JPH0321112B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application This invention relates to an automatic cassette exchange method for a component feeding device applied to a component mounting device used for mounting chip-type electronic components onto a circuit board.

Conventional technology Conventionally, in devices for mounting chip-type electronic components, such as leadless resistors and capacitors, on circuit boards, the electronic components are mounted in a line on tape.
Electronic components are sequentially supplied one by one while this tape is unrolled from a reeled state.

The reel is integrated with a feeding mechanism to form a cassette. In this cassette, a large number of different stored parts are lined up in a line on a carriage of a parts feeder and are removably loaded, and the carriage is moved in the direction in which the cassettes are lined up, and any cassette is placed at the parts receiving position of the component placement apparatus. to correspond to.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention Conventionally, when a part of the cassette on the carriage breaks, the cassette has to be replaced manually. In this case, a cassette of the same type as the missing part is selected from a shelf containing a large number of replacement cassettes and replaced. Therefore, there is a problem in that it is inefficient and requires about 5 minutes to replace the cassette, and the component mounting device must be stopped during this time, which reduces the operating rate of the component mounting device. One cassette usually stores around 5,000 electronic components, but in cassettes for parts that are used in large numbers,
The number of replacements per day is large, resulting in a significant problem of lower operating rates.

An object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the conventional method, and to provide a replacement method that allows cassettes to be replaced without stopping the operation of the component mounting device, thereby eliminating loss of operating time. .

Means for Solving the Problems In the automatic cassette exchange method for a parts feeding device of the present invention, a spare storage area is prepared near the movement route of a carriage that loads cassettes in a line to place new cassettes for replacement. and preparing at least one empty storage area in which the cassettes can be placed at the end of the cassette arrangement direction on the carriage, and preparing a transfer means capable of transferring the cassettes between the preliminary storage area and the carriage, and In this method, a new cassette from the reserve storage area is temporarily placed in the empty storage area and the cassette is exchanged. The carriage is placed near a component mounting device that mounts components onto a board.

Specifically, at least one empty storage space in which a cassette can be placed is prepared at an end in the direction in which the cassettes are lined up on the carriage, and after this, when the number of parts remaining in any cassette on the carriage reaches a predetermined number. a step of detecting that the component is out of stock and notifying the user that the component is out of stock, and when the component mounting device replaces the board after the warning that the component is out of stock;
a step of transferring a new cassette of the same type of parts as the previously announced cassette in the preliminary storage area to the empty storage area of the carriage; a step of detecting that the part is broken; and a step of changing the subsequent operation of the carriage to correspond to the part receiving position from the position of the part out cassette to the position of a new cassette in the empty storage area based on this detection; Later, when the component mounting device replaces the board, the out-of-component cassette is taken out by the transfer means, and the cassette in the empty storage space is removed from the empty storage area where the out-of-component cassette was placed while the component mounting device is replacing the board. This method includes a step of replacing the cassette with the original storage location, and a step of changing the subsequent operation of the carriage to correspond to the component receiving position from the empty storage location to the position of the replaced cassette.

Effect: According to this method, before the parts in the cassette on the carriage run out, a new cassette is placed in the empty storage area of the carriage, so there is no chance that parts in the cassette will run out while parts are being installed on one board. Even if the parts are removed from the new cassette, they can be continued to be installed. Therefore, the cassette can be replaced when replacing the board, there is no need to stop the component mounting device for replacing the cassette, and there is no problem of lower operating efficiency. Further, since a cassette placed in the empty storage area of the carriage is replaced with the original cassette taken out due to running out of parts, the empty storage area can be used in common for replacing all the cassettes on the carriage. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide empty storage spaces for all the cassettes on the carriage, and the number of empty storage spaces can be reduced. In other words, the number of empty storage areas may be equal to the number of cassettes in which out-of-component parts are expected to overlap for one board, and one empty storage area may be sufficient in some cases. Furthermore, since the cassette in the empty storage area is replaced with the original cassette position, the operation of the carriage for selecting the cassette can be shortened. That is,
When mounting multiple types of parts on one board,
After taking out parts from one cassette lined up on the carriage, the carriage moves when taking out parts from another cassette. Since this travel time becomes a loss time for mounting parts, generally the cassettes are arranged in accordance with the order in which the parts are taken out, so that the travel distance of the carriage is minimized. In this case, if parts are taken out from the empty storage area, the moving distance of the carriage is likely to become longer, but since the removal of parts from the empty storage area is temporary, loss time can be reduced.

Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 1 to 5. In FIG. 1, 1 is a component mounting device, and a component feeding device 2 is installed behind it. The component mounting device 1 includes an adhesive application head 5 and a component mounting head 6 on a gate-shaped frame portion 4 of a base 3.
are arranged side by side, and an XY table 9 on which two substrates 7 and 8 are placed is installed below.
The XY table 9 is placed in the left and right direction (X direction) of the base 3.
and can move freely in the front-back direction (Y direction). 10 is a substrate carrying-in guide, and 11 is a substrate carrying-out guide. The component mounting head 5 has a plurality of component suction nozzles 13 attached to a rotating frame 12 that rotates horizontally. Each component suction nozzle 13 is pipe-connected to a suction device (not shown), and is driven up and down by a lift drive device 14.

The parts feeding device 2 includes a carriage 16 on which a large number of cassettes 15 are placed in a line, and a carriage 16 on which a large number of cassettes 15 are mounted.
and a reciprocating drive device (not shown) that moves the carriage 16 in the direction in which the carriages are lined up (Z-axis direction). 17
is a guide rail of the carriage 16. Shuttle 1
A plurality of empty spaces S ₁ to S ₃ (FIG. 4) in which cassettes 15 can be placed are provided at the ends of the cassettes 6 in the cassette arrangement direction. A cassette transfer device 19 that arranges a preliminary storage area forming table 18 for the cassettes 15 near and behind the reciprocating path of the carriage 16, and transfers the cassettes 15 between the preliminary storage area forming table 18 and the carriage 16.
is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cassette 15 includes a main reel 2 on which a component storage tape 20 is wound.
1 and a presser paper take-up reel 22 are rotatably attached to a cassette frame 23, and a feed lever 24 is provided at the tip of the cassette frame 23. The component storage tape 20 stores a large number of components 25 such as chip-type electronic components in a line and presses them onto a holding paper 26.
It is covered with The feeding lever 24 feeds out the component storage tape 20 pitch by pitch of the components 25 by rotating downward, and is pushed downward by the cylinder device 27 provided on the rotating frame 12 of the component mounting head 5. . The presser paper 26 is wound around the presser paper take-up reel 22 at the guide piece 28 of the cassette frame 23, and the component 25 is exposed on the tip side of the cassette frame 23 beyond this.
Note that the rotating frame 12 is equipped with a component outage detection sensor 29 that detects when the component 15 in the cassette 15 is missing.
is provided.

The cassette frame 23 has a cassette lock pawl 30 and a lock protrusion 31 provided on the carriage 16.
It has an engagement recess 32 on the lower surface that engages with. The cassette lock pawl 30 is supported so as to be movable up and down, connected to a lock release rod 32 that can move forward and backward, and is biased in the locking direction by a compression spring 34. The unlocking rod 33 projects from the carriage 16 and is pushed against the compression spring 34 by the unlocking rod drive cylinder 35 of the standby storage platform 18.

The preliminary storage area forming table 18 is a preliminary storage area forming base 18
P ₁ to P ₃ are provided in the direction in which the cassettes are lined up on the carriage 16.

The cassette transfer device 19, as shown in FIG. body 38 and front and rear guides 3 provided on this transverse body 38
It has a front-rear moving body 40 that moves along 9. The chit-yaku 36 is attached to the front-rear movable body 40 so as to be movable up and down. Driving means in each direction is omitted from illustration.

Note that each driving means such as the component mounting device 1 and the component feeding device 2 is controlled by one program-type central control device (not shown). This central control device is provided with a counter that inputs the number of components in each cassette 15 and counts each time a component 25 is mounted by the component mounting device 1. Furthermore, a warning means is provided for counting by this counter and giving a warning when the remaining amount of parts reaches a set number.

An outline of the operation of the component mounting device 1 will be explained. XY
Adhesive is applied to the substrate 7 on the right side of FIG. 1 on the table 9 by the adhesive application head 6 for each component mounting position. The board 8 on the left side of FIG. 1 on the XY table 9 has been shifted from the right side on the XY table 9 after adhesive application has been completed, and a component 25 is mounted on it by the component mounting head 5. Parts mounting head 5
is caused by each component suction nozzle 13 of the rotating frame 12,
The parts 25 of the cassette 15 are successively suctioned, carried onto the board 8, and mounted by pressing. One or more of various types of components 25 are mounted on the board 8 . At this time, parts 25 of the same type are successively taken out from the same cassette 15 and mounted. Part 2
When changing the type of parts 5, the carriage 16 is moved and the cassette 15 containing the parts 25 of that type is moved.
, the component receiving position N of the component mounting device 1 (Fig. 2)
This corresponds to the component suction nozzle 13 of .

The cassette exchange method will be explained with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. Any cassette 15 of the carriage 16
Case _A will be explained. The number of parts stored in the cassette _15A is, for example, 5,000, but when the remaining number of parts reaches a predetermined number, for example, 200 to 300, a first warning of parts shortage is given and the operator is notified. The method of advance notice is
By monitor, notification lamp, buzzer, etc.
The remaining amount is detected by the counter of the above-mentioned central control device.

When the first parts shortage notice is given, the worker carries the cassette 15 _A ' containing parts 25 of the same type as the cassette 15 _A from the cassette storage shelf, etc., and places it in the spare storage area of the spare storage area forming table 18. Place it on P ₁ . Continuing to install parts, the number of remaining parts in cassette 15 _A , which has been notified of the first part being out of stock, will be, for example, 20.
When the number reaches ~30, a second parts outage notice will be given. In this case, the remaining amount is detected by a counter in the same manner as described above. The second component outage notice is given by an electrical signal, and when this signal is received, the mounting of the component 25 for the board 8 being mounted at that time is completed, and when the board 8 is replaced, the cassette transfer device 19 is activated. The cassette _15A ' in the spare storage area _P1 is moved to the carriage 16.
Place it in the empty storage space S ₁ (arrow Q in Figure 4). At this time,
The carriage 16 is stopped at the origin position. As a result, the empty storage site _S1 has come to a position corresponding to the reserve storage site _P1 .

After placing a new cassette _15A ' in the empty storage space _S1 ,
The mounting of components onto the next board 8 begins. When the parts 25 in the cassette _15A for which the second part-outage notice has been given run out, it is detected by the out-of-parts detection sensor 29 (Fig. 2) of the component mounting head 5, and the program is automatically changed based on the detection signal. conduct. With this change, the component 25 is taken out from the new cassette _15A ' in the empty storage area _S1 and the component mounting is continued. That is, when taking out the parts 25 of the type of parts cassette _15A , the new cassette _15A ' in the empty storage space _S1 is placed in a position corresponding to the suction nozzle 13 of the parts receiving device N of the parts mounting head 5. The carriage 16 is operated.

Thereafter, when the mounting of components on the board 8 is completed and the board 8 is to be replaced, the cassette _15A of parts is taken out to the reserve storage area _P1 by the cassette transfer device 19 (arrow R in FIG. 4). At this time, the carriage 16 is moved to a position where the parts cassette _15A corresponds to the spare storage area _P1 and is stopped there. This movement
At the time of replacement, the carriage 16 may be on its way back to the original position, or after returning, it may be moved from the original position again for attachment to the next board 8. After this, parts are mounted on the next board 8 from the cassette _15A ' while remaining in the vacant storage space _S1 .
However, when replacing this board 8, the cassette transfer device 19 transfers the cassette _15A ' from the empty storage area _S1 to the original cassette 1 that was taken out due to missing parts.
5 Replace _A with hot storage area S _A (arrow T in Figure 4). Then, by automatic program change, the parts 25 are taken out from the cassette 15 _A ' in the original storage area S _A. In other words, the original storage area S _A is
The carriage 16 is operated so as to come to a position corresponding to the component receiving position N of the component mounting head 5. The parts cassette _15A taken out to the spare storage area _P1 is
The worker takes it out as appropriate. Parts 25 of cassette 15 _A
When the remaining quantity reaches a predetermined number (200 to 300 pieces), the above-mentioned first part-outage notice is given, and the above-mentioned operations are repeated.

The above has been explained for the case of the cassettes 15 _A , 15 _A ', but other arbitrary cassettes 15 _B , 15 _C
The same applies to the case (FIG. 4A). one board 8
If there is a warning that two or more cassettes 15 are out of parts while parts are being installed, new cassettes 15 of the same type will be installed for all cassettes 15 for which the warning has been received.
are placed in each reserve storage area P ₁ to _{P 3} . Further, when replacing one board 8, replacement from the reserve storage areas _P1 to _P3 to the empty storage areas _S1 to _P3 is sequentially performed.

The empty storage areas S ₁ to _{S 3} of the carriage 16 are empty storage area S 1 , empty storage area S ₂ , empty storage area S ₂ and empty storage area for all cassettes 15 .
The vacant spaces may be used in the order of _S3 , or any of the vacant storage spaces _S1 to _S3 may be used exclusively for each set of cassettes 15.

Automatic cassette exchange is performed as described above, but according to this method, before the parts 25 of the cassette 15 on the carriage 16 are cut, the empty storage spaces S ₁ to 1 of the carriage 16 are replaced.
Since a new cassette 15 is placed in S ₃ , 1
Even if the component 25 in the cassette 15 runs out while the component 25 is being installed on a new board 8, a new cassette 1 can be inserted.
The part 25 is taken out from the part 5 and the installation is continued. Therefore, the cassette 15 can be replaced when the board 8 is replaced, there is no need to stop the component mounting device 1 for replacing the cassette, and there is no problem of lower operating efficiency. In addition, the cassettes 15 placed in the empty storage areas S ₁ to _{S 3} of the carriage 16 are replaced with the original cassettes 15 taken out due to running out of parts _.
S3 can be shared for exchanging all the cassettes 15 on the carriage 16. Therefore, empty storage areas S ₁ to _{S 3}
It is not necessary to individually provide each of the cassettes 15 on the carriage, and the number of empty storage spaces _S1 to _S3 can be reduced. In other words, the number of empty storage spaces S ₁ to S ₃ is:
It is only necessary to provide as many cassettes 15 as the number of cassettes 15 in which parts are expected to be out of stock for each board 8.
In some cases, one location for S ₁ to _{S 3} is sufficient. Furthermore, since the cassettes 15 in the empty storage areas _S1 to _S3 are replaced to the original cassette 15 positions, the operation of the carriage 16 for selecting cassettes can be shortened. That is, when a plurality of types of parts 25 are mounted on one board 8, the parts 2 of one cassette 15 lined up on the carriage 16 are
After removing part 5, remove part 25 from another cassette 15.
The carriage 16 moves when taking out. Since this moving time becomes a lost time in mounting parts, generally the cassettes 15 are arranged in accordance with the order in which the parts 25 are taken out, so that the moving distance of the carriage 16 is minimized. In this case, the parts 25 are taken out from the empty storage area S ₁ to
When changing to S ₃ , the moving distance of the carriage 16 tends to become longer, but since the removal of parts from the empty storage areas S ₁ to _{S 3} is temporary, an increase in lost time can be avoided.

In the above embodiment, the cassette transfer device 19 uses a device in which the chip 36 is movable in _three axes _.
It may also be one that is sent straight forward as it is. In that case, empty storage areas S ₁ to _{S 3} of the carriage 16
To return the cassette 15 from the cassette to its original location, another cassette replacement device is prepared and used. Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, when taking out the cassette 15 of out-of-parts from the carriage 16, the cassettes 15, which are out of parts, are removed from the spare storage areas _P1 to _P3.
However, it is also possible to take it out directly to another location without returning it. Furthermore, the preliminary storage space forming table 18 is not fixed in position, but the carriage 16
It may be moved in the direction of movement. In this way, the operation time for making the empty storage sites S ₁ to _{S 3} of the carriage 16 correspond to the preliminary storage sites P ₁ to P ₃ can be shortened.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION The automatic cassette replacement method for a component feeder according to the present invention has the advantage that cassettes can be replaced without stopping the operation of the component mounting device, and a reduction in operating efficiency due to cassette replacement can be eliminated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a component mounting device and a component feeding device used in an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view thereof, FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged perspective view thereof, and FIG. 4 is a cassette automatic FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining the procedure of the automatic cassette exchange method. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Component mounting device, 2... Component feeding device, 3... Base, 5... Component mounting head, 7, 8... Board, 9...
XY table, 13...Component suction nozzle, 15, 1
5 _A , 15 _A ′...cassette, 16... carriage, 18...
Spare storage area forming table, 19...cassette transfer device, S ₁ ~
_S3 ...Empty storage area, _P1 ~ _P3 ...Spare storage area, N...Parts receiving position.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A reciprocating table disposed near a component mounting device that mounts components onto a board, on which component accommodating cassettes are lined up in a row and removably mounted; An automatic cassette exchange method applied to a parts feeding device equipped with a carriage driving device that corresponds to a parts receiving position of a mounting device, the method comprising at least placing a new cassette for replacement near the reciprocating path of the carriage. One spare storage area is prepared, a transfer means capable of transferring cassettes between the preliminary storage area and the carriage is prepared, and at least one cassette can be placed on the end of the carriage in the direction in which the cassettes are lined up. After preparing two empty storage areas, there is a step of detecting that the remaining number of parts in any cassette on the carriage has reached a predetermined number and giving an advance notice that the parts will be out of stock, and after this advance notice that the parts are out of stock, the component mounting device a step of transferring a new cassette of the same type of components as the previously announced cassette in the spare storage area to the empty storage area of the carriage when replacing the board, and after this, while the component mounting device is restarted; A process of detecting that the parts in the previously announced cassette have run out, and a subsequent operation of moving the carriage to the part receiving position based on this detection, from the position of the parts out cassette to a new cassette position in the empty storage area. a step of taking out the out-of-component cassette with the transfer means when the component mounting device replaces the board; and a step of removing the cassette in the empty storage space from the empty storage space during the board replacement of the component mounting device. a step of replacing the out-of-parts cassette with the original storage location; and a step of changing the subsequent operation of the carriage to correspond to the parts receiving position from the empty storage location to the position of the replaced cassette. An automatic cassette exchange method for a parts feeding device, characterized in that: