VSD Article - Uniquely Challenging

1 February 2010

Solar cell manufacturing faces several AOI challenges that can be met by visible, near-infrared, or electroluminescent imaging

Although the economic situation slowed down photovoltaic (PV) installation last year, the market continues to grow. According to the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA), the market will reach $31 billion with a capex of $6 billion in 2010. With oversupply of capacity, solar cell manufacturers are under pressure to find ways to increase efficiency, improve quality, and reduce costs.

Automated optical inspection (AOI) systems are growing rapidly as the solar industry is reaching the stage of maturity in which machine vision undergoes mass adoption on the production floor. A properly designed AOI can help meet these goals. At some production stages, however, AOI system designers have unique challenges to overcome.

Click here to read the full Vision Systems Design article by Teledyne DALSA's Xing-Fei He.