NYQUIST AND FRENCKEN MECHATRONICS IN JOINT PROJECT FOR NEW CUSTOMER

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NYQUIST AND FRENCKEN MECHATRONICS IN JOINT PROJECT FOR NEW CUSTOMER
09 September 2005 - Nyquist Industrial Control

The cooperation between Nyquist and Eindhoven-based Frencken Mechatronics, which intensified during mid 2004, has resulted in the completion of a large-wafer handling project for Leica Microsystems in the UK.

The project called for a stand-alone system that would work in an ultra-high vacuum and have the rigidity and accuracy to very high specifications. 'The rough specification showed that we were dealing with the requirement for a very accurate positioning system with respect to the size and scale of movement,' says Jeroen Bresser, Frencken's engineering manager. 'Despite an extremely short lead-time and the fact that the customer uses a different CAD system to our own, we were successful with our tender and immediately began working on a concept study based on the functional specification.'

The complete control of the wafer handler and the vacuum and venting system was designed and implemented by Nyquist, in close cooperation with the mechanical and system engineers from Frencken. Standard Motion and I/O Controllers where used as well as standard software components. On top of the standard software components, the application software was written to control the process, the safety, the operator interface and the communication to the Leica system.

In view of the very costly wafers involved, the project called for full fail-safe and back-up facility for the entire system in the event of a problem. This and all other engineering considerations were included as part of the structured and professional joint-project approach. Finally, in May 2005, the new wafer-handling system passed its acceptance trials to Leica's complete satisfaction. 'Thanks to a lot of interaction and excellent cooperation with Nyquist, we delivered without any major hitches, on schedule and to specification,' says Theo Kok, Frencken Group Sales Manager.

Leica Microsystems is a leading global supplier of high precision optical solutions based on microscopes and related instruments. Its comprehensive product portfolio is used in a wide variety of applications requiring vision, measurement, analysis or lithography, including applications in life and material sciences, industrial inspection and the semiconductor manufacturing industry. When the company invited proposals in connection with a new automated wafer handling and storage system for an electron-beam writer (a machine that writes with electrons), Nyquist and Frencken were included among the potential suppliers.

Leica Microsystems, which is headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany, joins the growing list of companies benefiting from Nyquist's and Frencken's initiative in clustering developments, which is supported by the findings of an independent study that shows a clear market requirement for much closer collaboration by specialized companies. Nyquist's and Frencken's activities fully complement each other and this latest project success is proof of the benefits of closer collaboration in the sales and engineering of high-quality mechatronic systems.

Frencken Mechatronics (www.frencken.nl), the technological 'heart' within the Frencken Group, is specialized in the engineering and realisation of high-quality and complex apparatus and machines for professional industrial clients at home in the Netherlands and abroad. As an ISO 9001-certified organisation, Frencken Mechatronics is an ideal partner for the design, production and assembly of high-quality modules for high-end applications. The entire logistic process around the assembly of a product, up to and including packaging it and, if required, delivery to the end users, can be handled by Frencken Mechatronics. Frencken Mechatronics's client base includes Original Equipment Manufacturers for the medical, semiconductor and graphics industries.

Nyquist Industrial Control's mission is to excel in creating and offering innovative motion control technology in products and systems, designed-in for OEM customers in semiconductor equipment, medical equipment and innovative mechatronics solutions markets. Nyquist's core competencies are Motion Control Technology, Product Development and tailoring our standard products to establish perfect-fit motion control systems for OEM's. The company's goal is to bring customers a long lasting competitive edge in their markets by adding value through motion control which improves machine performance. The Sales and Service activities of the Nyquist cover Europe, US and Southeast Asia.

http://www.nyquist.com

About: Nyquist Industrial Control
Nyquist has a long and rich history. A history that goes back to the beginning of the early seventies, when the company was still part of Philips. Since then, the organisation has played a pioneering role in the field of high-quality Motion Control systems, VME and PLC machine control platforms.

The foundations for the present-day company Nyquist Industrial Control were paved in the seventies. This happened when the first standardised servo system was developed, initially created for Philips' internal machine building. This led to a large international installed base, both within and outside of our own organisation. For instance, the doors of the Dutch Railways' trains are still fitted with VME-based control systems from Nyquist. And then just think of all the automatically opening bridges, traction systems, trams, machines for making glass moulds, embroidering machinery, pastry-making machines, ships' terminals, incinerators and water purification plants.

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  • For September 2005
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