Updated Smart Tweezers LCR-meter, LCR-Reader, Shown at Nepcon Shanghai
// May 22nd, 2013 // No Comments » // News
The very first public glimpse of Siborg Systems Inc.’s new LCR-Reader, a simplified model of Smart Tweezers LCR- and ESR-meter, featuring a lighter weight and price with high accuracy measurements.
Siborg Systems Inc.’s new, updated model in the Smart Tweezers family was presented for the first time in Shanghai. The new LCR-Reader offers users the same familiar functionality as Smart Tweezers LCR-meter, but boasting half the weight and half the price without limiting the high accuracy measurements.
Nepcon Shanghai 2013, left to right: Eagle Sun (Ascentek), Alston (Goldtek), Michael Obrecht (Siborg), Willie Fan (Ascentek), Jason Yeh (Goldtek)
The LCR-Reader was presented at Nepcon Shanghai Trade Show, the largest electronics manufacturing show in China. About 20,000 visitors and hundreds of exhibitors attend the show, including leaders in Surface Mount Technology, including; Fuji Machine Manufacturing, Sony, Panasonic Factory Solutions, Hitachi, OK International and Heller.
Presented by Siborg and distributors GoldTek and AscenTek in China, and AscenTex in Taiwan, the prototype [shown] was well received. Jason Yeh, the GoldTek Sales Manager, said;
“It is very important to be able to reduce the price of LCR-Reader compare to the Smart Tweezers LCR-meter. We hope to double our sale with the introduction of the new affordable model.”
LCR-Reader prototype
The cost reduction was possible by way of cheaper manufacturing cost to the benefit of the consumer. The device keeps the same high accuracy known in Smart Tweezers with a basic accuracy of 0.1%, the same accuracy available on the previous ST2 model. The updated design offers a one button navigation, one push of the button cycles through measurement modes including; A Automatic, C Capacitance, L Inductance, R Resistance, ESR Equivalent Series Resistance. LCR-Reader automatically selects the best range for L, C, R and ESR measurements, based on the component value and type. Parasitic impedance components, such as the R for C or L, are measured and shown, along with the main impedance component. All measurements are performed at a test signal amplitude of 0.5V rms. The device is powered by Li-Ion battery charged by Micro USB cable.
Some of the features known to Smart Tweezers were lost on the new device, including; the offset subtraction feature, voltage measurement, diode and continuity testing and component sorting.
The LCR-Reader will be available in July-August 2013, with sales expected to be fourfold to the ST5 model. A 20% discount is offered for customers pre-ordering the exciting new model.
An intro video is available for viewing.
A Sneak Peek into New Model of Smart Tweezers LCR-meter with Half the Weight, at Half the Price
// April 2nd, 2013 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
Designed specifically for Surface Mount Technology (SMT), Smart Tweezers are a pioneer in handheld LCR-meters. With a compact design that integrates a set of tweezers, a small display, and an LCR-meter, Smart Tweezers simplifies evaluating and identifying components. The unit’s 2 oz. slender design is easily held and operated with one hand, leaving the other free for taking notes or using other tools, and has been proven as winning combination of tools, currently being used by many major high-tech companies and customers worldwide.
Although Smart Tweezers popularity has grown exponentially over the years, the high price tag can range from $300 to $700 depending on the region and seller. The size of the screen, and overcrowding has also become a problem for some customers on the ST5 model. Even with accessibility and worldwide acclaim, the price leaves the device out of reach for hobbyists and casual users. Siborg had attempted making an alternative model of the device with a lower price, without a 1 Volt test signal option, but the price cut appeared to be only 20% and did not change the market picture overall.
Fig. 1
A prototype for the new model has emerged (Fig 1.) that features half the weight and half the size of previous Smart Tweezers, but also a much lower manufacturing cost.. Development on this new model began nearly a year ago, based on new microchips and a new idea of simplifying the circuit without losing the accuracy that has become synonymous with Smart Tweezers.
Siborg’s new LCR-Reader is about half the size of current Smart Tweezers and is able to charge the Li-Ion battery via USB. Although similar in design and features, like the gold-plated tweezer tips, the new LCR-Reader features a 1% basic accuracy (the same as the previous ST2 model), a one-button navigation which turns the device power on or off, as well as mode selection; ‘A’ automatic, ‘L’ Inductance, ‘C’ Capacitance, ‘R’ Resistance and ‘ESR’ Equivalent Series Resistance. The new device still offers fully automatic measurements, with the test frequency adjusted according to the component type, test signal amplitude is 0.5 Volts.
Fig 2.
Figure 2 shows an example of the device measuring inductance, where AM shows the measurement in ‘Automatic Mode’, ‘Rs’ indicates the parasitic series resistor of the inductance, 10 kHz as the test frequency, L proves that the component is an inductance, and 104.8 uH is the inductance value in micro-Henries, and a battery indication of the charge.
The new LCR-Reader is projected to be available in the summer, estimating sales to be four time more compared to the previous sales of the ST5 model.
The Smart Tweezers’ Blog features all the latest news about Smart Tweezers and the coming LCR-Reader.
Smart Tweezers Available in Japan from Alpha Corporation
// March 4th, 2013 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
The third agreement made to have the popular device offered in Asia, Smart Tweezers have entered the Japanese market with help from Alpha Corporation from Chiba, Japan. Alpha Corporation is a distributor of nieche testing tools, materials and machinery for electronics, primarily offering imorted products to Japanese clients. Alpha Corporation also offer unique test equipment for PCBs.
“We are constantly serarching for new original products that would be useful to Japanese engineers.” says Norio Ito, the Director of Alpha Corporation, “I was impressed by Smart Tweezers LCR-meter when I found information about them at Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) web site. it looked so unique and handy for any work involving Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) that I contacted Siborg right away and suggested to market this product in Japan and neighbouring countries. Although it is very hard to sell imported electronics in Japan, we see a good potential for Smart Tweezers here.”
Alpha Corporation:
Established in 2005, the company offers domestic sales of electronic measuring instruments, precision measuring instruments, inspection equipment.
For more info please contact:
Mr. Norio Ito
Alpha Corporation
3F P.O. Building, 3-10-3 Tsuga, Wakaba-ku
Chiba City, Chiba 264-0025, Japan
Tel: +8150-3373-9558 Fax: +8143-235-2731
E-mail: norio_ito (at) alphacorp (dot) ecweb (dot) jp
Web: www (dot) alphacorp (dot) ecweb (dot) jp
New Calibration Facility Launches in Europe by the End of 2012
// February 28th, 2013 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
After nearly 9 years on the market, Smart Tweezers have become a highly sought after tool for testing and troubleshooting electronics with Surface Mount Technology (SMT) used by many high-tech companies worldwide. Even with worldwide recognition, calibration for Smart Tweezers is only available in North America and India, creating hassle for companies that require annual calibration and/or calibration verification of their test equipment in order to be ISO compliant.
Without proper calibration facilities, users must seek out alternate calibration techniques such as third party calibrations. Unfortunately, third party calibration is not true calibration but just a verification of accuracy by comparison of measurement accuracy with the actual values of high-precision components. This “calibration” may be common practice, but does not ensure that Smart Tweezers are working at optimal performance.
“In order to calibrate Smart Tweezers LCR-meter, you need to have the Calibration Fixture designed particularly for Smart Tweezers’ calibration and adjustment of the calibration coefficients.” say Michael Obrecht, the Director at Siborg Systems Inc. “This calibration fixture itself needs to be calibrated annually to ensure the highest possible precision.”
The Smart Tweezers’ Calibration Fixture is a semi-automatic device that updates the calibration coefficients stored in EEPROM of every Smart Tweezers unit. The update is based on comparing the results of measurements obtained using Smart Tweezers with values of a few high-accuracy components called “the standard components”. The calibration coefficients are eventually adjusted by finding the best fit to the values of the standard components ensuring optimal performance of Smart Tweezers.
Currently, there are only 3 of these calibration facilities worldwide; Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, Pasadena California, and New Delhi, India. This makes for a lengthy and costly procedure for European companies that use Smart Tweezers, having to send the devices to North America or India, or they use the third party calibration technique. Shipping, handling customs, etc. may not be time or cost effective.
To simplify the process for European users, Siborg Systems Inc. (Canada) and Bokar International (USA) have joined together to establish a new facility at Production Solutions in Poland. Production Solutions has serviced Bokar’s SMT and ESD products for years, and is the first company in Poland to provide Polish and Central European electronic industries with the highest world-class equipment and products for SMT production, rework and repair.
Smart Tweezers Goes to Malaysia
// February 11th, 2013 // No Comments » // News
An agreement between Siborg Systems and CF Technology Sdn Bhd in Selangor, Malaysia have brought the popular device to South Eastern Asia.
CF Technology was established in 1995 as CFS Technology. They are a specialist in automation systems, electrical and electronic equipment, machine spare parts (AI, SMT and AOI), industrial supply (ESD-safe equipment) repair and reconditioning of AI and SMT display boards.
“Smart Tweezers is a fine match to our line of products,” says Lau Yu Han, the managing Director at CF System, “We supply equipment for production, rework and repair of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) packed with small SMT components that are virtually impossible to debug with the use of conventional LCR-meters. Lightweight and unique mechatronic design of Smart Tweezers make it easily usable by just one hand leaving the other free for other tasks.”
Smart Tweezers Available in Taiwan
// December 25th, 2012 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
A new website has been released for Smart Tweezers by Siborg Systems Inc. featuring new instructional materials and useful tips for the newest model, the ST5, in Chinese.
Manufactured in Canada, Smart Tweezers are gaining popularity in Taiwan, a well known hub for electronic manufacturing.
“This web site will give our clients a better feeling of what this remarkable device would allow them to do,” says Michael Obrecht, the Director at Siborg Systems Inc. “Light weight and small size makes Smart Tweezers extremely useful for any kind of PCB work. It is very important that Smart Tweezers is very user-friendly and intuitive. It virtually can be used without reading the manual, it is almost fully automatic and gives you the value of a component, whether it is Inductance, Capacitance or Resistance immediately when it is connected with the tweezers tips.”
Smart Tweezers are an essential tool when working with electronics using Surface Mount Technology. They feature automatic Resistance and and Capacitance measurements, as well as Inductance measurements which other similar devices do not offer. They are an indispensable tool for use in radio electronics with the ability to measure for Inductance to a fraction of microhenry.
Other features included on the Smart Tweezers ST5 model:
-Automatic LCR, and Equivalent Series Resistance (ESR) measurements
-Basic accuracy of 0.2%
-Diode and Continuity test
-Adjustable Test Signal
-Component Sorting with 1%, 5%, 10% and 20% Tolerance
-Semi-automatic Offset Subtraction
-Ideal for small components, as small as 0201 size (about 0.3 mm)
-Displays active and reactive impedance components
-Just 2 Oz weight and ergonomic design
-Long battery life with a Li-Ion Battery and USB Charger
For more information please contact our distributors in Taiwan:
Ascentex Industry Corp.
7F, No 516, Sec. 1, Nei Hu Road, Taipei 114, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Tel:+886-2-8797-8788 Fax:+886-2-8797-8789
Sales: Eagle (at) ascentex (dot) com (dot) tw
Service:Richard (at) ascentex (dot) com (dot) tw
PLeader-YAMAICHI Co., Ltd.
No.16, JinShui Street, Hsin Chu, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Tel. ：03-5302300 Fax.： 03-5305156
kp (at) PLYamaichi (dot) com (dot) tw
Chen Bom Trading Co., Ltd
6F-1, 212, Ta Tung Rd., Sec. 3, Hsichih City, New Taipei City 22148 Taiwan, Republic Of China
Phone Number: 886-2-86472988 Fax Number: 886-2-86472977
sales (at) cbtrade (dot) com (dot) tw
Smart Tweezers Now Available in 27 Countries Worldwide
// December 23rd, 2012 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
Siborg Systems Inc. and Pennsylvania based Bokar International have agreed to work together to bring Smart Tweezers to the USA, Canada and 25 other countries worldwide on 5 continents.
Bokar International produces and sells innovative tools and equipment for reworking, repairing and assembling Surface Mount Technology (SMT), including a full line of equipment and accessories, and are continuously developing new, more sophisticated machines.
“From the very first look at Smart Tweezers it was clearly a perfect match to our line of products”, says Czeslaw Ruszowski, the CEO at Bokar, “We manufacture equipment for production, rework and repair of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) densely packed with SMT components as small as 0.3 mm. It makes debugging of a faulty PCB virtually impossible with the use of conventional LCR-meters. Smart Tweezers light-weigh design integrating high-precision SMT probes, accurate digital LCR-meter and an LCD display makes it easily usable by just one hand leaving the other free for taking notes or holding other tools.”
Smart Tweezers are an industry proven tool, indispensable for SMT component sorting, on-board impedance testing and PCB debugging.
For a limited time, Bokar International is offering an introductory sales price for Smart Tweezers ST5.
Smart Tweezers New Homepage in India
// December 5th, 2012 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
Siborg Systems Inc. and Advance Tech Services in New Delhi have launched a new website for Smart Tweezers for Indian users.
“This website will give Indian clients a better feeling of what this remarkable device would allow them to do, including a short video,” says Ajay Gupta, the Director of Marketing at Advance Tech Services, “Light weight and nearly pen sized make Smart Tweezers extremely useful for any kind of field work. On the other hand, 0.2% basic measurement accuracy is normally achievable only with much more expensive bench-type LCR-meters. It is very important that Smart Tweezers virtually can be used without reading the Manual, it is almost fully automatic and gives you value of a component, whether it is L, C or R immediately when you touch it with the tweezer’s tips.”
Advance Tech is offering an introductory sales price for the ST5 model.
The new website is www.smarttweezers.in
Smart Tweezers Get Developmental Help from the Russian Academy of Sciences
// December 4th, 2012 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
Siborg Systems Inc. has teemed up with the Institute of Automation and Electrometry of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Novosibirsk, Russia to develop a new version of the popular LCR-meter with a lower manufacturing cost.
“From the very beginning, Smart Tweezers use sinusoidal test signals to evaluate impedance of the measured component. This involves a test signal generation that employs a Pulse Modulated Width (PMW) and high order filters that ensure a proper accuracy of the generated test signal entailing significant cost of the require components and PCB complexity leading to a relatively high manufacturing cost of the device.” explains Michael Obrecht at Siborg Systems. “During one of the many exhibits we attend every year, I met Valentin Litvintsev, an expert in analog circuit design who suggested a new way of creating a test signal for LCR-meter that would require significantly fewer number of components thus reducing the manufacturing cost.”
“I liked the device from the very first glance. It is a very good product that is useful in many electronic applications. The only disadvantage it has is a relatively high price. I think we can manufacture a similar type of device with a bit lower accuracy but more affordable.” says Valentin Litvintsev, Team Lead at the Institute of Automation and Electrometry of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Novosibirsk.
Smart Tweezers Available in India and Surrounding Asian Countries
// December 3rd, 2012 // No Comments » // Uncategorized
Smart Tweezers are now offered in India thanks to an agreement between Siborg Systems Inc. and Advance Tech Services Pvt. Ltd. in New Delhi.
Advance Tech Services is a leading supplier of tools, equipment and consumables for the electronics industry, including maintenance. They also have an online store providing electronics for the automotive and process industries.
“From the very first look at Smart Tweezers it was clearly a perfect match to our line of products.” says Ajay Gupta, the Director of Marketing at Advance Tech. “Modern electronics are based on Surface Mount Technology (SMT) using SMDs so small that they are virtually impossible to test using conventional testers. This is why Advance Tech Services is so enthusiastic about marketing Smart Tweezers in India and in neighbouring Asian countries. This region is a well known hub for electronic manufacturing and its contribution to the overall market is quickly growing, outpacing China.”
Advance Tech believes that Smart Tweezers will be well welcomed to the electronics industry, providing a simple and easy to use solution to testing and troubleshooting electronics such as mobile phones, personal computers, tablets, etc.