ACCUFORM
ACCUFORM
Northrop Grumman is a prestigious company addressing global issues in space and security with advanced electrical systems. Their hardware requires a variety of components that are pre-processed with geometry-specific bending operations before integration with critical circuit boards. The most common electrical components that require handling prior to installation are Quad-Flat Packages (QFPs) which are rectangular silicon microchips with a varying number of leads protruding from four sides. In addition to a large variety of QFP footprint dimensions, the leads of the component may differ in their bent arrangement to accommodate different circuit board compatibilities. The wide geometric variety and the necessity for a device that forms these critical electrical connections precisely requires a complex device, however, Northrop Grumman's current mechanism is slow and tedious to operate. Our device, Accuform, is a universal, semi-automatic, reliable, lead-forming device that efficiently bends the leads of a large array of varying components with minimal error.