JPH04346299A - Board positioning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily cope with alteration in thickness of a board without damaging the board in a device for conveying the board to a predetermined position and positioning fixedly it. CONSTITUTION:A structure in which a conveyor belt 6 for supporting both ends of a board 20 and conveying the board, is lifted by raising a belt guide 7 to hold the board 20 to a connecting plate 11 to be fixed, is provided.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate positioning device used in the process of mounting components on a substrate.

0002

[Background Art] In the automated process of mounting electronic components on printed circuit boards in the manufacturing process of electronic devices, a board positioning device positions and fixes the board transported at a predetermined position, and in this state, a component mounting robot I am trying to install parts on it.

The structure of this conventional substrate positioning device will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. In the figure, 1 shows the board positioning device as a whole, 2 is its base, and this base 2 has a pair of left and right guide rail plates 3 and 4.
are installed in parallel. These guide rail plates 3 and 4
Pulleys 5a and 5b are pivotally supported at both ends of the inner surface, and an endless conveyor belt 6 made of an elastic material such as rubber is stretched between both pulleys 5a and 5b.

A substrate 20 is mounted and supported on both conveyor belts 6 at both ends thereof, and pulleys 5a and 5b are rotated by a predetermined driving means (motor) (not shown).
By moving the conveyor belt 6, the substrate 20 is conveyed along the guide rail plates 3 and 4. Furthermore, a belt guide 7 is fixed to the center of the inner surface of both guide rail plates 3 and 4.
The structure is such that it guides the conveyor belt 6 on which the substrate 20 is placed and supports the belt 6 so that it does not bend downward.

[0005] The substrate positioning device having the above-mentioned substrate transport mechanism includes a fixing and holding mechanism that holds the substrate 20 in a fixed state after the board 20 has been transported to the center.

That is, this fixing and holding mechanism includes an air cylinder 8 that is fixed upright on the base 2, an elevating plate 9 that is connected to an operating rod of the air cylinder 8, and a plurality of air cylinders that are erected on the upper surface of the elevating plate 9. A lifting mechanism including a push-up pin 10 and a conveyor belt 6 at the upper end of both guide rail plates 3 and 4.
a locking plate 11 that is fixed so as to slightly protrude opposite to the locking plate 11;
When conveying the substrate, the elevating plate 9 is in a lowered state as shown in FIG. 2A, the push-up pins 10 are in a position that does not interfere with the conveyance of the substrate 20, and the substrate 20 is conveyed to a predetermined position and the belt 6 rotates. When the air cylinder 8 is operated, the elevating plate 9 is raised and the push-up pin 10 pushes up the board 20, so that both ends of the board 20 are pressed against the locking plate 11 as shown in FIG. It is held fixed in a fixed state. In addition, a stopper 12 is provided in this fixing and holding mechanism section, and when the board 20 is pushed up and fixed by the push-up pin 10, the lifting plate 9 comes into contact with this stopper 12, thereby causing the lifting plate 9 to The structure is designed to prevent damage to the substrate 20 by regulating the above rise.

[0007]

Problems to be Solved by the Invention As described above, in the conventional substrate positioning device, when positioning the substrate 20, the elevating plate 9
Raise the push-up pin 10 until it hits the stopper 12.
Since the structure is to press and fix the substrate 20 with You have to change the value. Furthermore, in the configuration of this conventional device, if components are already mounted on the bottom side of the board 20 (double-sided mounting board), the board 20 cannot be pushed up by the push-up pins 10, so it is difficult to position the board. I can't.

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of the above points.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a board positioning device that can easily respond to changes in board thickness and can perform good positioning even on double-sided mounting boards.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a substrate positioning device having a mechanism for transporting a substrate along a guide rail and a mechanism for fixing the substrate at a predetermined position. A conveyor belt that supports the end and rotates in the substrate conveyance direction, a belt guide that supports the conveyor belt, a locking plate provided on the guide rail corresponding to the upper part of the conveyor belt, and a belt guide that rotates in the vertical direction. When fixing the substrate, the belt guide is raised by the slide mechanism while the rotation of the conveyor belt is stopped, and the substrate is pushed up together with the conveyor belt and brought into pressure contact with the locking plate. The positioning of the substrate is performed using the following method.

0010

[Operation] The substrate positioning device of the present invention as described above has a structure in which the conveyor belt supporting the edge of the substrate is raised and the substrate is sandwiched and fixed between the conveyor belt and the corresponding locking plate. Therefore, even if the thickness of the board is different, the board can be securely fixed regardless of the thickness, and the board can be pressed against the locking plate without the need for conventional push-up pins, allowing components to be mounted on the bottom side of the board. Good positioning is possible even in the case of a double-sided mounting board.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Parts corresponding to those of the conventional example shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.

In this example, the belt guide 7 supporting the conveyor belt 6 on which the substrate 20 is placed is movable up and down, and has a structure in which it moves up and down in conjunction with the elevating plate 9. That is, both belt guides 7 are attached to the guide rail plates 3 and 4 via slide mechanisms 13 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction (specifically, the belt guides 7 are attached to the inner surfaces of the guide rail plates 3 and 4 in the vertical direction. (The sliding part of the belt guide 7 is fitted into the guide groove formed in the guide groove so that it can slide freely and be prevented from falling off.) Furthermore, the lower ends of both belt guides 7 are fitted with grooves facing inward, respectively. The engaging protrusion 7a is formed to protrude and corresponds to the end of the elevating plate 9 in the vertical direction. In addition, in this example device, the stopper 1 provided in the conventional example
2 is omitted.

To explain the operation of the substrate positioning device of this example constructed as described above, first, when the substrate 20 is transported, the elevating plate 9 is in the lowered position as shown in FIG. 1A, and both belt guides 7 are in the normal position ( This position is the same as that of the conventional example shown in FIG. 2), and enables smooth conveyance of the substrate 20.

When the substrate 20 is conveyed to a predetermined position, the conveyor belt 6 stops rotating, and then the air cylinder 8
is activated and the elevating plate 9 is raised. At this time, as shown in Figure B, both ends of the elevating plate 9 abut and engage with the engaging protrusions 7a of both belt guides 7, respectively, and both belt guides 7 are pushed up integrally. By the upward movement of both belt guides 7, both ends of the substrate 20 are pushed up together with the conveyor belt 6 and are pressed against the locking plate 11, that is, the conveyor belt 6
Both ends of the board 20 are sandwiched between the locking plate 11 and the locking plate 11 . At the same time, as the elevating plate 9 rises, the push-up pin 10 pushes up the central portion of the substrate 20, and supports it from below. The board 20 is fixed in this manner, and when the fixed state of the board is confirmed, the operation of the air cylinder 8 is stopped and the positioning operation of the board is completed.

Due to the above-described structure, the substrate positioning device of this embodiment can automatically respond to changes in substrate thickness, that is, the substrate can be reliably fixed regardless of the thickness of the substrate. At this time, since the board 20 is sandwiched and fixed between the conveyor belt 6 and the locking plate 11 at both ends thereof, the central part of the board 20 (component mounting part)
(For this reason, the stopper 12 of the conventional example can be omitted in this example device).

Moreover, in this example, by using an elastic material for the conveyor belt 6, the substrate 20 can be connected to the conveyor belt 6 and the locking plate 1.
There is almost no damage to the substrate 20 when it is sandwiched between the two.

In addition, in this example device, when the board is fixed, the push-up pin 10 also rises at the same time as the belt guide 7 to support the center of the board 20, so if the board 20 is warped downward, this can be avoided. It can be corrected.

Furthermore, in this embodiment of the apparatus, even without the push-up pins 10, the substrate 20 is connected to the conveyor belt 6 and the locking plate 1 at both ends thereof.
1 and is securely fixed, so in the case of a double-sided mounted board with components already mounted on the bottom side of the board, by eliminating the push-up pin 10, this double-sided mounted board can be positioned well without any hindrance. can.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and can take various other embodiments.

[0020]

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above description, the board positioning device of the present invention can easily respond to changes in board thickness without damaging the board, and moreover, components are mounted on the bottom side of the board. This has the advantage that the substrate can be positioned even when the substrate is

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention, where A shows the state when the substrate is being transported, and B shows the state when the board is positioned.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional example, where A is when the substrate is being transported;
is when positioning the board.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Board positioning device 3,4 Guide rail plate 6 Conveyor belt 7 Belt guide 9 Elevating board 11 Locking plate (locking part) 13 Slide mechanism 20　Substrate

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A substrate positioning device having means for conveying a substrate along a guide rail and means for fixing the substrate at a predetermined position, the device comprising: a conveyor belt that supports an edge of the substrate and rotates in the substrate conveyance direction; , comprising a belt guide that supports the conveyor belt, a locking portion provided on the guide rail corresponding to an upper part of the conveyor belt, and a slide mechanism that allows the belt guide to slide in the vertical direction,
When fixing the substrate, the belt guide is raised by the slide mechanism while the rotation of the conveyor belt is stopped, and the substrate is pushed up along with the conveyor belt and pressed against the locking portion, thereby positioning the substrate. A board positioning device characterized by: