Tag reader

Abstract

A tag reader (10, 30, 50) for reading information from an array of items, each item in the array being provided with a corresponding wireless data tag, the tag reader comprising an antenna array (13, 33, 55), each antenna (13, 33, 55) for reading information from the corresponding wireless data tag in use, and a multiplexer (14, 34) having multiple inputs, wherein each input is connected to the corresponding antenna (13, 33, 55).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a label reader, a clamping tool identification unit, a cleaning module, a chip attacher, a robot, and a clamping tool storage unit. Background Technology

[0002] The production of electronic components is typically carried out using so-called placement machines, which automatically remove electronic components from component supply units and mount them onto component carriers, such as printed circuit boards. The transfer of components from the component supply unit to their respective mounting positions is performed by component handling devices, such as so-called placement heads. In most cases, this transfer of components is carried out by a single handling device, commonly referred to as a placement head. However, it is also possible to use two or more component handling devices to transfer components from the supply unit to their mounting positions.

[0003] In the electronics manufacturing industry, certain final products, often consisting of multiple interconnected electronic components—electronic assemblies built on component carriers—require components with entirely different structures in terms of size / geometry, substrate material, and surface finish. Therefore, for reliable mounting, individually adapted processing operations and thus processing tools with different designs are required. For example, unpackaged components are often designed as chip or wafer-shaped devices with particularly small dimensions and are typically picked up using nozzles different from those used for packaged components. In the case of MEMS components, for instance, wafer-shaped components with particularly sensitive surface structures require separate handling with gripping tools specifically designed for these types of components, particularly (suction) nozzles. Some types of components may not be suitable for gripping with suction nozzles but are better suited for gripping with a "clamp," i.e., a module including jaws that are driven to physically grasp the component. Therefore, component handling devices that can flexibly adapt to the different products being manufactured are needed.

[0004] For simplicity, the term "clamping tool" will be used in this document to refer to tools that can be attached to a placement head to clamp components, including but not limited to nozzles and clamps.

[0005] To provide flexibility in tool holding and to offer backup tools in case of failure, placement machines can be equipped with a tool library capable of receiving multiple tool holders of any type useful to the operator. The tool library typically includes multiple sockets, each adapted to receive a tool holder, and the placement head can access the received tool holder from above, allowing the desired tool holder to engage directly with the placement head and be removed from the tool library. As is known in the art, such tool libraries can also be moved toward and away from the cleaning module and transported by a robot.

[0006] Recently, gripping tools have been equipped with wireless data tags to aid in identification and tracking. Most commonly, while such wireless data tags include passive RFID tags, various alternative forms of wireless data systems exist, as is known in the art, including, for example:

[0007] i) Active RFID;

[0008] ii) Ultra-wideband (UWB) Real-time Location System (RTLS);

[0009] iii) WiFi RTLS;

[0010] iv) Infrared RTLS;

[0011] v) Bluetooth Low Energy (“BLE”).

[0012] Figure 1 This clamping tool (nozzle 1 in this case) is schematically shown from above, with the tip of the nozzle pointing downwards or towards the paper plane in the negative Z direction. A cavity 2 is centrally located on the nozzle 1, which communicates with a vacuum source during use. Opposing flat surfaces 3 are positioned on the exterior of the nozzle 1 to limit its rotational direction within the tool magazine (described below). A passive RFID tag 4 is located adjacent to the cavity 2. In the nozzle 1 shown, the RFID tag 4 is positioned at 90° to each plane 3 about the vertical Z-axis shown.

[0013] To identify and track clamping tools, it is advantageous to query their wireless data tags while the clamping tools are in the tool library.

[0014] Figure 2 A known tool library 5 is schematically shown in perspective. Tool library 5 comprises an array of nineteen sockets 6 for receiving, for example, a nozzle 1, arranged in three rows, each row having six, seven, and six sockets respectively. The sockets 6 open on a generally flat upper surface 7 of tool library 5, allowing the nozzle 1 to descend into or rise from the socket, for example, via a mounting head (not shown). Each socket 6 includes opposing flat socket surfaces 8, which engage in use with a flat surface 3 of the nozzle 1 and restrict the nozzle 1 to two rotational directions spaced 180° apart about the Z-axis, wherein the flat surface 3 is adjacent to the flat socket surface 8. This means that, as... Figure 2 As schematically shown, the RFID tag 4 of each nozzle 1 can be located on the side of one of the two radially opposite RFID tag positions 9 of the socket 6.

[0015] However, the three main questions related to the following text are:

[0016] i) It is very time-consuming to individually query the wireless data tags of each clamping tool in the tool library by moving the tag reader sequentially to each clamping tool;

[0017] ii) The clamping tool may be positioned within the socket in various rotational directions relative to the socket (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 2 The nozzle 1 and tool library 5 allow for two such rotational directions, the effect of which is that the position of the wireless data tag can change between the clamping tools located in the tool library, making it more difficult to ensure that the interrogating antenna is fully interrogated by the tag; and

[0018] iii) Different clamping tools can have different axial dimensions (i.e., dimensions along the Z-axis in use), which means that the amount by which the clamping tool protrudes from the upper surface of the tool library may vary, making it more difficult to accurately attach the interrogation antenna close enough to the tag.

[0019] The present invention aims to solve these problems and provide a tag reader capable of reliably interrogating multiple clamping tools located in a tool library. According to the invention, this objective is achieved by providing a tag reader with a multiplexed antenna array. Summary of the Invention

[0020] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a tag reader is provided for reading information from an array of items, each item in the array being provided with a corresponding wireless data tag, the tag reader comprising:

[0021] An antenna array, each antenna in the array configured to read information from a corresponding radio data tag during use, and

[0022] A multiplexer with multiple inputs, where each input is connected to a corresponding antenna.

[0023] According to a second aspect of the invention, a clamping tool identification unit is provided for identifying at least one clamping tool located in a tool library, the at least one clamping tool including a wireless data tag, the tool library including an array of clamping tool receiving sockets for receiving the corresponding clamping tool.

[0024] The unit includes a tag reader according to the first aspect.

[0025] According to a third aspect of the present invention, a cleaning module is provided, including the clamping tool identification unit of the second aspect.

[0026] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a placement machine is provided, including a clamping tool identification unit as described in the second aspect.

[0027] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a robot is provided, including a gripping tool identification unit as described in the second aspect.

[0028] According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a clamping tool storage unit is provided, comprising a clamping tool identification unit of the second aspect and a tool library, the tool library comprising an array of clamping tool receiving sockets for receiving corresponding clamping tools.

[0029] Other specific aspects and features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. Attached Figure Description

[0030] The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings (not to scale), in which:

[0031] Figure 1 A known nozzle is schematically shown from above;

[0032] Figure 2 A known library of nozzle tools is schematically shown in perspective.

[0033] Figure 3 A perspective view schematically illustrates the label reader according to the present invention;

[0034] Figure 4 A label reader according to a second embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown in perspective; and

[0035] Figure 5 The label reader of the third embodiment of the present invention is illustrated schematically in an exploded perspective view.

[0036] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0037] 1- Nozzle

[0038] 2-Cavity

[0039] 3-plane

[0040] 4-RFID tags

[0041] 5-Tool Library

[0042] 6-Socket

[0043] 7-Top surface of the tool library

[0044] 8-Flat socket surface

[0045] 9-RFID tag location

[0046] 10, 30, 50 - Tag Reader

[0047] 11, 31-Circuit Board

[0048] 12, 32 - Through Hole

[0049] 13, 33, 55-antenna

[0050] 14, 34 - Multiplexer

[0051] 15, 35, 57 - Electrical connection parts

[0052] 16-Control Device

[0053] 20, 40, 60 - Clamping tool identification unit

[0054] 51, 52, 53 - Circuit Board Body

[0055] 54-finger

[0056] 56-Interface. Detailed Implementation

[0057] Figure 3 A first embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated, showing in perspective a clamping tool identification unit 20 including a tag reader 10 above a tool library 5. For clarity, the tool library 5 shown does not receive any clamping tools in the socket 6; however, it should be understood that in operation, at least one clamping tool will be received in the corresponding socket 6.

[0058] The tag reader 10 (in this case, an RFID tag reader) includes a planar circuit board 11, which, in use, is positioned in a plane parallel to the upper surface 7 of the tool magazine 5, both perpendicular to the vertical axis or Z-axis. In use, the tag reader 10 can be moved vertically toward or away from the tool magazine 5, for example by a placement head, robot, or other vertically actuated mechanism (not shown), along the indicated arrow A. Advantageously, the tag reader can move in a horizontal plane, i.e., orthogonal to the vertical Z-axis, allowing it to move away from the tool magazine 5 to approach the clamping tool via a placement head, etc., and toward the tool magazine 5 to perform identification or tag reading. The circuit board 11 includes a plurality of through-holes 12, i.e., small holes extending through the thickness of the circuit board 11. Each through-hole 12 is positioned on the circuit board 11 to cover a corresponding socket 6 of the tool magazine 5, such that, in use, as the tag reader 10 descends toward the tool magazine 5, the upper part (not shown) of the clamping tool can be received in each through-hole 12 and extend through each through-hole 12. The circuit board 11 includes an RFID antenna array 13, with each antenna of the array positioned to cover a specific socket 6 during use. Each antenna 13 is circumferentially coiled around an adjacent through-hole 12. A multiplexer 14 is also provided on the circuit board 11, electrically connected to each antenna 13 via an electrical connection 15. The multiplexer 14, in turn, is connected to a control device 16, for example via USB. This control device 16 may include, for example, a processor, a suitably programmed computer, etc., and may be located in any suitable location, such as inside a placement machine (not shown), a cleaning station (not shown), or remotely, and may communicate via a wireless transmission device such as Wi-Fi. Alternatively, the control device 16 itself may be located on the clamping tool identification unit 20, for example on the circuit board 11. The control device 16 can control each antenna 13 to transmit interrogation signals via the multiplexer 14, and can also multiplex the data signals received from each antenna 13 via the multiplexer 14. It can conveniently obtain identification or other data from the clamping tool label and send them to the control device 16 for further actions, such as storage, inventory or error checking, which is well known in the art.

[0059] As can be seen, with this arrangement, regardless of the rotation direction of the gripping tool relative to the tool library 5, each antenna 13 can query the tag of its corresponding gripping tool. Furthermore, the use of multiplexing allows for rapid querying of all tags within the tool library 5 without requiring any movement of the tag reader 10 during the querying process.

[0060] Figure 4A second embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated, showing in perspective a clamping tool identification unit 40 including a tag reader 30 above a tool library 5. For clarity, the tool library 5 shown does not receive any clamping tools in the socket 6; however, it should be understood that in operation, at least one clamping tool will be received in the corresponding socket 6.

[0061] Because the clamping recognition unit 40 and Figure 3 The clamping identification unit 20 shown has many similarities, so common elements need not be described in detail again. For example, the tag reader 30 can also move at least along arrow A and also includes a planar circuit board 31 with a plurality of through holes 32 that align with the socket 6 in use to receive the upper part (not shown) of the clamping tool in a through manner. However, each through hole 32 here is associated with a pair of antennas 33 that are arrayed on the circuit board 31. It can be seen that each antenna 33 is adjacent to a possible tag position of the clamping tool in the socket 6. Therefore, this embodiment provides an additional function that can be used to determine the rotational direction of each clamping tool relative to the tool library 5, which can be achieved, for example, by comparing the relative strength of the signals received by each of the pair of antennas, or by sequentially interrogating each of the pair of antennas 33 and associating the received signals with each antenna. As in the previously described embodiment, the signals from the antennas 33 are transmitted to a multiplexer 34 via an electrical connection 35, which is connected to the control device 16.

[0062] Figure 5 A third embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated, showing in an exploded perspective view a clamping tool identification unit 60 including a tag reader 50 above a tool library 5. For clarity, the tool library 5 shown does not receive any clamping tools in the socket 6; of course, it should be understood that in operation, at least one clamping tool will be received in the corresponding socket 6.

[0063] The tag reader 50 includes three planar circuit board bodies 51, 52, and 53, configured parallel to and orthogonal to the upper surface of the tool library 5. Each circuit board body 51-53 is associated with a row of sockets 6 within the tool library 5. Obviously, in relevant embodiments, if a tool library with different numbers of rows is used, more or fewer circuit board bodies can be provided accordingly. Each circuit board body 51-53 includes a plurality of fingers 54, each finger 54 extending outwardly from the corresponding circuit board body 51-53 in a spaced-apart configuration. Preferably, each circuit board body 51-53 and its fingers 54 are integrally formed from a single sheet metal such that the circuit board body 51-53 and its fingers 54 are coplanar, a structure that is economically viable. In alternative embodiments (not shown), the fingers 54 may be detachable from or electrically connected to the circuit board body. In all cases, the fingers 54 are spaced apart from each other, such that when the tag reader 50 moves toward the tool library 5 along arrow A, each finger 54 can be inserted into the central cavity (not shown) of the corresponding clamping tool received in the corresponding socket 6 of the tool library 5. Antennas 55 are located on each finger 54 of each circuit board body 51-53, such that the plurality of antennas 55 form an array. Each circuit board body 51-53 is also provided with an interface 56, to which each antenna 55 of the corresponding circuit board body is connected via an electrical connection 57. A base 58 is physically connected to each circuit board body 51-53 (although...). Figure 5 The base 58, shown in the exploded view, is separate from the circuit board bodies 51-53 (although they are physically connected). A multiplexer 59, electrically connected to all interfaces 56, is mounted on the base 58. As in the previous embodiment, the multiplexer 59 is communicatively connected to the control device 16. With this arrangement, signals from each antenna 55 can be multiplexed and transmitted to the control device 16 via the interface 56. It can be seen that in this embodiment, each antenna 55 can also query tags located in any possible rotational direction relative to the tool library 5. Furthermore, this embodiment can be conveniently used when the clamping tool is relatively long, which might hinder the use of the aforementioned embodiments.

[0064] In an alternative embodiment (not shown), if the tool library 5 has only one row of sockets 6, only one circuit board body is needed, and no base or interface is required. The multiplexer can also be connected to the control device 16 instead of being mounted on the circuit board body. In another embodiment, the base can be detachably attached to the circuit board body or each circuit board body, providing the advantage of using a modular system where different circuit board bodies can be connected to a common base depending on the type of tool library or clamping tool used.

[0065] The label reader and clamping tool identification unit of the present invention can be used wherever needed. For example, for SMT placement processes, they can be kept inside the placement machine and / or used in the cleaning module of the SMT production line, or clamped by a robot for deployment when needed. The clamping tool identification unit can be conveniently equipped with a tool library as a clamping tool storage unit.

[0066] The above embodiments are merely exemplary, and other possibilities and alternatives within the scope of this invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) for identifying at least one clamping tool located in a tool library (5), the at least one clamping tool including a wireless data tag, the tool library (5) including an array of clamping tool receiving sockets (6) for receiving the corresponding clamping tool, in, The clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) includes a tag reader (10, 30, 50) for reading information from an array of items, each item in the array being equipped with a corresponding wireless data tag. The tag reader (10, 30, 50) includes: Antenna array (13, 33, 55), each antenna (13, 33, 55) configured to read information from the corresponding radio data tag during use, and Multiplexers (14, 34) with multiple inputs, each input being connected to a corresponding antenna (13, 33, 55). The antenna array (13, 33, 55) is configured such that each antenna (13, 33, 55) in the array is positioned in use to correspond to a corresponding socket (6). The clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) includes a circuit board body (51, 52, 53) and a plurality of fingers (54), each finger extending outward from the circuit board body (51, 52, 53) in a spaced-apart configuration, and each antenna (13, 33, 55) of the antenna array (13, 33, 55) is located on the corresponding finger (54). The circuit board body (51, 52, 53) and the finger (54) are integrally formed. The circuit board body (51, 52, 53) and the finger (54) are coplanar. The plane where the finger (54) is located is orthogonal to the upper surface (7) of the tool library (5) during use. The finger (54) is spaced apart from each other so that each finger (54) can be inserted into the corresponding clamping tool received in the corresponding socket (6) of the tool library (5) during use.

2. The clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to claim 1, wherein, Each antenna (13, 33, 55) includes an RFID antenna for reading information from the array of items, each item in the array being provided with a corresponding wireless data tag including an RFID tag (4).

3. The clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to claim 1, comprising a base connected to the circuit board body (51, 52, 53), and at least one additional circuit board body (51, 52, 53) connected to the base spaced apart from and parallel to the circuit board body (51, 52, 53), each of a plurality of fingers (54) extending outward from each of the at least one additional circuit board body (51, 52, 53), and each finger (54) having a corresponding antenna (13, 33, 55) located thereon.

4. The clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to claim 3, wherein, The multiplexers (14, 34) are located on the base.

5. A cleaning module comprising a clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. A placement machine, comprising a clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

7. A robot comprising a gripping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

8. A clamping tool storage unit comprising a clamping tool identification unit (20, 40, 60) according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and a tool library (5), the tool library (5) comprising an array of clamping tool receiving sockets (6) for receiving corresponding clamping tools.

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