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Creating a Sampling Pattern#

A Sampling Pattern defines which Sub-Materials are sampled and in what sequence during a Step. It supports In-Step Sampling, configurable at the Step level, either alone or alongside a Sampling Plan.

Example: sample wafers 2, 6, and 10 of a 25-wafer Material lot.

How to Create a Sampling Pattern#

In the Business Data section, select the Sampling Pattern entity.

Screenshot showing the Sampling Pattern entity in the Business Data area.

Select New to create a new Sampling Pattern.

Screenshot showing the action used to create a new Sampling Pattern.

Provide a Name, Type, and optionally insert a Description.

In Evaluation, select an Evaluation Type that matches the purpose of the Sampling Pattern in the real use case. The available options are Manual, Rule, and System, and each option determines how the Sampling Pattern is executed. The differences between these Evaluation Types are explained in the sections below.

Screenshot showing the general data step of the Sampling Pattern wizard.

Screenshot showing the Evaluation Type options for a Sampling Pattern.

Manual#

For scenarios where specific Materials in the container need to be selected, set the Evaluation Type to Manual.

In the Manual evaluation type, you must identify the desired sampling positions in Selection.

Screenshot showing manual selection fields in a Sampling Pattern.

Selection Format is the predefined method used by Critical Manufacturing MES to sample specific Materials at specific positions. Specify the Container and Position for each Sub-Material by using a structured text format.

Screenshot showing the selection format used for manual sampling definitions.

Format Overview#

  • Each sampling entry is written as Container:Position.
  • Multiple entries are separated by semicolons (;): C:1,R:1;C:Right-1,R:Bottom+2;C:2,A:1

Container Definition#

  • The Container identifies which container the Sub-Material comes from.
  • Containers are referenced by index using C:<name>.

Tip

If the Material lot arrives at the Step in only one Container, you do not need to specify the container. Example: R:5;R:2;R:3

Position Definition#

  • The Position defines the location of the Sub-Material within the Container.
  • There are two types of positions:
    • Absolute Position (A) - references a fixed position index. Example: A:1.
    • Absolute Position (A) - does not use Top or Bottom references.
    • Relative Position (R or P) - references position relative to container boundaries such as Top or Bottom. Example: R:1, R:Bottom+2, or R:Right-1.
    • Relative Position (R or P) - both R and P can be used to indicate relative positioning.

Screenshot showing a manual sampling selection example.

Example Breakdown#

Sampling Entry Container Reference Position Reference Explanation
C:1,R:1 Container 1 Relative position 1 Selects position 1 from the first Container alphabetically
C:2,A:1 Container 2 Absolute position 1 Selects the first absolute position from the second Container

Table: Sampling selections

For more information about how to configure Evaluation Type Manual, go to Create Sampling Pattern and Sampling Pattern Page.

System#

For scenarios where Materials in the Container need to be selected according to a predefined system in Critical Manufacturing MES, set the Evaluation Type to System.

Screenshot showing the System evaluation type in a Sampling Pattern.

By selecting System as the Evaluation Type of a Sampling Pattern, additional fields become available for configuration:

  • Source
  • Count
  • Selection
  • Sequence

Example#

Field Example Configuration Explanation
Source Lot of processed wafers (25 wafers) The system samples from the Materials produced in the lot, according to the Material Form. Examples include wafers for the semiconductor industry and panels for SMT.
Count 20% (percentage) Critical Manufacturing MES automatically selects 20% of the wafers in the lot for inspection. For a lot of 25 wafers, 5 wafers will be sampled. The defined Count can also be a fixed number.
Selection Spread The system distributes the samples evenly throughout the lot to ensure good process coverage.
Sequence TopDownLeftRight Sampling begins from the top-left wafer and proceeds row by row, ensuring consistent traceability in the lot layout.

Table: Evaluation Type configuration fields

Critical Manufacturing MES automatically selects 5 wafers, evenly spaced across the lot, starting from the Top-Left position. This configuration ensures balanced inspection coverage without manual intervention.

For more information about how to configure Evaluation Type System, go to Create Sampling Pattern and Sampling Pattern Page.

Rule#

For scenarios where Materials in the container are not selectable using a Manual or a System Evaluation Type, set this property to Rule. For more information, see Create Rule.

Example: 3 wafers must be selected, but from time to time, Material lots arriving at the Step only have 1 or 2.

Screenshot showing a rule-based Sampling Pattern configuration.

Note

A Rule with the scope SamplingSelection from the RuleScope lookup table must be created in advance.

For more information about how to configure the Evaluation Type as Rule, go to Create Sampling Pattern and Sampling Pattern Page.