soldering iron

Abstract

Soldering iron, characterized in that it is equipped with a vibration stabilization system in which - the soldering tip and the heating element are not firmly coupled to the soldering iron housing, but form a decoupled unit, which is installed in a hollow cylinder housing or in a casing, which is held at a small distance from the inner wall of the soldering iron housing by electrical actuators, which additionally act as dynamic spacers, - has at least one vibration sensor that can detect the user's hand shaking movements, - a control or evaluation unit coupled to the vibration sensor and the electrical actuators, which generate phase-reversed vibrations on the hollow cylinder housing or casing by the actuators, which counteract the hand trembling vibrations,

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a soldering iron used for precise soldering work, which is equipped with a stabilizer that stabilizes the hand shaking movements of the user, so that even with shaky hands, small soldering points can be soldered more precisely.

[0002] Soldering irons are usually small, handy tools used for soldering. There are also fine tools available, which are mostly used for precise soldering work in the SMD area.

[0003] There's a very wide selection of soldering tools and soldering irons available on the market. They're often used for repair work and are ideal for removing, replacing, soldering, repairing circuit boards, and performing other repairs.

[0004] Apart from a few additional features, such as temperature controllers and temperature sensors, the soldering irons have hardly any other technical equipment or functions.

[0005] DE102018102792B3 describes an electrical soldering device, in particular a soldering iron, comprising a handle portion, a heating element attached to the handle portion, a hollow soldering tip into which the heating element engages, and fastening means for releasably fastening the soldering tip to the handle portion. The fastening means comprise a permanent magnet surrounding the heating element and a ferromagnetic holding part surrounding the heating element, which cooperates with the permanent magnet and surrounds the heating element, such that the holding part can be arranged on the permanent magnet in a rotationally secure manner. The invention also relates to a soldering system comprising a soldering device according to one of the preceding claims and a removal device for removing the soldering tip from the handle portion.

[0006] EP2705921B1 describes an interesting soldering iron whose tip is heated by a laser beam. Here, the soldering iron is provided with a soldering tip that is heated by a laser beam extending at least partially along a laser path within the soldering iron. The soldering iron comprises an energy converter configured to absorb the laser beam and coupled to the soldering tip to heat it.A laser source for generating the laser beam is arranged within the soldering iron, wherein a laser source generating the laser beam is designed to adjust the focus of the laser beam at different distances relative to the surface of the energy converter to be heated, so that heating times of the soldering iron can be varied, wherein the laser beam can be transported by means of a light guide arranged in the soldering iron, wherein the light guide runs along the laser path and a distance between an exit opening of the light guide and the energy converter is maintained constant, wherein the laser source comprises a laser exit opening which is coupled to one end of the light guide.

[0007] DE102017100975A1 describes a soldering iron comprising: an iron main body; and an iron tip having a leading end configured to melt solder, wherein the iron tip comprises an iron tip main body made of a thermally conductive material; a heater configured to heat the iron tip main body; and a temperature sensor configured to detect a temperature of the leading end side of the iron tip, wherein a first hole part accommodating the heater and a second hole part accommodating the temperature sensor are formed independently of each other within the iron tip main body.

[0008] Utility Model CN208644330U discloses a type of handheld welding stabilizer characterized by comprising an iron holder, a handle, and a three-axis stabilizing device mounted between the iron holder and the handle. The three-axis stabilizing device comprises a first structural block, a second structural block, and a third structural block. The iron holder is arranged on the first structural block, the first structural block is connected to the second structural block via a first rotary shaft, the second structural block is connected to the third structural block via a second shaft, and the third block structure is connected to the handle via a third shaft. A servo motor and a gyro sensor are arranged on the first rotary shaft, respectively, on the second and third shafts, and an operation panel is provided on the handle.By applying the above-mentioned technical concept, the three-axis stabilization device is raised in the center by separating the handle and iron holder. The three-axis stabilization device is controlled in such a way that the operator's hand does not shake during welding and the alignment of the iron is not affected. This is especially suitable for users with light fingers or inexperienced users.

[0009] DE 20 2012 007 997 U1 describes a hand tool, in particular a soldering iron, with at least one handle and a tool element protruding therefrom with an actuating end section at the free end, wherein the hand tool has more than one light for illuminating a place of use of the hand tool and the lights are arranged on an end flange surrounding the tool element in a handle end surface of the handle extending radially to the tool element and pointing substantially in the direction of the place of use in a triangular arrangement and with an orientation for shadow-free illumination of the place of use.

[0010] The invention JP2015116589A also describes a soldering iron. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a soldering iron that allows an unskilled worker to easily perform a soldering operation. The present invention was developed to achieve the above object and includes a tip portion, a grip portion provided at a base end portion of the tip portion, and a grip portion provided at the grip portion. It is a soldering iron provided with a laser light source that emits a laser beam in front of the tip portion. The laser light source may be provided at an end surface of the grip portion on the tip portion side, with an irradiation portion that emits laser light directed forward. A plurality of laser light sources may be provided.The laser light sources may be arranged at equal intervals on the circumference of a circle whose center is the central axis of the tip section.

[0011] There are thousands of other solutions that describe a soldering iron. These primarily concern the heating technology and the design of the soldering device.

[0012] Unfortunately, with age, the steady posture of the hands often declines. Many older people develop more or less shaky hands as they age. This also has a negative psychological impact, which further exacerbates the problem. Older technicians or scientists, researchers, model car builders, watchmakers, jewelry manufacturers, cell phone technicians, and service personnel who would like to repair or create something unfortunately often fail due to a phenomenon that mostly affects older people: shaky hands.

[0013] Today's technology is designed in such a way that electronic components are installed ever closer together. Especially in mobile phones, there are often only fractions of a millimeter between the components on the circuit boards. Jitter amplitudes of just millimeters make it almost impossible to precisely target a point during soldering and to maintain that position during the soldering process.

[0014] The tremor frequency is relatively low and varies from person to person. It can range from approximately 1 to 20 Hz.

[0015] The invention specified in patent claims 1 to 10 is based on the problem of achieving a solution for quiet soldering work that also works for people who have shaky hands.

[0016] This problem is solved with the features listed in patent claims 1 to 10.

[0017] Advantages of the invention are: - precise operation even by older people, - quiet soldering work, even when using a soldering iron by people who have unsteady or shaky hands,

[0018] Embodiments of the invention are described with reference to Fig. 1 to 3 explained.

[0019] They show: Fig. 1 a simple method to stabilize the soldering iron tip using electronic means and electrical actuators, Fig. 2 the trembling stabilization method, in which the soldering tip is slightly swiveled within the housing of the soldering iron, Fig. 3 a version with piezo actuators.

[0020] The device built into the soldering iron is able to more or less compensate for the shaky movements during soldering work.

[0021] The work appears smoother and follows the hand's movements, but at the same time, it smooths out any shaking. This technique is very effective for delicate circuit boards, such as those used in cell phone repairs. The soldering iron described here can also be used optimally in the SMD field. Until now, this work was primarily performed by younger people with very steady hands. The new technology makes it possible for older people or people with shaky hands to perform delicate repair work.

[0022] Various functional principles can be used to construct the stabilizer. It is known that many digital cameras are equipped with optical stabilizers. These stabilizers are able to compensate for the user's shaking movements, so that a video recording or image does not appear blurry. The numerous solutions used in digital cameras to stabilize an image, as well as elements of such techniques, can also be partially applied here. With appropriate adjustments, stabilizers can also be used here. The difference here is that it is not the image or the light falling into the camera, but the hardware, in this case in a soldering iron 1, the soldering tip 2 that needs to be held steady and protected against shaking, or the shaking movements must be smoothed out.

[0023] The stabilizer can be electronic, mechanical, or a combination of both. The soldering tip is pivoted slightly electrically by actuators, thus counteracting the vibration.

[0024] The easiest and simplest method is to stabilize the soldering tip 2 of the soldering iron 1 using electronic means and electric actuators. The soldering tip is pivoted slightly in any direction from a fixed longitudinal axis 4 of the soldering tip by one or more actuators 3, electromagnetically (or piezoelectrically), so that its tip position can deflect slightly and "follow" the user's movements. The deflection is minimal, but has a smoothing effect on the user's shaking movements and can accurately hit the contact point / soldering point 5 with the soldering tip, which would otherwise wander back and forth on the soldering iron housing due to shaking movements. Fig. 1). A vibration sensor 6 detects the vibrations (direction and amplitude), and through an electronic controller 7 and an evaluation unit 8, opposite pivoting movements are executed in real time by an actuator consisting, for example, of electromagnets 9 and magnets 10 in the upper area 11 of the soldering tip. Any rapid movement with small amplitudes, such as vibrations, is recognized as such, and the soldering tip is pushed or pivoted slightly from the longitudinal axis 4 so that it always targets and hits the same point 5 on the soldering joint, despite vibrations on the housing 12 of the soldering iron.

[0025] The stabilizer built into the soldering iron simulates fluid movement of the soldering tip over a soldering point on a soldering joint (e.g. on a circuit board, piece of jewelry, model airplane, cell phone, etc.), which would otherwise only be possible with a very steady hand. Nevertheless, it fixes the soldering tip during the soldering process, allowing you to work reliably. The tip does swing back and forth, but this is done by the active action of the actuators, which otherwise do not allow any other deviating movements. Only the shaking movements are specifically neutralized. The user can move the tip without any shaking amplitudes, just like with a conventional soldering iron with a firmly fixed soldering tip.

[0026] The variant from the Fig. Figure 2 shows the vibration stabilization method, in which the soldering tip is pivoted slightly within the housing of the soldering iron. For such purposes, the soldering tip 2 is provided with a magnetic ring or iron ring 13, which can be pivoted slightly electrically by magnetic fields from several small electromagnetic coils, or from at least three electromagnets 9, which are arranged radially around the longitudinal axis 4 of the soldering tip. The controller 7 receives the signals from the vibration sensor 6, and an evaluation unit 8, which is coupled to the controller, evaluates the signals. The vibrations are thereby detected, and countermeasures are initiated via the actuators. With each vibration of the soldering iron, the ring 13 is pivoted in the same way, in the opposite direction, orIt too is subjected to trembling movements, although these are phase-reversed, so that the soldering tip always hits the same point on the soldering point, unaffected by trembling on the housing 12. It is predominantly and almost exclusively the rapid trembling movements that are smoothed out. If the soldering iron is swung back and forth slowly or somewhat faster, with the soldering tip moving more than 0.5 cm onto the circuit board 15, the soldering tip will also follow this movement. Regardless of the direction in which the trembling movements occur, they can be successfully smoothed out. The magnetic ring / iron ring 13 is provided with an insulating sleeve 16 in the ring opening 17, into which the soldering tip 2 is inserted. The magnetic ring can be installed somewhat higher above the soldering tip. There it is better protected from heat.The heating element 18 and the soldering tip 2 form a compact, pivoting unit 19, which is inserted into a hollow cylinder 20 and can be pivoted freely at the lower end within this hollow cylinder. It is known that magnets lose their magnetic field when heated (Curie temperature point). Therefore, it is essential to protect them from heat. The higher the magnetic ring is installed in the unit containing the heating element and soldering tip, the less heat is generated. Alternatively, piezo actuators 21 can be used, which function reliably even at higher temperatures. However, the loss of the magnetic field is reversible; once the temperature drops, the magnetic fields return. The same thing happens with ferromagnets. At high temperatures, they lose their ferromagnetic properties.

[0027] The vibration sensor only needs to detect vibrations in two dimensions (X and Y axes), namely those that affect the position of the soldering tip on the object being soldered. These vibrations cause movements in the radial direction from the soldering tip's longitudinal axis 4, or radially from the longitudinal axis line. Vibrations in the Z axis do not need to be detected and corrected because they only cause the distance of the soldering iron from the soldering point to vary very slightly and do not have a significant impact on the soldering point. Nevertheless, these vibrations can also be compensated for. After all, only millimeter-sized corrections are required.

[0028] Electromagnetic actuators are easy to control, while piezo actuators take up little space.

[0029] A version with piezo actuators 21 is available on the Fig.3. The response times are very short, and such actuators can perform control almost in real time. In this way, any "trembling movement on the soldering iron" can be quickly smoothed out. The actuators 3 are arranged radially around the longitudinal axis of the soldering tip and installed in a star configuration. The more actuators installed, the finer the vibration compensation movements. In principle, however, three actuators are completely sufficient. These should then be installed offset by 120°. Depending on whether the soldering tip is pushed or pulled radially, the actuators are activated individually or in pairs. At the upper end of the pivoting unit 19, this is connected to the static part of the soldering iron by means of a joint (e.g., a ball joint or cardan joint) 22. The joint allows the pivoting unit to pivot slightly in any direction, radially from the longitudinal axis 23 of the soldering iron.

[0030] The heating element and soldering tip can be housed in a casing or in a hollow cylindrical housing 25 as a separate unit. The housing 25 should have a slightly smaller outer diameter than the inner diameter of the soldering iron housing 12 and should be held at a small distance from the inner wall 26 of the soldering iron by actuators. The actuators serve as dynamic spacers that maintain the distance between the inner wall and the unit containing the heating element and soldering tip. However, this distance is constantly changed by the actuators and at the same frequency as the user's hand vibrations, only phase-reversed. Thus, any vibration amplitude is compensated for by a phase-reversed amplitude.The housing of the soldering iron vibrates due to hand vibrations, and with the same frequency and amplitude, the casing 25 of the unit also vibrates in antiphase, thus counteracting the vibrations.

[0031] This results in the tip remaining steady at the soldering point, allowing precise soldering work to be carried out even if the user's hand shakes.

[0032] For better illumination of the soldering area, this soldering iron can be equipped with an LED light or 24 laser diodes, as usual. If three laser diodes are installed, arranged in parallel, each emitting laser beams in one of the basic light colors: red, blue, and green, then all three laser diodes will emit a nearly white light. However, to better identify and select the colors of the circuit paths or installed elements, individual laser light colors can also be used. For example, with green laser diode light, all green components will shine significantly brighter and are thus highlighted from the others. Of course, a controller 14 should also be installed to control the laser diodes and also regulate their laser power individually. LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS: 1 soldering iron 2 soldering tips 3 actuators 4 Longitudinal axis 5 Contact point / soldering point 6 Vibration sensor 7 Electronic control 8 Evaluation unit 9 electromagnets 10 magnets 11 Upper area of the soldering tip 12 Soldering iron housing 13 Ring, magnetic ring or iron ring 14 controllers 15 circuit board 16 Insulation cover 17 Ring opening 18 Heating element 19 Swivel unit 20 hollow cylinders 21 piezo actuators 22 Joint (ball joint or cardan joint) 23 Longitudinal axis of the soldering iron 24 laser diodes 25 Sheath / hollow cylinder housing 26 Inner wall of the soldering iron housing

Claims

[1] Soldering iron, characterized by that it is equipped with a trembling movement stabilization system in which - the soldering tip and the heating element are not firmly coupled to the soldering iron housing, but form a decoupled unit, which is installed in a hollow cylinder housing or in a casing, which is held at a small distance from the inner wall of the soldering iron housing by electrical actuators, which additionally act as dynamic spacers, - has at least one vibration sensor that can detect the user's hand shaking movements, - a control or evaluation unit coupled to the vibration sensor and the electrical actuators, which generate phase-reversed vibrations on the hollow cylinder housing or casing by the actuators, which counteract the hand trembling vibrations, [2] Soldering iron according to claim 1, characterized bythat the soldering tip and the heating element are not firmly coupled to the soldering iron housing, but form a decoupled unit which is coupled to the soldering iron housing at the upper end by means of a joint when the soldering iron is held vertically with the soldering tip pointing downwards, while the soldering tip can be freely pivoted slightly in any direction at the bottom by actuators. [3] Soldering iron according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that the soldering iron tip and its heating element at its upper end are mounted with a joint with two degrees of freedom or in a cardan suspension when the soldering iron is held vertically with the soldering tip pointing downwards. [4] Soldering iron according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized bythat the soldering iron tip and the heating element form a unit which, when the soldering iron is held vertically with the soldering tip pointing downwards, is coupled at its upper end to the soldering iron housing by means of a ball joint or gimbal suspension, wherein the lower end of the soldering tip is coupled to the actuator or several actuators and can therefore be pivoted slightly in any direction. [5] Soldering iron according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the vibration sensor is designed to detect the direction and amplitude of the shaking movements on the soldering iron housing. [6] Soldering iron according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the vibration sensor for detecting the shaking movements only detects those whose movement amplitudes are arranged radially on the longitudinal axis of the soldering iron tip. [7] Soldering iron according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized bythat in the lower area of the unit with the heating element and the soldering tip, it has at least three actuators arranged in a star shape radially to the longitudinal axis of the soldering tip, which connect the unit and the housing of the soldering iron and can pivot or move the unit in the soldering tip area in all directions radially to the soldering iron axis or soldering tip longitudinal axis. [8] Soldering iron according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it is equipped with three actuators in the soldering tip area, each offset by 120° and arranged radially around the soldering tip axis, which are coupled to the soldering iron housing and the unit or directly to the soldering tip, which can pivot or move the soldering tip in any direction. [9] Soldering iron according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it is equipped with a laser diode that illuminates the soldering area. [10] Soldering iron according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the stabilization device is designed to be removable, is self-sufficient with its own power source and is installed in a compact housing that is equipped with connecting elements for a mechanical coupling with the soldering iron.

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