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98 SMT Magazine • August 2016 SELECTING A SELECTIVE SOLDERING SYSTEM, PART 5 actly what you want, you can often purchase a third-party program which can export the for- matted board back to the machine. Be sure to ask for a free demo version of the company's software for you to evaluate before purchase. It will allow you to see how intui- tively it handles graphic file imports, configures them, and programs special circumstances that may arise in your production routines. Check References Remember to consult a variety of machine providers. Talk to the manufacturers themselves if possible, and get references to contact before making a purchase. An important consider- ation for a complex machine such as a selec- tive soldering system and associated options is factory support, specifically training, software, upgrades and spare parts. SMT Robert Voigt is VP of global sales at DDM Novastar Inc. To reach Voigt, click here. Don't skimp by avoiding the small additional cost of a nitro- gen inerting system. Nitrogen im- proves soldering performance by assisting thermal capability and improving surface tension of the solder. Leaded solder is consider- ably more forgiving than lead-free in terms of oxidation, degradation and connection quality, so nitro- gen is not always needed in those cases. However, it is absolutely necessary for any application us- ing lead-free solder. To ensure a good solder joint using lead-free, the nitrogen bubble protects the solder integrity during the process with no voids in the final connec- tion. Programming Options As described earlier in "Selec- tive Soldering, Part 4," hybrid boards can be challenging to program because of the interface with SMT components and the nature and ar- rangement of addressable, through-hole points. Figuring out the best sequence to optimize pro- duction speed is usually a combination of com- mon sense along with available software fea- tures. The two best ways to "acquire" the board into the system are by scanning the board or im- porting CAD data from a Gerber file, although in a pinch, you can also take a digital photo. With more advanced programming options come higher costs, but they often pay off in greater efficiency and throughput. A good soft- ware package will be intuitive and easy to use. And while many of these decisions can be made by a thoughtful and experienced board pro- grammer, some sophisticated software packages offer optimization tools to achieve the best pat- tern for complex board geometries. Such soft- ware packages will, along with the judgment of the operator, be capable of deciding whether changing a nozzle would be advantageous or not. The selective soldering machine you buy will always offer its own software; however, if you like the machine but its software isn't ex- Figure 4: Example of an easy-to-use Windows interface.