JPH04308119A - Board conveying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To effectively use a factory space by direction-changing and automatically conveying a product such as a printed board from the first machine to the second machine. CONSTITUTION:A board conveying device direction-changing a board 35 conveyed from the first device and feeding it to the second device 3 has guide rail means 43, 45 accepting the board 35 conveyed from the first device, a conveying means moving the board 35 along the guide rail means 43, 45, a sensor means detecting that the board 35 is conveyed to the guide rail means 43, 45 from the first device, and a rotating means direction-changing the guide rails 43, 45 in the feed section direction of the second device 3 based on the output of the sensor means. The board 35 is fed from the first device along the guide rail means 43, 45, the guide rails 43, 45 are direction-changed by the rotating means, then the board 35 is conveyed to the second device 3.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a substrate transfer device.
In particular, the present invention relates to a technique for changing the conveying direction of a printed circuit board carried by a conveyor belt or the like by, for example, 90 degrees and feeding it into a substrate processing apparatus.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in the manufacturing process of printed circuit boards, screen printers, cream solder printers, solder processing equipment, and various other devices are used. In the process of manufacturing a printed circuit board, the printed circuit board is sequentially transported between these devices by a conveyor belt or the like, and processed in each device.

In such cases, it is desirable to sequentially arrange the processing apparatuses in a straight line according to the manufacturing process, but there are cases where it is not possible to arrange them in a straight line due to space constraints in the factory. In such cases, conventional methods have been used such as dividing the production line into multiple lines or bending the production line at right angles. At the point where the production line bends, products such as printed circuit boards are manually transferred from the previous line to the next line, or the production line itself is shaped like an arc to transport the products.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, among these conventional methods, the method of manually transferring a product such as a printed circuit board to another processing device after it has been processed by a previous processing device has the disadvantage that This method requires a lot of manpower and has the disadvantage of deteriorating work efficiency, such as slowing down processing speed. Also,
The method of transporting products from a previous processing device to the next processing device using an arcuate line has not always been able to save enough factory space.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the problems in the conventional methods, an object of the present invention is to provide a method for automatically transporting products such as printed circuit boards in a direction other than the original transport direction using a simple device configuration. The aim is to save labor and improve work efficiency without occupying a large factory space.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a substrate transfer device for changing the direction of a substrate transferred from a first device and carrying it into a second device. , a guide rail means for receiving a substrate conveyed from the first device, and a conveyance means for moving the substrate along the guide rail means;
sensor means for detecting that the substrate is carried into the guide rail means from the first device; and for changing the direction of the guide rail toward the loading section of the second device based on the output of the sensor means. and a rotating means,
The present invention is characterized in that the substrate is carried into the second device after the direction of the guide rail is changed by the rotation means.

[0007]

[Operation] In the above structure, the guide rail is initially positioned in the direction of receiving the substrate conveyed from the first device. Then, when a substrate is transferred from the first device, the transfer means moves the substrate along the guide rail means, and when the substrate is carried into the guide rail means, the sensor means detects this. In response to this detection, the rotating means rotates the guide rail together with the substrate toward the loading section of the second device. When this rotation is completed, the substrate is carried into the second device again along the guide rail by the conveyance means. This makes it possible to change direction and automatically transport the substrate from the first device to the second device without occupying a large factory space.

[0008]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a substrate transfer device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus shown in the figure is for transporting a printed circuit board from a board storage magazine 1 as a first apparatus to a silk screen printing machine 3 as a second apparatus by turning the printed circuit board 90 degrees. The device shown in the figure includes a base part 9 having side plate parts 5 and 7 which also serve as guide rails for the board, a motor 11 for rotating the base part 9 by, for example, 90 degrees, and both side plates of the base part 9. It is composed of conveyor belts 13 and 15 attached to parts 5 and 7, motors 17 and 19 for moving each conveyor belt 13 and 15, and the like. The conveyor belt 13 includes pulleys 21 and 23 rotatably attached to both ends of the side plate 5 and guide rollers 25 and 2.
7 and the shaft 29 of the motor 17, and is configured to be moved by the rotation of the motor 17. The conveyor belt 15 provided on the other side plate portion 7 is also driven by a motor 19 with a similar structure.

[0009] The direction change motor 11 is preferably a hydraulic motor, for example, and it is advantageous to prevent damage to the substrate by softening the impact during direction change. Further, a sensor 31 is attached near one end of the side plate portion 7 to detect the presence of a substrate. This sensor 31 can be, for example, a sensor that optically detects the presence of a substrate, a switch that mechanically detects the presence of a substrate, or any other sensor.

Further, the substrate storage magazine 1 as the first device is placed on a table (not shown) whose height sequentially moves, and the substrates 35 stored in each substrate groove 33 are placed on a table (not shown) whose height sequentially moves.
It is configured such that it can be sent out sequentially onto conveyor belts 13 and 15. Further, the second device 3 is also provided with conveyor belts 37 and 39 for receiving printed circuit boards, and when the base portion 9 is rotated by 90 degrees from the direction shown in the figure by the motor 11, the It is configured to be able to receive a substrate and carry it into the second device 3.

FIG. 2 shows the apparatus of FIG. 1 viewed from above. In FIG. 2, parts that are the same as in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals. As is clear from FIG. 2, the rotation center 41 of the base section 9 is provided at a position offset from the center of each of the substrates sent from the first device and the substrates carried into the second device. . By offsetting the rotation axis in this way, the distance D between the transport rails 7, 5 and the transport rails 43, 45 of the second device 3 can be reduced, and even small substrates can be transported accurately without falling off. Become. Note that 47 is a second sensor for detecting that the substrate is carried into the second device 3, and its structure is similar to that of the sensor 31.
It can be the same as.

The operation of the substrate transfer apparatus having the above structure will be explained with reference to FIG. First, as shown in (a), the guide rails 5 and 7 of the transport device, and thus the transport belts 13 and 15, are initially directed toward the substrate storage magazine 1. In FIG. 3, illustration of the guide rails 5 and 7 is omitted. In this state, the printed circuit board 3 is pressed by the circuit board pressing device provided on the magazine 1 side, that is, the pusher 49.
5 is sent out to the substrate transport device.

The printed circuit board 35 sent to the board transport device is sent out by the transport belts 13, 15 (b)
Move to the position shown. The sensor 31 is a printed circuit board 35
When detected, the movement of each conveyor belt 13, 15 is stopped.

Next, as shown in (c), the base 9 is rotated 90 degrees by the motor 11, and the respective conveyor belts 13 and 15 are in positions opposite to the conveyor belts 37 and 39 of the second device 3, respectively. Moving.

Then, as shown in (d), the conveyor belts 13 and 15 move again to feed the printed circuit board 35 into the second device 3.

Then, the printed circuit board 35 is fed into a second machine, and the second sensor 47 is connected to the printed circuit board 3.
When the passage of the substrate 5 is detected, as shown in (e), the base portion 9 is turned over again by 90 degrees, and each transport rail 13, 15 returns to the position facing the magazine 1, and waits for the delivery of the next substrate.

The printed circuit boards thus stored in the magazine 1 are automatically fed into the second device 3 in order and processed. In addition, each motor 11, 1 in the above operation
The operation timings of sensors 7, 19, etc. are controlled by, for example, a sequencer based on the outputs of the respective sensors 31, 47, etc.

[0018]

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to change the direction of products such as printed circuit boards and automatically transport them without occupying a large factory space.
Workability in the printed circuit board manufacturing process can be improved without requiring extra manpower.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a substrate transfer device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view showing the positional relationship between each transport rail of the device in FIG. 1 and first and second devices.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Board storage magazine 3 Second device 5, 7 Side plate part 9 Base part 11 Direction changing motor 13, 15, 37, 39 Conveyor belt 17, 19
Belt drive motor 21, 23 Pulley 25, 27 Guide roller 29 Motor shaft 31, 47 Sensor 33 Board insertion groove 35 Printed board 41 Rotation center 43, 45 Guide rail 49 Pusher

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A substrate transfer device for changing the direction of a substrate transferred from a first device and carrying it into a second device, the substrate transfer device for receiving the substrate transferred from the first device. a guide rail means, a conveying means for moving the substrate along the guide rail means, a sensor means for detecting that the substrate is carried into the guide rail means from the first device; a rotating means for changing the direction of the guide rail toward the loading section of the second device based on the output of the sensor means, and after the turning means completes changing the direction of the guide rail, the substrate is A substrate transport device, characterized in that it is carried into a second device. 2. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the direction change of the guide rails is performed around an axis offset from a center between the guide rails.