JP2012124525A - Electronic component conveyance device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic component conveyance device which is capable of sequentially conveying a plurality of electronic components while making the electronic components face the same direction, so that internal electrodes of the electronic components align in the same direction.SOLUTION: An electronic component conveyance device 11 for conveying rectangular parallelepiped electronic components each of which has ferromagnetic internal electrodes therein, comprises a first conveyance path 13, a rotation path 14 and a second conveyance path 15. The first conveyance path 13, the rotation path 14 and the second conveyance path 15 respectively have first to third conveyance floors 13a to 15a. In the rotation path 14, a first magnet 21 is provided so that lines of magnetic force are applied onto the electronic components to direct internal electrode surfaces of the same to a prescribed direction. Further, a second magnet 22 is provided on the outside of the rotation path 14, so that, after aligning the electronic components in the same direction by the lines of magnetic force applied by the first magnet 21 in the rotation path 14, the electronic components are adhered on the second conveyance floor 14a and/or at least one of a pair of guides in the rotation path 14 on the downstream side of the first magnet 21.

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic component transport apparatus for aligning and transporting electronic components in a predetermined direction, and more particularly to an electronic component transport apparatus for transporting and aligning electronic components whose internal electrodes are ferromagnetic.

  Conventionally, when manufacturing an electronic component such as a ceramic electronic component, it is required to align the electronic component in a predetermined direction. For example, when marking the outer surface of an electronic component, performing an appearance inspection, or inspecting characteristics, it may be necessary to align the electronic component in a predetermined direction.

  Further, when mounting the finally obtained electronic component on a printed circuit board or the like, it is necessary to align the electronic component. For example, in a multilayer ceramic capacitor, a plurality of internal electrodes are arranged via a ceramic layer in a ceramic sintered body. In multilayer ceramic capacitors, if there is almost no dimensional difference in thickness and width, there is a risk of mounting the thickness and width direction incorrectly.If the mounting direction is incorrect, there is a difference in mechanical strength or stray capacitance value. It may be different. Therefore, electronic parts such as multilayer ceramic capacitors have to be mounted on a printed circuit board or the like in a state of being aligned in a predetermined direction.

  Therefore, Patent Document 1 below discloses an apparatus for aligning electronic components having internal electrodes in a predetermined direction. FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view showing an electronic device alignment apparatus described in Patent Document 1. As shown in FIG.

  The alignment apparatus 1001 includes a cylindrical member 1002 that forms a conveyance path. The inside of the cylindrical member 1002 constitutes a conveyance path for conveying the electronic component 1003 in the length direction. The electronic component 1003 has a plurality of internal electrodes 1004. The plurality of internal electrodes 1004 are configured using a ferromagnetic material such as nickel. A magnet 1006 is disposed outside the cylindrical member 1002. Magnetic field lines X and Y generated by the magnet 1006 extend in the vertical direction and the transport direction in the cylindrical member 1002. Therefore, the electronic component 1003 rotates so that the surface direction of the plurality of internal electrodes 1004 having ferromagnetism corresponds to the direction of the lines of magnetic force. In this way, the electronic component 1003 is arranged in a predetermined direction so that the surface directions of the plurality of internal electrodes 1004 are aligned.

  The cylindrical conveying member 1002 is not only formed as a conveying path, but also has an inner peripheral surface that functions as a guide portion for preventing undesired turning and rising of the electronic component. Here, the diameter of the cylindrical member 1002 is larger than the square root of the sum of the lengths of the two smaller sides of the electronic component 1003 in the side direction and smaller than the length of the largest side.

Japanese Patent No. 3430854

  In the electronic device aligning device 1001 described in Patent Document 1, the magnetic lines of force generated by the magnet 1006 have magnetic lines of force X and magnetic lines of force Y, and two types of magnetic lines of force extending in directions orthogonal to each other are generated in the transport path. It was. Therefore, the surface direction of the internal electrode 1004 may not be aligned so as to extend in the vertical direction as shown in the figure. In addition, since the cylindrical member 1002 has a cylindrical cross section, even if the electronic component 1003 is aligned in a predetermined direction using the magnet 1006, the electronic component is provided downstream of the portion where the magnet 1006 is provided. There is a problem that the orientation of 1003 is difficult to maintain in the aligned orientation. That is, even if the diameter of the cylindrical member 1002 is within a predetermined range, there is a possibility that the electronic component 1003 aligned in the predetermined direction is deviated again from the predetermined direction due to vibration.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic component transport apparatus that eliminates the above-described drawbacks of the prior art, aligns electronic components having internal electrodes in a predetermined direction, and reliably transports them in a predetermined direction. There is to do.

  According to the present invention, there is provided an electronic component transport apparatus for transporting a rectangular parallelepiped electronic component having a ferromagnetic internal electrode, wherein the electronic component has a longitudinal direction, and the electronic component is disposed in a longitudinal direction of the electronic component. A transport member provided with a transport path for transporting in the direction, and transport means for moving the electronic component in the transport path of the transport member, wherein the transport path includes the first transport path, A rotation path connected to the downstream side of the first transfer path; and a second transfer path connected to the downstream side of the rotation path. The first transfer path has an electronic component mounted thereon. And a pair of first conveyance guide surfaces provided above the conveyance floor surface and spaced apart by a gap W1, and the rotation path includes the electronic component. Second transport floor on which electronic components are placed for transport And a pair of guide walls that are disposed above the second transfer floor surface and spaced apart by a gap W2 that is wider than the gap W1, and the second transfer path includes the electronic component. A third transport floor surface on which electronic components are placed for transport, and a pair of second transport guide surfaces provided above the third transport floor surface and spaced apart by a gap W3; A first magnet provided to apply magnetic lines of force to the electronic component such that an inner electrode surface of the electronic component faces a predetermined direction in the rotation path, and the rotation path includes the rotation path A magnet having a portion extending downstream from a portion where the first magnet is provided, the direction of which is aligned by the lines of magnetic force applied from the first magnet in the rotation path, is the first magnet. Downstream of the second transport floor and / or The manner adsorbed on at least one surface of the pair of guides, further comprising a second magnet provided outside of the rotational path, the electronic component transfer apparatus is provided.

  In the present invention, the magnets whose directions are aligned by the lines of magnetic force given from the first magnet in the rotation path are arranged on the downstream side of the first magnet, and the second transport floor surface and / or the pair of pairs. A second magnet is further provided outside the rotation path so as to be attracted to at least one surface of the guide wall. Accordingly, since the second magnet is transported while being attracted to the second transport floor and / or the guide wall, the magnets aligned in the correct orientation are reliably maintained in the correct orientation.

In another specific aspect of the electronic component conveying apparatus according to the present invention, when the dimension in the longitudinal direction of the electronic component is L, the dimension in the width direction is W, and the dimension in the thickness direction is T, W2 is 1.03. X (W ² + T ² ) ^{1/2 to} 1.06 × (W ² + T ² ) ^1/2 . In this case, sufficient space is provided so that the aligned electronic components are stably maintained in a new orientation.

  According to another specific aspect of the electronic component transport device according to the present invention, when the dimension in the longitudinal direction of the electronic component is L, the dimension in the width direction is W, and the dimension in the thickness direction is T, the rotation path Is not less than 2.0L. In this case, since the length of the rotation path is sufficiently long, a sufficient space for rotation is provided, so that the electronic component can be more accurately oriented in the rotation path.

  According to still another specific aspect of the electronic component transport device according to the present invention, the strength of the magnetic force of the second magnet is made weaker than the magnetic force of the first magnet. In this case, the second magnet relieves overturning immediately before the third transport path due to the magnetic force of the first magnet, and the posture is stabilized, so that the electronic parts in the correct orientation can be ensured without clogging the parts in the rotation path. Can be conveyed downstream.

  In still another specific aspect of the electronic component transport device according to the present invention, the first magnet is provided below the first transport floor surface of the rotation path. In this case, the lines of magnetic force can be extended in the transport path in a direction parallel to the first transport floor surface, and the orientation of the electronic components can be made uniform.

  In still another specific aspect of the electronic component transport device according to the present invention, a boundary of polarity in the magnetic field lines of the first magnet is from the first transport floor surface of the rotation path to the electronic component in the rotation path. It is located between the uppermost position. In this case, since the part where the magnetic lines of force extend in the vertical direction is reliably positioned at the part where the electronic parts are arranged in the transport path, the direction of the electronic parts is surely set so that the internal electrode surface extends in the vertical direction. Can be aligned.

  In still another specific aspect of the electronic component transport device according to the present invention, a plurality of the first magnets are provided, and the plurality of first magnets are arranged so as to sandwich the transport path. In this case, the directions of the electronic components can be more reliably aligned.

  In the electronic component conveying apparatus according to the present invention, the interval W2 between the pair of guide walls in the rotation path is equal to the interval W1 between the first conveyance guides and the interval between the second conveyance guides in the first and second conveyance paths. Since it is larger than W3, the direction of the electronic components can be reliably aligned by the magnetic field lines generated from the first magnet in the rotation path. In addition, since the rotation path and the second transport path have the second transport floor surface and the second transport floor surface, the electronic components whose orientations are aligned are second from the rotation path while reliably maintaining their orientations. It is transported toward the transport path. Therefore, for example, even when using a conveying means that moves the electronic component by applying vibration to the conveying path, it is possible to reliably convey and supply the electronic component aligned in the correct direction. It becomes.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view for explaining an electronic component transport device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and (b) is a view along the line BB in (a). And in the electronic component conveying apparatus of 1st Embodiment, it is a typical cross-sectional view for demonstrating a 1st conveyance path | route, (c) is a figure which follows the CC line in (a). FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the principle that the orientation of the electronic component is aligned by the first magnet in the electronic component transport apparatus of the first embodiment. It is a schematic side view for demonstrating the conveyance means for conveying an electronic component in the electronic component conveyance apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A) is a perspective view which shows the electronic component conveyed in the 1st Embodiment of this invention, (b) is sectional drawing of the part in alignment with the AA in (a), (c ) Is a front cross-sectional view of the electronic component shown in FIG. In the electronic component conveying apparatus of 1st Embodiment, it is a typical cross-sectional view for demonstrating the process of stabilizing the attitude | position of the electronic component which direction was equalized with the 2nd magnet. It is a schematic perspective view for demonstrating the electronic component conveying apparatus which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. In the electronic component conveyance apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention, it is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the principle by which the direction of an electronic component is arrange | equalized with a 1st magnet. It is a typical perspective view which shows schematic structure of the electronic component conveying apparatus which concerns on the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a typical cross-sectional view for demonstrating the principle by which the direction of an electronic component is arrange | equalized in the electronic component conveying apparatus of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic perspective view for demonstrating the other modification of the electronic component conveying apparatus of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view for demonstrating the further another modification of the electronic component conveying apparatus of this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating another modification of the electronic component conveying apparatus of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram for demonstrating the conventional alignment apparatus of an electronic component.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be clarified by describing specific embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 3A is a perspective view showing an electronic component conveyed in the first embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component 1 is a multilayer ceramic capacitor and has a rectangular parallelepiped shape. That is, the electronic component 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped ceramic sintered body 2. As shown in FIGS. 3B and 3C, in the ceramic sintered body 2, a plurality of internal electrodes 3 are overlapped via a ceramic layer. In the present embodiment, the internal electrode 3 is mainly composed of nickel and has ferromagnetism. The electronic component targeted by the present invention can be formed of an appropriate material as long as the internal electrode has ferromagnetism.

  First and second external electrodes 4 and 5 are formed so as to cover the first and second end faces 2 a and 2 b facing each other of the ceramic sintered body 2. Now, let the length L be the dimension in the longitudinal direction, which is the direction connecting the first and second end faces 2a, 2b of the electronic component 1. Further, a thickness T is defined as a direction in which the plurality of internal electrodes 3 are laminated via the ceramic layer, that is, a height direction dimension. The dimension in the direction connecting the pair of side surfaces is defined as a width W. Therefore, the surface directions of the plurality of internal electrodes 3 are parallel to the length L and width W directions of the electronic component 1, and the direction of the thickness T is a direction orthogonal to the internal electrodes 3. It has become.

  In the electronic component 1, the width W and the thickness T are smaller than the length L, and the width W and the thickness T are substantially equal.

  In the electronic component transport device 11, the plurality of electronic components 1 need to be aligned and supplied so that the directions of the plurality of internal electrodes 3 are aligned.

  The electronic component transport apparatus 11 shown in FIG. 1 enables a plurality of electronic components 1 to be aligned and transported so that the directions of the internal electrodes 3 are aligned when a plurality of electronic components 1 are supplied.

  The electronic component transport apparatus 11 includes a transport path constituent member 12. This conveyance path | route structural member 12 is provided so that the 1st conveyance path | route 13, the rotation path | route 14, and the 2nd conveyance path | route 15 may be comprised from an upstream.

  The first transport path 13 is a flat first transport floor surface 13a on which the electronic component 1 is placed, and a pair provided on the first transport floor surface 13a with a gap W1 therebetween. First conveyance guide surfaces 13b and 13c.

  The rotation path 14 is also planar. It has the 2nd conveyance floor 14a provided so that it might continue to the 1st conveyance floor 13a. A pair of guide walls 14b and 14c are provided on the second transport floor surface 14a with a gap W2.

  The second transport path 15 is erected on the planar third transport floor surface 15a on which the electronic component 1 is placed and the third transport floor surface 15a, and is separated by a gap W3. And a pair of second transport guide surfaces 15b and 15c.

  The 1st conveyance floor 13a, the 2nd conveyance floor 14a, and the 3rd conveyance floor 15a are connected, and constitute one plane.

  The first transport path 13, the rotation path 14, and the second transport path 15 constitute a transport path as a whole, and the electronic component 1 is transported in the longitudinal direction in the transport path. In order to enable this conveyance, as shown in FIG. 2, a vibration source 16 is connected to the lower surface of the conveyance path constituting member 12 as conveyance means. The vibration source 16 vibrates the conveyance path constituting member 12, and the supplied electronic component 1 is moved from the first conveyance path 13 toward the rotation path 14 and the second conveyance path 15 due to the vibration. In order to perform this movement smoothly, preferably, the first to third transport floor surfaces 13a to 15a are so arranged that the height decreases from the first transport floor surface 13a toward the third transport floor surface 15a. May be inclined. But the said inclination is not necessarily required.

  Further, only the first transport floor surface 13a may be provided with an inclination so that its height decreases toward the rotation path 14 side, and the first transport floor surface 13a and the second transport floor surface. Only 14a may be provided with an inclination so that the height decreases toward the downstream side. That is, the above-described inclination may be provided only in part on the upstream side of the third conveyance floor 15a.

  As described above, in the first transport path 13, the rotation path 14, and the second transport path 15, the electronic components are in surface contact with the planar first to third transport floor surfaces 13 a to 15 a. Since the electronic component 1 is moved in a contacted state, the electronic component 1 is conveyed in a state in which the direction is stable.

  On the other hand, in the electronic component 1, the width W and the thickness T are smaller than the length L, and the width W and the thickness T are substantially equal. Consider a case where a large number of manufactured electronic components 1 are supplied from the upstream side of the first transport path 13. In this case, the supplied electronic component 1 includes an electronic component 1 in which the surface direction of the internal electrode 3 faces the horizontal direction and an electronic component 1 in which the surface direction of the internal electrode 3 faces the vertical direction. To do. In the present embodiment, the orientation of the internal electrode 3 of the electronic component 1 is aligned by the rotation path 14.

  In the first transport path 13, the interval W <b> 1 needs to be shorter than the length L in order to transport the electronic component 1 smoothly in the longitudinal direction. Otherwise, the electronic component 1 may be positioned in a direction in which the longitudinal direction of the electronic component 1 is a direction connecting the pair of first conveyance guide surfaces 13b and 13c.

  Similarly, in the second transport path 15, W3 needs to be shorter than the length L.

  On the other hand, in order to prevent the electronic component 1 from being inverted, the heights of the first conveyance path 13, the rotation path 14, and the second conveyance path 15, that is, the height H in FIG. It is necessary to be lower than the length L.

  In FIG. 1, the top plate is not shown, but actually, the top plate covers the upper opening portions of the first transport path 13, the rotation path 14, and the second transport path 15 in FIG. 1. 17 (see FIG. 2) is provided. The top plate 17 does not necessarily need to cover the entire upper opening of the conveyance path. As long as the electronic component 1 can be prevented from being inverted, the top plate may be provided only partially, or a mesh-like top plate may be provided.

  The rotation path 14 is a portion that enables the electronic component 1 to rotate about the longitudinal direction thereof, thereby aligning the direction of the electronic component 1. In the rotation path 14, the interval W2 between the pair of guide walls 14b and 14c is larger than the intervals W1 and W3. This is also for easily rotating the electronic component 1 around the longitudinal direction of the electronic component 1.

  And the 1st magnet 21 is arrange | positioned on the outer side of one guide wall 14b. As shown in FIG. 1C, the first magnet 21 is provided such that the N pole is located above and the S pole is located below. Accordingly, the magnetic lines of force Z are extended from the upper side to the lower side in the portion extended into the rotation path 14.

  Therefore, the direction of the electronic component 1 guided to the rotation path 14 is changed so that the surface direction of the internal electrode 3 coincides with the direction in which the magnetic lines of force Z extend because the internal electrode 3 has ferromagnetism. For example, when the internal electrode 3 extends in the vertical direction, the direction in which the magnetic lines of force Z extend substantially coincides with the direction in which the internal electrode 3 extends. It is transported in the interior and supplied to the second transport path 15.

  On the other hand, when the internal electrode 3 of the electronic component 1 is oriented in the horizontal direction, the electronic component 1 is in the longitudinal direction so that the internal electrode 3 is oriented as shown in FIG. Rotated around. That is, the electronic component 1 is rotated by 90 ° around the central axis extending in the longitudinal direction, and the direction of the internal electrode 3 is set to the direction shown in FIG.

  Therefore, the orientation of the electronic component 1 is aligned so that all the supplied internal electrodes 3 of the electronic component 1 are directed in the vertical direction in the rotation path 14.

  In the rotation path 14, since the interval W2 is shorter than L, the electronic component 1 does not mistakenly coincide with the direction connecting the guide walls 14b and 14c.

  On the other hand, since the interval W2 is wider than the interval W1 and the interval W3 in the rotation path 14, the electronic component 1 having the correct orientation has the correct orientation of the internal electrode 3, but its longitudinal direction intersects the transport direction. There is a fear.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the second magnet 22 is provided on the downstream side of the first magnet 21, the electronic component 1 in which the orientation of the internal electrode 3 is aligned is reliably maintained in the correct orientation. It is possible to supply the second transport path 15. In the present embodiment, the second magnet 22 is on the opposite side of the rotation path 14 from the side where the first magnet 21 is provided, on the downstream side of the portion where the first magnet 21 is provided. That is, it is provided outside the guide wall 14c on the guide wall 14c side. Due to the magnetic force of the second magnet 22, the electronic component 1 in the correct orientation is brought close to the guide wall 14c side and attracted to the inner surface of the second guide wall 14c as shown in FIG. Therefore, the electronic component 1 in the correct orientation is attracted to the inner surface of the guide wall 14c and is moved downstream while the orientation is stable.

  In this case, if the magnetic force of the second magnet 22 is too strong, the electronic component 1 cannot be moved by the vibration source 16 serving as a conveying unit. Therefore, the magnetic force of the second magnet 22 needs to be large enough not to hinder the force that moves the electronic component 1 to the downstream side by the conveying means.

  The longitudinal dimension along the conveying direction of the rotation path 14 is preferably 2.0 times or more the length L of the electronic component 1. The electronic component 1 continues to move toward the downstream side even when the orientation of the electronic component 1 is aligned in the rotation path 14. For this reason, the rotational path 14 needs to have a certain length in the longitudinal direction along the transport direction, but the length may be long enough to maintain the posture of the electronic component by the magnetic force of the first magnet. If it is longer than that, the posture is maintained by the second magnet.

  If the longitudinal dimension along the conveying direction of the rotation path 14 is 2.0 times or more of L, the electronic component 1 can be easily rotated around the central axis along the longitudinal direction in the rotation path 14 so that the correct orientation is obtained. It can be. When the longitudinal dimension of the rotation path 14 is shorter than 2.0 × L, the electronic component 1 is surely aligned in the correct direction, depending on the conveyance speed of the electronic component 1 and the magnetic force of the first magnet 21. May be difficult.

Preferably, the interval W2 is within a range of 1.03 × (W ² + T ² ) ^{1/2 to} 1.06 × (W ² + T ² ) ^1/2 with respect to the width W of the electronic component. . Within this range, the electronic component 1 can be reasonably rotated around the longitudinal direction as an axis without obstructing the movement of the electronic component 1 due to vibration, and the direction thereof can be aligned. When the interval W2 is smaller than the above range, the width direction dimension in the rotation path 14 is not sufficient, and it may be difficult to reliably align the direction of the electronic component 1. When the interval W2 is larger than the above range, it is easy to rotate the electronic component 1 about its longitudinal direction as an axis, but even if the orientation is aligned, the movement of the electronic component 1 becomes unstable and the posture is There is a risk of collapse or a plurality of electronic components gathering in the rotation path 14 and clogging the rotation path.

  In the rotation path 14, the guide wall 14b and the guide wall 14c are opposed to each other with a gap W2. The guide walls 14b and 14c have transition guide surfaces 14b1 and 14c1 on the upstream side. In the transition guide surfaces 14b1 and 14c1, the interval gradually decreases from the interval W2 toward the upstream, and reaches the interval W1. Accordingly, the electronic component 1 supplied from the first transport path 13 toward the rotation path 14 is guided to the rotation path 14 without difficulty.

  However, as described above, the transition guide surfaces 14b1 and 14c1 do not gradually change in distance, and may be extended in a direction orthogonal to the transport path. In that case, a transition guide wall extending in the width direction is provided at a connection portion between the first conveyance path 13 and the rotation path 14.

  Also in the downstream portion of the rotation path 14, the first and second guide walls 14b and 14c have transition guide surfaces 14b2 and 14c2. The interval between the transition guide surfaces 14b2 and 14c2 is W2 at the upstream end, and gradually decreases from W2 toward the downstream and reaches the interval W3. Due to the transition guide surfaces 14b2 and 14c2, the distance between the pair of guide walls gradually decreases toward the downstream side. By this transition guide wall, the electronic component 1 is easily guided to the second conveyance path 15 having a narrower interval W3 than the interval W2 in the correct orientation.

  Then, the electronic component 1 in the correct orientation no longer rotates around the longitudinal direction in the second transport path 15 at the interval W3. Accordingly, the electronic component 1 in the correct orientation is guided downstream of the second transport path 15.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when the plurality of electronic components 1 are transported in the longitudinal direction, the orientations of the electronic components can be surely aligned so that the thickness of the internal electrodes becomes a constant direction.

  In addition, it is possible to stably supply a large number of electronic components 1 having the same orientation.

  Next, specific experimental examples will be described. In the first embodiment, the following five types of electronic components 1 having a chip size were prepared and transported.

Chip size of prepared electronic component (1) 1005: L = 1.05 mm, W = 0.5 mm, T = 0.5 mm
1608: L = 1.6 mm, W = 0.8 mm, T = 0.8 mm
2012: L = 2.0mm, W = 1.25mm, T = 1.25mm
3216: L = 3.2 mm, W = 1.6 mm, T = 1.6 mm
3225: L = 3.2 mm, W = 2.5 mm, T = 2.5 mm
A large number of the electronic components 1 having the above five types of chip sizes were prepared, and the magnetic force of the first magnet 21 was variously changed, and the electronic components 1 were conveyed at a conveyance speed of about 3 m / min to 7 m / min. In this case, the transportability and the rotational property of the electronic component 1 were evaluated. The transportability is an evaluation of whether the electronic component 1 has been transported without difficulty from the upstream of the first transport path to the downstream end of the second transport path in the electronic component transport apparatus. With respect to the rotational property, it is evaluated whether or not the electronic component is rotated by the magnetic force and the direction thereof is accurately aligned. The actual evaluation was performed by selecting the direction of the electronic component that reached the downstream of the second transport path.

  The results are shown in Table 1 below.

  As is clear from Table 1, when the magnetic force was less than 1 G, the transportability was excellent but the rotation was poor. When the magnetic force exceeded 1500 G, both the transportability and the rotational performance were often insufficient. This is because the magnetic force is too strong, the electronic component 1 is adsorbed as described above, is not moved downstream, and the electronic component 1 is not easily rotated for direction selection. When the magnetic force is 1 to 1000 G, although depending on the size, it can be seen that the electronic component 1 is conveyed without difficulty and rotated in the rotation path to align the directions.

  However, the transportability of the electronic component 1 does not depend only on the magnitude of the magnetic force of the first magnet 21, but the chip size of the electronic component, the degree of ferromagnetism of the material constituting the internal electrode, Since it differs depending on the number of stacked layers, etc., and also varies depending on the conveyance speed of the electronic component 1 by the conveyance means, it cannot be uniquely determined. In other words, the results shown in Table 1 indicate that the transportability and reversibility can be improved by adjusting the magnetic force of the first magnet 21 when transporting the electronic components 1 having the above five chip sizes. Even if the magnetic force is less than 1 G or 1500 G or more, the effect of the present invention can be sufficiently expected depending on the chip size and the conveyance speed.

  However, in the above five types of commonly used chip sizes, if the magnetic force is in the range of 1 G or more, the direction of the electronic component 1 can be reliably aligned, and if the magnetic force G is 1000 or less, It can be seen that the electronic component 1 can be reliably conveyed. More preferably, when the chip size is 1005, the magnetic force is 1 to 50G, and when the chip size is 1608, the magnetic force is 100 to 200G, when the size is 2012, and when the size is 3216, the magnetic force is 300 to 500G and 3225 size. In this case, it can be seen that if the magnetic force is 700 to 1000 G, both the transportability and the reversibility can be easily improved.

(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, the first magnet 21 is provided on the outer side of the guide wall 14b so that the north pole is upward and the south pole is upward.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, in the second embodiment, the first magnet 21A is disposed below the rotation path 14, more specifically, below the second transport floor surface 14a. ing. The first magnet 21A has an N pole on the top surface and an S pole on the bottom surface. Therefore, the magnetic lines of force Z are generated as shown in FIG. Therefore, the magnetic field lines Z are generated so as to extend substantially in the vertical direction on either the guide wall 14b side or the guide wall 14c side. Therefore, as in the case of the first embodiment, the surface direction of the internal electrode 3 is the vertical direction. The directions of the plurality of electronic components 1 are aligned so as to extend in the direction.

  Further, since the first magnet 21A is located below the center position in the width direction of the second transport floor surface 14a, as shown in FIG. 6, there are magnetic lines of force on both the guide wall 14b side and the guide wall 14c side. As a result, the electronic component 1 can be rotated more reliably by the action of both magnetic lines of force Z and Z. In addition, since the first magnet 21A is provided below the second transport floor surface 14a, work on the side of the transport path can be quickly performed, and the width direction dimension of the transport device can be reduced. Can do.

(Third embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 7, in the electronic component transport apparatus of the third embodiment, in addition to the first magnet 21A, another first magnet 21B is provided. That is, in the second embodiment, the first magnet 21A is provided below the rotation path 14, but in the third embodiment, the first magnet 21B is further provided above. Therefore, the rotation path 14 is sandwiched between the upper and lower first and second magnets 21A and 21B.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the first magnet 21B has an N pole on the top surface and an S pole on the bottom surface.

  Thus, by providing the first magnet 21B above the rotation path 14, the magnetic lines of force Z from the first magnet 21B also act as shown in FIG. 8, so that the electronic component 1 can be rotated more reliably. , You can align its orientation.

  In addition, the arrangement of the lines of magnetic force can be changed by adjusting the position of the first magnet 21B with respect to the position of the first magnet 21A. Therefore, the electronic component 1 can be rotated more reliably by this.

(Other variations)
FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view for explaining a modification of the first embodiment. In the electronic component transport apparatus 31 of the present modification, the first magnet 21 is disposed on the guide wall 14c side, like the second magnet. Thus, the first magnet 21 may be arranged on the same side as the second magnet 22. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10, the first magnets 21 and 21 may be arranged on both sides in the width direction in the rotation path 14.

  In the above-described embodiment, the electronic component 1 which is a multilayer ceramic capacitor has been described. However, the present invention can be widely applied to transport of a rectangular parallelepiped electronic component having a ferromagnetic internal electrode.

  FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram for explaining a modification of the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper surface of the first magnet 21 </ b> A is an N pole and the lower surface is an S pole. On the other hand, as in the modification shown in FIG. 11, in the first magnet 21B arranged below the rotation path 14, in the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the rotation path 14, that is, in the horizontal direction in the drawing of FIG. One end may be an N pole and the other end may be an S pole. The magnetic lines of force Z extend in the direction crossing the rotation path 14 and perpendicular to the transport direction in the rotation path 14. In this case, the orientation of the plurality of electronic components 1 is aligned in the rotation path 14 so that the surface direction of the internal electrode 3 extends in the direction in which the magnetic lines of force Z extend, that is, substantially parallel to the bottom surface of the rotation path 14.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electronic component 2 ... Ceramic sintered compact 2a, 2b ... 1st, 2nd end surface 3 ... Internal electrode 4,5 ... 1st, 2nd external electrode 11 ... Electronic component conveying apparatus 12 ... Conveyance path | route structural member 13 ... 1st conveyance path 13a-15a ... 1st-3rd conveyance floor surface 13b, 13c ... 1st conveyance guide surface 14 ... Rotation path 14b, 14c ... Guide wall 14b1, 14c1 ... Transition guide surface 14b2, 14c2 ... Transition guide surface 15 ... 2nd conveyance path 15b, 15c ... 1st conveyance guide surface 16 ... Vibration source 17 ... Top plate 21 ... 1st magnet 21A, 21B ... 1st, 2nd magnet 22 ... 2nd Magnet 31 ... Electronic component conveyor

Claims (7)

An electronic component transport apparatus for transporting a rectangular parallelepiped electronic component having a ferromagnetic internal electrode,
The electronic component has a longitudinal direction;
A transport member provided with a transport path for transporting the electronic component in the longitudinal direction of the electronic component;
Transport means for moving the electronic component in the transport path of the transport member,
The transport path is
A first transport path;
A rotation path connected to the downstream side of the first transport path;
A second transport path connected to the downstream side of the rotation path,
The first transport path includes a transport floor surface on which electronic components are placed, and a pair of first transport guide surfaces provided above the transport floor surface and spaced apart by a distance W1. Have
The rotation path is disposed above the second conveyance floor surface on which the electronic component is placed for conveying the electronic component, and above the second conveyance floor surface, and is wider than the interval W1. A pair of guide walls spaced apart by W2,
The second transport path is provided above the third transport floor surface on which the electronic component is placed for transporting the electronic component, and above the third transport floor surface, with an interval W3. A pair of second transport guide surfaces separated from each other;
The rotation path further includes a first magnet provided to apply a magnetic line of force to the electronic component such that an internal electrode surface of the electronic component faces a predetermined direction in the rotation path, and the rotation path includes the first path Having a portion extending downstream from the portion where the magnet is provided;
Within the rotation path, the magnets whose directions are aligned by the lines of magnetic force applied from the first magnet are arranged on the downstream side of the first magnet, in the second transport floor surface and / or the pair of guides. An electronic component transport apparatus, further comprising a second magnet provided outside the rotation path so as to be attracted to at least one surface. When the dimension in the longitudinal direction of the electronic component is L, the dimension in the width direction is W, and the dimension in the thickness direction is T, W2 is 1.03 × (W ² + T ² ) ^{1/2 to} 1.06 × ( The electronic component conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electronic component conveying apparatus is in a range of W ² + T ² ) ^1/2 .   The length of the rotation path is 2.0 L or more, where L is a dimension in the longitudinal direction of the electronic component, W is a dimension in the width direction, and T is a dimension in the thickness direction. The electronic component conveying apparatus as described.   The electronic component transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the magnetic force of the second magnet is weaker than the magnetic force of the first magnet.   5. The electronic component transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first magnet is provided below the first transport floor surface of the rotation path.   The polarity boundary in the magnetic force lines of the first magnet is located between the first conveyance floor surface of the rotation path and the uppermost position of the electronic component in the rotation path. Electronic component conveying apparatus of any one of -4.   The electronic component transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the first magnets are provided, and the plurality of first magnets are disposed so as to sandwich the transport path.

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