Metal working – Means to assemble or disassemble – Means to assemble electrical device
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-31
2003-02-04
Freay, Charles G. (Department: 3729)
Metal working
Means to assemble or disassemble
Means to assemble electrical device
C029S739000, C029S743000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06513233
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a component mounting method and apparatus for mounting components on mounting objects, such as are used in mounting electronic components on circuit boards, in either provisional mountings or actual mountings, to manufacture electronic circuit boards.
BACKGROUND ART
A conventional component mounting apparatus for manufacturing electronic circuit boards is shown in
FIG. 9. A
component mounting head
102
equipped with a suction nozzle movable up and down
101
for handling an electronic component is supported on an X-Y robot
103
, which is moved in two perpendicular directions, X and Y, for moving the component mounting head
102
to a component supply unit
104
and a component mounting unit
105
. An electronic component
100
supplied by a component supply unit
104
is picked up and carried by the suction nozzle
101
, and mounted at a prescribed position on a circuit board
106
located in the component mounting unit
105
.
The suction nozzle
101
is installed on the component mounting head
102
such as to be movable up and down in order to pick up and mount the electronic component
100
. Referring to
FIG. 10
, a nut
107
provided integrally with a support member
113
for the suction nozzle
101
screws onto a ball screw
108
that is turned in both opposite directions by a motor
109
to cause the suction nozzle
101
to move up and down. When the orientation of the electronic component
100
held by the suction nozzle
101
is improper, the suction holding attitude is corrected by turning the suction nozzle
101
about its axis line by a motor
110
.
Some electronic components involve insertion of their parts into the circuit board in order to accomplish the mounting to the circuit board
106
. Such electronic components
100
are of various types, including axial components, radial components, odd-shaped components having leads or pins, DIP (dual inline package) type IC chips, and connectors provided with leads.
Of these, electronic components which can be handled by a suction nozzle such as described above include DIP IC chips which have a flat upper surface and connectors. For other electronic components, mounting devices are used which have component handling tools especially adapted to those components, respectively.
In any case, the electronic component
100
is held, picked up, and handled by a suction nozzle
101
or other component handling tool. When insertion is involved in mounting the component to a circuit board
106
, it is necessary, simultaneously-with positioning the electronic component
100
at the prescribed position on the circuit board
106
, to bring the electronic component
100
straight up to the circuit board
106
in a condition wherein multiple pins or leads or other insertion parts in the side of the electronic component
100
all correctly correspond to insertion holes
112
in the side of the circuit board
106
, and to apply pressure in a condition where these are in mutual contact, thereby inserting the leads
111
into the insertion holes
112
.
Such positional relationships are not always set up properly, however, and failures sometimes arise due to faulty positioning. In order for the insertion described above to be performed in the right amount without fail, it is necessary to cause the electronic component
100
to make contact with the circuit board
106
, and to push it in, in the prescribed condition. However, with a drive effected by the ball screw
108
described earlier, there is very little resistance when the electronic component
100
is pressed, whereupon the pressing force cannot be finely controlled, and pressing tends to become excessive. It is also difficult to discern from the resistance, etc., in the insertion operation, whether the leads
111
are inserted or not inserted in the insertion holes
112
. In addition, there is also play in the part that screws into the nut
107
that converts circular motion to linear motion, and there are effects produced by backlashes, whereupon appropriate measures cannot be taken that correspond to whether the insertion condition is proper or faulty.
Because of these problems, excessive pressing is easily administered, especially when the leads
111
or other insertion parts are not correctly inserted in the insertion holes
112
in the circuit board
106
, whereupon either the electronic component
100
or the circuit board
106
or both are damaged by breaks or cracks, which damage causes a decline in the production yield of the electronic components and the circuit boards.
In other cases where it is necessary to press the suction nozzle
101
against the electronic component
100
, or where it is necessary to apply pressure to mount the electronic component
100
to the circuit board
106
, similar problems arise because the pressing force cannot be adequately controlled.
An object of the present invention is to provide a component mounting method and apparatus, with which a component can be mounted without excessive pressing.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a component mounting method wherein a component supplied by a component supply unit is picked up, carried, and mounted on a mounting object located at a component mounting position, using a component handling tool that is supported by a moving mechanism and is moved to the component supply unit and a component mounting unit, characterized in that: the component handling tool is linearly moved up and down for performing component pick-up and mounting actions by feed-back control of a linear motor, wherein, when the component handling tool needs to be moved down for picking up a component or for mounting a component held on the component handling tool on the mounting object, the linear motor is controlled to effect a downward movement of the component handling tool, and when contact is made between the component handling tool and the component or between the component and the mounting object, upon which changes in control information of the feedback control of the linear motor are detected, control of the linear motor is switched to a pressing operation, whereby the component is picked up or mounted in a predetermined pressed condition.
Thus the component handling tool is moved to the component supply unit or component mounting unit by the moving mechanism, whereupon, whether performing component pickup at the component supply unit or component mounting in the component mounting unit, such can be accomplished with an up and down movement by the linear action of a linear motor on the moving mechanism. With the feedback control of this linear motor, the component handling tool prior to holding the component and/or the component held by the component handling tool is brought close to the component and/or the mounting object, in order to pick up or mount the component, by controlling the linear motor to effect a downward movement of the component handling tool, and contact therewith is first effected. When contact is made, there is a change in the control information due to the targeted position having been arrived at. The point in time where contact was actually made can be detected by the change in the control information at this time.
Thereupon, at the point in time where that control information changed, the linear motor is switched from a downward moving operation to a pressing operation, and the holding or mounting of the component in the prescribed pressed condition is completed. When that is done, it is possible to definitely effect the holding and/or mounting of the component, under prescribed pressing, while preventing contact faults or floating, and without damaging or breaking. either the component or the mounting object by subjecting either to an excessive load. Also, in cases where the component mounting involves insertion in the side of the mounting object, such can be definitely accomplished by the prescribed pressing operation described in the foregoing. Accordingly, production yield is im
Nakao Osamu
Takeda Takeshi
Yoshida Noriaki
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Sayoc Emmanuel
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