News Article
Basler And Manz Co-operate
The companies exclusively co-operate in the solar cell inspection field.
Basler AG has arranged a co-operation with the German company Manz Automation. As a result of this co-operation, Manz Automation integrates an inline inspection solution for solar cells developed by Basler in its fully automated cell tester for crystalline silicon solar cells. The co-operation is mutually exclusive.
Basler's inspection solution is based on the so called electroluminescence method. During inspection, an electrical current is applied to the solar cell so that the solar cell emits a weak luminescence. The image processing software of the inspection module automatically checks the image of the solar cell for defects (e.g. microscopic cracks or circuits missing contacts) that either affect the solar cell's mechanical stability or reduce its efficiency. Thanks to the combination of Basler's state of the art image processing technology and Manz Automation's leading automation technology, this inspection step can be executed inline at a rate of up to 2400 cycles per hour. As part of the new inspection solution, Manz Automation's cell tester can reliably sort out solar cells that are likely to break. Thus, breakage related downtimes in the following process steps are significantly reduced. In addition, all solar cells with an insufficient efficiency are rejected by the cell tester.
“By developing this inline solar inspection solution, we expand our product portfolio for the solar industry that we are planning to realize profitable growth in during the next years. In addition, cooperation with Manz Automation AG represents an important milestone in realising our new customer strategy that includes focusing on our core competencies in the Vision Technology field for the solutions business and, for automation technology, on co-operation with strong companies from the mechanical and plant engineering sector“, comments Dr. Dietmar Ley, CEO of Basler AG, on the agreement of the cooperation.
Dieter Manz, Manz Automation's CEO, is very pleased about the future co-operation: "Increasing the performance of our backend lines means we are taking another step towards grid parity. This will help us to enable our customers to cut costs and to boost the efficiency of solar modules." In addition, the CEO also underscored the project's significance: "This co-operation is another building block to set standards as well in future with our equipment, allowing us to offer the world's leading high tech machines in the photovoltaic sector. The Manz cell tester is now not only the fastest machine on the market, but also the machine with the most comprehensive testing technology."
Basler's inspection solution is based on the so called electroluminescence method. During inspection, an electrical current is applied to the solar cell so that the solar cell emits a weak luminescence. The image processing software of the inspection module automatically checks the image of the solar cell for defects (e.g. microscopic cracks or circuits missing contacts) that either affect the solar cell's mechanical stability or reduce its efficiency. Thanks to the combination of Basler's state of the art image processing technology and Manz Automation's leading automation technology, this inspection step can be executed inline at a rate of up to 2400 cycles per hour. As part of the new inspection solution, Manz Automation's cell tester can reliably sort out solar cells that are likely to break. Thus, breakage related downtimes in the following process steps are significantly reduced. In addition, all solar cells with an insufficient efficiency are rejected by the cell tester.
“By developing this inline solar inspection solution, we expand our product portfolio for the solar industry that we are planning to realize profitable growth in during the next years. In addition, cooperation with Manz Automation AG represents an important milestone in realising our new customer strategy that includes focusing on our core competencies in the Vision Technology field for the solutions business and, for automation technology, on co-operation with strong companies from the mechanical and plant engineering sector“, comments Dr. Dietmar Ley, CEO of Basler AG, on the agreement of the cooperation.
Dieter Manz, Manz Automation's CEO, is very pleased about the future co-operation: "Increasing the performance of our backend lines means we are taking another step towards grid parity. This will help us to enable our customers to cut costs and to boost the efficiency of solar modules." In addition, the CEO also underscored the project's significance: "This co-operation is another building block to set standards as well in future with our equipment, allowing us to offer the world's leading high tech machines in the photovoltaic sector. The Manz cell tester is now not only the fastest machine on the market, but also the machine with the most comprehensive testing technology."
