IDCT set out to re-think the traditional approaches to mechanical drilling, especially with regard to high density microdrilling. The LP Series Microdrilling System drastically expands the flexibility and efficiency of mechanical drilling using linear planer servomotor technology coupled with drill spindle technologies uniquely suited to this application.

1. As a general rule, the technologies used to position drill spindles have not significantly changed in twenty years or more. Most systems at that time were ball screw driven with both axes attached to the table driving the work piece (compound table). True rectangular positioning was virtually impossible to achieve with this type of system due to assembly and manufacturing tolerances and spring and backlash in the system. Trapezoidal or skewed movement was often the result. The industry has, in some cases, migrated towards split axis machines which move the work piece in one axis and the drill spindles in the other axis. This arrangement improves the trapezoid and skew issues, but doesn’t eliminate them entirely. Some companies have migrated to linear servo motors in one or both axes to avoid some of the problems inherent in ball screw type drives, but they still have the same issues as the split axis machines without the backlash and spring.
2. The approach to X-Y positioning of the drill spindle relative to the work piece has always been accomplished by moving the work piece in one axis in a split axis system, or in both axes in a compound system. This has several disadvantages. One is that the travel required is at least the length of the work piece in the axis being traveled (See Figure 1). A 24" board requires the work piece, and the table it sits on, to travel 24" in a precision fashion. The effective linear floor space required to accommodate this movement is then 48". The other axis of movement requires at least one board width of extra space in the other axis, again adding to the required floor space. Moving the work piece also requires the table to move. Tables are large in size and mass and require large mechanisms to move them. Size and weight of the machine as a whole increase dramatically because of the large tables and drive mechanisms, as well as the area required to accommodate the work piece movement.
3. Drill spindles and work piece tables operate synchronously. All the work pieces are mounted to the same table. All of the drill spindles are operated at the same time to produce the same hole pattern. If a drill breaks, all stations stop production and wait while one station changes bits. On a six head driller, this means that 83% of production stops unnecessarily during the tool change cycle. The same loss of production can occur if one drill bit reaches it’s maximum hit count before the others, resulting in a tool change.
4. Drill spindles wear out eventually. When a drill spindle fails, it results in either a lengthy machine shutdown while the complex mechanical spindle assembly is replaced or the machine is run with that station turned off until the replacement can be done more conveniently. One will almost certainly see a machine running with one or more stations disabled in many board shops. They simply cannot afford the down time in the middle of a run.

1. The LP Series Microdrilling System utilizes a linear planer (LP) servomotor drive to accomplish X-Y motion. A linear planer servomotor is essentially a servomotor which has been unwrapped and laid flat. A simple analogy is the common air hockey table found in arcades. The equivalent of the table would be the platen, while the puck might represent the motor. Using a controller, the puck (motor) can be commanded to move to any X-Y position anywhere on the table (platen). The motor is attracted to the platen by strong permanent magnets, yet glides easily on a few microns of air bearing. A closed loop servo system controls positioning, settling and accuracy of the position of the puck within microns. There are no complex mechanical drive systems to introduce trapezoidal or skewed motion, nor is there any backlash in the system. This system has the additional advantage of being a zero wear positioning system. Since there are no mechanical bearing surfaces or couplings, there is nothing in the positioning system to wear out. Ever.
2. Envision taking the air hockey table analogy a step further and turning the table upside down. In real life, the puck would fall off the table. This is not the case with the linear planer motor. The linear planer motor operates equally well right side up or upside down. Mounted on a frame above the work piece(s), the motor is free to move to any X-Y location over the work piece. The idea now is to move the drill spindle instead of the work piece. A repackaging of our patented microdrilling spindle mechanism provides field proven 275,000RPM drilling capability in a lightweight, smaller envelope. This new design allows the spindle to be mounted to the bottom of the motor. Now that the drill can be positioned at any point over the work piece, the work piece no longer needs to move. Heavy tables and drive mechanisms are gone. The extra space required to move the table back and forth is also gone, resulting in a dramatically reduced machine footprint. Electronics are packaged underneath the machine instead of on the back. The footprint is anywhere from 30-50% smaller then common six head drillers, and the machine weight is a small fraction by comparison (See Figure 2). Machine weight of competitive machines is in the range of 19,000 pounds, while the LP Series weighs in at about 10,000 pounds. Dynamic loading is also significantly lower because there are no large masses moving vertically or laterally. Space utilization is always important and the LP Series provides almost twice the manufacturing density based upon machine size alone. Specifically, three eight head LP Series machines occupy the same floor space as two normal six head machines, giving a production capacity of 24 spindles (at 30,000 pounds total weight) instead of 12 (at 38,000 pounds total weight).
3. The linear planer servomotor system in the LP Series is capable of controlling multiple motors on the same platen independently of each other. Asynchronous Drilling Technology (ADT) means that spindles can be mounted to multiple individual motors and can drill the same pattern, drill different patterns, change a broken or worn drill on one station while the others continue drilling, etc. The result is a highly efficient and flexible system. Eight heads can drill eight panels with the same hole pattern. If one has to change tools, it simply resumes where it left off without affecting the other spindles. Four larger panels can be drilled sharing two spindles each. The LP Series determines which holes fall within the zone of each drill head and splits the drill pattern between the two, drilling different patterns in each half of the panel. Two panels can be drilled using four drill heads each or up to eight drill heads can be assigned to any large panel up to 37" x 99", with each head drilling the unique portion of the hole pattern within it’s zone. (See Figure 3).



 

4. The LP Series spindle assembly can be removed and replaced in a matter of minutes. Simply home the unit, disconnect two cable connectors, two air lines and vacuum hose, then remove the entire assembly from the platen using a simple pry bar. Place the spare assembly on the platen, reconnect, enter an identification number in software and the system is off and running again. Minutes, not hours.
5. Vision enabled multi-spindle drilling is a standard feature on the LP Series Microdrilling System, with the cameras incorporated into each asynchronously controlled spindle. This makes the LP Series capable of vision compensation on every station, independently of the others. Vision compensation has previously been available only on single spindle machines. The advantages of vision compensation for highly variant processes and high density packaging registration are now available to the high volume manufacturing environment.
6. The LP Series is environmentally adaptive. While most manufacturers’ machines degrade in performance as environmental temperatures change, the LP Series actively monitors it’s own thermal conditions and adapts the drilling process accordingly in real time. Instead of trying to control the drilling environment, IDCT designed a machine which is self-compensating for environmental changes.

IDCT’S prior driller products routinely increased drilling efficiency by 25-40% using the high speed and precision of a split axis linear motor drive and 275,000 RPM, non-air bearing Microdrilling Spindle Mechanism technology. The LP Series is even faster and more space efficient than any other mechanical drilling system available. This is, in our opinion, a true next generation product.

If the IDCT Microdrilling System could be the competitive advantage your company is seeking, please contact us at: