JP2008260604A - Board carrying device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a board carrying device capable of efficiently carrying boards. <P>SOLUTION: The board carrying device comprises a conveyor 6 for continuously carrying the plurality of boards 2, an elevatable support 16 provided elevatably from the conveyor 6 across the conveyor 6 perpendicularly to the carrying direction of the boards 2, and an elevation drive unit 20 for elevating the elevatable support 16 down to a position where the boards 2 carried by the conveyor 6 can pass over the elevatable support 16 and for elevating the elevatable support 16 up to a position where the first board 2 out of the plurality of boards 2 is elevated up from the conveyor 6 while being supported upward by the elevatable support 16 to form under the elevatable support 16 a clearance through which the second board 2 out of the plurality of boards 2 carried by the conveyor 6 can pass. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate transfer apparatus installed on a transfer line for transferring a thin plate-like substrate such as a liquid crystal glass.

  For example, in the manufacturing process of a thin plate-like substrate such as glass used in a liquid crystal display panel, a transport line for transporting the substrate is provided, and the processing device is disposed along the transport line while transporting the substrate. Necessary processing is performed on the substrate. In the substrate transport apparatus used in such a transport line, the tray on which the substrate is placed is transported by a conveyor, and the substrate on the tray that has been transported is transferred from the conveyor to the processing apparatus side in the processing apparatus.

As a mechanism for transferring the substrate on the tray in this type of substrate transfer device to the processing device side, the substrate is lifted from the tray by a pin protruding upward from below the tray through the opening at the bottom of the tray. Patent Document 1 discloses that a gap is formed between the substrate and a robot hand or the like for transferring the substrate is inserted into the gap.
Further, as a similar mechanism, there is a patent in which a transport driving mechanism is projected instead of a pin, and a substrate is transferred from the tray to the processing apparatus side by rotating a roller provided in the transport driving mechanism. Known from document 2.
JP 2001-66069 A JP 2005-89049 A

However, since these substrate transfer devices simply lift the substrate on the tray above the tray and then transfer it from the conveyor to the processing device side by the robot hand or the transfer drive unit, the empty tray becomes a conveyor. Remain on. For this reason, the tray on which the substrate is placed and transported after the empty tray cannot be transported to the processing apparatus further downstream.
That is, for example, assuming that two similar processing apparatuses are arranged side by side, when a substrate is transferred from the tray for processing in the upstream processing apparatus, an empty tray remains on the conveyor. The tray on which the substrate is placed and transported cannot be transported to the downstream processing apparatus. For this reason, there is a problem that the substrate cannot be efficiently transported and processed despite the presence of two similar processing apparatuses.

  In order to solve such problems, once an empty tray is discharged from the conveyor, the substrate that has been processed by the upstream processing apparatus is processed until the next empty tray is conveyed. Since it cannot be carried out of the apparatus, the substrate cannot be processed efficiently even in this case. Further, in this case, there arises a problem that a mechanism and a space for discharging an empty tray once and returning it to the transport mechanism again are required.

Furthermore, it is possible to advance the tray that came later by pulling the tray from the transport mechanism to the processing device side in each processing device. In this case, in order to pull the tray in each processing device, The problem arises that a mechanism and space are required.
In order to solve these problems, it is also conceivable that the substrate is directly conveyed by a conveyor without being placed on the tray. However, even in this case, the substrate conveyed later cannot be conveyed to the downstream processing apparatus until the substrate is transferred from the conveyor to the processing apparatus side in the upstream processing apparatus. The substrate cannot be transferred and processed.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate transfer apparatus capable of efficiently transferring a substrate.

  In order to achieve the above object, a substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention includes a conveyer that continuously conveys a plurality of substrates, and protrudes inward from the outside of the conveyer in a direction that intersects the transfer direction of the substrate. The elevating support means provided so as to be capable of supporting the substrate and elevating with respect to the conveyor, and the elevating support means to a position where the substrate conveyed by the conveyor can pass above the elevating support means. The first substrate of the plurality of substrates is supported from below by the elevating support means and is lifted from the conveyor, and the second substrate of the plurality of substrates conveyed by the conveyor And a lift driving means capable of raising the lift support means to a position where a gap through which the substrate can pass is formed below the lift support means.

  According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, a plurality of substrates are continuously transported by the conveyor. The substrate supporting the substrate can be supported by projecting inward from the outside of the conveyor in the direction intersecting the substrate transport direction, and the lift support means that can be raised and lowered allows the substrate conveyed by the conveyor to pass above the lift support means. The substrate that is lowered to the position and conveyed by the conveyor can pass above the lifting support means without being interfered by the lifting support means. On the other hand, when the elevating support means is raised by the elevating drive means, the elevating support means supports the first substrate out of the plurality of substrates conveyed by the conveyer from below and raises it from the conveyor. The raising / lowering support means rises to a position where a gap through which the second substrate among the plurality of substrates carried by the conveyor can pass is formed below the raising / lowering support means, and the second substrate conveyed by the conveyor is It is possible to pass through the gap formed below the lifting support means without being interfered by the lifting support means.

  Further, in the substrate transport apparatus, the plurality of substrates are respectively placed on a tray having an opening at the bottom and transported by the conveyor, and the elevating support means is configured so as to intersect the transport direction of the substrate. The tray on which the first substrate is placed when it is raised by the elevating driving means so as to be able to support the substrate by projecting inward from the outside of the conveyor and to be raised and lowered with respect to the conveyor. A tray elevating member that supports and raises from below, and is provided in the tray elevating member, and penetrates through the opening from below the tray on which the first substrate is placed when the tray elevating member is elevated And a substrate elevating member that raises the first substrate from the tray (claim 2).

  According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, when the elevating support means is raised by the elevating drive means, the substrate elevating member provided on the tray elevating member is moved from below the tray through the opening provided on the bottom surface of the tray. It penetrates and supports the first substrate from below and lifts it from the tray. Then, the tray lifting member supports the tray on which the first substrate is placed from below and lifts it from the conveyor.

More specifically, in the substrate transfer apparatus, the substrate lifting member is a pin formed so as to protrude above the tray lifting member.
According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, as the elevating support means is raised, the pins protruding above the tray elevating member pass through the opening on the bottom surface of the tray and lift the first substrate from the tray. The elevating member is lifted to lift the tray on which the first substrate is placed from the conveyor.

Further, in the substrate transfer device, the first substrate is inserted into a gap formed between the tray raised by the tray lifting member and the first substrate raised by the substrate lifting member. The apparatus further comprises transfer means for lifting the substrate from the substrate lifting member and moving it from above the tray.
According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, when the tray is lifted by the tray lifting member and the first substrate is lifted from the tray by the substrate lifting member, a gap is formed between the first substrate and the tray. Is done. The transfer means is inserted into the gap formed in this way, and lifts the first substrate from the substrate lifting member and moves it from above the tray.

Alternatively, in the substrate transport apparatus, the substrate lifting member abuts on a lower surface of the first substrate raised from the tray, and transports the first substrate in a direction different from a transport direction by the conveyor. A member is provided (claim 5).
According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, when the tray is lifted by the tray lifting member and the first substrate is lifted from the tray by the substrate lifting member, the transport member that contacts the lower surface of the first substrate is the conveyor. The first substrate is transported in a direction different from the transport direction by.

Further, in the substrate transport apparatus, the conveyor includes a plurality of transport drive members for transmitting power to the tray and transporting the tray along the transport direction. It raises / lowers between the said conveyance drive members in a conveyance direction (Claim 6), It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, the tray is transported with power transmitted by the plurality of transport driving members provided on the conveyor along the transport direction. The raising / lowering support means moves up and down between these conveyance driving members in the conveyance direction.

  Alternatively, in the substrate transport apparatus, the conveyor is provided with a plurality of transport drive members along the transport direction for transmitting power directly to each of the plurality of substrates and transporting the substrate. The lift support means lifts the first substrate from the conveyor while being supported by contact with a lower side of the first substrate when lifted by the lift drive means. ).

According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, the power is directly transmitted to the substrate by the plurality of transport driving members provided on the conveyor along the transport direction, and the plurality of substrates are continuously used without using a tray or the like. Be transported. When the elevating support means is raised by the elevating drive means, the elevating support means comes into contact with the first substrate from below and lifts the first substrate from the conveyor.
Further, in the substrate transfer apparatus, transfer means that is inserted below the first substrate raised by the elevating support means, lifts the first substrate from the elevating support means, and moves from the elevating support means. (Claim 8).

According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, when the first substrate is lifted from the conveyor by the lifting support means, a gap is formed between the first substrate and the conveyor. The transfer means is inserted into the gap formed as described above, and lifts the first substrate from the lifting support means and moves it from above the conveyor.
Alternatively, in the substrate transport apparatus, the lifting support means is in contact with the lower surface of the first substrate raised from the conveyor, and transports the first substrate in a direction different from the transport direction by the conveyor. A member is provided (claim 9).

According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, when the first substrate is lifted from the conveyor by the lifting support means, the transport member that contacts the lower surface of the first substrate is moved in a direction different from the transport direction by the conveyor. 1 substrate is transported.
In the substrate transfer apparatus, the elevating support means is moved up and down between the transfer driving members in the transfer direction (claim 10).

  According to the substrate transport apparatus configured as described above, the lifting support means moves up and down between a plurality of transport drive members provided along the transport direction in order to directly transmit power to the substrate.

  According to the substrate transfer device of the present invention, when the first substrate among the plurality of substrates continuously transferred by the conveyor is transferred from the conveyor for the processing by the processing device, for example, the lift driving means When the lifting / lowering support means is raised and the first substrate is supported by the lifting / lowering support means from below and lifted from the conveyor, the second substrate of the plurality of substrates conveyed by the conveyor interferes with the lifting / lowering support means. It can be conveyed through a gap formed below the elevating support means. Accordingly, the second substrate can be transported even during the transfer and processing of the first substrate. For this reason, for example, while the first substrate is being processed by the processing apparatus, the second substrate transported after the first substrate is transferred from the processing apparatus that is processing the first substrate. It becomes possible to transport to the downstream processing apparatus, and the substrate can be transported efficiently.

In addition, when it is not necessary to move the substrate from the conveyor, the elevating support means descends so that the substrate can be transported by passing above the elevating support means without being interfered by the elevating support means. .
According to the substrate transfer apparatus of claim 2, as the lifting support means is lifted, the substrate lifting member penetrates from below the tray through the opening provided on the bottom surface of the tray, lifts the first substrate from the tray, A tray lifting member supports the tray on which the first substrate is placed from below and lifts it from the conveyor. Therefore, when the substrate is transported using the tray, the substrate can be transported efficiently as described above. In addition, since the first substrate is lifted from the tray by the substrate elevating member, for example, when the first substrate is moved to process the first substrate by the processing apparatus, a robot hand or a transfer conveyor is used. It is possible to easily insert a transport mechanism such as between the first substrate and the tray.

  According to the substrate transfer device of the third aspect, since the first substrate is lifted from the tray by the pins protruding above the tray lifting member, the contact area to the lower surface of the substrate when lifting the substrate is reduced as much as possible. This makes it possible to prevent damage to the lower surface of the substrate. Further, when a transport mechanism such as a robot hand or a transfer conveyor is inserted between the substrate and the tray, it is possible to increase the degree of freedom in setting the insertion position, the shape or size of the transport mechanism, and the like. .

According to the substrate transfer apparatus of the fourth aspect, the transfer means is inserted into the gap between the first substrate lifted from the tray by the substrate lifting member and the first substrate is moved by the transfer means. Since it is lifted from the substrate lifting member and moved from above the tray, it can be moved quickly without damaging the substrate.
According to the substrate transfer apparatus of the fifth aspect, after the first substrate is lifted from the tray by the substrate lifting member, the transfer member that contacts the lower surface of the first substrate is the first in a direction different from the transfer direction by the conveyor. Since this substrate is transported, it is possible to quickly move the substrate from the tray without damaging the substrate. In addition, it is not necessary to separately provide a robot hand or the like for moving the first substrate from the tray, and it is not necessary to secure an operation space for the robot hand.

According to the substrate transfer apparatus of the sixth aspect, since the lifting support means is moved up and down between the plurality of transfer driving members provided on the conveyor along the transfer direction, the lifting support means is connected to the transfer driving member. In order to avoid interference, the elevating support means can be raised and lowered without a complicated structure.
According to the substrate transfer apparatus of the seventh aspect, when the substrate is directly conveyed by the conveyor without using the tray, when the elevating support unit is raised by the elevating drive unit, the elevating support unit comes into contact with the first substrate from below. Since the first substrate is lifted from the conveyor, the second substrate among the plurality of substrates conveyed by the conveyor passes through the gap formed below the lifting support means without being interfered with the lifting support means. Can be transported. Therefore, when the substrate is directly conveyed by the conveyor without using the tray, the substrate can be efficiently conveyed.

According to the substrate transfer apparatus of the eighth aspect, the transfer means is inserted into the gap between the first substrate lifted from the tray by the elevating support means and the first substrate is moved by the transfer means. Since it is lifted from the lifting support means and moved from above the tray, it can be moved quickly without damaging the substrate.
According to the substrate transfer device of the ninth aspect, when the first substrate is lifted from the conveyor by the lifting support means, the transfer member contacting the lower surface of the first substrate is different from the transfer direction by the conveyor in the first direction. Since the substrate is transported, it can be quickly moved from the tray without damaging the substrate. In addition, it is not necessary to separately provide a robot hand or the like for moving the first substrate from the tray, and it is not necessary to secure an operation space for the robot hand.

  According to the substrate transfer apparatus of claim 10, the elevating support means is moved up and down between a plurality of transfer drive members along the transfer direction in order to transmit power directly to the substrate. In order to avoid interference with the transport driving member, the lifting support means can be lifted and lowered without a complicated structure.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a part of a production line to which a substrate transfer apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. In this production line, for example, a thin glass substrate (hereinafter referred to as a substrate) 2 used for a liquid crystal display panel or a plasma display is processed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the board | substrate 2 is mounted in the tray 4, and is conveyed on the conveyor 6 in the direction of the arrow A in a figure. More specifically, the conveyor 6 is provided with a pair of frames 6a along the conveying direction, and each frame 6a includes a plurality of conveying rollers (conveying drive members) 6b. Power is transmitted to a power source (not shown) to each of the transport driving members 6b, and the power is transmitted to the tray 4 by rotating while contacting the lower surface of the tray 4, so that the tray 4 is transported.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the tray 4. As shown in FIG. 3, the tray 4 has a frame 4a having an L-shaped cross section with a large opening at the bottom, and a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the tray 4 indicated by an arrow A in the figure in the frame 4a. And a plurality of wire-like supports 4b. The board | substrate 2 is mounted on the support body 4b, and it is conveyed by the conveyor 6 because the conveyance roller 6b contact | abuts to the bottom face of the part along a conveyance direction among the frames 4a.

  In this production line, a processing device 8 that performs a predetermined process on the substrate 2 transported by the conveyor 6 in this way is disposed on the side of the transport direction of the conveyor 6. Further, the processing device 8 is provided with a processing device 10 having the same function as the processing device 8. Further, between the processing device 8 and the conveyor 6, the substrate 2 can be moved in the direction of arrow B in the figure and the opposite direction by a power source (not shown) and can be moved up and down, and is transported by the conveyor 6. Is transferred from the tray 4 to the processing apparatus 8, and a robot hand (transfer means) 12 is provided for returning the substrate 2 processed by the processing apparatus 8 to the tray 4 on the conveyor 2 again.

  Further, between the processing apparatus 10 and the conveyor 6, like the robot hand 12, it can be moved in the direction of arrow B in the figure and the opposite direction by a power source (not shown) and can be moved up and down. The robot hand 14 for moving 2 between the conveyor 6 and the processing apparatus 10 is provided. These robot hands 12 and 14 themselves are publicly known, and description of the configuration thereof is omitted here, but the transfer of the substrate 2 by the robot hands 12 and 14 will be specifically described later.

The conveyor 6 is provided with a pair of elevating supports (elevating support means) 16 at a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 8 so as to straddle the conveyor 6 in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction. The position corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 Further, a pair of elevating supports (elevating support means) 18 similar to the elevating support 16 is provided.
As shown in FIG. 2, four pairs of frames 6 a of the conveyor 6 are formed with four slits 6 c each at a position between a plurality of conveying rollers 6 b arranged in the conveying direction. 16 and 18 can move up and down in these slits 6c without interfering with the respective transport rollers 6b. The two elevating supports 16 are connected to elevating drive units (elevating drive means) 20 at both ends thereof, and are driven by a power source (not shown) provided in the elevating drive unit 20 so as to move up and down in synchronization with each other. It has become. Similarly, the two lifting support members 18 are connected to a lifting drive unit (lifting drive means) 22 at both ends thereof, and are driven by a power source (not shown) provided in the lifting drive unit 22 to synchronize with each other. It is designed to go up and down.

  4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. 3 and shows a state where the elevating support 16 is lowered most. As shown in FIG. 4, the elevating support 16 has a main body (tray elevating member) 16 a having both lower ends connected to the elevating drive unit 20 across the conveyor 6, and is projected upward from the upper part of the main body 16 a. And a pin (substrate elevating member) 16b. In addition, the raising / lowering support body 18 is comprised similarly to the raising / lowering support body 16, and description is abbreviate | omitted here.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the substrate 2 is placed on the support 4b of the tray 4, and is transported together with the tray 4 by the rotation of the transport roller 6b that contacts the lower surface of the frame 4a. The pins 16b of the lifting support 16 are lowered to a position that does not prevent the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed from passing above the lifting support 16 when the lifting support 16 is in its lowest lowered state. It is like that. Therefore, when the lifting support 16 is lowered most, the substrate 2 placed on the tray 4 can pass over the lifting support 16 and be conveyed by the conveyor 6.

When the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed reaches a position corresponding to the processing device 8, the rotation of the transport roller 6 b is temporarily stopped, so that the tray 4 stops at a position corresponding to the processing device 8.
The two raising / lowering support bodies 16 are arrange | positioned so that it may be located under the tray 4 stopped as shown in FIG.1 and FIG.2 at this time. In this state, when the lifting support 16 is driven and lifted by the lifting drive unit 20, the pins 16 b of the lifting support 16 enter the lower surface opening of the tray 4. The elevating support 16 is disposed at such a position that the pins 16b rising at this time do not interfere with the frame 4a and the supports 4b of the tray 4, and the pins 16b penetrate the lower surface opening of the tray 4. Ascend and contact the lower surface of the substrate 2 on the support 4b. When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the substrate 2 is lifted from the tray 4 while the pins 16b support from below. When the lifting support 16 is raised, the upper portion of the main body 16a comes into contact with the lower surface of the frame 4a of the tray 4, and when the lifting support 16 continues to rise, the main body 16a supports the tray 4 from below and from the conveyor 6. lift.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 4 when the elevating support 16 is in the most elevated state in this way. As shown in FIG. 5, the tray 4 is supported by the main body 16 a of the elevating support 16 and is lifted from the conveyor 6, and the substrate 2 placed on the tray 4 penetrates from the lower surface opening of the tray 4. Thus, the pin 16b is lifted from the tray 4 while being supported by the pin 16b.

  At this time, a gap is formed below the main body 16a of the elevating support 16 so that the substrate 4 (second substrate) 2 can be placed and the tray 4 conveyed later by the conveyor 6 can pass through. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support 16 is lifted in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the tray 4 transported thereafter has a gap below the lifted lifting / lowering support 16a. The substrate (second substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 that can be transported through and passes below the elevating support 16 is directed to the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. Can be transported.

  In addition, the substrate (first substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 lifted by the lifting support 16 is lifted from the tray 4 by the pins 16b as described above. A gap is formed between them. In such a state, by bringing the robot hand 12 closer to the conveyor 6 in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 1, the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. The robot hand 12 is inserted into the gap with the robot 4. The robot hand 12 is lifted after being inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2 in this way, whereby the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted by the robot hand 12 from the pin 16b. Next, the robot hand 12 moves in the direction opposite to the arrow B in FIG. 1 to move away from the conveyor 6, changes the direction to the processing apparatus 8 side, and then transfers the substrate (first substrate) 2 to the processing apparatus 8. It is controlled to carry in.

  As described above, the elevating support 18 is configured in the same manner as the elevating support 16, and the raising of the tray 4 and the substrate 2 accompanying the elevating of the elevating support 18 is performed in the same manner as the elevating support 16 described above. Is called. Therefore, when the lifting support 18 is in the lowest position, the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed can pass above the lifting support 18 and the lifting support 18 is in the highest position. In this case, the tray on which the substrate 2 is placed can pass under the lifting support 18.

The operation of the substrate transfer apparatus in the production line configured as described above is as follows.
When the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed is continuously transported by the conveyor 6 and one of the trays 4 reaches a position corresponding to the processing device 8, the transport roller 6b of the conveyor 6 temporarily stops rotating. As shown in 1 and 2, the tray 4 stops at a position corresponding to the processing device 8.
Next, the elevating support 16 is driven by the elevating drive unit 20 to start rising, and the pins 16 b of the elevating support 16 enter from the opening on the lower surface of the tray 4 and rise through the tray 4. When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the pins 16b come into contact with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 to lift the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the tray 4, and the tray The rising of the substrate (first substrate) 2 with respect to 4 continues until the main body 16a of the lifting support 16 abuts against the lower surface of the tray 4. After that, when the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the tray 4 is lifted from the conveyor 6 with the lower surface of the tray 4 supported by the main body 16a. At this time, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the pins 16 b and moves up with the tray 4 without changing the relative position with respect to the tray 4.

  When the elevating support 16 is lifted and is in the most lifted state as shown in FIG. 5, there is a gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 supported by the pins 16b and the tray 4 supported by the main body 16a. A gap is formed. Therefore, the robot hand 12 corresponding to the processing device 8 is moved in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 1 and approaches the conveyor 4, so that it is inserted into the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray 4. Is done. Next, by raising the inserted robot hand 12, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pin 16b by the robot hand 12 and separated from the pin 16a. The robot hand 12 moves in the direction opposite to the arrow B in FIG. 1 and moves away from the conveyor 6 in a state where the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pin 16a in this way, The substrate (first substrate) 2 is carried into the processing apparatus 8 while changing the direction to the side 8.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 5, the tray 4 on which the substrate (second substrate) 2 is placed and is conveyed later by the conveyor 6 can pass under the main body 16 a of the lifted support 16 that has been lifted. A gap is formed. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support 16 is lifted in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the tray 4 conveyed thereafter has a gap below the lifted lifting / lowering support 16. The substrate (second substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 that can be transported through and passes below the elevating support 16 is directed to the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. Can be conveyed.

  In this way, when the substrate (first substrate) 2 is transferred and processed in the processing apparatus 8, once the substrate (first substrate) 2 is raised by the elevating support 16, it is transported later. The incoming substrate (second substrate) 2 can be transported to the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 without waiting for transfer or processing of the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8. It is possible to efficiently use the processing apparatuses 10 arranged side by side.

When the processing of the substrate (first substrate) 2 is completed in the processing apparatus 8, the conveyor 6 is transferred from the processing apparatus 8 in the reverse procedure to the transfer of the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the conveyor 6 to the processing apparatus 8 described above. The substrate (first substrate) 2 is transferred to the substrate.
That is, the robot hand 12 faces the processing apparatus 8 and unloads the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the processing apparatus 8, and then changes the direction and places the substrate (first substrate) 2 in FIG. It moves in the direction of arrow B and approaches the conveyor 6. When the substrate (first substrate) 2 is moved onto the tray 4 supported by the main body 16 a of the lifting support 16, the robot hand 12 is lowered and the substrate (first substrate) 2 is moved to the tray 4. It is mounted on the pin 16b protruding upward.

  When the robot hand 12 moves in the direction opposite to the arrow B in FIG. 1 and retreats from the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray 4, the lift drive unit 20 drives the lift support 16 to move up and down. The support 16 starts to descend, and the substrate (first substrate) 2 supported by the pins 16b and the tray 4 supported by the main body 16a are both lowered. When the tray 4 is lowered and the lower surface of the frame 4a is supported by being brought into contact with the conveying roller 6b of the conveyor 6, the tray 4 stops descending, while the substrate (first substrate) 2 supported by the pins 16b. Continuously descends as the elevating support 16 descends. When the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 comes into contact with the support 4b of the tray 4 and the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the support 4b, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is The descent is stopped and the tray 4 is placed.

The elevating support 16 continues to descend, and stops descending when it is lowered to the position shown in FIG. At this time, the pins 16b of the lifting support 16 are lowered to a position where the conveyance of the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed by the conveyor 6 is not hindered, and the substrate (first substrate) after the processing in the processing apparatus 8 is finished. ) 2 is transported to the downstream side while being placed on the tray 4.
The lifting support 18 provided corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 also has the same function as the lifting support 16 described above, and is placed on the tray 4 at a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 10. The transported substrate 2 is transferred between the conveyor 6 and the processing apparatus 10 by the lifting support 18 and the robot hand 14 in the same manner as the transfer by the lifting support 16 and the robot hand 12 described above. Accordingly, also in the lifting support 18, when the lifting support 18 is lifted in order to perform the processing of the substrate 2 in the processing apparatus 10, the tray 4 conveyed thereafter is located below the lifted lifting support 18. It can be conveyed through the gap. Thus, since it becomes possible to convey the board | substrate 2 mounted in the tray 4 which passes the downward direction of the raising / lowering support body 18 toward the downstream of the processing apparatus 10, it is the same as the case of the raising / lowering support body 16. In addition, the substrate 2 can be transported efficiently.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is raised from the tray 4 by the pins 16b protruding from the elevating support 16, so that the substrate (first substrate) 2 is raised. It is possible to prevent the substrate (first substrate) 2 from being damaged by reducing the contact area with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 as much as possible. Further, it is possible to increase the degree of freedom of setting regarding the insertion position of the robot hand 12 inserted in the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray 4 and the shape or size of the robot hand 12.

Further, in this embodiment, the robot hand 12 is inserted into the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray 4 so that the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pin 16b and moved from the tray 4. Therefore, the substrate (first substrate) 2 can be quickly moved from the tray 4 without damaging it.
These effects can also be obtained in the lift support 18 configured similarly to the lift support 16.

  In the first embodiment, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the tray 4 by the pins 16 b of the elevating support 16, and the robot hand 12 is placed in the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the tray 4. The substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pin 16b and moved from the tray 4, but the method for raising and transferring the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the tray 4 is It is not limited.

Therefore, as a second embodiment of the present invention, a substrate transfer apparatus in which the substrate (first substrate) 2 is raised from the tray 4 and transferred by a method different from the first embodiment will be described below. To do.
In the present embodiment, the configuration for raising the substrate 2 from the tray 4 and transferring it to the processing apparatuses 8 and 10 is different from that in the first embodiment, and the other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment. is there. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for the same parts as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted. The description below will focus on the parts that are different from the first embodiment. Further, as in the first embodiment, the configuration for raising and transferring the substrate 2 in the lifting support 16 and the configuration for lifting and transferring the substrate 2 in the lifting support 18 are the same. Hereinafter, a configuration for raising and transferring the substrate 2 in the lifting support 16 will be described in detail.

Also in this embodiment, the arrangement of the conveyor 6, the processing device 8, and the processing device 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, and the substrate 2 is placed on the tray 4 in the same manner as the first embodiment. It is conveyed by the conveyor 6 and stops at a position corresponding to the processing device 8 or the processing device 10.
FIG. 6 shows a cross section similar to the cross section of FIG. 4 in the first embodiment described above, and shows a case where the elevating support 16 is lowered most. In the first embodiment, the substrate (first substrate) 2 on the tray 4 is lifted and transferred to the processing apparatus 8 side by the pins 16b protruding from the main body 16a of the lifting support 16. In the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, a transfer transport roller (transport member) 16c is provided on the main body 16a instead of the pin 16b. The present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a transfer conveyor 24 is provided instead of the robot hand 12.

  More specifically, a roller holding portion 16e supported by a plurality of support columns 16d and extending in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveyor 6 along the main body 16a is provided on the upper portion of the main body 16a of the lifting support 16. Is provided. A plurality of transfer conveyance rollers 16 c that rotate about a rotation axis along the conveyance direction of the conveyor 6 are arranged in the roller holding portion 16 e side by side in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyor 6. Each transfer transport roller 16c has an upper end projecting upward from the upper surface of the roller holding portion 16e, and is configured to rotate by power from a power source (not shown) built in the roller holding portion 16e. Yes.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the elevating support 16 is in the lowest position, the transfer roller 16c for transfer, the column 16d, and the roller holding portion 16e have the substrate 2 placed above the elevating support 16. The tray 4 is lowered to a position that does not hinder the passage of the tray 4.
Also in this embodiment, when the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed reaches a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 8 as in the first embodiment, the rotation of the transport roller 6b is temporarily stopped. As a result, the tray 4 stops at a position corresponding to the processing device 8.

  The two raising / lowering support bodies 16 are arrange | positioned so that it may be located under the stopped tray 4 similarly to 1st Embodiment mentioned above. In this state, when each lifting support 16 is driven and lifted by the lifting drive unit 20, the transfer transport roller 16 c enters the lower surface opening of the tray 4. The elevating support 16 is disposed at a position where the transfer transport roller 16c, the column 16d, and the roller holding portion 16e that are raised at this time do not interfere with the frame 4a of the tray 4 and each support 4b. The conveying roller 16c passes through the lower surface opening of the tray 4 and comes into contact with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 on the support 4b. When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the transfer roller 16c lifts the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the tray 4 while supporting it from below. Then, when the elevating support 16 is raised, the upper portion of the main body 16 a comes into contact with the lower surface of the frame 4 a of the tray 4, and when the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the main body 16 a lifts the tray 4 from the conveyor 6.

  FIG. 7 shows a cross section similar to the cross section of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment, and shows a state in which the elevating support 16 is raised most. As shown in FIG. 7, the tray 4 is supported by the main body 16 a of the lifting support 16 and is lifted from the conveyor 6, and the substrate (first substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 is the tray. 4 is lifted from the tray 4 by being supported by the transfer conveyance roller 16c that has penetrated and raised from the lower surface opening.

  At this time, a gap through which the tray 4 conveyed by the conveyor 6 after the substrate (second substrate) 2 is placed is formed below the main body 16a of the elevating support 16. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support 16 is lifted in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the tray 4 transported thereafter has a gap below the lifted lifting / lowering support 16a. The substrate (second substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 that can be transported through and passes below the elevating support 16 is directed to the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. Can be conveyed.

  As described above, the transfer conveyor 24 is disposed between the conveyor 16 and the processing apparatus 8 instead of the robot hand 12. As shown in FIG. 7, the transfer conveyor 24 is held by a roller holding frame 24 a extending from the vicinity of the tray 4 stopped corresponding to the processing device 8 toward the processing device 8, and the roller holding frame 24 a, And a plurality of conveying rollers 24b that are driven and rotated by a power source (not shown). Further, the height of the upper end portion of each transfer roller 24b of the transfer conveyor 24 is substantially the same as the height of the upper end portion of each transfer transfer roller 16c of the elevating support 16 that is in the most elevated state as described above. It is supposed to be.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the transfer transport roller 16c is rotated by rotating the transfer transport roller 16c while the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the tray 4 by the transfer transport roller 16c. The upper substrate (first substrate) 2 moves toward a direction different from the conveying direction by the conveyor 6, that is, toward the transfer conveyor 24. At this time, the transfer roller 24b of the transfer conveyor 24 is also rotated in the same manner as the transfer transfer roller 16c, so that the substrate (first substrate) 2 moved by the transfer transfer roller 16c is transferred to the transfer conveyor 24. Is transferred to the processing apparatus 8 by the transfer conveyor 24.

  As described above, the elevating support 18 is configured in the same manner as the elevating support 16, and the raising of the tray 4 and the substrate 2 accompanying the elevating of the elevating support 18 is performed in the same manner as the elevating support 16 described above. Is called. Therefore, when the lifting support 18 is in the lowest position, the tray 4 on which the base 2 is placed can pass above the lifting support 18 and the lifting support 18 is in the highest position. In this case, the tray on which the substrate 2 is placed can pass under the lifting support 18. Further, a transfer conveyor (not shown) similar to the transfer conveyor 24 is also provided on the processing apparatus 10 side, and the movement of the substrate 2 between the lifting support 18 and the processing apparatus 10 is also performed by the lifting support 16. This is performed in the same manner as in the above.

The operation of the substrate transfer apparatus in the production line configured as described above is as follows.
When the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed is continuously conveyed by the conveyor 6 and one of the trays 4 reaches a position corresponding to the processing device 8, the tray 4 is moved to the processing device 8 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Stop at the position corresponding to.
Next, the lifting / lowering support 16 is driven by the lifting / lowering drive unit 20 to start rising, and the transfer conveyance roller 16c of the lifting / lowering support 16 enters from the opening on the lower surface of the tray 4 and rises through the tray 4. . When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the transfer conveyance roller 16c comes into contact with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 to place the substrate (first substrate) 2 on the tray 4. The substrate (first substrate) 2 ascends from the tray 4 and continues to rise until the main body 16a of the elevating support 16 contacts the lower surface of the tray 4. After that, when the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the tray 4 is lifted from the conveyor 6 with the lower surface of the tray 4 supported by the main body 16a. At this time, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the transfer transport roller 16 c and moves up with the tray 4 without changing the relative position with respect to the tray 4.

  In this way, when the lifting support 16 is in the most elevated state as shown in FIG. 7, the substrate on the transfer roller 16c (first substrate) is rotated by rotating the transfer roller 16c. 2 is moved toward the transfer conveyor 24. At this time, the transfer roller 24b of the transfer conveyor 24 also rotates in the same manner as the transfer transfer roller 16c, and the substrate (first substrate) moved toward the transfer conveyor 24 by the transfer transfer roller 16c. 2 is transferred onto the transfer conveyor 24 and is further carried into the processing apparatus 8 by the transfer conveyor 24.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the tray 4 on which the substrate (second substrate) 2 is placed and is subsequently conveyed by the conveyor 6 can pass below the main body 16 a of the lift support 16 that has been lifted. A gap is formed. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support 16 is lifted in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the tray 4 conveyed thereafter has a gap below the lifted lifting / lowering support 16. The substrate (second substrate) 2 placed on the tray 4 that can be transported through and passes below the elevating support 16 is directed to the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. Can be conveyed. Therefore, similarly to the first embodiment described above, the substrate 2 can be efficiently transferred, and the processing apparatuses 10 arranged side by side can be used effectively.

When the processing of the substrate (first substrate) 2 is completed in the processing apparatus 8, the conveyor 6 is transferred from the processing apparatus 8 in the reverse procedure to the transfer of the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the conveyor 6 to the processing apparatus 8 described above. The substrate (first substrate) 2 is transferred to the substrate.
That is, the conveyance roller 24b of the transfer conveyor 24 is reversed to carry out the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the processing apparatus 8, and the substrate (first substrate) is placed on the transfer conveyance roller 16c of the lifted support 16 that has been raised. Substrate) 2 is moved. At this time, the transfer transport roller 16c is also reversed, and the transfer transport roller 16c contacts the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 so that the substrate (first substrate) 2 is placed on the tray 4. Moving. When the substrate (first substrate) 2 moves onto the tray 4 and reaches a position where it can be placed on the tray 4, as shown in FIG. 7, the transfer transport roller 16c stops rotating and then moves up and down. When the drive unit 20 drives the lifting support 16, the lifting support 16 starts to descend. As the elevating support 16 is lowered, both the substrate (first substrate) 2 supported by the transfer conveyance roller 16c and the tray 4 supported by the main body 16a are lowered. When the tray 4 is lowered and the lower surface of the frame 4a is supported by being brought into contact with the conveyance roller 6b of the conveyor 6, the tray 4 stops descending, while the substrate (first substrate) supported by the transfer conveyance roller 16c. The substrate 2) continues to descend as the elevating support 16 descends. When the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 comes into contact with the support 4b of the tray 4 and the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the support 4b, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is The descent is stopped and the tray 1 is placed.

  The elevating support 16 continues to descend and stops descending when it reaches the state shown in FIG. At this time, the transfer conveyance roller 16c, the support column 16d, and the roller holding portion 16e of the lifting support 16 are lowered to a position where the conveyance of the tray 4 on which the substrate 2 is placed by the conveyor 6 is not hindered. The substrate (first substrate) 2 that has been subjected to the above processing is transported downstream while being placed on the tray 4.

  In addition, the raising / lowering support 18 provided corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 has the same function as the raising / lowering support 16 described above, and is transferred between the conveyor 6 and the processing apparatus 10 as described above. A transfer conveyor similar to the conveyor 24 is provided, and the substrate 2 placed on the tray 4 and transported to a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 is transferred by the above-described lifting support 16 and the transfer conveyor 24. It is transferred between the conveyor 6 and the processing apparatus 10 in the same manner as the loading. Accordingly, also in the lifting support 18, when the lifting support 18 is lifted in order to perform the processing of the substrate 2 in the processing apparatus 10, the tray 4 conveyed thereafter is located below the lifted lifting support 18. It can be conveyed through the gap. Thus, since it becomes possible to convey the board | substrate 2 mounted in the tray 4 which passes the downward direction of the raising / lowering support body 18 toward the downstream of the processing apparatus 10, it is the same as the case of the raising / lowering support body 16. In addition, the substrate 2 can be transported efficiently.

  In the present embodiment, when the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the tray 4 as the elevating support 16 is lifted, the transfer transport roller 16c that contacts the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 is provided. Since the substrate (first substrate) 2 is transported in the direction of the processing apparatus 8 which is different from the transport direction by the conveyor 6, the substrate (first substrate) 2 can be promptly damaged without being damaged. It can be moved from the tray 4. Further, since it is only necessary to transfer the substrate (first substrate) 2 on the tray 4 to the processing device 8 by the transfer conveyor 22, a robot hand for moving the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the tray 4 is provided. There is no need to provide a separate robot, and there is no need to secure an operating space for the robot hand.

Such an effect can be similarly obtained in the lifting support 18 configured similarly to the lifting support 16.
In the present embodiment, the transfer conveyance roller 16c of the lifting support 16 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the transfer conveyance roller 16c is rotated to rotate the substrate (first substrate). ) 2 is moved from above the tray 4, but in addition to this, the substrate (first substrate) is ejected from the upper surface of the roller holding portion 16 e toward the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. 2 may be supported.

In the first and second embodiments described so far, the substrate 2 is placed on the tray 4 and then transported by the conveyor 6. However, the substrate 2 is not placed on the tray 4 or the like, but is conveyed by the conveyor 6. The present invention can also be applied to the case of direct conveyance.
Below, the board | substrate conveyance apparatus at the time of making it convey the board | substrate 2 directly with the conveyor 6 is demonstrated as 3rd Embodiment of this invention.

  In the third embodiment, only the point that the substrate 2 is transported without using the tray 4 is different from the first embodiment described above, and other configurations are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for the same parts as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted, and parts different from those in the first embodiment will be mainly described below. Moreover, since the raising / lowering support body 16 and the raising / lowering support body 18 are comprised similarly like 1st Embodiment, below, it demonstrates in detail centering on the raising / lowering support body 16. FIG.

The arrangement of the conveyor 6, the processing device 8, and the processing device 10 in the present embodiment is the same as that in the first embodiment. A robot hand 12 is disposed between the conveyor 6 and the processing device 8, and the conveyor 6 and the processing are processed. The point that the robot hand 14 is disposed between the apparatus 10 and the apparatus 10 is the same as in the first embodiment.
The substrate 2 is directly supported from below by conveyance rollers (conveyance drive members) 6b provided on the conveyor 6, and power is directly transmitted by the rotation of the conveyance rollers 6b. It has become.

  FIG. 8 shows a cross section similar to the cross section of FIG. 4 in the first embodiment described above, and shows a case where the elevating support 16 is lowered most. Similar to the first embodiment, a pin 16b protrudes upward from the main body 16a of the lifting support 16. As shown in FIG. 8, when the elevating support 16 is in the most lowered state, the pin 16b is lowered to a position that does not prevent the substrate 2 from passing over the elevating support 16. Yes.

Also in this embodiment, as in the first embodiment described above, when the substrate 2 reaches a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 8, the rotation of the transport roller 6b is temporarily stopped, so that the substrate 2 is processed into the processing apparatus. Stop at the position corresponding to 8.
The two lifting / lowering supports 16 are arranged to be positioned below the stopped substrate (first substrate) 2. In this state, when each lifting support 16 is driven and lifted by the lifting drive unit 20, the pins 16 b of the lifting support 16 approach the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. The elevating support 16 is disposed at a position where the pins 16b rising at this time do not interfere with the frame 4a of the tray 4 and the respective supports 4b, and the upper ends of the pins 16b are raised when the elevating support 16 is raised. It contacts the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the substrate 2 is lifted from the conveyor 6 while the pins 16b support from below.

  FIG. 9 shows a cross section similar to the cross section of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment, and shows a state in which the elevating support 16 is raised most. As shown in FIG. 9, at this time, a gap through which a substrate (second substrate) 2 conveyed later by the conveyor 6 can pass is formed below the main body 16a of the lifting support 16. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support body 16 is raised in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the substrate (second substrate) 2 transported thereafter is raised and lowered. The substrate (second substrate) 2 is allowed to pass through the gap below the body 16a, passes below the lifting support 16 and is directed toward the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. It can be transported.

  9, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the pins 16b and is lifted from the conveyor 6, and the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the body of the lifting support 16 A gap is formed between the upper end of 16a. In such a state, the robot hand 12 is brought close to the conveyor 6 in the same manner as in the first embodiment, so that the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the lifting support as shown by the one-dot chain line in FIG. The robot hand 12 is inserted into the gap between the 16 main bodies 16a. The robot hand 12 is lifted after being inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2 in this way, whereby the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted by the robot hand 12 from the pin 16b. Next, the robot hand 12 is controlled to move away from the conveyor 6 in the same manner as in the first embodiment, and to carry the substrate (first substrate) 2 into the processing apparatus 8 after changing the direction to the processing apparatus 8 side. It is like that.

  As described above, the elevating support 18 is configured in the same manner as the elevating support 16, and the substrate 2 is raised along with the elevating support 18 in the same manner as the elevating support 16 described above. Therefore, when the lifting support 18 is in the lowest lowered state, the base 2 can pass above the lifting support 18, and when the lifting support 18 is in the highest lifted state, the lifting support 18 Substrate 2 can pass under 18.

The operation of the substrate transfer apparatus in the production line configured as described above is as follows.
When the substrate 2 is continuously conveyed by the conveyor 6 and one of the substrates 2 reaches a position corresponding to the processing device 8, the conveyance roller 6b of the conveyor 6 temporarily stops rotating as in the first embodiment. Then, the substrate (first substrate) 2 stops at a position corresponding to the processing apparatus 8.
Next, the elevating support 16 is driven by the elevating drive unit 20 to start rising, and the pins 16 b of the elevating support 16 approach the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. When the elevating support 16 continues to rise, the pins 16 b come into contact with the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 to lift the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the conveyor 6.

  When the elevating support 16 is lifted and reaches the highest position as shown in FIG. 9, a gap is formed between the substrate (first substrate) 2 supported by the pins 16b and the main body 16a. Therefore, the robot hand 12 corresponding to the processing apparatus 8 is inserted into the gap below the substrate (first substrate) 2 by approaching the conveyor 4 as in the first embodiment. Next, by raising the inserted robot hand 12, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted by the robot hand 12 and separated from the pin 16a. The robot hand 12 moves the substrate (first substrate) 2 away from the conveyor 6 in a state where the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pin 16a in this manner, and then turns the substrate (first substrate) to the processing device 8 side. Substrate) 2 is carried in.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 9, a gap through which the substrate (second substrate) 2 transported later can pass is formed below the main body 16a of the lift support 16 that has been lifted. Therefore, when the lifting / lowering support body 16 is raised in order to process the substrate (first substrate) 2 in the processing apparatus 8, the substrate (second substrate) 2 transported thereafter is raised and lowered. The substrate (second substrate) 2 is allowed to pass through the lower portion of the lifting support 16 so that the substrate (second substrate) 2 can pass through the gap below the body 16, toward the processing apparatus 10 on the downstream side of the processing apparatus 8 and further downstream. It can be transported.

As described above, also in the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, it is possible to efficiently transport the substrate 2 and effectively use the processing apparatuses 10 arranged in parallel. Become.
When the processing of the substrate (first substrate) 2 is completed in the processing apparatus 8, the conveyor 6 is transferred from the processing apparatus 8 in the reverse procedure to the transfer of the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the conveyor 6 to the processing apparatus 8 described above. The substrate (first substrate) 2 is transferred to the substrate.

That is, the robot hand 12 turns to the processing apparatus 8 and unloads the substrate (first substrate) 2 from the processing apparatus 8, and then turns to approach the conveyor 6 with the substrate (first substrate) 2 placed thereon. To do. And if the board | substrate (1st board | substrate) 2 is moved on the main body 16a of the raising / lowering support body 16, the robot hand 12 will descend | fall and the board | substrate (1st board | substrate) 2 will be mounted on the pin 16b.
When the robot hand 12 moves away from the conveyor 6 away from the conveyor 6 (first substrate) 2, the elevating drive unit 20 drives the elevating support 16 so that the elevating support 16 starts to move downward. The supported substrate (first substrate) 2 is lowered. Even after the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lowered and the lower surfaces of both side end portions of the substrate (first substrate) 2 are supported in contact with the conveying rollers 6b of the conveyor 6, the elevating support 16 continues to descend. The descent is stopped when the state shown in FIG. 8 is reached. At this time, the pins 16b of the elevating support 16 are lowered to a position that does not hinder the conveyance of the substrate 2 by the conveyor 6, and the substrate (first substrate) 2 that has finished the processing in the processing apparatus 8 is transferred to the conveying roller 6b. It is conveyed downstream by rotation.

  In addition, the raising / lowering support body 18 provided corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 also has the same function as the raising / lowering support body 16 mentioned above, and the board | substrate 2 conveyed to the position corresponding to the processing apparatus 10 is as follows. In the same manner as the transfer by the lifting support 16 and the robot hand 12 described above, the transfer is performed between the conveyor 6 and the processing device 10 by the lifting support 18 and the robot hand 14. Accordingly, also in the lifting support 18, when the lifting support 18 is raised in order to perform the processing of the substrate 2 in the processing apparatus 10, the substrate 2 transported thereafter is below the raised lifting support 18. It can be conveyed through the gap. As described above, since the substrate 2 can be transported toward the downstream side of the processing apparatus 10 by passing below the lifting support 18, the substrate 2 can be transported in the same manner as the lifting support 16. Transport can be performed efficiently.

  In the present embodiment, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the conveyor 6 by the pins 16b projecting from the elevating support 16, so that the bottom surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2 is contacted. It is possible to prevent the substrate (first substrate) 2 from being damaged by minimizing the contact area. Further, it is possible to increase the degree of freedom of setting regarding the insertion position of the robot hand 12 inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the shape or size of the robot hand 12.

Further, in the present embodiment, the robot hand 12 is inserted into the gap between the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the main body 16a of the lifting support 16 and the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the pins 16b and removed from the conveyor 6. Since it was made to move, it becomes possible to move from the conveyor 6 promptly, without damaging the board | substrate (1st board | substrate) 2. FIG.
These effects can also be obtained in the lift support 18 configured similarly to the lift support 16.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the substrate 2 is directly conveyed by the conveyor 6 without using the tray, so that the main body 16a of the elevating support 16 is further supported by the pins 16b while being in contact with the lower surface of the tray. It is not necessary for the substrate 2 to be lifted above the tray. Therefore, the height of the pin 16 can be shortened by the thickness of the tray as compared with the case where the substrate 2 is transported using the tray. For this reason, when the raising / lowering support body 16 is lowered most as shown in FIG. 8, the space required below the substrate 2 can be made smaller than the case where a tray is used, and the raising / lowering drive unit 20. As a result, the lifting stroke of the lifting support 16 can be made shorter than when a tray is used.

  In the present embodiment, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted from the conveyor 6 by the pins 16b protruding from the main body 16a of the elevating support 16 and then inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2. The robot hand 12 lifts the substrate (first substrate) 2 and moves it from the conveyor 6. However, similarly to the second embodiment described above, the transfer support roller 16c is provided on the lifting support 16 instead of the pin 16b, and the transfer conveyor 24 is provided instead of the robot hand 12 to provide a substrate (first Substrate) 2 may be moved. Further, in addition to the support by the transfer transport roller 16c, the substrate (first substrate) 2 is supported by the gas ejected from the upper surface of the roller holding portion 16e toward the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. Anyway.

This is the end of the description of the substrate transfer apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.
For example, in the first to third embodiments described above, the robot hand 12 or the robot hand 14 is inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2 and the substrate (first substrate) 2 is lifted or moved up and down. The substrate (first substrate) 2 is transferred to the conveyor 6, the processing device 8, and the processing device by rotating the transfer transport roller 16 c provided on the support 16 and the transfer transport roller provided on the lifting support 18. However, the method of moving the substrate (first substrate) 2 is not limited to this. For example, the robot hand 12 or the robot hand 14 is provided with a transport roller, and after the robot hand 12 or the robot hand 14 is inserted below the substrate (first substrate) 2, the transport roller is rotated to rotate the substrate (first substrate). ) 2 may be moved, or the substrate (first substrate) 2 may be supported by a gas ejected from the robot hand toward the lower surface of the substrate (first substrate) 2. Alternatively, the substrate (first substrate) 2 may be moved by holding the end of the substrate (first substrate) 2 lifted by the pins 16b with a robot hand or the like.

  Moreover, in the said 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment, although the main body 16a of the raising / lowering support body 16 was provided so that the conveyor 6 might be straddled in the direction orthogonal to a conveyance direction, it divides | segments in the intermediate part and makes it substantially L shape. , Respectively, may be protruded from the outside of the conveyor 6 toward the inside of the conveyor 6. Such a configuration can be applied to either one or both of the pair of elevating supports 16.

  Moreover, in the said 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment, although the both ends of the main body 16a of the raising / lowering support body 16 were supported so that raising / lowering was possible by the raising / lowering drive unit 20, only either one edge part was raised / lowered drive unit. You may make it support by 20 so that raising / lowering is possible. In this case, the main body 16a of the elevating support 16 is substantially L-shaped, and protrudes from the outer side of one side of the conveyor 4 toward the inner side of the conveyor 6 so as to substantially traverse the conveyor 4. Such a configuration can also be applied to either one or both of the pair of elevating supports 16.

  Furthermore, in the said 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment, although the main body 16a of the raising / lowering support body 16 was provided in the direction orthogonal to a conveyance direction, the main body 16a may be provided in the direction which crosses the conveyor 4 diagonally. Thus, the orientation of the main body 16a can be changed as necessary. Such a configuration can also be applied to either one or both of the pair of elevating supports 16.

Note that the change in shape or direction as described above can be similarly applied to the lifting support 18.
In the first to third embodiments, the two processing devices 8 and 10 are arranged side by side. However, the number of processing devices is not limited to this, and a single processing device is arranged. Even when three or more processing apparatuses are arranged in parallel, the same effect can be obtained. Further, when a plurality of processing devices are arranged in parallel, the same effect can be obtained even if the processing devices are not the same. Furthermore, the substrate transport apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the production line for processing the substrate 2 by the processing apparatus, and it is necessary to change the transport order of the substrates when transporting the substrates continuously. In such a case, by applying the present invention, it becomes possible to efficiently change the order of transporting the substrates.

It is a top view which shows roughly a part of production line to which the board | substrate conveyance apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention is applied. It is a side view of the production line of FIG. It is a perspective view of a tray. In 1st Embodiment, it is sectional drawing in the IV-IV line | wire in FIG. 3 when a raising / lowering support body descend | falls most. In 1st Embodiment, it is sectional drawing in the IV-IV line | wire in FIG. 3 when a raising / lowering support body raises most. In 2nd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing which shows the state to which the raising / lowering support body fell most. In 2nd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing which shows the state which the raising / lowering support body raised most. In 3rd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing which shows the state to which the raising / lowering support body fell most. In 3rd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing which shows the state which the raising / lowering support body raised most.

Explanation of symbols

2 substrates (first substrate, second substrate)
4 Tray 6 Conveyor 6b Conveyance drive member 8, 10 Processing device 12, 14 Robot hand (transfer means)
16, 18 Lifting support (lifting support means)
16a body (tray lifting member)
16b pin (substrate lifting member)
16c Transfer roller (substrate elevating member, transport member)
20, 22 Lifting drive unit (lifting drive means)

Claims (10)

A conveyor for continuously conveying a plurality of substrates;
An elevating support means provided so as to be able to support the substrate by projecting inward from the outside of the conveyor in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the substrate, and capable of being raised and lowered with respect to the conveyor;
The elevating support means can be lowered to a position where the substrate conveyed by the conveyor can pass over the elevating support means, and the first substrate of the plurality of substrates is moved by the elevating support means. The raising / lowering support means to a position where a gap through which a second substrate among the plurality of boards conveyed by the conveyor is passed and supported from below is formed below the raising / lowering support means. And a lifting / lowering drive means capable of lifting the substrate. The plurality of substrates are respectively placed on a tray having an opening at the bottom and conveyed by the conveyor,
The lifting support means is
Protruding inward from the outside of the conveyor in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the substrate, the substrate can be supported, and can be moved up and down with respect to the conveyor. A tray lifting member that supports and raises the tray on which the first substrate is placed from below;
Provided in the tray elevating member, and when the tray elevating member is raised, penetrates through the opening from below the tray on which the first substrate is placed, and raises the first substrate from the tray The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a substrate lifting member.   The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the substrate elevating member is a pin formed so as to protrude above the tray elevating member.   It is inserted into a gap formed between the tray raised by the tray lifting member and the first substrate raised by the substrate lifting member, and the first substrate is lifted from the substrate lifting member. 4. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising transfer means for moving from above the tray.   The substrate elevating member includes a conveyance member that contacts the lower surface of the first substrate raised from the tray and conveys the first substrate in a direction different from the conveyance direction by the conveyor. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 2. The conveyor is provided with a plurality of conveyance drive members along the conveyance direction for transmitting power to the tray and conveying the tray.
6. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the elevating support means moves up and down between the transfer driving members in the transfer direction. The conveyor is provided with a plurality of transport driving members for transmitting the power directly to each of the plurality of substrates along the transport direction.
2. The lifting and lowering support means lifts the first board from the conveyor while abutting and supporting from below the first board when lifted by the lifting and lowering driving means. The board | substrate conveyance apparatus of description.   The apparatus further comprises transfer means that is inserted below the first substrate raised by the elevating support means, and that lifts the first substrate from the elevating support means and moves it from the elevating support means. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 7.   The elevating and lowering support means includes a conveying member that contacts the lower surface of the first substrate raised from the conveyor and conveys the first substrate in a direction different from the conveying direction by the conveyor. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 7.   10. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the elevating support unit moves up and down between the transfer driving members in the transfer direction.

Images