A Reddit user found this video recorded on his brand new HP laptop. It was stored in the My Documents folder and clearly depicts the mundanity of life inside a hardware manufacturing plant. This was taken in the Quanta Chongqing Manufacturing City in Chongqing and the worker seems to be testing the camera on this particular model.
Usually evidence of this testing is wiped out. It wasn’t in this case.
Essentially, you’re looking at the face of modern manufacturing. He’s not mistreated, he’s not chained to his desk, but he’s building the same thing, over and over again, a prospect not many of us would relish. It’s a mundane view inside a fairly secret world that we as consumers rarely get to see.
Taking apart and rebuilding a laptop will enable you to change out components, clean your system, or scrap the internal components of the laptop.
This is a general guide, which covers the most common laptop configuration. Laptop manufacturers vary, however, and some items might be in a slightly different place or connected differently. In general, the process is to remove the components you can reach first, being careful to disconnect any cables to the component first. Because there is little space in laptops, there is also very little slack in any cables, it’s easy to stretch the cables or cause damage to the connector if you don’t disconnect the cable before attempting to remove the component.
If you are going to rebuild the laptop, it’s important to document where each component goes, which cables are connected to it, and where the slack from the cable is stored. Take a picture of each step to help you reassemble your laptop at the end of the process. Keep careful track of the screws and where they go, as different sizes and kinds of screws can be used on the same component. To reduce any potential mix-ups, re-insert the screws in the holes they came from, or tape the screws near the appropriate hole on the component.
You will need a small Phillips-head screwdriver and possibly a flathead screwdriver, depending on the make of your laptop. To avoid the possibility of static electricity, wear an ESD wristband, or touch an unpainted piece of metal to discharge any built up static electricity. If you move away from your workspace, especially if you walk on carpet, touch an unpainted piece of metal again before resuming your work.
• Component assembly equipment on production line
a. Soldering paste printer. Located at the front end of SMT production line, it's applied to print soldering paste or SMD adhesives and to print correct skip printing on pads or corresponding positions of PCB. Windows NT interactive operating system is applied with advantages including convenient operation, high speed, high accuracy and excellent repetitive printability. Positioning accuracy reaches ±15μm. Printing size is within 50x50mm to 460x360mm.
b. Automatic mounter. It plays a role as the hand of a robot, capable of taking components from the package according to programmed procedure and mounting them on the corresponding positions on PCB. Mounting function and production capacity of SMT production line depends on the function and speed of mounter. Windows XP operation system is applied in mounter with features of flexibility, practicability, reliability and maintenance. MNVC camera and numerous FEEDERs are picked up, suitable for mounting of small chip [0201], thin chips and QFP. The mounting speed reaches 12500CPH [laser] and 3400CPH [image], which is suitable for the continuous printing of QFP that features fine spacing and SOP. Mounting accuracy reaches ±0.05mm with the mounting size in the range from 50x30mm to 330x250mm.
c. Reflow oven. It is placed after mounter on SMT production line, playing a role in providing a heating environment and melting tin paste that is distributed on the pad of PCB in advance. It can be regarded as a soldering device reliably combining SMT components with PCB pad through soldering tin paste alloy. The rail adjust range of the device is in the range from 50mm to 400mm, temperature control from room temperature to 300°C, temperature control accuracy ±1.5°C, temperature rising time 30min. PCB transmission means lies in Chain+Mesh.
d. Wave soldering machine. It implements mass soldering through the contact between wave that flows continuously by the influence of melting soldering paste and PCB soldering surface with components assembled. It is mainly applied in traditional through-hole plug-in PCB assembly technique and mixed assembly technique containing surface assembly and through-hole plug-in components.
e. Detection equipment. It plays a role in detecting assembly quality and soldering quality of PCB, including magnifying glass, microscope, automatic online inspector, in-circuit tester, X-ray detection system and function detector.
f. Rework equipment. It plays a role in reworking on problematic PCB with the tools of soldering iron and rework station.
g. Cleaning equipment. It plays a role in eliminating obstacles that influence electric performance from PCB and soldering contaminant such as flux that is bad to people's health. It can be fixed at a stable place.
Production Line Design
• Power on production line
Power should be stable with the general requirement of single-phase AC220V [220±10%, 50/60Hz], three-phase AC380 [220±10%, 50/60Hz]. If the requirements fail to be obtained, regulated power supply should be configured and power should be one time larger than energy consumption of device. The power of mounter should be connected with the ground independently and a routing method of 3-phase and 5-line should be generally applied.
• Air source on production line
Voltage of air source should be configured according to devices' requirement. Power of factory can be applied and oil-free compressed air machine can be independently configured. The general requirement is that voltage should be more than 7kg per square meter and purified air that is clean and dry.
• Production line environment
An exhaust fan is configured based on the requirement of devices. For all-hot brazier, the ordinary requirement is that the minimum flow amount at exhaust duct is 500 square inch per minute. Workplace has to be kept clean, free from dust and corrosive gas with the environment temperature in the range of 23°C±3°C, relative moisture from 45% to 70% RH.
• Electrostatic protection requirements
Electrostatic security work plat should be established, composed by work plat, anti-electrostatic table carpet, wrist strap interface and ground lines. There should be two wrist strap interfaces on the table carpet, one for operator and the other for technician and detector. Obstacles that tend to generate static electricity mustn't be placed on work plat such as plastic boxes, rubber, cardboard and glass and drawing files should be placed within anti-electrostatic file bags. Workers who need to directly contact electrostatic sensitive components have to wear anti-electrostatic wrist straps. Excellent contact should be maintained between wrist strap and skin.