Zero defect inspection assured!

EPCOS is a world-leading manufacturer of passive electronic components. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, the company caters to leading-edge technology markets like automotive, industrial and consumer electronics, and relies on Omron sensing technology in its manufacturing processes.

In fact, by using Omron’s ZS-L sensor series, EPCOS has improved production quality and saved 15 minutes per machine.

EPCOS manufactures over 40,000 products, comprising a range of passive electronic components whose extent is unique in the market. Everything from surface acoustic wave components, capacitors and ceramic components to ferrites and inductors is available, all offering unrivalled performance for electronics applications. With such a product range, EPCOS can fulfil its customers’ product requirements and solutions from a single source.

0.01 mm accuracy required

EPCOS uses Omron’s ZS-LD80 sensor and ZS-LDC41 sensor controller to check the position of a screen process sieve, which must be accurate to within 0.01 mm. This sieve is mounted into a mounting frame, and the frame is then installed into the machine. The ZS sensor is used to measure the position of all 4 corners of the sieve to ensure that it is perfectly flat, and this is done by placing 4 sensor heads at each corner. Standard displacement sensors could not possibly measure directly on the frame, because it isn’t straight enough.

Problems with conventional sensors

Using conventional sensors for this process would be almost totally ineffective, since the object can have different colours, and some of the objects are made of semi-transparent material.

Benefits of using Omron’s ZS-L

EPCOS set out to improve the quality of its production and to reduce the number of bad parts. In the past this was done through a series of manual checks. By using the ZS-L series however, EPCOS improved their process and achieved a saving of 15 minutes per machine.

Key factor for the customer to use ZS-L

Thanks to its excellent dynamic sensing range, the ZS-L can measure on all different surfaces, regardless of the colour and type of material. The ZS-L takes just minutes to install and set up.A big advantage is the ZS-controller with its large, integrated display, which provides easy-to-read measurement results for the engineer. The ZS also works independently from any PLC or PC. It’s simply plug & play!

Learn more about the ZS-L sensor series