JP2005005475A - Surface mounter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain information from a feeder when the feeder is fixed to the mounter body, thereby lessening the burden on the controller in the mounter body significantly and shortening the information processing time. <P>SOLUTION: Feeder installation region 3 of the mounter body 1 is sectioned into a plurality of areas 3a-3d and each area is arranged with a given number of antennas 21 corresponding to the number of feeders 5 being installed in that area. Each area 3a-3d is provided with one control board 23 for reading feeder information received by the antenna 21 and for discriminating/storing the feeder information. The control board 23 is connected with each antenna 21 and a mounter controller 25 can communicate with each control board 23. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a surface mounter in which a large number of feeders are detachably attached to a feeder installation region of a mounter body.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, surface mounters equipped with a number of feeders in a detachable manner in a feeder installation area of a mounting machine body, for example, detachably equipped with a plurality of rows of tape feeders are generally known. In this general type of mounting machine, the operator has visually confirmed what kind of component is accommodated in the feeder installation area, but such confirmation work is complicated. In addition, there is a risk of a confirmation error.
[0003]
Therefore, recently, a technology has been developed that allows the feeder itself to have information about the feeder and the components accommodated in the feeder, and that the information is given to the mounting machine body when the feeder is attached to the mounting machine body. It is coming.
[0004]
For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a feeder is provided with a storage unit that stores a feeder ID, component information, and the like, and a connection terminal unit that enables transmission and reception of information stored in the storage unit. In addition, a terminal corresponding to the connection terminal section and a controller (computer) coupled to the terminal are provided. When the feeder is mounted on the mounting machine body, the feeder connection terminal section contacts the mounting machine body terminal. In this state, it is known that the controller can directly communicate with the storage unit of the feeder.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-11-317595 [0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the conventional structure as shown in the above publication, the controller provided in the mounting machine main body communicates directly with each of the feeders attached to the mounting machine main body, and the controller sequentially reads information from each feeder. When the number of feeders attached to the mounting machine body is large, the amount of information processed by the controller increases significantly, increasing the burden on the controller and increasing the time required for information processing. There are inconveniences.
[0007]
In view of these points, the present invention greatly reduces the burden on the controller in the mounting machine body while allowing information to be obtained from the feeder when the feeder is attached to the mounting machine body, and reduces information processing time. The object is to provide a surface mounter that can be shortened.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the present invention, a number of feeders for supplying mounting components are detachably installed in a feeder installation area of a mounting machine body, and the recording for recording information on at least one of the feeders and the components accommodated in each of the feeders. In the surface mounting machine in which the receiving means for receiving information from the recording unit is provided in the feeder installation area of the mounting machine body, the feeder installation area of the mounting machine body is divided into a plurality of sections. In each area, a predetermined number of receiving means corresponding to the number of feeders installed in the area are arranged, and control for reading and determining and storing information received by the receiving means A board is provided for each of the above-mentioned areas, and each control board and the controller for mounting machine control can communicate with each other. A.
[0009]
According to this structure, the information regarding a feeder and the components accommodated in each feeder installed in the feeder installation area is given and received by the receiving means. Then, after the information is read, discriminated and stored by the control board for each area, only the necessary information is given to the controller from each control board, so the controller communicates directly with each feeder. Compared with the case where it does, the information processing amount of a controller reduces and the burden of a controller is eased.
[0010]
In addition, since information processing is performed in parallel by the control boards provided for the respective areas, the information processing time is shortened.
[0011]
In the surface mounter of the present invention, a batch exchanging carriage equipped with a plurality of feeders is detachably mounted on the mounting machine main body, and the collective exchanging cart is configured to occupy a part of the feeder installation area of the mounting machine main body. In this case, the collective exchange cart is provided with a group of receiving means and a control board electrically connected to each receiving means, and at least the control board of the collective exchange cart and the mounting machine main body. It is preferable that a communication unit is provided between the controller and the controller so that the control board and the controller can communicate with each other when the collective exchange cart is mounted on the mounting machine body.
[0012]
In this way, when the collective exchanging cart is mounted on the mounting machine body, communication is possible between the control board of the collective exchanging cart and the controller. Even if the batch exchanging carriage is attached to or detached from the mounting machine body with the power on, the device on the control board is not adversely affected.
[0013]
The recording unit is preferably capable of wireless communication, and the receiving means is preferably an antenna.
[0014]
Furthermore, each area of the feeder installation area is provided with a plurality of antenna boards each integrally provided with a plurality of antennas and an antenna communication control circuit for controlling communication between these antennas and the control board. It is preferable that the plurality of antenna boards and the control board are electrically connected.
[0015]
In this way, information processing time can be further shortened by performing processing such as reading and communicating information from the feeder in each area in a shared manner by the plurality of antenna boards.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0017]
FIG. 1 schematically shows a surface mounter according to an embodiment of the present invention. In these drawings, on the base of the mounting machine main body 1, a printed circuit board conveying conveyor 2 is arranged, and the printed circuit board P is conveyed on the conveyor 2 and stops at a predetermined mounting work position. ing.
[0018]
Feeder installation areas 3 are provided on both sides of the front and rear (left and right in FIG. 1) of the conveyor 2, and feeder installation plates 4 are provided in the feeder installation areas 3 in parallel with the conveyor 2. A large number of feeders for supplying mounting components are detachably attached to these feeder attachment plates 4, and in the illustrated example, a large number of tape feeders 5 are detachably attached in parallel and positioned. It has been.
[0019]
Also, a part of the feeder installation area 3 is equipped with a batch exchanging cart 6, and in the example shown in the figure, the bulk exchanging carriage 6 is installed in one half of the feeder installation area 3 on the front side (right side in FIG. 1). Yes. The batch exchanging carriage 6 has a feeder mounting plate 4 that detachably holds a plurality of tape feeders 5 arranged in parallel, and has a wheel (not shown) at a lower end portion, and a plurality of tape feeders. The trolley can be attached to and detached from the mounting machine main body 1 in a state where is mounted. In addition, the feeder attachment plate 4 is fixedly provided in the other part of the feeder installation area 3, and the tape feeder 5 is directly attached.
[0020]
A head unit 8 is provided above the base, and the head unit 8 can move in the X-axis direction (direction parallel to the conveyor 2) and the Y-axis direction (direction orthogonal to the conveyor 2 in FIG. 1). It can be done.
[0021]
In other words, the support member 10 of the head unit 8 is disposed on the base of the mounting machine body 1 so as to be movable on the fixed rail 11 in the Y-axis direction, and the head unit 8 is placed on the support member 10 in the X-axis direction guide member ( (Not shown) is supported so as to be movable. The Y-axis servo motor 12 moves the support member 10 in the Y-axis direction via the ball screw 13, and the X-axis servo motor 14 moves the head unit 8 in the X-axis direction via the ball screw 15. It is supposed to be done.
[0022]
A plurality of component mounting heads 16 are mounted on the head unit 8, and in this embodiment, eight heads 16 are arranged in a line in the X-axis direction. Each of these heads 16 has a suction nozzle (not shown) at the tip, and can suck parts by a suction force by a negative pressure supplied to this suction nozzle.
[0023]
In the surface mounter having the schematic structure as described above, each tape feeder 5 is provided with a recording unit for recording information on at least one of the tape feeder and the components accommodated therein. In this embodiment, wireless communication is possible. A wireless tag 20 which is a simple recording unit is provided. The wireless tag 20 is called RFID (radio frequency identification), and records information on an IC in a rewritable manner and can communicate wirelessly.
[0024]
In the wireless tag 20, for example, the type of feeder, a unique number (feeder identification symbol), the type of parts accommodated in the feeder, the remaining number, and the like are written. Also, a history regarding the feeder (for example, information such as how many parts have been supplied and what kind of error has occurred) can be stored. The information recorded in the wireless tag 20 may be only the feeder identification symbol or only the identification symbol of the component accommodated in the feeder. In this case, the type of component, the remaining number, and the like may be written in a memory provided on the control board 23 and the like, which will be described later, in association with the identification symbol of the feeder or component, so that collation can be performed.
[0025]
On the other hand, an antenna 21 as a receiving means for receiving information from the wireless tag 20 is disposed in the feeder installation area 3 of the mounting machine body 1. Further, a circuit for processing a signal obtained by the antenna 21 is provided in the mounting machine body 1.
[0026]
These configurations will be specifically described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5.
[0027]
FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view mainly showing an electric system for signal processing and control. As shown in this figure, the feeder installation area 3 of the mounting machine main body 1 is divided into a plurality of areas, and the control board 23 that reads and receives information received by the antenna 21 for each of the areas to determine and store the information. Are provided one by one. In the illustrated embodiment, the feeder installation region 3 is divided into four zones 3a to 3d, two on the front side and the back side, and the number of tape feeders 5 installed in each zone 3a to 3d. A predetermined number (for example, 25) of antennas 21 corresponding to the number of antennas 21 are arranged so as to correspond to the wireless tags 20 of the tape feeders 5, and four control boards 23 are provided corresponding to the areas 3 a to 3 d. Is provided.
[0028]
A predetermined number of antennas 21 are electrically connected to each control board for each of the sections 3a to 3d, and each control board 23 is electrically connected to one controller 25 that performs various controls of the mounting machine. Has been.
[0029]
The antenna 21 and a circuit connected to the antenna 21 will be described in more detail. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a plurality of antenna substrates 22 are provided in each of the sections 3 a to 3 d of the feeder installation region 3. The antenna board 22 includes a plurality of (for example, ten) antennas 21 corresponding to a part of a predetermined number of antennas 21 to be arranged in one area, and communication for controlling communication of these antennas 21. The control circuit 22a and the external communication interface 22b are integrally formed. For example, the antenna 21 is formed on the substrate surface side by printed wiring, and the communication control circuit 22a and the external communication interface 22b are provided on the back surface side of the substrate. It has been.
[0030]
When the antenna substrate 22 is embedded in the feeder mounting plate 4 so as to face upward from the upper surface of the feeder mounting plate 4, the tape feeder 5 is attached to the feeder mounting plate 4. The wireless tag 20 and the antenna 21 are configured to be capable of transmitting and receiving correspondingly.
[0031]
The control board 23 includes a microcomputer 23 a, an external communication interface 23 b for communication with the antenna board 22, and an external communication interface 23 c for communication with the controller 25. The control board 23 is assembled to the mounting machine main body 1 (or the collective exchange cart 6) below the feeder mounting plate 4, and a plurality of antenna boards 22 and control boards 23 are provided between the external interfaces 22b and 23b in each area. The communication line 24 is connected.
[0032]
Then, the feeder information received by the antenna 21 is sent from the antenna board 22 to the control board 23 by serial communication. At this time, the individual position of each antenna 21 in the area, that is, the feeder mounting position can be determined by switching the communication circuit. The feeder information, feeder attachment position, and the like are stored in the memory of the microcomputer 23a of the control board 23.
[0033]
Further, the controller 25 is also provided with an external communication interface 25a, and the external interface 23a of each control board 23 and the external interface 25a of the controller 25 are connected by a network 26. Then, feeder information and the like are sent from the control board 23 to the controller 25 when necessary (when the feeder is attached or when the feeder is replaced). The controller 25 receives information from the control board 23 and determines which control board 23 the information is sent from. It is determined whether the feeder is attached to the feeder.
[0034]
In addition, the batch exchanging cart 6 occupies one area 3b in the feeder installation area 3. The plurality of antenna boards 22 and the corresponding control board 23 in the area 3b are arranged in the collective exchanging cart 6. Is provided. When the collective exchange cart 23 is mounted on the mounting machine main body 1 between the control board 23 of the collective exchanging cart 6 and the controller 25 of the mounting machine main body, the control board 23 and the controller 25 are electrically connected. Communication means for enabling communication in an insulated state is provided.
[0035]
This communication means is configured as shown in FIG. 5, for example. That is, the transformers 232 and 252 are provided between the communication control ICs 230 and 250 and the contacts 231 and 251 with respect to the communication line in portions corresponding to the external communication interfaces 23b and 25a of the control board 23 and the controller 25. A communication means capable of communicating in an electrically insulated state is configured.
[0036]
Instead of the transformer, electromagnetic inductive coupling, electrolytic coupling, infrared rays, or the like can be used, and the contact can be eliminated by using these. Further, at least communication means capable of communicating in an electrically insulated state may be provided between at least the control board 23 of the collective change cart 6 and the controller 25 of the mounting machine body. However, in the example shown in FIG. Other control boards 23 have the same configuration as that of the control board 23 of the batch exchanging cart 6.
[0037]
According to the mounting machine of the present embodiment as described above, when the tape feeder 5 is attached to the feeder installation area 3 of the mounting machine body 1, the feeder information given from the wireless tag 20 of the tape feeder 5 is transmitted by the antenna 21. It is received and taken into the mounting machine body 1 side.
[0038]
In this case, the control board 23 provided for each of the plurality of sections 3a to 3d of the feeder installation area 3 distributes the processing of feeder information, discriminates, and stores the information for each of the sections 3a to 3d and performs simultaneous parallel processing. Then, only necessary information is sent from each control board 23 to the controller 25. For this reason, compared with the case where the controller communicates directly with each feeder as in the prior art, the information processing amount of the controller 25 is greatly reduced, the burden on the controller 25 is reduced, and the information processing time is shortened.
[0039]
Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a plurality of antenna boards 22 are provided for each of the sections 3a to 3d, and feeder information is sent from the plurality of antenna boards 22 to the control board 23, so that all feeder information is obtained. The communication time required for the communication can be as much as the number of feeders handled by each antenna board 22, and the information processing time is greatly reduced.
[0040]
In addition, a predetermined number of antennas 21 and communication control circuits 22a and the like are integrally formed on the antenna substrate 22, and the antenna substrate 22 and the control substrate 23 which are disposed at relatively close positions are connected so that serial communication is possible. This simplifies the wiring for communication between them. By connecting the control board 23 to the controller 25, the wiring for communication to the controller 25 is reduced and simplified as compared with the case where each antenna is directly connected to the controller.
[0041]
Further, the collective exchange cart 6 is provided with an antenna board 22 and a control board 23 for one area 3b. When the collective exchange cart 6 is mounted on the mounting machine body 1, the control board 23 and the controller of the collective exchange cart 6 are connected. Therefore, the wiring between the collective exchanging cart 6 and the mounting machine body 1 can be easily maintained.
[0042]
By the way, in the case where the means for performing communication is provided in the collective exchanging cart 6 as described above, in the structure in which electrical connection is made between the two when the collective exchanging cart is mounted on the mounting machine body, the collective exchanging cart is kept powered on. If it is attached or detached, an electrical stress is applied to the device on the control board to cause a failure of the device. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to turn off the power supply when the collective exchange cart is attached or detached. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment in which communication means is provided that enables communication in a state in which the control board 23 and the controller 25 are electrically insulated, the collective exchanging cart of the batch exchange cart is kept powered on. Detachment can be performed without any trouble, and there is no loss during setup. In addition, it is possible to work while looking at the screen displaying the setup instruction, so that it is possible to reduce work mistakes.
[0043]
Although the feeder information is always taken into the control board 23, it is only necessary to send it from each control board 23 to the controller 25 only when necessary. For example, a means for notifying the controller 25 when there is a change in the feeder installation state in the feeder installation area 3 is provided, and the controller 25 obtains feeder information from the control board 23 only when notified. It is preferable.
[0044]
An example of processing in the control board 23 and the controller 25 in this case is shown in the flowchart of FIG.
[0045]
The processing shown in this flowchart starts when the power is turned on or when the batch exchanging cart 6 is connected to the mounting machine main body 1. First, the control board 23 clears the information update flag as an initial setting (step S1) and the CPU local memory. Is initialized (step S2).
[0046]
Next, the feeder information is read from the wireless tag 20 of the tape feeder 5 (step S3), and it is determined whether or not the feeder information and the information stored in the CPU local memory are inconsistent (step S4). If the determination is NO, the process returns to step S3 to repeat the reading of the next feeder information and the determination of step S4.
[0047]
If it is determined in step S4 that they do not match, the information in the CPU local memory is updated, that is, the newly read feeder information is stored in the CPU local memory (step S5). Then, the information update flag is set to “1” (step S6). Thereafter, when the information request mail is received from the controller 25 (step S7), the feeder information is stored in the mail transmission buffer from the CPU local memory (step S8). Further, this feeder information is transmitted to the controller 25 (step S9). Then, after clearing the information update flag to “0” (step S10), the process returns to step S3 and the following processing is repeated.
[0048]
On the other hand, the controller 25 first initializes the information storage memory (step S101). Next, the information update flag is constantly monitored to determine whether or not the information update flag is “1” (step S102), and only the determination of this flag is repeated unless the information update flag is set to “1”.
[0049]
If the information update flag becomes “1”, an information request is transmitted to the control board 23 (step S103), and the feeder information sent from the control board 23 is received accordingly (step S104). Then, the received feeder information is stored in the information storage memory (step S105).
[0050]
In this way, when the feeder installation state in the feeder installation area 3 changes, for example, when the tape feeder 5 is replaced, new feeder information is immediately given to the controller 25. When there is no change in the feeder installation state in the feeder installation area 3, the feeder information is processed by the control board 23, but is not unnecessarily transmitted to the controller 25. Accordingly, the burden on the controller 25 is further reduced while ensuring the responsiveness of information processing.
[0051]
In addition, the specific structure of this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various change is possible.
[0052]
For example, in the above embodiment, the wireless tag 20 is provided in the tape feeder 5 and the antenna 21 is provided in the mounting machine main body 1. However, the recording means provided on the feeder side and the receiving means provided on the mounting machine main body side are as described above. For example, the communication may be performed via a contact.
[0053]
In addition, two or more collective exchange carts 6 may be mounted on the mounting machine main body 1, and in this case, the antenna substrate 22 and the control substrate 23 may be disposed on each collective exchange cart 6. .
[0054]
Alternatively, the antenna substrate 22 and the control substrate 23 may be integrated to form the same substrate.
[0055]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the surface mounting machine according to the present invention has a feeder installation area of the mounting machine body divided into a plurality of areas, and each area is connected to a predetermined number of receiving means in the area. Control boards for reading, discriminating and storing information from each other are provided, and each control board and the controller for mounting machine control can communicate with each other, so information from a large number of feeders installed in the feeder installation area Are distributed by each control board, and the information processing amount of the controller is reduced. Therefore, the burden on the controller can be reduced and the information processing time can be greatly shortened.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing an entire surface mounter.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram mainly showing an electric system for signal processing and control.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram functionally showing a system for signal processing and control.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of an antenna substrate.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing communication means between a control board and a controller.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of a control board and a controller.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mounting machine main body 3 Feeder installation area 3a-3d Area 5 Tape feeder 6 Collective exchange cart 20 Radio tag 21 Antenna 22 Antenna board 23 Control board 25 Controller

Claims (4)

A large number of feeders for supplying mounting components are detachably installed in a feeder installation area of the mounting machine body, and each of the feeders is provided with a recording unit for recording information on at least one of the feeders and the components accommodated therein. On the other hand, in the surface mounting machine in which the receiving means for receiving the information from the recording unit is disposed in the feeder installation area of the mounting machine body,
The feeder installation area of the mounting machine body is divided into a plurality of areas, and for each of the areas, a predetermined number of receiving means corresponding to the number of feeders installed in the area are disposed,
A control board that reads and receives information received by the receiving means to determine and store the information is provided for each of the areas.
A surface mounting machine characterized in that each control board and a controller for mounting machine control can communicate with each other. A batch exchanging carriage equipped with a plurality of feeders is detachably mounted on the mounting machine body, and the batch exchanging carriage is configured to occupy a part of the feeder installation area of the mounting machine body,
The collective exchanging carriage is provided with a group of receiving means and a control board to which each receiving means is electrically connected,
Communication between the control board and the controller is electrically insulated between the control board of the batch exchange cart and the controller of the mounting machine body when the batch exchange truck is mounted on the mounting machine body. 2. The surface mounter according to claim 1, further comprising a communication unit. 3. The surface mounter according to claim 1, wherein the recording unit is capable of wireless communication, and the receiving means is an antenna. A plurality of antenna boards each integrally including a plurality of antennas and an antenna communication control circuit for controlling communication between these antennas and the control board are provided in each area of the feeder installation region. 4. The surface mounter according to claim 3, wherein the antenna board and the control board are electrically connected.

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