Cambridge Sensotec Secures Major Export Contract Part 1

Heller Industries is the world''s leading solder reflow oven manufacturer based in the USA, with manufacturing plants in China, Korea and Malaysia.

Heller solder reflow ovens are used to solder the circuit boards included within many electronic devices such as; smartphones, MP3 players, digital cameras, tablets and laptop computers. As the global demand for electronic products increases, so does the demand for quality manufacturing processes.

The presence of oxygen inside the solder reflow oven can create impurities within the solder used on the circuit boards. To eliminate the possibility of this issue occurring, nitrogen is used to purge the oven of oxygen, thus ensuring the highest standards of solder quality are met.

The challenge put to Cambridge Sensotec was to develop a controlled loop version of its popular Rapidox oxygen gas analyser to measure any residual oxygen levels present during the solder reflow process. From the accurate oxygen measurement readings, the analyser was required to produce control signals to operate a proportional flow control (PFC) valve inside the oven should the level of oxygen increase. The Rapidox analyser was also required to integrate seamlessly with the solder reflow oven control and management system via bespoke software communications and hardware connections.