Automated Printed Circuit Board Fabricating Machine
This project is about automated printed circuit board fabricating through etching process. The major objectives of this project include automating the etching process to ensure the safety of operator because ferric chloride solution can be dangerous for human health, and to save the overall time req
2025-06-28 16:30:23 - Adil Khan
Automated Printed Circuit Board Fabricating Machine
Project Area of Specialization RoboticsProject SummaryThis project is about automated printed circuit board fabricating through etching process. The major objectives of this project include automating the etching process to ensure the safety of operator because ferric chloride solution can be dangerous for human health, and to save the overall time require to etch the circuit board. The components used in this project are robot arm, a computer numeric control (CNC) machine and an etching tank (containing the ferric chloride solution). The printed circuit board sheet first get by the robotic arm as input. The robotic arm places that sheet on the CNC machine where the printing and drilling is done. After the circuitry is printed and holes are drilled accordingly on the circuit board, the robotic arm again grabs the printed sheet from the CNC machine and places it into the etching tank. In etching tank, ferric chloride solution is present which corrodes the copper of the sheet except the printed circuitry. After 5 minutes to 7 minutes of etching process (in etching tank), the robotic arm takes the input automatically and picks up the etched sheet from tank. Then the robotic arm delivers this etched sheet to the output point. The whole process is automatically executed. The whole process for printed circuit board designing takes 20 to 30 minutes and meets the initial design parameters. The project is completed under dedicated budget and desired specifications. Hence, this project provides a research platform for upgradation to computer numeric control milling, computer numeric control engraving and designing of multi-layer printed circuit board. It can be further upgrading to industrial level by improving the accuracy and throughput for mass production of automated printed circuit board designing.
Project ObjectivesEtching is the process of removing copper layer selectively from PCB sheet for implementing the required circuit. This process is done manually and lacks accuracy. The objective of this project is to eliminate human interaction by making the process automated and reduce the amount of time required for the method. The circuit designed on Proteus is drawn on the PCB sheet and drilled using CNC system which will reduce the time and will be done automatically. This printed PCB is then etched with the help of a robotic arm. This will enhance the safety parameters, precision and throughput of the system for single layer PCB design.
Project Implementation MethodThis project is divided into three different sections. The first section consist of drawing and drilling using the CNC technology. The second section is of robotic arm which is used to the automation of the whole process. The last section is of etching tank which will fabricate the PCB. Firstly the CNC machine is designed. The Y-axis is selected as the base of the machine. Total amount of three stepper motors are used for making the CNC drawing and drilling machine. The whole CNC machine is controlled by the microcontroller and the G-Code are generated by CAD and CAM softwares. The next part is the Robotic arm which will grab the PCB and place it onto the etching tank. The combination of SCARA and Cartesian robotic arm is used. In the end the PCB is etched through Ferric chloride solution.
Benefits of the ProjectFollowing are the potential benfits of this project
- It automates the traditinal etching process
- Low cost and user friendly CNC interface
- It saves time
- Enchances human saftey
- It reduces human interaction
- Individual componeents of the whole machine can be used for performing specific task for example CNC machine can be used for sketching
The basic proposed design of this project is that the user given schematic is first converted into the G-code using a software. The schematic is converted into XY coordinates which defines the G-code. This G-code is further given to the CNC processor which controls the motion of XY axis (moves X and Y axis according to the given G-code). Stepper motors are used to convert the angular motion into the linear X and Y distance. These stepper motor are controlled by the microcontroller and their motion is controlled by the CNC processor. PCB is placed in the working area of the plotter by using robotic arm and schematic is given to the computer. The converted schematic into G-Code in the first stage is given to the CNC processor which then controls the motors and draws the schematic on the PCB sheet. Similarly for drilling, same mechanism is used but with the different G-code. For drilling, a drill bit is mounted on the Z-axis stepper motor with a spindle. When the X and Y coordinates are achieved by the stepper motor in accordance to the G-code, the spindle will rotate the drill bit in Z-axis and make holes on the PCB. After Drawing and drilling the PCB is moved to the glass tank with an inclined plane with the help of the robotic arm. Chemical used for etching is stored in the tank which is poured over the PCB sheet using a pump. After etching the robotic arm will grab the PCB and place it at the output point
The main components of this project are briefly discussed below:
Conversion to G-CodeThe given schematic is converted to G-code by CAM and CAD softwares. The CAD software basically defines a proper set of the instructions of the given design while the CAM software uses those instructions to control the machine tools.
MicrocontrollerThe main importance of using a microcontroller is to control all the activities of the CNC machine as well as robotic arm movements. The converted G-code cannot be directly fed to the CNC machine. As every machine works on the machine code (M-Code). The converted G-code is first converted to M-code and is passed to microcontroller using a communication path.
GRBL Shield and Motor ControlMotors in general are controlled by the motor driver. In this project the motors will be controlled using the microcontroller interfaced motor drivers. For easy interfacing of both, the GRBL shield is used which provide a medium for the communication of both he microcontroller and motor driver.
CNC StructureAs the CNC technology depends on the Cartesian coordinate system. The CNC structure will be made in such a way that the all the different axis attached are orthogonal to each other. The CNC structure defines the drawing and drilling platform.
Automated PlacementThe whole process is automated by using the robotic arm. The robotic arm will first grab the PCB sheet from the input point and will place it to the drawing and drilling platform.
Etching ProcessThe etching process is done using a chemical solution.
Final Deliverable of the Project HW/SW integrated systemType of Industry Education Technologies 3D/4D Printing, Robotics, OthersSustainable Development Goals Good Health and Well-Being for People, Quality EducationRequired Resources| Item Name | Type | No. of Units | Per Unit Cost (in Rs) | Total (in Rs) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total in (Rs) | 80000 | |||
| Acrylic Sheet | Equipment | 3 | 5000 | 15000 |
| Steel Rods and Sliders | Equipment | 4 | 1000 | 4000 |
| Metallic Rods | Equipment | 20 | 100 | 2000 |
| Stepper Motors | Equipment | 5 | 1300 | 6500 |
| Servo Motors | Equipment | 5 | 800 | 4000 |
| Timing Belt and Pulleys | Equipment | 2 | 200 | 400 |
| linear Screw | Equipment | 3 | 2000 | 6000 |
| 12 V DC pump | Equipment | 2 | 500 | 1000 |
| Robotic Arm Gripper | Equipment | 1 | 3000 | 3000 |
| Drill Assembly | Equipment | 1 | 4000 | 4000 |
| GRBL sheild | Equipment | 3 | 500 | 1500 |
| Arduino UNO | Equipment | 3 | 1000 | 3000 |
| Robotic Arm Base Assembly | Equipment | 1 | 6000 | 6000 |
| stainless steel enclosure | Equipment | 1 | 10000 | 10000 |
| Motor Driver Circuitry | Equipment | 1 | 2000 | 2000 |
| IR and Sonar Sensor | Equipment | 1 | 1600 | 1600 |
| Aesthetic | Miscellaneous | 1 | 5000 | 5000 |
| Markers for Plotting | Miscellaneous | 10 | 100 | 1000 |
| LCD | Miscellaneous | 1 | 2000 | 2000 |
| Reports | Miscellaneous | 5 | 400 | 2000 |