JPH0234846B2 - ITAJOWAAKUHANSOSOCHI - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a conveyance device for conveying workpieces in a plating apparatus for plate-like workpieces such as printed circuit boards.

Conventionally, in this type of plating apparatus, a plurality of printed circuit boards are suspended from a rod-shaped jig and immersed in a treatment tank for plating, washing, etc. However, in the conventional apparatus, it takes time and effort to attach the printed circuit board to the jig and to remove it from the jig, and there is a problem in that the equipment cost increases when attempting to automate this work.

In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the present invention has the following features:
The present invention aims to provide a workpiece conveyance device that uses a conveyor and has a simple structure, and is specifically configured as follows.

That is, the present invention includes a supply conveyor that sequentially conveys a plurality of plate-shaped works in an upright posture intersecting the conveyance direction, and a supply conveyor that moves the plurality of plate-shaped works in a direction along the upper edge of the works to a jig attachment position. a positioning conveyor arranged on the same plane; a transfer mechanism that sequentially transports the workpieces from the outlet of the supply conveyor to the entrance of the positioning conveyor; Equipped with a height adjustment mechanism that adjusts the vertical position of the
The above-mentioned positioning conveyor is characterized in that it is constituted by a pair of clamp belts that can be clamped and released, the conveyance surfaces of which are perpendicular and facing each other.

Next, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a large number of processing tanks (plating tanks and washing tanks) arranged in tandem, and a supply conveyor 2, a positioning conveyor 3, etc. are installed on the inlet side of the series of processing tanks 1. The supply conveyor 2 has a structure in which a plurality of trays 4 are arranged roughly in a caterpillar shape along the entire length of a pair of parallel chains 5. Both chains 5 are respectively spanned by an idler sprocket 6 and a drive sprocket 7, and the sprocket 7 is connected to a motor (not shown). Each tray 4
is a rectangular plate-like member, whose middle part in the front and back direction is rotatably supported by a bracket 10 on the chain 5 via a pin 9 in the width direction of the conveyor, and while it moves horizontally between the sprockets 6 and 7. It maintains a horizontal position with both side edges supported by the chain 5, and is configured to take a vertical or inclined position while moving along the outer periphery of the sprockets 6, 7. Further, while the trays 4 move from the sprocket 6 to the sprocket 7 in the horizontal position, the upper surfaces 11 of the plurality of trays 4 are generally continuous without any gaps. A plurality of grooves 12 extending in the width direction are provided at regular intervals on the upper surface 11 of each tray.
It is designed to insert the lower edge of the.

Frame 1 supporting the sprockets 6 and 7
The lower part of 3 is attached to the elevator 14,
The entire conveyor 2 can be moved up and down while remaining in a horizontal position.

At the outlet 16 of the conveyor 2, a pusher 17 is provided above the tray 4 to send out the work W in the width direction of the conveyor as shown by an arrow R. The pusher 17 is a belt 19 having protrusions 18 on its surface.
, the belt 19 has a pair of vertical pulleys 20,
It spans 21. One pulley 21 is connected to a motor (not shown).

Near the pusher 17, a pair of band-like guides 23 with a frame 22 supported are provided with a narrow gap for the workpiece W to pass through. Both guides 23 are vertical and extend in the direction of the arrow R from near the discharge side pulley 21 of the pusher 17, and the inlet side ends 25 adjacent to the pulley 21 are curved away from each other to form a work introduction part. are doing. Furthermore, the end portion 25 is located in front of the pulley 21 when the conveyance direction F of the conveyor 2 is taken as a reference. A rail 26 for guiding the lower edge of the work W is provided below the guide 23. The rail 26 is fixed to the frame 13 and the like, and is configured to move up and down together with the conveyor 2.

The positioning conveyor 3 includes a pair of clamp belts 27 (conveyor belts) extending in the direction of arrow R from near the exit end of the guide 23 to extend the guide 23. Both belts 27 are stretched around a pair of vertical pulleys 29 and 30, respectively, with their conveying surfaces perpendicular and facing each other. Guide 2
Pulleys 29 and 30 on the opposite side of 3 are connected to a motor (not shown), and the rotation direction of the motor is such that the work W held between the pair of belts 27 can be moved in the direction of arrow R. It is set. The shafts of the pulleys 29 and 30 are supported by a frame 31, which is not shown in the drawings.
is equipped with a clamp release mechanism. This mechanism is configured to increase or decrease the gap between both belts 27 by moving one or both of the adjacent pulleys 29 and 30, and an air cylinder or a combination of a cam and a motor is used as the driving mechanism for this purpose. has been done.

Horizontal support members 32 are provided above near both ends of the conveyor 3 at right angles to the direction R. Part 3
2 is provided at the upper end of the vertical support 33, and the member 32
A generally V-shaped saddle 35 and a clamp shutter 36 are attached to the upper surface of the holder. The saddle 35 is a member for seating both ends of a carrier bar 37 (jig). The carrier bar 37 is provided with a plurality of clamps 40 for clamping the upper edge of the workpiece W, and the clamp shutter 36 is provided for closing the clamps 40. Carrier bar 37
For example, the concrete structure of the clamp shutter 36 is as follows.

Fig. 2 which is an enlarged partial view and Fig. 2-
As shown in FIG. 3, which is a cross-sectional view, the carrier bar 37
includes a pair of clamp attachment members 42 extending along both sides of the rod-shaped main body 41, and both members 42 and the main body 41
are connected via a hinge 43 fixed to the top surface. The main body 41 has a rotating shaft 4 extending in its longitudinal direction.
5, and a cam 46 is attached to the shaft 45 between the ends of both members 42. A lever 47 is provided at both ends of the shaft 45, and the lever 47 is connected to the clamp shutter 36 via a link or the like.
A motor (not shown) is provided that can push the . As shown in FIG. 3, the lower ends of both members 42 are connected by a tension coil spring 48. The clamp 40 is made of a core material such as stainless steel and coated with rubber or the like, and has an upper end fixed to a member 42 and a lower end bent at a right angle so that the tip can clamp the work W from both sides.

As shown in FIG. 2, near both ends of the carrier bar body 41 are hooks 5 whose upper ends are bent in a direction toward each other.
0 is provided facing upward, and the bent portion of the upper end of the hook 50 is connected to the lifting arm 52 of the transfer robot 51 shown in FIG.
The carrier bar 37 and the workpiece W are conveyed by being locked at the handlebar. The robot 51 is the processing tank 1
The conveyor 2 is configured to run on a rail 53 provided above the conveyor 2.

A removal device 55 for removing the work W from the carrier bar 37 and a horizontal transport conveyor 56 for transporting the work W after removal are provided near the exit of the first group of processing tanks. The removal device 55 includes a pair of vertical columns 58 having a saddle 57 at the upper end for supporting a carrier bar, and a plate-shaped work holder 59 is provided between both columns 58. The holder 59 is rotatable about a horizontal shaft 60 at the lower end, and can be turned over from the vertical position shown in the figure in the direction opposite to the processing tank 1 as indicated by an arrow S. An arm 6 is attached to the horizontal shaft 60 near one of the pillars 58.
The arm 61 is provided with a plurality of forks 62 in a comb-teeth shape. fork 6
The dimensions of the arm 2 are set so that the arm 61 extends horizontally along substantially the entire surface of the holder 59 when the arm 61 stands up vertically. The conveyor 56 has a gap 6
The conveyor belt 64 is provided with a plurality of conveyor belts 64 extending parallel to each other and separated by three. When the arm 61 is in a state where it has fallen down as shown, the fork 62 enters the gap 63 and is located below the conveying surface of the belt 64. Further, the conveyor 56 is set to have a conveying direction as indicated by an arrow G, so that the workpiece W can be conveyed in a direction from the arm 61 to the tip of the fork 62. Note that the arm 61 is centered around the axis 60.
A motor (not shown) is provided to rotate the holder 59. Further, a clamp opener 65 having a structure similar to that of the clamp shutter 36 is provided at the upper part of the support column 58.

The above-mentioned device includes a sensor 6 such as a limit switch or a phototube fixed to the guide frame 22.
Various sensors including 6 (others not shown) are provided, and each part automatically operates as follows by these sensors and a control device.

Groove 1 of tray 4 at inlet 15 of conveyor 2
The lower edge of the workpiece W is inserted into the outlet 16 manually or by a device (not shown), and the workpiece W is conveyed to the outlet 16 while standing up. The height of the work W varies, and the position of the upper edge a differs depending on the work W, but the elevator 14 and the sensor 66
etc., the upper edge a of the workpiece at the conveyor outlet 16
The vertical positions of are kept constant as shown below. That is, the position of the upper edge a is detected by the sensor 66 and a preliminary sensor (not shown) before the exit 16, and the elevator 14 raises and lowers the conveyor 2 until the position of the upper edge a becomes constant. At this time, the rail 26 also moves up and down together with the conveyor 2.

The workpiece W that has reached the outlet 16 passes between the two guides 23 in the direction of the arrow R while having one side edge pushed by the protrusion 18 and the lower edge being supported by the rail 26, and is further held by both belts 27 while passing in the direction of the arrow R. sent in the direction. In this way, when a plurality of workpieces W are lined up adjacent to each other over substantially the entire length within the section L between both members 32 with the heights of the upper edges a aligned,
The conveyors 2, 3, etc. are temporarily stopped, and workpieces are attached to the carrier bar 37 as described below.

First, the carrier bar 37 is placed on the saddle 35 in parallel with the workpiece conveyance operation described above. In this state, the cam 46 in FIG. 3 is in a position to push both members 42 apart, and both members 42 are tilted with the hinge 43 as a fulcrum as shown by a two-dot chain line 42', and the clamp 40'
is open. When the workpieces W are arranged as described above, the clamp shutter 36 is operated to turn the lever 47 by, for example, 90 degrees, and the shaft 45 and cam 46 are also turned by 90 degrees. Then, the member 42 is pulled by the spring 48 and rotates to the position shown by the solid line, and the clamp 40 closes to clamp the upper edge of the workpiece W.

Next, the clamp release mechanism provided on the conveyor 3 shown in FIG. 1 is operated to relatively separate the pulleys 29 and 30, so that the belt 27 no longer clamps the workpiece W. Then the robot 51 moves to the carrier bar 37.
At the same time, the work W is pulled upward, and then the work W is immersed in a series of tanks 1 one after another. After the above-mentioned lifting, the clamp release mechanism returns the belt 27 to its original position, and the conveyors 2, 3, etc. start operating again. Note that while the belt 27 is open, the work W located between the belts 27 in the vicinity of the guide 23 (the work that is not clamped by the clamp 40) is supported by the rail 26 at a predetermined height.

When the plating process is completed, the carrier bar 37 is placed on the saddle 57 at the upper end of the support column 58. In this case, the holder 59 is upright, and the arm 61 is down toward the conveyor 56. Carrier bar 37
When the workpiece W is placed on the saddle 57, the arm 61 rotates in the direction of the reverse arrow S and stands up, and the workpiece W is held between the fork 62 and the holder 59. Next, the clamp opener 65 is activated and the lever 47 shown in FIG.
, and move the cam 4 to the position where both members 42 are spread apart.
Rotate 6. When the clamp 40 is opened and the workpiece W is released, only the carrier bar 37 is sent to the saddle 35 on the positioning conveyor 3 side by the robot 51 in FIG. The workpiece W is then placed on the belt 64 and conveyed in the direction of arrow G. Note that the holder 59 stops falling down just before the workpiece W gets on the belt 64, and returns to the upright position before the next carrier bar 37 is sent.

As explained above, according to the present invention, the supply conveyor 2 sequentially transports a plurality of plate-shaped workpieces W in an upright posture intersecting the transport direction F, and the pusher 1
7 (transfer mechanism) to the outlet 16 of the supply conveyor 2
The workpieces W are sequentially transferred from the positioning conveyor 3 to the entrance of the positioning conveyor 3, and the positioning conveyor 3 moves the workpieces W in the direction along the upper edge a of the workpieces to the section L (jig installation position) so that they are lined up on the same plane. At the same time, the vertical position of the supply conveyor 2 is adjusted by an elevator 14 (height adjustment mechanism) so that the vertical position of the upper edge a of the workpiece sent to the entrance of the conveyor 3 is constant. Therefore, the workpieces W can be automatically arranged in the section L with their upper edges a aligned, and the work of transporting and positioning the workpieces W for attachment to the carrier bar 37 can be simplified. Moreover, since the entire device is constructed mainly using a conveyor, the structure is simple and can be manufactured at low cost.

Further, by employing the removing device 55 and conveyor 56 shown in the illustrated embodiment, the work for removing the workpiece W can be simplified.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the embodiment, FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial view of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken from FIG. 2... Supply conveyor, 3... Positioning conveyor, 14... Elevator (height adjustment mechanism), 1
6... Outlet of supply conveyor, 17... Pusher (transfer mechanism), 37... Carrier bar (jig), a
...Top edge of the workpiece, F...Transfer direction, W...Workpiece.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A supply conveyor that sequentially transports multiple plate-shaped workpieces in an upright position that intersects the conveyance direction, and a supply conveyor that moves the multiple plate-shaped workpieces in a direction along the upper edge of the workpieces to a jig attachment position and arranges them on the same plane. A positioning conveyor, a transfer mechanism that sequentially transports workpieces from the outlet of the supply conveyor to the entrance of the positioning conveyor, and adjusts the vertical position of the supply conveyor so that the upper edge of the workpiece sent to the entrance is at a constant vertical position. and a height adjustment mechanism, wherein the positioning conveyor is constituted by a pair of clamp belts that can be clamped and released, with conveying surfaces perpendicular and facing each other.