JP2003078289A - Nozzle operating method for component mounting apparatus and component mounting method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a nozzle operating method for a component mounting apparatus in which the arrangement of a nozzle is changed when the kind of a product is changed over, in such a way that the nozzle can be replaced automatically and in the small number of times of a replacement operation, and to provide a component mounting method so that the quality of the product is stabilized and that the mounting efficiency of a component can be enhanced. SOLUTION: In the nozzle operating method for the component mounting apparatus, a plurality of kinds of nozzles are mounted on a nozzle station, and the nozzle adapted to the component to be mounted is used so as to be mounted on a mounting head selectively from the nozzle station. In the component mounting method which uses the nozzle operating method, the arrangement of the nozzles mounted on the nozzle station is automatically changed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a nozzle operating method and a component mounting method for a component mounting apparatus for automatically mounting electronic components and the like sucked and held by a nozzle onto a substrate, and particularly, to improve nozzle replacement efficiency of a plurality of types. Regarding technology to enhance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a component mounting apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 11 for automatically mounting various components on a board. The component mounting apparatus 1 has a mounting head 5 that is freely moved by an XY robot 3 in XY directions parallel to the substrate surface. The mounting head 5 is equipped with a plurality of nozzles 7 that suction-hold components. The mounting head 5 drives the XY robot 3 to transfer the components held by the nozzles 7 from the component supply cassette 9 onto the substrate for mounting. In the component mounting apparatus 1, such mounting operation is controlled based on a mounting program, and the same mounting operation is repeated for boards having the same specifications, thereby enabling mass production of the product 11 to be a component mounting board.

By the way, since there are various forms of parts to be mounted on the product, the nozzles 7 for holding the parts are also various corresponding to the kind of parts. Therefore, the mounting head 5 moves to the nozzle station 13 in which a plurality of nozzles 7 are arranged, corresponding to the component type in the mounting order controlled by the mounting program, and replaces it with a predetermined nozzle 7. The mounting head 5, which has been replaced with the predetermined nozzle, moves onto the component supply cassette 9 and suction-holds the component. Next, the mounting head 5 moves each nozzle 7 onto the recognition camera 15 to recognize the suction posture of the held component. Next, the board is moved to the board and each component is sequentially mounted at a specified mounting position.
The mounting angle of each component is set. Further, the component may need to be corrected depending on the suction posture recognized by the recognition camera 15. For this reason,
The mounting head 5 rotationally drives each nozzle 7 and corrects the movement to a predetermined position.

The nozzle station 13 provided in the component mounting apparatus 1 is equipped with a plurality of types of nozzles 7.
Therefore, the product 11 on which the components corresponding to the mounted nozzles 7 are mounted can be continuously mounted even when a plurality of types of components are mounted. Furthermore, the component mounting apparatus 1
By changing the nozzle 7, the type of the product 11 can be switched, and a wide variety of products can be continuously produced. As described above, in the component mounting apparatus 1, since the nozzles 7 are exchanged according to the product 11, the required nozzles 7 are arranged in the nozzle station 13 to improve the component mounting efficiency.

[0005]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the past,
Nozzle replacement at the nozzle station is performed manually, and since it is difficult to visually determine the difference in nozzles, there is a risk that misplacement may occur and this may cause defective product production. In addition, the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station is often fixed and used in a fixed array pattern, and the number of nozzle replacements increases depending on the type of product,
There was a problem that the component mounting efficiency was lowered.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and when changing the type of product, the nozzle arrangement is changed automatically so that the nozzle can be replaced with a small number of replacements. An object of the present invention is to provide an operation method and a component mounting method, thereby stabilizing the quality of a manufactured product and improving the component mounting efficiency.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a nozzle mounting method for a component mounting apparatus according to the present invention. A nozzle operating method of a component mounting apparatus, wherein the nozzle is selectively mounted on a mounting head from the nozzle station for use, wherein the arrangement of the nozzles mounted on the nozzle station is automatically changed. .

In this nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus,
Since the arrangement of the nozzles installed in the nozzle station is automatically changed, the nozzle arrangement can be set accurately for multiple production types, and the number of replacements can be reduced, resulting in markedly improved component mounting efficiency in the component mounting device. Can be improved.

A nozzle operating method of a component mounting apparatus according to a second aspect is characterized in that the arrangement of nozzles in the nozzle station is changed while the production type is being switched.

In the nozzle operating method of this component mounting apparatus,
When different component mounting devices produce different product types, when switching from the product currently being produced to the product to be produced next, the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station is changed to the optimum nozzle arrangement for the next product at the same time. It Therefore, the apparatus interruption time for switching the production type is effectively used, and the production time does not increase due to the nozzle arrangement exchange.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a nozzle operating method for a component mounting apparatus, wherein a predetermined one of nozzles mounted on the nozzle station is sucked onto the mounting head, and the sucked nozzle is set to the sucked position on the nozzle station. Is mounted in different positions to replace the nozzles, and the replacement operation is repeated to change the arrangement of the nozzles to a desired arrangement.

In the nozzle operating method of this component mounting apparatus,
By using the nozzle mounting head of the mounting head and changing the nozzle between this head and the nozzle station, the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station can be freely changed by effectively using only the existing mechanism. Become.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a nozzle operating method for a component mounting apparatus, which extracts a combination placement plan of nozzles sucked and held by a mounting head at the time of mounting a component, and indicates the number of times of nozzle replacement at the time of component mounting of each of the placement plans extracted. In comparison, the arrangement plan that minimizes the number of nozzle replacements is set as the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station.

In the nozzle operating method of this component mounting apparatus,
From the multiple nozzle combinations required when mounting components,
An arrangement plan of nozzle combinations in which common ones are divided into groups is extracted. The number of nozzle replacements required when actually mounting the components is calculated for each layout plan by simulation. Based on the calculation result, the number of times of nozzle replacement of each placement plan is compared, and the nozzle placement plan that minimizes the number of times of nozzle exchange is set as the nozzle placement of the nozzle station. This allows the nozzle stations to be set for optimized nozzle placement.

The component mounting method according to claim 5 is the method according to claim 1.
The nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station is set based on the nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 4, and the component is mounted by the set nozzle arrangement.

In this component mounting method, since the arrangement of the nozzles mounted on the nozzle station is automatically changed based on each nozzle operation method, the nozzle arrangement can be set accurately for a plurality of production types. Moreover, the number of nozzle replacements can be reduced, and the component mounting efficiency in the component mounting apparatus can be significantly improved.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Preferred embodiments of a nozzle operating method and a component mounting method according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing a procedure of a first embodiment of a nozzle operating method according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a mounting head and a nozzle station used in the present invention, and FIG. Explanatory drawing showing the number of times of nozzle replacement, FIG. 4 shows product type B
It is an explanatory view showing the number of times of nozzle replacement for each nozzle arrangement for.

The mounting head 21 shown in FIG. 2 is supplied with a parts feeder (not shown) to which relatively small electronic parts such as a resistor chip and a chip capacitor are supplied, or a relatively large electronic parts such as an IC and a connector. A desired electronic component is supplied from a parts tray (not shown)
Are simultaneously adsorbed by and are mounted at a predetermined position on a circuit board (not shown). The mounting operation of such electronic components is controlled based on a preset mounting program of the component mounting apparatus.

The mounting head 21 is a portable type in which a plurality (four in the present embodiment) of heads (first head a, second head b, third head c, fourth head d) are connected side by side. It is configured as a head. Nozzle 2 for each mounting head
3 is replaceable, and the other nozzles are housed in advance in the nozzle station 25 of the component mounting apparatus. Nozzle 23
Is, for example, an S size nozzle that adsorbs a minute chip component of about 1.0 × 0.5 mm, an M size nozzle that adsorbs a 18 mm square QFP, and an L that adsorbs a larger component.
There is a size nozzle or the like, and it is selected from the nozzle station 25 according to the type of electronic component to be mounted.

In the component mounting apparatus, when the circuit board carried in from the loader section is conveyed to a predetermined mounting position, the mounting head 21 moves to adsorb a desired electronic component from the parts feeder or the parts tray, and the circuit board. The electronic parts are mounted at the predetermined positions. Prior to this mounting operation, each head a,
The nozzles b, c, and d are prepared for the mounting operation by exchanging the nozzle 23 according to the type of electronic component.

In the nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to the present embodiment, the nozzles of each size accommodated in the nozzle station 25 are set in an optimum arrangement to reduce the number of times of nozzle replacement and mount the component in the component mounting apparatus. It increases efficiency.

The change of the nozzle arrangement is carried out during the switching of the production type. That is, when the component mounting apparatus produces different product types, when switching from the product currently being produced to the product to be produced next, at the same time, the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station is adjusted to the optimum nozzle arrangement for the next product. To change. Therefore, the apparatus interruption time for switching the production type is effectively used, and the production time does not increase due to the nozzle arrangement exchange.

As a procedure for selecting the optimum nozzle arrangement, a virtual nozzle pattern is set a plurality of times using a simulator which is a computing means such as a computer, and the number of times of nozzle replacement is set for each set virtual pattern. It is determined whether the number of times of replacement increases or decreases, and as a result, nozzle replacement is performed in a virtual pattern when the number of times of nozzle replacement decreases.

That is, as shown in FIG. 1, first, the number of times of nozzle replacement by a nozzle arrangement arbitrarily set in the nozzle station is calculated by simulation (step 1, hereinafter abbreviated as S1). Then, the number of repetitive processes (the first time is 1) is a predetermined set number N (for example, N = 1).
(About 0000 times) or more (S2). When the number of times of repeating processing is less than N, the positions of two arbitrarily selected nozzles among the nozzles of the nozzle station are replaced (S3). Then, the number of times of nozzle replacement in this case is calculated by simulation (S4). And
It is determined whether or not the number of nozzle replacements due to this replaced nozzle arrangement is smaller than the number of nozzle replacements due to the original nozzle arrangement (S5). That is, it is determined whether or not the number of nozzle replacements required when executing a predetermined mounting program is reduced by the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station in which the two nozzles are replaced.

If the result of determination is that the number of nozzle replacements has decreased from the arrangement state before replacement of nozzles, the replacement of nozzles performed in S3 is accepted (S6), and the positions of the two selected nozzles are set in the nozzle station. Replace with nozzle placement. On the other hand, if the result of determination is that the number of nozzle replacements has not decreased, nozzle replacement is not performed. In this way, when the positions of two arbitrarily selected nozzles are interchanged, this interchangement is repeatedly performed only when the number of times of nozzle exchanges is reduced, so that the set number of times N is finally determined. A nozzle arrangement with the smallest number of nozzle replacements can be obtained.

Explaining a concrete example of this nozzle replacement, for example, when the nozzles of the production type A shown in FIG. 3 are replaced by the old arrangement of the nozzle stations shown in FIG. The number of times. If the nozzles are replaced with the optimized new arrangement shown in the same figure, the replacement will be completed by a total of two nozzle replacements.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, in the case of the product type B, if the nozzle station of the old arrangement shown in FIG. 3 is used, it is necessary to replace the nozzle 7 times in total, and the new arrangement shown in FIG. When using, the nozzle needs to be replaced four times in total. On the other hand, if the nozzles are replaced with the latest arrangement shown in FIG. 4 in which the nozzle arrangement is further optimized, the replacement will be completed by a total of two nozzle replacements.

As described above, by optimizing the nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station 25 based on the operation method of the present nozzle, it is possible to greatly reduce the number of times of nozzle replacement, and as a result, mount the component on the circuit board. The efficiency can be significantly improved. Further, in this method, since a simple operation of selecting and exchanging arbitrary two nozzles is repeated, the algorithm is changed for any number of nozzle combinations as compared with the case of constructing a complicated algorithm. It can be applied without any need and can be versatile.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the nozzle operating method of the present embodiment, and FIG. 6 shows the nozzle arrangement of the product type C (a).
FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing the nozzle arrangement of the product type D in (b).
[Fig. 8] is a schematic view showing a nozzle arrangement in a nozzle replacement process in the second embodiment.

The nozzle operating method according to the present embodiment automatically determines the nozzle placement by the component mounting device when the placement of the nozzles 23 in the nozzle station 25 of the current production type C and the next production type D to be produced is different. It can be changed to. This change of the nozzle arrangement is performed during the production type switching.

As shown in FIG. 5, when producing a product type C and a product type D, the component mounting apparatus first reads the mounting program for the product type C (S21) and stores it (S22). Next, the production of the product type C is started (S
23), the production of the product type C is finished (S24).

Next, the mounting program for the product type D is read (S25) and stored (S26). On this occasion,
The current nozzle arrangement and the nozzle arrangement of the production type D are compared (S27). When the arrangement is different, the nozzle arrangement is automatically exchanged (S28), and then the production of the production type D is started (S29). On the other hand, when the arrangements are the same, the production of the product type D is started using the nozzle station 25 having the similar nozzle arrangement (S29).

Here, the automatic replacement of the nozzle arrangement using the component mounting apparatus in S28 will be described in more detail. The arrangement of the nozzles 23 in the nozzle station 25 for the production type C and the production type D is, for example, as shown in FIG.
It is assumed that they are as shown in (a) and (b). The nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station 25 at the end of production of the product type C is the nozzle arrangement of the product type C as shown in FIG. For convenience of explanation, the horizontal arrangement of the nozzles 23 in the nozzle station 25 will be referred to as a row, and the vertical arrangement will be referred to as a column.

First, as shown in FIG. 7B, the component mounting apparatus sucks and holds the nozzles S, S of the second and fourth rows in the first row of the nozzle station 25 on the heads a, c. Next, as shown in FIG. 7C, the nozzles M, M in the second and fourth columns in the second row are suction-held on the heads b, d. Next, as shown in FIG. 7D, heads b and d
The nozzles M, M adsorbed and held by the nozzle station 2
Set them in the second and fourth columns of the first row of No. 5. Next, as shown in FIG. 7E, the nozzle station 25
The nozzles L, L in the first and third columns in the third row of are adsorbed and held on the heads b, d. Next, as shown in FIG. 7 (f), the nozzles S, S suction-held by the heads a, c are held.
The first column in the third row of the nozzle station 25,
Set in the third row. Next, as shown in FIG.
The nozzles L, L sucked and held by the heads b, d are set in the second and fourth columns of the second row of the nozzle station 25.

As a result, the product type C shown in FIG.
This means that the nozzle arrangement of can be automatically changed to the nozzle arrangement of the product type D shown in FIG. That is, according to the nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to the present embodiment, a predetermined one of the nozzles 23 mounted on the nozzle station 25 is sucked by the mounting head 21, and the sucked nozzle 23 is different from the suction position at the nozzle station 25. It is possible to change the arrangement of the nozzles 23 to a desired arrangement by mounting the nozzles at a position, replacing the nozzles 23, and repeating this replacement operation.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the nozzle operating method of the present embodiment, FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing nozzles attached to the mounting head for each same pattern, and FIG. 10 shows an extraction nozzle pattern (a) and a maximum number of nozzles ( FIG. 7B is an explanatory diagram showing the nozzle placement plan in FIG. 7C and the extraction nozzle placement plan in FIG.

In the nozzle operating method according to this embodiment, the nozzle station 2 is designed to minimize the number of nozzle replacements.
The nozzle arrangement in No. 5 is automatically set optimally. For example, in the component mounting apparatus, it is assumed that the mounting head changes the nozzle pattern shown in FIG. 9 in the mounting order (1 to 20) when producing a predetermined product type.

In this case, first, the same nozzle patterns O to O shown in FIG.
T is extracted (S31). Next, as shown in FIG. 10B, the maximum number of nozzles in each of the nozzle patterns O to T is calculated (S32). Then, as shown in FIG. 10C, the nozzle patterns O to T are combined to create a nozzle arrangement plan for the nozzle station 25 (S3).
3).

The number of nozzles used in each nozzle arrangement plan thus created is calculated. In the example of this embodiment, the placement plans 11 and 14 shown in FIG.
Since the required number of nozzles set in (S32) is satisfied, it is extracted as a nozzle placement plan (S34). Next, the number of times of nozzle replacement of each extracted nozzle arrangement plan is calculated using a simulator that artificially operates the equipment operation to obtain (S35). In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG.
In the nozzle arrangement plan 14, the number of times of nozzle replacement is 14 times. Finally, the number of times of replacement calculated in S35 is compared, and the placement plan of the nozzle station 25 that minimizes the number of times of nozzle replacement, that is, the nozzle placement plan 12, is selected (S36).

As a result, the nozzle station 25
This means that the nozzle arrangement plan that minimizes the number of nozzle replacements can be selected. Therefore, by using this nozzle arrangement plan, the number of times of nozzle replacement can be minimized in the mounting order shown in FIG.

[0041]

As described in detail above, according to the nozzle operating method and the component mounting method of the component mounting apparatus according to the present invention, since the arrangement of the nozzles mounted in the nozzle station is automatically changed, a plurality of nozzles can be installed. The nozzles can be accurately arranged in the product type, the number of times of nozzle replacement can be reduced, and the component mounting efficiency in the component mounting apparatus can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a first embodiment of a nozzle operating method according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a mounting head and a nozzle station used in the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the number of times of nozzle replacement for each nozzle arrangement for the product type A.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the number of times of nozzle replacement for each nozzle arrangement for the product type B.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a nozzle operating method according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing the nozzle arrangement of the product type C in (a) and the nozzle arrangement of the product type in (b).

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a nozzle arrangement in a nozzle replacement process according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a nozzle operating method according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing nozzles attached to a mounting head for each of the same patterns.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an extraction nozzle pattern in (a), a maximum number of nozzles in (b), a nozzle placement plan in (c), and an extraction nozzle placement plan in (d).

FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a component mounting apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

21 mounting head 23 nozzles 25 nozzle station a, b, c, d heads

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Ikuo Yoshida             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Maenishi             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 5E313 AA03 AA15 AA23 CC03 EE24                       EE25 EE34

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A nozzle operating method of a component mounting apparatus, wherein a plurality of types of nozzles are mounted on a nozzle station, and the nozzles suitable for mounting components are selectively mounted on a mounting head from the nozzle station and used. A nozzle operating method for a component mounting apparatus, wherein the arrangement of the nozzles mounted on the nozzle station is automatically changed. 2. The nozzle operating method for a component mounting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle arrangement in the nozzle station is changed during the production type switching. 3. A predetermined nozzle mounted on the nozzle station is sucked onto the mounting head, and the sucked nozzle is mounted on a position different from the sucked position of the nozzle station to replace the nozzle. The nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the arrangement of the nozzles is changed to a desired arrangement by repeating the replacement operation. 4. A combination arrangement plan of nozzles suction-held to a mounting head at the time of component mounting is extracted, and the number of nozzle replacements at the time of component mounting of each of the extracted layout plans is compared, and the arrangement having the minimum number of nozzle replacements is arranged. The nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plan is set as a nozzle arrangement of the nozzle station. 5. A nozzle arrangement of a nozzle station is set based on the nozzle operating method of the component mounting apparatus according to claim 1, and the component is mounted by this set nozzle arrangement. A component mounting method characterized by the above.