9502897 Villalobos In the electronics industry, components are so small and delicate that manufacturing requires automation systems, but the paradox is that a person inspects components visually. This Faculty Early Career Development award's research and educational components will focus on this problem. This research develops an integrated engineering approach to assembly and inspection of surface mounted devices (SMD's). The tasks are: inspection routine generation formulated as a Markov decision problem, development of a physical distributed flexible inspection system, and use of neural network technology for diagnostics and process control, and a very focused on SMD manufacture. The educational focus complements the research, involving undergraduates, advising and undergraduate student recruitment, in addition to new courses. The education plan, while tied to integrated electronics manufacture, is broader in its scope. It will develop three courses, one of which is an entrepreneurship course that will include successful role models from industry to instill the product-to-market spirit. The principal investigator plans to continue his activity with student involvement in applied research, advising undergraduates and graduates, and spending time recruiting undergraduate students, all the marks of a well-rounded faculty member. The research and educational plans have a high probability of improving the technology and engineering resource base. The educational program is strong in student development in a total way. ***
