manual screen printing machine / one-color / for labels / for electronics

DirEKt Ball Placement is a development of ProFlow®. The system features a ball transfer head, developed specifically to enhance processes for grid array packaging. Traversing the stencil, the head actively positions a solder ball at each pad location; cycle time is fast, consistent and independent of I/O count.

HOW IT WORKS

The DEK DirEKt Ball Placement process uses two screen printing machines. The first will print flux dots (or sometimes solder paste dots) onto the PCB, wafer or substrate to be ball placed. Most flux printing applications will use an emulsion mesh screen, whereas paste printing will typically be performed with a metal stencil.

The product is then conveyed to the second machine where a ball transfer head traverses the top side of a two layer ball place stencil, thereby depositing a ball into each of the stencil apertures. As the transfer head moves across the stencil, it also funnels a mono-layer of balls between the stencil and a compliant pad (distribution device) centered along the length of the head. The pad applies a small amount of pressure to the balls passing underneath it, and this pressure is then transferred to the balls already in the apertures, helping ensure they are well seated in the flux or paste dots.

Components may be processed in boats, strips, trays or boards.