PCBA · AOI GUIDE

Gold fingers: surface scratches and contamination

Gold-finger inspection targets visible scratches, foreign material, contamination and unusual colour. Directional reflections from plating require controlled lighting, viewing angles and board positioning. Colour changes can flag review but do not establish plating composition or contact resistance.

Application and selection guide

Gold-finger inspection targets visible scratches, foreign material, contamination and unusual colour. Directional reflections from plating require controlled lighting, viewing angles and board positioning. Colour changes can flag review but do not establish plating composition or contact resistance.

How to validate

Define examples by defect location, length, width and allowed region, including normal plating texture and lot variation. Qualify appearance checks separately from required electrical or material tests, and associate results with board IDs.

Project evaluation checklist

  1. Define the item, visible inspection surfaces and minimum defects; separate appearance, internal structure and electrical or functional checks.
  2. Prepare verified good, defective and borderline samples across lots; separate training and acceptance sets.
  3. Report escapes and false calls by defect class, with review workload, complete cycle time and repeatability.
  4. Confirm program versions, permissions, retention and traceability fields; approve production only after trials pass.

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