Automated production inspection

Automated production inspection is a preventive step in module and junction box manufacturing that aims to stop junction box failures before modules reach the field. Junction box suppliers are advised to use automatic inspection systems and to tighten their design rules to improve reliability. In module production, an automated visual inspection is recommended right after the leads are soldered into the junction box. It targets unreliable connections such as cold solder joints. These are more likely in small half-cell diode boxes, which are soldered instead of clamped, filled with filler material and harder for workers or robots to reach. It complements a dark reverse voltage sweep run alongside the flash, EL or high potential test. The sweep can miss contacts that are not fully working because they still have low resistance at that stage. End-of-line checks can still pass faulty modules: in one batch with a normal final inspection, unstable connections were later found during pre-shipment inspection. Production inspection does not replace field checks. At system level, reverse voltage sweeps per string and thermal inspection are still recommended.

<!-- review notes

• sentence 1: support check: partial - Passages recommend automatic inspection for junction box suppliers and better manufacturing quality to improve reliability, but don't explicitly frame automated production inspection as a preventive step to stop failures before reaching the field.
• sentence 7: support check: partial - System-level reverse voltage sweep per string and thermal inspection are recommended, but the passages don't explicitly say production inspection does not replace field checks (implied only). -->