JP2010004060A - Ball throwing-in apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ball throwing-in apparatus to simplify ball supplying process steps from a ball supplying part to a sucking head. <P>SOLUTION: The ball throwing-in apparatus 1 includes a mask 21 with an opening corresponding to a preset position of a substrate 23 to bear a ball 20, a head 5 to throw in the ball 20 into the opening, and a ball supplying apparatus 10 to supply the ball 20 to the head 5. The head 5 and the ball supplying apparatus 10 move integrally toward the mask 21. The ball supplying apparatus 10 includes a ball container 11 to store the ball 20, and a ball measuring apparatus 12 to measure the ball 20 supplied from the ball container 11. The ball supplying apparatus 10 supplies the ball 20 measured by the ball measuring apparatus 12 to the head 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a ball transfer apparatus for mounting solder balls or the like on a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer or an electronic circuit board.

  A ball supply device used for a ball mounting device or a ball transfer device is disclosed in various documents such as Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2002-43350 and 2001-198740. However, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-43350, the opening and closing member is driven by an air cylinder to open and close the ball passage to perform a fixed amount of ball discharge. Therefore, when the ball diameter is reduced, the opening and closing member pinches the ball when opening and closing. There is a problem to hurt. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-198740 does not use an opening / closing member, so that there is no problem of damaging the ball.

  Also, in the conventional ball supply method of the ball mounting apparatus, the transfer is performed from the ball carrying container to the ball storage container and then to the ball suction (or ball transfer) container, and then sucked to the head or transferred by the head.

  As described above, the conventional techniques cannot satisfy all the problems such as damage to the ball, the surface of the ball being easily oxidized by air, and the low measurement accuracy of the ball.

  Further, in the ball mounting apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-198740, the ball supply unit and the suction head are configured separately. Therefore, in order for the suction head to receive the supply of the ball, it is necessary to move the suction head toward the ball supply unit, and there is a problem that a complicated process is required for supplying the ball to the suction head.

JP 2001-198740 A JP 2002-43350 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a ball transfer apparatus that can simplify the process of supplying a ball from a ball supply unit to a suction head.

  A ball transfer apparatus having a mask provided with an opening at a position corresponding to a predetermined position of a substrate on which a ball is mounted, a head for transferring the ball to the opening, and a ball supply device for supplying the ball to the head. The head and the ball supply device move together, and the ball supply device has a ball container in which the balls are stored, and a ball meter that measures the balls supplied from the ball container. A ball weighed by a ball scale is supplied to the head.

  In addition to the above-described invention, the ball supply device may supply the ball to the head performing the transfer at a predetermined time interval.

  Further, a ball supply method is a ball supply method for measuring a ball supplied from a ball container with a ball measuring instrument and discharging the ball from an outlet provided in the ball measuring instrument. It is good also as a method of discharging | emitting the ball | bowl measured by operation to incline from an exit.

  Further, in addition to the above-described ball supply method, the angle at which the ball measuring instrument is tilted to measure the ball may be a method that exceeds 90 ° and is less than 270 °.

  Further, the ball supply device is a ball supply device comprising a ball container and a ball measuring device and a drive device for tilting the ball container and the ball measuring device, wherein the ball measuring device measures the ball, and the ball container. A first path that communicates with the metering unit, a separation storage unit that separates and stores the ball, a second path that communicates the metering unit and the separation storage unit, a ball outlet, and a third channel that communicates the separation storage unit and the outlet. It is good also as an apparatus consisting of a route.

  Further, the above-described ball supply device may be a ball supply device including a ball container and a ball weighing device and a driving device for tilting the ball container and the ball weighing device, and the ball container may be a ball transporting container. .

  In addition, the ball transfer device includes a ball supply device for supplying the ball to the head, a mask provided with an opening at a position corresponding to a predetermined position of the substrate on which the ball is mounted, and the ball supplied from the ball supply device. A ball transfer device comprising a transfer head, wherein the ball supply device comprises a ball container, a ball measuring device for measuring the ball, and a driving device for tilting the ball container and the ball measuring device, and the ball inserted from the inlet The ball measuring device that measures and discharges the ball from the outlet may be a device in which the space between the inlet and the outlet of the ball is connected in a continuous space.

  Further, the ball transfer device includes a ball supply device for supplying the ball to the head, a mask provided with an opening at a position corresponding to a predetermined position of the substrate on which the ball is mounted, and a ball supplied from the ball supply device. The ball transfer device may include a transfer head and a substrate placement unit for placing the substrate, and the ball supply device may move in the horizontal direction together with the head.

  According to the present invention, the process of supplying a ball from the ball supply unit to the suction head can be simplified.

Furthermore, regarding the ball supply method, the ball supply device, or the ball transfer device, the following effects can be obtained by adopting the above-described configuration.
(1) A ball supply method and a ball supply device that do not damage the balls in the steps of supplying, weighing, and discharging the balls have been put into practical use.
(2) A ball supply method and a ball supply device in which the time for the ball to come into contact with air is short while the ball is sent from the ball carrying container to the head have been put into practical use.
(3) A ball transfer apparatus capable of transferring a fine ball without damage to the opening of the mask has been put into practical use.
(4) A ball transfer apparatus in which the amount of balls remaining in the head when the ball transfer operation is completed can be put into practical use.

  The ball transfer device of the present invention is intended to weigh solder balls, supply them to a head, and mount them on a substrate. Hereinafter, embodiments of a ball transfer apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  The ball transfer apparatus according to the present invention includes a loader / unloader unit 4 including a loader for feeding the substrate 23 and an unloader for unloading the substrate 23, a substrate warp correction unit 3 for correcting the warp of the mounted substrate 23, and a substrate And a ball transfer unit 1 for transferring the ball 20 to an opening of a mask 21 provided with an opening at a position corresponding to a predetermined position of the substrate 23 on which the ball 20 is mounted (FIG. 5). reference).

  The ball transfer unit 1 includes a ball supply device 10, a transfer head 5, a mask 21, a mask cleaning device, and their driving devices. The substrate 23 such as a semiconductor wafer or an electronic circuit is sent from the loader to the substrate mounting unit 24 and fixed, and is sent to the ball transfer unit 1 through the substrate warpage correction unit 3 and the flux printing unit 2. Come. The substrate mounting portion 24 can adjust the position of the XYZθ axes, and the positions of electrodes, bumps, and the like provided on the substrate 23 can be matched with the positions of the openings of the mask 21.

  FIGS. 1 and 2 are a front view and a plan view of the main part of the ball transfer unit 1, and are diagrams illustrating the functions of supplying, weighing, and transferring the ball 20.

  The ball transfer unit 1 has a function of storing and weighing the ball 20, transferring the ball 20 through the mask 21, and mounting the ball 20 at a predetermined position of the substrate 23. Further, since the mask 21 is placed on the substrate 23 on which the flux is printed in the ball transfer unit 1, a mask cleaning device for cleaning the flux adhering to the mask 21 for each ball transfer is provided (not shown). .

  The ball supply device 10 includes a ball storage unit 11, a ball weighing unit 12, and a rotary cylinder 13. The transfer head 5 includes a head rotating motor 6, a rotating shaft 7, a squeegee support plate 8, and a squeegee 9. The head rotating motor 6 and the rotary cylinder 13 are fixed to the mounting jig 14 via fixing members, respectively.

  The X-axis rail 19 is mounted on two Y-axis rails (not shown) provided on the left and right, and can move freely in the Y-axis direction. The X-axis slider 18 is attached to the X-axis rail 19 so as to be slidable in the X-axis direction. A Z-axis rail 16 is fixed to the X-axis slider 18. The Z-axis slider 15 is attached to the Z-axis rail 16 so as to be slidable along the guide groove 17. A mounting jig 14 is fixed to the Z-axis slider 15. Therefore, the transfer head 5 and the ball supply device 10 can move together as a whole, although they can make their own rotational movements.

  The ball transfer apparatus 1 moves the transfer head 5 supplied with the ball 20 on the mask 21 and transfers the ball 20 from the opening of the mask 21. A ball amount corresponding to the ball 20 transferred by a predetermined operation is supplied from the ball supply device 10 that moves together with the transfer head 5 at predetermined time intervals. In this way, the amount of the balls 20 supplied to the transfer head 5 is set within a predetermined range.

  The ball 20 is weighed with little contact with air, passes through the hollow rotating shaft 7, and falls onto the mask 21 in the area surrounded by the squeegee 9. The time for which the brazed portion of the ball 20 is exposed to the air is mainly the time until the ball is transferred to the opening of the mask 21 while being moved on the mask 21 by the squeegee 9, and the inner diameter of the rotation locus of the squeegee 9 is reduced. If so, the amount of balls is reduced, and this time can be shortened. Further, since the ball transfer device of the present invention transfers the ball 20 for a small area, the amount of ball required by the transfer head 5 is smaller than that of the conventional device. Therefore, the amount of balls remaining in the transfer head 5 when the ball transfer operation is completed is extremely small as compared with the conventional apparatus. Furthermore, by supplying an appropriate amount of inert gas or ionized inert gas to the inner circle formed by the plurality of squeegees 9, it is possible to prevent oxidation of the ball surface.

  An example of the inner circle (diameter) of the rotation trajectory of the squeegee 9 is 40 mm. However, if it becomes too small, the transfer time becomes longer, so 5 mm or more is preferable. The maximum inner diameter is 200 mm and preferably 100 mm or less. On the other hand, when the ball 20 does not deteriorate due to oxidation or the like, its inner diameter may be increased.

  The end of the mask frame 22 is shown enlarged by a circular broken line at the lower left of FIG. The mask 21 is made of metal and is formed by stacking thin films, etching thin films, electroforming, or the like. The periphery of the mask 21 is attached to the mask frame 22. Although not shown, a mechanism for applying tension is provided so that the mask 21 does not sag. The mask frame 22 is fixed to the substrate platform 24. The substrate 23 is vacuum-sucked to the substrate platform 24 by a suction pad provided on the substrate platform 24. The suction pad is more preferably a bellows type pad rather than a straight type.

  The substrate 23 is pressed and pressed by the substrate warp correction unit 3 at the eight places on the substrate mounting unit 24, and is further vacuum-sucked to maintain a flat surface. When the substrate 23 is not warped and is in close contact with the substrate placement unit 24 by vacuum suction, the substrate warp correction is not performed.

  The mask frame 22 is fixed to the substrate mounting portion 24, but can be moved up and down by inserting a spacer or the like so as to be spaced from the substrate 23. The interval between the mask 21 and the substrate 23 is based on close contact. However, since the mask 21 is pressed against the substrate 23 by the squeegee 9, it may be better not to contact each other. If the distance between the mask 21 and the substrate 23 is small, no problem occurs. Further, in flux printing, the loss characteristic of the flux filled in the opening is an important characteristic. By providing a gap between the mask 21 and the substrate 23, there may be a merit that the loss characteristic is improved.

  When the substrate 23 is a semiconductor wafer, the substrate mounting unit 24 that vacuum-sucks the substrate 23 is loaded on the θ axis for adjusting the orientation flat (crystal orientation), and the loader / unloader unit 4 and ball transfer It can move between the parts 1 with the substrate 23 placed thereon.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram in the middle of ball transfer, and shows a state in which the transfer head 5 rotates counterclockwise and moves from left to right. The balls 20 are collected inside the left squeegee 9 by the counterclockwise rotation of the squeegee 9 and the movement of the transfer head 5 from left to right. The ball 20 has a diameter of 150 μm, but is shown larger for the sake of explanation. A suitable diameter of the ball 20 is 30 to 1,000 μm. Furthermore, although the state in which the balls 20 are dropped is illustrated, when the balls 20 are actually ejected, the balls 20 are dropped in a large amount at a time instead of one by one.

  3A is a front view and FIG. 3B is a bottom view showing the ball supply unit 10. The ball supply unit 10 includes a ball storage unit 11 and a ball weighing unit 12. The ball storage unit 11 is a bottle that is sold by a ball seller with the ball 20 and is a container for transportation that is devised so that the ball does not deteriorate during transportation and storage, and usually contains an inert gas. . If the shape of the mouth of the transport bottle does not match the mounting portion 25, the shape of the mounting portion 25 of the ball weighing unit 12 is changed or the ball 20 is replaced with another container. The tip of the ball storage unit 11 is fixed to the ball measuring unit 12 by fitting or screwing, and this corresponds to the entrance of the ball 20 of the ball measuring unit 12.

  The ball measuring unit 12 is composed of two square plates. The dimensions of this plate are width 35 × height 25 × thickness 7 mm, and the material is preferably a plastic or aluminum alloy that does not transmit water and oxygen. Also, on one surface of the plate, there are a mounting portion 25, a first ball passage 26, a ball weighing cavity 27, a second ball passage 28, a ball separation and storage cavity 29, a third ball passage 30, a fourth ball passage 31 and an outlet 32. Half of the shape is processed. The ball measuring unit 12 is formed by sticking the surfaces on which these passages and the like are formed and screwing them (not shown). The ball measuring unit 12 is not provided with a valve, an opening / closing door, or the like.

  Since the ball measuring unit with such a structure can measure and supply the ball without causing oxidation or damage to the ball, a ball supply method for operating the ball measuring unit and a ball supply incorporating the structure of the ball measuring unit The apparatus is effective not only for a ball transfer apparatus but also for a vacuum adsorption type ball mounting apparatus. The shape of the ball suitable for this ball supply device is not limited to a spherical shape.

  In the bottom view, the rotating shaft 13a and the outlet 32 are shown. The rotating shaft 13 a is attached to the approximate center of the ball measuring unit 12. By changing the position, the measured value of the ball 20 can be changed.

  When the same ball weighing unit 12 is used, the control of the ball supply amount is performed at intervals of time for tilting the ball weighing unit 12. The number of balls weighed at one time hardly varies depending on the rotation speed and rotation angle of the rotary cylinder 13.

  FIG. 3A shows a state of waiting (or preparing) for ball supply in a state where the ball supply device 10 is set up vertically. A rotation arrow around the rotation shaft 13a is shown in FIG. This arrow means that FIG. 3A is rotated in the direction of the arrow (counterclockwise). FIG. 4 shows a state where FIG. 3A is rotated 180 ° counterclockwise. The ball 20 is weighed by rotating counterclockwise from FIG. 3 to FIG. 4, and the weighed ball 20 is discharged from the outlet 32 by rotating clockwise from FIG. 4 to FIG. 3.

  The rotation of the ball supply unit 10 and the movement of the ball 20 will be described. In FIG. 3A, the tip 20a of the ball group passes through the first ball passage 26 and the ball measuring cavity 27 and reaches the lower end of the second ball passage 28. Since the balls 20 interfere with each other, the tip 20a of the ball group does not rise up the second ball passage 28 like a liquid unless it is vibrated.

  The tip 20a of the ball 20 in the ball measuring cavity 27 gradually collapses into the second ball passage 28, though a small amount, until the rotation angle is close to 60 °. When the angle exceeds 80 °, most of the balls 20 in the ball measuring cavity 27 move to the second ball passage 28 by their own weight. However, the balls 20 in the first ball passage 26 interfere with each other, and most of them do not move. However, when vibration is applied to the ball supply device 10 in this state, the pseudo-stability of the ball is lost, and a large amount of the ball 20 flows into the second ball passage 28, and the ball measurement fails.

  The diameter of the first ball passage 26 is made small so that the movement from the first ball passage 26 to the ball measuring cavity 27 does not easily occur. In the examples, the diameter is 2 mm and the length is 10 mm. When at least a part of the ball measuring cavity 27 is hollow, if the diameter of the first ball passage 26 becomes too large, the ball 20 collapses into the ball measuring cavity 27 even at a small rotation angle. In order to stably measure the ball 20, the diameter of the first ball passage is preferably 0.5 mm or more and 6 mm or less. The diameter of the first passage depends on its length and ball characteristics, but is preferably 1 to 4 mm. In order to increase the measurement accuracy of the ball 20, it is very effective to reduce the cross-sectional diameter of the region where the first ball passage 26 and the ball measurement cavity 27 are connected to a small value, for example, 1 mm.

  Next, when the inclination becomes 90 °, the ball 20 in the ball measurement cavity 27 falls and moves to the second ball passage 28 by its own weight. Then, a part of the first ball passage collapses and moves together with a small amount. In this state, the ball measuring cavity 27 becomes a cavity. When the rotation angle further exceeds 90 °, the ball 20 in the second ball passage 28 moves to the ball separation and storage cavity 29. At this stage, the separation of the ball 20 from the ball population, that is, the metering is completed.

  The ball separation and storage cavity 29 has a cavity volume approximately four times that of the ball weighing cavity 27. Therefore, when the rotation angle exceeds 90 °, the separated ball 20 moves to the ball separation and storage cavity 29. A small part of it also moves to the third ball passage 30. When the rotation angle further increases, all the balls 20 that have moved to the third ball passage 30 gather in the ball separation and storage cavity 29. This state is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 4 illustrates a case where the rotation angle is 180 °. However, even if the rotation angle is stopped at 120 °, for example, the balls 20 are gathered in the ball separation and storage cavity 29. Therefore, in order to measure the ball 20 and move it to the ball separation and storage cavity 29, the rotation angle only needs to exceed 90 °. On the other hand, there is no problem even if it exceeds 180 °. Occurs.

  The rotation angle also varies depending on the ball characteristics, the structure of the ball meter and the rotation speed. In the example, the time required for the rotation of 180 ° is 0.5 seconds, but it may be 0.1 to 5 seconds, and more preferably 0.2 to 1 second.

  Next, the behavior of the ball 20 in the ball storage portion 11, the attachment portion 25, and the first ball passage 26 associated with the inclination will be described. When tilted, the ball 20 in the ball storage unit 11 starts to collapse and moves according to the rotation angle, and then the ball 20 in the mounting unit 25 starts to move. The ball that moves last is the ball in the first ball passage 26, but since the diameter of the first ball passage 26 is reduced, most of the ball 20 remains as it is. When the rotation angle exceeds 90 °, all the balls 20 in the first ball passage 26 gather in the ball storage unit 11. Although there are obstacles due to friction or the like, if the rotation angle is set to 100 °, the balls can be completely collected in the ball storage section 11. However, if the ball 20 is stored in a large amount (for example, half or more) in the ball storage unit 11, the ball 20 in the first ball passage 26 cannot move to the ball storage unit 11 even if the rotation angle exceeds 90 °. Sometimes it happens. Even if the rotation angle exceeds 90 °, if the ball 20 in the first ball passage 26 does not move to the mounting portion 25 or the ball storage portion 11, the ball 20 in the first ball passage 26 gradually, It moves to the second ball passage 28 and the ball separation and storage cavity 29 through the ball measuring cavity 27 in which the cavity is formed.

  The total amount of the balls 20 in the ball storage unit 11 is preferably equal to or less than one third of the internal volume of the ball storage unit 11. More preferably, it is 1/5 or less.

  Next, the movement of the ball 20 when the ball supply device 10 is rotated clockwise in the arrow direction from the state of FIG. 4 will be described.

  Most of the balls 20 in the ball separation and storage unit 29 move to the third ball passage 30 when rotated 90 ° (position where the ball storage unit 11 is rotated on the left side until it is horizontal). When the rotation angle is further increased, the ball 20 moves to the fourth ball passage 31. Since the fourth ball passage 31 is inclined downward by 10 ° from the horizontal in the state shown in FIG. 3, in this state, the ball 20 faces upward to such an extent that the ball 20 does not move to the outlet 32. For this reason, the ball 20 does not spill from the outlet 32 even if it is rotated less than 100 °. As it rotates beyond 100 °, the ball 20 begins to be ejected from the outlet 32. A receiving port corresponding to the discharge of the ball 20 is provided in the hollow rotating shaft 7. When the rotation speed is slow, the ball 20 is discharged from the outlet 32 by an amount corresponding to the rotation angle. However, if the rotation speed is made faster than the moving speed of the ball 20 and the rotation is suddenly stopped at 180 °, the entire ball 20 can be discharged to the position shown in FIG. The ball 20 having moved through the fourth ball passage 31 hits the ball direction changing grass 33 perpendicular to the outlet 32 and is discharged from the outlet 32 while being decelerated and changed in direction. The ball direction changing grass 33 has a role of reducing the moving speed of the ball 20.

  Further, by making the cross section of the third ball passage 30 larger than that of the second ball passage 28, the ball 20 is prevented from returning from the ball separation and storage cavity 29 to the second ball passage 28. On the other hand, the ball 20 in the ball storage portion 11 fills the mounting portion 25, the first ball passage 26, and the ball measurement cavity 27 according to the rotation. Since the rotation is stopped at 180 ° (the state shown in FIG. 3A), the ball 20 does not reach the ball separation and storage cavity 29.

  Although the dimension of the ball | bowl measurement part 12 is width 35 * high 25 * thickness 10mm, it is not limited to this. The size may change depending on the ball diameter, and the shape may be shaped into a circular arc at the bottom, or a portion that obstructs the operation may be deleted so that the ball 20 can be easily supplied to the transfer head 5. Further, when the ball supply device 10 is tilted, the rotary shaft 13a rotates and the rotary cylinder 13 itself does not rotate.

  The above shows an example in which the rotary cylinder 13 is rotated left, but it may be rotated right. In that case, the ball measuring unit 12 shown in FIG. In the present invention, in the ball supply device having the ball supply unit as a unit, the ball is not limited to the solder ball, but can be applied to other metal balls, resin balls, ceramic balls, and the like. Further, the shape of the ball may be a polyhedron or powder particles, and the lower limit of the particle diameter is 10 microns or more which does not aggregate as a powder cake, and the upper limit is 2 mm.

  The ball supply method and the ball supply apparatus of the present invention can be applied not only to balls other than solder balls but also to non-spherical powders. In addition to the ball transfer device, the ball supply method and the ball supply device of the present invention can also be applied to a ball mounting device that mounts a ball on a substrate using a vacuum suction head.

  Moreover, the ball transfer apparatus of the present invention can be applied not only to balls other than solder balls but also effectively to non-spherical angular particles.

It is a front view of the principal part of a ball transfer apparatus. It is a top view of the principal part of a ball mounting apparatus. It is a figure which shows a ball | bowl supply apparatus, (a) is a front view, (b) is a bottom view. It is a figure which shows the state which rotated the ball supply apparatus 180 degrees. It is a functional block diagram of a ball transfer device.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ball transfer part, 2 ... Flux printing part, 3 ... Substrate warp correction part, 4 ... Loader / unloader part, 5 ... Transfer head, 6 ... Head rotation Motor, 7 ... rotating shaft, 8 ... squeegee support plate, 9 ... squeegee, 10 ... ball supply unit, 11 ... ball storage unit, 12 ... ball weighing unit, 13. ..Rotary cylinder, 13a ... Rotating shaft, 14 ... Mounting jig, 15 ... Z-axis slider, 16 ... Z-axis rail, 17 ... Guide groove, 18 ... X-axis slider 19 ... X-axis rail, 20 ... ball, 20a ... tip of ball group, 21 ... mask, 22 ... mask frame, 23 ... substrate, 24 ... substrate placement , 25... Mounting part, 26... First ball passage, 27. Bitty, 28 ... second ball passage, 29 ... ball separation and storage cavity, 30 ... third ball passage, 31 ... fourth ball passage, 32 ... outlet, 33 ... ball direction Change grass

Claims (2)

A mask provided with an opening at a position corresponding to a predetermined position of the substrate on which the ball is mounted;
A head for swinging the ball into the opening;
A ball supply device for supplying the ball to the head;
In a ball transfer device having
The head and the ball supply device move together with respect to the mask,
The ball supply device is
A ball container in which the balls are stored;
A ball scale for weighing the balls supplied from the ball container;
Have
The ball supply device supplies the ball measured by the ball scale to the head.
A ball transfer device. In the ball transfer apparatus according to claim 1,
The ball supply device supplies the ball at a predetermined time interval to the head performing transfer.
A ball transfer device.

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