A genetic algorithm-based planning system for printed circuit board component placement

In recent years, there has been increasing research interest in PCB assembly planning. This paper presents the work that leads to the development of a prototype genetic algorithm-based planning system for near-optimal PCB component placement sequence. The prototype system aims at assisting process engineers in the formulation of component placement sequence for semi-automatic assembly of PCBs. PCB placement priority and sequencing decision rules are incorporated as constraints into the prototype system. Details of the prototype system are described. The prototype system was validated using a PCB model extracted from literature. Details of system validation, and performance evaluation and comparison are presented.