JP2017038059A - Automatic loading machine, operation system, and loading including operation system attached removably to automatic loading machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic loading machine, an operation system, and a loading system which make the loading of an electronic apparatus component on a component carrier flexible.SOLUTION: An automatic loading machine has a chassis, a first guide element 112a for movably bearing a first carriage 114a, a second guide element 122 for attaching the first carriage 114a, and a first portal system including a second carriage 124 movable on the second guide element 122. Furthermore, the automatic loading machine has a loading head 126 attached to the second carriage 124, and a mechanical interface 130 attached to the first carriage 114a and/or second guide element 122. The carrier 162 of a second portal system is formed so as to be attached removably to the first carriage 114a and/or second guide element 122, and has an attachment element 164 movable along the carrier 162, and an action device 166 is attached to the attachment element 164.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1c

Description

  The present invention generally relates to the technical field of mounting electronic device components on component carriers using a mounting device, also referred to as an automatic mounting machine. In particular, the present invention relates to a mounting system having flexibility with respect to various mounting requirements and an automatic mounting machine and an operation system that are components of the mounting system.

  Mounting the component of the electronic device on the component carrier is usually performed using an automatic mounting machine. In an automatic mounting machine that operates according to the so-called “pick and place principle”, the components of the electronic equipment are supplied to the mounting process using a component supply device. The supplied component is received by the mounting head, transported to the mounting area by the mounting head, and the configuration to be mounted that has been transferred to the mounting area in time using a transport system at a predetermined location in the mounting area After being mounted on the component carrier and mounted on the component carrier, the component carrier is again removed from the mounting area.

  The demand for automatic machines is largely related to what kind of electronic equipment configuration group should be manufactured. Especially when high volume production of electronic equipment groups for household appliances and / or communication technology electronic equipment, for example computers, mobile phones or other communication terminal equipment, is of high importance. It is only to realize the ability. This means that in a production line with at least one automatic mounting machine within a predetermined time interval, the number of components typically mounted on a number of component carriers is as large as possible.

  When manufacturing electronic device configuration groups for other types of electronic devices that are typically manufactured in a relatively small number, it is usually automatic that different types of electronic device configuration groups can be manufactured, each with a different mounting content. The viewpoint of the flexibility of the machine is important.

  However, in many applications, the high mounting capacity and high flexibility of the automatic mounting machine are important. This is clear from the following observations. That is, an electronics component group configured on a component carrier typically has a component spectrum that in practice, more than 80% of the installed components are small passive electronics components. And the number of different component types is relatively small. Depending on the different electronics component groups to be manufactured, the distribution of the remaining (less than 20%) components can often be very large. Thus, a so-called high performance mounting head (typically a plurality of components each for temporarily receiving one electronic device component) for manufacturing electronic devices in a production line with at least one automatic mounting machine. In addition to mounting heads with holding devices, other working devices may also be required, which must be moved inside the automatic mounting machine using a suitable portal system. Such a working device is for example for applying single grippers, double grippers (so-called twin segments) for large building blocks (eg covers, bushings, cooling bodies, etc.), viscous pastes (eg so-called underfill materials). Dispenser module, or an optical sensor (eg, for optical inspection of individual mounts).

  If clearly expressed, modern automated mounters (a) process small, simple components (typically more than 80%) as quickly as possible, and (b) the remaining (typical) Should be able to operate other components or building blocks (with less than 20%) with process safety and possibly provide further desired functions (eg quantitative extraction, optical measurement) I will. Therefore, optimally configuring the automatic mounting machine or the entire mounting line with respect to the above requirements has a great meaning because many different configuration groups can be manufactured in an efficient manner in the manufacture of electronic equipment.

  Currently, the flexibility of the mounting line is realized by: That is, the mounting line is composed of a relatively small automatic mounting machine or mounting module, and the automatic mounting machine or mounting module has up to two portal systems. Two mounting heads are installed. In such a portal system, each mounting head is within a two-dimensional region, (a) a component receiving position of the component supply device, and (b) an individual component placement on a component carrier to be mounted. Ensure that it can be moved or placed between positions. Furthermore, it is also known that a second mounting head can optionally be attached to one portal system, which for cost reasons is the same carriage as the first mounting head. The carriage can be moved along the longitudinal carrier of the portal system with a suitable drive. However, this creates access restrictions that are undesirable for the operator, which are particularly difficult to maintain and maintain individual mounting heads. Furthermore, one mounting head can be attached to each of two different side surfaces of such a vertically long carrier, and a drive unit is provided for each of the two mounting heads, so that the two mounting heads are connected to each other. It is known that it can be moved along a longitudinal carrier independently. However, such a solution has obvious disadvantages with regard to the dynamics of the corresponding automatic machine. That is, if only one mounting head is required, the mounting head or the mass of the mounting head must nevertheless be carried by the relevant portal system. Furthermore, such a solution is not flexible and is disadvantageous from an economic point of view. Even if only one mounting head is required, the mounting head must nevertheless be purchased and the investment costs for the corresponding automatic mounting machine are correspondingly high.

  The invention improves the mounting of electronic components on a component carrier, so that flexibility can be realized with respect to different mounting contents and / or desired additional functions while having a high mounting capacity. This is the issue.

  The above problem is solved by the subject matter of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are described in the dependent claims.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, an automatic mounting machine for automatically mounting components of an electronic device on a component carrier is described. The automatic mounting machine described includes: (a) a chassis; (b1) a first guide element fixedly attached to the chassis and extending along a first direction; and (b2) a first A first carriage movably supported along the guide element; and (b3) a second guide element attached to the first carriage and extending along the second direction; (B4) a second carriage movably supported along the second guide element; and (b) a first portal system. The automatic mounting machine described further comprises (c) a mounting head attached to a second carriage, and (d) a mechanical interface, the mechanical interface comprising a first carriage and A longitudinal carrier of the second portal system attached to the second guide element and extending along the second direction is detachable from the first carriage and / or the second guide element The second portal system has a movable attachment element along the longitudinal carrier, and an action device is attached to the attachment element.

  The above automatic loading machine is based on the following recognition. That is, the configuration of the automatic mounting machine can be adapted to individual mounting requirements or operation requirements in a simple and efficient manner, with the second portal system being adapted to the first portal system, This is done by mechanically connecting the longitudinal carrier and the second guide element so that they are detachable but fixedly connected to each other. This means that when the automatic mounting machine is in operation, the (longitudinal) second guide element always moves along the first direction with the longitudinal carrier of the second portal system. For clarity, the second guide element “shoulders” the portrait carrier.

  The second portal system has a much simpler configuration than the first portal system, and the number of components is reduced. The second portal system in particular may not have a fixed component with respect to the chassis.

  The first portal system, which is typically more complex compared to the second portal system, can therefore be referred to as a basic portal system, whereas the second portal system can be referred to as an additional portal system. The additional portal system represents an optional system for the above-mentioned automatic mounting machine, and is typically a basic portal system depending on the actual requirements depending on the type or mounting content of the electronic equipment configuration group to be manufactured. Can be combined. A plurality of different additional portal systems can be prepared for the automatic mounting machine, in order to perform mounting on component carriers having different mounting contents, in particular with flexibility, each of the electronic device configurations to be manufactured. Depending on the group, a suitable additional portal system is used. Further, additional portal systems can be used for various automatic mounting machines on one mounting line or a plurality of mounting lines for each actual request. This is a particularly inexpensive method and increases the manufacturing flexibility of different electronic device groupings.

  The working device attached to the additional portal system may be any device that may be useful for efficient manufacture of the electronics configuration group. The working device is for example a further mounting head for a relatively large building block such as a cover, a bush, a plug, a cooling body, a blower etc., especially large electronic components, or a single gripper or a multi-gripper. Good. The working device can also be a dispenser module for applying viscous pastes (for example so-called underfill materials), or optical sensors that can be used for optical inspection of individual mountings or the like. You may have.

  The first direction and the second direction form an angle. This means that the two directions do not develop parallel to each other. The first direction and the second direction preferably define a two-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system, which is oriented horizontally, i.e. perpendicular to the direction of gravity. In this document, the first direction is also referred to as the y direction, and the second direction is referred to as the x direction.

  The mounting head disposed in the first portal system receives a component from the component supply device by a well-known method, conveys the received component to the mounting region, and transfers the conveyed component to the mounting region. It is configured to be placed at a predetermined mounting position of the component carrier that has been carried into the container.

  The mounting head and / or the working device may further comprise an element movably supported along a third direction relative to the chassis, and movably supported along the third direction. The elements can be moved using a suitable drive. Such an element can be, for example, a component holding device, which is formed in particular as a so-called suction gripper and is used for receiving and mounting the component, as well as for the housing of the mounting head. Can be lowered. In particular, the third direction that develops perpendicularly or parallel to the direction of gravity is also referred to as the z direction in this document.

  It is pointed out that the longitudinal carrier of the second portal system can be attached (removably) directly or indirectly to the second guide element. Removably attached in this way can be performed using any individual fixing element that can be used reversibly. The securing element can be, for example, a screw, bolt (optionally with an engagement element), or other suitable securing or clamping element.

  Preferably, the first portal system further has two driving units. At this time, the first drive unit is disposed on the first carriage, and can move the first carriage along the first guide element along the first direction. Correspondingly, the second drive is arranged on the second carriage, so that the second carriage can be moved in the second direction along the second guide element. The two drives can be any kind of motor, which in some cases cooperates with a corresponding mechanical linkage, for example a belt or a spindle, so that the corresponding carriage moves in a desired direction in translation. Secure. Preferably, at least one of the two drive units is a linear motor, and a particularly high position accuracy can be realized by the linear motor.

  According to one embodiment of the invention, the automatic mounting machine also has an electrical interface, which is formed on the first carriage and / or the second guide element, It is configured to supply electrical energy to the second portal system and / or the working device.

  The electrical interface may be implemented using a suitable electrical plug connection. Transferring or transmitting electrical energy to the second portal system and / or the electrical components of the working device is realized using at least two electrical rails and individually arranged sliding contacts. obtain. However, the transmission of electrical energy to the electrical components is preferably done via a so-called cable drag chain, which is connected to the first portal (longitudinal carrier) of the second portal system. Extends from the electrical interface to the appropriate electrical component while docked to the second guide element of the system. The electrical component can be, for example, an electrical drive for the mounting element and / or an electrical drive or electrical control element or actuator of the working device.

  Said electrical interface is said to supply electrical energy via the first portal system in a simple manner to the second portal system and / or the working device attached to the second portal system. An overall advantage comprising a second portal system and a working device mounted on a longitudinal carrier, which is also referred to in the following as an operating system or a robot system, in a compact manner. It can be coupled to the second guide element as a unit.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the automatic loading machine also has a data interface, which is for the data processing unit, the second portal system and / or the control of the working device. It is configured to transmit data to and from the unit.

  The data processing unit may be arranged in particular in an automatic loading machine and may be responsible for controlling the operation of the automatic loading machine in a suitable way. However, the data processing unit may additionally be involved in other machines in the loading line, and in particular in other automatic loading machines. In this case, the data processing unit is not a local control device but a high-order control device with respect to the automatic mounting machine. The control unit is arranged in the above operating system, and may be attached to a particularly long carrier.

  The data interface can be a wireless or wired interface. In the case of a wired interface that requires a data cable between the data interface and the control unit, the data cable can preferably be implemented via the cable drag chain described above.

  The data interface may be implemented using a suitable plug connection with the electrical interface described above. Thereby, when docking the operating system, both data coupling and electrical coupling for transmitting energy can be established automatically by the operator's single handgrip.

  It is pointed out that a suitable coupling for electrical coupling and / or data transmission requires that the automatic mounting machine be structurally (slightly) adapted to a certain degree compared to known automatic mounting machines. That is, the conductors to the first portal system must be laid so that sufficient electrical energy and / or data line capacity is available for the operating system. This can be done by appropriately sizing the electrical and / or data lines and providing or preparing corresponding additional (parallel) conductors.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the automatic mounting machine also has a pneumatic interface, which is formed in the first carriage and / or the second guide element, On the other hand, it is configured to prepare a working pressure different from the ambient pressure.

  The working pressure may be negative with respect to the ambient pressure, which negative pressure is made available to the component holding device formed as a suction gripper. The negative pressure can be switched on or off using a valve in a known manner in synchronism with the acceptance or delivery of the component. The working pressure may be positive compared to the ambient pressure and can be used to generate a negative pressure in a known manner using a hydromechanical device, the negative pressure being applied to the suction gripper of the working device. It is possible to use it. Such a hydromechanical device may be, for example, a venturi nozzle.

  The pneumatic interface may be implemented in a common pneumatic electrical plug connection with the electrical interface and / or data interface described above. This allows an advantageous and simple method to allow the operating system to have comprehensive access to all working means (electrical energy, control data and / or compressed air or vacuum) that are required, It is made available via a corresponding interface formed in the first carriage and / or the second guide element of the first portal system.

  The operating system can already be calibrated prior to docking to the first carriage and / or the second guide element, so that it can be prepared for use in an automatic loading machine. The operating system can be coupled to the first portal system according to the “plug and play” principle in a simple and reliable manner, especially when implementing a plurality of interfaces using a common plug-type connection. As a result, undesired non-productive time during which mounting by the automatic mounting machine cannot be performed is reduced, thereby improving mounting efficiency.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the automatic mounting machine is further a) fixedly attached to the chassis and further extending along a first direction parallel to the first guide element. A first guide element; and (b) a further first carriage movably supported along the further first guide element. The first carriage is attached to the second guide element in the first end region of the second guide element. The further first carriage is attached to the second guide element in the second end region of the second guide element. Furthermore, the first end region and the second end region are arranged on opposite sides of the second guide element.

  For clarity, the second guide element that is preferably extended perpendicular to the first direction and is movable along the first direction is the first guide element or the further first guide element. One guide element is movably supported on two opposite sides. This contributes to a particularly stable support and precise mobility of the second guide element.

  The second portal system may have at least one unique carriage and may have a unique carriage that may be moved along the first guide element and / or along the second guide element. According to the current recognition, the second portal system represents a preferred configuration without such a unique carriage. That is, in the preferred configuration, these carriages are expended in the first guide element and / or the further first guide element or in contact with the first guide element and / or the further first guide element. Need not be included. The longitudinal carrier of the second portal system can also be easily coupled to the second guide element in this way without “fitting” and / or between the first carriage and the further first carriage. It can be fixed with.

  According to a further aspect of the present invention, an operating system is described, the operating system comprising: (a1) a longitudinal carrier extending along the second direction; and (a2) movable along the longitudinal carrier. (A) a second portal system, (b) an action device attached to the attachment element, and (c) a (longitudinal) carrier (directly or indirectly). And a mechanical coupling device attached to the device. The mechanical coupling device is formed such that the longitudinal carrier can be detachably attached to the movable second guide element of the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine.

  The above operating system is based on the following recognition. In other words, by simply docking a vertically long carrier to a movable component of the (first) portal system of an automatic loading machine, the configuration of the automatic loading machine can be used for special component processing or automatic loading. Based on the recognition that the desired additional functionality of the machine can be changed or expanded in a simple manner. The configuration of the automatic mounting machine can thereby be adapted to individual mounting or operating requirements quickly and effectively.

  In the docked state, the longitudinal carrier and the second guide element are detachable but fixedly coupled to each other. This means that the (longitudinal) second guide element always moves along with the longitudinal carrier of the second portal system along the first direction when the automatic mounting machine is in operation. For clarity, the second guide element “shoulders” the portrait carrier.

  The first portal system fixedly arranged in the corresponding automatic mounting machine is preferably a so-called plane arrangement system and has the following components. (A) a first guide element fixedly attached to the chassis of the automatic mounting machine and extending along a first direction; (b) movable along the first guide element; At least one first carriage supported on the first carriage; (c) a second guide element attached to the first carriage and extending along the second direction; and (d) a second And a second carriage movably supported along the guide element. A mounting head is attached to the second carriage, and the mounting head is typically a so-called multi-mounting head, and (i) a large number of electronic device components are each one component using the multi-mounting head. Can be received using a holding device; (ii) a number of received electronics components can both be transferred into the mounting area of the automatic mounting machine; and (iii) components transferred into the mounting area can be Each can be mounted at a predetermined mounting position on the component carrier. Such a multi-mounting head contributes to a high mounting performance by a known method.

  The above-described mechanical coupling device of the second portal system serves to attach the longitudinal carrier to the second guide element in a detachable but mechanically fixed manner. The attachment is then effected by attaching the longitudinal carrier directly or indirectly to the second guide element, i.e. indirectly via at least one further component. Indirect mounting can in particular be realized by mounting the longitudinal carrier directly on the first carriage.

  As already mentioned, the first portal system, which is typically more complex as compared to the second portal system, can be described descriptively as a basic portal system, whereas the second portal system is an additional portal system. Can be referred to as The additional portal system of the operating system described above represents an optional system for automatic onboard machines and can be coupled to the basic portal system according to actual requirements. A plurality of different operation systems can be prepared for a single or a plurality of automatic mounting machines, and a suitable operation system can be used depending on an electronic device configuration group to be manufactured.

  Furthermore, it is possible to use one operation system according to actual demands in different automatic machines. This is a particularly inexpensive method and increases the manufacturing flexibility of different electronic device groupings.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the working device is at least one selected from the group consisting of a further mounting head, a single gripper, a multi-gripper, in particular a double gripper, a dispenser module, and an optical sensor, in particular a camera. .

  Thus, the above operating system can be configured for many different applications. As a result, the flexibility of the automatic mounting machine is that it can efficiently carry out a wide variety of problems related to mounting on a component carrier by docking a suitably configured operating system as described above. Can be significantly increased.

  The further mounting head may be of the same type as the mounting head arranged in the first portal system. Typically, however, additional mounting heads will be other types of mounting heads. As already explained, a single gripper or a multi-gripper can be used, thereby mounting relatively large building blocks on the individual component carriers. By means of the dispenser module, a viscous paste, for example a so-called underfill material, can be applied to the component carrier and / or a suitable location of the already mounted electronics component group. For example, so-called automatic optical inspection (AOI) can be performed by the optical sensor. At this time, the mounting of individual or plural components or components can already be inspected in an automatic mounting machine.

  The above operating system is already installed before the operating system is attached to the automatic mounting machine by docking directly or indirectly to the second guide element, ie outside the automatic mounting machine in which the operating system is to be used. It can be prepared to use the operating system. This makes it possible to quickly start the automatic mounting machine thus modified after mechanically attaching the operating system to the second guide element, so that the non-productive time during which mounting is interrupted, It can be minimized in an advantageous way.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also has an electrical coupling device, which is attached to the longitudinal carrier and is the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine. A second portal system and / or working device can be supplied with electrical energy.

  The electrical coupling device is configured with respect to the electrical interface such that when the operating system is attached to the second guide element of the first portal system, a connection automatically occurs between the electrical coupling device and the electrical interface. And can be provided. This allows the operating system to be attached to an automatic machine so as to function in a particularly efficient manner.

  The energy transfer between the electrical coupling device and the relevant component of the operating system, for example the mounting element along the longitudinal carrier or the drive for targeting the working device, is carried out by a cable drag chain It can be realized using Of course, the electrical energy can also be transmitted in other ways, for example via a suitable slide rail in combination with a slide contact.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also comprises a data coupling device, which can be coupled with the data interface of the first portal system of the automatic machine, whereby the data The operation of the second portal system and / or the working device can be controlled based on the data transmitted through the interface and the data coupling device.

  The data coupling device may be part of a wireless or wired data connection. The wireless connection may be an infrared data connection, a WLAN data connection, a Bluetooth data connection, an NFC data connection, or any other suitably standardized data connection.

  In the case of a wireless data connection, the data combining device may be the end point of the wireless data connection. In this case, the data coupling device is preferably provided in the immediate vicinity of the control unit or controller for the above operating system.

  In the case of data connection by cable connection, data can be transmitted to the control unit or controller using a data line, which data line is connected via a cable drag chain, in particular via the cable drag chain for transmitting the electrical energy described above. You may be guided. In the case of data connection by cable connection, the data coupling device is preferably mounted on an elongate carrier and can be realized in a common plug connection, optionally together with an electrical coupling device. This plug-type connection can be realized automatically when the operating system is docked to the second guide element of the first portal system or a corresponding electrical connection can be made.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also has a control unit for controlling the operation of the working device.

  The control unit, often referred to as a controller, can be any data processing unit, in particular a data processing unit that can control the electrical components of the operating system. Examples of such electrical components have already been described above and will not be described again here. The control unit can thus preferably control not only the operation of the working device but also at least one electrical drive for the mounting element.

  Said control unit preferably ensures comprehensive control of the operation of the operating system. That means that only a small amount of control data needs to be transmitted via the data coupling device described above in order to operate the operating system and in particular the working device correctly and reliably. In that case, the control data need only be transferred from the data interface connected to the data coupling device (in an unaltered or unprocessed form). The control data may be, for example, the position of an electronic device component to be mounted, and the electronic device component to be mounted is mounted on the corresponding component carrier using an action device formed as a further mounting head. Is done. Furthermore, commands for performing an optical inspection of at least a part of the at least partly mounted component carrier can be transmitted as such control data to an operating device having an optical sensor.

  The above control unit can be realized as a fully autonomous system in which the operating system is a completely autonomous system and only requires some slight control data for correct and reliable operation. Has advantages.

  In this connection, the following points are pointed out. That is, the operating system can alternatively be implemented without such a control unit or with only a control unit that provides very limited functionality. In the latter case, it means that the operation of the operating system must be controlled largely or completely by the control unit of the basic portal system or by an external control unit. The same applies for example with respect to an electrical signal or output signal for an electrical drive supplied to the operating system from the outside. Such a solution can be clearly referred to as a master-slave type solution, where the basic portal system is a master portal system and the additional portal system is a slave portal system. The advantage of this solution is that the operating system represents a very simple or smart system from a technical point of view. This makes the mounting concept economical, and in order to produce different electronic equipment configuration groups in the mounting concept, a plurality of different slave portal systems are provided, each with a suitable working device.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also has a data storage device, which is coupled to the control unit.

  In the data storage device, for example, special geometric data of the operating system can be stored. An identification number indicating the corresponding working device or the entire operating system can also be stored in the data storage device and read out from the central data processing device of the corresponding automatic mounting machine if necessary.

  In an embodiment that is presently considered to be particularly advantageous, calibration data is stored in the data storage device, which calibration data is attached to the operating system prior to attaching the operating system to a corresponding automatic onboard machine or the first It was determined using a suitable calibration procedure prior to docking with the second guide element of the portal system. The data storage device can thus contribute to the realization of the operating system as the self-supporting system, and in particular the working device can address the issues assigned to the working device with a high degree of accuracy and a high degree of reliability. Can be fulfilled.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also comprises a pneumatic coupling device, which is attached (directly or indirectly) to the longitudinal carrier and is automatic. It can be combined with the pneumatic interface of the first portal system of the mounting machine, so that the working pressure of the working device different from the ambient pressure can be prepared.

  The pneumatic coupling between the first portal system and the working device, realized using a pneumatic coupling device, is particularly meaningful when the working device is a further mounting head, which further mounting head is an electronic device configuration. The element can be temporarily received in a known manner in at least one component holding device formed as a suction pipette using negative pressure.

  In the above, as already described in connection with the various interfaces formed in the first portal system, the pneumatic coupling device, together with the electrical coupling device and / or the data coupling device, also has a common pneumatic and It may be realized by using a plug-type connection portion related to electricity. Thereby, the operating system described above can be coupled to the second guide element of the first portal system in a particularly effective and quick manner, according to the “plug and play” principle, thereby at least functionally applicable Can be built into an automatic loading machine.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, the operating system also has a wagon element, which is fixedly attached to the longitudinal carrier and is the first guide of the first portal system. It is configured to be movably attached to the element.

  If this is clearly expressed, not only is the longitudinal carrier detachably fixed (directly or indirectly) to the second guide element of the first portal system, but the longitudinal carrier is It can be attached to the first guide element as well (indirectly via the wagon element). At this time, the mechanical coupling portion between the wagon element and the first guide element is formed so that the wagon element can be slid or moved along the longitudinal direction of the first guide element. The wagon element is also reversibly attachable to the first guide element, i.e. removably, so that the operating system is only required when necessary, consistent with the basic idea of the invention described in this document. It can be mechanically coupled to one portal system, in particular the second guide element.

  Even if the cost of coupling the operating system to the first portal system with the aforementioned wagon element is slightly higher because the wagon element must first be fitted or fitted to the first guide element, Embodiments provide at least the following advantages. That is, the force derived from the large mass of the docked operating system, in particular the inertial mass, does not need to be received by the first carriage of the first portal system and possibly the further first carriage, or at least It need not be received only by the first carriage and possibly the further first carriage. This reduces the yield strength acting on the first carriage and possibly the further first carriage, thereby reducing the cost of the first carriage and / or the further first carriage from a mechanical point of view. Alternatively, it may be formed with reduced stability. This means that the above operating system can be docked to a first portal system dimensioned in a simple and conventional manner. In order to dock the operating system, the first portal system and in particular the second guide element of the first portal system and / or the second carriage have the necessary interfaces (mechanical interface and optionally electrical It is only necessary to provide an interface, a data interface and / or a pneumatic interface.

  According to a further embodiment of the invention, a mounting system for automatically mounting components of an electronic device on a component carrier is described. The mounting system described includes (a) an automatic mounting machine of the above type and (b) an operating system of the above type. The vertically long carrier of the operating system is detachably fixed directly or indirectly to the second guide element of the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine.

  The on-board system described is based on the following recognition. In other words, the flexibility of the automatic mounting machine relating to the manufacture of different electronic device configuration groups having different mounting contents is simplified because the above operating system can be optionally docked to the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine. Based on the recognition that it can be enhanced in an efficient manner. Optionally in particular this docking is an electronic device configuration group, the manufacturing of the electronic device configuration group being able to be moved using the first portal system, in addition to the operating device of the operating system Means that it is only performed when an electronic component group that requires further processing steps that can be processed by is to be manufactured.

  The mechanical connection between the operating system and the first portal system of the automatic loading machine is achieved in such a way that the longitudinal carrier of the second portal system of the operating system can be directly or indirectly detached. This is done by being attached or fixed to the second guide element of the first portal system. For clarity, the portrait carrier is “shouldered” by the second guide element.

  It is pointed out that the embodiments of the present invention have been described in the context of different inventive objects. However, as soon as a person skilled in the art reads the present application, any combination of features belonging to the subject of a different invention is possible in addition to a combination of features belonging to the subject of one invention, unless explicitly stated otherwise. It will become clear.

  Additional advantages and features of the present invention are set forth in the illustrative description of the presently preferred embodiment. The individual figures in the drawings of this document should be considered schematic only and not true to scale.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing that an automatic mounting machine equipped with an operation system is integrated into a mounting system that is additional to the automatic mounting machine and has functionality provided for use by the operating device of the operation system. is there. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing that an automatic mounting machine equipped with an operation system is integrated into a mounting system that is additional to the automatic mounting machine and has functionality provided for use by the operating device of the operation system. is there. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing that an automatic mounting machine equipped with an operation system is integrated into a mounting system that is additional to the automatic mounting machine and has functionality provided for use by the operating device of the operation system. is there. It is the figure which shows the loading system which is integrated from the automatic loading machine and the operation system. The operation system has two original wagons, and each wagon is movable to the guide element of the basic portal system of the automatic loading machine. Guided.

  In the following detailed description, the same features or components of different embodiments that are the same or at least functionally the same as the corresponding features or components of the other embodiments It should be pointed out that the reference numbers of the features or components that are identical or at least functionally identical are given different reference numbers only in the first digit. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, features or components already described on the basis of the previously described embodiments are no longer described in detail later.

  It is also pointed out that the embodiments described below represent only a limited choice with respect to possible implementation variations of the invention. In particular, the features of the individual embodiments can be combined with one another in a suitable manner, so that for those skilled in the art, a number of different implementations are possible, depending on the implementation variants explicitly indicated in this detailed description. Is considered to be disclosed explicitly.

Further, as shown in the figures, for example, “front” and “rear”, “upper” and “upward” are used to describe the relationship one element has to another element or other elements. It should be pointed out that concepts related to space such as “downward”, “left” and “right” are used. Correspondingly, the concepts related to space may apply to orientations different from those displayed in the drawings. However, it should be understood that all such concepts related to space relate to the orientation shown in the drawings for ease of explanation and are not necessarily limiting. This is because the devices, components, and the like that are displayed may take an orientation that may differ from the orientation displayed in the drawing when they are used.
Before describing exemplary embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings, some discussion will be given below in connection with the exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

  FIG. 1a shows an automatic mounting machine 100 according to one embodiment of the invention, which corresponds to a conventional automatic mounting machine in major, especially structural features. Accordingly, the basic functions of the automatic loading machine 100 and various components that are not displayed will not be described in detail below.

  The automatic mounting machine 100 has a chassis 102, which is schematically indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 1a. The chassis 102 provides a frame structure, and individual components of the automatic mounting machine 100 are directly or indirectly attached to the frame structure.

  A first portal system 110 is attached to the chassis 102, and the first portal system is also referred to as a primary portal system or a basic portal system in the following. The basic portal system 110 includes two guide elements in a known manner, and the two guide elements represent portal backbones. According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the portal backbone is formed of a first guide element 112a and a further first guide element 112b. Each of the two first guide elements 112a and 112b has a longitudinal carrier rail, and the longitudinal carrier rail extends along the first direction. In FIG. 1a, the first direction is referred to as the y direction.

  The portal system 110 also has two carriages, a first carriage 114a and a further first carriage 114b. The first carriage 114a is movably attached to the guide element 112a, so that the first carriage can be moved or arranged in the y direction using a drive not shown. Correspondingly, the carriage 114b is movably attached to the guide element 112b. Similarly, a drive that is not displayed ensures that the two carriages 114a and 114b are moved along the y direction in the same or synchronous manner. The bearing element 115 ensures that the two carriages 114a and 114b are reliably moved along the y direction along a precisely defined track.

  Extending between the two carriages 114a and 114b is a second guide element 122 formed as a movable cross member, the second guide element extending in the longitudinal direction along the second direction. have. In FIG. 1a and also below, the second direction is referred to as the x direction. A second carriage 124 is attached to or guided by the cross member 122, and the second carriage can also be moved or arranged along the x direction using a drive that is not displayed. The second carriage 124 represents a mechanical platform, and a mounting head 126 is fixed to the mechanical platform. According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the mounting head 126 is a so-called multi-mounting head having a plurality of component holding devices 128 formed as suction grippers, the component holding device being Each is used to temporarily receive an electronic component in a known manner.

  In order to perform loading on the component carrier 190, the loading head 126 is first moved into a component pick-up area that is not displayed by suitably controlling the first portal system 110 in a known manner. In the pickup area, the electronic device components are prepared by a suitable component supply device that is not displayed. In the component pick-up area, the component is picked up by the mounting head 126 and transferred again to the mounting area by suitable control of the first portal system 110, in which the electronic device component 192 is placed on the component carrier 190. Is done. The data processing unit 104 ensures cooperative control of the driving unit with respect to the two first carriages 114 a and 114 b, the second carriage 124 and the mounting head 126.

  Below, the characteristic of the automatic mounting machine 100 which is characteristic regarding embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.

  Is the mechanical interface 130 attached or formed to each of the two first carriages 114a and 114b, and whether or not the operating system 150 shown in FIG. 1b is detachably attached to the mechanical interface? Or it can be docked. According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the automated mounting machine 100 also has an electrical interface 132, a data interface 134, and a pneumatic interface 136. As can be seen from FIG. 1a, these interfaces are all formed in a movable cross member 122. Alternatively, these interfaces can be formed at least partially in the carriages 114a and / or 114b.

  FIG. 1 b shows an operation system 150 that is configured to be detachably attached to a portion of the first portal system 110 that is movable along the y direction. The operation system 150 includes a second portal system 160 and an action device 166. Because the second portal system 160 can optionally be coupled to the first portal system 110, the second portal system is also referred to below as an additional portal system 160.

  According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the additional portal system 160 includes a vertical carrier 162, which is a mechanical coupling device in both end regions of the vertical carrier, respectively. 170. Each mechanical coupling device 170 is structurally adapted to one of the two mechanical interfaces 130 so that the carrier 162 can be clamped between the two carriages 114a, 114b. Alternatively or in combination, a suitable mechanical coupling structure may be provided on each longitudinal side of the movable cross member 122 or the elongated carrier 162.

  The longitudinal carrier 162 is provided with an attachment element 164 formed as a movable attachment plate in a state of being movably supported along the x direction. An action device 166 is attached to the attachment element 164. With the drive not shown, the mounting element 164 and the action device 166 therewith can also be moved or arranged along the x-direction with a target. The actuating device 166 has a further mounting head, a single gripper, a multi-gripper, in particular a double gripper, a dispenser module and / or an optical sensor, as already explained above, depending on the desired additional function. Good. According to the embodiment shown in the figure, the working device 166 is a so-called twin segment having two grippers 168, each of which uses, for example, a relatively large electronic component. Or a member such as a mechanical component, such as a cover or a cooling body, can be received, processed or mounted.

  In order to provide the necessary electrical energy to the working device 166 and the non-displayed drive for the movable mounting element 164, the operating system 150 has an electrical coupling device 172, which The mechanical coupling device is formed and provided such that the electrical coupling device is coupled to the electrical interface 132 with the operating system 150 docked. Electrical energy can thus be transmitted from the first portal system 110 to the second portal system 160 and the working device 166 attached to the second portal system.

  According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the operating system 150 also includes a data coupling device 174 and a pneumatic coupling device 176. Similar to the electrical coupling device 172, the coupling devices 174 and 176, with the operating system 150 docked, to the corresponding interface of the first portal system 110, ie to the data interface 134 or to the pneumatic interface 136. Are combined.

  Control data can be transmitted from the data processing unit 104 of the automated loading machine 100 to the control unit 154 of the operating system 150 via a combination of the data interface 134 and the data combination device 174. According to the embodiment shown in this figure, the control unit 154 is largely responsible for the correct operation of the operating system 150. Thereby, only a small amount of control data has to be transmitted via the data interface 134 or the data coupling device 174.

  Through a combination of a pneumatic interface 136 and a pneumatic coupling device 176, compressed air or vacuum can be transmitted, and the compressed air or vacuum is transferred to the working device 166. The transfer is carried out in a known manner using a cable drag chain (not shown) according to the embodiment shown in the figure, the cable drag chain additionally comprising an electrical conductor and possibly Data lines may also be guided, and the electrical conductors and data lines are disposed on the electrical coupling device 172 or the data coupling device 174.

  The operating system 150 can be calibrated outside of the automated mounting machine 100 before starting, ie before the operating system is docked to the first portal system 110. Thus, immediately after the operation system 150 is docked, the automatic mounting machine 100 expanded by the operation system 150 can continue to operate. Corresponding calibration data may be stored in a data storage device 156 that is coupled to the control unit 154. Thereby, in order to control the operation of the operating system 150, the control unit 154 can access the calibration data in a simple and effective manner.

  FIG. 1 c shows a mounting system 180 synthesized from the automatic mounting machine 100 and the operation system 150. The spatial configuration of the electrical interface 132 and the electrical coupling device 172, the spatial configuration of the data interface 134 and the data coupling device 174, and the spatial configuration of the pneumatic interface 136 and the pneumatic coupling device 176 are the longitudinal carriers. When the 162 is detachably docked to the second guide element 122, the corresponding interface 132, 134, 136 and coupling device 177, 174, 176 pair is selected to be automatically integrated.

  FIG. 2 shows a mounting system 280 synthesized from the automatic mounting machine 200 and the operation system 250. The mounting system 280 displayed in this figure is different from the mounting system 180 in the following points. That is, according to the first difference, the mechanical connection between the operation system 250 and the automatic mounting machine 100 is performed by (a) a second guide element or a movable cross member 122 and (b) a vertically long carrier. This is done directly between the two components 162. For this purpose, the mechanical interface 130 and the mechanical coupling device 170 are formed on the longitudinal side of the guide element 122 or the carrier 162, which is the corresponding component, facing each other and facing each other. One electrical interface 132, data interface 134, and pneumatic interface 136 and the other electrical coupling device 172, data coupling device 174, and pneumatic coupling device 176 are either mechanical interface 130 or mechanical coupling. It is formed to extend through the device 170 so that they can each ensure a secure connection with complementary components.

  A second difference between the loading system 280 and the loading system 180 is that the additional portal system 260 of the operating system 250 has two unique wagons, a first wagon 261a and a further first wagon 261b. In other words, the wagons are movably guided to the guide elements 112a or 112b of the basic portal system 210 of the automatic mounting machine 200, respectively. These wagons 261a, 261b indicate that the longitudinal carrier 162 (and the working device 266 attached to the longitudinal carrier) need not be carried only by at least the two wagons 114a and 114b of the base portal system 210. And thereby the proof stress acting on the two wagons 114a and 114b is correspondingly reduced. As can be seen from FIG. 2, the bearing element 265 ensures that the two carriages 261a and 261b are reliably moved along the y direction along a precisely defined track.

  A third difference between the mounting system 280 and the mounting system 180 is that the working device 266 has a camera 268 that can be used, for example, to perform an automatic optical inspection (AOI) of each selected mounting in particular. Can be done. The quality control of the electronic device configuration group thus completed can be already performed in the mounting system 280 described above. A separate machine for AOI is thereby dispensed with in an advantageous manner.

  It should be pointed out that the above three differences are completely independent from each other from a technical point of view. Accordingly, a mounting system having only one or two of these differences with respect to the mounting system 180 may also be configured.

  If clearly expressed, the embodiments of the invention described in this document can be summarized as follows.

  In a standard implementation, the first portal system or the basic portal system includes (at least) one y portal backbone and a carrier (first guide element) that crosses the y direction and is movable along the y direction. , X carriage (first carriage). Optionally, a second portal system or additional portal system includes a second carrier (second guide element), a unique x-carriage (attachment element), a cable drag chain, and the necessary electronics ( "Back side") and can be incorporated into the basic portal system. At this time, the second carrier (second guide element) is preferably detachably attached to the first carrier (first guide element) directly or indirectly mechanically.

  The supply of energy and data for the additional portal system and to the working devices attached to the additional portal system takes place via the basic portal system. For this purpose, the basic portal system has a mechanical interface, an electrical interface, a data interface, and optionally a pneumatic interface. The additional portal system and the action device attached to the additional portal system can be attached outside the automatic machine using the modularity of the portal system. Within the automatic mounting machine, the calibration of the additional portal system and the working device (both of which form the operating system) can be performed by the calibration unit with respect to the basic configuration (basic portal system, mounting head, circuit board camera).

  The basic portal system is designed on the drive side such that the mass of the additional portal system is taken into account with respect to the y direction. The basic portal system can operate alone and with additional portal systems depending on actual requirements. The “configuration with an additional portal system or the configuration without an additional portal system” can be automatically read or recognized by an automatic machine. At this time, the drive data set, additional portal system machine data and possible access restrictions and configuration space data can be provided to the automated onboard machine in a simple and efficient manner.

  Instead of the (further) mounting head, the working device may have a mounting head with a gripper, a dispenser, an optical sensor, or an additional z-axis for moving the entire mounting head. The electrical interface of the basic portal system is implemented such that a predetermined number of sensors and actuators are prepared for the additional portal system.

From the above considerations, in particular, the following advantages are obtained.
Based on the modularity of the basic portal system and additional portal systems, special solutions for customer specific applications other than product deployment can be provided more quickly as special configurations.
• For a variety of electronic equipment configuration groups to be manufactured, mounting line flexibility can be realized with a reduced number of automatic mounting machines. The customer (operating line operating company) can purchase the self-installing machine described in the present application and adapt the additional portal system with suitable working devices. At this time, the customer can optionally select from a number of different types of operating systems.
-Special configurations for individual applications can only be realized with respect to additional portal systems and do not increase the manufacturing cost and complexity of automatic onboard machines with basic portal systems.
-The "comprehensive interface" between the basic portal system and the additional portal system gives rise to the possibility of practicing very diverse technical solutions (actuators, sensors).

  It should be noted that the concept of “having” in this document does not exclude other elements, and “one” does not exclude many. Elements described in connection with different embodiments may also be combined. It should also be noted that reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

100 automatic loading machine 102 chassis 104 data processing unit 110 first portal system / basic portal system 112a first guide element / portal trunk 112b further first guide element / portal trunk 114a first carriage 114b further first Carriage 115 Bearing element 122 Second guide element / movable cross member 124 Second carriage 126 Mounting head 128 Component holding device 130 Mechanical interface 132 Electrical interface 134 Data interface 136 Pneumatic interface 150 Operating system 154 Control Unit 156 Data storage 160 Second portal system / additional portal system 162 Longitudinal carrier 164 Mounting element / movable Mounting plate 166 Actuator / double gripper 168 Gripper 170 Mechanical coupling device 172 Electrical coupling device 174 Data coupling device 176 Pneumatic coupling device 180 Mounting system 190 Component carrier / circuit board 192 Electronic component y First direction x Second direction 200 Automatic loading machine 210 First portal system (basic portal system 230 mechanical interface 250 operation system 260 second portal system / additional portal system 261a first wagon 261b further first wagon 265 bearing element 266 Action device 268 Camera 270 Mechanical coupling device 280 On-board system

Claims (14)

An automatic mounting machine for automatically mounting a component (192) of an electronic device on a component carrier (190), the automatic mounting machine (100, 200),
A chassis (102);
A first guide element (112a) fixedly attached to the chassis (102) and extending along a first direction (y);
A first carriage (114a) movably supported along the first guide element (112a);
A second guide element (122) attached to the first carriage (114a) and extending along a second direction (x), and along the second guide element (122) A second carriage (124) being movably supported;
A first portal system (110, 210) comprising:
A mounting head (126) attached to the second carriage (124);
A mechanical interface (130, 230);
Have
The mechanical interface is attached to the first carriage (114a) and / or the second guide element (122) and extends along the second direction (x). The longitudinal carrier (162) of the portal system (160, 260) is configured to be detachably attachable to the first carriage (114a) and / or the second guide element (122). The second portal system (160, 260) has a movable attachment element (164) along the longitudinal carrier (162), and an action device (166, 266) is attached to the attachment element. A machine installed automatically.   Further, an electrical interface (132) is formed on the first carriage (114a) and / or the second guide element (122), and the second portal system. The automatic mounting machine according to claim 1, configured to supply electrical energy to (160) and / or said working device (166, 266).   The data interface (134) further includes a data processing unit (104) for the second portal system (160, 260) and / or the working device (166, 266). The automatic mounting machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the automatic mounting machine is configured to transmit data to and from the control unit (154).   Furthermore, it has a pneumatic interface (136), which is formed in the first carriage (114a) and / or the second guide element (122), and the action device (166, 166). 266) the automatic mounting machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, configured to provide a working pressure different from the ambient pressure. A further first guide element fixedly attached to said chassis (102) and extending along said first direction (y) parallel to said first guide element (112a) (112b),
A further first carriage (114b) movably supported along said further first guide element (112b);
The first carriage (114a) is attached to the second guide element (122) in a first end region of the second guide element (122);
The further first carriage (114b) is attached to the second guide element (122) in a second end region of the second guide element (122);
The first end region and the second end region are arranged on opposite sides of the second guide element (122), according to any one of the preceding claims. Automatic loading machine. A longitudinal carrier (162) extending along the second direction (x), and a mounting element (164) movably supported along the longitudinal carrier (162);
A second portal system (160, 260) comprising:
An action device (166, 266) attached to the attachment element (164);
The vertical carrier (162) is attached to the vertical carrier (162), and the vertical carrier (162) is a movable second guide of the first portal system (110, 210) of the automatic mounting machine (100, 200). A mechanical coupling device (164) configured to be removably attachable to the element (122);
Having an operation system.   The working device is at least one selected from the group consisting of a further mounting head (166), a single gripper, a multi-gripper, in particular a double gripper, a dispenser module, and an optical sensor (266), in particular a camera. 6. The operation system according to 6.   Furthermore, it has an electrical coupling device (172), the electrical coupling device is attached to the vertically long carrier (162), and the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine (100, 200). An electrical interface (132) of (110, 210), whereby electrical energy may be supplied to the second portal system (160, 260) and / or the working device (166, 266); The operation system according to claim 6 or 7.   Furthermore, it has a data coupling device (174), and the data coupling device can be coupled to the data interface (134) of the first portal system (110, 210) of the automatic loading machine (100, 200). And thereby, based on data transmitted via the data interface (134) and the data coupling device (174), the second portal system (160, 260) and / or the working device (166, 266) 9) The operation system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the operation is controllable.   10. The operating system according to claim 9, further comprising a control unit (154) for controlling the operation of the working device (166, 266).   11. The operating system according to claim 10, further comprising a data storage device (156), the data storage device being coupled to the control unit (154).   Furthermore, it has a pneumatic coupling device (176), the pneumatic coupling device is attached to the longitudinal carrier (162), and the first portal system of the automatic mounting machine (100, 200). 12. A pneumatic interface (136) of (110, 210), whereby a working pressure for the working device different from the ambient pressure can be prepared. Operation system.   In addition, a wagon element (261a) is fixedly attached to the longitudinal carrier (162), and the first guide element (112a) of the first portal system (210) is provided. 13. The operating system according to any one of claims 6 to 12, wherein the operating system is configured to be movably attached to a). A mounting system for automatically mounting a component (192) of an electronic device on a component carrier (190), the mounting system (180, 280),
An automatic mounting machine (100, 200) according to any one of claims 1 to 5;
An operating system (150, 250) according to any one of claims 6 to 13,
The longitudinal carrier (162) of the operation system (150, 250) is connected to the second guide element (122) of the first portal system (110, 210) of the automatic loading machine (100, 200). A mounting system that is detachably fixed, either directly or indirectly.

Images