Data processing: generic control systems or specific application – Specific application – apparatus or process – Article handling
Reexamination Certificate
1998-10-14
2001-07-10
Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)
Data processing: generic control systems or specific application
Specific application, apparatus or process
Article handling
C700S228000, C700S226000, C700S222000, C700S219000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06259966
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a component feeding method, as well as an apparatus therefor, for feeding components, which are to be mounted on boards, at their mounting positions in an electronic component mounting machine.
BACKGROUND ART
Component feeding apparatus in electronic component mounting machines are provided in several types, such as taping-compatible, tray-compatible or stick-compatible types depending on the style of packing of electronic components. Among others, the taping-compatible type component feeding apparatuses are capable of feeding electronic components with high speed and in a wide variety of component types, so that they are widely used particularly in high-speed, high-production type mounting machines out of electronic component mounting machines.
Some of the component feeding apparatuses used in high-speed, high-production type mounting machines are equipped with a plurality of component feeding tables.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,969 discloses an electronic components feeding device comprising a plurality of tables where feeders of the electronic components are placed, a base where these tables are placed, a first feeding means for moving the tables in lateral direction along which the tables are arranged in a feeding area at central part of the base in order to stop the feeders at pickup position of pick-and-place heads, and a second feeding means for moving the table between retreat areas on the sides of the base and the feeding area.
A further example of the construction of a conventional component feeding apparatus is shown in FIG.
7
.
Referring to the individual functional parts in the example of
FIG. 7
, a plurality of component feeding tables
701
to
704
each have a driving motor incorporated therein one by one, so that the component feeding tables are enabled to operate independently of one another. Each of components placed on each component feeding table is positioned to a component suckup position
709
, and fed from the component feeding table to the mounting machine.
As for the component replacement position where electronic components are replenished upon exhaustion of the electronic components on the component feeding table, there are arranged a component replacement position
705
for the component feeding table
701
, a component replacement position
706
for the component feeding table
702
, a component replacement position
707
, for the component feeding table
703
, and a component replacement position
708
for the component feeding table
704
. When any of the component feeding tables have exhausted components, the component feeding table has to move to its specified component replacement position. Whereas the example of
FIG. 7
is shown in a case where the number of motors is the same as that of the component feeding tables in one-to-one correspondence, there are some cases where the number of motors is smaller than that of the component feeding tables.
The purpose of preparing a plurality of component feeding tables is to keep productional operation of the electronic component mounting machine continued without being interrupted and thereby to prevent the machine from lowering in availability even during the periods during which an exhausted component feeding table is moved to the component replacement position and the electronic components are replenished. This is accomplished by, during such periods, feeding the same type of components which have previously been prepared on a component feeding table other than the exhausted component feeding table, not from the exhausted component feeding table but from the other component feeding table to the component suckup position.
For example, the component feeding tables
701
and
702
are used as one set of component feeding tables, and the same components as those placed on the component feeding tables
701
and
702
are placed on the component feeding tables
703
and
704
, respectively. Then, the production is started with the set of component feeding tables
701
and
702
. Those component feeding tables, upon an occurrence of exhaustion of components, are changed over to the set of the component feeding tables
703
and
704
, and the component feeding tables
701
and
702
are moved to the component replacement positions
705
and
706
, respectively. Then, replenishing components onto the component feeding tables
701
and
702
, if done completely while the production is continued with the component feeding tables
703
and
704
, allows the productional operation of the mounting machine to be continued even when the component feeding tables
703
and
704
in turn come to exhaustion of components.
As for the factors in lowering the availability of the equipment, the interruption of productional operation due to exhaustion of the components that are being fed is one of the greatest factors. Therefore, electronic-component mounting equipment has been demanded that the production can be continued as much as possible even upon exhaustion of components, while component replenishment can be carried out. The tooling change at a change of the production model is also a factor that lowers the availability of the electronic-component mounting equipment. As a result, the equipment has also been demanded to carry out the tooling change at the same time as the productional operation or to reduce the working time.
However, with the component feeding method and apparatus therefor of the prior art as described above, there is a need of previously selecting such an operational mode that the combination of component feeding tables is free from any difficulty in continued production upon exhaustion of components, so that the combination of component feeding tables is greatly limited, as an issue.
As an example of those combinations, one combination is shown in FIGS.
8
(
a
)-(
d
) which shows an operational mode in which production can be continued even when exhaustion of components has occurred to component feeding tables. Referring to FIGS.
8
(
a
)-(
d
) operational states
800
and
810
show operational modes in which component feeding tables
801
and
802
and component feeding tables
803
and
804
are operated in combination as one set of component feeding tables, respectively. In this operational mode, upon an occurrence of exhaustion of components during the production with the component feeding tables
801
and
802
(shown by the operational state
800
), the component feeding tables
801
and
802
are moved to their component replacement positions, while the component feeding tables
803
and
804
are moved to a predetermined specified component suckup position (shown by the operational state
810
), and the productional operation of the electronic-component mounting equipment is continued with the components on the component feeding tables
803
and
804
.
Also referring to FIGS.
8
(
c
)-(
d
) operational states
820
and
830
show an operational mode in which component feeding tables
821
and
824
are not used for production. In this operational mode, upon an occurrence of exhaustion of components during the production with a component feeding table
822
(shown by the operational state
820
), the component feeding table
822
is moved to its component replacement position, while a component feeding table
823
is moved to the component suckup position (shown by the operational state
830
), and the productional operation of the electronic-component mounting equipment is continued with the components on the component feeding table
823
.
Given an operational mode in such a combination of component feeding tables as described above, even if exhaustion of components has occurred in the component feeding tables, the productional operation of the electronic-component mounting equipment can be carried out without interruptions. However, with the combination of component feeding tables other than that shown in FIGS.
8
(
a
)-(
d
) the production would inevitably be interrupted upon occurrences of exhaustion of components, such that the productivity
Izumida Keizo
Kashiwazaki Takao
Yamamoto Hiroki
Butler Michael E.
Ellis Christopher P.
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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