Assembly in Action: Automation Boosts Optical Component Throughput
Prior to purchasing the equipment from Palomar Technologies (Vista, CA), Digital Optics was building optical subassemblies using a semiautomatic system that required an operator. This involved manual manipulation to place and align the parts precisely. The company realized that this process would not meet its needs for increased production. The challenge was to automate production while improving the consistency and repeatability of the production processes.
The laser diode assembly (LDA) cell and process support from Palomar Technologies provided the flexibility to increase throughput across all product lines. "Our primary need was to be able to ramp up production while achieving a consistently high yield," says Jay Mathews, senior development engineer for Digital Optics. "The semiautomatic equipment we were using was operator-dependent and labor-intensive. We needed a highly flexible and fully automated tool that could be used in a variety of product applications."