Rotary multi-station pick-up head for quartz wafer row

Abstract

The application discloses a rotary multi-station pickup head for quartz wafer arrangement, and belongs to the technical field of automatic pickup processing of quartz wafers. The technical scheme of the application comprises: a disc-shaped machine shell, which has an inclination angle relative to a horizontal plane after installation; a plurality of pickup mechanisms are uniformly arranged along the circumferential direction of the disc-shaped machine shell, each pickup mechanism comprising a negative pressure adsorption component, a mechanical grabbing component and a mounting shell; a pickup mechanism is arranged on the side edge of the disc-shaped machine shell and is used for removing target objects that fail to meet the detection requirements; and a rotary driving device is used for driving the disc-shaped machine shell to rotate around an axis. The negative pressure adsorption component comprises an adsorption tube made of flexible material at the lower end, the mechanical grabbing component comprises a connecting sleeve, elastic grabbing claws composed of a plurality of elastic rods and a sliding zoom sleeve used for controlling the retracting and extending actions, and the elastic rods are provided with flexible air-permeable nets at the ends. The pickup mechanisms can be arranged in three (one every 120 degrees) or six (one every 60 degrees), so that multi-station processing of different precision requirements can be realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of automated pickup equipment technology, specifically to a rotary multi-station pickup head for precision devices such as quartz wafers, and particularly to a multi-unit pickup head capable of continuous pickup, multi-angle detection and automatic sorting. Background Technology

[0002] Quartz wafers are characterized by their fragility and high precision requirements, and the design of their pickup device directly affects production efficiency and product quality.

[0003] Currently, Chinese patent CN115910903B discloses a quartz wafer suction device. This device includes a support base, a processing table, a fixing frame, and a wafer suction mechanism. The wafer suction mechanism includes an electrically controlled slide rail, a servo cylinder, a connecting seat, an installation assembly, an adjustment assembly, and a suction assembly. The device achieves negative pressure suction through a pneumatic suction device, a central air pipe, a first air pipe, a second air pipe, and a third air pipe in the installation assembly. Multiple moving seats and a transmission belt in the adjustment assembly allow for adaptive adjustment to quartz wafers of different shapes. Multiple suction nozzles, suction nozzle heads, buffer components, and limiting components in the suction assembly ensure stable suction of the quartz wafers. This device can be adjusted according to the shape of the quartz wafers produced, and the multiple suction nozzles enhance the stability of the suction process.

[0004] However, the aforementioned existing technologies still have the following shortcomings: First, the device adopts a single-station or few-station processing mode, and the processes of picking, inspection, and processing cannot be carried out in parallel, resulting in waiting time between processes and low overall processing efficiency; Second, the device lacks multi-angle inspection capabilities and can only inspect quartz wafers from a single angle, which easily creates blind spots and affects the defect detection rate, especially its insufficient ability to detect small edge defects and internal transparency issues; Third, when defective products are detected, the device needs to change the batch originally used for transporting qualified products to a batch specifically for handling defective products. This processing method will occupy additional transportation resources, affect overall operating efficiency, and reduce equipment utilization.

[0005] Therefore, there is a need to provide a multi-unit pickup head that can achieve multi-station parallel operation, multi-angle detection, and on-site processing of defective products, in order to solve the technical problems existing in the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The purpose of this invention is to provide a rotary multi-station pickup head, which aims to solve the technical problems in the prior art such as low pickup efficiency of target objects such as quartz wafers, single detection angle, and the need to change the batch originally used to transport qualified products to a batch specifically for handling unqualified products when processing unqualified products, thereby reducing the overall operation efficiency. The invention achieves continuous and efficient pickup, multi-angle detection, and on-site automatic sorting of target objects.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, this invention provides a rotary multi-station pickup head, comprising a disc-shaped housing, which, after installation, has an overall tilt angle relative to the horizontal plane; multiple pickup mechanisms are evenly arranged along the circumference of the disc-shaped housing, each pickup mechanism including a negative pressure adsorption component for adsorbing target objects, a mechanical gripping component cooperating with the negative pressure adsorption component for mechanically clamping the target objects, and a mounting housing for mounting the above components; a picking mechanism disposed on the side of the disc-shaped housing for removing unqualified target objects; and a rotary drive device for driving the disc-shaped housing to rotate around its axis.

[0008] Furthermore, the negative pressure adsorption assembly includes an adsorption tube, the lower end of which is made of a flexible material. This design ensures good contact and stable adsorption with the target object.

[0009] Furthermore, the mechanical gripping assembly includes a connecting sleeve coaxially sleeved around the outer periphery of the adsorption tube; an elastic gripping claw composed of multiple elastic rods; and a sliding expansion sleeve for controlling the retraction and extension of the elastic gripping claw. This dual-protection design of negative pressure adsorption and mechanical clamping overcomes the shortcomings of existing single adsorption methods that are prone to failure. Through the synergistic effect of two different picking mechanisms, even if the negative pressure system malfunctions occasionally or there are minor defects on the surface of the target object that affect the adsorption effect, the mechanical clamping can still ensure that the target object will not fall off.

[0010] Furthermore, a flexible breathable mesh is provided at the end of the elastic rod. This innovative design has the dual functions of adjusting the position of the target object and providing buffer protection. When the negative pressure adsorption position deviates from the center of the target object, the flexible breathable mesh can automatically move the target object to the correct position during the mechanical clamping process through its flexible deformation characteristics. At the same time, the breathability of the mesh structure does not affect the negative pressure effect. Compared with the limitation of existing technologies that require precise positioning to successfully pick up the object, the fault tolerance and adaptability of this invention are significantly enhanced.

[0011] Furthermore, the picking mechanism can be three, one set at every 120 degrees, forming a three-station rotating operation mode of picking-detection-processing. Compared with the single-station or dual-station processing method of the prior art, this design realizes a continuous and uninterrupted operation process, avoids the impact of detection and processing on the picking cycle time, and improves the overall processing efficiency by more than 80%. At the same time, the three-station layout ensures that each target object undergoes complete quality inspection, avoiding the problem of sacrificing detection quality for speed in the prior art.

[0012] Furthermore, the picking mechanism can also be six, one set at every 60 degrees, to achieve a more precise multi-station processing flow. This configuration is particularly suitable for target objects such as small-sized quartz wafers that require extremely high detection accuracy. By increasing the number of detection stations, it is possible to achieve all-round detection from different angles and with different detection principles.

[0013] Furthermore, by configuring detection equipment at different angles at multiple detection locations, comprehensive defect detection of the target object can be achieved, including frontal angle detection, tilt angle detection, and reverse angle detection. This multi-angle detection system overcomes the problem of blind spots in the single detection angle in the existing technology and makes a comprehensive judgment by integrating the detection results from multiple angles.

[0014] Furthermore, the picking mechanism includes a picking drive component and a dedicated suction head to ensure the precise removal of defective target objects. This design enables automated processing of defective products, which significantly improves the continuity and automation of the production line compared to existing technologies that require manual intervention or machine shutdown. At the same time, the suction force of the dedicated suction head is precisely calibrated to overcome the suction force of the picking mechanism without damaging the target object, thus avoiding equipment damage that may be caused by forced removal.

[0015] Furthermore, the tilt angle is 12-15 degrees. This optimized angle design fully considers the space requirements of each workstation for picking, detecting and processing, as well as the optimal angle for visual inspection. Compared with the horizontal or excessively tilted design of the existing technology, it not only ensures the convenience of operation at each workstation, but also optimizes the field of view of the detection equipment, making the overall spatial layout more compact and reasonable, reducing the equipment footprint by more than 20%, and facilitating integration with existing production lines.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: This invention utilizes a tilted design of a disc-shaped housing and a rotating multi-station structure with multiple pickup mechanisms evenly arranged along the circumference. Compared to existing single-station or fixed-station processing methods, this invention enables parallel operation of pickup, detection, and processing, avoiding waiting time between processes and improving overall processing efficiency by over 80%. Through the dual-coordinated design of the negative pressure adsorption component and the mechanical gripping component, it overcomes the shortcomings of existing single adsorption methods that are prone to failure. Even in the event of occasional malfunctions in the negative pressure system or minor defects on the surface of the target object affecting the adsorption effect, the mechanical gripping ensures that the target object will not fall off, thereby increasing pickup reliability to over 99.5%. The picking mechanism is designed with... The on-site processing design, located on the side of the disc-shaped housing for removing defective items, solves the problem in existing technologies where handling defective products requires additional transport batches, thus affecting overall processing efficiency. It avoids the efficiency loss of converting batches originally used for transporting qualified products into batches specifically for handling defective products, achieving immediate separation and automatic removal of defective products, and ensuring the continuity and efficiency of qualified product transport batches. The continuous operation mode, driven by a rotary drive device to rotate the disc-shaped housing around its axis, achieves true continuous assembly line operation compared to the intermittent or paused processing methods of existing technologies. It eliminates downtime during workstation transitions, significantly improving equipment utilization and production cycle time. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention; Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating the operation of this invention; Figure 3 This is a structural schematic diagram of the present invention from another angle; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of part of the structure of the picking mechanism of the present invention during operation; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the picking mechanism of the present invention; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the pickup mechanism of the present invention after the flexible breathable net is installed.

[0018] Reference numerals: Quartz wafer 001, disc-shaped housing 110, pickup mechanism 120, mounting housing 150, picking mechanism 160, negative pressure adsorption assembly 130, adsorption tube 131, mechanical gripping assembly 140, connecting sleeve 141, elastic gripping claw 142, elastic rod 143, sliding scaling sleeve 144, picking drive assembly 161, special adsorption head 162, flexible breathable net 170. Detailed Implementation

[0019] Example 1: This embodiment provides a rotary multi-station pickup head, the core of which lies in its rotary multi-station design. By performing pickup at the 0-degree position (meaning the working part of the head is vertical), quality inspection at the 120-degree position (meaning the working part of the head is tilted relative to the horizontal plane), and processing of defective products at the 240-degree position, continuous and efficient processing of target objects (e.g., quartz wafer 001) is achieved. (See attached diagram for head angle illustration) Figure 3 ).

[0020] refer to Figure 2 The multi-unit pickup head includes: Disc-shaped housing 110: After installation, the entire housing has an angle of inclination ∠ relative to the horizontal plane (for example, ∠ is 15 degrees); Three pickup mechanisms 120 are evenly arranged along the circumference of the disc-shaped housing 110; Pick-up mechanism 160: Located at approximately 240 degrees to the side of the disc-shaped housing 110, it is specifically designed to remove defective target objects (such as quartz wafers).

[0021] When the disc-shaped housing 110 rotates around its central axis, it can carry three pickup mechanisms 120 to stop at the 0-degree pickup position, the 120-degree detection position, and the 240-degree processing position respectively, forming a continuous alternating operation mode. The installation and rotation drive of the disc-shaped housing 110 adopt existing technologies. For example, the installation and fixation adopts flange bolt connection with bearing housing to ensure the stability and accuracy of the overall structure. The rotation drive adopts stepper motor with reduction gearbox to achieve 120-degree precise positioning and smooth rotation, which will not be described in detail here.

[0022] Detailed structure of the pickup mechanism 120: refer to Figure 4 ,include: Negative pressure adsorption component 130: connected to a negative pressure source via an external air tube, used to stably adsorb target objects (e.g., quartz crystals) and achieve object (e.g., quartz crystal) pickup; Mechanical gripping component 140: Employs a mechanical claw structure and works in conjunction with negative pressure adsorption component 130. On one hand, during the initial pickup phase, it presses down other objects (e.g., quartz crystals) around the target object (e.g., a quartz crystal), preventing other objects from being accidentally sucked up by the negative pressure adsorption component 130, thus ensuring accurate adsorption of the target object by the negative pressure adsorption component 130. On the other hand, it can retract and grip the target object, achieving dual pickup and further ensuring pickup stability. Mounting housing 150: serving as the basic mounting component of the device, it is hollow inside and used to install the aforementioned components.

[0023] Detailed structural description: The negative pressure adsorption component 130 is connected to an external negative pressure source through a duct and includes an adsorption tube 131, the lower end of which is made of a flexible material such as rubber, for contacting the target object (e.g., a quartz crystal) and achieving negative pressure adsorption.

[0024] refer to Figure 6 The mechanical gripping assembly 140 includes: Connecting sleeve 141: Coaxially sleeved on the outer periphery of adsorption tube 131, with a gap between them; Elastic gripper 142: Its upper part is connected to the connecting sleeve 141, and it is composed of multiple elastic rods 143 arranged along the outer circumference of the connecting sleeve 141.

[0025] Sliding and retractable sleeve 144: The sliding sleeve is located on the upper part of multiple elastic rods 143 and is used to resist and compress the elastic gripper 142, which has an outward expansion tendency, and control its retraction and expansion movements. The installation, fixing, and power of the sliding and retractable sleeve 144 all adopt existing technologies, such as using a linear cylinder drive with a guide bearing, and using a solenoid valve to control the air circuit to achieve the up and down sliding movement. The stroke control accuracy is ±0.05mm, the response time is less than 0.2 seconds, and a position sensor is equipped to monitor the sliding position status in real time, which will not be described in detail here.

[0026] Preferred structure of elastic rod 143: Preferably, the elastic rod 143 is made of medical-grade silicone or polyurethane elastomer, with a tapered gradient design. The upper connecting part has a diameter of 2-3 mm, gradually tapering downwards to a diameter of about 1 mm at the end, and a length of 8-12 mm. In this embodiment, 6-8 elastic rods 143 are provided, evenly distributed along the circumference of the connecting sleeve 141, with an included angle of 45-60 degrees between adjacent elastic rods. In its natural state, the elastic rod 143 bends slightly inward by about 5-10 degrees, forming a contraction trend to facilitate clamping.

[0027] Preferably, a flexible breathable mesh 170 is further adhered to the end of each elastic rod 143. This mesh is made of a 0.1-0.2 mm thick porous silicone film with a pore size of 0.5-1 mm and a porosity of 30-40%. The flexible breathable mesh 170 has the following functions: when the negative pressure adsorption component 130 deviates from the center of the wafer, during the recovery process of the elastic rod 143, the flexible breathable mesh 170, through its flexible deformation characteristics, can gradually move the wafer to the center position of the adsorption tube 131 during clamping; the mesh structure is breathable and does not affect the negative pressure adsorption effect; simultaneously, it provides buffer protection during mechanical clamping, avoiding wafer damage caused by rigid contact.

[0028] The detailed structure of the retrieving mechanism 160 includes: Pick-up drive assembly 161: Employs a multi-joint robotic arm structure, providing vertical and horizontal movement via electromagnetic or pneumatic drive. Its working range fully covers the 240-degree position of the pick-up mechanism 120. Installation, fixing, and rotation drive all utilize existing technologies, which are not detailed here. Dedicated suction head 162: Installed at the end of the pick-up drive assembly 161, it adopts a vacuum suction cup structure and is specifically designed for adsorbing and removing defective quartz wafers. Its adsorption force is calibrated to ensure that it can overcome the adsorption force of the pick-up mechanism 120 without damaging the quartz wafer; Waste conveying channel: Connected to the dedicated adsorption head 162, it leads directly to the waste collection area. Defective quartz wafers are transported to the waste collection area via pipeline or conveyor belt. Position detection components include photoelectric sensors or proximity switches, used to detect whether the picking mechanism 120 has reached the 240-degree position and the specific position of the quartz crystal, providing positioning signals for the picking action; Synchronization control module: In conjunction with the main control system, it controls the start-up timing and action sequence of the pick-up drive component 161 based on the detection results of the third camera and the signal from the position detection component.

[0029] Working principle and operation process: Optimal timing control during the pickup phase: The pickup mechanism 120 achieves stable pickup of target objects (such as quartz crystals) through the phased coordinated operation of the negative pressure adsorption component 130 and the mechanical gripping component 140, specifically including: First stage (pre-positioning stage, 0-0.5 seconds): The elastic rod 143 first unfolds outward, and the flexible breathable mesh 170 at the end lightly touches the surface of other wafers around the target wafer (if any), fixing the surrounding wafers by slight pressure to prevent them from being accidentally sucked in under negative pressure. Second stage (negative pressure adsorption stage, 0.5-1.5 seconds): The negative pressure adsorption component 130 is activated, the adsorption tube 131 descends to the surface of the target wafer, a negative pressure is established, and it is slightly lifted to achieve the initial adsorption, fixation and extraction of the target wafer. The third stage (mechanical clamping stage, 1.5-2.5 seconds): The sliding scaling sleeve 144 slides downward, causing the elastic rod 143 to contract inward, and the flexible breathable mesh 170 gradually covers the edge of the target wafer, forming a mechanical clamp. If the wafer position deviates from the center, the flexible deformation of the mesh structure automatically adjusts the wafer position; The fourth stage (dual confirmation stage, 2.5-3 seconds): Negative pressure adsorption and mechanical clamping work simultaneously to ensure stable grasping of the target wafer. The system detects the adsorption pressure and clamping force to confirm successful grasping.

[0030] Overall workflow: After the pickup is completed, start the rotation adjustment motor / mechanism (not shown in the figure) to rotate it 120 degrees, and control the rotation of the multi-link pickup head through the universal joint (not shown in the figure) to rotate the pickup mechanism 120 to the 120-degree detection position to perform integrity detection on the object (e.g., quartz crystal). If the test result indicates that the product is qualified, the picking mechanism 120 continues to rotate to the 0-degree position and waits for the moving part to move the device to the designated position for sorting. During release, the negative pressure is first reduced to 30% of the preset value, the elastic rod 143 unfolds outward to release the mechanical clamp, and finally the negative pressure is completely cut off, completing the release of the object (e.g., a quartz wafer). If the inspection result indicates that the item is defective, the pickup mechanism 120 continues to rotate to the 240-degree position. At this time, the pick-up mechanism 160 built into the multi-unit pickup head starts working: the position detection component detects the pickup mechanism 120's arrival signal, the synchronous control module starts the pick-up drive component 161, and the dedicated suction head 162 precisely positions itself to the defective item (e.g., a quartz wafer). The defective item (e.g., a quartz wafer) is removed from the pickup mechanism 120 by vacuum suction and then transported to the waste collection area through the waste conveying channel. After the picking action is completed, the picking mechanism 120 is cleared and returned to standby mode, and continues to rotate to the 0-degree position to prepare for the next round of picking operation.

[0031] Through the above workflow, a continuous and efficient operation mode was achieved where the three picking mechanisms 120 always processed qualified products.

[0032] Example 2: This embodiment provides a multi-unit pickup head suitable for small-sized quartz wafers. Its core feature is increasing the number of pickup mechanisms to achieve multi-angle defect detection. For example, by setting six pickup mechanisms at 60-degree intervals, pickup, multi-angle detection, and defective product handling are performed respectively, significantly improving the detection accuracy and processing efficiency of small-sized target objects. Referring to the overall structure of Embodiment 1, the multi-unit pickup head includes a disc-shaped housing 110, which is appropriately smaller in size than that of Embodiment 1. After installation, the overall tilt angle ∠ relative to the horizontal plane is 12 degrees, slightly smaller to meet the operation requirements of small-sized wafers. Six pickup mechanisms 120 are evenly arranged along the circumference of the disc-shaped housing 110, with one pickup mechanism at every 60-degree interval. Pickup mechanisms 160 are located at approximately 300 degrees and 240 degrees on the side of the disc-shaped housing 110. The working position is assigned as follows: 0-degree position for picking, 60-degree position for the first inspection (frontal angle inspection), 120-degree position for the second inspection (tilted angle inspection for edge defects), 180-degree position for the third inspection (reverse angle inspection for surface scratches), and 240-degree and 300-degree positions for the first and second non-conforming product processing, respectively.

[0033] In response to the characteristics of small-sized quartz wafers, the pickup mechanism 220 is structurally optimized based on Example 1. The diameter of the adsorption tube 131 of the negative pressure adsorption component 130 is reduced to 2-3 mm, and more precise pressure control is adopted. The negative pressure value is adjusted to -10 to -15 kPa to ensure gentle and effective adsorption of small-sized wafers. The number of elastic rods 143 in the mechanical gripping component 140 is reduced to 4-5, the length is shortened to 5-8 mm, the end diameter is about 0.5 mm, the included angle between adjacent elastic rods is adjusted to 72-90 degrees, and the size of the flexible breathable mesh 170 is correspondingly reduced, with the pore size adjusted to 0.2-0.3 mm. The multi-angle inspection system is equipped with different inspection devices at three inspection positions: 60 degrees, 120 degrees, and 180 degrees. The first inspection position is equipped with a vertically downward high-resolution CCD camera to inspect the flatness of the wafer surface and the overall shape. The second inspection position is equipped with a 45-degree side-angle camera to specifically inspect defects such as chipping and cracks at the wafer edge. The third inspection position is equipped with a backlight-assisted transmission inspection camera to inspect transparency defects such as internal bubbles and inclusions.

Claims

1. A rotary multi-station pickup head, characterized in that, include: The disc-shaped housing (110) has an overall tilt angle relative to the horizontal plane after installation; Multiple pickup mechanisms (120) are evenly arranged along the circumference of the disc-shaped housing (110). Each pickup mechanism includes: a negative pressure adsorption assembly (130) for adsorbing target objects, the negative pressure adsorption assembly (130) including an adsorption tube (131) with its lower end made of flexible material; and a mechanical gripping assembly (140) cooperating with the negative pressure adsorption assembly for mechanically clamping the target objects, the mechanical gripping assembly (140) including: a connecting sleeve (141) coaxially sleeved on the outer circumference of the adsorption tube (131); an elastic gripping claw (142) composed of multiple elastic rods (143) arranged along the outer circumference of the connecting sleeve; and a sliding scaling sleeve (144) slidably sleeved on the upper part of the multiple elastic rods. The elastic gripper is used to control the retraction and release of the elastic gripper; a flexible breathable net (170) is provided at the end of the elastic rod (143), the flexible breathable net is breathable and can move the target object to the center position of the adsorption tube during the clamping process; a mounting housing (150) is used to install the above components; a detection device is set at the detection station for quality detection of the target object; a picking mechanism (160) is set at the processing station for removing the unqualified target object; a rotary drive device is used to drive the disc-shaped housing to rotate intermittently around its axis, so that the picking mechanism passes through the picking station, detection station and processing station in sequence to realize the continuous picking, detection and unqualified product processing of the target object.

2. The rotary multi-station pickup head according to claim 1, characterized in that, There are three picking mechanisms (120), one for every 120 degrees.

3. The rotary multi-station pickup head according to claim 1, characterized in that, There are six picking mechanisms (120), one set at every 60 degrees.

4. The rotary multi-station pickup head according to claim 3, characterized in that, Detection devices at different angles are configured at multiple detection locations.

5. The rotary multi-station pickup head according to claim 1, characterized in that, The picking mechanism (160) includes a picking drive assembly (161) and a dedicated suction head (162).

6. The rotary multi-station pickup head according to claim 1, characterized in that, The tilt angle is 12-15 degrees.

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