JP2006178514A - Method for manufacturing ic inlet - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manufacture IC inlets capable of flexibly corresponds to antennas of different shapes and sizes in large quantities and at low cost. <P>SOLUTION: A method for manufacturing IC inlets comprises a process for providing a cut of an antenna contour shape with a cutter having a blade edge curved along the antenna contour shape to a support sheet on whose surface metal foil is stuck, and a process for removing the metal foil around the cut while the foil of the antenna contour shape remains on the support sheet. A punching blade is provided on either side of the cutter for a sprocket hole in an integrated manner. A cut of an antenna contour shape is provided to the support sheet, and, at the same time, a sprocket hole is punched out. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an IC inlet manufacturing method in which an IC chip and an antenna are arranged on a sheet.

  IC cards and RFID tags are useful means for transmitting information in a non-contact manner and are widely used in various fields. The manufacturing cost of such an IC card or tag accounts for a large proportion of the cost required for manufacturing an IC inlet mounted therein, and a new IC inlet manufacturing method corresponding to mass production is required.

  An IC inlet is manufactured by a process in which an antenna coil is fixed on the surface of an insulating sheet, an IC chip is mounted on the sheet surface on which the antenna is fixed, and the mounted IC chip and the antenna are electrically connected. In order to fix the antenna coil to the sheet, conventionally, a method such as etching a metal foil on the sheet surface into an antenna shape, screen printing with a silver paste, or plating or vapor-depositing copper or the like in a predetermined pattern is employed. However, all of these methods are expensive to manufacture, and there is a limit to shortening the manufacturing period, so that it is difficult to cope with mass production.

  As means for reducing the cost and mass production of the antenna fixing process, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a sheet 100 on which a metal foil 101 is bonded with an adhesive is placed on the conveyance path. The press press devices 102 and 103 of the table are arranged, the first press press device 102 has a cut 102a in a direction orthogonal to the sheet transport direction, and the next press press device 103 has a cut 103b in a direction parallel to the sheet transport direction. Are provided on the metal foil 101 on the upper surface of the sheet 100, and the portions other than the portion between the cuts of the metal foil 101 are peeled off from the sheet 100, whereby the metal foil 101 on the sheet 100 is swirled with a corner portion folded at a right angle. A method is known in which an antenna is fixed to a sheet 100 by defining a mold (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-257770 A

  If an antenna is formed by punching a metal foil bonded to a sheet, the manufacturing period can be shortened compared with methods such as etching and plating, and it can be applied to mass production. However, the antenna fixed on the normal sheet is thin and thin with a thickness of about 10 μm and a width of about 0.3 to 1 mm, and the incision is formed by combining two pressure devices as in the conventional method shown above. However, there is a problem that the cut position is shifted due to slight unevenness or unevenness of the adhesive or the metal foil, and the width of the metal foil forming the conductive path of the antenna is not constant or is easily disconnected.

  Also, the shape and size of the IC inlet antenna differs depending on the transmission specifications of the IC card and RFID tag, that is, the required communication distance, but the conventional method of punching metal foil into the antenna contour shape by combining two pressure devices Therefore, it is difficult to flexibly cope with antennas having different shapes and sizes.

  Furthermore, in the conventional punching molding, after punching the sheet into a predetermined shape, the sprocket holes are punched in a separate process, so the consistency between the antenna formation position and the sprocket hole formation position in the sheet is consistent. In the process of mounting the IC chip on the sheet surface, a standard for regulating the IC chip mounting position is required, and the adjustment must always be performed, and the position accuracy must be maintained during the IC inlet processing process. It was difficult.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of such problems of the prior art, an object of the present invention is to be able to flexibly deal with antennas having different shapes and sizes, and to enable mass production of IC inlets at a low cost.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the IC inlet manufacturing method of the present invention cuts the contour shape of the antenna with a cutter whose blade edge is bent along the contour shape of the antenna on a support sheet having a metal foil bonded to the surface. And a step of removing the metal foil around the cut while leaving the metal foil in the contour shape of the antenna on the support sheet (claim 1).

  According to this, a cutter whose blade edge is formed along the contour shape of the antenna is attached to a press-pressing device, and a support sheet conveyed to the device is cut by press-pressing to support the metal foil around the notch By removing from the sheet, the antenna can be formed on the support sheet. Since the entire antenna is cut into the support sheet by a single press press, the width of the antenna conductive path does not fluctuate or break, and antennas of different shapes and sizes are pressed. This can be done by exchanging one cutter attached to the pressure device.

Further, the IC inlet manufacturing method of the present invention is characterized in that a sprocket hole drilling blade is integrally provided on both sides of the cutter, and the sprocket hole is punched out simultaneously with the cutting of the outline shape of the antenna into the support sheet. 2).
In the step of mounting the IC chip, the IC chip is mounted by positioning with reference to the sprocket hole.

According to this, the alignment of the position of the antenna formed on the support sheet and the position of the sprocket hole can be achieved by notching the sprocket hole forming step separately, but simultaneously cutting the support sheet and drilling the sprocket hole. In both of the steps of mounting the IC chip and electrically connecting the IC chip and the antenna, the position of the antenna can be specified based on the position of the sprocket hole, and the mounting process and the connection process can be performed.
Although the antenna formation position is specified by the position recognition device and mounted appropriately, even in that case, fine adjustment is not necessary by using the sprocket hole formation position as a reference, and the IC chip mounting position. It is possible to specify the connection position between the antenna and the antenna with high accuracy and in a short time.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an apparatus configuration example of a process for forming an IC inlet according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a support sheet, 2 denotes an IC inlet formed by processing the support sheet 1, and 3 denotes a winding of the support sheet 1. 4 is a press and pressure device for cutting the support sheet 1, 5 is a roller for peeling the metal foil, 6 is a mounting device for mounting an IC chip on the support sheet 1, and 7 is an antenna and IC. A bonding apparatus 8 for electrically connecting the chips is a roll for winding the IC inlet 2.

The support sheet 1 is formed by laminating a metal foil on the surface of an insulating sheet. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, a urethane / isocyanate adhesive 13 is provided on one surface of an insulating film 11 having a thickness of 75 μm. A sheet 14 is formed by dry laminating a metal foil 12 having a thickness of 15 μm, and adhesive layers 16 and 17 are provided on both sides of an insulating film 15 having a thickness of 25 μm, and a release paper 18 is adhered to the adhesive layer 17. Thus, the sheet 19 can be formed, and the sheet 19 can be integrally bonded to the surface of the insulating film 11 of the sheet 14.
As the insulating films 11 and 15, a PET film, or a PEN film, a polyimide film, or the like can be used when heat resistance is required. The metal foil 12 can be an aluminum foil or a copper foil, and is preferably set to a thickness of 7 to 20 μm when an aluminum foil is used and to a thickness of 18 to 38 μm when a copper foil is used. In the case of a rolled copper foil, it may be thinner than that and about 9 μm. As the adhesive 13 for bonding the insulating film 11 and the metal foil 12, an epoxy type or a polyester type can be used in addition to the urethane type. The pressure-sensitive adhesive forming the pressure-sensitive adhesive layers 16 and 17 of the sheet 19 can be appropriately selected from rubber-based, acrylic-based, silicon-based, etc., and double-sided pressure-sensitive adhesive tape may be used.
In addition, according to the specification of IC inlet 2, the support sheet 1 can be shape | molded by appropriate thickness, such as forming only the sheet | seat 14 without overlapping the sheet | seat 19. FIG. The formed support sheet 1 is set so as to be wound around a roll 3 and continuously drawn out to a press pressurizing device 4.

The press-pressing device 4 is installed on the conveying path of the support sheet 1 drawn out from the roll 3, and includes a cutter 41 bent along the outline of the antenna and a sprocket hole drilling blade (not shown), and In this pressing operation, the cutter 41 is pressed against the upper surface of the support sheet 1 to make a cut at an appropriate depth, and at the same time, a sprocket hole is punched into the edge of the support sheet 1 with a perforating blade.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the cutter 41 has a cutting edge that branches at the width of the antenna, that is, about 0.3 to 1 mm, and the entire cutting edge is bent along the outline of the antenna. When the press-pressing device 4 is operated, the sheet 14 is pushed in from the upper surface of the support sheet 1 by a depth corresponding to the thickness of the sheet 14, and is cut from the metal foil 12 to the insulating film 11 with a blade edge. A cut along the conductive path of the antenna is provided in the surface layer portion of the sheet 1. The shape and size of the antenna are determined by the specifications of the IC card and the RFID tag on which the IC inlet 2 is mounted, and the cutter 41 is also formed in a shape and size corresponding to the specification.
Further, the drilling blades for the sprocket holes are arranged on both sides of the cutter 41. When the press pressurizing device 4 is operated, the support sheet 1 is punched with the drilling blades, and the sprocket holes are formed on both sides of the cut along the antenna contour shape. Is provided to perforate.
Further, the press pressure device 4 includes an outer shape cutting blade (not shown) for separating the IC inlet 2 from the support sheet 1, and when the press pressure device 4 is operated, the outer shape cutting blade is the upper surface of the support sheet 1. It is provided so as to form a cut along the outer shape of the IC inlet 2 in the support sheet 1 by being pushed in to a depth from the first to the insulating film 14.
As shown in FIG. 4, the support sheet 1 drawn into the press pressurizing device 4 is actuated by the press pressurizing device 4, and as shown in FIG. The hole C2 and the cut line C3 are simultaneously formed by one press operation by the outer shape cutting blade.

  The roller 5 is edged into an antenna contour shape by cutting off the sheet 14 which is a surface layer portion of the support sheet 1 from the sheet 19 and winding it on the support sheet 1 cut by the press pressure device 4. The sheet portion around the notch is removed while leaving the remaining portion on the support sheet 1 to form an antenna conductive path by the metal foil 12 on the support sheet 1 so that the antenna is fixed to the support sheet 1. It has become.

  The mounting device 6 is provided so that the mounting position of an IC chip (not shown) on the support sheet 1 is specified and mounted on the support sheet 1 having the antenna fixed on the surface with reference to the sprocket hole C2. . Similarly to the mounting device 6, the bonding device 7 also determines the antenna formation position and the IC chip mounting position on the support sheet 1 with respect to the support sheet 1 on which the IC chip is mounted with reference to the sprocket hole C 2. In particular, the antenna and the IC chip are electrically connected.

In forming the IC inlet 2 by the apparatus configuration of the present embodiment, first, the support sheet 1 wound around the roll 3 is pulled out, and the press sheet pressing apparatus 4 cuts out the antenna contour shape cut C1, sprocket hole C2, and IC. A cut C3 along the outer shape of the inlet 2 is simultaneously formed by a single press operation, and the sheet 14 on the surface layer portion of the support sheet 1 is wound up by the roller 5 while being conveyed to the mounting device 6. The sheet portion in the notch C1 of the antenna contour shape is left from the upper surface, and the surrounding sheet portion is peeled off. As shown in FIG. 5, the support sheet 1 from which the sheet 14 around the notch C1 is peeled has sprocket holes C2 drilled on both sides, and the metal foil 12 constituting the antenna At is fixed at the center of the surface. It becomes.
Next, the IC chip is mounted by the mounting device 6 at a predetermined position on the support sheet 1 to which the antenna is fixed, and the antenna and the IC chip are electrically connected by the bonding device 7 to complete the molding of the IC inlet 2. To do. The molded IC inlet 2 is wound around a roll 8 and used for processing an IC card, an RFID tag, or the like.

  Note that the support sheet, the IC inlet, and the configuration of each device in the above form are examples, and the present invention can be configured in other appropriate forms according to the specifications of the IC card, the RFID tag, and the like. Further, the press pressing process, the chip mounting process, and the bonding process by each apparatus may be either separate processes or integrated processes.

It is the figure which showed the apparatus structural example of the process of shape | molding an IC inlet by this invention. It is principal part sectional drawing of the structural example of the support sheet processed into IC inlet. It is the figure which showed the external shape of the blade edge | tip of the cutter of the press pressurization apparatus of FIG. It is the figure which showed the cross section and surface of the support sheet after operating the press pressurization apparatus of FIG. It is the figure which showed the surface of the support sheet which the antenna fixed to the surface by the apparatus of FIG. It is the figure which showed the apparatus structural example of the IC inlet shaping | molding process by the conventional method. It is the figure which showed the process of forming an antenna on a support sheet with the apparatus of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 support sheet, 2 IC inlet, 3 rolls, 4 press pressure device, 5 rollers, 6 mounting device, 7 bonding device, 8 rolls

Claims (3)

Cutting the antenna contour shape with a cutter whose blade edge is bent along the antenna contour shape on the support sheet with the metal foil bonded to the surface;
And a step of removing the surrounding metal foil while leaving the metal foil in the outline shape of the antenna on the support sheet.   2. The IC inlet manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein a sprocket hole drilling blade is integrally provided on both sides of the cutter, and the sprocket hole is punched out simultaneously with the cutting of the antenna contour shape into the support sheet. 3. The method of manufacturing an IC inlet according to claim 2, further comprising a step of mounting an IC chip by positioning with reference to the sprocket hole.

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