KR20200049663A - Providing components by means of two vibration actuator systems using two serially arranged bearing units - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a component supply apparatus (100-900) for providing individualized components. The component supply apparatus (100-900) includes: (a) a chassis (110); (b) a first bearing unit (120-920) having a fixed component coupled to the chassis (110) and a movable component; (c) an intermediate body (140) coupled to the movable component; (d) a second bearing unit (150-950) having a first component coupled to the intermediate body (140) and a second component; (e) a conveyor structure (180) coupled to the second component and formed such that individualized components are conveyed to a presentation area (284) along a conveying area (282) by vibration of the conveyor structure (180); (f) a first actuator system (342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844, 942, 944) assigned and arranged to the first bearing unit (120-920) and designed to actuate the movable component with at least two degrees of freedom relative to the fixed component; and (g) a second actuator system (362, 762, 764, 862, 864, 962, 963, 964) assigned and arranged to the second bearing unit (150-950) and designed to actuate the second component with at least one other degree of freedom relative to the first component. In addition, the present invention relates to an assembly system having the component supply apparatus and a method of providing individualized components using the component supply apparatus.

Description

PROVIDING COMPONENTS BY MEANS OF TWO VIBRATION ACTUATOR SYSTEMS USING TWO SERIALLY ARRANGED BEARING UNITS}

The present invention relates to the supply of individualized electronic components into the provision area for further processing or handling of the supplied individualized electronic components. The present invention relates in particular to a component feeding device that provides individualized parts for automatic assembly of component carriers in an assembly machine, in particular individualized electronic components. The invention also relates to an assembly system comprising an assembly machine and at least one said component feeding device and a method for providing individualized components using said component feeding unit.

When mechanically assembling (electronic) parts with component carriers, the parts to be processed are fed into an assembly process that is generally carried out in an assembly machine. The supply of parts is generally made so that the parts are provided at a designated part pick-up position, and thereafter, picked up quickly and reliably by the assembly head of the assembly machine so that they can be seated in a predetermined spatial position and orientation on the part carrier.

The parts are usually packaged in so-called parts belts to ensure a reliable supply or delivery of parts. Since the belts are approached to the assembly machine step by step by means of a special belt component feeding device, the components placed in the component belt are transported sequentially and from a specified space location to the component pickup location. However, packaging parts with such a component belt is complicated and expensive. In addition, the belt material must be disposed of as waste after separation of the parts.

To avoid complicated packaging and the aforementioned waste problems, it is known to use so-called vibrating conveyors that can transport parts to be processed in the form of bulk material. However, the sequential bringing of the parts to a specific part pick-up location requires significant particularly mechanical costs. To achieve this, vibrating conveyors are designed to provide parts sequentially and in suitable orientation by means of mechanical guide units, sometimes referred to as “baffles”.

In publication 2011 US 284344 A1, parts can be moved as intended (without a mechanical baffle) by superposition of vibrations in three different spatial directions, so that the parts are surely individualized and transported to a designated pick-up area on a predetermined serving plate. , A vibration conveyor is disclosed that allows pickup to be achieved by an assembly head from the provision plate. The vibrating conveyor includes a linear vibrating actuator that conveys the parts substantially linearly to the providing plate so that the parts can be picked up by the assembly head from the providing plate. The providing plate is oriented perpendicular to each other and mechanically coupled with two vibrating actuators allowing movement with 5 or 6 degrees of freedom, respectively. The vibration actuators each include a metal component and a bellows connecting the vibration component to each other. Since the metal bellows can have torsional stiffness around the longitudinal axis, five motion degrees of freedom can be operated by each of the two vibration actuators (three translational degrees of freedom and two rotational degrees of freedom). However, the vibrating conveyor has the disadvantage that, in practice, since two vibrating actuators are mechanically coupled to each other, the operation of individual degrees of freedom by one vibrating actuator cannot be carried out without at least some undesired lateral influence of the other vibrating actuator. . In addition, the vibration conveyor is susceptible to vibration from the surroundings, for example the vibration of the chassis of an assembly machine equipped with a vibration conveyor. All of this causes a certain "out of control" of conveyor behavior.

An object of the present invention is to improve the controllability of transportation of parts by vibration.

This problem is solved by the objects of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments of the invention are described in the dependent claims.

According to a first aspect of the invention, a component supply device is provided which provides individualized parts, in particular individualized electronic parts, for automatic assembly of component carriers by an assembly machine. The described component supply device comprises: (a) a chassis; (b) a first bearing unit having a fixed component and a movable component (mechanically) coupled with the chassis; (c) an intermediate body (mechanically) coupled with the movable component; (d) a second bearing unit having a first component and a second component (mechanically) coupled with the intermediate body; (e) Conveyor structure, wherein the conveyor structure is formed to be (mechanically) coupled with a second component and to allow individualized components to be transported along the (long) transport area to the presentation area by vibration of the conveyor structure. ; (f) a first actuator system assigned to the first bearing unit and designed to operate the movable component relative to the stationary component with at least two degrees of freedom; And (g) a second actuator system assigned to the second bearing unit and designed to operate the second component relative to the first component with at least one other degree of freedom.

The described component feeding device is based on the recognition that a high level of vibration decoupling can be achieved using two different bearing units connected to each other via an intermediate body. This applies not only to (internal) excitation by the actuators of the component feeding device, but also to external vibrations acting on the component feeding device from the outside. This external vibration can be caused by the gantry system of the assembly machine, in particular causing high dynamic movement of the assembly head (relatively heavy) in the XY plane.

Preferably, the bearing units are arranged to overlap each other about the vertical axis (parallel to the direction of gravity). Thus, they can be said to be bearing levels which are at least functionally arranged in series with each other.

The (mechanical) coupling of various elements of the component feeding device may be implemented by forming the elements integrally. Thus, (i) the fixed component can be integrally formed with the chassis, (ii) the intermediate body can be integrally formed with the movable component, (iii) the first component can be integrally formed with the intermediate body, and And / or (iv) the conveyor structure is integrally formed with the second component.

Particularly effective vibration decoupling can be realized by appropriately selecting the bearing elements for the two bearing units. For example, bearings with minimal stiffness and / or low friction or frictionless bearings in each direction of movement (translation or rotation) or along each direction of movement are suitable.

According to the general expression for all types of spatial movement, the degrees of freedom can be translational degrees of freedom or rotational degrees of freedom. Degrees of freedom can be related to one of three spatial directions. Preferably, at least one other degree of freedom of the second bearing unit relative to at least two degrees of freedom of the first bearing unit is a different degree of freedom. That is, there is no degree of freedom that is preferably permitted by two bearing units or operated or operated by two actuator systems.

The chassis of the component feeder can be any type of frame structure, which is a fixed reference frame for the component feeder. In the general operation of the component feeding device, the chassis of the described component feeding device can be connected to the chassis of the assembly machine by a suitable (mechanical) interface.

The bearing units can be various types of bearing structures that allow one or multiple relative motions (translation and / or rotation) between related components depending on a predetermined number and direction of freedom of motion. However, the two bearing units may also block one or multiple degrees of freedom of movement.

Preferably, the total degree of freedom required can be distributed to the two bearing units such that the expected external vibration excitation is preferably coupled only into one of the two bearing units. This means that one of the two bearing units has a degree of freedom of movement that at least approximately coincides with the direction of the expected external vibration.

The conveyor structure is preferably formed (without corners and edges) so that the parts to be transported can be transported to the presentation area, preferably without mechanical barriers. From there, the parts can be picked up one by one by the assembly head of the assembly machine, in particular by a vacuum gripper and mounted on a part carrier to be assembled in the scope of the conventional assembly process. However, since the conveyor structure preferably includes side restrictions on its edges, for example a web, unintentional dropping or dropping of parts can be prevented.

The two actuator systems preferably include a suitable number and type of actuators that provide at least one predetermined relative motion between related components depending on the degrees of freedom (number and type) of the corresponding bearing unit.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the first bearing unit allows the same degree of freedom of movement as the first actuator system can operate. Alternatively or in combination, the second bearing unit allows the same degree of freedom of movement as the second actuator system can operate.

Specifically, it means that the bearing unit blocks the freedom of movement that cannot be activated by the associated actuator system. This achieves improved vibration decoupling of different actuators or different degrees of freedom of movement.

According to another embodiment of the invention, exactly one actuator is provided for each degree of freedom. This means that the entire vibrating system of the component feeder is neither "overworked" nor "overworked". This also contributes to effective vibration decoupling between various degrees of freedom.

Preferably, the described characteristics of "proper operation", i.e., neither low nor over-operation, are applied independently of each other for the two bearing units. This not only provides improved vibration decoupling but also facilitates the (mechanical) design of the entire vibration system.

Expressed, in the case of the described component feeding device, the possibility of individual control of multiple (mostly) decoupled degrees of freedom is given. This characteristic also applies separately for the two bearing units and the corresponding actuator system.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the first actuator system and / or the second actuator system comprises only linear actuators. This has the advantage that the associated actuator system can be implemented simply and effectively.

Two linear actuators arranged offset or spaced apart from each other, which "operate" to offset at least partially parallel along the same direction and act at different points of the component of the bearing unit, are capable of translating and rotating motion of the component. It can work. The linear actuators perform a translational movement along the (common) operating direction during in-phase control, and perform a translational movement or a rotational movement around an axis perpendicular to the operating direction during in-phase control.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the sum of the number of degrees of freedom of the two bearing units is four or five. This has the advantage that in most applications (i) the number of degrees of freedom available is sufficiently high, and at the same time (ii) the cost of at least one degree of freedom which is absolutely not required is prevented from being uneconomical. By giving up at least one degree of freedom that is not absolutely necessary, the vibration decoupling described above is also improved.

According to another embodiment of the invention, at least one of the two bearing units allows both a translational movement along the translational axis and a rotational movement about an axis perpendicular to the translational axis. According to at least one, optionally other existing degrees of freedom, the corresponding actuator system is capable of activating exactly the translational motion and the rotational motion or, in some cases, other corresponding motions.

In a preferred embodiment, the translational motion is made in the vertical Z-direction or parallel to gravity, and the rotational motion is made about a Z-axis perpendicular to this plane in the XZ or YZ plane.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the first bearing unit and / or the second bearing unit comprises at least one bearing element from the group consisting of solid body joints, air bearings, magnetic bearings and hydrostatic bearings. do.

(A) Solid body joints can be implemented, for example, by a monolithic member. This advantageously achieves a hysteresis effect and a reduction in relaxation and an increase in bearing accuracy. Monolithic solid body joints can be produced, for example, by wire cut electrical discharge machining, water jet cutting or additive manufacturing techniques such as "3-D printing", such as Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS). As an alternative, multi-body solid body joints, which can be produced, for example, by welding, brazing, gluing, screwing, etc., can also be used. (i) Metal spring materials such as spring steel, cold worked steel, titanium, spring bronze, superplastic alloys (such as Nitinol) or (ii) plastics such as fiber reinforced plastics to be used as the material for solid body joints Can be. Particular preference is given to leaf springs, which are solid body joints, which can be integrally or multi-bodyed and are easily dimensioned.

(B) Air bearings can be designed with pneumatic prestress or magnetic prestress depending on the expected weight load and available air flow. The pneumatic prestress is, for example, low pressure or vacuum. The magnetic prestress can be realized with an integrated magnet and a magnetizable counter plate. In addition, air bearings with so-called sandwich structures are also possible, and two opposingly arranged air bearings provide suitable spacing of the corresponding components of the bearing element.

So-called hybrid bearings, at least nowadays, appear to be particularly suitable in combination with solid body joints and air bearings. From a technical / economical point of view, individual air bearings can be supported by solid body joints to achieve a desired function. For example, it is possible to implement "main bearing" by air bearings and blocking of individual degrees of freedom (not required) by solid body joints. This can be particularly advantageous if pure air bearings can only be implemented at very high cost. Combinations according to the function of different bearing elements are also possible. For example, many of the partial functions of the bearing can be implemented by solid body joints, and other partial functions can be implemented by air bearings. Particularly preferably, transport movement by a solid body joint or transport vibration and compensation movement by an air bearing can be permitted.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the first actuator system and / or the second actuator system includes at least one actuator from the group consisting of direct drives, Lorentz actuators, magnetoresistive actuators, pneumatic actuators, piezoelectric actuators, and unbalanced actuators. do.

(A) Direct drives are all types of drive devices with no gears or used without connection of gears. Direct drives have the advantage that they do not have the undesirable properties of gearing devices such as mechanical play or wear of gear wheels or spindles.

(B) Since the Lorentz actuator is based on the Lorentz force, it is a driving device in which a conducting conductor in a magnetic field is subjected to a force perpendicular to the current direction and perpendicular to the magnetic field direction. Lorentz actuators have the great advantage of not introducing mechanical stiffness into the vibration system. Lorentz actuators suitable for known and described component feeding devices are single-phase or multi-phase linear motors. Particularly in the case of a small travel distance, a single-phase motor can be used and thus the complicated electric commutation required for a multi-phase motor is omitted. In this case, the force depending on the undesired position can be reduced. Another example of a suitable Lorentz actuator is a so-called voice coil actuator in which the magnetic circuit is generally designed such that the magnetic field is concentrated and uniformly distributed in the conductive conductor region.

(C) A magnetoresistive actuator is a driving device that tends to be aligned with a magnetic field such that the energy stored in the magnetic field is minimized since a magnetic attraction is generated based on the physical effect. Since the magnetic field is generated by a conducting conductor, a change in current flow also causes a change in the magnetic field.

(D) The pneumatic actuator is, for example, a driving device that operates a time-varying gas pressure in a so-called pneumatic cylinder.

(E) A piezoelectric actuator is a driving device in which deflection by application of a voltage or electric field is made through piezoelectric crystals based on the piezoelectric effect. Stacked piezoelectric crystals can also be used to increase the “range”.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the second component and / or conveyor structure has an interface structure formed so that the conveyor structure can be detachably mounted on the second component. This has the advantage that, in some cases, each of the various conveyor structures filled with different (type) parts can be detachable or reversibly mounted on the second component. For example, when replacing parts in the category of so-called retrofit, the conveyor structure can be replaced with another conveyor structure.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the conveyor structure further includes a reservoir for receiving a plurality of individualized parts and discharging (weighing) the individualized parts into a transport area. In this case, the reservoir and (remaining) conveyor structure can be formed (in one piece) as a (long) cartridge.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the component supply device further comprises an optical system for detecting the number and / or location of at least some components placed in the transport area and / or the presentation area.

By optically detecting the parts conveyed by the vibration, the conveying behavior of the vibration system of the part feeding device can be monitored and adjusted as needed. With this adjustment, a number of parts are always provided in the presentation area, particularly suitable for reliable pickup by the assembly head. In some cases, the parts may be reverse transported or reverse oscillated. Such "reverse transport" may be desirable, for example, if there are too many parts in the presentation area, so that due to too small a gap between the various parts, reliable pickup of parts is not possible.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the presentation area lies on the upper side of the optically transparent presentation plate. In addition, the optical system includes cameras and lenses configured to allow components placed in the presentation area to be detected through an optically transparent presentation plate from below. This has the advantage that the optical system can be integrated into the component supply in a space-saving manner. Thus, the component feeding device can be embodied as a compact module that can be mounted on an assembly machine instead of or in addition to other component feeding systems for conveying components packaged in a belt.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the component supply device further comprises at least one motion sensor mounted on the second component or mechanically rigidly coupled to the second component. By appropriate positioning of the at least one motion sensor, the actual vibration behavior required for precise control or adjustment of the operation of the described component feeding device can be best detected and adjusted. This is particularly true of the optical system for detecting the position of the individual parts, so that the conveying behavior can be controlled as well as adjusted. Thus, the component feeding device described herein incorporates the characteristics of a precision positioning device and component conveyor. After the transfer is made, the precise positioning can improve the pickup of parts by subsequent devices, especially the assembly head.

The at least one motion sensor described can be a position sensor, a speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, or any combination of these types of sensors.

According to another aspect of the invention, an assembly system for automatically assembling parts with part carriers is described. The described assembly system comprises: (a) a component supply device of the type described above and (b) an assembly machine with an assembly head, the assembly head to receive the individualized parts provided, a component carrier to which the received parts are to be assembled. It is provided for conveying upwards and for seating the conveyed parts on a part carrier.

The described assembly system is a vibration that is generated internally by one of the actuators or introduced into the system from the outside by means of a component feeding device described herein with bearing units connected in series but otherwise independent of each other. Based on the perception that decoupling of can be realized. Since this decoupling improves the vibration transport, the parts carried into the presentation area can be surely picked up by the assembly head.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for providing individualized parts, in particular for providing individualized electronic parts, for automatically assembling component carriers in an assembly machine using the above-described component feeding device is described. The described method comprises: (a) vibrating a movable component of a first bearing unit with at least two degrees of freedom by a first actuator system; And (b) vibrating the second component of the second bearing unit with at least one other degree of freedom by the second actuator system.

The method described is based on the recognition that the parts can be conveyed into the presentation area with precisely specified vibration behavior by means of the above-mentioned parts feeding device. This vibration behavior is not significantly disturbed by (i) external vibrations, and (ii) the degree of freedom excited therein has little or no undesirable lateral effect on other degrees of freedom.

Embodiments of the present invention have been described for different invention objects. In particular, some embodiments of the invention are described in device claims and other embodiments of the invention are described in method claims. However, if one of ordinary skill in the art reads this specification, unless otherwise specified, in addition to the combination of features included in one type of invention object, any combination of features included in different types of invention objects is also possible. You will definitely see.

Other advantages and features of the invention are presented in the detailed description below of preferred embodiments.

1 is a schematic diagram of a functional series connection of selected components of a component feeding device,
FIG. 2 shows the distribution of various degrees of freedom of movement of Examples 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3 of the first group of the invention shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5,
3 shows a component supply device according to Example 1.1,
4 shows a component supply device according to Example 1.2,
5 shows a component feeding device according to Example 1.3,
FIG. 6 shows the distribution of various degrees of freedom of movement of Examples 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 of the second group of the invention shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9,
7 shows a component feeding device according to Example 2.1,
8 shows a component feeding device according to Example 2.2,
9 shows a component feeding device according to Example 2.3,
10 is a schematic view of an assembly system having two assembly heads and a plurality of component supply modules mounted on both sides of the assembly machine, one component supply module on the left side and two component supply on the right side It is a schematic view of the assembly system, in which the modules are formed as component feeding devices according to the invention.

In the detailed description below, features or components of various embodiments that are identical or at least functionally identical to corresponding features or components of another embodiment are given the same reference numbers, or corresponding identical or at least functional features In the figure, the same features or components are given the same figure number and the last two digits. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, features or components already described based on the above-described embodiment will not be described in any further detail later.

The embodiments described below present only a limited selection of possible embodiment variations of the present invention. In particular, since the features of the individual embodiments can be properly combined with each other, it is considered that many various embodiments are clearly disclosed to those skilled in the art by the embodiment modifications explicitly shown herein.

1 shows a schematic diagram of a functional series connection of selected components of a component supply device 100 according to embodiments of the present invention. The required degrees of freedom of the vibrating conveyor structure 180 including the parts reservoir is distributed in two consecutive series of bearing units, also referred to herein as bearing levels. A component supply device for transporting parts by vibration is also referred to simply as a vibration conveyor in this specification.

The component supply device 100 includes a chassis 110 that is a base body of the component supply device 100. The chassis 110 includes an interface (not shown) for connecting the component feeder 100 to the frame structure of the assembly machine.

Preferably, the first bearing units 120 are mounted on the chassis allowing for at least one vibrational degree of freedom and at least one rotational degree of freedom. Preferably, the degree of freedom of the first bearing unit 120 is used to transport the parts. However, optionally this degree of freedom can also be used for decoupling internal vibrations and / or decoupling of (expected) external vibrations.

The intermediate body 140 of the component feeding device 100 is used as a mechanical connection between the first bearing unit 120 (movable component) and the second bearing unit 150 (first component).

The second bearing unit 150 preferably allows degrees of freedom used for decoupling internal vibrations and / or decoupling of (expected) external vibrations. However, optionally, this degree of freedom can also be used for vibration transport of parts.

An interface structure 170, also referred to herein as an actuator bridge, is coupled or (solidly) coupled to the second bearing unit 150 (second part). The actuator bridge 170 is vibratedly supported. The stroke of the actuator bridge 170 is limited by a mechanical end stop not shown. The conveyor structure 180 may be coupled (mechanically) by the interface structure 170. By appropriate control of the actuator (not shown) in which the first bearing unit 120 or the second bearing unit 150 is assigned and disposed, respectively, the conveyor structure 180 can be properly vibrated, and the vibration is (i) translation. Movement along the degrees of freedom and / or (ii) movement of rotational degrees of freedom. Accordingly, the conveyor structure 180 has a degree of freedom that combines the degrees of freedom of the first bearing unit 120 and the degrees of freedom of the second bearing unit 150.

The parts reservoir, not shown, can be integrated with or detachably connected to the interface structure 170 and / or the (residual) conveyor structure 180.

Below are described some preferred embodiments of the present invention in which the total degree of freedom (and operable) in which the conveyor structure is available is differently distributed over the two bearing units. This degree of freedom distribution is presented in Table 1 below.

In the first column, the embodiments are grouped into two groups and numbered. The degree of freedom of translation along direction # is denoted by T # (# denotes X, Y or Z). Rotation degrees of freedom are denoted by R #, where # denotes α (alpha), β (beta) or γ (gamma). α or Rα each represents a rotation about the X axis, β or Rβ represents a rotation around the Y axis, and γ or Rγ represents a rotation around the Z axis. The degrees of freedom allowed by the first bearing unit 120 are indicated by L1 in the corresponding cell in Table 1. The degrees of freedom allowed by the second bearing unit 150 are indicated by L2 in the corresponding cell in Table 1. The Σ (sigma) column represents the sum of the degrees of freedom of the embodiment. The "drawings" column represents corresponding drawings herein.

No. Tx Ty Tz Rα Rβ Rγ Σ drawing 1.1 L1 L1 L1 L2 4 3 1.2 L2 L1 L1 L1 4 4 1.3 L2 L1 L1 L1 L2 5 5 2.1 L2 L1 L1 L2 4 7 2.2 L2 L2 L1 L1 4 8 2.3 L2 L2 L1 L1 L2 5 9

FIG. 2 shows the distribution of various degrees of freedom of movement of Examples 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3 of the first group of the invention shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. In these embodiments, the first bearing unit 220 allows translation (Ty) along the Y axis and translation (Tz) along the Z axis. In addition, the first bearing unit 220 allows rotation (Rα) about the X axis.

In Example 1.1, the second bearing unit 250a further allows rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis. In Example 1.2, the second bearing unit 250b further allows translation Tx along the X axis. In Example 1.3, the second bearing unit 250c further allows translation (Tx) along the X axis and rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis.

In Fig. 2, the transport area of the conveyor structure is indicated by reference number 282. The presentation area is indicated by drawing number 284.

3 shows a component supply device 300 according to Example 1.1. The first bearing unit 320 shown below is schematically illustrated in cross section in the YZ plane, and the second bearing unit 350 shown above is schematically illustrated in top view in the YX plane.

The first bearing unit 320 includes two solid body joints 322 and 324 connecting the chassis 110 (movably) with the movable component 328 of the first bearing unit 320, respectively. According to the embodiment shown here, the two solid body joints 322 and 324 are respectively formed as L-shaped bent or bent double leaf springs, sometimes also referred to as "folded leaf springs". . In this regard, a single "folded leaf spring" has five degrees of freedom and blocks translation in the vertical direction (parallel to the longitudinal direction of the bending edge, here in the X direction). Thus, the illustrated combination of a total of four "folded leaf springs" is a bearing assembly for supporting the body with three degrees of freedom (Ty, Tz, Rα) in one plane (here YZ plane).

A total of three actuators 342, 344 and 346 are respectively assigned to the first bearing unit 320, which are schematically shown as "force arrows" and act on the protrusions of the movable component 328, respectively. The two actuators 342 and 344 each drive a translational motion Tz along the Z axis. As described above, in-phase operation (with the same amplitude) causes translational motion (Tz) along the Z axis. The antiphase operation causes a rotational motion (Rα) (around the X axis perpendicular to the drawing plane). The actuator 346 can operate a translational motion Ty along the Y axis.

The second bearing unit 350 includes an assembly composed of two solid body joints 352 and 354. The second bearing unit 350 is assigned an actuator 362 capable of actuating the translational motion Tx of the movable structure 2 of the second bearing unit 350 or the conveyor structure 180 along the X axis.

According to the embodiment shown here, the second bearing unit 350 is configured to be given two instantaneous centers of rotation relative to the body of the conveyor structure 180:

(a) The first instantaneous center of rotation of the conveyor structure 180 occurs upon internal excitation by the actuator 362. The spatial position of the first instantaneous center of rotation arises from the kinematics of the two solid body joints 352 and 354 and in this case lies at the center of rotation of the solid body joint 352.

(b) The second (other) instantaneous center of rotation of the conveyor structure 180 occurs upon external excitation. According to a specific embodiment of the second bearing unit 350, in particular according to the characteristics of the body of the conveyor structure 180, such as geometry, mass, center of gravity, etc., the second instantaneous rotation center is in the presentation area (not shown). Can be set.

According to the embodiment shown here, the solid body joint 352 is a rotating joint, and the solid body joint 354 is optional, a so-called four link. The solid body joint 352 has a rotational degree of freedom (here, Tγ) and can be implemented, for example, by two cross leaf springs. The solid body joint 354 is implemented by two trapezoidal leaf springs according to the embodiment shown here. The intersection of the two leaf springs forms the instantaneous center of rotation.

The solid body joint 354 should preferably be designed and arranged such that its instantaneous center of rotation is at least approximately coincident with the instantaneous center of rotation of the solid body joint 352 in the zero position. Then, the movement of the conveyor structure 180 is implemented with less binding force.

As mentioned above, the solid body joint 354 is optional. The solid body joint 354 can be used to increase the tilting stiffness of the conveyor structure 180 against rotation (Rα) (around the X axis) in particular.

4 shows a side view of a component supply device 400 according to Example 1.2.

The first bearing unit 420 is an assembly of one or multiple planar air bearings 426 allowing a total of three degrees of freedom (Ty, Tz, Rα) and each as shown in FIG. 3 (along the Z axis or Y And three actuators 342, 344 and 346 capable of activating translational motion (along the axis).

The second bearing unit 450 includes an assembly of two planar air bearings 456 and 458 (with translational freedom along the X axis) and one “L” air bearing 459. The second bearing unit 450 is assigned with an actuator (not shown) that can operate a translational motion along the X axis.

 5 shows a side view in the YZ plane of the component supply apparatus 500 according to Example 1.3. The component supply device 500 includes a hybrid bearing composed of multiple solid body joints and air bearings.

The first bearing unit 320 is the same as the first bearing unit 320 shown in FIG. 3.

The second bearing unit 550 includes two planar air bearings 556, 558, and one solid body joint 552 having five degrees of freedom and formed to block the translation Ty of the conveyor structure 180. do. Two actuators, each capable of activating translation (Tx) along the X-axis (in-phase or in-phase), as described above, will operate translation (Tx) along the X-axis and / or rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis together. Can be.

FIG. 6 shows the distribution of various degrees of freedom of movement of Examples 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 of the second group of the present invention shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9. In these embodiments, the first bearing unit 620 allows translation (Tz) along the Z axis and rotation (Rα) about the X axis.

In Example 2.1, the second bearing unit 650a further allows translation (Ty) along the Y axis and rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis. In Example 2.2, the second bearing unit 650b further allows translation (Tx) along the X axis and translation (Ty) along the Y axis. In Example 2.3, the second bearing unit 650c further allows translation (Tx) along the X axis, translation (Ty) along the Y axis, and rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis.

Also in FIG. 6, the conveying areas of the conveyor structure are indicated by reference numeral 282, respectively. The presentation area is indicated by drawing number 284.

7 shows a component supply device according to Example 2.1. The first bearing unit 720 shown below and the second bearing unit 750 shown above are both schematically illustrated in cross section in the YZ plane.

The first bearing unit 720 has a total of four solid body joints 722, 723, 724 and 725 that allow for two degrees of freedom, translation (Tz) along the Z axis and rotation (Rα) about the X axis together. ).

As shown in FIG. 7, the two solid body joints 722 and 723 each include two parallelly aligned leaf springs (in elastic) connecting the chassis 110 to the movable intermediate element 727 (resiliently). . The two solid body joints 722 and 723 allow translation Tz along the Z axis. The two solid body joints 724 and 725 each include two leaf springs arranged in a trapezoid of 4 links. The solid body joints 724 and 725 connect (movably) the movable intermediate element 727 to the movable component 328 of the first bearing unit 720, respectively. The two solid body joints 724 and 725 allow rotation (Rα) about the X axis.

As also shown in Figure 7, the two solid body joints 722 and 723 are aligned substantially parallel to each other. The two solid joints 724 and 725 are aligned such that their instantaneous centers of rotation are substantially coincident at the common instantaneous center of rotation M. Thereby, the two solid body joints 724 and 725 obtain the sum of the degrees of freedom (Tα) of rotation. At the same time, high transverse and tilting stiffness are ensured with different blocked degrees of freedom.

A total of two actuators 742 and 744 are assigned to the first bearing unit 720, each schematically illustrated as a “force arrow” and acting on the protrusion of the movable component 328. The two actuators 742 and 744 are capable of actuating the translational motion Tz along the Z axis, respectively. As described above, in-phase operation (with the same amplitude) results in translational motion along the Z axis, while inverse-phase operation causes a rotational motion (Tα) (centered on the X axis perpendicular to the drawing plane).

The second bearing unit 750 includes an assembly composed of two solid body joints 752 and 754. According to the embodiment shown here, the solid body joint 752 is implemented by a vertically aligned leaf spring and the solid body joint 754 exhibits spring properties exhibited by the intended reduction of its cross section in a particular longitudinal section. The having is realized by a vertically aligned rod. Various geometries are known to those skilled in the art for solid body joints having elasticity based on partial reduction in cross section. Accordingly, the illustrated solid body joint 754 should be considered only as an example for a number of different solid body joints.

Two actuators 762 and 764 are assigned to the second bearing unit 350, the actuator 762 can actuate a translational motion (Tx) along the X axis, and the actuator 764 translates along the Y axis. (Ty) can be activated. These two translational motions (Tx and Ty) are associated with the movable second component or conveyor structure 180 of the second bearing unit 750.

8 shows a component supply device 800 according to Example 2.2. The component supply device 800 includes a hybrid bearing composed of solid body joints and air bearings. The first bearing unit 820 shown below is schematically illustrated in cross section in the YZ plane, and the second bearing unit 850 shown above is schematically illustrated in top view in the XY plane.

The first bearing unit 820 includes a planar air bearing 826 and an air bearing bushing 829. In addition, the first bearing unit 820 includes a rotating solid body joint 822. The first bearing unit 820 allows two degrees of freedom for the intermediate body 140 (unlike the chassis not shown), namely translation (Tz) along the Z axis and rotation (Rα) about the X axis.

In the first bearing unit 820, two actuators 842 and 844 that are capable of activating the translation Tz along the Z axis, respectively, are allocated. Together, they can move the intermediate body 140 by (a) translating (Tz) along the Z axis and / or (b) rotating (Rα) about the X axis by suitable control, as described several times together.

The second bearing unit 850 includes a solid body joint system 855 with four leaf springs arranged to allow only translational motion in the XY plane. The solid body joint system 855 connects the conveyor structure 180 (with elasticity) to two coupling elements 857, which are rigidly connected to the intermediate body 140 in a manner not shown. do. Of course, other solid body joint mechanisms that allow two translational degrees of freedom (Tx and Ty) (only) can also be used.

Two actuators 862 and 864 are assigned to the second bearing unit 850, the actuator 862 can actuate translation Tx along the X axis, and the actuator 864 actuate translation along the Y axis. I can do it. Together they can move the conveyor structure 180 in translation along the X and / or Y axis within the XY plane with respect to the intermediate body 140.

9 shows a component supply device 900 according to Example 2.3. The first bearing unit 920 shown below and the second bearing unit 950 shown above are both schematically illustrated in side views in the YZ plane.

The first bearing unit 920 includes an assembly of two solid body joints 922 and 924. The solid body joint 922 consists of a simple horizontally aligned leaf spring connecting the chassis 110 (with elasticity) to the intermediate body 140. The solid body joint 924 is often referred to as a “folded leaf spring” and consists of a double leaf spring that is bent or angled in the L shape described in connection with Example 1.1 (see FIG. 3). The solid body joint 924 also (elastically) connects the chassis 110 to the intermediate body 140.

The first bearing unit 920 can be regarded as a modification of the bearing unit 320 of Example 1.1 (see FIG. 3). Unlike the bearing unit 320, the first bearing unit 920 used herein further blocks movement along the Y axis because one of the two “folded leaf springs” 322 and 324 is replaced by a leaf spring. .

The first bearing unit 920 is assigned schematically with two actuators 942 and 944 respectively shown schematically as “force arrows” and acting on the projections of the movable component 328 respectively. The two actuators 942 and 944 can actuate the translational motion Tz along the Z axis, respectively. As mentioned above, in-phase operation (with the same amplitude) causes translational motion along the Z axis. Inverse phase operation causes a rotational motion (Rα) (around the X axis perpendicular to the drawing plane).

The second bearing unit 950 has three degrees of freedom in the XY plane with respect to the intermediate body 140, Tx (translation along the X axis), Ty (translation along the Y axis) and Rγ (rotation around the Z axis). It includes two planar air bearings 956 and 958 that allow movement of the conveyor structure 180. To this end, the second bearing unit 950 has three actuators capable of activating translation (Tx) along the X axis, rotation (Rγ) about the Z axis and / or translation (Ty) along the Y axis upon proper control. That is, the first X actuator 962, the second X actuator 963, and the Y actuator 964 are allocated.

Specifically, in this (preferred) embodiment 2.3, the degrees of freedom Tz and Rα are operated by two linear drives 942 and 944 disposed at the first bearing level 920 and acting in the Z direction. That is, by the proper control of the two linear drives 942 and 944, the pure translational motion along the Z axis (Tz), the pure rotational motion around the X axis (Rα) and these two motions (Tz and Rα) Any combination can be achieved. By means of the parallel kinematics used, two linear drives 942 and 944 can preferably be designed with smaller dimensions since they always implement a given motion together.

10 schematically shows an assembly machine 1060 with assembly heads 1062 that are movable independently of each other and an assembly system 1050 including multiple component supply modules. The component supply modules are provided as (a) a component supply device 1000 for supplying components from bulk material, described in various embodiments herein, or (b) supplying components placed in a component belt in a known manner. It is formed as a component supply device 1070 for. According to the embodiment shown here, four component supply devices 1070 and one component supply device 1000 are mounted on the left side of the assembly machine 1060. On the right side of the assembly machine 1060, two component supply devices 1070 and two component supply devices 1000 are mounted.

The expression “comprising” does not exclude other elements, and the indefinite article “a (an)” does not exclude revenge. Also, elements described in connection with different embodiments may be combined. Also, the drawing numbers in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

100 parts supply
110 chassis / base body
120 1st bearing unit
140 medium body
150 2nd bearing unit
170 Interface structure / actuator bridge
180 conveyor structure / storage
220 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
250a, b, c 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
282 transport area
284 Presentation Area
X X direction / X axis
Y Y direction / Y axis
Z Z direction / Z axis
Rotation around the α (alpha) X axis
Rotation around β (beta) Y axis
Rotation around the γ (gamma) Z axis
300 parts supply
320 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
322 solid body joint
324 solid body joint
328 movable components
342 Z actuator
344 Z actuator
346 Y actuator
350 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
352 solid body joint / rotating joint
354 solid body joint / 4 links
362 X actuator
400 parts feeder
420 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
426 air bearing
450 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
456 air bearing (flat)
458 Air Bearing (Plane)
459 Air bearing ("L" type)
500 parts feeder
550 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
552 solid body joint
556 air bearing (flat)
558 Air bearing (flat)
620 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
650a, b, c 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
700 parts feeder
720 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
722, 723 solid body joint (two leaf springs aligned in parallel)
724, 725 solid body joint (two leaf springs arranged in a trapezoid
4 links)
727 medium elements
742 Z actuator
744 Z actuator
750 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
752 solid body joint
754 solid body joint
762 X actuator
764 Y actuator
M instantaneous rotation center
800 parts feeder
820 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
822 solid body joint / rotating joint
826 air bearing (flat)
829 Air bearing (Air bearing bushing)
842 Z actuator
844 Z actuator
850 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
855 solid body joint system
857 coupling element
862 X actuator
864 Y actuator
900 parts feeder
920 1st bearing unit / 1st bearing level
922 solid body joint (plate spring)
924 solid body joint (two leaf springs aligned in parallel)
942 Z actuator
944 Z actuator
950 2nd bearing unit / 2nd bearing level
956 air bearing (flat)
958 Air bearing (flat)
962 X actuator
963 X actuator
964 Y actuator
Parts supply for individualized electronic components from 1000 bulk materials
1050 assembly system
1060 assembly machine
1062 assembly head
Parts supply for electronic components placed on the 1070 belt

Claims (15)

A component supply device (100-900) for providing individualized parts, in particular for individualized electronic parts, for automatically assembling component carriers by an assembly machine (1060), the component supply device (100-900) being
Chassis 110;
A first bearing unit (120-920) having a fixed component and a movable component coupled with the chassis (110);
An intermediate body 140 coupled with the movable component;
A second bearing unit 150-950 having a first component and a second component coupled with the intermediate body 140;
As a conveyor structure 180, the conveyor coupled with the second component and formed so that individualized parts can be transported along the transport area 282 to the presentation area 284 by vibration of the conveyor structure 180. Structure 180;
A first actuator system (342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844) assigned to the first bearing unit (120-920) and designed to operate the movable component with at least two degrees of freedom relative to the stationary component , 942, 944); And
A second actuator system 362, 762, 764, 862, 864, assigned to the second bearing unit 150-950 and designed to operate the second component with at least one other degree of freedom relative to the first component; 962, 963, 964). According to claim 1,
The first bearing unit 120-920 allows the same degree of freedom of movement that the first actuator system 342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844, 942, 944 can operate and / or
The second bearing unit (150-950) allows for the same degree of freedom of motion that the second actuator system (362, 762, 764, 862, 864, 962, 963, 964) can operate. 100-900). The method of claim 1 or 2,
Parts feeder 100-900, with exactly one actuator provided for each degree of freedom. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The first actuator system 342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844, 942, 944 and / or the second actuator system 362, 762, 764, 862, 864, 962, 963, 964 Parts supply apparatus 100-900, comprising only linear actuators. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The sum of the number of degrees of freedom of the two bearing units (120-920; 150-950) is 4 or 5, parts supply device (100-900). The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
Parts supply device (100-900), at least one of the two bearing units (120-920; 150-950) permits translational motion along the translational axis and rotational motion about an axis perpendicular to the translational axis . The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The first bearing unit (120-920) and / or the second bearing unit (150-950) comprises at least one bearing element from the group consisting of solid body joints, air bearings, magnetic bearings and hydrostatic bearings, Parts feeder (100-900). The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The first actuator system 342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844, 942, 944 and / or the second actuator system 362, 762, 764, 862, 864, 962, 963, 964 A component supply device (100-900) comprising at least one actuator from the group consisting of direct drives, Lorentz actuators, magnetoresistive actuators, pneumatic actuators, piezoelectric actuators, and unbalanced actuators. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The second component and / or the conveyor structure 180 includes an interface structure 170 formed so that the conveyor structure 180 can be detachably mounted on the second component. 900). The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
The conveyor structure 180 further comprises a reservoir for receiving a plurality of individualized parts and discharging (weighing) the individualized parts to a transport section 282, a component feeding device 100-900. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
And an optical system for detecting the number and / or location of at least some of the parts placed in the transport area and / or the presentation area (284). The method of claim 11,
The presentation area lies on the upper side of the optically transparent presentation plate 284,
The optical system comprises a component supply device (100-900) comprising cameras and lenses configured to allow components placed in the presentation area to be detected through an optically transparent presentation plate from below. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12,
A component supply device (100-900) further comprising at least one motion sensor mounted on the second component or mechanically rigidly coupled to the second component. An assembly system 1050 for automatically assembling parts with component carriers, the assembly system 1050
Parts supply apparatus (100-900) according to any one of claims 1 to 13 for providing individualized parts, and
(a) to accommodate the individualized parts provided,
(b) for transporting said parts received over a component carrier to be assembled, and
(c) for seating the transferred parts on the part carrier
An assembly system 1050 comprising an assembly machine 1060 with an assembly head 1062. Particularly individualized electronics for providing individualized parts for automatically assembling component carriers in the assembly machine 1060 using the component supply apparatus 100-900 according to claim 1. A method of providing parts, the method comprising
Vibrating the movable component of the first bearing unit (120-920) with at least two degrees of freedom by the first actuator system (342, 344, 346, 742, 744, 842, 844, 942, 944); And
Vibrating the second component of the second bearing unit (150-950) with at least one other degree of freedom by a second actuator system (362, 762, 764, 862, 864, 962, 963, 964). .

Images