‘Soft Landing’ technology on the Condor flying probe test platform addresses concerns manufacturers face over test coverage on complex and high density boards, as well as unwanted damage that can occur with conventional probe techniques.

With ‘Soft Landing,’ the test nail travels towards the component or pad at normal speed until approximately 1 to 2 mm above its target landing position. The speed of the nail is then reduced to soften its impact with the board. This protects delicate components and minimizes the ‘footprint’ where the nail touches the board. In tests, adding a soft landing to an existing nail contact reduced the visible ‘footprint’ by more than a third.
 
A smaller footprint means more precise positioning in highly dense areas. It also lowers the chance of shorting leads in close proximity to each other, invalidating the test and creating potential damage.
 
Test coverage increases as more test points can be reached without being damaged or scratched.  It only affects the z-axis of travel; Digitaltest MTS system test programs can be updated to take advantage of the technique with minimal additional programming.

Digitaltest GmbH, digitaltest.com

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