A rotary picking device

Abstract

A rotary material taking device comprises a rotating disc, at least one material taking assembly installed on the rotating disc, and an expansion driving mechanism, the rotating disc is driven to rotate by a rotating driving mechanism; the material taking assembly comprises an expansion block and a material taking element, the material taking element is installed at a first end of the expansion block away from the center of the rotating disc, the expansion driving mechanism comprises a first driving mechanism, the first driving mechanism is used for driving the expansion block to move in the radial direction of the rotating disc. The rotary material taking device can simultaneously and uninterruptedly take and release materials, and improves production efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of semiconductor testing technology, and specifically relates to a rotary material handling device. Background Technology

[0002] In the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, multiple process steps are required, and the flow of semiconductor devices through each process step depends on the material handling mechanism. The material handling mechanism is used to pick up the workpiece and hand it over to the downstream mechanism.

[0003] The existing material handling mechanism uses a vertical displacement module to move the material handling component downwards and pick up the workpiece. The component then rises to a certain height and rotates, awaiting the robot arm to grab the workpiece. This mechanism requires the robot arm to pick up the workpiece before it can descend again for the next pick-up; picking and unloading cannot be performed simultaneously. Secondly, the mechanism travels back and forth between the picking and unloading positions via the vertical displacement module. When the distance between the picking and unloading positions is large, this movement takes considerable time. Therefore, this material handling mechanism has a slow picking and unloading cycle time and low efficiency, making it unsuitable for processes with high production cycle time requirements. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of the shortcomings of the prior art described above, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a rotary material handling device that can simultaneously pick up and unload materials, and the picking up and unloading of materials can be carried out without interruption.

[0005] To achieve all or part of the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0006] This invention provides a rotary material handling device, including a turntable, at least one material handling component mounted on the turntable, and an expansion drive mechanism. The turntable is driven to rotate by the rotary drive mechanism. The material handling component includes an expansion block and a material handling element. The material handling element is mounted on a first end of the expansion block away from the center of the turntable. The expansion drive mechanism includes a first drive mechanism for driving the expansion block to move radially along the turntable. The purpose of the expansion block moving radially along the turntable is as follows: the expansion block at the material handling position expands outward, bringing the material handling element mounted on the first end of the expansion block closer to and acquiring the workpiece; the expansion block at the material dispensing position expands outward, bringing the material handling element closer to a gripping mechanism such as a robotic arm, which then grasps the workpiece acquired by the material handling element and transfers it. The beneficial effect of this technical solution is that by rotating the turntable, the material handling component moves between the material handling position and the material dispensing position, thereby enabling continuous and uninterrupted material handling and dispensing, which can be performed simultaneously.

[0007] The material handling components are provided in multiple units, arranged around the center of the turntable. The material handling and dispensing cycle of the rotating material handling device can be adjusted by setting different numbers of material handling components on the turntable. The more material handling components there are, the smaller the angle of rotation of the turntable each time, and the faster the material handling and dispensing cycle.

[0008] The rotary material handling device also includes an elastic element. A fixed block is provided on the turntable. One end of the elastic element is connected to the fixed block, and the other end is connected to the expansion block. The elastic element is used to reset the expansion block.

[0009] The expansion drive mechanism is located on one side of the turntable and does not interfere with the rotation of the turntable.

[0010] The expansion drive mechanism further includes a hook block, which includes a connecting part and a hook part. One end of the connecting part is connected to the first drive mechanism, and the other end is hinged to the hook part. Under the drive of the first drive mechanism, the hook part hooks the expansion block and drives the expansion block to move in the radial direction of the turntable. During reset, the first drive mechanism drives the hook part to disengage from the expansion block, and the expansion block resets under the action of the elastic element.

[0011] The expansion drive mechanism can also be: the expansion drive mechanism further includes a second drive mechanism and a hook block, the second drive mechanism is connected to the first drive mechanism and the movement direction of the second drive mechanism is perpendicular to the movement direction of the first drive mechanism, the hook block is connected to the first drive mechanism, the hook block hooks the expansion block under the drive of the first drive mechanism and the second drive mechanism and drives the expansion block to move along the radial direction of the turntable; during reset, the hook block disengages from the expansion block under the drive of the first drive mechanism and the second drive mechanism, and the expansion block resets under the action of the elastic element.

[0012] One expansion drive mechanism corresponds to one material handling unit. The material handling unit consists of two material handling components arranged at 180 degrees opposite each other. The two expansion blocks in the material handling unit are connected by a reversing mechanism, which enables the two expansion blocks at 180 degrees to move relative to each other. The advantage of this technical solution is that by setting one expansion drive mechanism, two material handling components arranged at 180 degrees can be driven to move and expand simultaneously along the radial direction of the turntable. This reduces the number of expansion drive mechanisms while ensuring that the two material handling components move simultaneously, allowing the material handling and unloading actions to be performed concurrently, reducing waiting time.

[0013] The reversing mechanism includes a gear disposed at the center of the turntable and a rack disposed on the expansion block. The gear simultaneously meshes with racks on two expansion blocks in a material handling unit.

[0014] The turntable is equipped with slide rails corresponding to the number of expansion blocks, and the expansion blocks are slidably mounted on the slide rails.

[0015] The first drive mechanism is mounted on the turntable, and the expansion block is mounted on the first drive mechanism, with one first drive mechanism corresponding to one expansion block. The advantage of this technical solution is that one or more specific expansion blocks can be flexibly selected to move outwards as needed; and the first drive mechanism directly drives the expansion block to move, resulting in a simple device structure.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0017] (1) Multiple material picking components are set on the turntable. The material picking components move between the picking position and the discharging position by rotating the turntable, so that the material picking and discharging can be carried out continuously and without interruption. The material picking and discharging can be carried out at the same time to improve efficiency.

[0018] (2) The picking and dispensing cycle of the rotary picking device can be adjusted by setting different numbers of picking components on the turntable. The more picking components there are, the smaller the angle of each rotation of the turntable, and the faster the picking and dispensing cycle.

[0019] (3) The expansion block expands outward through the hook block and the drive expansion block, and after the hook block separates from the expansion block, the expansion block automatically resets under the action of the elastic element;

[0020] (4) By setting an expansion drive mechanism and a reversing mechanism, two material taking components at 180 degrees can be driven to move and expand along the radial direction of the turntable at the same time. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the specific embodiments of the present invention, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating material handling device in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the expansion drive mechanism and gears in Embodiment 1;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the expansion block pushing the hook block to rotate in Embodiment 1;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating material handling device in Embodiment 2;

[0026] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating material handling device in Embodiment 3;

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating material handling device in Embodiment 4.

[0028] Reference numerals: 1-turntable, 101-fixed block, 2-rotational drive mechanism, 3-material picking assembly, 301-expansion block, 3011-protrusion, 3012-rack, 302-material picking element, 4-expansion drive mechanism, 401, 401'-first drive mechanism, 402a, 402b-hook block, 4021a, 4021b-connecting part, 4023a, 4023b-hook part, 4022-hinge point, 403-second drive mechanism, 5-elastic element, 6-slide rail, 7-gear. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The technical solutions in specific embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0030] Example 1

[0031] This embodiment provides a rotary material handling device. Please refer to the reference. Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 3 The rotary material handling device includes a turntable 1, which is driven by a rotary drive mechanism 2 to rotate. Two material handling components 3 are mounted on the turntable 1 at a 180-degree angle. Each material handling component 3 includes an expansion block 301 and a material handling element 302. The expansion block 301 is slidably mounted on a slide rail 6, which is fixedly connected to the turntable 1. The material handling element 302 is mounted at the first end of the expansion block 301 (i.e., the end furthest from the center of the turntable 1). The expansion drive mechanism 4 is located near the top of the turntable 1 at the material feeding position and is positioned to the left of the feeding position (within a certain distance). Figure 2 The left side is referred to as "left side"). The expansion drive mechanism 4 includes a first drive mechanism 401 and a hook block 402a connected to the first drive mechanism 401. The hook block 402a includes a connecting part 4021a and a hook part 4023a. One end of the connecting part 4021a is connected to the first drive mechanism 401, and the other end is hinged to the hook part 4023a, forming a hinge point 4022. The hook part 4023a can rotate around the hinge point 4022. The expansion block 301 has a protrusion 3011 facing the hook block 402a on the side near the hook block 402a. In the case shown in this embodiment, the turntable 1 rotates clockwise ( Figure 3(The middle arrow indicates the clockwise rotation direction). During rotation, the protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301 rotates to the position of the hook 4023a and pushes the hook 4023a to rotate counterclockwise around the hinge point 4022 to avoid the movement trajectory of the expansion block 301. After the expansion block 301 moves to the feeding position, the hook 4023a falls back due to its own gravity to hook the protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301. The first drive mechanism 401 rises, driving the expansion block 301 to move and expand along the radial direction of the turntable 1. The two expansion blocks 301 at 180 degrees are provided with racks 3012 on their sides. The gear 7 meshes with the racks 3012 on both expansion blocks 301 at the same time, so that the two expansion blocks 301 move in the same direction. Under the action of gear 7, relative motion occurs. That is, the expansion block 301 located at the top of the turntable 1, which is the material feeding position, moves radially along the turntable 1 under the action of the first drive mechanism 401 and the hook block 402a. The expansion block 301 located at the bottom of the turntable 1, which is the material picking position, also moves radially along the turntable 1 under the action of gear 7. In this embodiment, a fixed block 101 and an elastic element 5 are fixedly installed at the center of the turntable 1. One end of the elastic element 5 is connected to the expansion block 301, and the other end is connected to the fixed block 101. When the expansion block 301 needs to be reset, the first drive mechanism 401 descends, causing the hook block 402a and the expansion block 301 to disengage. At this time, both expansion blocks 301 are quickly reset under the action of the elastic element 5.

[0032] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the station located at the bottom of the turntable 1 is set as the material picking station. The expansion block 301 on the material picking station expands outward to pick up the workpiece. Then, the turntable 1 rotates, causing the material picking component 3, which has picked up the workpiece, to rotate to the material dispensing station, which is the station located at the top of the turntable 1. The expansion block 301 on the material dispensing station expands outward to approach the gripping mechanism such as the robot arm, thereby transferring the workpiece picked up by the material picking element 302 to the gripping mechanism such as the robot arm. In this embodiment, the turntable 1 rotates clockwise, so the expansion drive mechanism 4 is located on the left side of the material dispensing station. The protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301 rotates to the position of the hook 4023a and pushes the hook 4023a to rotate around the hinge point 4022 to avoid The movement trajectory of the expansion block 301 is such that the expansion block 301 moves to the feeding position. However, in other embodiments, the rotation direction of the turntable 1 can be counterclockwise, and the expansion drive mechanism 4 is correspondingly set on the right side of the feeding position. In this embodiment, the hook 4023a rotates around the hinge point 4022 under the push of the expansion block 301. After the expansion block 301 disengages from it, the hook 4023a falls back under its own gravity. In other embodiments, a torsion spring can be set at the hook block 402a. One end of the torsion spring is connected to the piston rod of the first drive mechanism 401, and the other end is connected to the hook 4023a. After the hook 4023a rotates around the hinge point 4022, it falls back under the action of the torsion spring.

[0033] In this embodiment, the material-grabbing element 302 is a suction cup. However, in other embodiments, the material-grabbing element 302 can also be a clamping component with a clamping function, which can achieve the same function of acquiring the workpiece. In this embodiment, the rotary drive mechanism 2 is a rotary motor, but it can also be a rotary cylinder or other power device. In this embodiment, the first drive mechanism 401 is a Z-axis cylinder, that is, the piston of the cylinder moves along the Z-axis direction, thereby driving the hook block 402a connected to it to move along the Z-axis direction. Of course, the first drive mechanism 401 can also be replaced by a power device with the same function, such as a motor.

[0034] The working principle of the rotary material handling device in this embodiment is as follows: the rotary drive mechanism 2 drives the turntable 1 to rotate, causing one expansion block 301 to move towards the material handling position and the other expansion block 301 to move towards the material dispensing position. The protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301 rotates to the position of the hook 4023a and pushes the hook 4023a to rotate counterclockwise around the hinge point 4022 to avoid the movement trajectory of the expansion block 301. After the expansion block 301 moves to the material dispensing position, the hook 4023a falls back due to its own gravity to hook the protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301. The first drive mechanism 401 rises, thereby the hook 402a drives the expansion block 301 located at the material dispensing position to move and expand along the radial direction of the turntable 1; due to the expansion block at the material handling position The expansion block 301 at the feeding position is connected to the expansion block 301 at the unloading position via gear 7. Therefore, the expansion block 301 at the picking position moves downward under the action of gear 7, that is, the expansion block 301 at the picking position also moves and expands along the radial direction of the turntable 1. The expansion block 301 at the picking position expands outward to pick up the workpiece, and the expansion block 301 at the unloading position expands outward to hand over the workpiece to the robot, completing one picking and unloading process. Afterward, the rotary drive mechanism 2 drives the turntable 1 to rotate 180 degrees, the picking component 3 that has picked up the workpiece rotates to the unloading position, the expansion block 301 expands outward to hand over to the robot, the empty picking component 3 rotates to the picking position, the expansion block 301 expands outward to pick up the workpiece, and the above steps are repeated continuously to make the picking and unloading actions uninterrupted.

[0035] The rotating material handling device described in this invention is suitable for use in automatic appearance inspection equipment for Micro OLEDs, and is also suitable for situations where products need to be picked up and placed simultaneously and rotated continuously for handover.

[0036] Example 2

[0037] The only difference between this embodiment and Embodiment 1 is the expansion drive mechanism 4. Figure 4As shown, the expansion drive mechanism 4 in this embodiment includes a first drive mechanism 401, a hook block 402b, and a second drive mechanism 403. In this embodiment, the hook block 402b is an integrally formed structure, that is, the connecting part 4021b and the hook part 4023b are integrally formed, and the hook part 4023b cannot rotate. The second drive mechanism 403 is connected to the first drive mechanism 401 and is used to move the first drive mechanism 401 along the X-axis. The first drive mechanism 401 is connected to the hook block 402b and is used to drive the hook block 402b to move along the Z-axis.

[0038] The difference between the working principle of this embodiment and that of the rotary material handling device in Embodiment 1 is as follows:

[0039] In this embodiment, the method of hooking the hook block 402b to hook the expansion block 301 is as follows: the first driving mechanism 401 drives the hook block 402b to descend along the Z-axis to a suitable height, the second driving mechanism 403 drives the hook block 402b to move to the right along the X-axis so that the hook part 4023b hooks the protrusion 3011 of the expansion block 301, and the first driving mechanism 401 moves upward along the Z-axis, so that the hook block 402b drives the expansion block 301 to move radially along the turntable 1 to expand.

[0040] In this embodiment, the method for disengaging the hook block 402b from the expansion block 301 is as follows: the first drive mechanism 401 descends along the Z-axis, the hook part 4023b disengages from the protrusion 3011, the second drive mechanism 403 moves to the left, thereby causing the expansion drive mechanism 4 to disengage from the turntable 1 as a whole, and the turntable 1 can then rotate.

[0041] In this embodiment, the second drive mechanism 403 is an X-axis cylinder, that is, the piston of the cylinder moves along the X-axis direction, thereby driving the first drive mechanism 401 connected to it to also move along the X-axis direction. Of course, the second drive mechanism 403 can also be replaced by a power device with the same function, such as a motor.

[0042] Example 3

[0043] The difference between this embodiment and Embodiment 2 is that, as Figure 5 As shown, in this embodiment, the two expansion blocks 301 at 180 degrees are not connected by gear 7. Therefore, expansion drive mechanism 4 is provided for the expansion blocks 301 at the material pick-up position and the material discharge position, respectively, to drive the expansion blocks 301 at the material pick-up position and the material discharge position to move and expand radially along the turntable 1.

[0044] In this embodiment, the turntable 1 is provided with two material picking components 3, but other numbers of material picking components 3 can also be set as needed to meet different requirements; in this embodiment, the two first drive mechanisms 401 and / or the two second drive mechanisms 403 can be controlled by a solenoid valve to realize the simultaneous operation of the material picking components 3 in the 180-degree position, but they can also be controlled by different solenoid valves, for example, a cylinder can be controlled by a solenoid valve alone to meet different requirements.

[0045] Example 4

[0046] like Figure 6 As shown, in this embodiment, the first driving mechanism 401' is fixedly mounted on the turntable 1. The first driving mechanism 401' is directly connected to the expansion block 301, and one expansion block 301 corresponds to one first driving mechanism 401'. The first driving mechanism 401' directly drives the expansion block 301 to move radially along the turntable 1. In this embodiment, there are four expansion blocks 301, and four corresponding first driving mechanisms 401' are provided. The four first driving mechanisms 401' can be controlled by one or more solenoid valves. In the case shown in this embodiment, one or more specific expansion blocks 301 can be driven to move outward and expand as needed.

[0047] In this embodiment, the turntable 1 is provided with four material picking components 3. However, in other embodiments, different numbers of material picking components 3 can be set according to actual needs. In this embodiment, the first driving mechanism 401' is a cylinder, and the piston movement direction of the cylinder is along the radial direction of the turntable 1. However, in other embodiments, the first driving mechanism 401' can be replaced by a power device with the same function, such as a motor. This embodiment is only an exemplary illustration and is not intended to limit the present invention.

[0048] This embodiment illustrates the principle of the present invention: A detailed description of the rotary material handling device provided by the present invention has been provided above. Specific examples have been used to illustrate the inventive principle of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core idea of ​​the present invention. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A rotary material handling device, characterized in that, The device includes a turntable (1), at least one material-grabbing assembly (3) mounted on the turntable (1), and an expansion drive mechanism (4). The turntable (1) is driven to rotate by a rotation drive mechanism (2). The material-grabbing assembly (3) includes an expansion block (301) and a material-grabbing element (302). The material-grabbing element (302) is mounted on a first end of the expansion block (301) away from the center of the turntable (1). The expansion drive mechanism (4) includes a first drive mechanism (401, 401') for driving the expansion block (301) to move in the radial direction of the turntable (1). The expansion drive mechanism (4) also includes a hook block (402a), which includes a connecting part (4021a) and a hook part. (4023a), one end of the connecting part (4021a) is connected to the first driving mechanism (401), and the other end is hinged to the hook part (4023a); the hook part (4023a) hooks the expansion block (301) under the drive of the first driving mechanism (401) and drives the expansion block (301) to move in the radial direction of the turntable (1); when resetting, the first driving mechanism (401) drives the hook part (4023a) to disengage from the expansion block (301), and also includes an elastic element (5), a fixing block (101) is provided on the turntable (1), one end of the elastic element (5) is connected to the fixing block (101), and the other end is connected to the expansion block (301), and the elastic element (5) is used to reset the expansion block (301).

2. A rotary material handling device, characterized in that, The device includes a turntable (1), at least one material-grabbing assembly (3) mounted on the turntable (1), and an expansion drive mechanism (4). The turntable (1) is driven to rotate by a rotation drive mechanism (2). The material-grabbing assembly (3) includes an expansion block (301) and a material-grabbing element (302). The material-grabbing element (302) is mounted on a first end of the expansion block (301) away from the center of the turntable (1). The expansion drive mechanism (4) includes a first drive mechanism (401, 401') for driving the expansion block (301) to move radially along the turntable (1). The expansion drive mechanism (4) also includes a second drive mechanism (403) and a hook block (402b). The second drive mechanism (403) is connected to the first drive mechanism (401) and the second drive block (402b) is connected to the first drive mechanism (401). The movement direction of the moving mechanism (403) is perpendicular to the movement direction of the first driving mechanism (401). The hook block (402b) is connected to the first driving mechanism (401). Under the drive of the first driving mechanism (401) and the second driving mechanism (403), the hook block (402b) hooks the expansion block (301) and drives the expansion block (301) to move along the radial direction of the turntable (1). When resetting, the hook block (402b) disengages from the expansion block (301) under the drive of the first driving mechanism (401) and the second driving mechanism (403). It also includes an elastic element (5). The turntable (1) is provided with a fixed block (101). One end of the elastic element (5) is connected to the fixed block (101), and the other end is connected to the expansion block (301). The elastic element (5) is used to reset the expansion block (301).

3. The rotary material handling device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The material handling components (3) are provided in multiple ways, and the multiple material handling components (3) are arranged around the center of the turntable (1).

4. The rotary material handling device according to claim 3, characterized in that, The expansion drive mechanism (4) is located on one side of the turntable (1) and does not interfere with the rotation of the turntable (1).

5. The rotary material handling device according to claim 4, characterized in that, One of the expansion drive mechanisms (4) is set for one material picking unit. The material picking unit is composed of two material picking components (3) arranged in opposite directions at 180 degrees. The two expansion blocks (301) in the material picking unit are connected by a reversing mechanism. The reversing mechanism is used to make the two expansion blocks (301) arranged in opposite directions at 180 degrees move relative to each other.

6. The rotary material handling device according to claim 5, characterized in that, The reversing mechanism includes a gear (7) disposed at the center of the turntable (1) and a rack (3012) disposed on the expansion block (301). The gear (7) meshes with the racks (3012) on the two expansion blocks (301) in a material handling unit.

7. The rotary material handling device according to claim 6, characterized in that, The turntable (1) is equipped with slide rails (6) corresponding to the number of expansion blocks (301), and the expansion blocks (301) are slidably mounted on the slide rails (6).

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