Resin sealing device and work supply method

Abstract

To provide a technology relating to a resin sealing device capable of efficiently supplying workpieces and shortening a takt time.SOLUTION: A resin sealing device 1 includes an in-module 2 that supplies a workpiece W, a mold 30 that resin seals the workpiece W, and a loader 15 that moves along a first rail 11 and transports the workpiece W into the mold 30, and a preheater 14 that heats the workpiece W is configured to move along the first rail 11 together with the loader 15.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a resin encapsulation device and a work supply method using the device.

Background Art

[0002] An in-module pushes out a work such as a lead frame stored in a supply magazine to an initial position such as a turntable with a pusher, and then conveys the work to a preheater by pushing it out with the pusher or pulling it with pinch rollers. The work moving from the initial position toward the preheater slides horizontally along a side rail (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] An in-module sequentially conveys the work so that each work passes through the initial position and the preheater. Therefore, until there is an empty space in the preheater, the work cannot be placed on the preheater. Even when an empty space is created in the preheater, there is a movement time from the initial position to the preheater, so there is a waiting time during which the preheater is not used until the work is placed after the empty space is created. Similarly, until there is an empty space in the initial position, the work in the supply magazine cannot be pushed out to the initial position. There is a waiting time during which the work is not supplied from the storage magazine. When a waiting time occurs, the tact time, which is the required time for resin-encapsulating each work, becomes longer accordingly.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a technique related to a resin sealing device capable of efficiently supplying a workpiece and shortening the tact time.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The resin sealing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes an in-module that supplies a workpiece, a mold that resin-seals the workpiece, and a loader that moves along a first rail and conveys the workpiece into the mold. The preheater that heats the workpiece is configured to move along the first rail together with the loader.

[0007] A workpiece supply method according to one aspect of the present invention includes moving a preheater configured to move along a first rail together with a loader to a handover position closer to the mold than directly below the standby position, receiving the workpiece from the preheater in a state where the loader has moved to the handover position and conveying it into the mold, and moving the preheater from the handover position and positioning it directly below the standby position.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique related to a resin sealing device capable of efficiently supplying a workpiece and shortening the tact time.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] With reference to the accompanying drawings, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. In each figure, those denoted by the same reference numerals have the same or similar configurations. For the sake of clarifying the relationship between the drawings and facilitating the understanding of the positional relationship of each member, a rectangular coordinate system composed of the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis is attached to each drawing. The plane including the X-axis and Y-axis is referred to as the "XY plane", and the direction of the arrow of the Z-axis is described as the vertically upward direction, and the direction opposite to the arrow of the Z-axis is described as the vertically downward direction. When viewed from the front side of the resin sealing device 1, the X-axis direction is, for example, the left-right direction, and the Y-axis direction is, for example, the front-rear direction. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of a resin sealing device 1 including an in-module 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The resin sealing device 1 according to the present embodiment is a resin sealing device for sealing a work W with resin, and as shown in FIG. 1, at least includes an in-module 2. The resin sealing device 1 may further include a press module 3, an out-module 4, a loader mechanism 10, etc. as an arbitrary configuration.

[0012] The loader mechanism 10 includes a first rail 11 extending across the in-module 2, the press module 3, and the out-module 4, a loader 15 moving along the first rail 11, an unloader 16, etc. The in-module 2 includes a work supply device 21 for supplying a work W such as a lead frame, a resin supply device 22 for supplying a resin material such as a resin tablet, etc. The loader 15 conveys the work W and the resin material supplied from the in-module 2 to the mold (resin sealing mold) 30 of the press module 3.

[0013] The press module 3 sandwiches and pressurizes the supplied work W with the mold 30 to perform resin sealing (mold molding). The resin sealing device 1 may include a plurality of press modules 3. In the illustrated example, the resin sealing device 1 includes four press modules 3.

[0014] The mold 30 is, for example, a mold for transfer molding. The resin tablet is heated in a pot in the mold 30, pressurized by a plunger to move the resin to the mold cavity, and further heated and pressurized in the mold cavity. Then, the resin that was formed in tablet form softens and melts, and the resin moves from the mold cavity into the cavity through the runner. The work W is placed in the cavity by the loader 15. By continuing to heat the resin in the cavity, the resin hardens over time and the work W is sealed.

[0015] The out-module 4 includes a degater 41, a work storage device 42, etc. The unloader 16 takes out the resin-sealed work W from the mold 30 and conveys it to the degater 41. The degater 41 separates unnecessary resin from the resin-sealed work W. The work storage device 42 receives the work W from which the unnecessary resin has been separated from the degater 41 and stores it in the storage magazine 420.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a left side view showing an example of the in-module 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the in-module 2 is vertically divided by a horizontally extending frame 20. A resin supply device 22 and the like are arranged in the lower space of the in-module 2. The resin supply device 22 supplies the resin material stored in the hopper 220 to the loader 15.

[0017] A work supply device 21, a loader mechanism 10, etc. are arranged in the upper space of the in-module 2. The work supply device 21 includes a supply magazine 210, a turntable 211, a pick-and-place mechanism 212, etc. The supply magazine 210 supplies the work W to the initial position 212A. In the illustrated example, the turntable 211 is arranged at the initial position 212A.

[0018] The pick-and-place mechanism 212 is an example of a transport mechanism. It lifts the workpiece W placed at the initial position 212A, and transports the workpiece W to the preheater 14, which is the target position 212C, via the standby position 212B. The pick-and-place mechanism 212 is configured to be movable in both the Y-axis direction, which is the horizontal direction, and the Z-axis direction, which is the vertical direction.

[0019] The pick-and-place mechanism 212 lifts the workpiece W at the initial position 212A by moving vertically, and transports the lifted workpiece W to the standby position 212B by moving horizontally. The pick-and-place mechanism 212 lowers the workpiece W onto the preheater 14 in a state where the preheater 14 is located at the target position 212C directly below the standby position 212B by moving vertically from the standby position 212B, and places the workpiece W on the preheater 14. In other words, the pick-and-place device 212 approaches the preheater 14 from above and places the workpiece W on the preheater 14. The preheater 14 heats (preheats) the placed workpiece W.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the pick-and-place mechanism 212 and the preheater 14 shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the turntable 211 includes a pair of side rails 211L and 211R that regulate the movement of the workpiece W in the X-axis direction. The turntable 211 rotates one workpiece W by 180° so that a pair of workpieces W, which consist of one workpiece W and the other workpiece W, are point-symmetrical and aligned. One workpiece W is placed on one side rail 211L, and the other workpiece W is placed on the other side rail 211R.

[0021] In the case of transfer molding, a row of pots for feeding resin tablets into the die center row is arranged, and the distance from the pots to the cavities for both workpieces W is made the same for both workpieces W to evenly feed the resin. Therefore, the turntable has a function of arranging the workpieces W opposite to each other. In the case of compression molding, the turntable may not be provided. Further, in this embodiment, the workpieces W are arranged opposite to each other by the turntable 211, but the workpieces W may be arranged opposite to each other by providing a rotation mechanism in the pick-and-place mechanism 212 and holding the workpieces W one by one.

[0022] The turntable 211 is an example of an aligning device that aligns the workpieces W supplied from the supply magazine 210. The pick-and-place mechanism 212 transports the workpieces W in the aligned state by the turntable 211 to the preheater 14.

[0023] In the illustrated example, the preheater 14 is configured to be mounted on the base 12 together with the loader 15 and move along the first rail 11. The entire moving part is referred to as the loader moving part 17. The preheater 14 delivers the heated workpiece W to the loader 15 at the handover positions 111, 112, 113, 114 (shown in FIG. 1) on the first rail 11 corresponding to each of the four press modules 3. In the illustrated example, the loader mechanism 10 includes a base 12 that moves along the first rail 11. The preheater 14 and the loader 15 are mounted on the base 12.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 3, the pick-and-place mechanism 212 includes a horizontal drive mechanism 213, a vertical drive mechanism 214, a hand 215, etc. The hand 215 is configured to be able to grip the workpiece W. The horizontal drive mechanism 213 moves the vertical drive mechanism 214 together with the hand 215 along the Y-axis direction which is the horizontal direction. The vertical drive mechanism 214 moves the hand 215 along the Z-axis direction which is the vertical direction.

[0025] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the preheater 14 shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 4, the preheater 14 is configured to be reciprocally movable between a first position 131 and a second position 132 on a second rail 13 laid on the base 12. The preheater 14 heats the work W at the first position 131 and moves to the second position 132 directly below the loader 15 to deliver the work W to the loader 15. The preheater 14 that has moved to the second position 132 is located directly above the delivery positions 111, 112, 113, 114 described above. When the loader moving unit 17 is at the receiving position 110 on the first rail where it receives the work W at the left end on the first rail 11, the target position 212C of the work W becomes the same as the first position 131 on the second rail. This position is called the home position.

[0026] In the illustrated example, the preheater 14 includes a heating plate 141, support pins 142, a cover 143, and the like. The support pins 142 project upward from the heating plate 141 by a biasing force such as a coil spring. The support pins 142 can support the work W so as to float from the heating plate 141. When the heating plate 141 has moved to the first position 131 on the second rail 13 described above, the cover 143 can press the work W downward so as to immerse the support pins 142 into the heating plate 141 against the biasing force.

[0027] By lowering the work W to immerse the support pins 142 and reducing the distance between the heating plate 141 and the work W, the temperature of the work W rises. When the support pins 142 are projected by the biasing force to increase the distance between the heating plate 141 and the work W, the temperature of the work W drops. The preheater 14 can adjust the temperature rising rate of the work W or interrupt the heating of the work W by operating the cover 143. In the case of a work W that does not need to be heated slowly, the support pins 142 may not be mounted.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a work supply method using the in-module 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The work supply method first supplies the work W in the supply magazine 210 to the initial position 212A (step S1). Next, the transfer mechanism 212 vertically moves to lift the work W at the initial position 212A (step S2). The transfer mechanism such as the pick-and-place mechanism 212 horizontally moves to transfer the lifted work W to the standby position 212B (step S3). The pick-and-place mechanism 212 vertically moves to lower the work W onto the preheater 14 positioned directly below the standby position 212B and place the work W on the preheater 14 (step S4).

[0029] The loader moving part 17 on which the preheater 14 and the loader 15 are mounted is configured to move along the first rail 11. The work supply method moves the loader moving part 17 each time to the delivery positions 111, 112, 113, 114 closer to the mold 30 than the receiving position 110 directly below the standby position 212B (step S5). The heating plate 141 of the preheater 14 in the state where the loader 15 has moved to the delivery positions 111, 112, 113, 114 laterally moves to the second position 132 on the second rail. The loader hand 18 under the loader 15 receives the work W that has come to the second position 132 on the second rail, advances to the mold 30, and conveys it into the mold 30 (step S6). When the heating plate 141 from which the work W has been emptied returns to the first position 131 on the second rail and the loader moving part 17 is moved from the delivery positions 111, 112, 113, 114 to the receiving position 110 of the work W, the heating plate 141 of the preheater 14 is positioned directly below the standby position 212B (step S7).

[0030] According to the in-module 2 of the present embodiment configured as described above, the resin sealing device 1 equipped with the device, and the work supply method using them, since the pick-and-place mechanism 212 is configured to be movable not only in the horizontal direction but also in the vertical direction, by lifting the work W in the vertical direction, it is possible to wait in a state where the horizontal movement of the work W is completed until it is time to place the work W on the preheater 14. The horizontal movement from the supply magazine 210 to the preheater 14 takes time. However, when the pick-and-place mechanism 212 moves the work W in the vertical direction, the work W on the turntable 211 or the like at the initial position 212A becomes empty, and the supply magazine 210 can supply the work W to the initial position 212A without waiting for the horizontal movement of the work W. If it moves horizontally at a timing when the work W cannot be placed on the preheater 14 and moves vertically at a timing when the work W can be placed on the preheater 14, the time taken for the horizontal movement can be compressed, and the work W can be efficiently supplied to shorten the tact time.

[0031] If the preheater 14 moves to the mold 30 together with the loader 15, the work W can be heated until immediately before being conveyed into the mold 30. On the contrary, conventionally, a new work W supplied from the supply magazine 210 cannot be placed on the preheater 14 except at the timing when the loader 15 returns to the home position (the same position as the target position 212C of the work W). According to the present embodiment, since the transport mechanism 212 is configured to be movable not only in the horizontal Y-axis direction but also in the vertical Z-axis direction, it is possible to wait in a state where the horizontal movement of the work W is completed until it is time for the loader 15 to return to the home position. This configuration is particularly suitable for the preheater 14 to move together with the loader 15.

[0032] By subdividing steps S2 to S4 for transporting the work W from the initial position 212A of the work W to the preheater 14, steps S5 to S7 in which the preheater 14 moves and steps S2 to S3 for transporting the work W can be partially overlapped to shorten the tact time. Compared with the case where the conventional preheater was fixed in front of the loader 15, the distance when the work W heated by the preheater 14 is transported to the mold is long, and the transport lengths to the respective molds are different, so the temperature drop of the work W was uneven. According to the present embodiment, the loader moving part 17 on which the work W in the state heated by the preheater 14 is placed moves to the handover positions 111, 112, 113, 114 of the work W, and the heating plate 141 is moved from the first position 131 on the second rail 13 to the second position 132 on the second rail, and the loader hand 18 under the loader 15 grabs the work W and transports it to the mold 30. Therefore, the work W can be put into the mold 30 while the temperature drop of the heated work W is small.

[0033] The embodiments described above are for facilitating the understanding of the present invention and are not for limiting and interpreting the present invention. Each element included in the embodiments and its arrangement, material, conditions, shape, size, etc. are not limited to those illustrated and can be changed as appropriate. Also, it is possible to partially replace or combine the configurations shown in different embodiments.

[0034] [Appendix 1] An in-module (2) for supplying a work, a mold (30) for resin-sealing the work (W), and a loader (15) that moves along the first rail (11) and transports the work (W) into the mold (30). The preheater (14) is configured to move along the first rail (11) together with the loader (15).

[0035] According to the above Appendix 1, since the preheater (14) moves to the mold (30) together with the loader (15), the work (W) can be heated until immediately before being transported into the mold (30).

[0036] [Appendix 2] In the above-mentioned supplementary note 1, the preheater (14) may be configured to reciprocate between a first position (131) and a second position (132) on a second rail (13) that moves along the first rail (11), heat the workpiece (W) at the first position (131), and transfer the workpiece (W) to the loader (15) at the second position (132).

[0037] According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 2, the preheater (14) can heat the workpiece (W) until immediately before it is conveyed into the mold (30).

[0038] [Supplementary Note 3] In the above-mentioned supplementary note 1 or 2, the in-module (2) includes a supply magazine (210) that supplies the workpiece (W) to the initial position (212A), and a transport mechanism (212) that transports the workpiece (W) at the initial position (212A) to the preheater (14). The transport mechanism (212) is configured to be movable in the horizontal direction (Y) and the vertical direction (Z), and may approach the preheater (14) from above to place the workpiece (W).

[0039] The horizontal movement from the supply magazine (210) to the preheater (14) takes time. According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 3, since it is provided with a transport mechanism (212) configured to be movable in the vertical direction (Z) in addition to the horizontal direction (Y), by lifting the workpiece (W) in the vertical direction (Z), the workpiece (W) can wait in a state where the horizontal movement of the workpiece (W) is completed until it is time to place the workpiece (W) on the preheater (14). When the transport mechanism (212) moves the workpiece (W) in the vertical direction (Z), the workpiece (W) at the initial position (212A) becomes empty, and the supply magazine (210) can supply the workpiece (W) to the initial position (212A) without waiting for the horizontal movement of the workpiece (W). If it moves horizontally at a timing when the workpiece (W) cannot be placed on the preheater (14) and moves vertically at a timing when the workpiece (W) can be placed on the preheater (14), the time taken for the horizontal movement can be compressed, and the workpiece (W) can be efficiently supplied to shorten the tact time.

[0040] [Supplementary Note 4] In the above-mentioned supplementary note 3, the in-module (2) further includes an alignment device (211) that aligns the workpieces (W) supplied from the supply magazine (210) at the initial position (212A), and the transfer mechanism (212) may transfer the aligned workpieces (W) to the pre-heater (14).

[0041] According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 4, since a plurality of aligned workpieces (W) can be transferred at one time, the transfer time can be compressed.

[0042] [Supplementary Note 5] In the above-mentioned supplementary note 4, the alignment device (211) may align by rotating one workpiece (W) by 180° so that a pair of workpieces (W, W) consisting of one workpiece (W) and the other workpiece (W) becomes a point target.

[0043] According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 5, since the resin can be filled uniformly, a resin-sealed product with good quality can be obtained.

[0044] [Supplementary Note 6] Moving the pre-heater (14) configured to move along the first rail (11) together with the loader (15) to a handover position (111, 112, 113, 114) closer to the mold (30) than directly below (110) the standby position (212B), receiving the workpiece (W) from the pre-heater (14) in the state where the loader (15) has moved to the handover position (111, 112, 113, 114) and transporting it into the mold (30), and moving the pre-heater (14) from the handover position (111, 112, 113, 114) to a position directly below the standby position (212B).

[0045] According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 6, since the preheater (14) can move between the receiving position (110) for receiving the workpiece (W) from the transfer mechanism (212) and the delivery positions (111, 112, 113, 114) for delivering the workpiece (W) to the loader (15), the preheater (14) can heat the workpiece (W) until immediately before the loader (15) supplies the workpiece (W) into the mold (30). Although the preheater (14) moves away from the receiving position (110), when it returns to the receiving position (110), it can promptly receive the workpiece (W) from the transfer mechanism (212) waiting at the standby position (212B) directly above the receiving position (110).

[0046] [Supplementary Note 7] In the above-mentioned supplementary note 6, the workpiece supply method may further include supplying the workpiece (W) in the supply magazine (210) to the initial position (212A), lifting the workpiece (W) at the initial position (212A) by the vertical movement of the transfer mechanism (212), transporting the lifted workpiece (W) to the standby position (212B) by the horizontal movement of the transfer mechanism (212), and lowering the workpiece (W) onto the preheater (14) by the vertical movement of the transfer mechanism (212) so that the workpiece (W) is placed on the preheater (14) while being located directly below the standby position (212B).

[0047] According to the above-mentioned supplementary note 7, the workpiece supply device (21) can compress the time for supplying the workpiece (W) to the initial position (212A) to minimize the standby time.

Explanation of Reference Signs

[0048] 1... Resin encapsulation device, 2... In-module, 3... Press module, 4... Out-module, 10... Loader mechanism, 11... First rail, 12... Base, 13... Second rail, 14... Pre-heater, 15... Loader, 16... Unloader, 17... Loader moving part, 18... Loader hand, 20... Frame, 21... Work supply device, 22... Resin supply device, 30... Mold, 41... Degater, 42... Work storage device, 110... Receiving position on the first rail, 111, 112, 113, 114... Handover positions on the first rail, 131... First position on the second rail, 132... Second position on the second rail, 141... Heating plate, 142... Support pin, 143... Cover, 210... Supply magazine, 211... Turntable (an example of an alignment device), 211L, 211R... Side rails, 212... Pick-and-place mechanism (an example of a conveying mechanism), 212A... Initial position of the work, 212B... Waiting position of the work, 212C... Target position of the work, 213... Horizontal drive mechanism, 214... Vertical drive mechanism, 215... Hand, 220... Hopper, 420... Storage magazine, W... Work.

Claims

1. An in-module for supplying a workpiece, A mold for resin-sealing the workpiece, A loader that moves along a first rail and conveys the workpiece into the mold, and A preheater for heating the workpiece is configured to move along the first rail together with the loader. A resin-sealing device.

2. The preheater reciprocates between a first position and a second position on a second rail that moves along the first rail, heats the workpiece at the first position, and delivers the workpiece to the loader at the second position. The resin-sealing device according to Claim 1.

3. The in-module includes a supply magazine for supplying the workpiece to an initial position and a transport mechanism for transporting the workpiece at the initial position to the preheater. The transport mechanism is configured to be movable in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, and approaches the preheater from above to place the workpiece. The resin-sealing device according to Claim 1.

4. The in-module further includes an alignment device for aligning the workpiece supplied from the supply magazine at the initial position. The transport mechanism transports the aligned workpiece to the preheater. The resin-sealing device according to Claim 3.

5. The alignment device aligns the workpiece by rotating one of a pair of workpieces consisting of one workpiece and the other workpiece by 180° so that they become point targets. The resin-sealing device according to Claim 4.

6. Moving a preheater configured to move along a first rail together with a loader to a delivery position closer to the mold than directly below the standby position, The loader receiving the workpiece from the preheater in the state where the loader has moved to the delivery position and conveying the workpiece into the mold, and Moving the preheater from the delivery position to a position directly below the standby position. A workpiece supply method.

7. Supplying the workpiece in the supply magazine to the initial position, Lifting the workpiece at the initial position by the vertical movement of the transport mechanism, Conveying the lifted workpiece to the standby position by the horizontal movement of the transport mechanism, and Lowering the workpiece onto the preheater by the vertical movement of the transport mechanism to a position directly below the standby position and placing the workpiece on the preheater. The workpiece supply method according to Claim 6.

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