation sound familiar to you?

(Your manager): Can I see the test report of a returned part that failed 10 months ago with this serial number?

(You): Sure, I have it. But I'm sorry, it will take some time. I’ll send you it at the end of the day.

Lynx Trace eases this search. It uses advanced processing techniques to convert test reports of any format, such as TXT, DOC, XLS, HTML or even custom formats to organize in a unique dashboard all the data generated by the company EOL testers and other peripherals. Based on unitary traceability, test data of any manufactured part is ready in the blink of an eye.

In addition, having all data in the same Application enables other advanced Lynx Trace features, such as:

  • You can consult all manufacturing data in a single dashboard.

  • You can compare manufacturing yields of the same product from different plants or lines.

  • You can immediately detect manufacturing issues.

  • You can have a view of the manufacturing figures in your organization.

    • Lynx Trace has multiple advanced features. However, one of the most relevant is its capability to gather local test reports whatever its format is, and upload them in a unique server where data is sorted, analysed and processed. This way, the user has real information to understand whether there is any manufacturing improvement that can be made to reduce cost and thus, to increase competitivity.

    albert

    Albert Escala

    Albert is the Business Development Manager of Lynx Tester and GenerationRFID, a fanatic reader, and strives to make the world a little bit happier. You can find him on Linkedin.

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    ]]>         How customized test boards improve competitivity https://lynxtester.com/how-customized-test-boards-improve-competivity/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-customized-test-boards-improve-competivity Thu, 12 Aug 2021 06:34:54 +0000 https://lynxtester.com/?p=4678 Competitive driven markets, such as automotive, require cost-effective solutions to survive in a global market underpin by cost and excellence. The most re
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    Save Time

    Illustration by Àngels Pinyol

    How customized test boards improve competivity

    Article by Albert Escala

    Competitive driven markets, such as automotive, require cost-effective solutions to survive in a global market underpin by cost and excellence. The most reliable way to do it is with a customized EOL functional tester. 

    The cost for EOL functional testers is a big part of the manufacturing investment. 

    Current vehicle architectures tend to concentrate functionalities in a few boxes. This trend dramatically increases the complexity of the electronic developments, with smart body controllers featuring cents of GPIO, multiple communication buses such as CAN, LIN, Ethernet, Broad-Reach and Flex Ray. In addition, they include several microcontrollers that have to be programmed to close the validation loop. 

    This device under test (DUT) complexity does not end with the finishing of the development phase. How will you test it then? As a quality assurance method, each part must pass the validation process, which includes a functional tester to make sure that each single function works properly. You already know how much does it cost and how big it is an end-of-life test machine with test boards from the shelve. 

    1. And what about the variable cost for the whole manufacturing life?

    But costs are not only paid with the purchasing of the machine. Depending on the EOL tester performance, each manufactured DUT lasts time during the validation process. And time means money. Just wonder how much competitivity a company loses with a long, ineffective test implementation. It’s like attaching a 10€ banknote to each manufactured DUT instead of attaching a 10 € cent coin. Competitivity is damaged day by day.

    2. Have you thought in developing a customized test box?

    We have the solution. Customized embedded developments are a great partner for EOL testers. Why not investing in the development of a customized smart test board that fits DUT coverage requirements? Imagine all features you need to accept your DUT as a valid part, embedded in a single, small size PCB. It is a considerable spending for a unique EOL tester, but when it has to be replicated to absorb huge manufactured volumes, the investment then makes a lot of sense.

    Customized test boxes are key factors that increase the competitivity in high manufacturing volume companies, such as in automotive Tier 1. Investing money in the development of a customized EOL test solution has several advantages, such as:

  • Manufacturing costs reduction when an EOL tester must be replicated.

  • Less variable cost due to a reduced test time in regards of an off the shelf solution.

  • Quality increase due to a higher test coverage, with less customer complains.

    • But be careful when choosing your test partner. Proper experience in automotive developments must be demonstrated in order to succeed with these high complexity projects.

    albert

    Albert Escala

    Albert is the Business Development Manager of Lynx Tester and GenerationRFID, a fanatic reader, and strives to make the world a little bit happier. You can find him on Linkedin.

    All articles
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    © 2021 LYNX TESTER. All Rights Reserved | Legal Notice | Cookies | Privacy Policy | Our Company

    The post How customized test boards improve competitivity appeared first on LynxTester.

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