PCB Tech - What is wave soldering?

Wave soldering refers to the process of spraying molten soft solder (lead-tin alloy) through an electric or electromagnetic pump into the designed solder wave, allowing pre-installed printed boards with components to pass through the solder wave and achieve mechanical and electrical connection between component solder end or pins and printed board solder pads. The solder used in wave soldering mainly consists of tin bars, which allow the molten liquid tin to be soldered onto the solder pad of the circuit board where the components are inserted. This involves soldering the component pins to the circuit board.

Wave soldering is a common surface mount technology used to solder electronic components onto printed circuit boards. It is achieved by placing components in appropriate positions on a pre-coated PCB with solder paste and then transporting them to the heating area through a conveyor belt. In the heating area, the PCB uses a solder wave to make the solder come into contact with the component pins and form solder joints.

The advantages of wave soldering

1. High degree of automation: Wave soldering is a highly automated welding process that can quickly and effectively complete welding tasks and improve production efficiency.

2. Suitable for large-scale production: Due to its high automation and fast welding speed, wave soldering is very suitable for large-scale electronic product production.

3. Suitable for various components: Wave soldering can be applied to different types of electronic components, including plugins and surface mount components.

4. Lower welding costs: The automation and efficiency of wave soldering make its costs relatively low, making it more cost-effective in mass production.

Application of Wave Welding

Wave soldering is commonly used in applications such as electronic components and circuit boards. In the electronics industry, wave soldering technology can be used to produce various types of electronic devices, such as integrated circuits, LED lights, memory chips, etc. In circuit board production, wave soldering technology can be used to weld electronic components and circuit boards together, thereby achieving the functionality of the entire circuit board.

In addition, wave soldering is also applied in fields such as automotive electronics, medical equipment, office equipment, and home appliances. In the field of automotive electronics, wave soldering technology can be used to produce equipment such as car audio, navigation systems, and car computers. In the field of medical equipment, wave soldering technology can be used to produce various types of medical equipment. In the field of office equipment and home appliances, wave soldering technology can be used to produce computer motherboards, monitors, keyboards, mice, home appliance circuit boards, etc.

Wave soldering technology is a popular electronic soldering technology with a wide range of applications, which can be used in fields such as electronic components, circuit boards, automotive electronics, medical equipment, etc. It has advantages such as efficiency, reliability, and environmental friendliness, and is one of the most common welding technologies in the electronics industry.