JP2006289792A - Printing device and printing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing device capable of increasing the efficiency of a cleaning operation, while saving a manufacturing cost. <P>SOLUTION: This printing device comprises a cleaner 8 for cleaning a stencil 51, a mobile unit 75 which has the mounted cleaner 8 and moves in the Y axial direction to the stencil 51 and a camera unit 6 which is mounted on the mobile unit 75 and has a camera for picking up the image of the stencil 51 and a substrate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus and a printing method for printing paste such as cream solder on a substrate.

  Conventionally, a stencil (mask) for screen printing is placed on a substrate set on a printing stage, and paste (such as cream solder) supplied on the stencil is expanded with a squeegee to form openings (pattern holes) on the stencil. A screen printing apparatus that prints (applies) a paste to a predetermined position of a substrate via a) is well known.

In the printing apparatus of Patent Document 1, a camera for photographing the substrate and the stencil for positioning the substrate and the stencil is provided so as to be movable in a horizontal direction between the substrate and the stencil, and a cleaner for cleaning the stencil is provided with the substrate. It is provided so as to be movable in one horizontal direction between the stencils. These cameras and cleaners stand on the opposite sides of the printing work area when printing on the substrate, and when cleaning the stencil, the camera moves to the cleaner side and the cleaner is connected, and the camera drive mechanism removes the cleaner. It is moved and cleaned.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-043333 (FIG. 2)

  However, if the cleaner is connected to the camera as in Patent Document 1, the camera must be moved to the cleaner standby position at the start of cleaning to perform the connecting operation with the cleaner. Since the camera must be returned to the standby position and the camera must be moved to its standby position, there is a problem in that the cleaning work takes a long time.

  On the other hand, if a unique drive mechanism for driving the cleaner is introduced, the cost increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus and a printing method capable of improving the efficiency of cleaning work while suppressing cost increase.

  The present invention provides the following means.

[1] A printing apparatus for applying a paste to a substrate via a stencil,
With a cleaner to clean the stencil,
A moving unit mounted with the cleaner and moving in a first direction relative to the stencil;
A camera attached to the mobile unit for photographing at least one of a stencil and a substrate;
A printing apparatus comprising:

  [2] The printing apparatus according to [1], further including a moving unit that moves the camera in a second direction intersecting the first direction on the moving unit.

  [3] The printing apparatus according to [1] or [2], wherein the moving unit can be retracted to a standby position away from a printing work area below the stencil.

  [4] The printing apparatus according to [3], wherein in the moving unit, the camera is disposed closer to the printing work area than the cleaner.

  [5] The printing apparatus according to [4], wherein the camera confirms a cleaning state by photographing a stencil.

  [6] The printing apparatus according to any one of items 1 to 5, wherein the camera includes a stencil photographing camera that photographs a stencil and a substrate photographing camera that photographs a substrate.

[7] A printing method for applying a paste to a substrate via a stencil,
Prior to application of the paste, the stencil is cleaned by a cleaner attached to a moving unit that moves in a first direction relative to the stencil;
A printing method, wherein at least one of a stencil and a substrate is photographed by a camera attached to the moving unit.

  According to the invention [1], since the camera is provided in the moving unit for moving the cleaner, it is possible to efficiently perform the cleaning work without requiring time for connecting the camera and the cleaner at the time of cleaning. Further, since the moving unit for moving the cleaner can be shared as the moving mechanism of the camera, the cost is not increased.

  According to the above invention [2], since the moving means for moving the camera in the second direction is provided, the camera can be moved in the first and second directions while sharing the moving mechanism of the camera and the cleaner in the first direction. It is possible to take a picture by moving it on the plane formed.

  According to the invention [3], since the moving unit can be retracted to the standby position, the cleaner and the camera can be simultaneously retracted to the standby position and sent out from the standby position to the printing work area.

  According to the invention [4], since the camera is arranged closer to the print work area than the cleaner, when the moving unit is sent from the standby position to the print work area, the camera is printed with a shorter movement distance than the cleaner. It is possible to reach the work area, and when only photographing with the camera is performed, the photographing work can be efficiently performed.

  According to the above invention [5], since the state of the stencil cleaned by the cleaner during the movement of returning the moving unit from the printing work area to the standby position can be confirmed, the moving time of the moving unit can be efficiently utilized. Can do. Further, during the movement back to the standby position, the camera is positioned behind the cleaner in the moving direction, so that the result can be confirmed by the camera while cleaning with the cleaner during the return movement.

  According to the above invention [6], the moving unit can be shared as a drive mechanism for the cleaner, the stencil photographing camera, and the board photographing camera.

  According to the said invention [7], the printing method which has an effect similar to the said invention can be provided.

  1 is a side view of a screen printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view of the apparatus, FIG. 3 is a plan view of the apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the periphery of a printing stage 10 of the apparatus. is there. As shown in these drawings, a printing stage 10 is provided on the base 2 of the screen printing apparatus, and a printed circuit board W is carried into and out of the printing stage 10 on both sides of the printing stage 10. Upstream conveyor 11 and downstream conveyor 12 are arranged along the X-axis direction (conveyance line).

  Further, the printing apparatus is provided above the printing stage 10, a clamping unit 3 for clamping the printed board W, a positioning unit 4 for engaging and positioning the board W when clamping the board W, and the printing stage 10. A substrate that includes a stencil holding unit 5 and a squeegee unit 6, a camera unit 7 for photographing the substrate W and the stencil 51, and a cleaner 8 for cleaning the stencil 51, and is a substrate clamped by the clamp unit 3 as will be described later. W is superposed on the stencil 51 of the stencil holding unit 5, and in this state, screen printing is performed by the squeegee 61 of the squeegee unit 6.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a rail 211 is disposed on the base 2 along the Y-axis direction orthogonal to the X-axis direction in the horizontal plane, and the Y-axis table 21 is mounted on the rail 211. It is slidably attached in the Y-axis direction. Further, a ball screw mechanism (not shown) is provided between the Y-axis table 21 and the base 2, and the Y-axis table 21 moves in the Y-axis direction with respect to the base 2 by driving the ball screw mechanism. It is configured as follows.

  A rail 221 is disposed on the Y-axis table 21 along the X-axis direction, and the X-axis table 22 is slidably attached to the rail 221 in the X-axis direction. Further, a ball screw mechanism (not shown) is provided between the X-axis table 22 and the Y-axis table 21, and the X-axis table 22 moves in the X-axis direction with respect to the Y-axis table 21 by driving the ball screw mechanism. It is configured to move.

  The X-axis table 22 is provided with an R-axis table 23 via a rotation unit 231 so as to be rotatable around an axis line in the vertical line (Z-axis direction). The R-axis table 23 is configured to be rotationally driven around the Z axis by a rotational driving means (not shown).

  Slide struts 241 are attached to the four corners of the R-axis table 23 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction), and an elevating table 24 is attached to the upper part of the slide strut 241. A lifting table 24 is attached to the R-axis table 23 so as to be movable up and down in the Z-axis direction. Further, a ball screw mechanism 243 is provided between the lift table 24 and the R-axis table 23, and the lift table 24 is driven in the Z-axis direction (vertical direction) with respect to the R-axis table 23 by driving the ball screw mechanism 243. It is configured to move. In this embodiment, the lifting table 24 and the clamp unit 3 provided on the lifting table 24 constitute the printing stage 10.

  A pair of main conveyors 20 is provided on the lifting table 24 along the X-axis direction. The main conveyor 20 is arranged with the upstream end and the downstream end facing the end of the upstream conveyor 11 and the end of the downstream conveyor 12 in a state where the lifting table 24 is lowered. . In this opposed state, the gap between the main conveyor 20 and the two-side conveyors 11 and 12 is set to an interval at which the substrate W can be connected between the conveyors, and specifically, set to a small value of about 5 mm. Therefore, in this embodiment, the main conveyor 20 moves in the X-axis and R-axis directions by the movement of the X-axis and R-axis tables 22 and 23 in the lowered state in order to avoid interference with the both-side conveyors 11 and 12. In addition, the movement in the Y-axis and R-axis directions due to the movement of the Y-axis and R-axis tables 21 and 23 is restricted in order to prevent positional deviation with respect to the both-side conveyors 11 and 12. That is, in the lowered state, the main conveyor 20 is restricted from moving in the horizontal direction (X-axis, Y-axis, and R-axis directions) due to the movement of the X-axis, Y-axis, and R-axis tables 21 to 23.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the clamp unit 3 provided on the lifting table 24 includes a pair of strip-shaped clamp pieces 31 a and 31 b disposed along the X-axis direction above the pair of main conveyors 20. is doing. The one side clamp piece 31a is fixed on the structural material 25 (see FIG. 5) of the lifting table 24, and the other side clamp piece 31b is slidable in the Y-axis direction with respect to the structural material 25 of the lifting table 24. It is attached and is configured to be able to contact and separate from the one side clamp piece 31a.

  Furthermore, a bracket 26 b is provided on the other side clamp 31 b, and an air cylinder 33 is provided between the bracket 26 b and the structural material 25. When the cylinder 33 is driven forward (extension drive), the other side clamp piece 31b moves in the direction away from the one side clamp piece 31a along the Y-axis direction, and the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are opened. When the cylinder 33 is driven backward (shortening drive), the other side clamp 31b moves in the direction approaching the one side clamp piece 31a along the Y-axis direction, and the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are closed. . As described later, the substrate W is held / released by opening and closing the pair of clamp pieces 31a and 31b.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a plurality of suction holes 35 are provided on the upper surfaces of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b. Each suction hole 35 is configured to be set to a negative pressure by suction means (not shown). In a state where the stencil 51 is overlaid on the clamp pieces 31a and 31b, each suction hole 35 is set to a negative pressure so that the stencil 51 is sucked and held on the upper surfaces of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b. Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the positioning unit 4 as the pressing means provided on the lifting table 24 includes a pair of belt-like positioning plates 41a and 41b arranged corresponding to the clamp pieces 31a and 31b, respectively. Yes. The one side positioning plate 41a is provided on the structural member 25 via the parallel link mechanism 42, and the other side positioning plate 41b is provided on the bracket 26b via the parallel link mechanism 42. With the rotation of the parallel link mechanisms 42, 42, the positioning plates 41a, 41b are arranged on both sides of the pair of clamp pieces 31a, 31b as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6B, the retraction position is configured to be freely displaceable between a positioning position that presses and contacts the upper side of the pair of clamp pieces 31a and 31b. Further, the upper surfaces of the positioning plates 41a and 41b are arranged in the same horizontal plane with respect to the upper surfaces of the pair of clamp pieces 31a and 31b in the retracted position, and a part of the lower end surface is a pair of clamp pieces in the positioning position. It arrange | positions so that it may protrude in the Y-axis direction rather than 31a and 31b.

  The lifting table 24 and the bracket 26b are provided with a cylinder 43 for driving the parallel link mechanisms 42. When the cylinder 43 is driven forward (extension drive), the pair of positioning plates 41a and 41b are located inside. The pair of positioning plates 41a and 41b is opened and moved to the retracted position by moving forward to the positioning position and moving to the positioning position and by performing backward driving (shortening driving).

  As shown in FIG. 4, pillars 44 as support members for supporting the positioning plate are erected at the four corners of the lifting table 24. In the state where the positioning plate 41a is disposed at the retracted position (retracted state), the positioning plates 41a and 41b are supported by the support poles 44 so that the printing pressure during paste expansion by the squeegee 61 described later can be supported. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the positioning plates 41a and 41b are provided with a plurality of suction holes 45. Each suction hole 45 is configured to be set to a negative pressure by suction means (not shown) via a suction pipe 46. As will be described later, when the stencil 51 is overlaid on the positioning plates 41a and 41b, the suction hole 45 is set to a negative pressure, whereby the stencil 51 is attracted and held on the upper surfaces of the positioning plates 41a and 41b. It is configured as follows.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the elevating table 24 is provided with a mounting table 29 corresponding to the pair of main conveyors 20 and capable of moving up and down in the vertical direction via slide columns 291. Further, a ball screw mechanism (not shown) is provided between the mounting table 29 and the lifting table 24, and the mounting table 29 moves up and down with respect to the lifting table 24 by driving the ball screw mechanism. It is configured as follows. The placement table 29 is configured as a placement means that can place the substrate W. When the placement table 29 moves up, the substrate W on the main conveyor 20 is transferred onto the placement table 29 and moved upward. At the same time, the substrate W on the placement table 29 is moved to the main conveyor 20 side by being lowered.

  FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing the positional relationship of each part of the printing apparatus according to this embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the stencil holding unit 5 has a stencil support base 52 fixedly provided on both the left and right sides of the printing stage 10, and the stencil support base 52 has an opening in the solder application portion. A stencil 51 having a portion (pattern hole) is placed in a state of being stretched horizontally. Two stencil clamps 53 are provided on the left and right stencil support bases 52 respectively on the front and rear sides. The stencil clamps 53 are driven by a driving means (not shown) such as an air cylinder, and the frame portion 54 of the stencil 52 is provided. Is pressed onto the stencil support base 52 so that the stencil 51 is fixed on the stencil support base 52.

  The squeegee unit 6 provided on the upper side of the stencil holding unit 5 is supported by squeegee support frames 63 and 63 erected on both the left and right sides of the printing stage 10. Squeegee guide rails 64, 64 extending in the Y-axis direction are provided on the upper surfaces of the left and right squeegee support frames 63, 63, respectively. A movable beam that can move along the Y-axis direction on the squeegee guide rails 64, 64. 65 is provided so as to straddle the upper side of the printing stage 10. A squeegee holder 62 in which a pair of squeegees 61 and 61 are provided so as to be movable up and down is attached to the movable beam 65.

  Then, by moving one squeegee 61 to one side in the Y-axis direction while being lowered, the cream solder S can be expanded on the stencil 51 while rolling (kneading) toward one side in the Y-axis direction, while the other By moving the squeegee 61 to the other side in the Y-axis direction while being lowered, the cream solder S can be expanded on the stencil 51 while rolling toward the other side in the Y-axis direction.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the camera unit and the cleaner of the printing apparatus according to this embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the camera unit and the cleaner as viewed from obliquely below.

  7-9, lower guide rails 74, 74 extending in the Y-axis direction are provided on the lower surface side of the squeegee support frames 63, 63, and sliders 741, 74 are provided on the lower guide rails 74, 74, respectively. A moving beam (moving unit) 75 supported via 741 is provided so as to be bridged between the left and right squeegee support frames 63 and 63. The moving beam 75 is movable along the Y-axis direction along the lower guide rails 74 and 74, and the height position is set between the printing stage 10 in the lowered state and the stencil 51. ing.

  Ball screws 76, 76 are provided along the Y-axis direction on both outer sides of the squeegee support frames 63, 63, and these left and right ball screws 76, 76 are rotationally driven by ball screw drive motors 761, 761. Thus, the moving beam 75 provided with nuts (not shown) screwed to the ball screws 76 and 76 is driven to travel in the Y-axis direction. In this embodiment, these left and right ball screws 76 and 76 and ball screw drive motors 761 and 761 constitute two drive means for driving the moving beam (moving unit) 75 to travel.

  A camera unit 7 for photographing the substrate W and the stencil 51 and a cleaner 8 are attached to the moving beam 75. Here, in this embodiment, the moving beam 75 functions as a moving unit that moves relative to the stencil 51, and the Y-axis direction is the moving direction (first direction). By providing the cleaner 8 and the camera unit 7 in the moving beam (moving unit) 75 in this way, the moving beam (moving unit) 75 can be shared as a moving mechanism in the Y-axis direction.

  Further, the lower guide rails 74 and 74 for supporting the moving beam 75 are provided from the printing work area below the stencil 51 to the rear thereof, and when the printing operation for applying the paste to the substrate W is executed. The camera unit 7 and the cleaner 8 are retracted to a standby position behind the printing work area to prevent interference with the printing stage 10. Since the moving beam (moving unit) 75 can be retracted to the standby position E away from the printing work area A below the stencil 51 in this way, the cleaner 8 and the camera unit 7 are simultaneously retracted to the standby position E. The print job area A can be sent out from the standby position E.

  Since the moving beam (moving unit) 75 is thus retracted to the standby position behind the printing work area, the moving beam (moving unit) 75 cannot be enlarged in the moving direction (Y-axis direction) due to restrictions on the depth dimension of the apparatus. For this reason, the length (in the case of using a plurality of sliders in the moving direction) of the slider 741 with respect to the lower guide rail 74 that guides the moving direction of the moving beam 75 is sufficiently large. It is difficult. However, as described above, in this embodiment, since the moving beam 75 is driven to travel by two driving means, an uneven driving force may be transmitted to the moving beam 75 as in the case where only one side is driven. Absent. Therefore, the moving beam (moving unit) 75 can be moved at high speed without being inclined obliquely with respect to the traveling direction.

  The camera unit 7 is attached in front of the moving beam (moving unit) 75, that is, on the side closer to the printing work area A than the cleaner 8. As a result, the camera unit 7 can reach the printing work area A with a moving distance of the moving beam 75 shorter than that of the cleaner 8, and high working efficiency can be obtained when only the photographing by the camera unit 7 is performed.

  In this camera unit 7, a camera head 71 having a stencil photographing camera 711 and a substrate photographing camera 712 is provided so as to be able to travel in the X-axis direction by a camera moving mechanism 77 provided in front of the moving beam 75. As a result, the camera head 71 moves on the XY plane and performs shooting by using the camera moving mechanism 77 in the X-axis direction and the moving mechanism of the camera unit 7 and the cleaner 8 in the Y-axis direction. it can.

  The camera moving mechanism 77 is provided on the camera guide rail 771 extending in the X-axis direction along the longitudinal direction of the moving beam 75, a slider 772 movable along the X-axis direction on the rail 771, and the slider 772. A ball screw 773 that is screwed into a nut (not shown) and a drive motor 774 that rotationally drives the ball screw 773 are provided. A camera head 71 is attached to the slider 772, and the camera head 71 is driven to travel in the X-axis direction by the rotation of the ball screw 773. In this embodiment, the camera moving mechanism 77 functions as a moving unit that moves the camera in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, and the X-axis direction is the second direction.

  The stencil photographing camera 711 is composed of, for example, a CCD camera equipped with illumination, and is provided upward to photograph the stencil 51 located on the upper side of the camera unit 7. Then, when the stencil 51 is cleaned by the cleaner 8, photographing is performed to check the cleaning state, such as whether solder remains on the opening or the lower surface of the stencil. In addition, when a new stencil 51 is mounted, the stencil photographing camera 711 can photograph a positioning mark provided on the stencil 51 and detect its position for alignment with the substrate W. Yes.

  The board photographing camera 712 is composed of, for example, a CCD camera equipped with illumination, and is provided downward to photograph the board W located on the lower side of the camera unit 7. For positioning with the stencil 51, a positioning mark or the like provided on the substrate W fixed to the printing stage 10 is photographed, and the position can be detected.

  The cleaner 8 is attached to the rear of the moving beam (moving unit) 75 and can move in the Y-axis direction. The cleaner 8 is provided with a cleaning head 81 that can be moved up and down, and the cleaning head 81 is in sliding contact with the lower surface (printing surface) of the stencil 51 at the raised position.

  A belt-like wiping paper is sequentially supplied to the cleaning head 81 from a roll in the cleaner 8. Then, a suction nozzle having a width corresponding to the size of the stencil 51 in the X-axis direction sucks the lower surface of the stencil 51 through the wiping paper, thereby wiping off the remaining paste and the like on the lower surface of the stencil 51 and the opening. It is like that. At this time, depending on the type of stencil 51 or paste, the cleaning effect can be enhanced by appropriately including a cleaning solvent in the wiping paper.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a control system of this printing apparatus. As shown in the figure, in this apparatus, in addition to the CPU 91 as a control means for controlling the drive of each drive unit, a keyboard 92 as an input means, a CRT display 93 as a display means, a storage device 94, etc. Is provided. The keyboard 92 is for inputting various data related to the printing process to the printing apparatus, and the CRT display 93 is for displaying various information (data). Further, the storage device 94 stores various data necessary for printing.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, as a drive part (device to be controlled) controlled by the CPU 91, for example, a drive part of each conveyor 11, 12, 20; a drive part of each table 21, 22, 23, 24, 29; In the drive part (air supply means) of the pieces 31a and 31b and the positioning plates 41a and 41b, the drive part of the stencil clamp 53, the drive part of the stencil photographing camera 711 and the board photographing camera 712, and the drive part of the moving beam (moving unit) 75 There are a ball screw driving motor 761, a driving motor 774 which is a driving unit of the camera moving mechanism, a driving unit for the cleaner 8 and the squeegee 61, and the like.

  In the printing apparatus of the present embodiment, the CPU 91 operates in response to a command from the keyboard 92, and outputs from various sensors that detect various data such as program data, the photographing results by the cameras 711 and 712, and the substrate position. Based on the information, the following operations are automatically performed by controlling the driving of each of the driving units.

  Next, the operation of the printing apparatus will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 11 and the side view for explaining the operation of the printing apparatus shown in FIGS.

  Here, as an initial state, it is assumed that printing on the preceding substrate W ′ is completed as shown in FIG.

  When the printing operation on the preceding substrate W ′ is completed (step S10), as shown in FIG. 5B, the lift table 24 is lowered by a small amount on the printing stage 10 and the substrate W ′ is detached from the stencil 51 (plate separation). To do. At this time, the Y-axis table 21, the X-axis table 22, and the R-axis table 23 are appropriately moved in the Y-axis, X-axis, and R-axis directions as necessary, and the horizontal position of the substrate W ′ is returned to a predetermined steady position. It is.

  Then, the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are released as shown in FIG. 8C, and the holding on the substrate W ′ is released, and the placement table 29 is lowered as shown in FIG. The substrate W ′ is transferred from the table 29 to the main conveyor 20 and the lifting table 24 is also lowered so that the main conveyor 20 is lowered to the transport height position corresponding to the upstream conveyor 11 and the downstream conveyor 12. (Step S12).

  When the printing stage 10 is lowered to the conveyance height position in this way, as shown in FIG. 13A, the preceding substrate W ′ after printing is carried out to the downstream conveyor 12 by the main conveyor 20 and sent to the next process. In parallel with this, the next substrate W is carried into the main conveyor 20 by the upstream conveyor 11 (step S14).

  Then, the next substrate W carried into the main conveyor 20 is fixed at a predetermined position on the printing stage 10 (step S16).

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5B, the positioning plates 41a and 41b of the positioning unit 4 move inward and are arranged at the positioning positions where the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are pressed and abutted from above. The placement table 29 rises as shown in FIG. Subsequently, when the upper surface of the substrate W is in contact with and locked to the lower surfaces (reference surfaces) of the positioning plates 41a and 41b and is disposed in the same plane with respect to the upper surfaces of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b, FIG. As shown, when the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are closed, the substrate W is sandwiched and held by the clamp pieces 31a and 31b. Then, as shown in FIG. 14A, the positioning plates 41a and 41b are moved outward and arranged at the retracted position, and the fixing of the next substrate W on the printing stage 10 is completed. At this time, the upper surfaces of the positioning plates 41a and 41b and the upper surfaces of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b are arranged in the same plane, and as described above, the upper surfaces of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b and the upper surface of the substrate W are in the same plane. Has been placed.

  On the other hand, when the printing stage 10 is lowered to the transport height position (step S12), the stencil 51 is cleaned in parallel with the loading / unloading of the substrate (step S14) and the fixing of the next substrate (step S16). (Step S18). As described above, the cleaning operation of the stencil 51 by the cleaner 8, the loading / unloading operation of the substrates W ′ and W in the printing stage 10, and the fixing operation of the substrate W are performed in parallel. The printing operation to W can be started, and thus the overall production efficiency including the cleaning work can be improved. The stencil 51 may be cleaned every time one substrate is processed or every predetermined number of sheets.

  The cleaning of the stencil 51 is performed by sending a moving beam (moving unit) 75 including the camera head 71 and the cleaner 8 into a space formed in the printing work area A below the stencil 51 when the printing stage 10 is lowered. Is called.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 13A, the cleaner 8 moves from the standby area E to the printing work area A side, and as shown in FIG. The cleaner head 81 is raised and brought into contact with the lower surface of the stencil 51 at an end position (rear end position) A1 on the right side of the drawing. Then, as shown in FIG. 6C, the lower surface and the opening of the stencil 51 are moved in the forward path that moves to the end position (front end position) A2 of the printing work area A on the opposite side (left side of the drawing) of the standby position E as it is. to clean up. Thereafter, when the front end A2 is reached as shown in FIG. 14 (d), the forward cleaning operation is completed, and the cleaner head 81 is once lowered to release the contact with the stencil 51 as shown in FIG. 14 (a). Thereafter, a new portion of the wiping paper is fed out to the cleaning head 81 to prepare for the next cleaning operation.

  When both the substrate loading / unloading (step S14) and the next substrate fixing (step S16) and the stencil cleaning in the forward path (step S18) performed in parallel as described above are completed, FIG. As shown, in the return path in which the moving beam 75 including the camera head 7 and the cleaner 8 is moved from the printing work area A to the standby position E side, the stencil 51 and the substrate W are photographed along with the cleaning of the stencil 51 (step S20). ). Thereby, the moving time of the moving beam (moving unit) 75 can be efficiently used, and the working time can be efficiently used.

  The cleaning of the stencil 51 on the return path is performed in the same manner as the cleaning on the outward path described above. However, in order to ensure the accuracy in capturing the stencil 51 and the substrate W, the traveling operation of the moving beam 75 that can be a vibration source when necessary during the capturing is performed. Alternatively, the operation of the drive unit of the cleaner 8 may be stopped.

  On the other hand, photographing is performed on the entire area of the stencil 51 and the substrate W as necessary by combining the movement operation of the moving beam 75 in the Y-axis direction and the movement operation of the camera head 71 in the X-axis direction by the camera movement mechanism 77. be able to.

  For example, with respect to the stencil 51, the state of cleaning such as the presence or absence of paste remaining in each opening and the presence or absence of dirt attached to the lower surface is confirmed by photographing with the stencil photographing camera 711. At this time, since the stencil camera 711 is located in front of the cleaner 8 in the moving beam 75, that is, the stencil camera is located behind the cleaner 8 in the moving direction of the return path, the cleaner 8 is cleaned on the return path during the movement of the return path. The later state can be confirmed.

  As for the substrate W, a mark or the like formed on the substrate W is photographed by the substrate photographing camera 712, whereby the type of the substrate W or the position of the substrate W in a state of being fixed to the printing stage 10 is identified.

  In addition, as a result of photographing the stencil 51, when it is determined that the cleaning state is not sufficient, the cleaning operation is performed again. For this reason, high printing quality can be ensured. At this time, the entire printing work area A is cleaned by reciprocating the cleaner 8 again, or only the forward path or the backward path is cleaned, or only the portion where the cleaning state is determined to be insufficient is cleaned. You may do it.

  When the photographing of the stencil 51 and the substrate W is completed in this way, the moving beam 75 is retracted to the standby position E (step S22), and printing is performed in the printing work area A where the moving beam 75 has been retracted, as shown in FIG. The stage 10 is raised for printing the next substrate W (step S24). Specifically, first, the lift table 24 is lifted by a small amount, and when the main conveyor 20 is pulled out above the two-side conveyors 11 and 12, the Y-axis table 21 and the X-axis table 22 are based on the imaging result of the substrate W. The R-axis table 23 is appropriately moved in the Y-axis, X-axis, and R-axis directions, and the horizontal position of the substrate W with respect to the stencil 51 is finely adjusted (corrected).

  When the position of the substrate W is corrected in this way, the elevation table 24 is raised as shown in FIG. 4D, and the positioning plates 41a and 41b, the clamp pieces 31a and 31b, and the upper surface of the substrate W are stencils of the stencil holding unit 5. 51 is overlaid on the lower surface of 51. Then, the suction holes 35 of the clamp pieces 31a and 31b and the suction holes 45 of the positioning plates 41a and 41b are set to a negative pressure, and the stencil 51 is sucked and fixed to the clamp pieces 31a and 31b and the positioning plates 41a and 41b.

  Thereafter, the one-side squeegee 61 of the squeegee unit 6 descends and moves in the Y-axis direction along the stencil 51, whereby the cream solder S as the paste supplied on the stencil 51 is expanded, and the cream solder S is printed (applied) on a predetermined position of the substrate W through the pattern hole of the stencil 51.

  Here, when performing solder application in the present embodiment, after the area of the squeegee 61 on the stencil 51 corresponding to, for example, the one-side positioning plate 41a and the one-side clamp piece 31a (one-side running area) is run, A region (printing area) on the stencil 51 corresponding to the upper side of W is slid. For this reason, before the cream solder S is applied to the substrate W, the viscosity is lowered by rolling (kneading) in the run-up area. As a result, the cream solder S is reliably filled in the pattern holes of the stencil 51 and applied to the substrate W with high accuracy.

  In the present embodiment, one side and the other side squeegees 61, 61 are alternately used for each substrate W to be printed. That is, the one-side squeegee 61 is slid from the one-side running area toward the printing area to apply the solder S to the substrate W, and the other-side squeegee 61 is moved to the other-side positioning plate 41b and the other-side. For each substrate W to be processed, a printing process in the other direction of movement, in which the solder S is applied to the substrate W by sliding from the region on the stencil 51 corresponding to the clamp piece 31b (the other side run-up area) toward the printing area. Are performed alternately.

  As described above, according to the printing apparatus of this embodiment, since the moving beam (moving unit) 75 that moves the cleaner 8 is provided with the camera unit 7 that images the stencil 51 and the substrate W, the camera unit 7 and the cleaner 8 are cleaned. The cleaning operation can be performed efficiently without requiring time for connecting the two.

  Further, since the moving beam (moving unit) 75 that moves the cleaner 8 in the Y-axis direction can be shared as the moving mechanism of the camera unit 7, the cost is not increased.

  In particular, since the stencil photographing camera 711 and the substrate photographing camera 712 are provided in the camera unit 75, the moving beam (moving unit) 75 can be shared as a drive mechanism for the cleaner 8, the stencil photographing camera 711, and the substrate photographing camera 712.

  In the present embodiment, since the camera moving mechanism (moving means) 77 for moving the camera head 71 in the X-axis direction orthogonal to the Y-axis direction that is the moving direction of the moving beam (moving unit) 75 is provided, the Y-axis direction is provided. As for the camera unit 7 and the cleaner 8, the camera head 71 can be moved on the XY plane to share the image while moving the camera unit 7 and the cleaner 8.

  In particular, since the stencil photographing camera 711 and the board photographing camera 712 are provided in the camera head 71, the camera moving mechanism (moving means) 77 can be shared as a driving mechanism in the X-axis direction of the stencil photographing camera 711 and the substrate photographing camera 712. it can.

  In the present embodiment, the moving beam (moving unit) 75 including the cleaner 8 and the camera unit 7 can be retreated to the standby position E away from the printing work area A below the stencil 51, and thus the cleaner 8 and the camera. The unit 7 can be retracted to the standby position E at the same time, and sent out from the standby position E to the printing work area A.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the camera unit 7 is arranged closer to the printing work area A than the cleaner 8 in the moving beam (moving unit) 75, the cleaner 8 is used only when shooting with the camera unit 7 is performed. Thus, the camera unit 7 can reach the print work area A with a shorter moving distance than the print work area A, and the photographing work can be performed efficiently.

  In the present embodiment, the state of the stencil 51 cleaned by the cleaner 8 during the return path movement for returning the moving beam (moving unit) 75 from the printing work area A to the standby position E can be confirmed. (Moving unit) The moving time of 75 can be used efficiently.

  In the return path to the standby position E, the stencil photographing camera 711 is located behind the cleaner 8 in the moving direction, and the result of the cleaning is performed by the stencil photographing camera 711 while cleaning by the cleaner 8 is performed during the returning movement. It can also be confirmed.

  In the above embodiment, the moving direction of the moving unit is the direction (Y-axis direction) orthogonal to the substrate transport direction (X-axis direction), but may be set to other directions such as the substrate transport direction. .

  In the above embodiment, the moving unit includes both the stencil photographing camera and the board photographing camera, but only one of them may be used.

  In the above embodiment, the cleaning of the stencil is performed on both the forward path in which the cleaner moves to the printing work area side and the return path to the standby position side. However, the cleaning operation is performed only on the forward path, and only the photographing is performed on the return path. May be. In this way, highly accurate imaging can be easily performed without being affected by vibrations or the like due to the cleaning operation.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the printing stage that supports the substrate is raised and lowered so as to be superimposed on the stencil, but the present invention is a stencil raising and lowering type in which the stencil is raised and lowered to be superimposed on the substrate on the printing stage. The present invention can also be applied to other printing apparatuses.

  In the above embodiment, the substrate is placed on the placement table. However, the present invention may employ other placement means such as a pin-type placement means composed of a plurality of pins. .

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the suction nozzle employ | adopted the type of cleaner which wipes the lower surface etc. of a stencil by attracting | sucking through wiping paper, a cleaner is not limited to this, You may employ | adopt another type.

  In the above embodiment, both the stencil imaging camera 711 and the board imaging camera 712 are mounted on the moving beam (moving unit) 75 as the camera unit 7, but only one camera is mounted on the moving beam (moving unit) 75. It may be installed. In this case, the other camera can move independently on the XY plane and images the substrate W or the stencil 51. Furthermore, the imaging of the stencil 51 and the imaging of the substrate W may be performed by a single camera mounted on the moving beam (moving unit) 75. In this case, the camera is arranged so that the incident optical axis is horizontal, and a mirror tilted by 45 ° with respect to the incident optical axis and capable of rotating 180 ° around the incident optical axis is arranged in front of the camera. The camera can image the substrate W or the stencil 51 by rotating the mirror.

  In the above embodiment, the camera guide rail 771 of the camera moving mechanism 77 is arranged in the X-axis direction, but the direction intersecting the Y-axis direction (first direction) at a predetermined angle (second direction). You may arrange in.

It is a side view of the printing apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the said printing apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the said printing apparatus roughly. It is a perspective view which shows the printing stage periphery of the said printing apparatus. It is a side view which shows the clamp unit periphery of the said printing apparatus. 2A and 2B are perspective views illustrating a positional relationship of the printing apparatus with respect to a clamp of a positioning plate, in which FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a positioning plate retracted position, and FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a positioning plate positioning position. It is a perspective schematic diagram showing the positional relationship of each part of the printing apparatus concerning this embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the camera unit and cleaner unit of the said printing apparatus. It is the perspective view which looked at the camera unit and cleaner unit of the said printing apparatus from diagonally downward. It is a block diagram which shows the control system of the said printing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of board | substrate carrying in / out and cleaning in the said printing apparatus. It is a side view for demonstrating operation | movement of the said printing apparatus, Comprising: The figure (a) is a side view at the time of completion | finish of printing of a preceding board | substrate, The figure (b) is a side view at the time of board | substrate descending, FIG. ) Is a side view when the substrate clamp is released, and FIG. 4D is a side view when the lifting table is lowered. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating operation | movement of the said printer, Comprising: The figure (a) is a side view at the time of board | substrate carrying in / out, The figure (b) is a positioning board advancing for fixing a board | substrate in parallel with cleaning operation | movement. (C) is a side view when the substrate is raised for fixing the substrate in parallel with the cleaning operation, and (d) is a substrate clamp for fixing the substrate in parallel with the cleaning operation. It is a side view when being done. It is a side view for demonstrating operation | movement of the said printing apparatus, Comprising: The same figure (a) is a side view when a positioning board retracts | saves for fixing a board | substrate in parallel with cleaning operation, The same figure (b) is a stencil and The side view at the time of imaging | photography of a board | substrate, the figure (c) is a side view at the time of completion of imaging | photography, The figure (d) is a side view at the time of solder expansion.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Printing stage 51 Stencil 61 Squeegee 7 Camera unit 711 Stencil imaging camera 712 Substrate imaging camera 75 Moving beam (moving unit)
77 Camera moving mechanism (moving means)
8 Cleaner 91 CPU (control means)
S Cream solder (paste)
W, W 'Substrate A Print work area A1 Rear end of print work area A2 Front end of print work area E Standby position

Claims (7)

A printing apparatus for applying a paste to a substrate via a stencil,
With a cleaner to clean the stencil,
A moving unit mounted with the cleaner and moving in a first direction relative to the stencil;
A camera attached to the mobile unit for photographing at least one of a stencil and a substrate;
A printing apparatus comprising:   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a moving unit that moves the camera in a second direction intersecting the first direction on the moving unit.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit can be retracted to a standby position away from a printing work area below the stencil.   The printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a camera is disposed closer to a printing work area than the cleaner in the moving unit.   The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the camera confirms a cleaning state by photographing a stencil.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the camera includes a stencil photographing camera that photographs a stencil and a substrate photographing camera that photographs a substrate. A printing method for applying a paste to a substrate through a stencil,
Prior to application of the paste, the stencil is cleaned by a cleaner attached to a moving unit that moves in a first direction relative to the stencil;
A printing method, wherein at least one of a stencil and a substrate is photographed by a camera attached to the moving unit.

Images