The importance of product testing in any industry is difficult to overstate. For circuit boards, however, there is especial significance to the process. The intricacy and relative length of the manufacturing process means that testing not only has to be thorough, to catch all potential mistakes, but extremely careful, so as to not introduce potential error. In Permatech Electronics, the printed circuit board testing process is rigorous and intensive, to ensure only the highest quality in each and every manufactured board.

There are two primary stages to printed circuit board testing:

• Inspection - The Permatech Electronics printed circuit board testing protocol begins with a standard inspection of each individual product, to meet current IPC standards. Typically, an inspection will involve a camera scanning the device to search for signs of defects or missing components. This process, known as an automated optical inspection, effectively assesses the quality of a board without ever making contact with it, which is ideal for printed circuits.
• Functional Testing - Functional testing is usually a three-stage process that involves in-circuit testing, boundary scan testing and manufacturing defects analysis. This stage of testing fills in the few gaps that cannot be detected through an automated optical inspection, ensuring that each board is working exactly as intended.
  • In-circuit testing checks the individual components after they being soldered into the circuit board, ensuring that each individual element of the piece is working correctly.
  • Boundary scan testing involves making sure the wire lines on the board are working correctly, with regards to voltage in particular. The interconnection of the circuit is naturally very important to its function!
  • Manufacturing defects analyses are largely self-explanatory, in that this stage of testing identifies issues related to the manufacturing process of the board.

Printed circuit board testing ensures the quality and functionality of the end product. It is only through rigorous electronic inspection and quality functional testing can the customer be assured that the batch of printed circuit board is well worth the investment. For this reason, Permatech Electronics always thoroughly tests each individual circuit board so you can receive the highest quality product possible.