Abstract
The disposal and recycling of electronic waste (e-waste) poses a significant global challenge. The disassembly of components is a crucial step in achieving an efficient recycling process, avoiding destructive methods. While manual disassembly remains the norm due to the diversity and complexity of components, there is a growing interest in automating the process to enhance efficiency and reduce labor costs. This study endeavors to automate the desoldering process and the extraction of components from printed circuit boards (PCBs) by implementing a robotic solution. The proposed strategy encompasses multiple phases, one of which involves the precise contact of the developed robotic tool with the components on the PCB. The tool was designed to exert a controlled force on the PCB component, thereby efficiently desoldering it from the board. Results demonstrate the feasibility of achieving a high success rate in removing PCB components, including the ones from mobile phones. The desoldering success rate observed is approximately 100% for the larger components.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Adenuga, A.A.: Environmental impact and health risk assessment of potentially toxic metals emanating from different anthropogenic activities related to e-wastes. Heliyon 8(8), e10296 (2022)
Calanca, A., Muradore, R., Fiorini, P.: A review of algorithms for compliant control of stiff and fixed-compliance robots. IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatron. 21, 613–624 (2016)
Fantoni, G., et al.: Grasping devices and methods in automated production processes. CIRP Ann. Manuf. Technol. 63, 679–701 (2014)
He, C., Jin, Z., Runwei, G., Huaying, Q.: Automatic disassembly and recovery device for mobile phone circuit board CPU based on machine vision. J. Phys. Conf. Ser. 1684(1), 012137 (2020)
Huang, J., et al.: A strategy for human-robot collaboration in taking products apart for remanufacture. FME Trans. 47, 731–738 (2019)
Kopacek, B.: Intelligent disassembly of components from printed circuit boards to enable re-use and more efficient recovery of critical metals. IFAC-PapersOnLine 49, 190–195 (2016)
Li, J., Barwood, M., Rahimifard, S.: A multi-criteria assessment of robotic disassembly to support recycling and recovery. Resour. Conserv. Recycl. 140, 158–165 (2019)
Li, J., Zhang, X., Feng, P.: Detection method of end-of-life mobile phone components based on image processing. Sustainability (Switzerland) 14, 12915 (2022)
Liu, H., Hai, J., Li, L., Yin, F.: An efficient disassembly process generation method for large quantities of waste smartphones. Procedia CIRP 105, 140–145 (2022)
Maurice, A.A., Dinh, K.N., Charpentier, N.M., Brambilla, A., Gabriel, J.C.P.: Dismantling of printed circuit boards enabling electronic components sorting and their subsequent treatment open improved elemental sustainability opportunities. Sustainability (Switzerland) 13, 9 (2021)
Mendes, N., Neto, P., Pires, J.N., Loureiro, A.: An optimal fuzzy-PI force/motion controller to increase industrial robot autonomy. Int. J. Adv. Manuf. Technol. 68(1–4), 435–441 (2013)
Ning, C., Lin, C.S.K., Hui, D.C.W., McKay, G.: Waste printed circuit board (PCB) recycling techniques. Top. Curr. Chem. 375, 4 (2017)
Noll, R., et al.: Next generation urban mining-automated disassembly, separation and recovery of valuable materials from electronic equipment: overview of r &d approaches and first results of the european project adir (2017)
Ruggeri, S., Fontana, G., Basile, V., Valori, M., Fassi, I.: Micro-robotic handling solutions for PCB (re-)manufacturing. Procedia Manuf. 11, 441–448 (2017). 27th International Conference on Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing, FAIM2017, 27–30 June 2017, Modena, Italy
Sadun, A.S., Jalani, J., Sukor, J.A.: An overview of active compliance control for a robotic hand 11 (2016)
Su, S., et al.: Design of a compliant device for peg-hole separation in robotic disassembly. Manuf. Technol. 124, 3011–3019 (2022)
Acknowledgements
This work is funded by National Funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, I.P., under the scope of the project RECY-SMARTE - Sustainable approaches for recycling and re-use of discarded mobile phones (PTDC/CTA-AMB/3489/2021).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Santos, S., Marques, L., Neto, P. (2024). A Robotic System to Automate the Disassembly of PCB Components. In: Marques, L., Santos, C., Lima, J.L., Tardioli, D., Ferre, M. (eds) Robot 2023: Sixth Iberian Robotics Conference. ROBOT 2023. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 976. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-58676-7_37
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-58676-7_37
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-58675-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-58676-7
eBook Packages: Intelligent Technologies and RoboticsIntelligent Technologies and Robotics (R0)