JP2023118219A - Elastic sheet for holding workpiece, sheet holding ring, workpiece holding device, workpiece holding method, and workpiece delivery method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an elastic sheet for holding a workpiece, a workpiece holding device, and a workpiece holding method, capable of ensuring sufficient adhesion with no step to a workpiece.SOLUTION: A workpiece holding device 1 comprises: an elastic sheet 3 for holding a workpiece which is formed from a sheet material having elasticity, which has through holes 2 each being smaller than the thickness of a workpiece to be processed, and which allows the workpiece to be put in the through hole 2 in a state in which tension is applied to expand the through hole 2 and in this state, by releasing the tension to cause the through hole 2 to contract, holds the workpiece in the through hole 2; a ring-shaped sheet holding ring 4 for attaching and holding the elastic sheet 3 for holding a workpiece in a stretched state; and a tension applying mechanism 5 which applies tension to the elastic sheet 3 attached to the sheet holding ring 4 in a planar direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an elastic sheet for holding a work, a sheet holding ring, a work holding device, a work holding method, and a work discharging method suitable for holding small chip parts used in electronic devices such as ceramic capacitors.

Small chip parts (workpieces) typified by electronic parts are required to be further miniaturized as the performance of electronic equipment is improved. is becoming difficult to maintain.
As a technique for holding such a small workpiece, for example, a plurality of metal plates with small holes are superimposed and the size of the through hole is adjusted by moving these metal plates in the diagonal direction. A method has been proposed in which a chip component, which is a work, is held in each hole and masked, and external electrodes are formed at the end of the chip.

JP-A-4-6812

In the method of forming the electrodes of the chip component described above, a step corresponding to the thickness of the masked metal plate is formed on the external terminal. If it becomes insufficient, a gap will be created, and masking as designed cannot be performed. Furthermore, the shape of the chip is also limited, and it cannot be applied to, for example, cylindrical workpieces.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-mentioned problems. An object of the present invention is to provide an elastic sheet, a sheet retaining ring, a work retaining device, a work retaining method, and a work discharging method.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been proposed to achieve the above-mentioned objects, and according to claim 1, there is provided an elastic sheet material having through-holes smaller than the thickness of a workpiece to be processed. A workpiece is inserted into the through-hole in a state in which the through-hole is expanded by applying tension, and the through-hole is contracted by loosening the tension in this state to hold the workpiece in the through-hole. It is an elastic sheet for holding a work.

According to claim 2, the thickness of the work when the tension is relaxed is set to be smaller than the length of the work, and when the tension is relaxed and the work is held in the through hole, the end of the work extends from the through hole. 2. The elastic sheet for holding a workpiece according to claim 1, wherein the elastic sheet is configured to be exposed.

According to claim 3, there is provided a ring-shaped sheet holding ring for mounting and holding the work holding elastic sheet according to claim 1 or 2 in a spread state,
The sheet retaining ring has a circular opening, a ring body provided with a retaining portion for retaining an elastic sheet outside the opening, and a preloading ring that applies initial tension to the elastic sheet retained in the ring body. consists of
The preload ring has an attachment portion attached to the ring body, and has a ring-shaped standing wall that rises from the attachment portion and enters along the inner circumference of the opening of the ring body,
The standing wall is set to a standing height that can contact the elastic sheet held by the holding part and apply initial tension to the elastic sheet in a state of being attached to the ring body. It is a seat retaining ring that

According to claim 4, the ring body comprises a first ring each having a concentric opening, and a second ring superimposed on the first ring, wherein the ring body comprises an upper ring and a lower ring. It is provided with a holding portion that holds the elastic sheet sandwiched between the two.

According to claim 5, the work holding elastic sheet according to claim 1 or claim 2;
a ring-shaped sheet holding ring for mounting and holding the elastic sheet for holding the workpiece in a spread state;
a tension applying mechanism that applies tension in a plane direction to the elastic sheet attached to the sheet retaining ring;
with
A workpiece is inserted into the through-hole in a state in which the through-hole is expanded by applying tension to the elastic sheet by the tension-applying mechanism. This work holding device is characterized by holding a work in a hole.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the tension applying mechanism comprises a seat-side table on which the seat-retaining ring is attached, and a thrust-side table that moves relatively in the axial direction of the seat-retaining ring attached to the seat-side table. become,
The seat-side table has a clamping tool for clamping the seat-holding ring placed at a predetermined position, and a plunge opening in a portion corresponding to the opening of the clamped seat-holding ring,
The entry-side table has a front end portion smaller in diameter than the opening of the seat retaining ring, and has a plurality of rotating bodies in a shoulder portion that contacts the elastic sheet in a state of entering the opening of the seat retaining ring. the central axis is arranged parallel to the tangential direction of the circumference of the shoulder portion;
The workpiece holding device according to claim 5, characterized in that:

According to claim 7, the work holding device according to claim 6, wherein the height reference ring protruding toward the elastic sheet from the rotating body is arranged inside the row of rotating bodies. is.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a feeder mechanism is provided to feed a workpiece into the expanded through-hole in a state in which the tension applying mechanism applies tension to the elastic sheet to expand the through-hole. The workpiece holding device according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein:

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a vibration applying mechanism applies tension to the elastic sheet by the tension applying mechanism to vibrate the elastic sheet in a state in which the through hole is expanded, and a plurality of works are supplied onto the elastic sheet. 8. The workpiece holding device according to any one of claims 5 to 7, further comprising: a workpiece supply mechanism for supplying the workpiece.

According to claim 10, the entry-side table is provided with a seating base facing the entry-side surface of the elastic sheet. is a work holding device.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, a magnetic force generating means is provided on the back side of the seating surface of the seating pedestal so that a magnetic force can be applied to a workpiece containing a magnetic material and guided to the through hole of the elastic sheet. The workpiece holding device according to claim 10.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, from a first state in which an elastic sheet having a through hole smaller than the thickness of a work to be processed is spread and stretched, a tension stronger than the tension applied to the elastic sheet in the first state is applied to the elastic sheet. In addition to the hole expansion step of converting to a second state in which the size of the through hole is larger than that of the through hole in the first state;
a workpiece inserting step of inserting a workpiece into the enlarged through hole;
The tension of the elastic sheet is weakened from the state in which the work is inserted into the through hole, and the through hole is contracted by the elasticity of the elastic sheet, and the work is held in a state where the end of the work is exposed from the through hole. This is a method of holding a workpiece.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the invention, tension is applied in the surface direction of the elastic sheet holding the workpiece by the elastic contraction force of the elastic sheet in the holes of the elastic sheet of the first or second aspect. The work discharging method is characterized in that the size of the through-hole is enlarged by pressing the through hole, and in this expanded state, a force is applied from one side of the elastic sheet to the other side to discharge the work.

According to claim 14, the work is discharged by pressing the work from one surface of the elastic sheet toward the other surface by means of a pressing member. is.

According to claim 15, the work is discharged by generating a pressure difference between one surface and the other surface of the elastic sheet. .

According to claim 16, a magnetic force is applied from one side of an elastic sheet holding a work containing a magnetic material toward the other side, and the work is discharged by the magnetic force. is the method of discharge.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, there exists the following outstanding effects.
According to the first aspect of the invention, the through hole is smaller than the thickness of the work to be processed, and the work is inserted into the through hole in a state in which the through hole is expanded by applying tension. By loosening the tension in this state, the through hole shrinks, so that the workpiece can be brought into close contact with the inner surface of the through hole, and good masking can be performed. In addition, it is less likely to be restricted by the shape of the workpiece.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the thickness of the work in a relaxed state is set to be smaller than the length of the work, the end portion of the work is held in the through hole with the tension relaxed. can be exposed from the through-hole, and the processing application range in subsequent processing can be widened.

According to the third aspect of the invention, there is provided a ring-shaped sheet retaining ring for attaching and retaining an elastic sheet for retaining a workpiece in a spread state, the sheet retaining ring having a circular opening, It is composed of a ring body provided with a holding portion for holding an elastic sheet outside the opening, and a preloading ring that applies an initial tension to the elastic sheet held by the ring body, and the preloading ring is attached to the ring body. It has a mounting portion for mounting, and has a ring-shaped rising wall that rises from the mounting portion and enters along the inner circumference of the opening of the ring body, and the standing wall is attached to the ring body and holds the holding ring. Since the standing height is set so as to contact the elastic sheet held by the part and apply an initial tension to the elastic sheet, there is no temperature rise in the post-process while the work is inserted into the through-hole. Even if the elastic sheet thermally expands or receives a partial stress change, the preloading can disperse and absorb the bending and distortion of the elastic sheet. Therefore, it is possible to prevent problems such as the workpiece coming out of the through hole.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the ring main body comprises a first ring each having a concentric opening, and a second ring superimposed on the first ring. Since the holding portion is provided for holding the elastic sheet sandwiched between the rings, the operation of mounting the elastic sheet is easy and the mounting can be performed reliably.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the elastic sheet for holding the workpiece, the ring-shaped sheet holding ring for mounting and holding the elastic sheet for holding the workpiece in an unfolded state, and the sheet holding ring are mounted on the sheet holding ring. a tension applying mechanism that applies tension to the elastic sheet in the surface direction, so that the tension applying mechanism applies tension to the elastic sheet to expand the through hole, and a workpiece is put into the through hole, By loosening the tension applied by the tension applying mechanism in this state, the through hole can be shrunk and the work can be held in the through hole, the work can be brought into close contact with the inner surface of the through hole, and good masking can be performed. In addition, it is less likely to be restricted by the shape of the workpiece.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, the tension applying mechanism includes a seat-side table on which the seat-retaining ring is attached, and an entry-side table that moves relatively in the axial direction of the seat-retaining ring attached to the seat-side table. The seat-side table has a clamping tool for clamping the seat-holding ring placed at a predetermined position, and a plunge opening in a portion corresponding to the opening of the clamped seat-holding ring, and the plunge-side table is , the tip portion has a smaller diameter than the opening of the seat retaining ring, and has a plurality of rotating bodies in a shoulder portion that contacts the elastic sheet in a state of protruding into the opening of the seat retaining ring, and the rotation center axis of each rotating body is aligned with the shoulder. Since it is arranged parallel to the tangential direction of the circumference of the part, the tension is not only applied to the elastic sheet by the relative movement of the sheet holding table and the entry side table, but also the direction of the tension is changed by the rotating body. At the same time, tension can be applied uniformly in radial directions from the center of the elastic sheet. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of strain when expanding the through hole.

According to the seventh aspect of the invention, the height reference ring protruding toward the elastic sheet from the rotating body is arranged inside the row of rotating bodies. can be aligned with certainty.

According to the eighth and ninth aspects of the invention, the feeder mechanism feeds the workpiece into the expanded through hole in a state in which the tension applying mechanism applies tension to the elastic sheet to expand the through hole. and a work supply mechanism, it is possible to efficiently supply a plurality of works onto the elastic sheet.

According to the tenth aspect of the invention, since the entry-side table is provided with a seating base facing the entry-side surface of the elastic sheet, the lengths of the ends of the workpieces protruding from the through holes can be made uniform. It is possible to improve the accuracy of subsequent processing.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, a magnetic force generating means is provided on the back side of the seating surface of the seating pedestal so that a magnetic force can be applied to a workpiece containing a magnetic material and guided to the through hole of the elastic sheet. The workpiece can be efficiently introduced inside.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, from a first state in which an elastic sheet having a through hole smaller than the thickness of a work to be processed is spread and stretched, a tension stronger than the tension applied to the elastic sheet in the first state is applied to the elastic sheet. In addition, a hole expanding step of converting the through hole to a second state in which the size of the through hole is larger than that of the through hole in the first state, a work inserting step of inserting a work into the expanded through hole, and a work inserting step of inserting the work into the through hole Since the workpiece is held through a hole shrinking step in which the tension of the elastic sheet is weakened from the state in which the workpiece is inserted and the through hole is contracted by the elasticity of the elastic sheet, the inner surface of the through hole can be brought into close contact with the workpiece, Good masking can be done for the workpiece. In addition, it is less likely to be restricted by the shape of the workpiece.

According to the 13th, 14th, and 15th aspects of the invention, the elastic sheet holds the work in the hole of the elastic sheet by the elastic contraction force of the elastic sheet. , tension is applied in the direction of the surface of the elastic sheet to enlarge the size of the through-hole, and in this enlarged state, a force is applied from one surface of the elastic sheet to the other to eject the work, so that the through-hole of the elastic sheet The work inside can be taken out efficiently.

1 is a perspective view of a holding device; FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the holding device; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a seat retaining ring, (a) being an exploded view of the seat retaining ring, (b) being a cross-sectional view of the seat retaining ring shown in (a) being exploded, and (c) being an upper ring and a lower ring. (d) is a cross-sectional view of the state shown in (c), (e) is a perspective view of the seat holding ring with the preload ring attached, (f) is a ) is a sectional view of the state shown in FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a ring portion of the seat retaining ring; FIG. It is explanatory drawing just before mounting a sheet|seat holding ring on a tension|tensile_strength application apparatus, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is sectional drawing. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the holding device in which the seat holding ring is attached to the tension applying device, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a cross-sectional view, and (c) is an enlarged shoulder portion provided with a height reference ring and a rotating body. It is a sectional view. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view immediately before inserting a work into a through-hole, (a) is a perspective view of the holding device in a state in which the through-hole of the elastic sheet is expanded, (b) is a cross-sectional view of the holding device shown in (a), ( c) is a perspective view showing the elastic sheet and the work with the through holes expanded. It is an explanatory view of a state in which the work is inserted into the through hole, (a) is a perspective view of the holding device, (b) is a cross-sectional view of the holding device shown in (a), and (c) is an elastic state in which the work is inserted. FIG. 3D is a perspective view of the sheet, and FIG. 4D is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the work and the through hole in which the work is inserted; FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of a state in which a workpiece is inserted and the tension is released, (a) is a perspective view of the holding device, (b) is a cross-sectional view of the holding device shown in (a), and (c) is the inside of the through hole of the elastic sheet. 1 is an enlarged perspective view of a state in which a workpiece is placed in the . FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which external electrodes are formed at the end of a workpiece inserted into a through-hole of an elastic sheet; FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state of collecting a work, (a) is a cross-sectional view of the device with the sheet retaining ring set, (b) is a cross-sectional view of the device with tension applied to the elastic sheet, and (c). is a perspective view of the device with the seat retaining ring removed.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the work holding device 1 includes an elastic sheet 3 having a plurality of through holes 2 smaller than the thickness of the work W to be processed, and the elastic sheet 3 being spread out. It is roughly composed of a ring-shaped sheet retaining ring 4 for retaining and a tension applying mechanism 5 for applying tension to the elastic sheet 3 attached to the sheet retaining ring 4 in the plane direction.

The elastic sheet 3 is made of a circular sheet material having elasticity such as silicon rubber, and in the natural state where tension is not applied, when the work W such as a ceramic capacitor is a quadrangular prism, the through hole 2 smaller than that is formed in the center. Many have been established in the area. The thickness is set to be slightly shorter than the length of the workpiece W. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the size of the work W is 0.5 mm x 0.5 mm x 1.0 mm in length x width x length, and the through hole 2 is a slightly smaller rectangle of 0.4 mm x 0.4 mm. is set. In order to form the through-holes 2 described above, processing methods such as laser processing, punching processing, and molding can be used. The arrangement of the holes can be selected as appropriate, and the elastic sheet 3 shown in the drawing is opened in a grid pattern.

A ring-shaped sheet retaining ring 4 for mounting and retaining the elastic sheet 3 in a spread state has a circular opening, and a ring body provided with a retaining portion for retaining the elastic sheet outside the opening, and a preloading ring for applying initial tension to the elastic sheet held by the ring body. The embodiment of the ring body shown in FIG. An upper ring 12 as a second ring that has an opening hole 12a (that is, an opening) and covers the upper surface of the lower ring 11 to sandwich the elastic sheet 3 therebetween. A preloading ring 13 for stretching the elastic sheet 3 sandwiched between the rings 11 is attached from below to be integrated. A sandwiching portion 15 is formed on the surface where the upper ring 12 and the lower ring 11 are overlapped with each other, and a recess portion is formed on the lower surface of the lower ring 11 so that the preloading ring 13 is fitted. 16 are formed along the inner periphery. The preload ring 13 is formed with a ring-shaped flange portion 18 that fits into the recess portion 16 as a mounting portion. A ring-shaped standing wall 19 that can be fitted is formed in the vicinity of the inner periphery of 11a.

To attach the elastic sheet 3 to the seat retaining ring 4, the elastic sheet 3 is placed on the lower ring 11 in a naturally spread state, and then covered with the upper ring 12 so that the outer peripheral portion of the elastic sheet 3 is held between both rings 11. , 12, and in this state, the screw 21 is tightened from above to clamp the outer peripheral portion of the elastic sheet 3 between the clamping portions 15 of both rings 11 and 12. As shown in FIG. In this state, as shown in FIGS. 3(c) and 3(d), the elastic sheet 3 is stretched over the plane connecting the inner peripheries of the clamping portion 15 without receiving much tension.

After that, as shown in FIGS. 3(e), (f) and 4, the standing wall 19 is inserted into the through opening 11a of the lower ring 11 with the preloading ring 13 facing the elastic sheet 3 from below. , the tip of the standing wall 19 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3, and is further raised toward the vertical ring 11 side. When the flange portion 18 of the preload ring 13 is fitted into the recess portion 16 of the lower ring 11 , the height of the standing wall 19 from the upper surface of the flange portion 18 is greater than the dimension from the holding portion 15 to the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 . is set high (large), the upper peripheral edge of the standing wall 19 pushes up the elastic sheet 3 (see FIG. 4), thereby applying a preload (initial tension) to the elastic sheet 3, and in this state In order to maintain the preloading ring 13, a screw 22 is tightened from below to fix it. When the elastic sheet 3 is attached in this manner, the size of each through-hole 2 is hardly enlarged since the elastic sheet 3 is only given an initial tension. In the above embodiment, one side is 0.44 mm.

Next, the tension applying mechanism 5 for applying tension to the elastic sheet 3 attached to the seat retaining ring 4 will be described.
In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the tension applying mechanism 5 has a seat-side table 31 that moves up and down with the seat retaining ring 4 attached, and a non-moving state regardless of the up-and-down movement of the seat-side table 31. and a thrusting member 32 that maintains and abuts on the elastic sheet 3 to apply tension, in other words, it relatively moves in the axial direction of the sheet holding ring 4 attached to the sheet side table 31 .

The plunging member 32 is provided on an upper beam 36 connecting the upper ends of left and right uprights 35 erected on a base 34, and is fixed in a circular ring shape slightly smaller than the opening through which the seat retaining ring 4 penetrates. A support base 37 is provided, and an outer shoulder portion 38 on the fixed support base 37 (the portion corresponding to the position where the elastic sheet 3 comes into contact when it enters the opening of the seat retaining ring 4) is provided with a height reference ring as a tension applying member. 39 is arranged, a plurality of rotating bodies 40 are arranged at circular positions immediately outside the height reference ring 39, and the through hole 2 of the elastic sheet 3 is opened inside the height reference ring 39. A round seating cradle 41 is provided which is slightly wider than the area.

The plurality of rotating bodies 40 have a smaller diameter than the inner diameter of the opening of the seat retaining ring 4, and are arranged at the same height on the shoulder portion of the height reference ring 39 on which the elastic sheet 3 contacts. 40 is arranged parallel to the tangential direction of the circumference of the fixed support base 37, and is configured to be individually rotatable. The fixed support base 37, the outer shoulder portion 38, the height reference ring 39, the row of the rotating bodies 40, and the seating base 41 are arranged on a concentric circle, and are also positioned on a concentric circle with the seat retaining ring 4. .

The height reference ring 39 regulates the position of the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 (that is, the surface on the plunge member 32 side) regardless of the vertical position of the seat retaining ring 4. It is a member that regulates the height (gap) from the upper surface to the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 . Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6(c), it is a wall-shaped circular ring rising from the fixed support base 37 inside the row of the lower rotating bodies 40, and the upper end (tip) of the circular shape is an elastic sheet. 3 to regulate the position of the elastic sheet 3 by coming into contact with the surface of the elastic sheet 3 on the side of the thrust member 32 , thereby increasing the distance between the surface of the elastic sheet 3 and the upper surface (seating surface) of the seating cradle 41 (projection of the work to be described later). height).

The rotating body 40 can smoothly and efficiently change the direction of the tension applied to the elastic sheet 3, and when arranged on the concentric circles as described above, the tension is applied evenly in the radial direction from the center of the concentric circles. It is possible to make the elongation of the elastic sheet 3 uniform and prevent distortion. Therefore, each through hole 2 can be expanded while maintaining a similar shape. It should be noted that the rotating body 40 may be a member such as a ball bearing, a roller bearing, or a roller that can be easily rotated with little resistance and that can change the direction of tension.

Since the distance between the upper surface and the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 corresponds to the projecting length of the work W, the seating support base 41 is located at a position adapted to the work W, in the above embodiment, at a position where a gap of 0.25 mm is formed. are placed in In addition, upper and lower through-holes are formed in the above-described seating support base 41, for example, at positions whose phases are changed by 90 degrees in the circumferential direction. It may be configured to project slightly from the surface of 41 and support from below so that the elastic sheet 3 is not bent (not shown). It should be noted that the seating base 41 may be configured to be movable up and down so that the distance between it and the elastic sheet 3 can be adjusted together with the height reference ring 39 according to the size of the work W. In addition, a magnetic force generating means such as an electromagnet is provided on the back side of the seating surface of the seating base 41, and in the case of a work containing a magnetic material, a magnetic force is applied to the work so that it can be guided to the through hole 2 of the elastic sheet 3. good too.

A driving mechanism 44 for vertically moving the seat side table 31 is arranged between the left and right uprights 35 . Specifically, a bearing 47 is provided on the lower beam portion 46 connecting the lower portions of the left and right uprights 35, and an elevation drive shaft 48 is provided in the bearing 47 so as to pass therethrough. A stepped belt 50 is stretched between a pulley 49 attached to 48 and a pulley (not shown) of a drive motor, and a male screw portion of an elevation drive shaft 48 projecting above the bearing 47 is attached to a seat side table 31 to be described later. , and the seat-side table 31 is configured to move vertically by rotating the elevation drive shaft 48 with a drive motor.

The sheet side table 31 includes a mounting table 53 having a through opening 53a larger than the upper portion of the thrust member 32 and on which the sheet holding ring 4 is placed, and leg pieces extending downward from both sides of the mounting table 53. 54 and a horizontal beam 55 connecting the upper and lower portions of the leg piece 54 to the left and right. A guide portion 57 is provided between the piece 54 and the upright 35 . For this reason, as described above, when the drive motor rotates the elevation drive shaft 48 in one direction, the female screw portion 56 moves upward, and the leg piece 54 is guided by the guide portion 57 and ascends. The female screw portion 56 moves downward, and the leg piece 54 is guided by the guide portion 57 and descends. The mounting table 53 of the sheet-side table 31 is provided with clamping tools 58 at four corners of the rectangular mounting table 53. The clamping tools 58 are used to hold the sheet placed at a predetermined position. It is configured to clamp the retaining ring 4 .

Next, a procedure for holding a plurality of chips (workpiece W holding method) when forming external electrodes on both ends of the chip of the ceramic capacitor as the work W will be described.
First, the elastic sheet 3 is prepared. The elastic sheet 3 is provided with a large number of through holes 2 smaller than the thickness of the workpiece W to be processed. Specifically, if the workpiece W has a square column with a side of 0.5 mm and a length of 1.0 mm, rectangular square holes with a size of 0.4 mm are formed in a grid pattern in a natural state without applying tension. It is a silicon rubber sheet with a thickness of 0.55 mm.
From the first state in which the elastic sheet 3 is expanded and stretched, a tension stronger than the tension applied to the elastic sheet 3 in the first state is applied to the elastic sheet 3, so that the size of the hole is enlarged compared to the through hole 2 in the first state. The hole-expanding step for converting to the second state will be specifically described.

As shown in FIG. 3, the elastic sheet 3 is placed between the upper ring 12 and the lower ring 11 in a natural state, and the outer peripheral portion of the elastic sheet 3 is sandwiched. The ring 12 and the lower ring 11 are fastened. After that, the flange portion 18 of the preload ring 13 is fitted into the recess portion 16 of the lower ring 11 from below, and the standing wall 19 erected from the flange portion 18 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 so that the elastic sheet 3 is substantially This first state is maintained by slightly pushing up most of it to apply a weak tension and tightening the four screws 22 from below. Since the tension (preload) is very slight in this first state, the size of the through hole 2 is about 0.44 mm on a side and about 0.5 mm in thickness.

Next, the sheet holding ring 4 is set in the work holding device 1 and tension is applied to the elastic sheet 3 by the tension applying mechanism 5 to expand the through hole 2 . Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, with the seat-side table 31 raised, the seat-retaining ring 4 is moved so that the row of rotating bodies 40 enters the opening of the preloading ring 13 . 4 is lowered from above to a predetermined position and clamped by a clamp tool 58. - 特許庁In this state, the upper end of the height reference ring 39 is in contact with the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 as shown in FIG. there is

Then, the seat side table 31 is gradually lowered from the initial state described above by driving the drive motor. Then, the row of rotating bodies 40 arranged in a circular shape hits the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3, and when the seat-side table 31 is further lowered, the row of rotating bodies 40 moves the elastic sheet 3 relatively, as shown in FIG. Tension is applied to the elastic sheet 3 by pushing it up. Even when this state is changed, the distance between the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 and the upper surface of the seating base 41 is maintained at the initial specified dimension by the height reference ring 39 .

By applying a stronger tension to the elastic sheet 3 than in the first state, each through-hole 2 is expanded. Specifically, when tension is applied until the thickness of the elastic sheet 3 becomes about 0.38 mm, the size of the through hole 2 is expanded to 0.6 mm on one side, and the work W enters the second state. (hole expansion step).

Next, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a large number of works W are supplied from above and inserted into the expanded through holes 2 (work inserting step). The work W may be inserted by aligning the work W with the position of the through-hole 2 using a parts feeder (feeder mechanism). Although the parts feeder is not shown in the drawing, for example, when inserting an elastic sheet in the horizontal direction, vibration is generated in a spiral passage formed diagonally upward on the inner peripheral surface of the ball of the parts feeder. The workpieces are lined up one by one by applying a force, and are advanced in the passage formed linearly from the inclined upper end of the passage. A configuration may be employed in which the work is delivered and inserted into the through-holes 2 , and this inserting operation is sequentially performed while moving to insert the work into all the through-holes 2 . Alternatively, a plurality of rows of passages may be provided, and a configuration may be adopted in which the liquid is delivered from a plurality of outlets at once and inserted into through-holes at a plurality of locations. In short, the passage may be singular or plural. In addition, in the device for setting the elastic sheet 3 in the vertical direction, a configuration in which the work is inserted into the through-hole from the horizontal direction may be employed. Also in this case, the parts feeder may be provided with a single row or multiple rows of passages.

Furthermore, the work W may be supplied onto the elastic sheet 3 from a hopper or stocker (supply hopper mechanism) and dropped into the through hole 2 . In this case, if the elastic sheet 3 is dropped while being vibrated by a vibration adding mechanism (not shown) such as a vibrator, it can be inserted efficiently.

In addition, if the work W contains a magnetic material, for example, in the case of a work whose internal electrodes are made of a magnetic material such as nickel, a magnet is arranged under the seating surface of the seating base 41 and magnetic force is used. You may try to attract them positively. When the magnetic force is applied in this way, the work can be efficiently drawn into the through hole, and the end of the work can be reliably brought into contact with the upper surface of the seating table 41, so that the accuracy of the projection length of the work can be improved. can be enhanced.
Furthermore, a configuration may be employed in which the works are transferred to the adhesive pallet in a state of being arranged at predetermined positions, and these works are inserted at the same time. With this configuration, the work can be efficiently put into the through hole.

When the workpiece W is inserted into the through hole 2 as described above, the seating base 41 is disposed below the elastic sheet 3, and the upper surface of the seating base 41 and the lower surface of the elastic sheet 2 are aligned. Since the interval is maintained at 0.25 mm by the height reference ring 39 , the lower end of the work W inserted into the expanded through hole 2 is supported by the seating base 41 and the lower end is placed on the lower surface of the elastic sheet 3 . , and the upper end of the elastic sheet 3 protrudes from the upper surface of the elastic sheet 3 and stops. In this embodiment, both the upper end and the lower end of the work W protrude by 0.25 mm.

After the work W is inserted into the enlarged through hole 2, the sheet side table 31 is lifted to return to the initial state as shown in FIG. Then, the tension applied to the elastic sheet 3 is released, and the elastic force of the elastic sheet 3 causes the through hole 2 to contract. The workpiece W is held in close contact. In this state, the clamp tool 58 is loosened, the sheet holding ring 4 is removed, and the work W is held in the through hole 2, and the next step can be performed.

In the next step, for example, the sheet holding ring 4 is placed in a chamber and processed such as vapor deposition or sputtering. When the metal film is formed on the end portion of the work W in this way, the inner surface of each through hole 2 of the elastic sheet 3 is in close contact with the intermediate portion of the work W without gaps, and only the end portion of the work W protrudes. The external electrodes can be formed only on the projecting end portions, and the external electrodes can be formed on five surfaces including the end surfaces without steps. In the above-described processing, even if the temperature of the elastic sheet rises and the elastic sheet itself thermally expands, since the preload is applied, the elastic sheet does not thermally expand during or after processing. Also, the tension is only slightly reduced, and it is possible to prevent the formation of a gap between the inner surface of the through-hole and the work. Therefore, deterioration of the masking function during processing can be prevented in advance, and high-quality processing can be performed. Moreover, even if the elastic sheet 3 receives a partial stress change in the process after holding the work in the through hole, the preloading can disperse and absorb the deflection and distortion of the elastic sheet 3 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent problems such as the workpiece coming out of the through hole 2 or shifting.

Then, when the formation of the external electrodes is completed, the sheet holding ring 4 is taken out from the chamber, and as shown in FIG. This workpiece recovery device 61 has substantially the same configuration as the holding device 1 described above, but has a recovery space 62 in place of the seating base 41 .

In order to collect the work W by the work collection device 61 (work discharge method), the sheet holding ring 4 is placed on the mounting table 53 and fixed by the clamping tool 58, and the mounting table 53 is lowered to clear the through hole 2. Expand. Then, the work W in the through-hole 2 drops and can be recovered in the recovery space 62 . In this case, the elastic sheet 3 is vibrated, the work W is pressed downward by a pressing tool 63 from above (see FIG. 11(b)), or the inside of the recovery space 62 is depressurized, thereby causing the work W to move. Efficient recovery can be achieved by facilitating separation from the elastic sheet.
Moreover, in the case of a work containing a magnetic material, a magnetic force may be applied from one side of the elastic sheet holding the work toward the other side, and the work may be ejected by the magnetic force.
The elastic sheet from which the work has been discharged can be reused after being cleaned.
Further, the workpiece recovery device 61 may be used as a device by removing the seating support 41 of the holding device 1 and attaching a member having the recovery space 62 to that portion.
In short, the work can be efficiently taken out (discharged) by applying a pressing force or a suction force to the work from one side of the elastic sheet to the other to facilitate detachment.

Furthermore, the workpiece W to be processed is not limited to the above-described square pole, and may be a cylinder or a polygon as long as it has a shape that can be inserted into the through hole 2 . Also, the work W may be put in with the sheet oriented in the vertical direction.

Moreover, the above-described embodiments should be considered as examples in all respects and not restrictive. The present invention is defined not only by the above description but also by the scope of the claims, and includes all modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the scope of the claims. For example, the tension applying mechanism includes a seat-side table on which a seat-retaining ring is attached, and an entry-side table that moves relatively in the axial direction of the seat-retaining ring attached to the seat-side table to expand the through-hole of the elastic sheet. As long as the function is provided, at least one of the seat side table and the entry side table can be moved vertically, and the moving direction may be the horizontal direction. Further, the seat retaining ring is not limited to a structure in which it is divided into upper and lower parts, and it is sufficient that it can be mounted in a state in which the elastic sheet is spread out.

Reference Signs List 1 holding device 2 through-hole 3 elastic sheet 4 seat holding ring 5 tension applying mechanism 11 lower ring 11a through-opening hole 12 upper ring 12a through-opening hole 13 preload ring 15 clamping portion 16 depression 18 flange portion 19 upright wall 21 screw 22 screw 31 seat side table 32 plunge member 34 base 34
35 Upright 36 Upper beam 37 Fixed support base 38 Outer shoulder portion 39 Height reference ring 40 Rotating body 41 Seating base 44 Drive mechanism 46 Lower beam portion 47 Bearing 48 Elevating drive shaft 49 Pulley 50 Stepped belt 53 Mounting table 53a Penetration opening 54 Leg piece 55 Cross beam 56 Female screw portion 57 Guide portion 58 Clamp tool 61 Work recovery device 62 Recovery space 63 Press tool

Claims (16)

It is made of an elastic sheet material and has a through hole smaller than the thickness of the work to be processed. 1. An elastic sheet for holding a work, characterized in that the work is held in the through hole by contracting the through hole by loosening the tension. The thickness is set smaller than the length of the work when the tension is relaxed, and the end of the work is exposed from the through hole when the tension is relaxed and the work is held in the through hole. The elastic sheet for holding a workpiece according to claim 1. A ring-shaped sheet retaining ring for mounting and retaining the elastic sheet for retaining a work according to claim 1 or 2 in a spread state,
The sheet retaining ring has a circular opening, a ring body provided with a retaining portion for retaining an elastic sheet outside the opening, and a preloading ring that applies initial tension to the elastic sheet retained in the ring body. consists of
The preload ring has an attachment portion attached to the ring body, and has a ring-shaped standing wall that rises from the attachment portion and enters along the inner circumference of the opening of the ring body,
The standing wall is set to a standing height that can contact the elastic sheet held by the holding part and apply initial tension to the elastic sheet in a state of being attached to the ring body. seat retaining ring. The ring body comprises a first ring each having a concentric opening and a second ring superimposed on the first ring, wherein the elastic body is sandwiched between the first ring and the second ring. 4. The seat retaining ring according to claim 3, further comprising a retaining portion for retaining the seat. an elastic sheet for holding a work according to claim 1 or 2;
a ring-shaped sheet holding ring for mounting and holding the elastic sheet for holding the workpiece in a spread state;
a tension applying mechanism that applies tension in a plane direction to the elastic sheet attached to the sheet retaining ring;
with
A workpiece is inserted into the through-hole in a state in which the through-hole is expanded by applying tension to the elastic sheet by the tension-applying mechanism. A workpiece holding device for holding a workpiece in a hole. The tension applying mechanism comprises a seat-side table to which the seat-retaining ring is attached, and an entry-side table that moves relatively in the axial direction of the seat-retaining ring attached to the seat-side table,
The seat-side table has a clamping tool for clamping the seat-holding ring placed at a predetermined position, and a plunge opening in a portion corresponding to the opening of the clamped seat-holding ring,
The entry-side table has a front end portion smaller in diameter than the opening of the seat retaining ring, and has a plurality of rotating bodies in a shoulder portion that contacts the elastic sheet in a state of entering the opening of the seat retaining ring. 6. A workpiece holding device according to claim 5, wherein the central axis is arranged parallel to the tangential direction of the circumference of the shoulder portion. 7. A workpiece holding device according to claim 6, wherein a height reference ring protruding toward the elastic sheet from said rotating body is arranged inside the row of rotating bodies. 8. The apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 7, further comprising a feeder mechanism that feeds a workpiece into the expanded through-hole in a state in which the through-hole is expanded by applying tension to the elastic sheet by the tension applying mechanism. 1. A workpiece holding device as described in 1 above. a vibration applying mechanism that applies tension to the elastic sheet by the tension applying mechanism to vibrate the elastic sheet in a state in which the through hole is expanded; and a work supply mechanism that supplies a plurality of works onto the elastic sheet. 8. The workpiece holding device according to any one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that: 10. The workpiece holding device according to any one of claims 5 to 9, wherein said plunge-side table has a seating support base facing the plunge-side surface of the elastic sheet. 11. The workpiece according to claim 10, wherein a magnetic force generating means is provided on the back side of the seating surface of the seating base, and a magnetic force is applied to the workpiece containing a magnetic material to guide the workpiece to the through hole of the elastic sheet. holding device. From a first state in which an elastic sheet having a through hole smaller than the thickness of a workpiece to be processed is expanded and stretched, a tension stronger than the tension applied to the elastic sheet in the first state is applied to the elastic sheet to form the through hole in the first state. a pore expanding step of converting to a second state in which the pore size is enlarged more than
a workpiece inserting step of inserting a workpiece into the enlarged through hole;
The tension of the elastic sheet is weakened from the state in which the work is inserted into the through hole, and the through hole is contracted by the elasticity of the elastic sheet, and the work is held in a state where the end of the work is exposed from the through hole. How to hold the workpiece. The size of the through-hole is enlarged by applying tension in the surface direction of the elastic sheet holding the workpiece by the elastic contraction force of the elastic sheet in the hole of the elastic sheet according to claim 1 or 2. , a method of ejecting a workpiece, wherein the workpiece is ejected by applying a force directed from one surface of the elastic sheet to the other in this enlarged state. 13. The method of discharging a work according to claim 12, wherein the work is discharged by pressing the work from one surface of the elastic sheet toward the other surface by means of a pressing member. 13. The work discharge method according to claim 12, wherein the work is discharged by creating a pressure difference between one surface and the other surface of the elastic sheet. 13. The method of discharging a work according to claim 12, wherein a magnetic force is applied from one side of the elastic sheet holding the work containing a magnetic material to the other side, and the work is discharged by the magnetic force.

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