Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1460418
42 PCB007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2022 I have spent many years in printed circuit fabrication, including nearly 20% of my career in Asia. One problem that concerns all fabri- cators is the issue of how many "X-outs" are allowed per assembly sub-panel array. Here are a couple of solutions I have used and encoun- tered in my travels. X-Outs Many of you may follow the good advice of Greg Papandrew, who writes about PCB issues. He says, "X-outs are allowed. However, not more than 20% of the PCBs in an array can be X'd-out, and no more than 10% of the arrays to be shipped may con- tain an X-out. X'd-out arrays are to be segregated and identi- fied accordingly at time of ship- ment." 1 X-out Repanelization Replacement Technology e process that my engi- neering group developed was a "replacement" technology. is process was developed as part of enhancing the number of good arrays that we were ship- ping, thus eliminating waste. Perfect yields are always the goal, but when faced with the production obstacle that has more than 20% X-outs on an array, the ability to "repanelize" Looking at the Process of Repanelization with good boards creates an "all good array" when the alternative was to scrap good boards. is process is shown in Figures 1 and 2. e process of repanelization consists of seven steps: 1. By lot acceptability. Does the customer and board costs indicate this is a good business move? 2. Rout the good boards out of their array. en rout the opening for the board in the new array. 3. Do the array dimensions permit the substitution? Happy's Tech Talk #6 Feature Column by Happy Holden, I-CONNECT007 Figure 1: Repanelization replacement process and key equipment.