WO2024247343A1 - Compression molding device and compression molding method - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention addresses the problem of providing a compression molding device and a compression molding method that enable: a compression molding device to be made compact; the maintainability of a sealing mold to be improved; machining time to be reduced; and productivity to be improved. As a means for solving the problem, a compression molding device (1) uses a sealing mold (202) comprises: an upper mold (204) having a cavity (208); and a lower mold (206) having a workpiece retention section (205). The compression molding device seals a workpiece (W) with a sealing resin (R) and process the foregoing into a molded product (Wp). A conveyance device (302) for conveying the workpiece (W) and the sealing resin (R) into the sealing mold (202) is provided. The conveyance device (302) is provided with a workpiece hand (312) for holding the workpiece (W) and a resin hand (322) for holding the sealing resin (R). The workpiece hand (312) holds the workpiece (W) at a location directly under the sealing resin (R) held by the resin hand (322).

Description

Compression molding device and compression molding method

The present invention relates to a compression molding device and a compression molding method.

One example of a resin sealing device and resin sealing method that uses a compression molding method to seal a workpiece, which is a base material mounted with electronic components, with sealing resin and process it into a molded product.

The compression molding method is a technology in which a predetermined amount of sealing resin is supplied to a sealing area (cavity) provided in a sealing mold comprising an upper mold and a lower mold, and a workpiece is placed in the sealing area and sealed with resin by clamping it between the upper and lower molds (see Patent Document 1: JP 2013-42017 A, Patent Document 2: JP 2019-145550 A).

JP 2013-42017 A JP 2019-145550 A

In the case of compression molding, sealing resin is supplied into the cavity of the sealing mold, and the cavity moves in the thickness direction, causing the sealing resin to harden and seal the workpiece, so when the mold is opened, the workpiece and sealing resin must overlap even if there is a space vertically between them.

As an example, Patent Document 1 describes a method for transporting a workpiece and sealing resin into a sealing die of a compression molding die with a movable upper cavity, in which the sealing resin is generally placed on top of the workpiece and then the workpiece is transported and set into the compression molding die.

As another example, in a method for transporting a workpiece and sealing resin into a sealing die of a compression molding die with a movable lower cavity, in a type that mainly uses granular resin, in order to reduce molding defects due to dust generated from the granular resin, a pre-molded workpiece is transported from the left side of the sealing die and a molded workpiece is removed, and sealing resin is supplied from the right side of the sealing die. In this case, in order to quickly transport and remove the pre-molded workpiece and the molded workpiece, a method is described in Patent Document 2 in which a first hand (a hand that transports the pre-molded workpiece) and a second hand (a hand that transports the molded workpiece) are arranged in front and behind at two locations at the front end of one loader. However, in this supply method, since the first hand and the second hand are arranged side by side in the front-back direction, there is a problem that the transport device becomes large in the front-back direction. In addition, it is necessary to provide a space for the transport device to enter the front side of the sealing die, which causes the entire compression molding device to become large. In addition, the distance from the front of the compression molding device to the sealing mold becomes long, which makes the sealing mold difficult to maintain. In addition, the travel distance of the conveying device increases, which causes an issue of extended machine time.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a compression molding device and a compression molding method that can make the compression molding device more compact, improve the maintainability of the sealing mold, and reduce machine time and improve productivity.

The present invention solves the above problems by using the solution described below as one embodiment.

The compression molding device according to one embodiment is a compression molding device that uses a sealing die having an upper die with a cavity and a lower die having a workpiece holding portion to seal a workpiece with sealing resin and process it into a molded product, and is equipped with a transport device that transports the workpiece and the sealing resin into the sealing die, the transport device having a work hand that holds the workpiece and a resin hand that holds the sealing resin, and the work hand is configured to hold the workpiece in a position directly below the sealing resin held by the resin hand.

In the above embodiment, the workpiece and sealing resin are held in a vertical hierarchical manner in the conveying device, so the front-to-rear dimension of the conveying device can be reduced. This allows the compression molding device to be made more compact. Also, the distance from the front of the compression molding device to the sealing mold is shortened, so the maintainability of the sealing mold can be improved. Furthermore, after the workpiece is placed on the work holding section, the sealing resin can be placed continuously on the workpiece without moving the conveying device, so machine time can be shortened and productivity can be improved.

Furthermore, it is preferable that the workpiece has a structure in which electronic components are mounted on a substrate, and the sealing resin is a plate- or block-shaped solid resin formed into a predetermined shape whose overall shape corresponds to the shape of the workpiece.

Furthermore, it is preferable that the work hand has a first holding part that holds the work by gripping the bottom or side surface of the work or by suctioning the top surface, and the resin hand has a second holding part that holds the work by gripping the bottom or side surface of the sealing resin or by suctioning the top surface.

Furthermore, it is preferable that the transport device has a moving device that moves the holding position of the sealing resin in the second holding part of the resin hand upward and downward relative to the holding position of the work in the first holding part of the work hand.

In one embodiment, the compression molding method is a compression molding method in which a workpiece is sealed with sealing resin and processed into a molded product using a sealing mold that includes an upper mold having a cavity and a lower mold having a workpiece holding portion, and includes a resin holding step of holding the sealing resin with a resin hand, a workpiece holding step of holding the workpiece with a workpiece hand at a position directly below the sealing resin after the resin holding step, a workpiece placing step of placing the workpiece on the workpiece holding portion provided on the lower mold after the workpiece holding step, and a resin placing step of placing the sealing resin on the workpiece after the workpiece placing step.

The present invention makes it possible to make compression molding equipment more compact, improves the maintainability of sealing molds, and also shortens machine time and improves productivity.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of a compression molding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view showing an example of a press device of the compression molding apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a front cross-sectional view showing an example of a sealing mold of a compression molding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a compression molding method according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. Fig. 14A is an enlarged view of part XIV in Fig. 13. Fig. 14B is an explanatory view following Fig. 14A. FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. 14B. FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing an example of a sealing resin used in the compression molding apparatus and the compression molding method according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing another example of a sealing resin used in the compression molding apparatus and the compression molding method according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing another example of a sealing resin used in the compression molding apparatus and the compression molding method according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing another example of a sealing resin used in the compression molding apparatus and the compression molding method according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 21 is a plan view showing an example of a compression molding device according to a comparative example.

Below, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view (schematic diagram) showing an example of a compression molding device 1 according to this embodiment. For ease of explanation, arrows in the figure indicate the left-right direction (X direction), front-back direction (Y direction), and up-down direction (Z direction) in the compression molding device 1. In addition, in all the figures used to explain each embodiment, members having the same function are given the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations may be omitted.

The compression molding apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is an apparatus that performs resin sealing (compression molding) of a workpiece (molded product) W using a sealing mold 202 that includes an upper mold 204 and a lower mold 206. The lower mold 206 is provided with one or more workpiece holding portions 205 that hold the workpiece W. The upper mold 204 is provided with one or more cavities 208 depending on the shape and number of the workpieces W. A release film (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "film") F is adsorbed and held within this cavity 208. However, the apparatus is not limited to this configuration.

First, the workpiece W to be sealed has a configuration in which electronic components Wb are mounted on a substrate Wa. More specifically, examples of the substrate Wa include plate-shaped members such as resin substrates, ceramic substrates, metal substrates, carrier plates, lead frames, and wafers. Examples of the electronic components Wb include semiconductor chips, MEMS chips, passive elements, heat sinks, conductive members, spacers, and the like. The shape of the substrate Wa is rectangular (striped), square, circular, and the like. The number of electronic components Wb mounted on one substrate Wa is set to one or more (for example, in a matrix).

Examples of methods for mounting electronic components Wb on the substrate Wa include wire bonding and flip chip mounting. Alternatively, in the case of a configuration in which the substrate (glass or metal carrier plate) Wa is peeled off from the molded product Wp after resin sealing, the electronic components Wb can be attached using a thermally peelable adhesive tape or an ultraviolet-curing resin that hardens when exposed to ultraviolet light.

In this embodiment, the sealing resin R is a solid resin that is a thermosetting resin (for example, but not limited to, an epoxy resin containing a filler) and has a predetermined overall shape (details will be described later) that corresponds to the shape of the workpiece W. Normally, one piece constitutes the "whole" amount of sealing required (one application per workpiece W), but it may be configured so that several pieces (for example, two or three pieces) are divided to constitute the "whole" amount of sealing required.

Examples of film F that can be suitably used include film materials with excellent heat resistance, ease of peeling, flexibility, and extensibility, such as PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), ETFE (polytetrafluoroethylene polymer), PET, FEP, fluorine-impregnated glass cloth, polypropylene, and polyvinylidine chloride.

Next, an overview of the compression molding device 1 according to this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the compression molding device 1 mainly comprises a work supply unit 100A for supplying the work W, a resin supply unit 100B for transporting the sealing resin R, a press unit 100C for sealing the work W with resin and processing it into a molded product Wp, and a storage unit 100D for storing the molded product Wp. As an example, the work supply unit 100A, the resin supply unit 100B, the press unit 100C, the press unit 100C, and the storage unit 100D are arranged in this order along the X direction in FIG. 1. However, the above configuration is not limited to this, and the equipment configuration within the unit, the number of units (particularly the number of press units), the arrangement order of the units, etc. can be changed. In addition, a configuration including units other than those described above (not shown in the figures) is also possible.

In addition, in the compression molding device 1, a control unit 150 that controls the operation of each mechanism in each unit is located in the work supply unit 100A (it may also be configured to be located in another unit).

In addition, the compression molding device 1 has a guide rail 300 that is linearly provided between each unit, and a transport device (first loader) 302 that transports the workpiece W and the sealing resin R, and a transport device (second loader) 304 that transports the molded product Wp are provided so as to be movable between predetermined units along the guide rail 300. However, the configuration is not limited to the above, and a configuration including a common (single) transport device (loader) that transports the workpiece W, the sealing resin R, and the molded product Wp (not shown) may also be used. In this embodiment, two workpieces W are arranged in the X direction and transported into the sealing mold 202, but the following description will be given for one workpiece to simplify the drawings. The number of workpieces is not limited to two.

The inventors of the present application have devised a comparative compression molding device 400 (see FIG. 21) in order to study a transport device for transporting the workpiece W and the sealing resin R. Specifically, the compression molding device 400 is configured to transport the workpiece W and the sealing resin R into the sealing die 401 by a transport device 402 in which a first hand (a workpiece hand for transporting the workpiece W) 412 and a second hand (a resin hand for transporting the sealing resin R) 422 are arranged side by side in the front-to-rear direction.

However, in the compression molding apparatus 400 according to the comparative example, like the conventional compression molding apparatus described in Patent Document 2, the first hand and the second hand are arranged side by side in the front-to-rear direction, which creates the problem that the conveying device becomes large in the front-to-rear direction. In addition, it is necessary to provide space in front of the apparatus to allow the conveying device to enter the front side of the compression molding apparatus relative to the sealing mold, which creates the problem that the entire compression molding apparatus becomes large. In addition, the distance from the front of the compression molding apparatus to the sealing mold becomes long, which creates the problem that the maintenance of the sealing mold is difficult.

In order to solve the above problems, the conveying device (first loader) 302 according to this embodiment has the following configuration. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the first loader 302 has a loader body 302A that can move in the X direction within the compression molding device 1, and a loader head 302B that is attached to the loader body 302A and can move in the Y and Z directions within the compression molding device 1. The loader head 302B has a work hand 312 that holds the workpiece W and a resin hand 322 that holds the sealing resin R, and the work hand 312 and the resin hand 322 are attached to the loader head 302B (specifically, the support part 310). In this embodiment, the work hand 312 is arranged to hold the workpiece W at a position directly below the sealing resin R held by the resin hand 322.

As a result, the compression molding apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is able to solve the above problems. Specifically, the compression molding apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is able to hold the workpiece W and sealing resin R in a vertically hierarchical manner in the loader head 302B. With this configuration, the front-to-rear dimension of the conveying device (first loader) 302 can be reduced. Therefore, the compression molding apparatus 1 can be made more compact. In addition, the distance from the front of the compression molding apparatus 1 to the sealing mold 202 is shortened, improving the maintainability of the sealing mold 202.

In this embodiment, the work hand 312 has a first holding portion (as an example, a chuck having holding claws at its tip) 314 that holds the work W, and a first moving device 316 that drives the chuck 314 to open and close in the X direction (see FIG. 4). The first moving device 316 is provided on a chuck support portion 318 that supports the chuck 314. With this configuration, the work hand 312 can hold the work W by gripping the bottom or side of the work W. However, this is not limited to this configuration, and the chuck 314 may be configured to include a rotating shaft that rotates the chuck 314, or may be configured to move the chuck 314 by combining horizontal and rotational movements (neither of which are shown).

The resin hand 322 also has a second holding section (suction mechanism (configuration for suction having a suction hole communicating with a suction device)) 324 that holds the sealing resin R by suctioning the upper surface of the sealing resin R, and a second moving device 326 that drives the suction mechanism 324 to move up and down (Z direction). The second moving device 326 is configured with a cylinder mechanism, and is connected to the suction mechanism 324 via an arm support section 327 attached to the tip of the rod and an arm 328 supported by the arm support section 327. With this configuration, the resin hand 322 can move the holding position of the sealing resin R in the suction mechanism 324 upward and downward relative to the holding position of the workpiece W in the chuck 314 of the work hand 312. As a result, the sealing resin R held by the suction mechanism 324 can be placed in contact with the workpiece W (substrate Wa) placed on the work holding section 205, thereby preventing the sealing resin R from shifting out of position. However, the second moving device 326 is not limited to this configuration, and may be configured to move the suction mechanism 324 up and down using a combination of a servo motor and a linear guide, etc. (not shown).

The first holding portion of the work hand 312 may be an adsorption mechanism, and the second holding portion of the resin hand 322 may be a chuck. Both may also be chucks or adsorption mechanisms. In this embodiment, the second holding portion 324 of the resin hand 322 is arranged on the outside of the first holding portion 314 using an arm 328, and is further moved up and down by the second moving device 326, but a through hole may be provided in the center of the chuck support portion 318, and the second moving device 326 may be provided directly on the second holding portion 324. Other known holding mechanisms may also be employed (not shown).

In addition, the compression molding device 1 has been given as an example in which the loader head 302B moves up and down (Z direction) to transport the workpiece W and sealing resin R, but the device may also be configured to move the chuck 314 up and down (Z direction) to transport the workpiece W and sealing resin R, or may be configured to have both.

(Work supply unit)
Next, the workpiece supply unit 100A provided in the compression molding apparatus 1 will be described in detail.

The work supply unit 100A is equipped with a work supply magazine 102 in which a plurality of workpieces W are stored. Here, the work supply magazine 102 may be a known stack magazine, slit magazine, or the like. The work supply unit 100A also has a work table 103 that transfers the workpieces W from the work supply magazine 102 to the first loader 302.

The work supply unit 100A may also be configured to include a work stage (not shown) on which the work W removed from the work supply magazine 102 is placed.

The workpiece W is held in advance by the workpiece hand 312 of the first loader 302 in the resin supply unit 100B (described later) with the sealing resin R held by the resin hand 322, and is transported to the press unit 100C and set at a predetermined position in the sealing mold 202. In this embodiment, the workpiece W is placed on the workpiece holding portion 205 of the lower mold 206, and the sealing resin R is placed on top of the workpiece W placed on the workpiece holding portion 205 (details of the process will be described later).

(Resin supply unit)
Next, the resin supplying unit 100B included in the compression molding apparatus 1 will be described in detail.

The resin supply unit 100B includes a resin supply magazine 120 that supplies the sealing resin R. Here, a known stack magazine, slit magazine, or the like is used as the resin supply magazine 120. The resin supply unit 100B also includes a resin table 121 that transfers the sealing resin R from the resin supply magazine 120 to the first loader 302.

The resin supply unit 100B may also be configured to include a resin stage (not shown) on which the sealing resin R taken out from the resin supply magazine 120 is placed.

The sealing resin R is held by the resin hand 322 of the first loader 302 and transported to the press unit 100C via the work supply unit 100A. In this embodiment, the work supply unit 100A is arranged in this order from the left end, followed by the resin supply unit 100B, but this order is not necessary and may be followed by the resin supply unit 100B, followed by the work supply unit 100A from the left end.

(Press unit)
Next, the press unit 100C included in the compression molding apparatus 1 will be described in detail.

The press unit 100C is equipped with a sealing die 202 having a pair of dies (for example, a combination of multiple die blocks, die plates, die pillars, etc., made of alloy tool steel, and other components) that can be opened and closed. It also has a press device 250 that opens and closes the sealing die 202 to resin seal the workpiece W. As an example, a configuration is shown that includes one press device 250, but a configuration that includes multiple press devices (not shown) may also be used. A side view (schematic diagram) of the press device 250 provided in the press unit 100C is shown in FIG. 2, and a front cross-sectional view (schematic diagram) of the sealing die 202 is shown in FIG. 3.

Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the press device 250 is configured to include a pair of platens 254, 256, a plurality of tie bars 252 on which the pair of platens 254, 256 are supported, and a drive device for moving (raising and lowering) the platen 256. Specifically, the drive device is configured to include a drive source (e.g., an electric motor) 260 and a drive transmission mechanism (e.g., a ball screw or a toggle link mechanism) 262 (however, this is not limited to this). In this embodiment, the upper platen 254 in the vertical direction is set as a fixed platen (a platen fixed to the tie bars 252), and the lower platen 256 is set as a movable platen (a platen slidably held by the tie bars 252 and raised and lowered). However, this is not limited to this, and the platens may be set upside down, i.e., the upper side may be set as a movable platen and the lower side as a fixed platen, or both the upper and lower sides may be set as movable platens (neither is shown).

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the sealing mold 202 is provided with an upper mold 204 on the upper side in the vertical direction and a lower mold 206 on the lower side as a pair of molds arranged between the pair of platens 254, 256 in the press device 250. That is, the upper mold 204 is assembled to the upper platen (in this embodiment, the fixed platen 254), and the lower mold 206 is assembled to the lower platen (in this embodiment, the movable platen 256). The upper mold 204 and the lower mold 206 move toward and away from each other to close and open the mold (the vertical direction (up and down direction) is the mold opening and closing direction).

In addition, in this embodiment, as an example, a film supply mechanism 211 is provided that transports (supplies) a roll-shaped film F into the interior of the sealing die 202. Note that, depending on the configuration of the workpiece W, a strip-shaped film F may be used instead of a roll-shaped film F.

Next, the upper mold 204 of the sealing mold 202 will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the upper mold 204 includes an upper mold chase 210, a cavity piece 226 held by the upper mold chase, a clamper 228, and the like. The upper mold chase 210 is fixed to the lower surface of a support plate 214 via a support pillar 212. A cavity 208 is provided on the lower surface of the upper mold 204 (the surface facing the lower mold 206).

The clamper 228 is configured in a ring shape to surround the cavity piece 226, and is assembled to the underside of the support plate 214 via a push pin 222 and a clamper spring (a biasing member such as a coil spring) 224 so as to be spaced apart (floating) from the bottom surface of the support plate 214 and movable up and down (however, this assembly structure is not limited). The cavity piece 226 forms the inner part (bottom part) of the cavity 208, and the clamper 228 forms the side part of the cavity 208. The shape and number of cavities 208 provided in one upper mold 204 are appropriately set according to the shape and number of workpieces W (one or multiple).

In addition, suction paths (holes, grooves, etc.) that communicate with a suction device are provided on the underside of the clamper 228 and at the boundary between the clamper 228 and the cavity piece 226 (not shown). This allows the film F supplied from the film supply mechanism 211 to be adsorbed and held on the mold surface 204a, including the inner surface of the cavity 208. In addition, the cavity 208 can be degassed when the mold is closed and resin sealing is performed.

In addition, in this embodiment, an upper die heating mechanism (not shown) is provided that heats the upper die 204 to a predetermined temperature. This upper die heating mechanism includes a heater (e.g., an electric wire heater), a temperature sensor, a power source, etc., and heating is controlled by the control unit 150. As an example, the heater is built into the upper die chase 210 and is configured to apply heat to the entire upper die 204 and the sealing resin R contained in the cavity 208. The heater heats the upper die 204 to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 100°C to 300°C).

Next, the lower die 206 of the sealing mold 202 will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the lower die 206 includes a lower die chase 240 and a lower plate 242 held by the chase.

In this embodiment, a workpiece holding section 205 is provided to hold the workpiece W at a predetermined position on the upper surface of the lower plate 242. As an example, the workpiece holding section 205 has a workpiece guide pin (not shown) and a suction passage (hole, groove, etc.) that is arranged to penetrate the lower plate 242 and communicates with a suction device (not shown). Specifically, one end of the suction passage is connected to the die surface 206a of the lower die 206, and the other end is connected to a suction device arranged outside the lower die 206. This makes it possible to drive the suction device to suck the workpiece W through the suction passage and hold the workpiece W by suction on the die surface 206a (here, the upper surface of the lower plate 242). Instead of the above-mentioned suction holding mechanism, or together with the suction holding mechanism, a configuration may be provided with holding claws that clamp the outer periphery of the workpiece W (not shown). The shape and number of the workpiece holding sections 205 provided on one lower die 206 are appropriately set according to the shape and number of the workpieces W (one or multiple).

In addition, in this embodiment, a lower die heating mechanism (not shown) is provided that heats the lower die 206 to a predetermined temperature. This lower die heating mechanism includes a heater (e.g., an electric wire heater), a temperature sensor, a power source, etc., and heating is controlled by the control unit 150. As an example, the heater is built into the lower die chase 240 and is configured to apply heat to the entire lower die 206 and the workpiece W held by the workpiece holding unit 205. The heater heats the lower die 206 to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 100°C to 300°C).

(Storage unit)
Next, the storage unit 100D included in the compression molding apparatus 1 will be described in detail.

The molded product Wp is held by the second loader 304, removed from the sealing mold 202, and transported to the storage unit 100D. The second loader 304 uses a known holding mechanism for the molded product Wp (e.g., a clamping mechanism with holding claws, a suction hole that communicates with a suction device and a suction mechanism, etc.) (not shown).

As a variation of the above-mentioned transport device, instead of the second loader 304 that moves in the X and Y directions, a configuration may be provided in which a transport device (loader) that moves in the X direction to transport between units and a transport device (loader) that moves in the Y direction to unload from the sealing mold 202 are provided separately (not shown).

The storage unit 100D is equipped with a storage magazine 104 in which multiple molded products Wp are stored. Here, a known stack magazine, slit magazine, or the like is used as the storage magazine 104. It is also equipped with a molded product table 105 (alignment section) on which the molded products Wp transported by the second loader 304 are temporarily placed, but this can be omitted in the configuration.

The storage unit 100D may also be configured to include a molded product stage (not shown) on which the molded product Wp transported from the press unit 100C is placed.

(Resin sealing operation)
Next, there will be described steps of the compression molding method according to the present embodiment, which is carried out using the compression molding apparatus 1. Here, Fig. 4 to Fig. 16 are explanatory views of each step, and are illustrated as front cross-sectional views in the same direction as Fig. 3.

First, as a preparation process, a heating process (upper mold heating process) is carried out in which the upper mold heating mechanism adjusts and heats the upper mold 204 to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 100°C to 300°C). In addition, a heating process (lower mold heating process) is carried out in which the lower mold heating mechanism adjusts and heats the lower mold 206 to a predetermined temperature (e.g., 100°C to 300°C). In addition, a film supply process (upper mold film supply process) is carried out in which the film supply mechanism 211 is operated to supply new film F and adsorb it to cover a predetermined area of the mold surface 204a, including the inner surface of the cavity 208 in the upper mold 204.

Next, a resin holding process is performed in which the sealing resin R is held by the resin hand 322 of the first loader 302. Specifically, the first loader 302 is moved to the resin supply unit 100B, and the loader head 302B is moved above the resin table 121 on which the sealing resin R supplied from the resin supply magazine 120 is placed (see FIG. 4). Next, the loader head 302B is lowered, and the second moving device 326 is operated (moved downward) to lower the suction mechanism 324 until it abuts against the upper surface of the sealing resin R, thereby holding (adsorbing) the sealing resin R (see FIG. 5). Next, the second moving device 326 is operated (moved upward) to raise the suction mechanism 324, and the loader head 302B is raised (see FIG. 6).

After the resin holding process, a work holding process is performed in which the work W is held by the work hand 312 of the first loader 302. Specifically, the first loader 302, with the sealing resin R held by the resin hand 322, is moved to the work supply unit 100A, and the loader head 302B is moved above the work table 103 on which the work W supplied from the work supply magazine 102 is placed (see FIG. 7). Next, the loader head 302B is lowered, and the first moving device 316 is operated to bring the chuck 314 close to the work W, and the work W is held (gripped) at a position directly below the sealing resin R (see FIG. 8). Next, the loader head 302B is raised (see FIG. 9).

After the work holding process, a work placing process is carried out in which the work W is placed on the work holding portion 205 of the lower die 206. Specifically, the first loader 302 holding the work W and the sealing resin R is moved to the press unit 100C, and the loader head 302B is moved above the work holding portion 205 of the lower die 206 (see FIG. 10). Next, the loader head 302B is lowered, and the first moving device 316 is operated to move the chuck 314 away from the work W, and the work W is placed (held) on the work holding portion 205 (see FIG. 11).

After the workpiece placement process, a resin placement process is carried out in which the sealing resin R is placed on the workpiece W placed on the workpiece holding section 205. Specifically, the second moving device 326 is operated to lower the suction mechanism 324, the suction of the sealing resin R is released, and the sealing resin R is placed on the workpiece W placed on the workpiece holding section 205 (see FIG. 12). Next, the second moving device 326 is operated to raise the suction mechanism 324 and raise the loader head 302B, and then the loader head 302B is moved outside the sealing mold 202 (see FIG. 13).

As mentioned above, in conventional compression molding methods, the first hand and second hand are arranged side by side in the front-to-rear direction, and therefore it was necessary to advance the conveying device up to the front side of the device relative to the sealing mold during the workpiece placement process. In contrast, in this embodiment, it is sufficient to advance the loader head 302B up to the workpiece holding section 205 during the workpiece placement process, and the travel distance of the loader head 302B can be shortened. This makes it possible to shorten machine time and improve productivity.

After the resin placement process, a resin sealing process is carried out in which the workpiece W is sealed with sealing resin R and processed into a molded product Wp. Specifically, the sealing mold 202 is closed, and the cavity piece 226 is lowered relatively within the cavity 208 to carry out a mold closing process in which the sealing resin R is heated and pressurized against the workpiece W. This causes the sealing resin R to thermally harden, completing the resin sealing (compression molding) (see FIG. 15).

Here, for example, in a conventional compression molding device in which a cavity is provided in the upper die for a workpiece W on which a strip-type wire-connected electronic component (semiconductor chip) Wb is mounted, there is a problem that resin sealing is difficult to perform when the wire portion of the workpiece held in the lower die comes into contact with the sealing resin previously transferred to the cavity or transferred onto the workpiece during the mold closing process and becomes deformed.

The compression molding device 1 according to this embodiment is able to solve the above problem by adopting a configuration in which a solid resin formed into a predetermined shape corresponding to the shape of the workpiece W is used as the sealing resin R.

Specifically, the above-mentioned "predetermined shape" is a shape that does not come into contact with the electronic component Wb (including the wire in the case of the electronic component Wb having a wire) when placed on the substrate Wa of the work W. As an example, as shown in FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B, a sealing resin R having a shape in which a plate-shaped or block-shaped main body Ra and legs Rb arranged intermittently (or continuously) on one side of the main body Ra (the side facing the electronic component Wb of the work W) are provided is preferred (however, this shape is not limited). The main body Ra is of a size that fits into the cavity 208 in a plan view, and considering the resin flow, a size that is slightly smaller than the shape of the cavity 208 (particularly the cavity piece 226) is preferred. In addition, the legs Rb need to have a height H (see FIG. 14A) that does not come into contact with the electronic component Wb, but this does not exclude contact to the extent that the wire does not undergo plastic deformation. The legs Rb are arranged at a position where they do not come into contact with the electronic components Wb in a plan view of the main body Ra, and where the main body Ra will not tilt when placed on the substrate Wa of the work W. Furthermore, it is preferable that the legs Rb are arranged between the electronic components Wb or on the outer periphery of the electronic components Wb so as not to damage the wiring (particularly the wires) of the work W even slightly during molding. The total amount of resin in the plate-shaped or block-shaped main body Ra and the legs Rb may be just the right amount of resin, or may be a large amount of resin, so long as it is sufficient for one compression molding. Details of specific configuration examples of the sealing resin R (Figures 17 to 20) will be described later.

With the above configuration, during the mold closing process, the softening and melting of the sealing resin R progresses, transitioning from FIG. 14A to FIG. 14B (note that FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B are shown as enlarged views of part XIV in FIG. 13). At this time, the resin (specifically, the main body part Ra) comes into uniform contact with all the wires (see FIG. 14B). As a result, the effect of suppressing wire flow is obtained.

The inventors of the present application actually conducted experiments using the compression molding device 1 according to this embodiment, and confirmed that wire flow was suppressed and molding quality was improved compared to a conventional compression molding device in which a workpiece is held in the upper die, a cavity is provided in the lower die, and sealing resin (specifically, granular resin) is supplied to the cavity.

Furthermore, because the sealing resin R is a solid resin, it is possible to solve the problems that were previously caused by granular resin, such as uneven distribution, residual gas, and dust generation during molding, as well as the difficulty of handling. In addition, even when forming a thick molded product with a thickness exceeding 1 mm, it is possible to prevent the film F from getting caught in the molded product Wp.

The steps following the mold closing step are the same as those in conventional compression molding methods. In summary, the mold opening step is performed to open the sealing mold 202 and separate the molded product Wp from the used film F (see FIG. 16). Next, the molded product unloading step is performed to unload the molded product Wp from the sealing mold 202 by the second loader 304 and unload it into the storage unit 100D. Furthermore, after or in parallel with the molded product unloading step, the film supply mechanism 211 is operated to send out the used film F from the sealing mold 202 and to feed and set new film F into the sealing mold 202.

The above are the main steps of the compression molding method performed using the compression molding device 1. However, the above order of steps is only one example, and the order of steps can be changed or steps can be performed in parallel as long as no problems occur.

(Sealing resin)
Next, specific configuration examples of the sealing resin R used in the compression molding method by the compression molding apparatus 1 described above are shown in Figs. 17 to 20, and the features of each will be described.

First, as a configuration common to each of the examples shown in Figures 17 to 20, the main body portion Ra is formed in a plate shape (it may also be in a shape other than a plate shape, for example, a block shape having concave and convex portions). Furthermore, the leg portions Rb are erected on the main body portion Ra so that when the sealing resin R is placed in a predetermined position (a position set by design) on the substrate Wa of the work W, it is in a position that does not abut against the electronic components Wb of the work W, and are formed at a height H (see Figure 14A) that ensures a distance at which the main body portion Ra does not abut against the electronic components Wb.

In the example of sealing resin R shown in FIG. 17, the legs Rb are all (or part of) formed as tapered convex bodies Rb1 arranged in a dot pattern. As an example of the convex bodies Rb1, they are arranged at multiple positions and formed in a shape where the ratio t of the length L1 to the width W1 in a plan view is, for example, 0.5≦t≦2. With this, the configuration in which the legs Rb are columnar and arranged in a dot pattern can suppress the sealing resin R placed on the workpiece W from flowing during compression molding. This can prevent wire drift and the like, improving molding quality.

In the example of the sealing resin R shown in FIG. 18, the leg Rb is formed as a convex body Rb2 in which a part (or all) is arranged in a line. As an example of the convex body Rb2, it is arranged at one position (or multiple positions) and is formed in a shape in which the ratio t of the length L2 to the width W2 in a plan view is, for example, t < 0.5 or 2 < t. This makes it possible to intentionally generate resin flow from the leg Rb (in this case, the convex body Rb2) having a bank-like configuration of a predetermined length, and to promote the filling of the sealing resin R into narrow parts of the workpiece W (for example, between the substrate Wa and electronic component Wb that are flip-chip connected). This makes it possible to prevent gas from remaining in the molded product Wp, and improve the molding quality.

In the example of the sealing resin R shown in FIG. 19, the legs Rb are formed as convex bodies Rb3 that are arranged so as to surround the entire periphery (referring to the outer edge region) of the main body Ra intermittently (or may be continuous). As an example of the convex bodies Rb3, convex bodies having the same configuration as Rb2 are formed in a continuous manner to form a circumference with gaps L3 at predetermined intervals. Generally, the outer peripheral position of the sealing resin R in the molded product Wp is the position that is cut by a dicer or the like when it is divided into individual pieces, and since there are no electronic components Wb, a larger amount of resin is required for sealing compared to the central position. Therefore, by providing the legs Rb (in this case, the convex bodies Rb3) that are arranged so as to surround the entire periphery as in this configuration, it is possible to supply a large amount of resin to the outer peripheral position while suppressing the resin flow during compression molding. Furthermore, the provision of the gaps L3 promotes the discharge of gas components such as air from the inside (center) to the outside.

On the other hand, the example of sealing resin R shown in Figure 20 is a configuration example for the other surface of the main body portion Ra (the surface on which the legs Rb are not provided, i.e., the surface on the side that does not face the electronic components Wb of the workpiece W). Specifically, linear grooves Rg are formed on the other surface of the main body portion Ra at the position where dicing for individualization is performed. This reduces wear on the dicing blade and reduces dust generated during dicing. As an example, the grooves Rg are arranged in a grid pattern to match the dicing position, but are not limited to this.

As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to make the compression molding device more compact, improve the maintainability of the sealing mold, and reduce machine time and improve productivity.

In addition, since it is possible to perform compression molding using the sealing resin R having a shape with legs Rb as exemplified in Figures 17 to 19, the following effects can be obtained. Specifically, it is possible to prevent molding defects caused by flow, uneven distribution, and residual gas of the sealing resin. In addition, it is possible to facilitate handling of the sealing resin and prevent dust from being generated by the sealing resin during molding. In addition, it is possible to form not only thin molded products (thickness dimension less than 1 mm) but also thick molded products (thickness dimension 1 mm or more). Although the upper limit of the thickness dimension depends on various setting conditions, it is considered that it is possible to form a thickness of up to about 10 mm. In addition, by applying this to a configuration in which a cavity is provided in the upper mold, it is possible to solve the problem that when a workpiece is thin or large, it is difficult to hold it in the upper mold and it is easy for it to fall in a configuration in which a cavity is provided in the lower mold.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims (6)

A compression molding apparatus that uses a sealing die having an upper die having a cavity and a lower die having a workpiece holding portion to seal a workpiece with a sealing resin and process the workpiece into a molded product,
a conveying device that conveys the workpiece and the sealing resin into the sealing die;
The conveying device includes a work hand that holds the workpiece and a resin hand that holds the sealing resin,
The compression molding apparatus is characterized in that the work hand is configured to hold the work at a position directly below the sealing resin held by the resin hand. As the workpiece, a workpiece having a configuration in which an electronic component is mounted on a substrate is used,
2. The compression molding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sealing resin is a plate-like or block-like solid resin formed into a predetermined shape corresponding to the shape of the workpiece. The work hand has a first holding part that holds the work by gripping a lower surface or a side surface of the work or by suctioning an upper surface of the work,
3. The compression molding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the resin hand has a second holding portion that holds the workpiece by gripping a lower surface or a side surface of the sealing resin or by suctioning an upper surface of the sealing resin. The compression molding apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that the conveying device has a moving device that moves the holding position of the sealing resin in the second holding portion of the resin hand upward and downward relative to the holding position of the work in the first holding portion of the work hand. A compression molding method for processing a molded product by sealing a workpiece with a sealing resin using a sealing die having an upper die having a cavity and a lower die having a workpiece holding portion,
a resin holding step of holding the sealing resin with a resin hand;
a work holding step of holding the work by a work hand at a position directly below the sealing resin after the resin holding step;
a work placing step of placing the work on the work holding portion provided in the lower mold after the work holding step;
a resin placing step of placing the sealing resin on the workpiece after the workpiece placing step;
A compression molding method comprising: As the workpiece, a workpiece having a configuration in which an electronic component is mounted on a substrate is used,
6. The compression molding method according to claim 5, wherein the sealing resin is a plate-like or block-like solid resin formed into a predetermined shape corresponding to the shape of the workpiece.

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