Package making – Partial cover application – Band or tube
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-14
2003-10-21
Gerrity, Stephen F. (Department: 3721)
Package making
Partial cover application
Band or tube
C053S246000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06634159
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a taping apparatus and process for electronic components, arid in particular, for storing chip-type electronic components in storage compartments within a tape, which is wound to a tape reel, and for sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment with a cover tape.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A conventional taping apparatus and process for electronic components will be described hereinafter.
Conventionally, electronic components to be stored in a tape are placed in a feeding table, picked up and transported by a suction tool mounted on a rotating arm, and stored one by one in component-storage compartments within the tape. In this procedure, the components which are picked up to a deviated position with respect to the suction tool are pinched to a right position by a pair of position-setting hooks while being transported, and stored in the storage compartment in the tape.
One problem with this procedure is the danger of damaging the electronic components by regulating the position of the components with the position setting hooks. Specifically, it becomes difficult to set the components to a right position by the position-setting hooks when the size of the electronic components becomes small. While it is possible to mount the suction tool on a head moving the X and Y directions for picking up the electronic components from the component-feeding device and storing the same in the tape, this creates an inconvenience that the traveling time of the moving head increases. This results in a low production efficiency of storing the components. A second problem will be described hereinafter.
Conventionally, a procedure is repeated multiple times, wherein the chip-type electronic component is stored in the storage compartment within the tape, which is wound to the tape reel, and the tape is advanced by one pitch. The electronic component thereof is transported in the storage compartment within the tape to a predetermined position, and is taped by sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment within the tape with the cover tape.
However, in the procedure described above, the electronic components are stored in the storage compartments one at a time, and each time the tape main body is advanced downstream by one pitch using a tape-transporting mechanism, resulting in an increasing procedure time for the tape transportation.
Furthermore, the vibration (braking) and other adversary effects, which are caused by starting or stopping the transportation of the tape, bring about the popping out of the electronic components from the storage compartments and other undesirable disorders. This makes the conventional one-pitch advancing scheme, which cannot avoid the cumulative number of transportation (braking), subject to the inconvenience caused by the increasing effect of the vibration.
Conventional taping apparatus also lack the capability of automatically measuring or sensing the state of the electronic components and the compartments in the tape for storing the same. This is increasingly becoming an issue as the size of the electronic components are decreasing and a precision control of the taping procedures are becoming more difficult.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention securely stores the electronic components in a tape without sacrificing the production efficiency.
In one embodiment of the taping apparatus and the taping process for the electronic components of the present invention, chip-type electronic components are stored in a tape, the electronic components are brought to the proper position for the pickup and are sucked up and held by a holding tool placed on a X-Y table. Then, the electronic components held by the holding tool are observed by a sensing device while being transported by the rotation of a rotating table. The position of the holding tool with respect to the tape is adjusted by moving the X-Y table based on the result of the position recognition, and the electronic components held by the holding tool are stored in the storage compartments in the tape one by one, constituting the characteristics of the invention. This increases the productivity of storing the components since multiple holding tools pick up the electronic components one by one and store the same in the storage compartments in the tape making use of the rotation of the rotating table.
As the rotating table equipped with the holding tools is mounted on the X-Y table, the positions of the holding tool and electronic components held by the holding tool with respect to the tape can be changed or adjusted by moving the X-Y table, whereby it is possible to correct the position of the electronic components misplaced in a deviated position with respect to the holding tool, without causing any damage to the electronic components as in the case of the conventional position-adjusting method using the hooks for position setting and other tools.
Furthermore, in another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components have a component-feeding device including another X-Y table for feeding which moves in the X and Y directions on the X-Y table and the electronic components are juxtaposed in a matrix on the table.
Therefore, while the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool is being adjusted with respect to the storing position in the tape, the electronic component to be picked up next is brought to the pickup position by moving the feeding table on the X-Y table in the X and Y directions, resulting in smooth component feeding.
Furthermore, in still another embodiment, the taping apparatus and the taping process for the electronic components of the present invention have a thrusting device, on the X-Y table, for pushing up the electronic components which are juxtaposed on the feeding table.
This enables the thrusting device to perform the action of thrusting the electronic component at a fixed position for the pickup by the holding tool with respect to the X-Y table, while the X-Y table is being moved.
Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the invention have a component-posture sensing device for recognizing the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool is mounted, on the X-Y table, along the transportation passage of the electronic component.
This makes it possible to recognize the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool while the X-Y table being moved, thereby enabling the X-Y table to move for adjusting the position of the electronic component based on the result of the position recognition.
Furthermore, in another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention have a feeding-position sensing device for recognizing the position of the electronic component fed by the electronic-component feeding device is equipped on the X-Y table.
This makes it possible to recognize the position of the electronic component fed by the feeding device while the X-Y table being moved, and the result of the position recognition is used during the storing procedure of the electronic component to the storage compartment in the tape.
The invention also discloses decreasing the time for the taping procedure.
To decrease the time for the taping procedure, in one embodiment, in the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention, the apparatus and process for storing chip-type electronic components in storage compartments within a tape, which is wound to a tape reel, and for sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment with a cover tape, the procedure for storing the electronic component is repeated a plurality of times, wherein the electronic component on the feeding table is picked up by the holding tool of the component-storage mechanism and stored in the compartment, and after the repetition of the procedure storing the component, the main tape body is advanced downstream by a predetermined set of pitc
Komatsu Ryuichi
Muto Kenichi
Oribe Yasuhiro
Tanaka Yasuhiro
Watanabe Akio
Gerrity Stephen F.
Morrison & Foerster / LLP
Sanyo Electric Co,. Ltd.
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