JPH059330B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (a) Industrial Application Field The present invention relates to a workpiece transport device that transports a workpiece, and in particular, a workpiece supply side structure to a transporter that continuously transports the workpiece and a method for taking out the workpiece from the transporter. Regarding improvement of side structure.

(B) Prior art For example, as devices for sequentially marking, etc. at multiple locations in the longitudinal direction of a long work, there are generally two types: one that feeds the work intermittently in the longitudinal direction, and the other that feeds the work continuously in the longitudinal direction. It is used. The former method makes it easy to supply the workpiece to the workpiece transporter and take it out from the workpiece transporter, but since it is an intermittent feed, it is fundamentally disadvantageous in terms of work indexing. It is disadvantageous for those who perform work that can be processed. The latter can shorten the work index, but it is difficult to feed the workpiece to a conveyor that continuously feeds the workpiece and to take it out from the conveyor, especially when the workpiece is thin and long in the form of a strip. This is difficult when the shape is unstable.

For example, semiconductor devices such as ICs are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the lead frame 1 after pellet mounting or wire bonding is performed on the strip-shaped lead frame 1 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Exterior resin materials 2, 2... are molded at multiple treated locations, and then each exterior resin material 2, 2...
There is a stamp etc. on the surface. A strip-shaped workpiece 3 consisting of this lead frame 1 and exterior resin material 2, 2...
For example, a plurality of sheets are stacked and stored in a case-like magazine 4 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4,
At the time of stamping, the sheets are taken out one by one starting from the topmost one and fed onto one end of a conveyor (not shown) such as a conveyor that continuously transports the workpieces 3, and when the stamping has been completed, the sheets are taken out one by one from the topmost one and fed onto one end of the conveyor (not shown) that continuously transports the workpieces 3. It is taken out from the other end and stored in another magazine 4. However, it is unavoidable that the workpiece 3 is warped mainly in the longitudinal direction due to distortion caused by heat during molding of the exterior resin materials 2, 2, etc., and this is caused by automatic feeding to the conveyor or from the conveyor. This makes it difficult to perform automatic extraction accurately and at high speed, and as a result, it becomes an obstacle to shortening the work index.

In addition, a plurality of magazines 4, 4... full of works 3 are arranged on the work supply side of the above-mentioned transport body, and a plurality of empty magazines 4, 4... are arranged on the work storage side. The above-mentioned continuous work is carried out by adopting a magazine management system in which the management is done by workers on the supply side, and magazine management on the storage side is done by workers on the storage side, but this does not save labor and the work The effect of continuous feeding is diminished.

(c) Purpose of the invention The present invention has been made in view of the above problems.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a workpiece conveying device capable of continuously feeding even a long workpiece with an unstable shape in a normal state to improve a work index.

(D) Structure of the Invention The present invention provides a first swing arm for supplying a workpiece by vacuum suction from the outside to a first position on the workpiece supply side of a conveyor that continuously feeds the workpiece in its longitudinal direction. A pressing body is provided to press the workpiece to a first position to regulate its position, and a lifting platform is provided to lift the workpiece carried into the second position for taking out the workpiece of the conveyance body to a fixed position, and the lifted workpiece is vacuumed. It is composed of a second swing arm that absorbs the material and takes it out to the outside. The above-mentioned conveyance body continuously feeds the workpiece at equal intervals along the guide rail installed between the above-mentioned first and second positions, and a desired work position such as stamping is set in the middle of this continuous feeding line. Ru. If the workpiece is long and has a warp in its longitudinal direction, the pressing body corrects the warp and presses it onto the rail at the first position to allow the workpiece to be fed in a normal state. Furthermore, by lifting the workpieces, the elevating table provides time margin for taking out the workpieces at a fixed position even if the intervals between the plurality of continuously fed workspieces are narrow, thereby ensuring workpiece takeout.

(E) Embodiment An example of a conveying apparatus according to the present invention for carrying the workpiece 3 stored in the magazine 4 will be described with reference to FIG. 5 and subsequent drawings. The magazine 4 is box-shaped with an upper and lower opening, and workpiece support plates 4',
4' is formed, and workpieces are taken in and out through the upper end opening.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, numeral 5 denotes a workpiece conveyance device according to the present invention, and numeral 6 denotes a magazine conveyance device for supplying and collecting works, which is installed in correspondence with the workpiece conveyance device 5. The workpiece conveyance device 5 continuously feeds the workpiece 3 in its longitudinal direction from a fixed first position _{P1 to} a _second position _P2 . Working position, for example, each exterior resin material 2, 2 of work 3...
An engraving position P ₃ is installed to engrave the surface using a laser beam. The magazine conveyance device is an intermittent magazine conveyance line that runs parallel to the continuous workpiece conveyance line _L1 between the first and second positions _P1 and _P2 .
The magazine 4 is intermittently fed in the longitudinal direction to, for example, three first to third magazine positions Q _{1 ,} Q ₂ , Q ₃ of L 2 , and the first magazine position Q ₁ at one end is in the first position ( _The third magazine position _Q3 at the other end is placed next to the second position _P2 (hereinafter referred to as the second work position).

Reference numeral 7 in the magazine conveying device 6 is a magazine conveying body forming an intermittent magazine conveying line _L2 , such as a roller conveyor 8 that supports the magazine 4 on a tower.
and a total of four feed claws 9, 9, which feed the magazine 4 intermittently onto the roller conveyor 8, and feed claws 9,
9... along a guide rod 10 parallel to line _L2 and reciprocating at a constant stroke. Reference numerals 12 and 13 are a first conveyor for supplying magazines and a second conveyor for recovering magazines, which are installed near both ends of the roller conveyor 8. The first and second conveyors 12 and 13 support a plurality of magazines 4, 4, etc. filled with workpieces 3 in parallel and feed them intermittently in a direction perpendicular to the magazine intermittent conveyance line _L2 . The conveyor 12 sequentially feeds the magazines ₄ to the magazine supply position Q4 near the first magazine position _Q1 , and the second conveyor 13 carries the magazines carried into the magazine collection position _Q5 near the third magazine position _Q3 . Collect 4. When the first and second conveyors 12, 13 are driven one pitch, each feed claw 9, 9... moves back and forth once, and the feed claw 9 at the left end in Figure 5 moves the magazine 4 at position Q ₄ to position Q4.
The second feed claw 9 from the left is in position Q _{1 .}
The third feed claw 9 from the left feeds the magazine 4 in position Q ₂ to position Q ₃ , and the rightmost feed claw 9 intermittently feeds the magazine 4 in position _{Q 3 to} position Q ₅ . do. For example, the first magazine position _Q1 and the third magazine position _Q3 have the first,
A second elevator mechanism 14, 15 is installed, and a first
When one magazine 4 is supplied to the magazine position _Q1 , the lifting rod 16 of the first elevator mechanism 14 rises by a fixed pitch to move the workpieces 3, 3... stored in the magazine 4 to the topmost workpiece 3. It is lifted to the position for taking out the workpieces, and when all the workpieces have been taken out, it descends to the bottom dead center.
Lifting rod 17 of one second elevator mechanism 15
is the empty magazine 4 in the 3rd magazine position Q _3.
When carried in, it rises to the top of this magazine 4, and each time one work 3 is placed and collected, it descends one pitch, until the magazine 4 is full with a predetermined number of works 3, 3... The lifting rod 17 then separates from the magazine 4.

The work conveyance device 5 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. Reference numeral 18 denotes a guide rail installed between the first work position _P1 and the second work position _P2 ;
Reference numeral 19 denotes a conveyor that continuously transports the work 3 on the guide rail 18, for example, a chain conveyor, and 20 indicates the conveyor that vacuum-chucks the work 3 at the top of the magazine 4 in the first magazine position _Q1 and transfers it to the first work position.
The _first swing arm 21 transfers and supplies the workpiece 3 to the first workpiece position _P1 .
a pressing body 22 for pressing the on the guide rail 18;
23 is a lifting platform that lifts the workpiece 3 carried into the second workpiece position P ₂ to a fixed position, and 23 is a lifting platform that vacuum-chucks the workpiece 3 lifted by the lifting platform 22 and transfers it into the magazine 4 of the third magazine position Q ₃ . and a second swing arm that transfers and supplies the same.

The first swing arm 20 in FIGS. 9 and 10
, 24 is an arm body that is installed to be able to move up and down and whose tip end can swing back and forth between positions P ₁ and Q ₁ , and 25 is an arm drive shaft that moves the base end of the arm body 24 up and down and rotationally. , 26 is a rotational support shaft passed through the tip of the arm body 24, 27 is a support arm extending to both sides from the lower end of the rotation support shaft 26, and 28, 28 are suction pads extending downward from both ends of the support arm 27. Two exterior resin materials 2, 2 near both ends of a sheet of work 3 are vacuum-adsorbed. 29
3 is a rotating pulley fixed to the upper end of the rotating support shaft 26;
0 is a fixed pulley projected above the base end of the arm body 24, 31 is a belt stretched between the pulleys 29 and 30, and 32 is a tension roller that comes into elastic contact with a part of the belt 31. The support arm 27 has a structure that allows the height of the suction pads 28, 28 to be adjusted. In other words, the workpieces 3, 3 stored in the magazine 4 at the _first magazine position Q1
. . has a warp, and by adjusting the height of each suction pad 28, 28 in advance according to this warp, consideration is given so that the suction pads 28, 28 can reliably vacuum-suck the workpiece 3. Support arm 27
The pulleys 29 and 29 are integrated so that when the arm body 24 rotates by a certain angle, the support arm 27 rotates with respect to the arm body 24 at the same angle in the opposite direction, and the pulleys 29,
An outer diameter of 30 is set. The arm body 24 is the ninth
Go down to the first magazine position as shown by the solid line in the figure.
When the topmost workpiece 3 of magazine 4 of Q ₁ is picked up, it rises, and then rotates to the position shown by the chain line in Figure 9 and moves to 1.
The workpiece 3 is moved in parallel to the first workpiece position _P1 , then lowered, vacuum suction is released, raised, and the operation of returning to the solid line position is repeated.

The pressing body 21 is installed at the first work position _P1 so as to be movable up and down. 1st work position P ₁
As shown in FIG. 11, the guide rail 18 has receiving steps 33, 33 on which both sides of the lead frame 1 of the workpiece 3 are placed, and the pressing body 21 is mounted on the receiving steps 3.
3 and 33, both sides of the lead frame 1 are pressed to correct the warpage of the workpiece 3. The pressing body 21 is fixed to the upper end of a drive shaft 34, and the drive shaft 34 is connected to a motor 35.
is used as a power source to move up and down at a constant stroke. In addition, there are two notches 36 and 3 on the front side of the pressing body 21.
6 are formed, and the suction pads 28, 28 enter these notches 36, 36 and move up and down.

As shown in FIG. 12, the guide rail 18 extending from the first work position P ₁ has a guide groove 3 into which both sides of the lead frame 1 of the work 3 are fitted.
7, 37 are formed, whereby the workpiece 3 is continuously fed without warping. A chain conveyor 19 that continuously transports workpieces has a plurality of claws 3 at equal intervals.
8, 38... are provided in a protruding manner via a torque spring (not shown), and one pawl 38 is located at the first work position.
When it comes to P ₁ , the guide rail 18 of this position P ₁
Workpiece 3 supplied above and pressed by pressing body 21
The workpiece 3 is locked at the rear end and pushed into the guide grooves 37, 37 without warping, and the workpiece 3 is continuously fed as it is. 1 claw 38
feeds the workpiece 3 from the first workpiece position _P1 to the workpiece position _P3 , the next workpiece 3 is supplied to the first workpiece position _P1 , and this workpiece 3 has a certain distance from the preceding workpiece 3. and is continuously fed by the next pawl 38. The chain conveyor 19 begins to descend before the second work position _P2 .

The elevating table 22 of the second work position P ₂ is an extension of the guide rail 18 , and a fixed table 39 is arranged between the elevating table 22 and the guide rail 18 . The combined length of the lifting table 22 and the fixed table 39 is approximately equal to the length of one workpiece 3, and the workpiece 3 sent out from the guide rail 18 slides on the fixed table 39 until the lifting table 22 is at the bottom dead center position. The stopper 40 moves upward and is installed at the rear end of the lifting platform 22.
Stop when it hits. Since the workpiece 3 leaving the guide rail 18 is warped to its original state, the upper surface of the lifting table 22 is formed in a shape corresponding to this warping, and the stability of the workpiece 3 on the lifting table 22 is maintained well. one claw 38
When the workpiece 3 is moved from the fixed table 39 to the lifting table 22, it hits the front end of the fixed table 39 as shown in FIG. Infiltrate and leave Work 3. At the timing when the claw 38 separates from the workpiece 3, the lifting platform 22 starts to rise and lifts the workpiece 3 to a predetermined position for taking it out.

The second swing arm 23 has a similar structure to the first swing arm 20, and its details will be omitted. When a workpiece 3 is lifted up to a fixed position on the lifting platform 22, the second swing arm 23 vacuum-suctions the workpiece 3 with suction pads 28' and 28' and transfers it to the magazine 4 at the third magazine position _Q3 . , move to the second work position, store it, and return to the second work position.
Repeat the movement back to P ₂ .

The chain conveyor 19, the first and second swing arms 20, 23, the pressing body 21, and the lifting platform 22
may use a single drive source, but one motor 35 may be used to ensure accurate timing of each operation.
It is desirable to use a common driving source.

Next, the magazine and workpiece conveyance operations of the above device will be explained.

Magazine 4 full of workpieces is in the first magazine position Q ₁ , second and third magazine positions Q ₂ ,
When the empty magazines 4, 4 are carried into Q ₃ , the lifting rod 16 of the first elevator mechanism 14
The first swing arm 20 moves upward at the timing when the uppermost workpieces 3, 3, etc. in the magazine 4 in position _Q 1 rise to the fixed position.
picks up the workpiece 3 on the top stage and moves it to the first workpiece position _P1 . 1st swing arm 2
0 descends at the first work position _P1 , the pressing body 21 descends, and the workpiece 3 is removed from the suction pads 28, 28 of the first swing arm 20.
When the workpiece 3 is released and pressed onto the guide rail 18, one pawl 38 of the chain conveyor 19
feeds it into the guide grooves 37, 37 of the guide rail 18. On the other hand, the first swing arm 20 that has released the workpiece 3 stops vacuuming and moves to the next workpiece take-out position, and in synchronization with this, the first elevator mechanism 14 moves the second workpiece 3 to the workpiece takeout position. raise to position.

The workpiece 3 that is continuously fed from the first workpiece position _P1 to the guide rail 18 by the claw 38 is sent to the stamping position _P3 , where the stamping machine 41 stamps the surface of the exterior resin material 2, 2... The engraving is performed sequentially. The workpieces 3 that have been engraved come out of the guide rail 18 and are continuously fed to the fixed table 39 and the lifting table 22. When one workpiece 3 hits the stopper 40, the lifting table 22 rises and the second swing arm 23
picks up one workpiece 3 and supplies it onto the elevating rod 17 of the second elevator mechanism 15, which has risen to the top of the empty magazine 4 in the third magazine position _Q3 , and then returns to the second workpiece position. Go back to _P2 . When lifting the workpiece by raising the lifting table 22, the next succeeding workpiece 3 is continuously sent to the second workpiece position _P2 . At this time, if the interval between the preceding and following workpieces 3, 3 is set narrow and the continuous feed speed is set to a high speed, the following workpiece 3 is placed below the rear end of the lifted preceding workpiece 3, as shown in FIG. Collision between the two is avoided by inserting the tip of the two, thereby creating time for taking out the workpiece, ensuring reliable workpiece removal, and realizing high-speed continuous feeding of the workpiece.

The above operation is repeated every time one sheet of the workpiece 3 is continuously fed, and the magazine 4 at the first magazine position Q ₁ is empty, and the magazine 4 at the third magazine position Q ₃ is filled with stamped works 3, 3, etc. When the elevator is full, the lifting rod 1 of each elevator mechanism 14, 15
6 and 17 descend to the bottom dead center, each position Q ₄
Intermittent magazine transport is performed from Q ₁ to Q ₂ , from Q ₂ to Q ₃ , and from Q ₃ to Q ₅ , and during this period, the workpiece transport device ₅ is temporarily stopped. Thereafter, the above operation is repeated.

In such an operation, one magazine 4 is emptied in the first magazine position _Q 1, remains empty in the second magazine position Q ₂ , and is emptied in the third magazine position Q 2.
At magazine position Q ₃ , the workpiece becomes full again and is collected. Therefore, it becomes unnecessary to manage empty magazines on both the magazine supply side and the magazine recovery side, making it possible to save labor.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and the workpiece may be a long piece other than a lead frame. In particular, depending on the workpiece, the device feeds the workpiece and takes out the workpiece by sequentially feeding the workpiece into fixed positions corresponding to the first and third magazine positions _Q1 and _Q3 . It's okay.

(f) Effects of the Invention As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily and accurately supply workpieces to and take out workpieces from the continuous workpiece conveyor, thereby improving the operating rate of the apparatus. Furthermore, it is possible to increase the continuous workpiece conveyance speed and reduce the interval between works during continuous workpiece conveyance, making it possible to significantly improve the work index of the continuous workpiece conveyance device.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are a plan view and a front view showing an example of a workpiece, FIGS. 3 and 4 are a plan view and a front view of a magazine storing a workpiece, and FIG. 5 is a plan view and a front view showing an example of a workpiece. 6 is a schematic operational diagram of the device shown in FIG. 5, and FIGS. 7 and 8 are schematic front views of the intermittent magazine transport line L ₂ and the continuous workpiece transport line L ₁ in the device shown in FIG. 5. , FIGS. 9 and 10 are enlarged plan views and front views of one swing arm of the device shown in FIG. figure,
13 to 15 are schematic front views for explaining the operation at the workpiece take-out position of FIG. 8. FIG. 3... Workpiece, 5... Workpiece conveyance device, 18...
... Guide rail, 19 ... Transporter, 20 ... First
Swing arm, 21... Pressing body, 22... Lifting platform, 23... Second swing arm, P ₁ ... First
Position, P ₂ ...Second position.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A conveyor that continuously feeds the workpiece at equal intervals along a guide rail installed between a first position for supplying the workpiece and a second position for taking out the workpiece;
A first swing arm that attracts, transfers and supplies a workpiece located at an external fixed position to the first position, and presses the workpiece supplied by the first swingarm onto a guide rail at the first position to regulate its position. a pressing body that is movable up and down; a lifting platform that is on the extension of the guide rail in the second position and that is movable up and down that lifts up the work carried in from the guide rail; A workpiece transfer device comprising: a second swing arm for transferring and supplying a workpiece to an external predetermined position.