Choosing a Desktop Pick and Place Machine

[MR]

You do not need a high resolution with pick and place machines.
For Top Camera, I'd even see a colour camera as an advantage.

There are far more challenging optical recognition scenarios out there than for pick and place machines.

I did the optical recognition for my machine myself, and I've seen the shit Mechatronika has done.
My conclusion is:
- Optical recognition needs experience (that's it basically: time + watching the behaviour + various updates = experience), some components are just different than others.
- Or the pick and place software needs to allow some plugins which allows a programmer to add his own algorithm for certain components. even if it only fails like for 1 part out of 100 for that certain project it will be bad.

YUY2/YUYV/UYVY already represents a filtered format, it's rare that USB cameras will submit raw bayer pictures
(of course might be different when not using a controller in between which is doing that)

When looking at the YY1 videos I do not see that the format (whatever they use) matters, it's the algorithms, and for those they need more experience for some components (I'm even sure it works already as it is for many)

[glenenglish]

The bayer filter is on the imager itself , you cant fix that...you cannot undo what it does..  3 x3 or maybe 4x4 pixels are weighted into a single colour pixel.

Anyway. Good that you have sorted your mekatronica.

 What do you think / what is your opinion  about a used Jap or Korean machine compared to a 'new' chinese CL machine ?

[MR]

I could probably write a lot, we outsourced for some time and I saw how Juki / Yamaha assembly lines processed our PCBs...

Chinese lower end are better serviceable with standard parts by yourself I'd say, we have built our own machine in Taiwan (with the background knowledge of the Mechatronika MX80 since we disassembled the machine back then, and used relatively inexpensive parts too), the serviceability is in our hands now and it's a nice feeling to have everything under control.

Mechatronika is very much a standard machine just like the chinese ones. portal + Z / Theta that's it (while the chinese ones have multiple heads at least). There are so many servos out there which can be used, however Delta really shined with their international support (trying to help sorting out our Mechatronika problems which was not even their job).

The Mechatronika Machine offers far less value than chinese machinery, spare parts are a rip off (and can even be manufactured as single parts even cheaper than you buy it from them - eg nozzles, from professional CNC companies you can get 10 for the price of one from Mechatronika, the chinese Juki nozzles are also okay; I did not experience magnetic issues or a runout (the runout that applied in my case was my own mechanical calibration problem, and not related to nozzles bought from china)).

If you can go trouble free with a chinese machine for your products it's a big plus, certainly not all products are suitable for those mid / low range models and might require more rework after the pick and place process.

The Juki / Yamahas which were used for assembling our products were close to trouble free the PCBs that came out of it were 99.9% spot on and required very little rework if at all. The main issues were usually related to stencil or reflow oven -- so experience (and preparation) of the operator mattered. eg. baking parts, reflow oven settings have to match with IC specs, the reflow ovens have to operate in a calibrated manner.. it call can go out of calibration if sensors have issues.

Would I go for Juki / Yamaha / ASM for our products? Probably not, even our own machine is idle for over half a month. It has to work when we need it that's all.
Would I go for a chinese machine? With our background knowledge, our software and existing machine blueprints now, also no..
I'd rather build a second machine and chain them up.

For a beginner with less money I'd probably advise to go for a chinese machine, and maybe spend one month in deeply understanding the machine (you said you wrote your own software for it, I just don't know to which extend and what your requirement is, finally you wrote you're using a Hanwha.. so your requirement might be accordingly I guess).

There are many variables that might apply in deciding which machine to use... Some might get away with machines without vision while others badly need it.
Not having to deliver components to an assembly house, waiting for a slot, counting, assembling it taking them back and again is a big plus and time saver.

[newto]

Long story short, I have a new firmware written from scratch for YY1 and I managed to assemble a few boards with OpenPnP!

Wow, congrats.  I am sure others would be keen to try that.

Thanks. I have published my firmware:
https://github.com/mdepx/neodenyy1

It lacks documentation but I'm working on it slowly.

That's awesome! I was hoping someone would manage this (or build a custom board), because I definitely don't have the skills for that.

If I read it right, you're running openPNP externally and passing the commands to the YY1 board over the UART in the main screen port, and the new cameras are connected to the external device? (raspberry pi?). I'm not super familiar with openPNP, but I think I have some research to do before I start messing with a machine that I didn't pay for. Do you have any links for the cameras you used?

And I'm surprised the cameras weren't just USB, I assumed they were and possibly even the small displays as well.

Next step is powered feeders (or at least some kind of lock for tapes that won't cooperate with the peelers)

[br]

Long story short, I have a new firmware written from scratch for YY1 and I managed to assemble a few boards with OpenPnP!

Wow, congrats.  I am sure others would be keen to try that.

Thanks. I have published my firmware:
https://github.com/mdepx/neodenyy1

It lacks documentation but I'm working on it slowly.

That's awesome! I was hoping someone would manage this (or build a custom board), because I definitely don't have the skills for that.

If I read it right, you're running openPNP externally and passing the commands to the YY1 board over the UART in the main screen port, and the new cameras are connected to the external device? (raspberry pi?). I'm not super familiar with openPNP, but I think I have some research to do before I start messing with a machine that I didn't pay for. Do you have any links for the cameras you used?

And I'm surprised the cameras weren't just USB, I assumed they were and possibly even the small displays as well.

Next step is powered feeders (or at least some kind of lock for tapes that won't cooperate with the peelers)

Yes, the main screen port, which is 4 pin UART (+5v, rx, tx, ground).
OpenPnP is running on a PC box, USB cameras are connected directly to the same PC.
OpenPnP talks to the motion controller (I call it main board on the firmware page) over UART.
I will post hopefully this week links to cameras and gerbers of PCBs that hold them. Also the bottom LED ring.

The first challenge for everyone interested would be to find a suitable debugger and try to read out your old firmware. I noticed there are some magnetic fields around so you need to play a bit with cables

[newto]

The first challenge for everyone interested would be to find a suitable debugger and try to read out your old firmware. I noticed there are some magnetic fields around so you need to play a bit with cables

Would removing the main board from the machine before messing with the software help? I can't imagine the cheap stepper drivers and all the other signalling and power going through the same board helps that situation. Definitely a little hesitant to risk a corrupted backup with nothing to compare it to if something goes wrong with the update process. If it was my own machine I'd be much more eager, but I don't want to try to explain to my boss why I broke our expensive hardware playing with it and need to order a new mainboard. And I swear my firmware from September 2022 has fewer bugs (or at least fewer critical bugs) than some of the newer machines people have received, so I wouldn't want to lose this version.

I'm excited to give it a try once you get more of the details up though, I know a lot of people have been interested in getting them to run more reliable software

[br]

Would removing the main board from the machine before messing with the software help? I can't imagine the cheap stepper drivers and all the other signalling and power going through the same board helps that situation. Definitely a little hesitant to risk a corrupted backup with nothing to compare it to if something goes wrong with the update process. If it was my own machine I'd be much more eager, but I don't want to try to explain to my boss why I broke our expensive hardware playing with it and need to order a new mainboard. And I swear my firmware from September 2022 has fewer bugs (or at least fewer critical bugs) than some of the newer machines people have received, so I wouldn't want to lose this version.

I'm excited to give it a try once you get more of the details up though, I know a lot of people have been interested in getting them to run more reliable software

You will need to remove it to solder down 2.54mm header for SWD, but I'd recommend then to put board back and connect a debugger permanently, this gives you a possibility to update firmware any time later. Debuggers are cheap, just leave one there forever.
Also the board has to be powered during firmware update, otherwise stm32 does not receive power.
If you want just to try and have quick access to the back of machine, you can just hold cables with fingers for the backup and update procedure.

Note that you may need like a month or so to dive into OpenPnP as things may not appear straightforward.

(not sure if a dedicated thread is needed for YY1-firmware related discussions?)

[glenenglish]

I could probably write a lot, we outsourced for some time and I saw how Juki / Yamaha assembly lines processed our PCBs...
(truncated)
Chinese lower end are better serviceable with standard parts by yourself I'd say, we have built our own machine in Taiwan (with the background knowledge of the Mechatronika MX80 since we disassembled the machine back then, and used relatively inexpensive parts too), the serviceability is is a big plus and time saver.

Nice writeup MR, very useful info for everyone.

[Friedl.b]

Hi -

I have had my YY1 not for a while and have not been able to get a single board placed without any (many) issue   

For now I have given up on placing IC's that are not on a reel or cut strip.  To be honest, I will be very happy if I can get to to place passives and LEDs on the actual footprint and not next to it.  I will give the machine the benefit of the doubt and pretend it is me, but I am out of ideas and YouTube videos to watch.  My workflow is as follow:

- Import CSV file
- Set up feeders and set Needle and Pick positions
- Load file and set up 1st component and fiducial (set up components if needed, but mostly do this in CSV)
- Go to MOUNT
- Click on STEP until it finds the fiducial

From there I have tried two different approaches:

1. Suggested by Neoden support - once there fiducial and a component has been selected there is no need to fine tune placement.  Apparently the view this show slightly off most of the time, is just and indication and the machine will place it on the exact location of the PNP file.  Unsurprisingly this approach did not work at all.

2. After finding the fiducial, I click in ALLIGN and then fine tune each component making sure to hit the SAVE button after each one.  Here I Het mixed results, I would guess around 25% of the components are spot on, the rest is off by quite a lot.

Am I doing something wrong?

Regards, Friedl.

[Aspartame]

That toy machine is a joke, don't waste any time with it.

[Friedl.b]

Hi -

Oh no, really??

I mainly use it for prototypes so it is hard to justify spending much more on a machine that will not be used to generate income.  I was hoping this Ould at least be able to do that.

Regards
Friedl

[level6]

Have you calibrated the nozzle/camera offset? Make sure the fiducial is being recognized properly. Also, make sure the zero corner location is correct.

I have a YY1 and it works pretty well. After pressing Mount and locating the fiducial, I check all the component locations and adjust if needed.

[Friedl.b]

Hi @lesson6

I really wish that was my problem as it would be an easy fix

I did check the nozzle calibration just before I ran the job and it was pretty much spot on still from the previous calibration.  Is there another calibration for the camera? 

With regards to the corner, I wonder whether that might be the issue.  ALL but three components of were off by more more less the same distance to one side.  I would guess around 1-2mm.  The board has 2mm rounded corner, but the '0/0 bracket' do seem to grab on the side of the board which is at x = 0.

About the fiducial, it does pick it up.  It shows a circle in the middle, then large black space but then picks up an area all around the fiducial again.  According the support (yes I reported this before to Nedoden) it was glare from the Purple Soldermask, so this time I used green.  Same result 

I am under no illusion that this is a production machine, but would think at least I would be able to do prototypes more professionally but at this stage I am better off placing by hand    I place components at 75% speed, should I slow it down even more maybe?  On thing I am unsure of is pic-height and place-height.  If from reels I suppose pick-height is zero right?  Place-heigh should be roughly the height of the component?  For passives I just leave this at zero.

Regards
Friedl.

[level6]

I would definitely check the PCB Origin calibration. Are you on the Pick and Place Owners Club discord? There's sizable amount of YY1 info there.

[Friedl.b]

Hi -

Great thanks, I will look for that.  I am not, but will search for it in Discord.  Thanks!!

[Friedl.b]

Hi -

Pick and Place Owners Club

I am not finding this server one discord, do you perhaps have the URL?

[4Project]

Hi all.
Waking that thread to add few cents from my findings.
I'm on a search for a desktop PnP machine for prototyping and small batches.

I've read that thread and the long one about the NeoDen YY1 machine...
As some mentioned here, Dave didn't specify his needs. Is it for prototyping (my guess it is) or small-mid size production runs (I guess not, since he's participating in the long YY1 thread for a few years already and looks like didn't get any machine yet)...

So, here are my thoughts:
I'll start from the oven, since it's easier...
As the world moves to lead-free, the oven have to be able to reach higher temperatures.
For prototyping you might be fine with leaded solder, but if you dream to sell some of your gadgets, you'll need to use the unleaded, so bette get ready right from the start.

The lowest cost T-962 doesn't do the job. Besides the temperature, it doesn't have a fan to move the hot air around, so you'll get areas that bake great and areas where the temperature will not reach the needed spot.
It's bigger brother, model T-937 is a bare minimum in my opinion. Just got one delivered to me.
The manufacturer is called PUHUI and no matter who you will order it from, it will be the same manufacturer, maybe with a different sticker.
https://puhuit.com/main/page_products_t937_comir_lf_ovenic_heater.html

I was tempted by the look and price of the NeoDen IN6, but as several already repoted, its heating elements are dying quickly.
No wonder, the lead-free temperature is on it's max egde. Althought NeoDen insist the machine is designed for lead-free solder temperatures (I've asked).
Their solution is to slow down the speed and lower the last stage temperature. I doubt it will solve the problem.
I guess 1 phase device is just not enough to get to the needed temperatures.
And in any case, for prototyping and even small manufacturing batches, drawer based oven should be more than enough.
As Bob from smallbatchassembly wrote me, the PnP will be the bottleneck in any case.
When I would like to grow to a more capable manufacturing line, I would contact PUHUI for their T-961 models. Looks like they have different models for different needs, including lead-free.

Now back to the Pick-n-Place machine selection...

As many mentioned, feeders are a big chunk of the machine cost.
To have a sub-$5K machine, manufacturers have to cut that part, hence the drag feeders...
There are no options to have anything besides the drag feeders for that price.
So the onyl options are all the flat-top machines similar to the CHMT48 or NeoDen YY1.
There are different manufacturers besides the CharmHigh that sell similar machines.
Most of them look exactly the same, so again, I guess there's a single manufacturer and different stickers on the front.
Some might have reworked abit the design, but all look every similar.
Here's a non-CharmHigh example:
https://www.qhsmt.com/product-category/smt-pick-and-place-machine/desktop-pick-and-place-machine/

I hear many complains about the drag feeders, specifically around the one-motor design that pulls all the lines and cause some non-related tapes to advance.
The real solution for that problem is to move to a dedicated feeders, that will drive the cost up.
As a workaround, china manufacturers come with an in-between solution of dedicated feeding and pulling mechanisms, but you can't pull the lever and take the feeder with the roll out as you would do with the "real" feeder.
You can see such mechanism on the NeoDen4 and Tronstol E1 for example. Maybe that's because Tronstol came from NeoDen in the past?
https://www.neodensmt.com/Content/uploads/2022233559/20221226100736fb9310e5385841b4a592e63a1abd6d82.jpg

Such machines will cost more than $5K, so you're basically investing money in a direction that doesn't have any upgrade path.
That's one of the reasons why I ruled out NeoDen4. I'm ready to pay a bit more, but in hope to re-use my investment in the feeders.
Machines that can accept Yamaha style feeders are way off the budget if you include the feeders cost. Even with the china-based versions of feeders.

One more thing to consider is the need for a compressor for a larger machine.
I guess your situation is the same as mine, PnP will sit right beside me in the room and I definitelly don't want to wear ear protection all day long...

So... CHMT48 style or YY1?
They are about the same price.
Both have the problematic feeders. NeoDen claim that their mechanism have some imprevement based on their experience in that field.

There are reports that the light above the top-facing camera can confuse it, so there is a need to cover the machine, or turn the lights off in that area.
YY1 come with a nice cover, so +1 for that.

For prototyping or even for small batch we need as much flexibility as possible.
I might buy full rolls of the most commonly used resistors or caps, but I guess for higher cost parts I will never need a full reel.
YY1 allows nozzle change, although only 4 times per file, but that's more than nothing on the CHMT48. +1 for that.
It comes with pre-cut tape holders and tube feeders by default. Another +1.
Some wrote that YY1 parts are cheap 3d-printed ones. I actually see it as a plus, since I can print my own or order few more from NeoDen and place them where I want.
The fact that the board is held by a part that I can move without any screws involved is another big plus... more flexibility... The tray and pre-cut feeders can be placed anywhere, just move them around, they are held by the magnets on the bottom.

Looks like I will pull the trigger to order YY1 very soon. Waiting for power line installation for the arrived T-937 oven first.

If I would like to start with a more serious machine, I would probably go for QIHE TVM925.
It's a desktop machine, but probably will need a decent desk/table, bolted to the floor to see some real speed.
I was tempted to ask a quote from QIHE and exact dimensions since I also have small doors and stairways to get to my place.
Apparently the machine's height is only 65cm, so it can be squeezed even to the small 70cm office door on its side.
Didn't get a quote yet, but according to Alibaba, it's price is about $5.5K. I guess without any feeder included.
Don't know how flexible it is for multiple designs, as YY1 will be, but for sure it will be way more reliable compared to the YY1.
It has closed loop system and high-end machanics and motors.

As it will be my first PnP, I'm not sure I would like to invest that much into the machine... but will wait for the quote, maybe it will surprise and convince me

Those are my 2 cents.
Will be happy to hear if you have any insight from your investigations.

[jmelson]

I've been doing lead-free reflow soldering in a GE toaster oven for 17 years.  I got a ramp and soak thermocouple controller on eBay, and some micro thermocouple wire.  I poje the thermocouple into a plated through hole in the board, so it measures actual board temperature.  This all works amazingly well.  I set up a profile to ramp to 180 C hold for one minute and ramp to 236 C, hold for one minute and cool quickly.  Using GC10 solder, the results are AMAZINGLY good, I did have a lot of rework with other solder formulas, but that GC10 is amazing at resisting solder bridges and bad joints.  I have done close to 2000 boards with this setup.

I do use a huge commercial P&P machine that I got in an auction.  It needed a LOT of TLC, and I had to spend quite a bundle on feeders.  It took a long time to figure out the quirks in the software, and how it wanted the placement import data formatted.  The manuals were TERRIBLE!  But, now it runs quite well, and can crank out complicated boards in just a couple minutes.
Jon

[4Project]

I decided to get a real drawer oven and not a DIY option. Normal toaster oven and the modifications will not be far from the T-937 cost.
But I know many makers are using kitchen ovens even for production.

Meanwhile... I got a quote from QIHE for the TVM925 machine, 4 heads, $4200.
Aparently there's also TVM925S model that cost $7200.
I'm ok with a lower-end machine for my needs, but I'm not ok when they show TVM925S movies on the TVM925 product page.
And the main difference is that the "S" version is a lead-screw and the non-S is belt driven.
That I discovered after getting a response from YX about their offering of SMT380 model, which is the exact copy of the TVM925.
I don't know who is copying from who, or sub-contract each other in some way, but YX looks like a bigger business to me, with a very prompt answers, even in non-China working hours.

QiHe sales person didn't really like to answer my annoying questions and didn't want to send the manuals, so I could see how to operate that machine.
He was ready to send the manuals only after the purchase. Sorry man, that's not how you sell expensive equipment.

Another option I found meanwhile is the ZhengBang ZB3245TP model. Which is YX SMT380-X twin brother. Looks like another cooperation between 2 vendors.
Which looks like a more table-top device on the pictures, but from the reported dimensions its a big beast, just without the casing that the industrial machines have.
It's also a 4 head model, belt driven machine. They didn't answer my email yet, but according to Alibaba the price is $5K both from ZhengBang and from YX. They advertise that high quality rails and lead screw are used (they call it "imported").
The price is even higher than TVM925, that was strange to see. And I'm not sure that model support electronic feeders. At least I couldn't see any connectors for that.

And after realizing that YX is a bigger company (at least it looks like that), that advertise lifetime after sales support, I decided to check what they can offer.
They have a new SMT220 model, 2 heads, lead screw based, support both pneumatic and electronic feeders, 40 places (compared to 38 for the other 2 models).
Looks like a completely new design since I couldn't see it anywhere else:
https://www.zjyingxing.com/new-smt-machine-2023/new-smt-machine-2024-smt220-2-heads-pick-and.html

Since it's new, there is no information anywhere on the net.
Sales rep answered me 1 hour after I sent an email with tons of question and that wasn't the Chinese working hours.
I got 3-4 replies on all my questions. The price is: $4580 and they offer 2x 8mm feeders if I decide quick (that's $140 value according to what they charge for the feeders).
He sent me the manual for the software right after I asked and picture to show the electronic feeders connectors, since there is no other proof on the pictures/movies I could find on the net.
So... That should be more precise machine, compromising some speed gain from the 4 heads. From a company that looks like doing some support. Very tempting...

All 3 machines use Juki nozzles. Not sure how much it might impact the experience compared to the CN nozzles, but I guess it's one thing less to fail in the process.

Bottom line...
It's either NeoDen YY1 (for about $2700), which looks like a toy compared to YX SMT220 (for about $4600 + feeders + compressor + decent table).
Both 2 heads.
YY1 has very flexible feeders configuration, nozzle changer, and the software is super easy compared to other more industrial options.
But its mechanics can't be compared to the SMT220 in any way.
The other 2 machines have 4 heads, so they should be faster I guess.

SMT220 is more into the industrial grade. Real feeders, both pneumatic and electronic. Lead-screw based. Closed loop motors. HIWIN rails and Panasonic motors (according to the sales rep).
It's software is not that easy and will have a learning curve, but it has EVERYTHING configurable, parts library, even the color of the tape can be altered there to help vision system.
I'm sure few times of use and it will be easier to swallow.
Speeds of pickup, placing, holding, delays, movement, tons of different vision optimization methods... Everything you can think you might want to tweak...

I didn't yet convince myself if I want to pay twice more (for the machine + feeders) to have a real thing... The shipment cost will be pretty high for both of them, so it might outweight the products cost.
The down side is that all those industrial-like machines are not flexible for prototyping.
There is no nozzle changer and the 2 nozzles is very limiting. That's the biggest minuses I can think of.
I've tried to understand how am I supposed to change the nozzles in the middle of the work.
QiHi rep told me to manually pause the process before the component I need to change the nozzle, and there is no software option to make the machine stop by its own. It sounds like a very stupid proposal to me. I guess the rep didn't really used the machine to propose something like that.
YX rep answered that there's an option the software will stop when it faces a problem, although I didn't see such setting in the manuals I got from him. Will ask again to confirm.
I thought adding a non-existent component before the nozzle change, so it will always fail. Change the nozzle and continue starting from the next component.
Another option I though is to split the job file to parts with small nozzles for passives and larger nozzles in the second file that can be executed after the nozzles are manually changed.
I wish there was an option to add a script of manual movements to the machine, so I could add any nozzle changer and find the right movements to make it work.

Guys with machines without nozzle changers, how do you manage to work with it when a change is needed?
Maybe there is an option that I just can't see...

Another minus is that tubes vibrator should be bought as an add-on, for something around $200.

And there are no pre-cut tape feeders as the YY1 offer.
QiHe rep proposed to push those tapes to a real feeder, but I guess it should be long enough and not 10-20 components that I might need for prototyping. QiHe didn't answer if it's possible to stick the tape somehow to the machine and define it as a one dimensional tray. He also refused to send me pictures of the tray configuration menu in the software.

YX rep answered that it can be configured as a tray, and the manuals support that as well.
Since EVERYTHING is configurable, I can print tape holders similar to what NeoDen YY1 have, define them as one-dimensional trays, configure it's height, spacing and what not... So it's a minus, but with a possible solution. Even taping those tapes down to the machine might work for a start.

Anyone had any experience with YX company? Had to use their support?

[48X24X48X]

YX is a reseller. Period. Don't play with fire. Read the forum, plenty of these... I know the Chinese PnP market pretty well. Again, comb through the forum, it's all there.

[law]

I have a Kayo 6 head machine, so nozzle swapping is not such an issue for me. That being said, my machine does not support nozzle swapping and I have to set up my jobs with this in mind.
One idea for nozzle swapping:
You could sacrifice a feeder slot (or 1x1 tray) and setup a fake part. When you need to swap nozzles, have it try to pick up the fake part. The machine will error at the feeder (or tray position). You change the nozzle, then skip over the fake part. Proceed with your different nozzle.
Some caveats:
- You loose a feeder slot or tray position.
- You have to setup your jobs with the fake part where you want to do the nozzle swaps = extra work and consideration.
- I can't seem to skip errored parts on the Kayo without closing the project and restarting after the errored part. So this idea wont work easily for me. You would have to ask them if it would work for you.

[4Project]

YX is a reseller. Period. Don't play with fire. Read the forum, plenty of these... I know the Chinese PnP market pretty well. Again, comb through the forum, it's all there.

So who is the manufacturer if so?
All those companies created a circle and sell the same machines.

Can you please answer how do you change the nozzles on your HWGC machine?
Can it pause and let you change the nozzle in the middle of the job?

[4Project]

I have a Kayo 6 head machine, so nozzle swapping is not such an issue for me. That being said, my machine does not support nozzle swapping and I have to set up my jobs with this in mind.
One idea for nozzle swapping:
You could sacrifice a feeder slot (or 1x1 tray) and setup a fake part. When you need to swap nozzles, have it try to pick up the fake part. The machine will error at the feeder (or tray position). You change the nozzle, then skip over the fake part. Proceed with your different nozzle.
Some caveats:
- You loose a feeder slot or tray position.
- You have to setup your jobs with the fake part where you want to do the nozzle swaps = extra work and consideration.
- I can't seem to skip errored parts on the Kayo without closing the project and restarting after the errored part. So this idea wont work easily for me. You would have to ask them if it would work for you.

That's exactly what I had in mind, but both sales reps are saying that I have to stop the machine manually to do so.
And that's so stupid that I can't accept that's the only option.
I'm paying to get a more reliable machine, so I won't have to babysit it, and they want me to press the pause button in the exact millisecond before the big chip is mounted...

QiHe is saying that the machine will not stop from the beginning.
YX first said the machine will stop on error, after that said it will not and I can see what happened in the log.
The log makes sense, so the production might continue and fix the problems later, but that doesn't leave me the option to do the nozzle change.

On the other hand, I'm not sure if a nozzle change in the middle of the job is a good idea, since it might move the head out of calibration.
If the machine is not aware of it and doesn't recalibrate it's position relative to fiducials, than it might screw the rest of the job.

2 separate jobs with nozzle change in the middle is probably the way to go, so the machine can recalibrate on the fiducials on each job start.

[4Project]

Another interesting thing I noticed from the research:
Only NeoDen advertise that they can work with 0201 size comonents with their belt-driven machines.
Both NeoDen4 and YY1 claim to start from 0201 sizes.

All other manufacturers advertise 0402 as a starting point for belt driven machines and 0201 for lead-screw based machines.
Attaching brochures for the TVM925 (belt) and TVM925S (lead screw) as a comparison example.

So I wouldn't trust that marketing BS, as well as the advertized placement speeds...

[SMTech]

Another interesting thing I noticed from the research:
Only NeoDen advertise that they can work with 0201 size comonents with their belt-driven machines.
Both NeoDen4 and YY1 claim to start from 0201 sizes.

All other manufacturers advertise 0402 as a starting point for belt driven machines and 0201 for lead-screw based machines.
Attaching brochures for the TVM925 (belt) and TVM925S (lead screw) as a comparison example.

So I wouldn't trust that marketing BS, as well as the advertized placement speeds...

I mean, no shit sherlock. All manufacturers exaggerate their numbers or use an unobtainable optimum.

For component sizing as a guide I would go back one from the claim - If 0402 is their best claim, assume 0603 before you need to inspect and tweak things with tweezers. 0201 is a bold claim for any of these machines, at that point your feeder accuracy, motor control, calibration, build quality and PCB fixture really start to matter. I would suggest you don't plan on placing 0201 with such a machine. It's not necessarily a belt vs screw thing, a belt driven machine can be designed to be that accurate (probably none of these ). My Essemtec is belt driven, but it uses expensive drive control systems and linear encoders for positional feedback, that said one bank of 10 feeder lanes for that is the entire cost of your options.

As pointed out you are rehashing most of the many discussions and research covered elsewhere, in one of them you will find a blog link to the extensive on-site research 48X did as well as other users experiences and discussion on who makes what. It should be noted that on the whole many of these machines have plateaued, they all sprung up with vision model and feeders after the early super crappy machines of ~2010 and stopped evolving . Neoden/Tronstol have done new things the others less so....

I'm a big proponent of a tool changer, but for low volume 4 nozzles is a perfectly good alternative when speed is so unimportant.