S7020T Training Chapter 3: Main Parameter Settings and Maintenance for a THT Terminal Insertion Machine

A THT terminal insertion machine runs on two things: the parameters that tell the head, the feeder and the board table how to work together every cycle, and the maintenance that keeps those parameters physically true. Change one without the other and the machine does not stop — it keeps running and quietly produces boards that fail later, at wave soldering, at lead cutting or at final test.

This article follows Chapter 3 of Southern Machinery's S7020T training series, "Main parameter settings and maintenance." It is a setup and uptime lesson rather than a sales demo: it walks an operator, process engineer or maintenance technician through the parameter groups that define an insertion cycle on a PIN / eyelet / terminal insertion machine, and through the routine checks that keep the machine able to honour them.

The training chapter is embedded below.

Direct link: watch Chapter 3 of the S7020T training series on YouTube

What is this machine used for?

The machine in this chapter is the S7020T, the terminal-insertion configuration of Southern Machinery's S7020 Series PIN Eyelet Terminal Insertion Machine. It is a THT (through-hole technology) auto-insertion machine: it feeds PINs, eyelets and terminals — from a vibration bowl feeder or from reel — carries each part to the programmed hole on the PCB, inserts it to the correct depth and angle, and clinches the lead underneath so the board can move on to wave soldering.

On the documented S7020 Series specification, the platform is built around two insertion heads, a 12,000 CPH speed class, an insertion angle of 360° in 1° increments, motion accuracy of 0.001 mm/pulse, a vertical error of ≤0.8°, terminals from 0.5 mm to 1.2 mm in thickness, an insertion hole sized 0.5 ± 0.1 mm larger than the component lead, a minimum component body distance of 2 mm, and inward or outward clinching. The PCB working area is documented at 380 mm × 280 mm, with enlarged sizes available as a customization. Feeding can be a vibration bowl feeder or a reel feeder, and programming is done by online visual programming with visual correction, EXCEL data, USB import or manual entry. Utilities are a single 220 V AC, 50/60 Hz, 2 kVA supply; the two-head machine is 1700 × 1300 × 1600 mm and weighs 1200 kg.

That is what the machine is. The parameters are what the machine does on your product — which is why this chapter exists.

What does "main parameter settings" actually cover?

On a terminal insertion platform the working parameter set is not one screen of numbers; it is a small family of settings that must agree with each other. In the training and maintenance documentation Southern Machinery publishes for its insertion machines, the groups are recognisable on almost any platform:

Insertion geometry. Insert height and insertion depth, the insertion angle (the S7020 Series documents a 360° range in 1° increments) and the vertical/squareness condition the head must hold at the moment of insertion.
Clinch settings. Whether the machine clinches inward or outward, and the clinch force and forming position under the board. Clinch parameters determine whether the terminal is mechanically locked before soldering or merely resting in the hole.
Head and axis motion. Speed and acceleration of the head and the X/Y table, plus approach and retract behaviour around the insertion point. Motion parameters set the cycle time and how much mechanical shock the head and tooling see.
Feeder and CTA timing. When the bowl or reel feeder presents a part, when the CTA (component transfer assembly) releases it, and how the head picks it up. Timing errors here look like dropped, tipped or double-fed terminals.
Board and vision data. Board origin, mark-point (fiducial) position and tolerance, and the vision correction settings used to absorb board-to-board variation. This is what lets the same program run across a batch of boards.
Component and program data. Component pitch and body spacing (the documented minimum spacing between components is 2 mm), plus the program itself — built by online visual programming, imported from EXCEL, loaded from USB or entered manually.

The practical rule for a buyer or a line engineer: every parameter group has a physical counterpart on the machine — a height, a gap, a stop, a sensor, a jaw guide. Parameter settings and maintenance are therefore one procedure, not two. Setting a beautiful program on a head whose jaw guide is worn is simply programming a defect.

Routine maintenance on a terminal insertion machine

This chapter's second half is maintenance. Rather than a list of torque values — those are configuration-specific and belong in the machine's own manual — the useful way to think about it is by interval class:

Start-of-shift / start-up checks. Air supply and pressure at the machine, safety interlocks and guarding, emergency stop function, head and jaw guide condition, feeder presentation, rail and table freedom, and a sample insertion before a production run. (Southern Machinery's training series covers this in Chapter 1, machine start-up inspection and start-up.)
Running checks during production. Feed quality, dropped or tipped parts, insert height consistency, clinch appearance, and any change in noise or cycle rhythm. A parameter that is drifting usually shows up here first, long before an alarm.
Daily and weekly care. Cleaning of feeder bowls, tracks, jaws and the insertion area; removal of terminal burrs and debris; air-line filter and water trap checks; cleaning of the X/Y table, rails and board location tooling.
Scheduled preventive maintenance. Lubrication per the manual, inspection and replacement of wear items — jaw guides, springs, pusher tips, rollers, belts and clinch anvils and tooling pins — and verification of head centering, casting height and CTA alignment (the subject of Chapter 5 in the same series).
Program and data discipline. Backing up machine programs and parameters, keeping the current program revision paired with the correct setup sheet, and re-verifying the setup after every tooling or product changeover.
Shutdown and handover. The reverse sequence — safe stop, cleaning, and leaving the machine in a documented state — is covered in Chapter 4, machine shutdown process operations.

Maintenance on this class of machine is deliberately operator-accessible: Southern Machinery supplies machine operation manuals and training precisely so that these checks are done by the plant's own team on a schedule, not improvised during a breakdown.

Typical applications

Parameter and maintenance discipline pays back wherever PINs, eyelets and terminals are part of a volume board:

1. Power tools and power boards. Terminal insertion is a core process in power tool electronics, where heavy-current terminals must be inserted, clinched and soldered to survive vibration and thermal cycling. This is the reference application for the S7020T's dual-head terminal-insertion configuration.

2. Home appliance control boards. Air conditioners, rice cookers, induction cookers, microwave ovens and washing machines carry connector pins, eyelets and terminals alongside radial and odd-form parts. Appliance production is high-volume, multi-SKU DIP assembly — exactly the environment where a parameter that is slightly off becomes rework every shift.

3. Power supply and ballast PCBA. Vehicle power supplies, energy-saving power supplies and electronic ballasts use terminals and eyelets in the mains-side section, where insertion depth and clinch quality are reliability characteristics rather than cosmetics.

4. LED lighting and driver electronics. Lighting, display and control boards use eyelets and terminals in volume. Correct insertion parameters protect the hole and the plating, which matters for every soldering step that follows.

5. EMS and ODM plants running mixed odd-form assembly. When a plant inserts terminals, PINs and eyelets across many board variants, the parameter set and the setup sheet are re-verified at each changeover. Documented settings and a maintenance schedule are what keep a mixed-model line inside its first-pass-yield target without an engineer tied to the machine.

How it fits into a complete PCB assembly line

Parameter settings and maintenance are executed at one machine but felt across the line, because a terminal insertion station sits inside the THT block of a complete PCB assembly flow:

SMT side first. Solder paste printing, SPI, pick-and-place and reflow build the SMD side of the board. Southern Machinery's SMT range covers this stage, including the SP-300 and SP-1200 stencil printers, inline SPI/AOI, and the S-530L semi-automatic pick and place for LED and lens mounting.
Component preparation. Radial taping and lead-forming equipment, bulk capacitor taping with polarity check, and lead cut-and-form machines convert bulk parts into insertion-ready format. No insertion parameter can compensate for a badly formed lead — the two stages have to be right together.
THT insertion block. This is where the S7020 Series sits, alongside the S-3010B and S-3000 radial inserters, the S-70LD and S7900 odd-form inserters and the S-7000 PIN and eyelet families. Radial, axial, odd-form and terminal stations all depend on parameters that match the physical setup of the head and feeder.
Soldering and lead finishing. Inserted boards move into lead-free wave soldering — the S-WS450 or the PC-controlled dual-wave S-WS350B — then to the S-320AT inline auto lead cutter, cleaning, and inspection such as AOI and the S-D330 online wave-solder appearance checker.
Board handling. Magazine loaders and unloaders (SLD/SUL series), bridge and inspection conveyors, PCB turnover machines and reject conveyors move boards between stages. A board handling system also buys you the buffer that lets you correct parameters or perform maintenance without stopping the whole line.
Support ecosystem. Spare parts, custom nozzles and tooling, repair, retrofit and training. Southern Machinery's SMT/THT machine operation manual library and the training chapters for this platform — start-up inspection, parameter settings, shutdown and head position correction — are part of the deliverable, not an afterthought.

The line-level point: a parameter or maintenance problem at the insertion station is never contained there. It feeds defects into wave soldering, lead cutting, AOI and functional test, where each defect is far more expensive to remove.

Key selection parameters

If you are evaluating a PIN / eyelet / terminal insertion machine — or specifying the settings and maintenance capability that will keep it running — start with the platform specification, then confirm what comes with the machine. The S7020 Series figures below are the documented specification for that platform and should be treated as reference rather than a substitute for a configuration quotation against your own terminal list.

| Parameter | Documented S7020 Series specification | What to confirm for your build |

|---|---|---|

| Insertion heads | 2 insertion heads (documented) | Head count and configuration against your throughput target |

| Speed class | 12,000 CPH (documented) | Required rate against your terminal mix and changeover frequency |

| Terminal / component | PIN, eyelet, terminal; bulk or reel package; terminal thickness 0.5–1.2 mm | Your exact terminal part numbers, body size and lead form |

| PCB working area | 380 mm × 280 mm, enlarged sizes customizable | Your maximum and minimum board outline |

| Insertion geometry | Insertion angle 360° in 1° increments; vertical error ≤0.8°; motion accuracy 0.001 mm/pulse | Hole-to-lead clearance and positional tolerance for your design |

| PCB hole requirement | Hole 0.5 ± 0.1 mm larger than the component lead | Your board's drill chart and plating tolerance |

| Component spacing | Distance between components ≥ 2 mm | Your board density and keep-out rules |

| Clinch | Inward or outward clinching | The clinch style your solder process and IPC class expect |

| Feeding | Vibration bowl feeder or reel feeder | Terminal packaging format and presentation reliability |

| Programming | Online visual programming, visual correction, EXCEL; USB import or manual entry | Who programs, and whether programs move between machines |

| Utilities | Single 220 V AC, 50/60 Hz, 2 kVA | Site power and stability requirements |

| Footprint / weight | 1700 × 1300 × 1600 mm; 1200 kg (2-head configuration) | Floor loading and access for setup and maintenance |

For the settings and maintenance side, confirm what you are buying with the machine, not only what the machine does:

Parameter documentation. Does the supplier provide a written parameter and setup guide for your terminal types — with the acceptable range and the physical check behind each setting — or only verbal handover?
Program portability. Can programs and parameters be backed up, exported and restored, and can an EXCEL data file be built and reused across machines?
Training depth. Will your own operators and maintenance technicians be trained to set parameters and perform the checks, or does every adjustment require a service visit?
Spare-part coverage. Jaw guides, springs, pusher tips, rollers and tooling pins are wear items. Confirm availability and lead time before you need them.
Verification criteria. What acceptance check follows a parameter change or a service — sample board, insert height measurement, clinch inspection, lead protrusion? A setting is only correct when it is verified.

ROI and quality perspective

From a buyer's perspective, parameter and maintenance discipline is one of the cheapest levers on a THT line, because once the machine and its documentation are in place it is almost entirely inside your control:

Defect cost is asymmetrical. A tipped or bent terminal caught at the insertion station costs a re-insert. The same defect caught after wave soldering costs desoldering, hole cleaning, re-insertion and re-soldering — often with an operator damaging the hole in the process. Correct insertion parameters upstream protect the most expensive inspection points downstream.
Rework on terminals is especially expensive. Eyelets and terminals are mechanical joints. A badly clinched or mis-inserted part cannot simply be re-flowed; it has to be physically removed.
Downtime is the real cost. A machine running out-of-spec parameters does not stop — it produces marginal boards that are discovered at AOI or test, when a whole shift's output is suspect. A scheduled maintenance routine converts that into a bounded, planned task.
Tooling life and spare-part spend. A head that is out of alignment or running harsh motion parameters loads its jaw guides, rollers and anvils unevenly. Correct settings extend wear-part life and reduce the spare-parts line on the P&L.
Training replaces dependency. If the parameter set is documented and your team is trained, setting up and maintaining the machine stops being a service call and becomes routine production work.
First-pass yield compounds. Correct parameters, correct lead forming and a verified clinch are what let a board clear wave soldering, lead cutting and AOI without manual intervention — the practical definition of a stable THT line.

Model it with your own numbers: insertions per shift, current mis-insert and rework rate, what rework on a terminal costs you, and hours per month lost to parameter- and maintenance-related stoppages. For most plants the arithmetic favours a documented setup and maintenance routine long before it favours another machine.

FAQ

What are the "main parameters" on an S7020T terminal insertion machine?

The parameter set that defines one insertion cycle: insertion height and depth, insertion angle, clinch mode and forming position, head and X/Y table speed and acceleration, feeder and CTA timing, board origin and mark-point (fiducial) tolerance, component pitch and body spacing, and the program data itself — programmed online visually, imported from EXCEL, loaded from USB or entered manually.

How often should a terminal insertion machine be maintained?

Separate the intervals. Checks at start-up and during the shift are operator tasks; cleaning, lubrication and wear-part inspection follow the machine manual's daily and weekly schedule; a defined preventive-maintenance interval based on production hours covers head centering, casting height and CTA alignment. Southern Machinery's maintenance documentation and the S7020T training chapters define the sequence so it is repeatable rather than improvised.

Can programs and parameters be backed up or moved between machines?

Yes — the S7020 Series documents online visual programming, visual correction and EXCEL data, with USB import and manual entry. In practice that means programs and parameter sets can be exported, stored and restored, which is essential when a machine is serviced, a board revision changes, or a second machine runs the same product.

What happens if the insertion height or clinch parameters are wrong?

The terminal arrives at the wrong depth or is clinched off-centre, so lead protrusion under the board becomes inconsistent and the mechanical joint is unreliable before it ever reaches wave soldering. Symptoms include tipped terminals, bent leads, hole damage and intermittent solder defects that are difficult to trace back to the insertion station.

Can an operator change parameters, or does it need an engineer?

With a written parameter guide, a setup sheet per product and training, a senior operator or maintenance technician can perform routine setting and adjustment. The critical requirements are the documented acceptable ranges, a verification step after any change, and controlled access to program data — not a specific job title.

How do I tell whether a defect is a parameter problem or a maintenance problem?

Look at the pattern. A defect that appears at a changeover or after a program edit points to parameters; a defect that appears gradually, or after a period of running, points to wear — jaw guides, springs, pusher tips, feeder tracks or alignment. Because settings have physical counterparts on the machine, the fastest route is usually to verify the physical condition and then re-confirm the parameter.

Which other Southern Machinery machines use this parameter structure?

The S7020 Series PIN / eyelet / terminal insertion machine — including the S7020T terminal-insertion configuration shown in this training chapter — plus the S-7000 family of PIN, eyelet and odd-form inserters. Radial and axial inserters (S-3010B, S-3000, S-4000) use equivalent parameter groups and maintenance procedures adapted to their head design.

Is the training video enough to set up the machine unaided?

Use it as the introduction and the visual reference, then work from the written parameter guide and setup sheet for your exact configuration, since acceptable values, tooling and adjustment order are configuration-specific. Southern Machinery supplies the documentation with the machine and can train your team on site or remotely.

Contact Southern Machinery

Southern Machinery (Shenzhen, China; established 2011; 237+ global customers) designs and manufactures SMT, THT and PCB assembly automation — insertion machines, wave soldering, board handling, cleaning, inspection and the spare parts, training and retrofit services around them.

For help with terminal insertion parameters, a maintenance schedule, an S7020 Series configuration, or the full THT insertion block of your line, contact the team:

Email: [jasonwu@smthelp.com](mailto:jasonwu@smthelp.com)
Website: www.smthelp.com
Catalogs, manuals & documents: file.autoinsertion.com
Product images: ph.smthelp.com
Machine operation manuals & training: SMT/THT machine operation manual library on smthelp.com

Watch the full S7020T training series on the Southern Machinery YouTube channel, including Chapter 1 (start-up inspection), Chapter 2 (start-up inspection and start-up), Chapter 4 (shutdown process operations) and Chapter 5 (head insertion position correction).