JP2006306569A - Work conveyor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a work conveyor capable of reliably and continuously conveying very small works such as chips to be mounted on a circuit substrate and simple in operation at low cost. <P>SOLUTION: A large number of suction parts 11 formed in an L-shaped groove to suck and hold a work are provided in a circumferential surface part of a vertical wheel 10. A loading surface to load the work thereon in the suction parts 11 is formed so as to be inclined by 15° with respect to the horizontal plane at the position P1 which is the highest point of the vertical wheel 10. The work supply to the suction parts 11 is guided by a guide of the L-shaped section. The loading surface to load the work in the guide is formed so as to be inclined by 15° with respect to the horizontal plane. The work conveyed by the vertical wheel 10 is transferred to and conveyed by a horizontal wheel 20 in which a large number of suction ports 22 to suck and hold the works conveyed by the vertical wheel 10 are opened in an upper face of a rim part 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a work transfer device. Specifically, it is a workpiece transfer device used when performing a visual inspection or a characteristic test while moving a minute workpiece such as a chip component mounted on a circuit board, and is capable of reliably transferring the workpiece continuously. It is intended to realize a work transfer device that can be operated and that is easy to operate at a lower price.

  A configuration example of a workpiece transfer apparatus that has been conventionally used will be described with reference to FIG. Here, FIG. 6 is a front view schematically showing the configuration of this conventional example, and illustration of the support members that support the respective parts of the apparatus is omitted for the sake of simplicity.

  In FIG. 6, reference numerals 60a and 60b denote metal disk-shaped vertical foils that are arranged close to each other in the vertical direction and have black plating on the surface. The vertical foils 60a and 60b have the same structure, the lower vertical foil 60a is clockwise in the drawing, the upper vertical foil 60b is counterclockwise, and a pulse motor (not shown) is driven. Each rotates synchronously at a predetermined same rotation angle.

  A large number of suction portions 61a and 61b formed in V-shaped grooves for sucking and holding a work are respectively provided at equal intervals on the peripheral surface portions of the vertical wheels 60a and 60b that rotate in synchronization with each other. It is provided in the shape. An intake hole (not shown here) is opened at the bottom of the adsorbing portions 61a and 61b. The sizes of the workpieces sucked and held by the suction portions 61a and 61b are, for example, 1.6 mm × 0.8 mm × 0.8 mm and 1.0 mm × 0.5 mm × 0.5 mm.

  Therefore, when the work is transported by the work transport device configured as described above, first, the work is supplied to the vertical foil 60a at the position P1 which is the lowest point of the lower vertical foil 60a. That is, when the work 100 supplied by a feeder (not shown) is guided by the guide and moves to a position below the lowest point of the vertical foil 60a, as shown in FIG. The work 100 on the guide 70 is sucked and held so as to be fitted into the V-shaped groove of the sucking portion 61a by sucking air through the opened suction hole 62a.

  Thereafter, the workpiece 100 sucked and held by the suction portion 61a is transported upward by the rotating vertical foil 60a. Then, as shown in FIG. 7 (b), when reaching the position P2 of the uppermost point of the vertical foil 60a, the intake through the intake hole 62a is released. At the same time, as shown in FIG. 7C, the workpiece 100 is sucked and held by the suction portion 61b of the upper vertical foil 60b by suction through the suction hole 62b opened to the bottom of the suction portion 61b of the upper vertical foil 60b. To the upper vertical foil 60b. Thereafter, the sheet is conveyed upward by the rotating vertical foil 60b, and is discharged from the apparatus when it reaches a predetermined position.

  In the process in which the workpiece 100 is conveyed by the two upper and lower vertical foils 60a and 60b as described above, if the workpiece 100 is to be inspected for appearance, the six surfaces A to F of the workpiece 100 shown in FIG. In order to inspect for the presence or absence of dirt or the like, imaging is performed by an imaging means. That is, as to the four surfaces A to D of the workpiece 100, as shown in FIG. 8B, in the process in which the workpiece 100 is conveyed by the lower vertical foil 60a, the four surfaces A to D are respectively arranged at predetermined positions. An image is picked up by an image pickup means (not shown), and the two surfaces A and D are picked up from the direction indicated by the arrows, and the other two surfaces B and C are picked up from the direction perpendicular to the paper surface.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8C, the remaining two surfaces E and F of the workpiece 100 are respectively arranged at predetermined positions in the process of being conveyed by the upper vertical foil 60b. Images are taken from the directions indicated by the arrows by the two imaging means.

  However, the conventional example shown in FIG. 6 has the following problems to be solved. First, in order to reliably transfer the workpiece 100 from the lower vertical foil 60a to the upper vertical foil 60b, as shown in FIG. 9A, the suction portions 61a of both the vertical foils 60a and 60b. , 61b must face each other at a reference position S indicated by a one-dot chain line. However, the adjustment of the drive system for that purpose is not always easy in combination with the processing accuracy of each vertical foil 60a, 60b. As shown in FIG. 9 (b), if the position adjustment of each suction portion 61a, 61b is irregular, the workpiece 100 is bitten between the displaced vertical foils 60a, 60b, and is damaged or destroyed. Will end up.

  Secondly, depending on the shape of the workpiece, as shown in FIG. 9C, it may be necessary to make adjustments so that the suction portions 61a and 61b do not face each other. However, this adjustment is not always easy as in the case of making it face to face, and if the adjustment is irregular, the workpiece 101 is damaged or destroyed.

  Third, when the workpiece 100 has a size that can be dealt with by changing the interval between the suction portions 61a and 61b, the arrangement positions of the vertical wheels 60a and 60b are readjusted. However, each time the size is different, there is an inconvenience that it must be adjusted again each time. Moreover, the adjustment is not always easy. Further, during this period, the operation of the apparatus must be stopped, and good workability is difficult to obtain.

  Fourth, when the size of the workpiece 100 cannot be dealt with by changing the interval between the suction portions 61a and 61b, the vertical foils 60a and 60b suitable for the size must be used for each size. Don't be. However, the vertical foils 60a and 60b are extremely expensive because high processing accuracy is required. Therefore, the cost in the appearance inspection and characteristic test of the workpiece 100 is increased.

  Fifth, when the size of the workpiece 100 is large and therefore heavy, the workpiece 100 cannot be reliably sucked when being transferred from the lower vertical foil 60a to the upper vertical foil 60b. It may fall from the vertical foil 60b. If the workpiece 100 is dropped, the dropped workpiece 100 cannot be used as a defective product.

  Sixth, since the surface of each vertical foil 60a, 60b is black-plated, the plating gradually peels off when the apparatus is used for a long time. However, if the plating is peeled off, in the case of the appearance inspection of the work 100, the background when the work 100 is imaged changes from a black color to an irregular pattern, which becomes an obstacle to the appearance inspection of the work 100. There are various problems to be solved as described above in the conventional example shown in FIG.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems. Therefore, in the present invention, the following means are used. That is, a workpiece is conveyed by a vertical foil provided with a plurality of suction portions formed in an L-shaped groove for holding the workpiece by suction. The supply of the workpiece to the suction portion of the vertical foil is guided by a guide having an L-shaped cross section. The workpiece conveyed by the vertical foil is transferred and transferred to a horizontal foil having a large number of suction holes for adsorbing and holding the workpiece open on the upper surface of the peripheral edge. The above means is used in the present invention.

  According to the present invention, since the vertical foil and the horizontal foil are used, the complicated position adjustment of the opposing suction portions in the two vertical foils as in the conventional example shown in FIG. Is remarkably simple. In addition, the workpiece is not caught between the vertical foils and is not damaged or destroyed, and the reliability of the apparatus can be improved.

  Moreover, even if the workpieces have different sizes and shapes, they can be handled by a single vertical foil if they are within the approximate range. That is, it is sufficient to prepare only one vertical foil that requires high machining accuracy and is expensive, so that the cost can be reduced. In addition, since it is possible to avoid the trouble of re-installing another vertical foil each time the workpiece size and shape are different, it is possible to improve the workability of the workpiece visual inspection and characteristic test.

  Furthermore, since the suction part for sucking and holding the workpiece in the vertical foil is formed in the L-shaped groove instead of the V-shaped groove, even if the workpiece is different in size and shape, if it is within the approximate range, It is possible to cope without exchanging the foil. Similarly, since the guide for guiding the workpiece to the suction portion is formed in an L shape instead of a concave shape in cross section, even a workpiece having a different size and shape can be handled as it is. Moreover, it is possible to prevent damage and destruction caused by the rotation of the workpiece and the corners being pressed against the inner wall of the guide, which occurs in the case of a guide having a concave cross section.

  In addition, since the horizontal foil attracts the workpiece at the peripheral edge having a flat upper surface, it is easy to ensure the required finishing accuracy without being influenced by the processing accuracy of the vertical foil. As a result, it is possible to use a synthetic resin as a raw material, and it can be manufactured at a low cost, so that the cost can be reduced also from this aspect.

  Moreover, if a black synthetic resin is used, even if it is continuously used over a long period of time, it does not peel off like a plating and change into an irregular pattern. Therefore, when the appearance inspection of the workpiece is performed, the background when the workpiece is imaged is maintained in a black color, and the quality of the inspector can be easily determined. Therefore, the effects of the present invention in the appearance inspection, characteristic test, etc. of the workpiece are extremely large compared to the conventional example.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG. 1 is a front view showing a configuration of a workpiece transfer apparatus according to the present invention, with a part cut away, and FIG. 2 is a plan view. FIGS. It is an enlarged view of a part. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, illustration of support members for each part of the apparatus is omitted for the sake of simplicity.

  In FIG. 1, the difference from the configuration of the conventional example shown in FIG. 6 is that the vertical foil 10 arranged in the vertical direction and the horizontal foil 20 arranged in the horizontal direction are used as means for conveying the workpiece. is there. The vertical foils 10 arranged in the vertical direction are formed in a disk shape, like the vertical foils 60a and 60b in FIG. 6, and are made of metal with black plating on the surface. The vertical foil 10 rotates counterclockwise on the drawing, and is arranged so as to partially enter the horizontal foil 20 in the diametrical direction of the horizontal foil 20 as shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, the horizontal foil 20 is formed in a flat circular can shape and is made of black synthetic resin. The horizontal foil 20 rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2 in synchronization with the vertical foil 10 so that the arrangement position in the vertical direction can be adjusted. In addition, a large number of intake holes 22 opened on the upper surface of the rim portion 21 that is a ring are formed at equal intervals. Since the upper surface of the rim portion 21 is flat and does not depend on the processing accuracy of the vertical foil 10, it is easy to ensure the required finishing accuracy. As described above, synthetic resin is used as the material for the horizontal foil 20. It is used. Therefore, it can be manufactured at low cost. In addition, if it is a synthetic resin, there also exists an advantage that it can reduce that the workpiece | work 100 gets damaged.

  In FIG. 1, a large number of suction portions 11 for sucking and holding a workpiece are provided on the peripheral surface portion of a vertical foil 10. The workpiece is supplied by a feeder (not shown) at the position P1 which is the uppermost point of the vertical foil 10, and is sucked and held by the sucking unit 11. Then, at the position P <b> 2 slightly rotated and raised from the lowest point of the vertical foil 10, the suction holding by the suction unit 11 is released and transferred to the horizontal foil 20.

  FIG. 3A shows an enlarged view of the suction portion 11 at the position P1 in FIG. Here, the suction portion 11 is orthogonal to the placement surface 12 on which the work 100 shown by a one-dot chain line is placed, the placement surface 12 where the intake hole 14 is opened, and the one surface of the work 100 is supported. An L-shaped groove formed with the support surface 13 is formed. The placement surface 12 on which the workpiece 100 is placed is inclined 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane at a position P1 in FIG.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, a non-vibrating guide 30 formed in an L-shaped cross section for guiding the workpiece 100 supplied by the feeder to the suction portion 11 is located at the position P1. When the suction part 11 is stopped, it is arranged close to the suction part 11 in parallel. And when the adsorption | suction part 11 stops in the position P1, the mounting surface 31 which mounts the workpiece | work 100 in the guide 30 exists on the same plane as the mounting surface 12 of the adsorption | suction part 11, and one surface of the workpiece | work 100 is shown. The supporting surface 32 to be supported is on the same plane as the supporting surface 13 of the suction unit 11. Therefore, the placement surface 31 of the guide 30 is inclined by 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane as in the case of the suction portion 11 as shown in FIG.

  In addition, since the cross-sectional shape of the guide 30 is not a concave shape but an L shape, even a workpiece 101 having a size and shape as indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. . That is, it has a degree of freedom with respect to the workpiece 101 having a size and shape within the approximate range. This is the same even in the suction part 11 formed in the L-shaped groove. Further, when the cross-sectional shape of the guide is concave, when the workpiece 100 rotates and the corners come into contact with the inner wall of the guide, the workpiece 100 is pressed in that state, and may be damaged or destroyed. However, if it is formed in an L-shaped cross section, such a drawback is eliminated.

  4A is an enlarged view showing the positional relationship between the suction portion 11 and the horizontal foil 20 at a position P2 (FIG. 1) where the workpiece 100 is transferred from the vertical foil 10 to the horizontal foil 20. FIG. At the position P2, the suction portion 11 of the vertical foil 10 has a predetermined distance from the intake hole 22 formed in the rim portion 21 of the lower horizontal foil 20 for each one-step rotation of the vertical foil 10 and the horizontal foil 20. Are facing each other.

  That is, for each one-step rotation of the vertical foil 10 and the horizontal foil 20, the workpiece 100 indicated by a one-dot chain line is released from the suction holding by the suction portion 11 at this position P2, and as shown in FIG. The air is transferred to the horizontal foil 20 by the intake air through the intake holes 22 formed in the rim portion 21. The distance between the suction portion 11 and the rim portion 21 of the horizontal foil 20 can be appropriately adjusted by changing the arrangement position of the horizontal foil 20 in the vertical direction according to the size of the workpiece 100.

  When the workpiece 100 is conveyed by the workpiece conveyance device according to the present invention configured as described above, as described above, first, the workpiece 100 is moved at the position P1 (FIG. 1) which is the uppermost point of the vertical foil 10. Supply to vertical foil 10. That is, the workpiece 100 supplied by the feeder is guided by the guide 30 (FIG. 3B) and moves onto the placement surface 12 (FIG. 3A) of the suction unit 11.

  At that time, the mounting surface 31 of the guide 30 is inclined 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane. As a result, since the workpiece 100 is pressed against the support surface 32 of the guide 30 by its own weight, the workpiece 100 falls from the guide 30 even if the cross-sectional shape of the guide 30 is formed in an L shape instead of a concave shape. There is nothing. Therefore, the workpiece 100 having a larger size and a larger weight does not fall from the guide 30.

  The work 100 guided by the guide 30 and moved onto the placement surface 12 of the suction portion 11 is sucked and held by suction through the suction holes 14 opening in the placement surface 12. Even in this case, since the mounting surface 12 of the suction unit 11 is inclined by 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane, the workpiece 100 is sucked and held while being pressed against the support surface 13 of the suction unit 11 by its own weight. The

  Thereafter, the work 100 sucked and held by the sucking unit 11 is conveyed downward by the rotating vertical foil 10. Then, when reaching the position P2 in FIG. 1, the intake air through the intake hole 14 is released. At the same time, the work 100 is sucked and held by the rim portion 21 of the horizontal foil 20 by the intake air through the intake hole 22 opened on the upper surface of the rim portion 21 of the horizontal foil 20, and is discharged from the apparatus when it reaches a predetermined position. Is done.

  If the appearance inspection of the workpiece 100 is performed in the process in which the workpiece 100 is conveyed by the vertical foil 10 and the horizontal foil 20 as described above, the six surfaces A to F of the workpiece 100 shown in FIG. Imaging is performed by the imaging means. That is, the four surfaces A to C, E of the workpiece 100 are arranged at four positions respectively in a predetermined position in the process in which the workpiece 100 is conveyed by the vertical foil 10, as shown in FIG. Images are picked up by the image pickup means, and two of the surfaces A and E are picked up from the direction indicated by the arrows, and the other two surfaces B and C are picked up from the direction perpendicular to the paper surface.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5C, the remaining two surfaces D and F of the workpiece 100 are two arranged at predetermined positions in the process of being conveyed by the horizontal foil 20, respectively. Images are taken from the directions indicated by the arrows by the imaging means.

  In the above, the placement surface 12 (FIG. 3A) on which the work 100 is placed of the suction portion 11 provided on the peripheral surface portion of the vertical foil 10 is in the horizontal plane at the position P <b> 1 that is the highest point of the vertical foil 10. The case where it is inclined 15 degrees relative to the above has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can be applied when the position P1 is inclined at 5 to 30 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane.

  Moreover, the case where a synthetic resin was used as a raw material of the horizontal foil 20 was demonstrated. The vertical foil 10 is provided with a large number of L-shaped groove adsorbing portions 11 for adsorbing fine workpieces 100 on the peripheral surface portion, and therefore it is difficult to ensure high finishing accuracy using synthetic resin. On the other hand, the horizontal foil 20 has a flat upper surface of the rim portion 21 that adsorbs the workpiece 100 and can easily ensure the required accuracy. Therefore, the cost is reduced by using a synthetic resin as the material. Is.

  However, the present invention is not limited to the case where a synthetic resin is used as the material for the horizontal foil 20. The present invention can also be applied when a metal (for example, aluminum) is used.

  Furthermore, the case where the shape of the horizontal foil 20 is formed in a flat circular can shape and the intake holes 22 are formed in the rim portion 21 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In addition, the present invention can also be applied to, for example, a disk shape and an intake hole formed in the peripheral edge portion.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a configuration of the workpiece transfer device according to the present invention, with a part cut away and displayed in cross-section. It is a top view of the workpiece conveyance apparatus shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the position P1 shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the position P2 shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the external appearance inspection of a workpiece | work. It is a front view which shows the structure of a prior art example. It is an enlarged view of the position P1 shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the external appearance inspection of a workpiece | work. It is an enlarged view of the position P2 shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Vertical foil 11 Suction part 12 Placement surface 13 Support surface 14 Intake hole 20 Horizontal foil 21 Rim part 22 Intake hole 30 Guide 31 Placement surface 32 Support surface 60a, 60b Vertical foil 61a, 61b Suction part 62a, 62b Intake hole 70 Guide 100, 101 Workpiece A to F surface S Reference position

Claims (4)

A large number of suction portions (11) formed in L-shaped grooves for sucking and holding the workpieces (100, 101) are provided at equal intervals on the peripheral surface portion, and arranged in the vertical direction for transporting the workpiece. Vertical foil (10),
A horizontal foil in which a number of intake holes (21) for adsorbing and holding the work for transferring and transporting the work carried by the vertical foil are disposed in the horizontal direction and open on the upper surface of the peripheral edge. (20) and
A work conveying apparatus comprising: a guide (30) formed in an L-shaped cross section for guiding the supply of the work to the plurality of suction portions provided at the peripheral edge of the vertical foil.   A placement surface (12) for placing the workpiece in the suction portion is inclined by 5 to 30 degrees with respect to a horizontal plane at the uppermost point (P1) of the vertical foil, and the workpiece is placed on the guide. The workpiece transfer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the surface (31) is inclined by 5 to 30 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane.   The work conveying apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a material of the horizontal foil is a synthetic resin. The work conveying apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the synthetic resin is black.

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