Tape for packaging electronic components for pick-and-place machines

Abstract

Tape or blister packaging (14) for packaging electrical or electronic components (10a, 10b, 10c) for pick-and-place machines, wherein the tape (14) comprises a carrier tape (16) with chambers or pockets (18a, 18b, 18c) formed therein for receiving one electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) each, and a film (20) for closing the chambers or pockets (18a, 18b, 18c), wherein each electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) has electrical contact points (12), characterized in that the film (20) and / or the carrier tape (16) has a pattern of contact openings (26) in the area of ​​each chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c), wherein the pattern of contact openings (26) at least partially an arrangement of the electrical contact points (12) (footprint) of the electrical orelectronic component (10a, 10b, 10c), wherein the pattern of contact openings (26) in each chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c) is arranged such that the pattern of contact openings (26) is at least partially congruent with a projection onto the foil (20) and / or onto the carrier tape (16) of that part of the footprint of the electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) to which it corresponds.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a tape or blister packaging for packaging electrical or electronic components for pick-and-place machines, wherein the tape or blister has a carrier tape with chambers or pockets formed therein for receiving each electrical or electronic component and a film for closing the chambers or pockets, wherein each electrical or electronic component has electrical contact points, according to the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] Electronic components are typically supplied in tape-and-reel packaging for automated processing, particularly for mounting on printed circuit boards (PCBs) using pick-and-place machines. This packaging consists of a tape in which the individual components are arranged in regularly spaced cavities (chambers or pockets) within a carrier strip, and a protective film applied to the open side of the cavities on the carrier strip. The pick-and-place machine removes the protective film, thereby gaining access to the components in the cavities. The tape is wound on a reel, ensuring a continuous feed of components during the mounting process.

[0003] To prepare certain electronic components for their subsequent use, such as for assembly, customization, or parameterization, it is known to first remove the components from their tape-and-reel packaging. The components are then electrically contacted via suitable sockets or test points and connected to appropriate electronics to perform the desired assembly, parameterization, or testing operations. After these processing steps are completed, the components are placed back into a new tape-and-reel package to protect them for automated further processing in a pick-and-place machine, as the original tape-and-reel packaging is damaged by the removal of the electrical or electronic components to such an extent that it is no longer usable.

[0004] This approach has several disadvantages. Firstly, the repeated unpacking and subsequent repacking of the components generates a significant volume of packaging material, particularly plastic waste. Secondly, the necessary manual or semi-automated handling of the components makes the process time-consuming and requires considerable organizational effort. Especially with large production runs, this leads to a substantial consumption of resources and reduces the overall efficiency of the process.

[0005] The invention is based on the objective of improving a tape for packaging electrical or electronic components for pick-and-place machines with regard to the economic efficiency and environmental friendliness of the further processing processes of this tape.

[0006] This problem is solved according to the invention by a tape of the aforementioned type with the features characterized in claim 1. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are described in the further claims.

[0007] According to the invention, in a tape of the above type, the film and / or the carrier tape has a pattern of contact openings in the area of ​​each chamber or pocket, wherein the pattern of contact openings corresponds at least partially to an arrangement of the electrical contact points (footprint) of the electrical or electronic component located in the chamber or pocket, and wherein the pattern of contact openings in each chamber or pocket is arranged such that the pattern of contact openings is at least partially congruent with a projection onto the film and / or onto the carrier tape of that part of the footprint of the electrical or electronic component to which it corresponds.

[0008] This has the advantage that the electrical or electronic components packaged in the tape can be electrically contacted from the outside through the contact openings without having to unpack and repack the electrical or electronic components from the tape.

[0009] The terms "at least partially corresponds" and "at least partially coincident" refer to the fact that the footprint of the electrical or electronic component in this chamber or pocket is not necessarily completely mapped to the pattern of contact openings.

[0010] An improved embodiment with improved positional tolerance is achieved by combining at least two, three, four, five or more openings of the pattern into a single elongated hole.

[0011] A simple way of feeding the tape in a pick-and-place machine or a device for electrically contacting the electrical contact points of the electrical or electronic components for assembling the electrical or electronic components is achieved by the carrier tape having feed holes evenly spaced apart from the chambers or pockets on at least one, in particular both, sides.

[0012] Reliable automated insertion and removal of electrical or electronic components into and from the chambers or pockets is achieved by incorporating at least one ventilation opening in the carrier strip within each chamber or pocket, spaced apart from the contact openings. This prevents an unwanted air cushion from forming between the component and the carrier strip when inserting the component, which would otherwise eject the component from the chamber or pocket before the film is applied. Conversely, this prevents an undesirable negative pressure from forming between the carrier strip and the component when removing it, which would otherwise hinder removal.

[0013] To adapt to the respective contacting devices intended to pass through the contacting openings of the pattern, the contacting openings of the pattern have a circular, oval, triangular, square or polygonal perimeter or any combination thereof.

[0014] To adapt the pattern of contact openings to specific contact devices, the projection is a central projection with a projection center; a parallel projection, in particular an orthogonal projection with a projection axis perpendicular to the surface of the film and / or chamber or pocket, or an oblique projection with a projection axis deviating from a right angle to the surface of the film and / or chamber or pocket; or a nonlinear projection, in particular a stereographic projection, a cylindrical projection, or a conical projection.

[0015] A particularly simple electrical contacting by means of parallel contact tips through the pattern of contact openings is achieved by having each contact opening lie on a common axis in space with the electrical contact point assigned according to the projection, wherein the axes of all these pairs are arranged parallel to each other according to the projection from contact opening of the pattern and electrical contact point.

[0016] The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing. This shows in Fig. 1 A preferred embodiment of a tape according to the invention in a top view.

[0017] The term "tape" as used here refers to any type of packaging intended for packaging electrical or electronic components for feeding into pick-and-place machines. Such packaging is also called blister packaging, embossed tape, tape-and-reel, or carrier tape.

[0018] As from Fig. As can be seen in Figure 1, electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c with electrical contact points 12 are packaged in a tape 14 for further processing in a pick-and-place machine (not shown), wherein the tape 14 has a carrier tape 16 with chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c formed therein for receiving one electrical or electronic component 10a, 10b, 10c each, and a cover tape 20 for closing the chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c.

[0019] The foil is on the in Fig. 1 visible side applied to the carrier tape 16 and secures the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c in the chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c against falling out or closes the open sides of the chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c on the in Fig. 1 visible side of the tape 14.

[0020] The tape 14 is wound onto a reel (not shown) and fed from it to a pick-and-place machine in a known manner. In the pick-and-place machine, the film 20 is peeled from the carrier tape 16, and the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c are individually removed from the chambers or pockets 16. Feed holes 22 are formed on the side of the carrier tape 16. These serve for mechanical feed guidance in a feeder of the pick-and-place machine, the feeder having corresponding protrusions or pins that engage in the feed holes 22. The feeder ensures precise feeding of the tape 14 to position each individual electrical or electronic component 10 packaged in the tape 14 exactly under a pick-up position. In the illustrated embodiment, the feed holes 22 are formed on both sides of the carrier tape 16.This is merely an example, however; often the feed holes 22 are only formed on one side of the carrier strip 16. It is obvious that the feed holes 22 cannot provide external access to the electrical contact points 12.

[0021] Within each of the chambers or pockets 18a, 18b and 18c, a ventilation opening 24 is formed essentially in the center. These are located in the Fig. 1 is actually covered by the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c, but is shown for better illustration in Fig. 1 indicated by a dashed line. It is obvious that such ventilation openings 24 do not provide any external access to the electrical contact points 12 of the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c.

[0022] The electrical contact points 12 of the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c are arranged in a predetermined pattern, also known as the footprint in electronics. Typically, a tape 14 contains identical electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c, each with an identical footprint.

[0023] According to the invention, a pattern of contact openings 26 is formed in the foil 20 in each chamber or pocket 18a, 18b, 18c. In the exemplary embodiment shown in Fig. 1. These contact openings 26 are formed with a circular circumference. However, this is only an example. The circumference of the contact openings 26 can also be triangular, quadrilateral, polygonal, oval, or in another shape. In addition, it is possible to combine 2, 3, or more contact openings 26 into an elongated hole 26a.

[0024] The pattern of contact openings 26 essentially corresponds to the pattern of the electrical contact points 12, i.e., the footprint of the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c. According to the invention, it is not necessary for the pattern of the contact openings 26 to completely correspond to or reproduce the footprint. Depending on the type of electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c, it may be sufficient to make only some of the electrical contact points 12 accessible from the outside for electrical contact with contact pressure and contact area. In this case, the pattern of the contact openings 26 corresponds only to a part of the footprint of the electrical or electronic components 10a, 10b, 10c.

[0025] In the exemplary embodiment according to Fig. Figure 1 shows a complete match of the pattern of the contact openings 26 with the footprint of the electrical or electronic component 10a in the chamber or pocket 18a.

[0026] In the case of the electrical or electronic component 10b in the chamber or pocket 18b, as before for the electrical or electronic component 10a, all electrical contact points 12 of the electrical or electronic component 10b are accessible through the pattern of contact openings 26, however, on one side of the electrical or electronic component 10b several contact openings 26 are combined to form an elongated hole 26a.

[0027] In the electrical or electronic component 10c in the chamber or pocket 18c, a variant of the pattern of contact openings 26 is shown, in which this pattern of contact openings 26 does not completely cover the footprint of the electrical or electronic component 10c. Here, contact openings 26 are only formed for the electrical contact points 12 on two of the three sides of the electrical or electronic component 10c.

[0028] In further embodiments of the invention not shown, each side of the electrical or electronic component 10a, 10b, 10c may have corresponding contact openings 26 for only one or some of the electrical contact points 12.

[0029] According to the invention, the pattern of contact openings 26 is arranged at a specific location in each chamber or pocket 18a, 18b, 18c to make the underlying electrical contact points 12 accessible from the outside for electrical contacting, for example, by means of contact tips that establish electrical contact with a corresponding contact pressure and contact area. This location is chosen such that a projection of the arrangement of the electrical contact points 12, i.e., the footprint of the electrical or electronic component 12, onto the film 20 substantially overlaps the pattern of contact openings 26. Preferably, this projection is a parallel projection in the form of an orthogonal projection with a projection axis perpendicular to the surface of the film 20.This has the advantage that electrical contact with the electrical contact points 12 located beneath the film can be achieved by means of contact tips arranged parallel to each other and perpendicular to the surface of the film 20. The arrangement of the contact tips relative to each other corresponds to the pattern of the contact openings 26 and thus corresponds at least partially or completely to the footprint of the electrical or electronic component 10a, 10b, 10c.

[0030] Alternatively, other types of projection can be used, such as a central projection with a projection center; a parallel projection with an arbitrary angle of the projection axis to the surface of the film, i.e., an oblique projection with a projection axis deviating from a right angle to the surface of the film; or a non-linear projection, in particular a stereographic projection, a cylindrical projection, or a conical projection.

[0031] In a further embodiment of the invention, not shown, the pattern of contact openings 26 is provided not in the film 20, but in the carrier strip 16. All the above explanations concerning the film 20 with the pattern of contact openings 26 arranged therein then also apply accordingly to the carrier strip 16, whereby only the term "film 20" is to be replaced by the term "carrier strip 16".

[0032] The representation of different patterns of contact openings 26 at different chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c within a band or tape 14 in Fig. Figure 1 is merely an example for the simple and clear illustration of the invention. It is, however, advantageous that identical patterns of contact openings 26 are provided in one and the same band or tape 14 in the area of ​​all chambers or pockets 18a, 18b, 18c.

[0033] The illustration of contact openings with a circular circumference is merely an example. The circumference of the contact openings can also have other geometric shapes, such as oval, triangular, square, or polygonal.

Claims

[1] Tape or blister packaging (14) for packaging electrical or electronic components (10a, 10b, 10c) for pick-and-place machines, wherein the tape (14) comprises a carrier tape (16) with chambers or pockets (18a, 18b, 18c) formed therein for receiving one electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) each, and a film (20) for closing the chambers or pockets (18a, 18b, 18c), wherein each electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) has electrical contact points (12), characterized by, that the film (20) and / or the carrier tape (16) in the area of ​​each chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c) has a pattern of contact openings (26), wherein the pattern of contact openings (26) corresponds at least partially to an arrangement of the electrical contact points (12) (footprint) of the electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) located in the chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c), wherein the pattern of contact openings (26) in each chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c) is arranged such that the pattern of contact openings (26) is at least partially congruent with a projection onto the film (20) and / or onto the carrier tape (16) of that part of the footprint of the electrical or electronic component (10a, 10b, 10c) to which it corresponds. [2] Tape (14) according to claim 1, characterized by, that at least two, three, four, five or more contact openings (26) of the pattern are combined to form an elongated hole (26a). [3] Tape (14) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by , that the carrier belt (16) has feed holes (22) spaced evenly apart from each other on at least one, in particular both sides, away from the chambers or pockets (18a, 18b, 18c). [4] Tape (14) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that in the carrier band (16) in the area of ​​each chamber or pocket (18a, 18b, 18c) at least one ventilation opening (24) is formed spaced apart from the contact openings (26). [5] Tape (14) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the contact openings (26) of the pattern have a circular, oval, triangular, square or polygonal perimeter or any combination thereof. [6] Tape (14) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the projection is a central projection with a projection center; a parallel projection, in particular an orthogonal projection with a projection axis perpendicular to the surface of the film and / or carrier tape or an oblique projection with a projection axis deviating from a right angle to the surface of the film and / or carrier tape; or a nonlinear projection, in particular a stereographic projection, a cylindrical projection or a conical projection. [7] Tape (14) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by, that each contact opening (26) with the electrical contact point (12) assigned according to the projection lies on a common axis in space, wherein the axes of all these pairs formed according to the projection of contact opening of the pattern and electrical contact point are arranged parallel to each other.

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