User Tools

Site Tools


mdcpickandplace:equipment

Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

Link to this comparison view

Both sides previous revision Previous revision
Next revision
Previous revision
mdcpickandplace:equipment [2009/11/06 20:21]
pt
mdcpickandplace:equipment [2016/01/28 18:05] (current)
Line 27: Line 27:
 ===== Where to buy ===== ===== Where to buy =====
  
-We are in the USA so we bought our machine from [[http://​www.manncorp.com|Manncorp]],​ it was made by [[http://​www.mdc-smt.co.jp/​|MDC]] in Japan, Manncorp sells in the USA, as well as all over the world -  the other MDC distributor is [[http://​www.mekko.co.uk/​about.html|Mekko]] based out of the UK.+We are in the USA so we bought our machine from [[http://​www.manncorp.com|Manncorp]],​ it was made by [[http://​www.mdc-smt.co.jp/​|MDC]] in Japan, Manncorp sells in the USA, as well as all over the world -  the other MDC distributor is [[http://​www.mekko.co.uk/​about.html|Mekko]] based out of the UK. If you buy from Manncorp, tell them Adafruit sent you, they said they'd give us a free feeder (yay feeders)
  
-That said, if you buy from Manncorp, tell them Adafruit sent you, they said they'd give us free feeder (yay feeders+ 
 +If you've bought a pick and place machinepost your comments and experiences below. 
 + 
 +---- 
 + 
 + 
 + 
 +**Comment from a MDC customer 11/11/2009 ** - "You can also deal directly with MDC and if you decide to purchase ​from them, they can probably provide more flexible pricing. When they deal with distributor,​ pricing is less flexible because the distributor needs to make a margin of a couple thousand dollars as well. I've already recommended another person to deal directly with them. If they can't undercut their disti pricing, then you can work with them on discounting the feeders ​which are usually overpriced through distributors"​. ​
  
 ===== What machines did we look at? ===== ===== What machines did we look at? =====
Line 36: Line 43:
  
   * Buy a professional machine, used   * Buy a professional machine, used
-  * [[http://​madelltech.com/​|Madell]] - Made and sold in the US+  * [[http://​madelltech.com/​|Madell]] - Made and sold in the US (? we now don't think this is true: it seems that they are chinese imports)
   * [[http://​www.apsgold.com/​|APS Gold / Novastar]] - Made and sold in the US   * [[http://​www.apsgold.com/​|APS Gold / Novastar]] - Made and sold in the US
-  * [[http://​www.mdc-smt.co.jp/​|MDC]] - Made in Japan, distributed in the US+  * [[http://​www.mdc-smt.co.jp/​|MDC]] - Made in Japan, distributed in the US and worldwide ([[https://​www.manncorp.com/​index.php?​auto=done|Manncorp]],​ [[http://​www.mekko.co.uk/​|Mekko]])
  
 ===== Why did we go with MDC? ===== ===== Why did we go with MDC? =====
  
 ===== What to look for when buying a pick and place ===== ===== What to look for when buying a pick and place =====
 +
 +  * Price - whats your budget? You can spend as little as $10k for a '​non-automatic'​ placer - up to hundreds of thousands
 +  * Space - how big of a machine can you get? We have very little space and a floor that can't support hundreds of pounds.
 +  * Power - We don't have 220V so that limits what we can get
 +  * Software - can you use it? try to get a view of the software manual
 +  * Top Vision - Top/​training vision is great for quick debugging and fiducial recognition
 +  * Bottom Vision - for placing fine pitch and leadless parts
 +  * Non-mechanical centering - Mechanical centering uses little tweezers to center parts. Personally we prefer non-mechanical centering - less to break and can be much faster
 +  * Feeders - in all sizes, tubes, trays must be OK. 
 +  * Cut tape feeders - This may be an option for you if you are making very small run parts
 +  * Speed - how many parts can you place in a minute? For some this may be important!
 +  * PCB size - how small/big can the parts be?
 +  * Accuracy - Can it cope with 0201s? Fine pitch chips?
  
 ===== Buying new vs. used ===== ===== Buying new vs. used =====
  
 +You can save tons of $ by getting a used machine - a $60k '​MSRP'​ machine can go for 90% off! However, there are a few things to watch for when buying used machines
 +
 +  * **Does the machine work?** Used machines may have problems with them that are hard to determine if you are inexperienced
 +  * **Can you get feeders and replacement parts?** Some machines are old enough that replacement parts are not sold anymore. ​
 +  * **May you get feeders and replacement parts?** If you bought used, chances are the manufacturer/​distributor will not talk to you unless you '​register'​ the machine with them for a few thousand $. This of course totally varies by company and machine but it is not unusual
 +  * **Is the tech modern enough?** Older machines may not have bottom vision or any vision at all. Some can't pick and place parts smaller than 1206. They may have mechanical centering. Some must be completely text programmed with no training vision.
 +  * **Can you get manuals and/or support?** These are not simple machines to run, having access to people you can query is essential. There is virtually no information online for p&p operators. Again, the company may not support you if its a used machine unless you pay a fee.
 +
 +For these reasons, we decided to start with a new machine. Our view was that since we had never run a pick and place before, its good to have a well documented and supported machine. If we were to purchase a secondary p&p, getting a used one from the same manufacturer would be a lot less risky.
/home/ladyada/public_html/wiki/data/attic/mdcpickandplace/equipment.1257538874.txt.gz · Last modified: 2016/01/28 18:05 (external edit)