JP2023087154A - Processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a processing device that can fasten a nut with sufficient torque in a short time.SOLUTION: A processing device 2 positively rotates a nut holding part 114 at a first rotation speed to screw a nut 64 to a male screw 58a of a boss part 58, reversely rotates the nut holding part 114 when torque reaches a threshold, then positively rotates the nut holding part 114 at a second rotation speed lower than the first rotation speed to screw the nut 64 to the male screw 58a of the boss part 58, and stops the screwing of the nut 64 thereto to complete fastening thereof when the torque reaches the threshold.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 23

Description

The present invention includes holding means for holding a workpiece, cutting means equipped with a cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held by the holding means, and cutting blade mounting means for mounting the cutting blade on the cutting means. It relates to processing equipment.

A wafer in which a plurality of devices such as ICs and LSIs are partitioned by division lines and formed on the surface is divided into individual device chips by a processing apparatus equipped with a cutting blade. It is used for electrical equipment such as

The applicant of the present invention has proposed a processing apparatus provided with a cutting blade mounting means for automatically exchanging cutting blades (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The cutting means of this processing device includes a rotating shaft, a fixed flange disposed at the tip of the rotating shaft and supporting the back of the cutting blade, and an opening formed in the center of the cutting blade protruding from the center of the fixed flange. It has a mating boss portion and a male screw formed at the tip of the boss portion.

Further, the cutting blade mounting means is provided with a nut holding part that detachably holds a nut that clamps the cutting blade fitted to the boss part and the fixed flange, so that the cutting blade can be automatically mounted on the cutting means. can.

JP 2007-98536 A

However, when the nut holding portion is rotated at a relatively high speed until the torque (load current value) of the nut holding portion reaches a predetermined value and the nut is tightened, the tightening force is reduced even though the torque has reached the predetermined value. The nut may loosen during processing due to insufficient tightening.

On the other hand, if the nut holding portion is rotated at a relatively low speed and the nut is tightened until the torque of the nut holding portion reaches a predetermined value, the tightening force becomes sufficient and the problem of the nut loosening during processing is solved, but the nut There is a problem that it takes a long time to fasten the joint, which impairs productivity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a processing apparatus that can fasten a nut with sufficient torque in a short time.

According to the present invention, the following processing apparatus for solving the above problems is provided. i.e.
"Holding means for holding a workpiece, cutting means equipped with a cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held by the holding means, and cutting blade mounting means for mounting the cutting blade on the cutting means A processing device,
The cutting means includes a rotary shaft, a fixed flange disposed at the tip of the rotary shaft and supporting the back of the cutting blade, and a center portion of the fixed flange projecting from the center portion and fitted into an opening formed in the center portion of the cutting blade. a matching boss portion and a male thread formed at the tip of the boss portion;
The cutting blade mounting means includes a nut holding portion that detachably holds a nut that clamps the cutting blade fitted to the boss portion with the fixing flange,
When the nut holding portion is rotated forward at a first rotation speed and the nut is screwed onto the male thread and the torque reaches the threshold value, the nut holding portion is rotated in the reverse direction, and then at the first rotation speed. Rotate the nut holding part forward at a second lower rotational speed to screw the nut onto the male screw. When the torque reaches a threshold value, the rotation of the nut holding part is stopped to complete the fastening. A processing device for processing” is provided.

The processing device of the present invention is
Machining comprising holding means for holding a workpiece, cutting means equipped with a cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held by the holding means, and cutting blade mounting means for mounting the cutting blade on the cutting means a device,
The cutting means includes a rotary shaft, a fixed flange disposed at the tip of the rotary shaft and supporting the back of the cutting blade, and a center portion of the fixed flange projecting from the center portion and fitted into an opening formed in the center portion of the cutting blade. a matching boss portion and a male thread formed at the tip of the boss portion;
The cutting blade mounting means includes a nut holding portion that detachably holds a nut that clamps the cutting blade fitted to the boss portion with the fixing flange,
When the nut holding portion is rotated forward at a first rotation speed and the nut is screwed onto the male thread and the torque reaches the threshold value, the nut holding portion is rotated in the reverse direction, and then at the first rotation speed. Rotate the nut holding part forward at a second lower rotational speed to screw the nut onto the male screw. When the torque reaches a threshold value, the rotation of the nut holding part is stopped to complete the fastening. Therefore, the nut can be fastened with sufficient torque in a short time.

1 is a perspective view of a processing apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention; FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the holding means and cutting means shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the holding means shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cutting means shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the cutting means with the blade cover shown in FIG. 4 opened; FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the cutting means shown in FIG. 4; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cutting blade mounting means shown in FIG. 1; 8 is an exploded perspective view of the cutting blade storage means shown in FIG. 7; FIG. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the support shaft shown in FIG. 8; FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the support shaft shown in FIG. 8; FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the loading/unloading means shown in FIG. 7; FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which a nut is attached and detached from a cutting means in the nut holding portion shown in FIG. 11; FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the frame, lifting table, and base rack shown in FIG. 7 ; 8 is an exploded perspective view of the frame shown in FIG. 7; FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which the cutting blade storage means and loading/unloading means shown in FIG. 7 face each other; Fig. 16 is a perspective view showing a state in which the frame has advanced toward the cutting blade storage means from the state shown in Fig. 15; FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a state in which the frame is retracted from the state shown in FIG. 16 and the elevation table is raised; FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing a state in which the first moving body has advanced toward the cutting means from the state shown in FIG. 17; FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a state in which the second moving body has advanced toward the cutting means from the state shown in FIG. 18; The perspective view which shows the state which made the nut holding|maintenance part which hold|maintained the nut face the boss|hub part. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which the nut holding portion is forwardly rotated at a first rotation speed; The perspective view which shows the state which reversely rotates a nut holding|maintenance part. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state in which the nut holding portion is forwardly rotated at a second rotation speed; The perspective view which shows the state which fastened the cutting blade to the rotating shaft.

A preferred embodiment of a processing apparatus constructed according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Processing device 2)
As shown in FIG. 1, a processing apparatus generally indicated by reference numeral 2 includes holding means 4 for holding a workpiece, cutting means 6 equipped with a cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held by the holding means 4, and cutting blade mounting means 8 for mounting a cutting blade to the cutting means 6 .

(Holding means 4)
2 and 3, the holding means 4 includes an X-axis movable plate 12 provided on the upper surface of a base 10 (see FIG. 2) so as to be movable in the X-axis direction, and an X-axis movable plate 12. 12 and a cover plate 16 fixed to the upper end of the support 14 . A circular opening 16 a is formed in the cover plate 16 , and a chuck table 18 extending upward through the circular opening 16 a is rotatably mounted on the upper end of the column 14 .

The X-axis direction is the direction indicated by the arrow X in FIG. The Y-axis direction indicated by arrow Y in FIG. 1 is a direction orthogonal to the X-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction indicated by arrow Z in FIG. 1 is a vertical direction orthogonal to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. . An XY plane defined by the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction is substantially horizontal.

A porous circular suction chuck 20 connected to suction means (not shown) is arranged on the upper end portion of the chuck table 18 . A plurality of clamps 22 are provided along the periphery of the chuck table 18 at intervals in the circumferential direction.

In the holding means 4 , the suction means generates a suction force on the upper surface of the suction chuck 20 , thereby sucking and holding the workpiece placed on the upper surface of the suction chuck 20 . Thus, the upper surface of the suction chuck 20 serves as a holding surface for holding the workpiece, and the holding surface is positioned on the XY plane.

The chuck table 18 of the holding means 4 is rotated around the Z-axis direction by a chuck table motor (not shown) incorporated in the column 14, and is moved by the X-axis feeding means 24 to move the X-axis. It is designed to be processed and fed in the direction.

The X-axis feed means 24 has a ball screw 26 connected to the X-axis movable plate 12 and extending in the X-axis direction, and a motor 28 for rotating the ball screw 26 . The X-axis feed means 24 converts the rotary motion of the motor 28 into linear motion by means of a ball screw 26 and transmits it to the X-axis movable plate 12 . While moving in the axial direction, the chuck table 18 is processed and fed in the X-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the processing device 2 includes a gate-shaped frame 30 arranged across the holding means 4 . The frame 30 has a pair of pillars 32 extending upward from the upper surface of the base 10 at intervals in the Y-axis direction, and a beam 34 spanning the upper ends of the pair of pillars 32 and extending in the Y-axis direction.

(Cutting means 6)
A pair of the cutting means 6 are provided on one side surface of the beam 34 (the side surface on the back side in FIG. 2) with an interval in the Y-axis direction. In the illustrated embodiment, a pair of cutting means 6 are provided so that the cutting blades face each other so that the workpiece held by the holding means 4 can be simultaneously cut by the pair of cutting blades. It's becoming In addition, the number of the cutting means 6 may be one.

As shown in FIG. 4, the cutting means 6 includes a rectangular Y-axis movable member 36 supported on one side surface of the beam 34 so as to be movable in the Y-axis direction, and indexing and feeding the Y-axis movable member 36 in the Y-axis direction. a Y-axis feeding means 38, a Z-axis movable member 40 having an L-shaped cross section supported by the Y-axis movable member 36 so as to be vertically movable in the Z-axis direction, and a Z-axis movable member 40 that cuts and feeds the Z-axis movable member 40 in the Z-axis direction Axis feeding means 42 and a housing 44 fixed to the lower end of the Z-axis movable member 40 are provided.

A pair of guided grooves 36a extending in the Y-axis direction at intervals in the Z-axis direction are formed on one side surface of the Y-axis movable member 36 (the side surface on the near side in FIG. 4). One side surface of the beam 34 is slidably connected to a pair of guide rails (not shown) extending in the Y-axis direction at intervals in the Z-axis direction.

The Y-axis feeding means 38 has a ball screw 46 connected to the Y-axis movable member 36 and extending in the Y-axis direction, and a motor 48 for rotating the ball screw 46 . The Y-axis feed means 38 converts the rotary motion of the motor 48 into linear motion by means of a ball screw 46 and transmits it to the Y-axis movable member 36, which moves the Y-axis along a guide rail attached to one side surface of the beam 34. The member 36 is indexed and fed in the Y-axis direction.

A pair of guide rails (not shown) extending in the Z-axis direction at intervals in the Y-axis direction are formed on the other side surface of the Y-axis movable member 36 (the side surface on the rear side in FIG. 4). The Z-axis movable member 40 has a pair of guided grooves (not shown) slidably connected to the pair of guide rails of the Y-axis movable member 36 .

The Z-axis feeding means 42 has a ball screw (not shown) connected to the Z-axis movable member 40 and extending in the Z-axis direction, and a motor 50 for rotating the ball screw. The Z-axis feeding means 42 converts the rotary motion of the motor 50 into linear motion by means of a ball screw, transmits the motion to the Z-axis movable member 40, and moves the Z-axis movable member 40 along the guide rail of the Y-axis movable member 36 along the Z-axis. Cut and feed in the direction.

5 and 6, the cutting means 6 further comprises a rotating shaft 52 and a fixed flange 56 (see FIG. 6) disposed at the tip of the rotating shaft 52 and supporting the back of the cutting blade 54. , a boss portion 58 (see FIG. 6) which protrudes from the central portion of the fixed flange 56 and fits into the opening portion 54a formed in the central portion of the cutting blade 54, and a male screw 58a formed at the tip of the boss portion 58 (FIG. 6). See).

(Rotating shaft 52)
The rotating shaft 52 is rotatably supported by the housing 44 about the Y-axis direction. Further, the housing 44 accommodates a motor (not shown) that rotates the rotating shaft 52 .

(Cutting blade 54)
As shown in FIG. 6 , the cutting blade 54 has an annular base 60 and an annular cutting edge 62 fixed to the outer periphery of the base 60 . The base 60 can be made of an appropriate metal material such as an aluminum alloy. The opening 54 a of the cutting blade 54 is circular and located in the center of the base 60 . The cutting edge 62 is formed with a predetermined thickness (for example, about 10 to 30 μm) from abrasive grains such as diamond and a binding material such as metal or resin, and protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral edge of the base 60. there is

(fixed flange 56)
The fixed flange 56 annularly protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the rotating shaft 52 . An annular recess 56 a is formed in the radially inner portion of the distal end surface of the fixed flange 56 . An outer peripheral portion of the distal end surface of the fixed flange 56 forms an annular receiving portion 56b projecting in the axial direction.

Continuing the description with reference to FIG. 6, the opening 54a of the cutting blade 54 is fitted into the boss portion 58, and a nut 64 is attached to the male thread 58a of the boss portion 58, whereby the receiving portion 56b of the fixed flange 56 is The cutting blade 54 is sandwiched between the nut 64 and the nut 64 and is detachably fixed to the boss portion 58 . A plurality of pin holes 64a into which pins 138 of the nut holding portion 116, which will be described later, are inserted are formed in the side surface of the nut 64 at regular intervals in the circumferential direction.

As shown in FIG. 5 , a blade cover 66 that covers the cutting blade 54 is attached to the tip of the housing 44 . The blade cover 66 has a first cover member 66a fixed to the tip of the housing 44 and a second cover member 66b movably attached to the tip of the first cover member 66a. The second cover member 66b is moved in the X-axis direction by an appropriate actuator (not shown) such as an air cylinder, and is positioned at the open position shown in FIG. 5 when the cutting blade 54 is replaced. and is positioned at the closed position shown in FIG. 4 during cutting.

As shown in FIG. 2, on the other side surface of the beam 34 (the side surface on the front side in FIG. 2), a pair of imaging means 68 for imaging the workpiece held by the holding means 4 are arranged in the Y-axis direction. A pair of moving means 70 are mounted so as to move the imaging means 68 in the Y-axis direction.

The moving means 70 has a ball screw 72 connected to the imaging means 68 and extending in the Y-axis direction, and a motor 74 for rotating the ball screw 72 . The moving means 70 converts the rotary motion of the motor 74 into linear motion and transmits it to the imaging means 68, and moves the imaging means 68 in the Y-axis direction along the guide rail 34a attached to the other side surface of the beam 34. Let In addition, the number of imaging means 68 may be one.

(Cutting blade mounting means 8)
7, the cutting blade mounting means 8 includes cutting blade storage means 76 for storing a plurality of cutting blades 54, loading/unloading means 78 for loading/unloading the cutting blades 54 from the cutting blade storage means 76, Y-axis positioning means 80 for positioning the means 78 in the active position and the retracted position in the Y-axis direction with respect to the cutting blade storage means 76; Z-axis moving means 82 for moving the loading/unloading means 78 in the Z-axis direction; X-axis moving means 84 for moving the input means 78 in the X-axis direction to act on the cutting blade 54 mounted on the rotating shaft 52 of the cutting means 6 .

(Cutting blade storage means 76)
Referring to FIG. 8, the cutting blade storage means 76 includes a drive gear 88 having a rotation axis 86 extending in the Y-axis direction, and a rotation axis 90 spaced apart from the drive gear 88 in the Z-axis direction and extending in the Y-axis direction. a driven gear 92, an endless track 94 wound around the drive gear 88 and the driven gear 92, and the endless track 94 is provided at a predetermined interval and fitted into the opening 54a of the cutting blade 54 to support the cutting blade 54. and a support shaft 96 extending in the Y-axis direction.

7 and 8, the cutting blade storage means 76 of the illustrated embodiment includes a base plate 98 (see FIG. 7), a support wall 100 extending upwardly from the top surface of the base plate 98, and a support wall 100. and a motor 102 fixed on one side. As shown in FIG. 8, a rotating shaft 86 of a driving gear 88 is connected to the motor 102, and the motor 102 rotates the driving gear 88 about the Y-axis direction.

The driven gear 92 is arranged above the drive gear 88, and the rotary shaft 90 of the driven gear 92 is supported by the support wall 100 so as to be rotatable about the Y-axis direction and vertically movable in the Z-axis direction. The support wall 100 is provided with elevating means (not shown) for elevating the driven gear 92 in the Z-axis direction. The elevating means may have a ball screw connected to the rotating shaft 90 of the driven gear 92 and extending in the Z-axis direction, and a motor for rotating the ball screw.

The endless track 94 is composed of a large number of interconnected link pieces (reference numerals omitted) and is wound around the driving gear 88 and the driven gear 92 . Track 94 is adapted to rotate as drive gear 88 is rotated by motor 102 .

A plurality of support shafts 96 are arranged on the endless track 94 at predetermined intervals. 9 together with FIG. 8, the support shaft 96 includes a cylindrical base portion 104 connected to the endless track 94 and a cylindrical shaft portion 106 extending from the end surface of the base portion 104 in the Y-axis direction. and

In the support shaft 96 , the openings 54 a of the cutting blades 54 are fitted to the shaft portion 106 so that the shaft portion 106 supports a plurality of (for example, five) cutting blades 54 . In the illustrated embodiment, the cutting blade 54 is supported by half of the plurality of support shafts 96, as understood by referring to FIG. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, a plurality of ball plungers 108 are mounted at intervals in the circumferential direction on the tip side of the shaft portion 106 to prevent the cutting blades 54 supported by the shaft portion 106 from jumping out. there is

As shown in FIG. 10, a flow path 104a is formed inside each base portion 104 of the support shaft 96, and a plurality of flow paths 94a are formed in the endless track 94 to communicate with one end of each flow path 104a. . The other end of each flow path 104a is open at the end surface of the base 104 radially outside the shaft 106, as shown in FIG.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the support wall 100 is provided with an air nozzle 110 projecting in the Y-axis direction below the drive gear 88 . The air nozzle 110 is connected to high pressure air supply means (not shown). In the illustrated embodiment, the support shaft 96 located at the lowest end in the orbit of the support shaft 96 accompanying the rotation of the endless track 94 and the tip of the air nozzle 110 face each other.

When the cutting blade 54 located on the tip side of the shaft portion 106 is carried out, the flow path of the base portion 104 of the support shaft 96 located at the lowest end passes from the air nozzle 110 through the flow path 94a of the endless track 94. By supplying high-pressure air to 104a, the cutting blade 54 left on the shaft portion 106 can be pushed out to the tip side of the shaft portion 106. As shown in FIG. However, the action of the ball plunger 108 does not cause the cutting blade 54 to drop from the shaft portion 106 .

(Loading/unloading means 78)
Referring to FIG. 11, the loading/unloading means 78 includes a Z rotating shaft 112 extending in the Z-axis direction, a blade holding portion 114 radially connected to the Z rotating shaft 112 and holding the cutting blade 54 by suction, and a cutting means. 6, and a nut holding portion 116 that detachably holds a nut 64 that holds the cutting blade 54 fitted to the boss portion 58 of 6 between the fixed flange 56 and the nut 64. As shown in FIG.

The loading/unloading means 78 in the illustrated embodiment further comprises a casing 118 . The casing 118 has a regular hexagonal top plate 120 and six rectangular plate-like side walls 122 hanging down from the periphery of the top plate 120 . The Z rotation shaft 112 protrudes from the upper surface of the top plate 120 . A motor (not shown) connected to the Z rotating shaft 112 is housed inside the casing 118 .

In the illustrated embodiment, four of the six sidewalls 122 of the casing 118 are fitted with the blade retainers 114 and two of the sidewalls 122 are fitted with the nut retainers 116 . The two nut holding portions 116 are provided on a pair of opposing side walls 122 . In this manner, the loading/unloading means 78 has two blade holding portions 114 for one nut holding portion 116 .

(Blade holding portion 114)
The blade holding portion 114 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and an end face 124 of the blade holding portion 114 has a circular central opening 126 capable of receiving the shaft portion 106 of the support shaft 96 and the boss portion 58 of the cutting means 6 . , and a plurality of suction holes 128 circumferentially spaced evenly around the central opening 126 . The suction holes 128 are connected to suction means (not shown).

The blade holding portion 114 is positioned at a position where the end face 124 of the blade holding portion 114 contacts the base 60 of the cutting blade 54 stored in the cutting blade storage means 76, and the suction hole 128 is pulled by the suction means. generates a suction force to hold the cutting blade 54 by suction.

(Nut holding portion 116)
11 and 12, the nut retainer 116 includes a cylindrical housing 130 (see FIG. 11) fixed to the side wall 122 of the casing 118 and a housing 130 rotatably housed inside the housing 130. and a motor 133 (see FIG. 12) for rotating the rotating body 132 (see FIG. 11).

The rotating body 132 is formed with a central opening 134 capable of receiving the boss 58 of the cutting means 6 . A plurality of suction holes 136 and a plurality of pins 138 are alternately provided in the end face 132a of the rotor 132 at intervals in the circumferential direction. The suction holes 136 are connected to suction means (not shown). The pin 138 is positioned at a position (position shown in FIG. 11) protruding from the end face 132a of the rotor 132 by a spring (not shown) built in the rotor 132, and is positioned inside the rotor 132. When pushed toward, the spring contracts and is housed inside the rotating body 132 . Also, the pin 138 is arranged corresponding to the position of the pin hole 64 a formed in the nut 64 .

As shown in FIG. 12, in the nut holding portion 116, the suction means generates a suction force in the suction hole 136 to suck and hold the nut 64, and in a state in which the pin 138 is inserted into the pin hole 64a of the nut 64, the motor By rotating the rotating body 132 by means of 133, the nut 64 for fixing the cutting blade 54 to the boss portion 58 of the cutting means 6 can be fastened to and removed from the male thread 58a of the boss portion 58. As shown in FIG.

When the nut 64 is removed from the boss portion 58, even if the pin 138 of the nut holding portion 116 is misaligned with the pin hole 64a of the nut 64, the nut 64 attached to the boss portion 58 is After the pin 138 is housed inside the rotating body 132, the rotating body 132 is rotated by the motor 133 so that the position of the pin 138 is aligned with the position of the pin hole 64a. At this time, the pin 138 is pushed out by the spring and inserted into the pin hole 64a.

In the illustrated embodiment, the loading/unloading means 78 that can be configured as described above is disposed inside the frame 140 as shown in FIG. The frame 140 is supported by a lifting table 142 so as to be movable in the Y-axis direction, and the lifting table 142 is supported by a base frame 144 so as to be vertically movable in the Z-axis direction.

Referring to FIG. 13 together with FIG. 7, the frame body 140 includes a rectangular plate-shaped bottom portion 146, four posts 148 extending upward from the four corners of the top surface of the bottom portion 146, and four posts 148 fixed to the upper ends of the posts 148. and a plate-shaped ceiling portion 150 (see FIG. 7). A pair of guided members 152 having grooves 152a extending in the Y-axis direction are provided on the lower surface of the bottom portion 146 at intervals in the X-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 13 , the lift table 142 includes a rectangular top plate 154 and four columnar legs 156 extending downward from the four corners of the bottom surface of the top plate 154 . A pair of guide rails 158 extending in the Y-axis direction are provided on the upper surface of the top plate 154 at intervals in the X-axis direction. It is slidably fitted in the groove 152a.

(Y-axis direction positioning means 80)
Y-axis direction positioning means 80 is provided on the upper surface of the top plate 154 of the lifting table 142 . The Y-axis direction positioning means 80 has a ball screw 160 extending in the Y-axis direction between the pair of guide rails 158 and a motor 162 for rotating the ball screw 160 . A nut portion (not shown) of the ball screw 160 is fixed to the lower surface of the bottom portion 146 of the frame 140 .

The Y-axis direction positioning means 80 converts the rotary motion of the motor 162 into linear motion by the ball screw 160 and transmits the linear motion to the frame 140 to move the frame 140 in the Y-axis direction along the pair of guide rails 158 . In this way, the frame 140 on which the loading/unloading means 78 is arranged is slidably supported by the guide rails 158 extending in the Y-axis direction arranged on the lifting table 142 . With respect to the blade storage means 76, it is positioned at an active position and a retracted position in the Y-axis direction.

The operating position is a position where the blade holding portion 114 of the loading/unloading means 78 is close to the cutting blade storage means 76, and the cutting blade 54 supported by the cutting blade storage means 76 can be suction-held by the blade holding portion 114. position. The retracted position is a position where the blade holding portion 114 of the carrying-in/out means 78 is separated from the cutting blade storage means 76 more than the operating position.

As shown in FIG. 13 , the base gantry 144 includes a frame 164 and a rectangular base plate 166 fixed to the top of the frame 164 . Four circular holes 168 into which the legs 156 of the lifting table 142 are slidably inserted are formed in the four corners of the base plate 166 . A female screw 170 is formed in the central portion of the base plate 166 .

(Z-axis moving means 82)
Continuing with the description with reference to FIG. Z-axis moving means 82 includes a ball screw 172 extending in the Z-axis direction, a motor 174 for rotating ball screw 172 , and a connecting plate 176 fixed to the upper end of motor 174 . Ball screw 172 is screwed into female screw 170 of base plate 166 . The connecting plate 176 is fixed to the lower surface of the top plate 154 of the lifting table 142 by appropriate connecting means such as bolts (not shown).

The Z-axis moving means 82 converts the rotary motion of the motor 174 into linear motion by means of the ball screw 172, and raises and lowers the lifting table 142 with respect to the base frame 144, thereby moving the frame 140 on which the loading/unloading means 78 is arranged. is moved in the Z-axis direction.

Referring to FIG. 14, the carrying-in/out means 78 is arranged on a first moving body 178 arranged inside the frame 140, and the first moving body 178 is connected to the second moving body 180. The second moving body 180 is slidably supported in a suspended state by a first guide rail 182 extending in the X-axis direction provided at the bottom, and the second moving body 180 is provided on the ceiling part 150 of the frame 140. It is slidably supported while suspended from a second guide rail 184 extending in the X-axis direction.

The first moving body 178 has a rectangular plate-shaped main body 186 . A circular hole 188 is formed in the central portion of the main body 186 . The Z rotating shaft 112 of the loading/unloading means 78 is inserted into the circular hole 188 , and the Z rotating shaft 112 is non-rotatably fixed to the main body 186 . When the motor of the loading/unloading means 78 connected to the Z rotating shaft 112 is driven, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 rotates with respect to the first moving body 178, and the blade holding portion 114 and the nut holding portion 116 move freely. is positioned in the direction of

A pair of guided members 190 formed with grooves 190a extending in the X-axis direction are provided on the upper surface of the main body 186 of the first moving body 178 at intervals in the Y-axis direction and extend in the X-axis direction. A block 192 having a through hole 192a is fixed.

The second moving body 180 has a rectangular plate-like main body 194, and a pair of first guide rails 182 are provided on the lower surface of the main body 194 at intervals in the Y-axis direction. The first guide rail 182 is slidably fitted into the grooves 190a of the pair of guided members 190 of the first moving body 178, and the first moving body 178 is connected to the second moving body 180. It is slidably supported in a suspended state by the first guide rail 182 provided.

(X-axis moving means 84)
Below the main body 194 of the second moving body 180, first X-axis moving means for moving the first moving body 178 in the X-axis direction with respect to the second moving body 180 is provided. The first X-axis movement means in the illustrated embodiment is composed of an air cylinder 196 . A cylinder tube 196a of the air cylinder 196 is fixed to the lower surface of the main body 194 and extends between the pair of first guide rails 182 in the X-axis direction. The tip of the piston rod 196b of the air cylinder 196 is fitted and connected to the through hole 192a of the block 192 of the first moving body 178 .

The air cylinder 196 as the first X-axis moving means moves the first moving body 178 along the first guide rail 182 along the X-axis with respect to the second moving body 180 by moving the piston rod 196b back and forth. move in the direction

A pair of guided members 198 formed with grooves 198a extending in the X-axis direction are provided on the upper surface of the main body 194 of the second moving body 180 at intervals in the Y-axis direction and extend in the X-axis direction. A block 200 having a female screw 200a is fixed.

A pair of second guide rails 184 are provided on the lower surface of the ceiling portion 150 of the frame 140 with a gap in the Y-axis direction. The second guide rails 184 are slidably fitted in the grooves 198a of the pair of guided members 198 of the second moving body 180. It is slidably supported in a suspended state by a second guide rail 184 disposed on the .

Below the ceiling portion 150 of the frame 140 , a second X-axis moving means 202 is provided for moving the second moving body 180 in the X-axis direction with respect to the ceiling portion 150 . The second X-axis moving means 202 of the illustrated embodiment has a ball screw 204 extending in the X-axis direction between the pair of second guide rails 184 and a motor 206 for rotating the ball screw 204 . The ball screw 204 is screwed into the female screw 200 a of the block 200 of the second moving body 180 . The motor 206 is fixed to the bottom surface of the ceiling section 150 .

The second X-axis moving means 202 converts the rotary motion of the motor 206 into linear motion by the ball screw 204 and transmits it to the second moving body 180 to move the second moving body 180 to the ceiling part 150 in the second direction. It is moved along the second guide rail 184 in the X-axis direction.

The X-axis moving means 84 of the illustrated embodiment includes an air cylinder 196 as a first X-axis moving means and a second X-axis moving means 202 having a ball screw 204 and a motor 206 . In the illustrated embodiment, by moving the first moving body 178 with an air cylinder 196 as the first X-axis moving means, the loading/unloading means 78 can be rapidly advanced in the X-axis direction, By moving the second moving body 180 with the two X-axis moving means 202, the X-axis direction position of the loading/unloading means 78 can be easily finely adjusted. In this way, the loading/unloading means 78 is configured to be able to advance in the X-axis direction by the first moving body 178 and the second moving body 180 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the processing device 2 comprises control means 208 for controlling the operation of the processing device 2 . The control means 208 includes a central processing unit (CPU) that performs arithmetic processing according to a control program, a read-only memory (ROM) that stores control programs and the like, and a readable and writable random access memory (RAM) that stores arithmetic results and the like. It consists of a computer with

(cutting)
When cutting a workpiece such as a wafer using the processing apparatus 2 , first, the workpiece is sucked onto the chuck table 18 . Next, the chuck table 18 is moved below the imaging means 68 by the X-axis feeding means 24 , and the position of the imaging means 68 in the Y-axis direction is adjusted by the moving means 70 . Next, the image pickup means 68 picks up an image of the workpiece from above to detect the cutting area of the workpiece.

Next, based on the cutting area of the workpiece detected by the imaging means 68, the chuck table 18 is rotated and the orientation of the cutting area of the workpiece with respect to the cutting blade 54 of the cutting means 6 is adjusted. Next, the chuck table 18 is moved in the X-axis direction by the X-axis feeding means 24, and the cutting means 6 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis feeding means 38, so that a pair of cutting blades are positioned above the cutting area of the workpiece. Locate 54.

Next, the cutting means 6 is lowered by the Z-axis feeding means 42, and the cutting edge 62 of the cutting blade 54 rotated at high speed is caused to cut into the cutting area of the workpiece, and the cutting edge 62 of the cutting blade 54 is caused to cut. By feeding the chuck table 18 in the X-axis direction while supplying cutting water to the portion, a predetermined cutting process is applied to the cutting region of the workpiece. While indexing and feeding the cutting means 6 in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the above-described cutting process is appropriately repeated, and the entire cutting area of the workpiece is subjected to the cutting process. After finishing the cutting process, the machined workpiece is conveyed to the next process.

(Replacement of cutting blade 54)
When the cutting process is repeated, the cutting blade 54 wears, and when the cutting blade 54 wears to a predetermined amount, the cutting accuracy cannot be maintained. need to be replaced. Also, even if the wear of the cutting blade 54 attached to the cutting means 6 has not reached a predetermined amount, when cutting a workpiece made of a material different from that of the previously cut workpiece. , it may be necessary to replace the cutting blade 54 with a cutting blade 54 suitable for the material of the workpiece.

When replacing the cutting blade 54 attached to the cutting means 6 , first, the endless track 94 of the cutting blade storage means 76 is rotated to move the support supporting the new cutting blade 54 to be carried into the cutting means 6 . The shaft 96 is positioned at a predetermined position (for example, the lowest position in the trajectory of the support shaft 96).

Next, as shown in FIG. 15, the casing 118 is rotated by the motor connected to the Z rotating shaft 112 of the loading/unloading means 78, and the side wall 122 of the casing 118 to which the blade holding portion 114 is attached is moved along the X-axis direction. so that the blade holding portion 114 faces the cutting blade storage means 76 . Also, the X-axis moving means 84 and the Z-axis moving means 82 are actuated so that the shaft portion 106 of the support shaft 96 at the predetermined position can be inserted into the central opening 126 of the blade holding portion 114. Adjust the X and Z positions of 114 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 16, the frame 140 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis direction positioning means 80, and the cutting blade 54 supported by the support shaft 96 is carried out to the working position where it can be held by the blade holding portion 114. Position the entry means 78 . As a result, the shaft portion 106 of the support shaft 96 at the predetermined position is inserted into the central opening 126 of the blade holding portion 114 , and the end surface of the blade holding portion 114 is inserted into the end surface of the cutting blade 54 located on the tip side of the shaft portion 106 . 124 are brought into contact. Next, a suction force is generated in the suction hole 128 of the blade holding portion 114 , and the blade holding portion 114 sucks and holds the cutting blade 54 located on the tip side of the shaft portion 106 .

Next, the Y-axis direction positioning means 80 is operated to separate the loading/unloading means 78 from the cutting blade storage means 76 in the Y-axis direction and position it at the retracted position. Next, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 180° so that the blade holding part 114 on the opposite side of the blade holding part 114 holding the cutting blade 54 by suction faces the cutting blade storage means 76 .

Next, the Y-axis direction positioning means 80 is operated to position the loading/unloading means 78 at the operating position where the cutting blade 54 of the support shaft 96 can be held by the blade holding portion 114 on the opposite side. Next, a suction force is generated in the suction hole 128 of the blade holding portion 114 on the opposite side, and the blade holding portion 114 sucks and holds the cutting blade 54 located on the tip side of the shaft portion 106 . As a result, a new cutting blade 54 is sucked and held by a pair of opposing blade holding portions 114 among the four blade holding portions 114 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 17, the Y-axis positioning means 80 moves the frame 140 in the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis moving means 82 moves the elevation table 142 in the Z-axis direction. As a result, the loading/unloading means 78 is separated from the cutting blade storage means 76 and positioned at the retracted position, and the Y-axis and Z-axis positions of the loading/unloading means 78 with respect to the cutting means 6 are adjusted. The Y-axis position of the loading/unloading means 78 after position adjustment is between the pair of cutting means 6 , and the Z-axis position of the loading/unloading means 78 after position adjustment is above the holding surface of the chuck table 18 . be.

Next, as shown in FIG. 18, the first moving body 178 is moved in the X-axis direction by an air cylinder 196 as the first X-axis moving means, and the loading/unloading means 78 is moved between the pair of cutting means 6. move forward. Next, as shown in FIG. 19 , the second moving body 180 is moved in the X-axis direction by the second X-axis moving means 202 to adjust the X-axis position of the loading/unloading means 78 with respect to the pair of cutting means 6 .

Specifically, the position of the center of the new pair of cutting blades 54 sucked and held by the pair of blade holding portions 114 of the loading/unloading means 78 and the position of the pair of cutting blades attached to the pair of cutting means 6 Align the center of the cutting blade 54 with the X-axis position. Also, the Z-axis moving means 82 of the cutting blade mounting means 8 or the Z-axis feeding means 42 of the cutting means 6 is operated, and the Z-axis direction position of the center of the cutting blade 54 of the blade holding portion 114 and the cutting blade of the cutting means 6 54 is aligned with the Z-axis direction position of the center.

Next, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 60° so that the pair of nut holding portions 116 face the cutting blades 54 of the pair of cutting means 6 . Note that the casing 118 may be rotated by 60° before moving the first and second moving bodies 178 and 180 forward.

Next, the second cover member 66b of each blade cover 66 of the pair of cutting means 6 is positioned at the open position (see FIG. 5). Next, the cutting means 6 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis feeding means 38, and the nut 64 fixing the cutting blade 54 to the boss portion 58 is brought into contact with the end face 132a of the rotating body 132 of the nut holding portion 116 (Fig. 12). Then, the pin 138 of the nut holding portion 116 is pushed by the nut 64 and accommodated inside the rotating body 132 , and the boss portion 58 is accommodated in the central opening 134 of the rotating body 132 .

Next, when the rotating body 132 is rotated by the motor 133 of the nut holding portion 116, when the pin 138 matches the pin hole 64a of the nut 64, the pin 138 is fitted into the pin hole 64a, and the rotating body 132 rotates. is transmitted to the nut 64 via the pin 138 and the nut 64 is loosened. As a result, the nut 64 can be removed from the male screw 58a of the boss portion 58 of the cutting means 6. As shown in FIG. In addition, a suction force is generated in the suction hole 136 of the nut holding portion 116, and the removed nut 64 is held by the nut holding portion 116 by suction.

Next, the cutting means 6 is separated from the loading/unloading means 78 by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 60°, and the empty blade holding portion 114 which does not hold the cutting blade 54 by suction is moved. It faces the cutting blade 54 of the cutting means 6 .

Next, the cutting means 6 is moved closer to the loading/unloading means 78 by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the boss portion 58 of the cutting means 6 is inserted into the central opening 126 of the blade holding portion 114, and the cutting blade 54 of the cutting means 6 is moved. The end face 124 of the empty blade holding portion 114 is brought into contact with the end face. Next, a suction force is generated in the suction hole 128 of the blade holding portion 114 and the cutting blade 54 of the cutting means 6 is held by the blade holding portion 114 by suction.

Next, the cutting means 6 is separated from the loading/unloading means 78 by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 60°, and the blade holding portion 114 sucking and holding the new cutting blade 54 is moved. It faces the boss portion 58 of the cutting means 6 .

Next, the cutting means 6 is moved closer to the loading/unloading means 78 by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the boss portion 58 is inserted into the opening portion 54a of the new cutting blade 54, and is attached to the receiving portion 56b of the fixed flange 56 of the rotating shaft 52. The end faces of the cutting blades 54 are brought into contact. Next, the suction force of the blade holding portion 114 is released, and a new cutting blade 54 is transferred from the blade holding portion 114 to the cutting means 6 .

Next, the cutting means 6 is separated from the loading/unloading means 78 by the Y-axis feeding means 38, the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 60°, and the nut holding portion 116 holding the removed nut 64 by suction is cut. It faces the boss portion 58 of the means 6 (see FIG. 20).

Next, the Y-axis feeding means 38 causes the cutting means 6 to approach the loading/unloading means 78 , and the nut 64 sucked and held by the nut holding portion 116 is positioned at the tip of the boss portion 58 . Next, as shown in FIG. 21, the nut holding portion 116 is rotated forward at a first rotational speed (for example, 150 degrees/second) to screw the nut 64 onto the male thread 58a of the boss portion 58. Next, as shown in FIG. It should be noted that forward rotation in the illustrated embodiment is rotation in the direction indicated by arrow R1 in FIG.

Then, when the tightening torque of the nut 64 reaches a predetermined threshold value (for example, about 4.3 N·m), the nut holding portion 116 is reversely rotated to loosen the nut 64 as shown in FIG. Reverse rotation is the direction indicated by arrow R2 in FIG. The rotation angle when rotating the nut holding portion 116 in the reverse direction may be, for example, about 50 degrees. It should be noted that the tightening torque of the nut 64 can be calculated from the current value of the motor 133 of the nut holding portion 116 .

After that, as shown in FIG. 23, the nut holding portion 116 is rotated forward in the R1 direction at a second rotation speed (for example, 5 degrees/second) lower than the first rotation speed, and the nut 64 is moved over the boss portion 58. When the male screw 58a is screwed and the torque reaches the threshold value (about 4.3 N·m as described above), the rotation of the nut holding portion 116 is stopped to complete the fastening.

As a result, the nut 64 is fastened with sufficient torque in a short time, and as shown in FIG. can be fixed to the boss portion 58 by sandwiching it between the two.

In the illustrated embodiment, the initial tightening of the nut 64 is performed at a relatively high first rotational speed, thereby shortening the tightening time, and the final tightening of the nut 64 is performed at a relatively low second rotational speed. , the nut 64 can be attached to the male thread 58a of the boss portion 58 with a sufficient tightening torque.

Next, after releasing the suction force of the nut holding portion 116, the second cover member 66b of the blade cover 66 of the cutting means 6 is positioned at the closed position. The removal and attachment of the nut 64 and the cutting blade 54 as described above may be performed simultaneously or separately with respect to the pair of cutting means 6 .

Next, the first and second moving bodies 178 and 180 are retracted, and the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated by 60° so that one of the removed pair of cutting blades 54 faces the cutting blade storage means 76 . Also, the endless track 94 of the cutting blade storage means 76 is rotated to position the empty support shaft 96 that does not support the cutting blade 54 at a predetermined position (for example, the lowest position in the track of the support shaft 96).

Next, the X-axis moving means 84 and the Z-axis moving means 82 are operated, and the shaft portion 106 of the support shaft 96 at the predetermined position is inserted into the opening portion 54a of one of the cutting blades 54 suction-held by the blade holding portion 114. The X-axis direction position and Z-axis direction position of the blade holding portion 114 are adjusted so that the blade holding portion 114 can be moved.

Next, the frame 140 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis direction positioning means 80, and the shaft portion of the support shaft 96 at the predetermined position is inserted into the opening 54a of one of the cutting blades 54 held by the blade holding portion 114 by suction. 106 is inserted, and the end surface of one cutting blade 54 is brought into contact with the end surface of the base portion 104 of the support shaft 96 . Next, the suction force of the blade holding portion 114 is released, and one of the removed pair of cutting blades 54 is transferred to the support shaft 96 .

In addition, the loading/unloading means 78 is separated from the cutting blade storage means 76 by the Y-axis direction positioning means 80, and the casing 118 of the loading/unloading means 78 is rotated 180° to hold the other of the removed pair of cutting blades 54 by suction. The blade holding portion 114 on the opposite side to the cutting blade storage means 76 faces.

Next, the frame 140 is moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis direction positioning means 80, and the support shaft 96 at the predetermined position is inserted into the opening 54a of the other cutting blade 54 which is suction-held by the blade holding portion 114 on the opposite side. While inserting the shaft portion 106 of the other cutting blade 54 , the end face of the other cutting blade 54 is brought into contact with the end face of the cutting blade 54 supported by the support shaft 96 . Next, the suction force of the blade holding portion 114 is released, and the other of the removed pair of cutting blades 54 is transferred to the support shaft 96 .

As described above, in the processing apparatus 2 of the illustrated embodiment, the nut holding portion 116 is rotated forward at the first rotation speed to screw the nut 64 onto the male screw 58a of the boss portion 58, and the torque reaches the threshold value. , the nut holding portion 116 is rotated in the reverse direction, and then the nut holding portion 116 is rotated forward at a second rotation speed lower than the first rotation speed to screw the nut 64 onto the male screw 58a. When the torque reaches the threshold value, the rotation of the nut holding portion 116 is stopped and fastening is completed, so the nut 64 can be fastened with sufficient torque in a short time.

2: processing device 4: holding means 6: cutting means 8: cutting blade mounting means 52: rotating shaft 54: cutting blade 54a: cutting blade opening 56: fixed flange 58: boss 58a: male screw 64: nut 116: Nut holder

Claims (1)

Machining comprising holding means for holding a workpiece, cutting means equipped with a cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held by the holding means, and cutting blade mounting means for mounting the cutting blade on the cutting means a device,
The cutting means includes a rotary shaft, a fixed flange disposed at the tip of the rotary shaft and supporting the back of the cutting blade, and a center portion of the fixed flange projecting from the center portion and fitted into an opening formed in the center portion of the cutting blade. a matching boss portion and a male thread formed at the tip of the boss portion;
The cutting blade mounting means includes a nut holding portion that detachably holds a nut that clamps the cutting blade fitted to the boss portion with the fixing flange,
When the nut holding portion is rotated forward at a first rotation speed and the nut is screwed onto the male thread and the torque reaches the threshold value, the nut holding portion is rotated in the reverse direction, and then at the first rotation speed. Rotate the nut holding part forward at a second lower rotational speed to screw the nut onto the male screw. When the torque reaches a threshold value, the rotation of the nut holding part is stopped to complete the fastening. processing equipment.

Images