Electric lamp or space discharge component or device manufacturi – Apparatus
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-28
2001-04-24
Ramsey, Kenneth J. (Department: 2879)
Electric lamp or space discharge component or device manufacturi
Apparatus
C425S123000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06220915
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an automated manufacturing of lamp tiles and, more specifically, to manufacturing of the lamp tiles from a plurality of lead frame reels in an assembly line process.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Small light lamps such as light emitting diodes (LEDs) have been widely used as indicators or components of displays because of their high mechanical stability, low operating voltage, and long service life. When a plurality of the small light lamps are arranged in a two dimensional array and inserted into an electrically wired board configured to control each lamp, the resulting structure forms a large display board. In one prior system, such large display boards have been employed as score boards in sports arenas.
Manufacturing of display boards requires wiring of internal electrical circuit for controlling each lamp and wiring sockets for receiving each lamp. The lamps also must be individually inserted into the sockets. The preceding requirements, among others, make the manufacturing of display boards to be cumbersome and not readily adaptable to an automated assembly line processing. In turn, the display boards are ordinarily custom designed with high manufacturing costs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus for manufacturing lamp tiles. A lamp tile is a panel which has a plurality of light openings into which small light lamps are inserted and which includes a plurality of anode and cathode leads electrically connected to anode and cathode ends of corresponding small lamps for supplying or cutting off electrical power to the lamps. The lamp tiles are mounted into a display board configured to receive the anode and cathode leads of the lamp tiles. Such a display board also includes control circuit to control the on/off states of each lamp of the lamp tiles.
By using the present invention, the manufacturing process of display boards is simplified by bypassing, among other things, the requirement of wiring individual sockets to receive each lamp into the display board because lamps are already mounted in the lamp tiles. Furthermore, since lamp tiles have standard sizes and since the lead frames are designed such that they are adopted to be mass produced, the lamp tiles are produced in an assembly line. These and other advantages provided in this invention reduces the overall costs of manufacturing the display boards.
Specifically, the present invention relates to a method for fabricating at least one lamp tile having a molded body and a plurality of electrically conductive leads protruding therefrom, by providing a first lead frame segment defining a first aperture and including at least one first lead extending into the first lead frame aperture; providing a second lead frame segment defining a second aperture and including at least one second lead extending into the second lead frame aperture; overlaying the first and second lead frame segments above the other such that the first and second leads form an intersection in a plan view of the overlaid lead frame segments, and the first and second leads are spaced apart from each other at the intersection by a predetermined distance in a side view of the overlaid lead frame segments; and depositing molding material in a predetermined pattern on the intersection, thereby forming the molded body wherein a portion of the first lead protrudes from the deposited molding material, and a portion of the second lead protrudes from the deposited molding material.
This method includes forming a light opening over the intersection exposing portions of the first and second leads and trimming the first and second leads from the first and second lead frame segments. The step of overlaying the first and second leads includes the step of setting the predetermined distance to be between 0.01 and 0.03 inches, and preferably, between 0.01 and 0.015 inches, and the step of depositing the molding material includes the step of selecting the molding material to be a heat treatable nylon which is heat treatable at a temperature of at least 300°C.
Preferably, the first frames segment are produced by the step of stamping the first lead frame segments on a first elongated sheet made of electrically conductive rigid material, and the second frame segments are made by the step of stamping the second lead frame segments on a second elongated sheet made of electrically conductive rigid material. The method preferably includes the step of depositing epoxy material between first and second leads over the intersections.
The invention also relates to a system for fabricating a plurality of lamp tiles, comprising a plurality of first lead frame segments which define first apertures and include a plurality of first leads extending into the first lead frame apertures; a plurality of second lead frame segments which define second apertures and including a plurality of second leads extending into the second lead frame apertures; a plurality of pins configured to overlay one of the first and second lead frame segments; a feeder for receiving the plurality of first and second lead frame segments and for overlaying the plurality of pins on one of the first and second lead frame segments such that corresponding the first and second leads form an array of intersections in a plan view of the overlaid lead frame segments, and are spaced apart from each other at each intersection by a predetermined distance in a side view of the overlaid lead frame segments; and a molder configured to deposit molding material in a predetermined pattern on a plurality of the intersections such that a portion of each corresponding the first lead protrudes from the deposited molding material, and a portion of each corresponding the second lead protrudes from the deposited molding material.
The system preferably includes a trimmer configured to cut the first and second leads from the first and second lead frame segments, a first stamping device configured to stamp the first lead frame segments on a first elongated sheet made of electrically conductive rigid material, and a second stamping device configured to stamp the second lead frame segments on a second elongated sheet made of electrically conductive rigid material.
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Handy & Harman
Pennie & Edmonds LLP
Ramsey Kenneth J.
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