42T has partnered with INFICON AG – one of the world’s leading manufacturers of leak testing devices and instruments – to develop a ground-breaking smart helium microdispensing tool for use in vacuum leak testing in the semiconductor manufacturing sector
The new handheld tool, called SMART-Spray, works with INFICON’s existing UL1000, 3000, 5000 and 6000 fab series leak detectors that are widely used within semi-conductor, solar cell and flat panel display manufacturing plants.
Traditional helium spray guns are particularly cumbersome and difficult to use (as shown here): they need to be connected to a bulky helium cylinder while test engineers typically have to hold a remote control for the leak detector system in their other hand
A world first
SMART-Spray has been specifically designed to help eliminate the challenges engineers currently face with traditional helium spray guns, and to help them more easily pinpoint leaks when checking the integrity of sealed systems and process equipment.
The new tool integrates a precision gas microdispenser with a remote display function for the leak detector into a single handheld device. This innovative design allows engineers to fully operate the system with one hand, leaving the other free for tasks such as gripping a ladder.
The handheld helium microdispenser delivers a precisely-controlled microdose of helium and has its own refillable helium cartridge. It is also paired via Bluetooth to the leak detector, allowing it to display live leak rates on its own built-in screen.
Markus Schwambera, Strategic Product Manager for leak detection tools at INFICON says:
42 Technology has been instrumental in helping develop the world’s first handheld smart helium microdispenser for use in routine maintenance within semiconductor fabrication plants.
SMART-Spray will simplify and speed up vacuum and leak detection processes that are critical for ensuring system performance,
safety and environmental compliance.”
INFICON’s SMART-Spray handheld helium microdispenser has its own refillable helium cartridge and is paired via Bluetooth to the leak detector, allowing engineers to fully operate the system with one hand
Revolutionising leak detection in semi-conductor manufacturing
42T has worked closely with INFICON on all aspects of SMART-Spray’s design and engineering: from the initial design concept and proof-of-principle testing through to manufacturing prototypes for customer trials and developing the final design for production.
This has included industrial design, mechanical design, design for manufacture and assembly, electronics engineering, GUI and firmware development, and verification testing.
Traditional helium spray guns are known for being particularly cumbersome and difficult to use. They need to be connected via tubing to a helium cylinder, and they rely on a hand-operated trigger valve making it difficult to dispense a small consistent volume of gas.
At the same time, test engineers typically have to hold a wired or wireless remote control in their other hand to operate the leak detector system. This makes it particularly difficult when engineers have restricted access to parts of the system and no hand free to support themselves.
Spraying a large, uncontrolled burst of helium, rather than dispensing a small microdose as SMART-Spray does, can lead to significant amounts of helium being dispersed into the atmosphere within the manufacturing plant too. This is unnecessarily wasteful but also results in higher background levels of helium, making it more difficult and time-consuming to detect leaks within the system being tested.
About INFICON
INFICON is a leading provider of innovative instrumentation, critical sensor technologies, and Smart Manufacturing/Industry 4.0 software solutions that enhance productivity and quality of tools, processes and complete factories.
These analysis, measurement and control products are essential for gas leak detection in air conditioning / refrigeration, and automotive manufacturing. They are vital to equipment manufacturers and end-users in the complex fabrication of semiconductors and thin film coatings for optics, flat panel displays, solar cells and industrial vacuum coating applications.
Other users of vacuum-based processes include the life sciences, research, aerospace, packaging, heat treatment, laser cutting and many other industrial processes. We also leverage our expertise in vacuum technology to provide unique, toxic chemical analysis products for emergency response, security, and environmental monitoring.
About 42 Technology
We are a product design and innovation consultancy, based near Cambridge (UK), that helps create technically advanced new products and enhanced manufacturing processes for some of the world’s best-known brands, as well as start-ups and SMEs. We work across three key sectors: consumer, industrial, and healthcare and life sciences.
42T is fully committed to innovation and sustainability at every stage: from generating its initial ideas and concepts for clients through to supporting them towards net-zero. It also has particular expertise in optimising manufacturing processes, for example, to improve energy efficiencies, reduce waste, and to reconfigure existing production assets to accommodate sustainable materials or new product formats.