Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D73/00—Packages comprising articles attached to cards, sheets or webs
  • B65D73/02—Articles, e.g. small electrical components, attached to webs
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D81/00—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents
  • B65D81/02—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage
  • B65D81/05—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents
  • B65D81/107—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents using blocks of shock-absorbing material
  • B65D81/1075—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents specially adapted to protect contents from mechanical damage maintaining contents at spaced relation from package walls, or from other contents using blocks of shock-absorbing material deformable to accommodate contents
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • H05K—PRINTED CIRCUITS; CASINGS OR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF ELECTRIC APPARATUS; MANUFACTURE OF ASSEMBLAGES OF ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS
  • H05K13/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing or adjusting assemblages of electric components
  • H05K13/0084—Containers and magazines for components, e.g. tube-like magazines

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a device for transporting and packaging components comprising a support strip provided with a series of cells of standard dimensions.
• the present invention also relates to a method of transport and associated packaging.
• variable rate feeder systems variable component feed systems
• variable rate feeding systems usually comprise a strip or a support roller whose speed of movement is varied as needed.
• the components are then contained in thermoformed cells specifically designed to match the shape of the components.
• the strip is provided with a positioning system of each cell.
• each cell reproduces the shape of the components, which makes it possible to precisely locate each component and to guarantee the repeatability of the positioning of the components in the cells.
• variable rate power supply systems are difficult to use when the components have different shapes and / or dimensions. Indeed, the realization on the band of cells of variable shapes is expensive and the strips thus formed are not reusable for the transport of other components.
• Variable component supply systems are also known. Most of the time, these systems consist of a strip on which the components scroll in bulk and a viewing element that can identify and then enter the components. Such a system is suitable for all types of components. However, the work rates are slowed down to allow the vision unit to locate the components. Moreover, such a system is heavy in infrastructure since it requires the use of an apparatus for locating the components in space.
• the present invention aims to overcome the disadvantages of the state of the art by proposing a device for packaging and transport of components, which is adaptable to heterogeneous series of components and which can be used at a variable rate, while ensuring a very good reproducibility of the positioning of the components.
• the present invention proposes to use a support band having standard size thermoformed cells filled with a plastic material reconfigurable at will to maintain the component in a precise position and orientation.
• the present invention relates to a device for packaging and transporting components comprising a support strip provided with cells, each being adapted and configured to receive at least one component, each cell being filled with a packing material, reversibly deformable, which defines an imprint corresponding to the shape of the component received by the cell.
• the lining material is reformable, that is to say that it can be shaped in different ways to adapt to the shape of different components.
• a same carrier tape may contain a set of components to be assembled together, for example on a printed circuit.
• a set of components intended to be assembled together can be contained in the same cell, so that each cell contains a kit of parts ready to be assembled.
• Such a device allows to store and condition components of varying sizes and profiles in cells of standard size: there is no longer specification or adaptation of the cells to the components to feed, this which facilitates the manufacture of the support strips and their cells. Furthermore the support strips are reusable for several types of components which has an economic advantage.
• the cells have standard dimensions, which are, in most cases, greater than the dimensions of the components contained in the cells.
• a packing material is therefore added in the cells to fill the gap between the walls of the cells and the components. This packing material makes it possible to wedge and hold the components in a precise position and orientation of the cell and it also prevents the components from coming out of the cells. Moreover, this material makes it possible to damp any shocks to the components.
• This material is preferably a plastic material.
• the material that fills the cells is also reversibly deformable, that is to say it is reconfigurable or remodelable at will.
• the imprint created in this material which corresponds to the profile of a particular component, can indeed be erased by placing itself in selected conditions of pressure and / or temperature.
• the footprint can be remodeled as many times as necessary depending on the type of components to be transported. Indeed, once the component contained in a cell has been extracted from this cell, the footprint of this component can be filled and a new footprint can be configured in the packing material. Thus, a large number of different components can be transported by the same support strip whose cells are lined with the same material.
• the support strip comprises cells which are all the same size, which simplifies the manufacture of this support strip.
• This support strip is preferably made in a thermoformable plastic and the cells are then made by thermoforming.
• the support strip is preferably wound on itself, which allows a saving of space, and it is preferably stored in a protective cassette.
• the support strip which contains the components, is stored by being wound on itself, and is unwound in due time, so that the components can be extracted, for example using a gripper. It is then wrapped again on itself, to be stored empty.
• the protective cassette can thus contain two rollers on which the carrier tape can be wound: the first roller allows the roll of the tape when it is filled with components, the second roll allows the winding of the tape when it is empty. This winding also makes it possible to obtain closed packaging of the components and, if necessary, tight sealing of the cells.
• the packing material of the cells is deformable hot, preferably at a temperature substantially greater than room temperature.
• the packing material is deformable at a temperature between 40 and 70 °.
• These temperatures are indeed interesting since they are sufficiently different from the ambient temperature to prevent the material from accidentally deforming. Moreover, they are not too high, which makes it possible, on the one hand, to avoid excessive energy expenditure during the fingerprinting process and, on the other hand, to be able to make the impressions by heating.
• preliminary components and insertion of components into the packing material can withstand temperatures between 40 and 70 ° without risk of deterioration, which allows easy fingerprinting, without the use of a buffer, a matrix or an additional mold.
• said impressions are likely to disappear by melting the packing material. Indeed, once the components have been removed from the cells, for example through a gripper, the fingerprints can be erased by heating again the packing material. Thus, the packing material softens or liquefies and cures back to its original shape. Subsequently, new impressions can be made by reheating the packing material and inserting in this material a stamp or an object whose contours define the desired shape. Thus, the lining material can be shaped and remodeled as desired: this is what is meant reversibly deformable material.
• the material chosen to fill the cells is polycaprolactone.
• the polycaprolactone flows easily into the cells at a temperature above 60 0 C and fills easily and homogeneously. Once in the cells, it returns to the solid state at room temperature.
• the lining of the cells is a simple and fast operation.
• polycaprolactone is easily modeled and remodeled, with no remanence and no traces of the old impression.
• the polycaprolactone does not age inadvertently. In particular, it shows no shrinkage during drying, which makes it possible not to modify the positioning dimensions of the impressions and therefore the components in the cells.
• polycaprolactone is particularly rigid at room temperature and therefore, the impression is indeformable at room temperature and the components do not sink into the polycaprolactone. Thus it allows a precise maintenance of the components inside the cells.
• polycaprolactone is chemically neutral and it is not mechanically aggressive, neither for the components nor for the cells, while having a satisfactory adhesion to cell walls which avoids the relative displacement of the cell. 'footprint.
• the lining material is rigid at room temperature so that the cavities retain their shape when they contain the components.
• the invention also relates to a component supply system comprising a device for packaging and transporting components according to one of the embodiments defined above, said power system further comprising a device for scrolling the support band at a chosen rate.
• the feed system makes it possible to scroll the support strip, for example in front of a gripper which then grasps the components in order to assemble them.
• the support strip comprises identification elements for locating the position of a specific component in the support strip, the power system comprising a reader device of these identification elements.
• the components are precisely located in the cells thanks to the packing material, and the cells are themselves located precisely in space thanks to these identification elements.
• the indexing of the cells makes it possible to identify each component precisely.
• the grippers can identify and grasp the components with high precision, even at high frame rates.
• the invention also relates to a method of packaging and transporting components by means of a support strip provided with cells, each configured to receive at least one component, said method comprising the following steps:
• each cavity is lined with a reversibly deformable lining material, which comprises at least one imprint whose profile corresponds to the shape of the components to be transported in this cell,
• the step of packing the cells comprises the following steps:
• the filling material in liquid or pasty form is injected into each cell at a temperature greater than ambient temperature
• the deformable material is allowed to cure at room temperature
• the impression of the component is made in the deformable material by local melting and stamping.
• the method of packaging and transporting components further comprises a step during which the carrier strip is wound on itself by closing the cells.
• FIG. 3 a packaging and transport device according to one embodiment of the invention.
• microelectronic components are microelectronic components.
• this device and this method can be used to package and transport any type of components: these components can be, for example, micro-electronic components, mechatronic, micro-mechanical, mechanical, optical ...
• FIG. 1 represents a supply system for microelectronic components 7 intended to be associated with a robot for mounting microelectronic components on printed circuit boards.
• the supply system microelectronic components 1 comprises a packaging and transport device 8 in which are stored the components 3 for feeding the mounting robot.
• This packaging and transport device 8 is shown schematically in Figure 3. It comprises two rollers 10 on which rolls the strip 1.
• the various components 3 are stored in a support strip 1 provided with cells 2.
• This support strip 1 consists of a thermoformable plastic strip in which cells 2 have been thermoformed. These cells 2 have all the same dimensions and the same form, namely a rectangular shape, while the components 3 have any variable shapes.
• the free space left between the components 3 and the walls of the cells 2 is filled with polycaprolactone 9 which makes it possible to hold and wedge the components 3 in the cells in a precise position and orientation.
• This support band 1 which contains the various components 3, is wound on a cassette 4, and is unwound by a drive device 5 of the band which allows to scroll the band in front of a gripper 6.
• This gripper 6 removes and extracts the components 3 of the cells 2 and routes them to the mounting robot (not shown). The length of the recessed band is then wound on a second cassette 4 '.
• the support strip 1 supports a plurality of different components 3.
• Each component is identified by its position in the band, that is to say by the position of the cell that contains it and by the position of this component in its cell. This last position is fixed thanks to the polycaprolactone and more particularly thanks to the imprint it contains and which makes it possible to ensure the repeatability of the positioning of the components in the cells.
• the gripper 6 can thus select a particular component 3a on the strip 1 which contains a plurality of different components.
• the transport and packaging device 7 comprises a support band 1 provided with cells 2 thermoformed. These cells 2 are here all rectangular and of the same dimensions. The dimensions of these cells 2 are slightly greater than the dimensions of the largest component 3b transported by the device 1. Thus, these cells 2 have a standard size, which facilitates their manufacture since, during their thermoforming, there is more Specification adaptation of the cells to the components to be transported.
• the polycaprolactone 9 is heated to 60 °, at which temperature it is liquid, which allows it to flow easily into the cells 2.
• the amount of polycaprolactone 9 poured into a cell 2a is equal to the volume of this cell 2a minus the volume of the component 3a that it will contain.
• the volume of the cell 2a is completely occupied by the volume of the component 3a and by the polycaprolactone 9.
• the polycaprolactone 9 is then left to rest at room temperature until that he has completely hardened.
• Polycaprolactone is a material particularly suitable for this type of application since it flows easily, and at a temperature substantially higher than the ambient temperature. Moreover, it easily and homogeneously fills the cells without requiring additional operation and hardens in a relatively short time. Finally, it is chemically inactive vis-à-vis the components and the wall of the cells.
• each component 3a is heated to 60 ° and it is inserted into its cell 2a so as to produce in the polycaprolactone 9 an imprint 10a corresponding to the profile of each component by local melting polycaprolactone 9.
• the strip After curing the polycaprolactone 9 at room temperature, the strip is wound on itself and stored.
• the polycaprolactone 9 then makes it possible to maintain the components 3 in the cells 2, in their original position, keeping very precisely, that is to say with a precision of the order of one micron, the distance between each component and the walls of the cell that contains it. This process is all the more advantageous positioning and this very precise orientation do not vary over time since the polycaprolactone does not show inadvertent aging, shrinkage or contraction or any risk of change of state over time.
• the polycaprolactone is sufficiently rigid to prevent any deposition of the components 3 in the cells 2, so that the components 3 retain their original position.
• the band 1 is then inserted into the feed system 7 which allows to unwind the band 1 at a chosen rate and extract the components 3 selected according to the needs according to their position in the band 1 through the gripper 6.
• the imprint in the polycaprolactone preferably has passages allowing the gripper to grip the components.
• the polycaprolactone 9 then allows the gripper 6 to pass around the components so that they can be removed from the cells.
• the band 1 When the band 1 is empty, it can be reused. Two cases then arise: in the first case, the band is intended to receive the same components as before. In this case, just insert the new components, which have a shape identical to the previous ones, in the already formed footprints.
• the band In the second case, the band must be used to transport a new series of components whose shapes are different from the shapes of the old components.
• the polycaprolactone is again heated to 60 ° so that it liquefies which allows to erase the already formed footprints.
• polycaprolactone can be added to the cells to fill any material losses during the different steps of the process.
• polycaprolactone has already been modeled and remodeled a lot of times, it is possible to empty the cells and clean them, before filling them with new polycaprolactone.
• the components can not be heated to 60 °, buffers reproducing the shape of the components can be used to make the impressions in the packing material.
• the packing material used depends on the conditions of use of the supply system: for example, if the components feed a mounting robot at high temperature, it is possible to use a plastically deformable packing material at a temperature greater than this temperature. temperature.
• the same cell may contain several components, as shown in Figure 2 by the cell 12, as their respective dimensions allow.
• the packing material of this cell contains as many imprints as components to store, each imprint corresponding to the shape of one of the components to be stored.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
• Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
• Packages (AREA)
• Auxiliary Devices For And Details Of Packaging Control (AREA)

Priority Applications (3)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

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Family Cites Families (7)

• 2008
  • 2008-03-13 FR FR0801378A patent/FR2928635B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2009
  • 2009-03-09 CN CN2009801086064A patent/CN101971721A/zh active Pending
  • 2009-03-09 WO PCT/FR2009/000242 patent/WO2009118483A2/fr active Application Filing
  • 2009-03-09 EP EP09725805A patent/EP2255606A2/fr not_active Withdrawn
  • 2009-03-09 US US12/920,247 patent/US20110083403A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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