JP5726439B2 - Screen printing line and screen printing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a screen printing line including a plurality of screen printing machines and a screen printing method performed in the screen printing line.

  As described in Patent Document 1 below, the screen printing machine includes a printing device and a substrate conveyance support device, and a circuit board is carried into the screen printing machine to print a printing material. After printing, the circuit board is unloaded from the screen printing machine and supplied to an on-board working machine that works on the circuit board.

JP 2007-15307 A

However, in recent years, there has been a situation in which the supply of the circuit board from the screen printing machine to the substrate working machine is not in time. For example, in an electronic circuit component mounting line that includes a plurality of electronic circuit component mounting machines that are a type of substrate work machine, the mounting cycle time of the electronic circuit components on the circuit board is shortened, and the mounting cycle time is a circuit. If the printing cycle time of the printing material on the substrate becomes shorter, the circuit board cannot be supplied in time.
Therefore, the present applicant considered providing two screen printers for one electronic circuit component mounting line. Each screen printer is equipped with two conveyors at the front and rear. One screen printer has a substrate support device on the front conveyor, and the other screen printer has substrate support on the rear conveyor. A device is provided. The circuit boards supplied to the conveyor provided with the substrate support device of the upstream screen printing machine in the conveying direction of the circuit board are provided in the state where the conveyors are connected to the two screen printing machines in front and back, The printing material is printed by the printing apparatus supported by the substrate supporting device, and is conveyed by a conveyor not provided with the substrate supporting device of the downstream screen printing machine and supplied to the electronic circuit component mounting line. Further, the circuit board supplied to the conveyor not provided with the substrate support device of the upstream screen printing machine passes through the screen printing device to the conveyor provided with the substrate support device of the downstream screen printing machine. After being loaded and the printing material is printed, it is supplied to the electronic circuit component mounting line. If the screen printing line is constituted by two screen printing machines in this way, the circuit board supply cycle time to the on-board work line can be shortened, but there is still a point that is not sufficient in practice. It has been found.
The present invention has been made against the background described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a more practical screen printing line and screen printing method.

The above problem is that screen printing lines are arranged side by side and a plurality of screen printing machines each performing screen printing on a circuit board, and adjacent screen printing that is adjacent to each other among the screen printing machines. One or more shuttle conveyors arranged between the machines and relaying the circuit board, and each of the plurality of screen printing machines has a substrate support device and a front portion of each screen printing machine A front conveyor provided at the rear, a rear conveyor provided at the rear of each screen printer to allow passage of the circuit board, and a printing device for performing screen printing on the circuit board supported by the board support device. In addition, each of the one or more shuttle conveyors is connected to at least a front conveyor of the adjacent screen printing machine and a rear conveyor. It is assumed that a movable conveyor that can move between successive positions is included, and in the plurality of screen printing machines, when screen printing on a plurality of types of circuit boards having different dimensions in the conveyance width direction is performed in parallel, The movable conveyor of each of the one or more shuttle conveyors is configured to automatically change a conveyance width according to a circuit board to be conveyed , and in one of the plurality of screen printing machines This can be solved by configuring so that the setup change and the screen printing in the other one can be performed in parallel .

The present invention performs in parallel printing to two dimensions are different from each other of the circuit board conveyance width direction in the two screen printing machine fitted with a different mask each other, one of the two screen printing machines When performing the setup change in, a method of performing the setup change and screen printing in the other of the two screen printing machines in parallel is also obtained.

In the screen printing line configured as described above, a substrate support device is provided on the front conveyor for any of a plurality of screen printing machines, and printing is performed at the front part, but between adjacent screen printing machines. Since the shuttle conveyor is provided, the printed circuit board in the upstream screen printer is passed through the downstream screen printer by the downstream conveyor of the downstream screen printer, and is not printed. The circuit board can be transferred to the front conveyor of the downstream screen printing machine so that the printing material can be printed. Multiple circuit boards with different dimensions in the transport width direction can be Printing can be performed in parallel with a screen printer. Therefore, according to the screen printing line according to the present invention, an effect can be obtained by performing printing in parallel by a plurality of screen printing machines, and the substrate is supported at the front portion in any of the plurality of screen printing machines. Since the apparatus and the printing apparatus are provided, the operator can easily access these apparatuses and can easily perform operations such as setup change, cleaning, and replenishment of the printing material. In addition, since it is possible to perform the setup change in one of a plurality of screen printing machines and the screen printing in the other one in parallel, the electronic circuit components on the downstream side can be mounted depending on the convenience of the screen printing line. It is not necessary to stop the mounting of the electronic circuit components in the machine.

Aspects of the Invention

  In the following, the invention recognized as being claimable in the present application (hereinafter referred to as “claimable invention” may be referred to as a subordinate concept invention of the present invention, a superordinate concept of the present invention, or a different concept). Some aspects of the invention may be included, and will be described. As with the claims, each aspect is divided into sections, each section is numbered, and is described in a form that cites the numbers of other sections as necessary. This is for the purpose of facilitating the understanding of the claimable invention, and is not intended to limit the combinations of the constituent elements constituting the claimable invention to those described in the following sections. In other words, the claimable invention should be construed in consideration of the description accompanying each section, the description of the embodiment, the prior art, the common general technical knowledge, and the like. An aspect in which a constituent element is added and an aspect in which the constituent element is deleted from the aspect of each section can be an aspect of the claimable invention.

In addition, in each of the following items, the limitation on the change in the transport width of the movable conveyor and the limitation on the setup change are added to the item (1), which corresponds to claim 1, and the specific contents of the setup change are limited. Is added to claim 2, (2) is claim 3 , claim 4 is limited to two screen printers, (7) is claim 5 , Claims (12), to which a limitation relating to the change of the conveyance width of the movable conveyor and a limitation relating to the setup change are added, respectively, correspond to the sixth aspect .

(1) Arranged between a plurality of screen printers arranged side by side and performing screen printing on a circuit board, and adjacent screen printers adjacent to each other among the screen printers. A screen printing line including one or more shuttle conveyors for relaying circuit boards,
Each of the plurality of screen printing machines has a substrate support device and a front conveyor provided at the front of each screen printing machine and a circuit board provided at the rear of each screen printing machine. A rear conveyor and a printing device that performs screen printing on a circuit board supported by the substrate support device, wherein each of the one or more shuttle conveyors is connected to at least the front conveyor of the adjacent screen printing machine; A screen printing line comprising a movable conveyor movable between a position connected to the rear conveyor.
(2) The screen printing line according to (1), wherein the plurality of screen printing machines are two screen printing machines.
The effect of the invention described in the item (1) can be enjoyed effectively with a simple configuration. For example, if necessary, the same type or different types of printing can be performed in parallel. (A) Improving printing efficiency, (b) Supplying different types of circuit boards printed with printing agents, (c) Printing interruption Thus, at least one effect of avoiding interruption of substrate supply from the screen printing machine can be obtained.
(3) The plurality of screen printers are three screen printers, and one of the shuttle conveyors is disposed between the adjacent screen printers of the three screen printers. A screen printing line according to item 1).
As the number of screen printing machines increases, it becomes easier to greatly improve supply efficiency and diversify printing modes.
(4) The plurality of screen printers are four screen printers, and one of the shuttle conveyors is disposed between the adjacent screen printers of the four screen printers. A screen printing line according to item 1).
(5) The apparatus according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the shuttle conveyor is disposed upstream of the most upstream screen printing machine among the plurality of screen printing machines. Screen printing line.
The circuit board can be selectively supplied to the front conveyor and the rear conveyor of the most upstream screen printing machine.
(6) Any one of (1) to (5), wherein the shuttle conveyor is disposed on the downstream side of the most downstream screen printing machine among the plurality of screen printing machines. Screen printing line.
Of course, the device disposed downstream of the screen printing line includes only one lane of the conveyor, and the device disposed downstream of the screen printing line includes two lanes of the front conveyor and the rear conveyor. However, it is effective when the position in the front-rear direction of at least one of these conveyors is different from the position in the front-rear direction of at least one of the front conveyor and the rear conveyor of the screen printing machine. The shuttle conveyor is preferably configured such that the movable conveyor can be moved to positions corresponding to all of the front and rear conveyors and the downstream apparatus before and after the most downstream screen printer.
(7) The shuttle conveyor has a configuration capable of moving the movable conveyor further forward than a position where the circuit board is transferred to and from the front conveyor. Screen printing line.
The operator can perform work on the movable conveyor, for example, check the printing state of the circuit board, pull out the circuit board, and maintain and check the movable conveyor near the movable conveyor, which facilitates the work.
(8) The front conveyor includes: (a) a main conveyor having the substrate support device; (b) an in-conveyor disposed on the upstream side of the main conveyor and carrying a circuit board into the screen printing machine; and the main conveyor The screen printing line according to any one of (1) to (7), further comprising at least one of an out-conveyor disposed downstream of the conveyor and carrying the circuit board out of the screen printer.
When the circuit board is brought into the vicinity of the substrate support device of the previous conveyor by the in-conveyor and printing becomes possible, it can be immediately loaded into the substrate support device and supported for printing, or the printing has been completed. The circuit board can be kept ready for unloading on the out-conveyor, thereby reducing the time required for loading and unloading the circuit board and improving the operating rate of the screen printing machine.
(9) At least one of the in-conveyor and the out-conveyor includes (a) a stopper plate whose longitudinal direction is at least one conveyance width direction, and (b) the stopper plate in the at least one conveyance path. And a stopper plate moving device that moves to a retracted position that allows the circuit board to retreat and allows passage of the circuit board. Printing line.
Usually, the circuit board stop position accuracy in the in-conveyor and the out-conveyor can be lower than that of the main conveyor. Utilizing this fact, the circuit board should be in contact with the stopper plate long in the conveyance width direction and stop stably, or the downstream edge in the circuit board conveyance direction is not a simple straight line. Even in this case, the stopper device need not be adjusted.
The features described in this section can be adopted separately from the features described in any one of items (1) to (7).
(10) The at least one of the in-conveyor and the out-conveyor is configured such that the circuit board protrudes further upstream from the upstream end of the at least one in a state where the circuit board is in contact with the stopper plate. The screen printing line according to item (9), which is configured to be allowed.
At least one of the in-conveyor and the out-conveyor can be configured compactly in the conveying direction.
(11) A screen printing method performed by the screen printing line according to item (2),
A screen having the same mask attached to each of the two screen printing machines, and printing on the same side surface of the circuit board of the same model number in the two screen printing machines in parallel. Printing method.
According to the method described in this section, it is possible to halve the cycle time for one surface of the circuit board. In addition, even if printing is interrupted in one screen printer, printing is performed in the other screen printer, so supply to the next process of the circuit board on which the printing agent is printed on one surface is interrupted. Therefore, the work of the next process is not interrupted.
(12) A screen printing method performed by the screen printing line according to item (2),
A mask different from each other is attached to each of the two screen printing machines, and printing is performed on circuit boards having different model numbers from each other in the two screen printing machines, or to the front and back surfaces of circuit boards having the same model number. A screen printing method characterized by performing printing in parallel.
Two types of circuit boards with different model numbers printed on the printing material are obtained in parallel, or the same model number, but the circuit board printed on the front side and the circuit printed on the back side A substrate is obtained in parallel. Therefore, when an electronic circuit component is mounted on a circuit board on which a printing material is printed, different types of circuit boards on which the electronic circuit component is mounted are continuously obtained. Alternatively, the electronic circuit components can be mounted on the back surface without waiting for the electronic circuit components to be mounted on the front surface of all of the predetermined number of circuit boards. A circuit board can be obtained quickly.
(13) A screen printing method performed by the screen printing line according to item (3),
A screen printing characterized in that different masks are attached to each of the three screen printing machines, and printing on three types of circuit boards having different model numbers is performed in parallel in the three screen printing machines. Method.
It is possible to cope with printing of the printing material on three types of circuit boards having different model numbers.
(14) A screen printing method performed by the screen printing line according to item (4),
The same mask is attached to each of the four screen printing machines, and printing is performed on circuit boards having different model numbers from each other, or circuit boards having the same model number. A screen printing method, wherein printing on the front surface and the back surface is performed in parallel.
Throughput in the screen printing line, for example, the number of circuit boards that can be printed per unit time in the screen printing line is double that of the screen printing line in which the screen printing method described in (12) is performed, and the downstream electronic The operating rate of the circuit board work line such as the circuit component mounting line is improved. In addition, unless the printing of two screen printing machines that perform the same printing is interrupted at the same time, two types of circuit boards with different types of printing are always obtained, and either type of circuit board is obtained in the next process. The possibility of waiting for supply is reduced.

It is a perspective view which shows the electronic circuit assembly line containing the screen printing line which is one Embodiment of claimable invention. It is a top view which shows one each of the two screen printing machines and shuttle conveyors which comprise the said screen printing line. It is a side view which shows the said screen printer. It is a top view which shows roughly the in-conveyor of the said screen printer. FIG. 5A is a side view showing the in-conveyor, FIG. 5A is a view showing a state where the stopper plate is located at the retracted position, and FIG. 5B is a view showing a state where the stopper plate is located at the operating position. It is a top view which shows the said electronic circuit assembly line schematically. It is a figure explaining the one aspect | mode of the printing of the solder to the circuit board in the said electronic circuit assembly line, and mounting | wearing of an electronic circuit component. It is a figure explaining another aspect of the printing of the solder to the circuit board in the said electronic circuit assembly line, and mounting | wearing of an electronic circuit component. It is a figure explaining the printing of the solder to the circuit board in the electronic circuit assembly line containing the screen printing line which is another embodiment, and mounting | wearing of an electronic circuit component. It is a figure explaining the printing of the solder to the circuit board in the electronic circuit assembly line containing the screen printing line which is another embodiment, and mounting | wearing of an electronic circuit component.

  Several embodiments of the claimable invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition to the following embodiments, the claimable invention can be implemented in various modifications based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, including the aspects described in the above [Aspect of the Invention] section. .

  FIG. 1 illustrates an electronic circuit assembly line including a screen printing line according to an embodiment of the claimable invention. The electronic circuit assembly line includes a plurality of, in the present embodiment, two screen printing machines 10 (hereinafter, abbreviated as the printing machine 10), one or more, and in the present embodiment, two shuttle conveyors 12; One or more, in the present embodiment, a plurality of, for example, four electronic circuit component mounting machines 14 (hereinafter abbreviated as mounting machines 14) are provided. The printing machine 10 and the mounting machine 14 are a kind of board-to-board work machines that perform work on circuit boards, and the electronic circuit assembly line is a kind of board-to-board work lines. The two printing machines 10 are adjacent to the upstream side in the circuit board transport direction in the electronic circuit assembly line with respect to the four mounting machines 14, and are arranged side by side in parallel to the transport direction. One of the shuttle conveyors 12 is provided between the two printing machines 10, and the other is downstream of the downstream printing machine 10, which is the most downstream printing machine 10, and adjacent to the printing machine 10. It is provided between the mounting machine 14 to be used. In the present embodiment, the left-right direction is the circuit board transport direction, and the direction orthogonal to the transport direction is the front-rear direction. In the present embodiment, the left-right direction and the front-rear direction are both horizontal.

The two printing presses 10 and the shuttle conveyor 12 are configured in the same manner, and the upstream printing press 10 and the shuttle conveyor 12 will be described as a representative.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the printing machine 10 includes a printing machine body 20, a front conveyor 22, a rear conveyor 24, a mask holding device 26, a printing device 28, and a control device 30. The mask holding device 26 is provided above the main conveyor, which will be described later, of the front conveyor 22 of the printing press main body 20, and holds the mask 34 placed on the mask support base 32 in a horizontal posture. The printing device 28 includes a pair of squeegees 42, a squeegee moving device 44 that moves the squeegees 42 in the front-rear direction along the mask 34, and a squeegee lifting device 46 that lifts and lowers the squeegee 42 to contact and separate the mask 34. It is provided above the mask holding device 26 of the printing machine body 20.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the front conveyor 22 is provided in the front part of the printing press main body 20, and the rear conveyor 24 is provided in the rear part. The front conveyor 22 includes a main conveyor 50, an in-conveyor 52 disposed on the upstream side of the main conveyor 50 in the transport direction, and an out-conveyor 54 disposed on the downstream side. The main conveyor 50 includes a conveyor device 60 and a substrate support device 62. In this embodiment, the conveyor device 60 is constituted by a belt conveyor, and includes a pair of conveyor belts 64 and a belt rotation device 66 that rotates the conveyor belts 64. Each of the pair of conveyor belts 64 is supported by a side frame 68 so as to be able to circulate, and is synchronously circulated by a belt circulator 66 using a circulator motor 70 as a drive source. Carry in the posture.

  One of the pair of side frames 68 (the lower side frame 68 in FIG. 2) is a fixed side frame 68 provided with a fixed position, and the other can be moved toward and away from the fixed side frame 68. The movable side frame 68 is provided and is moved by the transport width changing device 78. As shown in FIG. 2, the transport width changing device 78 includes a width changing motor 80 as a driving source, a belt 82 to which a movable side frame 68 is connected, a fixed side frame 68, and a main body 83 of the main conveyor 50. And a pulley 84 around which a belt 82 is wound. The belt 82 and the pulley 84 are a timing belt and a timing pulley, respectively. The belt 82 is moved by rotating one of the plurality of pulleys 84 by the width changing motor 80, and the movable side frame 68 is moved while being guided by a guide device (not shown). Thereby, the interval between the pair of side frames 68 is changed, and the conveyance width is automatically changed.

  In the present embodiment, as schematically shown in FIG. 3, the substrate support device 62 includes a plurality of support pins 90, a pin support base 92, and a support base lifting device 94 as support members, and supports the circuit board 96 from below. . In the present embodiment, the substrate support device 62 constitutes a substrate clamping device in cooperation with the conveyor device 60, and the main conveyor 50 is lifted and lowered by a lifting device (not shown), whereby the circuit board 96 is masked 34. It is made to contact-separate with the lower surface of. Further, although not shown, the main conveyor 50 is provided with a stopper device. The stopper device includes a stopper member and a stopper member moving device that moves the stopper member to an arbitrary position in a horizontal plane. The stopper member is positioned at a predetermined position and is in contact with the downstream end of the circuit board. Stop that movement.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the in-conveyor 52 includes a conveyor device 100 and a conveyance width changing device 102 as in the case of the main conveyor 50. The description is omitted. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the stopper device 110 of the in-conveyor 52 includes a rectangular stopper plate 112 and a stopper plate lifting / lowering device 114 as a stopper plate moving device, and is downstream in the transport direction of the in-conveyor 52. It is provided at the end.

  The stopper plate lifting device 114 is constituted by an air cylinder 116. The air cylinder is a fluid pressure cylinder which is a kind of fluid pressure actuator, and constitutes a drive source. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the air cylinder 116 is provided upward on the main body 118 of the in-conveyor 52, and a stopper plate 112 is attached to the protruding end of the piston rod 120. The stopper plate 112 is attached to the piston rod 120 so that its longitudinal direction is parallel to the conveyance width direction, the plate surface is perpendicular to the conveyance direction, and is vertical. The stopper plate 112 is also disposed at a position away from the fixed side frame 68 and the movable side frame 68 in the transport direction, and the stopper plate lifting device 114 is disposed upstream of the stopper plate 112. .

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the printing machine 10, the circuit board 96 is transported in a posture in which the longitudinal direction is parallel to the transport width direction of the front conveyor 22, and the stopper plate 112 is a cream-like solder (printing agent) Hereinafter, among a plurality of types of circuit boards scheduled to be printed (hereinafter abbreviated as solder), the length is equal to or longer than the longest circuit board. The stopper plate 112 has one end portion in the longitudinal direction located on the fixed side frame 68 side, and the other end portion extending beyond the movable side frame 68. For any type of circuit board, its downstream end portion The movement can be stopped by abutting on the whole. The plate-like stopper plate 112 is thin, and even if it is provided at the downstream end of the in-conveyor 52, it does not protrude to the main conveyor 50 side, and a stopper device can be provided without increasing the width of the in-conveyor 52. it can.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the stopper plate 112 retracts downward from the circuit board 96 conveyance path by the in-conveyor 52 and allows the circuit board 96 to pass by the expansion and contraction of the piston rod 120. As shown in FIG. 5 (b), it is moved to the working position where it is located in the transport path, abuts against the circuit board 96, and stops its movement. The raising and lowering of the stopper plate 112 is guided by the guide device 122. As shown in FIG. 5, the guide device 122 includes a guide rod 124 as a pair of guided members provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction of the stopper plate 112 so as to extend in the vertical direction, and a fixed side frame 68. And a guide block 126 as a guide member provided on the support portion 125 of the main body 118 and fitted with a guide rod 124 so as to be movable up and down. The out conveyor 54 is configured in the same manner as the in conveyor 52.

  In this printing machine 10, the dimensions in the conveyance direction of the in-conveyor 52 and the out-conveyor 54 are shorter than the maximum dimension among the dimensions in the conveyance direction of all types of circuit boards on which solder printing is scheduled. . Therefore, depending on the type of the circuit board, when the movement is stopped by the stopper device 110, the upstream end in the conveying direction is the conveyor 52, like the circuit board 96 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. In some cases, it may protrude from 54 to the upstream side. Depending on the amount of protrusion, the apparatus disposed upstream of the conveyors 52 and 54, in this embodiment, the shuttle conveyor 12 for the in-conveyor 52 and the main conveyor 50 for the out-conveyor 54 may not be operated. In such a case, the operation of the upstream device is prohibited until the circuit board is unloaded from the conveyors 52 and 54.

  The rear conveyor 24 is provided in parallel with the front conveyor 22 and has a length from one end to the other end in the conveying direction of the printing press 10 as shown in FIG. Like the conveyors 52 and 54, the rear conveyor 24 is provided with a conveyor device 130, a conveyance width changing device 132, and a stopper device 134. The description is omitted.

  Various devices provided in the printer main body 20 are covered with a housing 140 as shown in FIG. The front portion of the top wall 142 of the housing 140 is a cover 144 that can be opened and closed, and an operator opens the cover 144 to work on the device in the housing 140.

  The control device 30 is mainly composed of a computer and controls drive sources and the like of various devices constituting the printing press 10. Most of the motors constituting the drive source are a kind of electric motors, and are constituted by servo motors that are electric rotary motors capable of accurately controlling the rotation angle. You may comprise with a linear motor. The control device 30 is centrally controlled by an overall control device 148 (see FIG. 1) that controls the entire electronic circuit assembly line. The overall control device 148 is composed mainly of a computer.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the shuttle conveyor 12 includes a conveyor body 150, a movable conveyor 152, and a movable conveyor moving device 154. The movable conveyor 152 includes a conveyor device 160, a conveyance width changing device 162, and a stopper device 164. The conveyor device 160 is configured in the same manner as the conveyor device 100 of the conveyors 52 and 54, and includes a conveyor belt 168 supported by a pair of side frames 166 and a rotating motor 169 as a driving source, and a pair of conveyor belts. And a belt circulator 170 that circulates 168.

  The conveyance width changing device 162 includes a width changing motor 174, a belt 176, and a plurality of pulleys 178, and is provided across the fixed side frame 166 (lower side frame 166 in FIG. 2) and the support frame 180. When the belt 176 is moved by driving the width changing motor 174, the movable side frame 166 connected to the belt 176 is positioned at any position in the conveyance width direction or the front-rear direction with respect to the fixed side frame 166 and the support frame 180. Moved to. The side frame 166 is fixed and movable when changing the conveyance width.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the movable conveyor moving device 154 includes a shuttle motor 190 as a driving source, a belt 192, and a plurality of pulleys 194. The belt 192 is a timing belt, and the pulley 194 is a timing pulley. When one of the plurality of pulleys 194 is rotated by the shuttle motor 190 and the belt 192 is moved, the fixed side frame 166 and the support frame 180 connected to the belt 192 are moved and the conveyance width is changed. The movable side frame 166 is moved together through the device 162, and the movable conveyor 152 is moved to an arbitrary position in the front-rear direction.

  The movement of the pair of side frames 166 and the support frame 180 is guided by the guide device 200 as shown in FIG. The guide device 200 includes a pair of guide rods 202 disposed in the front-rear direction. In this embodiment, the belt 192 and the pair of guide rods 202 extend from the rear side of the rear conveyor 24 of the printing machine 10 to the front conveyor 22 in the front-rear direction and extend forward from the front conveyor 22 to be movable. The moving stroke of the conveyor 152 is longer than the distance from the rear end of the rear conveyor 24 to the front end of the front conveyor 22. Therefore, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 2, the movable conveyor 152 is connected to the front conveyor 22 and can be moved to a position further forward than the position where the circuit board is transferred. In this state, the operator can open the cover 204 (see FIG. 1) provided at the front of the shuttle conveyor 12, and can easily work on the movable conveyor 152 near the movable conveyor 152. Each of the housing of the shuttle conveyor 12 provided with the cover 204 and the housing 140 of the printing machine 10 is provided with an opening for delivering a circuit board.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the stopper device 164 includes a stopper piece 210 as a stopper member and a stopper piece lifting device 212 as a stopper piece moving device, and is provided at the downstream end of the movable side frame 166. The stopper piece elevating device 212 is constituted by an air cylinder. The stopper piece 210 is moved down to a position where the stopper piece 210 is located in the conveyance path and can contact the circuit board, and is retracted above the conveyance path to pass the circuit board. Raise to an allowable retracted position. In this embodiment, the shuttle conveyor 12 is controlled by the control device 30 of the printing press 10 adjacent to the upstream side. A controller may be provided on the shuttle conveyor 12.

  In the present embodiment, the four mounting machines 14 are configured in the same manner as the electronic circuit component mounting machine described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-104075, and are modularized. As shown in FIG. Each including a mounting machine body 228, a substrate transport device 230, a substrate support device 232 (see FIG. 6), a component supply device 234, a component mounting device 236, a control device 238, and the like. Share the installation and perform in parallel. The substrate transfer device 230 includes a pair of conveyors 240. As shown in FIG. 6, these conveyors 240 are provided in parallel in the front-rear direction of the mounting machine main body 228, and the front conveyor 240 (the lower conveyor 240 in FIG. 6) is replaced by the front conveyor 240 and the rear conveyor 240. The side conveyor 240 may be referred to as a rear conveyor 240. In the present embodiment, the conveyor 240 is constituted by a belt conveyor, and the conveyance width is automatically adjusted by a conveyance width changing device (not shown). A substrate support device 232 is provided for each of the two conveyors 240, and a circuit board conveyed by any of the conveyors 240 is supported by the substrate support device 232, and mounting of electronic circuit components is performed. The control device 238 is mainly composed of a computer, and is controlled by the overall control device 148.

In the electronic circuit assembly line configured as described above, solder is printed on the circuit board in various manners. One of them will be described with reference to FIG.
This mode is a mode in which solder is printed in parallel on the front and back surfaces of the circuit boards of the same model number in the two printing machines 10, and in the mounting machine 14, the solder is printed on the surface. The corresponding electronic circuit component is mounted.

  In the present embodiment, of the two printing machines 10, the upstream printing machine 10 (hereinafter abbreviated as the upstream printing machine 10) performs solder printing on the surface of the circuit board, and the downstream printing. The solder 10 is printed on the back surface of the circuit board by the machine 10 (hereinafter abbreviated as the downstream printing machine 10). Each of the two printing machines 10 holds a mask 34 corresponding to the surface on which the solder of the circuit board is printed.

  In both of the two printing presses 10, when the circuit board is loaded into the in-conveyor 52, the out-conveyor 54, and the rear conveyor 24 of the front conveyor 22, the stopper plate 112 is in the operating position to stop the circuit board, When the substrate is unloaded, it is retracted to the retracted position. In this embodiment, since the stopper plate 112 is provided at the downstream end of each conveyor 52, 54, 24, the circuit board is carried into the in-conveyor 52 to a position adjacent to the main conveyor 50, and the rear conveyor 24 and It can carry in to the out conveyor 54 to the position adjacent to the shuttle conveyor 12, and can be made to wait. Therefore, the circuit board can be quickly carried into the main conveyor 50 and the shuttle conveyor 12.

  Of the two shuttle conveyors 12, the movable conveyor 152 of the upstream shuttle conveyor 12 arranged between two adjacent printing presses 10 (hereinafter, may be referred to as the upstream movable conveyor 152), As shown by a solid line in FIG. 7A, the front-rear direction positions of the upstream and downstream printing presses 10 with the front conveyors 22 coincide with each other, and there are two points corresponding to the front conveyor. As indicated by the chain line, the positions in the front-rear direction of the respective rear conveyors 24 of the two printing machines 10 coincide with each other and are moved to positions corresponding to the rear conveyor connected to the rear conveyor 24. Even if there is a positional shift in the front-rear direction between the front conveyors 22 and the rear conveyors 24 of the adjacent printing presses 10, the upstream movable conveyor 152, the upstream front conveyor 22, the upstream conveyor downstream, By stopping at the positions connected to the respective rear conveyors 24, the circuit board can be delivered while compensating for the positional deviation. The positional deviation between the front and rear conveyors 22 and 24 is caused by at least one of the positional deviation of the printing press 10 and the positional deviation of the conveyors 22 and 24 in the printing press 10. The installation of the conveyors 22 and 24 in the printing machine 10 and the installation of the printing machine 10 are facilitated.

  Furthermore, the movable conveyor 152 of the downstream shuttle conveyor 12 (hereinafter also referred to as the downstream movable conveyor 152) disposed between the downstream printing machine 10 and the most upstream mounting machine 14 is shown in FIG. ), The position corresponding to the rear conveyor of the printing press connected to the rear conveyor 24 of the downstream printing press 10, and the position corresponding to the rear conveyor of the mounting machine connected to the rear conveyor 240 of the uppermost mounting machine 14 as indicated by the one-dot chain line. And a position corresponding to the front conveyor 22 connected to the front conveyor 22 of the downstream printing machine 10 as indicated by a broken line, and a position corresponding to a front conveyor corresponding to the front conveyor 240 of the uppermost mounting machine 14 as indicated by a two-dot chain line And moved to. In any of the movable conveyors 152, the stopper piece 210 is positioned at the operating position when the circuit board is carried in, and is retracted to the retreat position when the circuit board is carried out. The moving position of the downstream movable conveyor 152 is arbitrary, and the displacement is compensated for, so that the installation of the conveyors 22 and 24 in the downstream printing machine 10, the installation of the downstream printing machine 10, the most upstream mounting machine 14 (the downstream printing machine 10 It is easy to install the front and rear conveyors 240 and the mounting machine 14 in the mounting machine 14) to which the circuit board is supplied.

  The first type of circuit board (hereinafter abbreviated as board board A) is first supplied to the upstream printing machine 10 with the surface facing up, as shown in FIG. It is carried to the downstream end. When it becomes possible to carry the substrate upper into the main conveyor 50, the stopper plate 112 is retracted, the in-conveyor 52 and the main conveyor 50 are operated, and the substrate upper is carried into the main conveyor 50 from the in-conveyor 52. And solder is printed. Solder printing by the printing device 28 is well known and will not be described.

  After the printing is completed, the substrate upper is carried out from the main conveyor 50 to the out conveyor 54 and is brought into contact with the stopper plate 112 at the downstream end of the out conveyor 54 and stopped. The substrate upper is carried out from the out conveyor 54 to the movable conveyor 152 in a state where the upstream movable conveyor 152 is located at the position corresponding to the front conveyor, and is conveyed to the downstream end of the movable conveyor 152. After the transfer of the circuit board, the upstream movable conveyor 152 is moved to the position corresponding to the rear conveyor, and the board former after the solder printing is transferred to the rear conveyor 24 of the downstream printing machine 10. The transfer is performed in a state where the rear conveyor 24 is empty, and the circuit board is transported to the downstream end of the rear conveyor 24 and is put on standby for transfer to the downstream movable conveyor 152. Then, the substrate upper is transferred from the rear conveyor 24 to the downstream movable conveyor 152 in a state where the downstream movable conveyor 152 is positioned at the position corresponding to the post-press conveyor. The printed circuit board is allowed to pass through the printing machine 10 by the rear conveyor 24 and bypasses the printing unit provided with the printing device 28, so that the circuit board is conveyed and printed in parallel.

  After the transfer of the circuit board, the downstream movable conveyor 152 is moved to the position corresponding to the conveyor after the mounting machine, and the board A is sent to the rear conveyor 240 of the uppermost mounting machine 14 and is mounted on the surface of the board A by the component mounting device 236. Electronic circuit components are mounted. Thereafter, the substrate upper is transported by the respective rear conveyors 240 of the four mounting machines 14, and the electronic circuit components are mounted.

  After the electronic circuit components have been mounted on the front surface, as shown by the dashed arrows in FIG. 7B, the back surface of the substrate is faced upward and supplied to the rear conveyor 24 of the upstream printing machine 10, and its downstream end It is conveyed to. The substrate upper is passed through the upstream printing press 10 by the rear conveyor 24, and is transferred to the upstream movable conveyor 152 in a state where the upstream movable conveyor 152 is located at the position corresponding to the rear conveyor. After the transfer, the upstream movable conveyor 152 is moved to the position corresponding to the front conveyor, the substrate upper is transferred to the in-conveyor 52 of the downstream printing machine 10, and is transferred from the in-conveyor 52 to the main conveyor 50, and solder is printed on the back surface. Is done.

After printing, the substrate upper is carried out from the main conveyor 50 to the out conveyor 54, and is further transferred to the downstream movable conveyor 152 in a state where the downstream movable conveyor 152 is located at the position corresponding to the pre-printer conveyor. After the transfer, the downstream movable conveyor 152 is moved to the position corresponding to the conveyor before the mounting machine, the substrate upper is sent to the front conveyor 240 of the mounting machine 14, and the electronic circuit component is mounted on the back surface by the component mounting device 236. The board A is conveyed by the front conveyors 240 of the four mounting machines 14, and electronic circuit components are sequentially mounted on the back surface. The solder is printed on the front surface and the back surface of the board A in parallel, and the board A having the solder printed on the front surface and the board A printed on the back surface are supplied to the mounting machine 14. The electronic circuit components are mounted on the board A in parallel in a mounting machine row including a plurality of mounting machines 14 in the present embodiment.
In the above description, the electronic circuit component is mounted on the front surface of the board A in the rear conveyor 240, and the back surface is mounted in the front conveyor 240. However, the reverse is also possible. . In that case, if the printing on the surface of the substrate upper is performed in the downstream printing machine 10, the moving distance of the movable conveyor 152 in the upstream and downstream shuttle conveyors 12 is reduced, and the conveyance efficiency is increased. .

  When the mounting of the electronic circuit components on the surface of the set number of board uppers is completed, the electronic circuit components are then mounted on the front and back surfaces of the circuit boards of different model numbers. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 7 (c), the upstream printer 10 changes the setup, and the mask 34 is replaced, the conveyance width of the circuit board is changed, and the like. The conveyance width is changed for the front conveyor 22 of the upstream printing machine 10 and the rear conveyor 24 of the downstream printing machine 10. During this time, solder printing and electronic circuit component mounting are performed on the back surface of the board A in parallel with the setup change.

  When the setup change is completed, as shown in FIG. 7 (d), solder printing on the surface of the board B and mounting of electronic circuit components are started, and solder printing on two types of circuit boards is performed in parallel. Done. Therefore, the transport width of each movable conveyor 152 of the two shuttle conveyors 12 is changed depending on which of the substrate upper and the second conveyor is transported. The change is performed before the movable conveyor 152 reaches the conveyor corresponding position where the circuit board is received, that is, at least one of during the movement to the conveyor corresponding position and before the movement starts. This avoids an increase in the time required to transfer the circuit board due to the width change, and suppresses a decrease in the operating rate of the screen printing line.

  When the mounting of the electronic circuit components on the back surface of all the board uppers is completed, the downstream printer 10 is replaced as shown in FIG. 7E, and the solder is printed on the back surface of the board B. To be done. At this time, the conveyance width is changed for the front conveyor 22 of the downstream printing machine 10 and the rear conveyor 24 of the upstream printing machine 10. In parallel with this setup change, solder is printed on the surface of the board B and electronic circuit components are mounted. When the setup change is completed, as shown in FIG. The board with the components mounted is supplied to the rear conveyor 24 of the upstream printing machine 10 with the back side facing up. As described above, since the setup change of one of the two printing machines 10 and the other printing are performed in parallel, it is not necessary to stop the mounting of the electronic circuit components in the mounting machine 14 due to the convenience of the printing machine 10.

  In this electronic circuit assembly line, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), the two printers 10 can perform solder printing on the same side of the circuit board of the same model number in parallel. In this case, the same mask 34 is held in each of the two printing machines 10, and, for example, solder is printed on the surface of the board upper. Then, the substrate A is alternately supplied to the upstream printing machine 10 and the downstream printing machine 10. The board A on which the solder is printed in the upstream printing machine 10 is conveyed to the rear conveyor 240 of the loading machine 14 by the upstream shuttle conveyor 12, the rear conveyor 24 of the downstream printing machine 10, and the downstream shuttle conveyor 12, and the electronic circuit components are mounted. The

  The board A on which the solder is printed in the downstream printing machine 10 is supplied to the rear conveyor 24 of the upstream printing machine 10 and is carried to the front conveyor 22 of the downstream printing machine 10 by the upstream shuttle conveyor 12 to print the solder. Then, the substrate A is carried into the front conveyor 240 of the mounting machine 14 by the downstream shuttle conveyor 12, and the electronic circuit components are mounted.

  In this way, when the printing of solder is performed in parallel on the same side surface of the circuit board of the same model number by the two printing machines 10, as shown in FIG. When the process is interrupted, for example, even when cleaning of the mask 34 or supply of solder onto the mask 34 is performed, a circuit board having solder printed on the surface can be obtained.

The screen printing line may be a line including three screen printing machines. One aspect of solder printing in the screen printing line will be described with reference to FIG.
The electronic circuit assembly line of the present embodiment is provided with three printing machines 10 arranged in a line, and between adjacent printing machines 10, upstream of the most upstream printing machine 10, and most downstream printing. One shuttle conveyor 12 is provided on each downstream side of the machine 10. The most upstream shuttle conveyor 12 is controlled by the control device 30 of the most upstream printing machine 10. In addition, a substrate supply device 260 is provided on the upstream side of the most upstream shuttle conveyor 12, and a substrate identification device 262 is provided between them. The board supply device 260 and the board identification device 262 are controlled by the overall control device 148.

  For example, three types of circuit boards A, B, and C having different model numbers are supplied by the board supply device 260. These substrates A, B, and C have the same dimensions in the transport width direction. Although not shown, each of the substrates A, B, and C is provided with a substrate identification code as a substrate identifier, and is given substrate identification information. The board identification code is constituted by a two-dimensional code, for example, and records the model number, dimensions, etc. of the circuit board. The substrate identification device 262 includes a conveyor 266 and a reading device 268 that is an identification device that reads a two-dimensional code. The reading device 268 includes an imaging device, for example. Each of the three printing machines 10 holds different masks 34 for printing solder on the substrates A, B, and C in order from the upstream side.

  The substrates A, B, and C are supplied by the substrate supply device 260 without determining the order. Therefore, the circuit board is first supplied from the component supply device 260 to the conveyor 266 of the board identification device 262, and the board identification code is read by the reading device 268. The read result is sent to the overall control device 148, and the type of the circuit board is acquired. The acquisition of the board type determines which of the three printing machines 10 should perform solder printing, and which of the four shuttle conveyors 12 should deliver the circuit board to and from. A control command is output from the overall control device 148 to each control device 30 of the three printing machines 10.

The movable conveyor 152 of the most upstream shuttle conveyor 12 is moved to a conveyor-corresponding position connected to the conveyor 266 of the board identification device 262 and receives the circuit board. For example, if the substrate A is supplied, the solder is printed in the most upstream printing machine 10 and is conveyed by the rear conveyor 24 in the two downstream printing machines 10 as indicated by solid arrows in FIG. And then passed to the rear conveyor 240 of the mounting machine 14. If the substrate C is supplied, as shown by the two-dot chain arrows in FIG. 9, the two upstream printing presses 10 are transported and passed by the rear conveyor 24, and the most downstream side Solder is printed in the printing machine 10 and is carried into the front conveyor 240 of the mounting machine 10. If the substrate B is supplied, printing is performed in the middle-stream printing machine 10 as shown by the broken-line arrows in FIG. It is carried into the conveyor 240. In this manner, each movable conveyor 152 of the four shuttle conveyors 12 is operated so that solder is printed on the substrates A, B, and C, the printing machine 10 is passed, and the loading machine 14 is loaded.
Four or more printing machines may be provided, and four or more types of circuit boards may be supplied in an unordered order to print the printing agent.

  Since the conveyance width of the rear conveyor 24 and the movable conveyor 152 is automatically changed, solder printing can be performed in any order or without determining the order for a plurality of types of circuit boards having different dimensions in the conveyance width direction. Can do. In this case, it is assumed that the substrate supply device can supply a plurality of types of circuit boards that are specified in an arbitrary order, or a substrate identification device is provided in the substrate supply device, and the circuit that is actually supplied Desirably, the type of substrate is obtained. In any case, the circuit boards are delivered while the transfer widths of the four movable conveyors 152 and the three rear conveyors 24 are changed according to the type of the circuit board to be transferred.

  Further, the substrate identification device may be provided on a shuttle conveyor disposed upstream of the most upstream printing press. A plurality of types of circuit boards having the same conveyance width are carried in the movable conveyor of the most upstream shuttle conveyor in an indefinite order, the board identification code is read, and the type of the circuit board carried in is acquired. The operations of a plurality of printing machines and shuttle conveyors are determined according to the type of circuit board.

The screen printing line may be a line including four screen printing machines. One aspect of solder printing in the screen printing line will be described with reference to FIG.
In this screen printing line, among the four printing machines 10, a shuttle conveyor 12 is provided between adjacent printing machines 10, and a shuttle conveyor 12 is provided on the downstream side of the most downstream printing machine 10. . Then, the same mask is attached to the two upstream printing machines 10, solder is printed on the surface of the board A, and the same mask is attached to the two downstream printing machines 10. The solder is printed on the back of the board.

  First, as shown in FIG. 10A, solder is printed on the surface of the board upper. This printing is performed in the same manner as the printing described with reference to FIG. 8, and the substrate A that has been printed on the surface passes through the printing machine 10 on the downstream side and alternates between the front conveyor 140 and the rear conveyor 240. To be supplied. After the solder is printed on the surface, the board A passes through the two upstream printing machines 10 and passes through the two downstream printing machines 10 as shown by broken arrows in FIG. It is supplied alternately and solder is printed on the back side. The printed circuit board upper is alternately supplied to the front conveyor 240 and the rear conveyor 240. In this embodiment, the printing mode shown in FIG. 8 is performed on both the front and back surfaces of the circuit board. Solder printing is performed in parallel on the front and back surfaces of each two circuit boards, and four circuits are provided. Printing is performed on the substrate in parallel.

  10: Screen printer 12: Shuttle conveyor 22: Front conveyor 24: Rear conveyor 50: Main conveyor 52: In conveyor 54: Out conveyor 110: Stopper device 152: Movable conveyor

Claims (6)

A circuit board arranged between a plurality of screen printing machines arranged side by side and performing screen printing on each circuit board, and adjacent screen printing machines that are adjacent to each other among the screen printing machines. A screen printing line including one or more shuttle conveyors for relaying,
Each of the plurality of screen printing machines has a substrate support device and a front conveyor provided at the front of each screen printing machine and a circuit board provided at the rear of each screen printing machine. A rear conveyor and a printing device that performs screen printing on a circuit board supported by the substrate support device, wherein each of the one or more shuttle conveyors is connected to at least the front conveyor of the adjacent screen printing machine; A movable conveyor movable between a position connected to the rear conveyor,
In the plurality of screen printers, when screen printing on a plurality of types of circuit boards having different dimensions in the conveyance width direction is performed in parallel, the movable conveyor of each of the one or more shuttle conveyors is: Depending on the circuit board to be transported, the transport width is automatically changed ,
A screen printing line configured to perform setup change in one of the plurality of screen printing machines and screen printing in the other one in parallel . 2. The screen printing line according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of screen printing machines includes a mask holding device that holds a mask above the front conveyor, and the setup change includes replacement of the mask. 3. The screen printing line according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of screen printing machines are two screen printing machines. Concurrently with the setup change in one of the two screen printers, the circuit board is passed through the rear conveyor of one of the screen printers, and the screen printing is performed in the other of the two screen printers. The screen printing line according to claim 3. It said shuttle conveyor, screen printing line according to any one of claims 1 to 4 having a structure capable of moving the movable conveyor further into a position prior to sending and receiving circuit board between said front conveyor. A screen printing method performed by the screen printing line according to claim 3 ,
Install the different masks in each of the two screen printing machines, performs in parallel the print to them two different two sizes of the transport widthwise direction in a screen printing machine of the circuit board, the two A screen printing method, wherein when performing the setup change in one of the screen printing machines, the setup change and the screen printing in the other of the two screen printing machines are performed in parallel .

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