The encyclopedia · Engineering & Operations · Technical decision · 2021–2024
LG Innotek taught AI to predict camera-module defects before they happen
LG Innotek's AI process recipe predicts defects and tunes machine settings, cutting key inspection failures up to 90%.
LG Innotek
the move
LG Innotek, the world's largest camera-module maker, began developing AI that forecasts process defects in 2021, because high-specification modules often suffer low yields at the start of mass production, and rework costs rise with every later step.
In 2023 it became the first in the industry to apply an 'AI process recipe' to its high-spec camera-module lines: the AI reviews the whole initial process, predicts where defects are likely, and simulates machine intensity, conveyor speed and temperature to set the best conditions.
Applied to the flagship product, the recipe — trained on tens of millions of data points — reduced the defect rate in key inspection items by up to 90%, stabilized initial yield, and strengthened cost competitiveness. LG Innotek said it planned to extend the approach to semiconductor processes.
why it works
- The AI sees patterns across tens of millions of data points no engineer could hold in mind.
- It acts before defects exist, so inspection is no longer the only safety net.
- Simulating variables makes the fix concrete: settings, not hunches.
- Stable ramp-up yields are worth more than a theoretically perfect process.
what transfers
When a process is too subtle for human tuning, let a model trained on the plant's own history set the parameters — fix the recipe before the part is made, not after inspection fails.
what came after
After the 2023 rollout, LG Innotek reported the up-to-90% defect cut and said it was extending AI process recipes to semiconductor and other processes; the approach became part of its pitch as it expanded into automotive camera modules for robotaxis and other physical-AI sensing.
references
- LG이노텍, AI 공정 혁신으로 카메라 모듈 명가(名家) 입지 굳힌다!
- LG Innotek solidifying its position as a leader in camera modules through innovative AI processes!
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