Holding device, component mounting device, and component holding method

Abstract

To provide a holding device capable of properly holding an object to be held even without performing precise alignment with the object to be held when holding the object to be held, a component mounting device, and a component holding method.SOLUTION: The holding device for holding a component as an object to be held by opening and closing motion of a pair of gripping parts includes: a body that has a pressure supply path to which pressure is supplied and two piston sliding spaces to which the pressure supplied to the pressure supply path is transmitted individually therein; and two piston parts fitted and inserted into the two piston sliding spaces respectively. The pair of gripping parts is integrated with each of the two piston parts, and when the pressure is supplied to each of the two piston sliding spaces from the pressure supply path, the two piston parts move in opposite directions within the two piston sliding spaces to hold the component by the pair of gripping parts that move in a closing direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a gripping device that grips an object to be gripped by opening and closing a pair of gripping parts, a component mounting device including the gripping device, and a component gripping method using the component mounting device. [Background technology]

[0002] The component mounting device is configured to pick up components supplied by a component supply unit using a mounting head and mount them on a board positioned by a board positioning unit. While nozzles that use vacuum suction to pick up components are often used as tools for the mounting head to pick up components, a gripping device that grips the components as a gripping target by opening and closing a pair of grippers is used to pick up larger components such as connectors and power supply components. Known gripping devices are configured to mechanically open and close a pair of grippers using a link mechanism or the like, using vacuum suction force or motor power or the like (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 listed below). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-237167 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6286670 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a gripping device that mechanically opens and closes a pair of gripping sections, the pair of gripping sections are configured to open and close by moving the same amount in opposite directions, so when gripping a part, it is necessary to vertically align the midpoint of the pair of gripping sections with the center position of the part in the width direction (the gripping direction by the pair of gripping sections) so that the pair of gripping sections can contact the part simultaneously. If the midpoint of the pair of gripping sections does not align with the center position of part BH, one of the pair of gripping sections will contact the part first, which could result in the part not being able to be gripped, or even if it is gripped, the part may end up in an inclined position.

[0005] Therefore, the present disclosure aims to provide a gripping device and a component mounting device that can properly grip a component without having to strict align the gripping object with the gripping object when gripping the component. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The gripping device disclosed herein is a gripping device that grips an object to be gripped by opening and closing a pair of gripping parts, and comprises a body part having a pressure supply path through which pressure is supplied and two piston part sliding spaces therein to which the pressure supplied to the pressure supply path is individually transmitted, and two piston parts inserted into each of the two piston part sliding spaces, and the pair of gripping parts are integrated with each of the two piston parts, and when pressure is supplied from the pressure supply path to each of the two piston part sliding spaces, the two piston parts move in opposite directions within the two piston part sliding spaces, and the pair of gripping parts move in a closing direction to grip the object to be gripped.

[0007] The component mounting device of the present disclosure includes a substrate positioning unit that positions a substrate at a predetermined position, a component supply unit that supplies components as objects to be gripped, a mounting head to which the gripping device of the present disclosure is attached, and a control unit that supplies pressure supplied from outside to the gripping device to cause the gripping device to grip the component, and controls the mounting head so that the component gripped by the gripping device is mounted on the substrate.

[0008] The component gripping method of the present disclosure is a component gripping method using the component mounting device of the present disclosure, and includes the steps of: positioning the gripping device above the component; moving the gripping device positioned above the component in a direction to open the pair of gripping sections while approaching the component from above; and, after bringing the gripping device close to the component, moving the pair of gripping sections in a direction to close the component, thereby gripping the component with the pair of gripping sections. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, a part can be properly grasped without strict alignment with the object to be grasped when grasping the object to be grasped. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a portion of a component mounting device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a front view of a mounting head included in a component mounting device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a gripping device provided in a component mounting device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, together with a portion of a shaft member to which the gripping device is attached. [Figure 4] FIG. 1A is a side view of a gripping device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; [Figure 5] FIG. 1A is a side view of a gripping device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which a pair of gripping sections are operated in a closing direction; FIG. 1B is a side view of a gripping device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which a pair of gripping sections are operated in an opening direction; [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a control system of a component mounting device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D are explanatory diagrams illustrating an operation when a part is gripped by a gripping device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] 1A, 1B, and 1C are explanatory diagrams illustrating an operation when a part is gripped by a gripping device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9]FIG. 1A is a side view of a gripping device according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which a pair of gripping sections are actuated in a closing direction; FIG. 1B is a side view of a gripping device according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which a pair of gripping sections are actuated in an opening direction; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 shows a plan view of a portion of a component mounting device 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The component mounting device 1 is a device that mounts components BH on a board KB, and includes a base 10, a transport conveyor 11, a component supply unit 12, a head moving mechanism 13, a mounting head 14, and a camera 15.

[0012] 1, the transport conveyor 11 is provided extending in the left-right direction (X direction) as seen from the operator OP at the center of the base 10. The transport conveyor 11 receives the board KB sent from outside (the upstream process side) of the component mounting device 1, transports it in the X direction, and positions it at a predetermined working position at the center of the base 10. In this way, in this embodiment, the transport conveyor 11 serves as a board positioning unit that positions the board KB at a predetermined position.

[0013] In FIG. 1, component supply unit 12 is connected to base 10. Here, component supply unit 12 is comprised of a tray feeder, and supplies components BH using trays TR placed on a drawer table 12T. Tray TR has a plurality of pockets PK arranged in a matrix, and each pocket PK stores one component BH. In this embodiment, the components BH are assumed to be relatively large, such as connectors.

[0014] 1, the head moving mechanism 13 includes a fixed beam 13A fixed to the base 10 and extending in the front-to-rear direction (Y direction) as seen from the operator OP, and a movable beam 13B extending in the X direction with one end attached to the fixed beam 13A. The mounting head 14 is attached to the movable beam 13B.

[0015] The movable beam 13B is movable in the Y direction along the fixed beam 13A, and the mounting head 14 is movable in the X direction along the movable beam 13B. The mounting head 14 moves in a horizontal plane (within the XY plane) above the base 10 by moving the movable beam 13B in the Y direction along the fixed beam 13A and by moving the mounting head 14 itself in the X direction along the movable beam 13B.

[0016] Fig. 2 is a front view of a mounting head provided in a component mounting device 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In Fig. 2, the mounting head 14 includes a plurality of shaft members 16 extending downward. A gripping device 18 is attached to the lower end of each shaft member 16 via a coupler 17. Each shaft member 16 moves up and down relative to the mounting head 14 and rotates about the Z-axis (an axis along the Z direction, which is the up-down direction) by a shaft member drive unit 19 provided within the mounting head 14.

[0017] 2, a pressure pipe 16K is formed inside each shaft member 16 (see also FIG. 3). The pressure pipe 16K is connected to a pressure source SR via a pipe HK extending outside the shaft member 16 and a valve unit 20 provided in the mounting head 14. The pressure source SR is provided outside the component mounting device 1, and supplies pressure (negative pressure and positive pressure) to each shaft member 16. The valve unit 20 controls the supply of pressure (inside the pressure pipe 16K) by switching between negative pressure and positive pressure supplied from the pressure source SR.

[0018] 4(a) and 4(b) are a side view and an exploded side view, respectively, of a gripping device 18 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the gripping device 18 includes a body portion 21, two piston portions 22, and a pair of gripping portions 23. The body portion 21 includes therein a pressure supply passage 31 to which pressure is supplied, and two piston portion sliding spaces 32 to which the pressure supplied to the pressure supply passage 31 is individually transmitted.

[0019] 4(b), the two piston portion sliding spaces 32 are formed as part of the space within one through passage 32K that is provided so as to open to each of a pair of opposing side surfaces 21M of the body portion 21. In detail, the two piston portion sliding spaces 32 are formed as a certain length of space on each end side along the longitudinal direction of the through passage 32K within the space within the through passage 32K, and the space between the two piston portion sliding spaces 32 serves as a communication passage 32R that connects the two piston portion sliding spaces 32 (FIG. 4(b)). The two pistons 22 are inserted into the piston portion sliding spaces 32 from the openings of the two piston portion sliding spaces (openings at both ends of the through passage 32K).

[0020] 4(a) and (b), one end (inner end 22T) of each of the two piston portions 22 is positioned inside the piston portion sliding space 32 (i.e., inside the body portion 21), and the other end is positioned outside the piston portion sliding space 32 (i.e., outside the body portion 21). Therefore, in this embodiment, the inner end portions 22T of the two piston portions 22 face each other within the through passage 32K, and are each movable in a direction along the central axis 32J (FIG. 4(b)) of the through passage 32K.

[0021] 4(a) and 4(b), each piston portion 22 is provided with an elongated hole 33 that extends in a direction along the central axis 32J of the through passage 32K and is open on both side surfaces. A pin member PN that extends in the width direction of the body portion 21 (the horizontal direction perpendicular to the central axis 32J of the through passage 32K) passes through the elongated hole 33, and the pin member PN is prevented from falling out of the body portion 21 by retaining rings SC attached to both ends.

[0022] When each piston portion 22 moves toward the center of the body portion 21 and reaches a position where the outer edge 33a of the elongated hole 33 abuts against the pin member PN (FIG. 4(b)), it cannot move any further toward the center of the body portion 21. Also, when each piston portion 22 moves away from the center of the body portion 21 and reaches a position where the inner edge 33b of the elongated hole 33 abuts against the pin member PN (FIG. 4(b)), it cannot move any further outside the body portion 21. In this way, the movement of each piston portion 22 within the piston portion sliding space 32 into which it is inserted (movement along the central axis 32J) is limited, and the inner ends 22T of the two piston portions 22 do not come into contact with each other even when they are closest to each other, and they do not come out of the piston portion sliding space 32.

[0023] 4(a) and 4(b), a pair of gripping portions 23 is attached to each of the two piston portions 22. That is, the pair of gripping portions 23 is integrated with each of the two piston portions 22. Therefore, when each piston portion 22 moves within the through passage 32K, the gripping portion 23 attached to that piston portion 22 also moves in the same direction as that piston portion 22.

[0024] 3 is a side view showing the gripping device 18 included in the component mounting apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, together with a portion of the shaft member 16 to which the gripping device 18 is attached. In FIGS. 3 and 4(a) and (b), the end of each gripping portion 23 opposite the end attached to the piston portion 22 extends inward below the body portion 21 (in the direction in which the gripping portions 23 face each other) and then extends downward to form a claw portion (gripping claw 23T).

[0025] 4(a) and 4(b), a downwardly protruding pressing portion 34 is provided on the underside of the body portion 21. In this embodiment, the pressing portion 34 is fixed to the body portion 21. The pressing portion 34 has the function of pressing down the part BH, which is the object to be grasped, from above when the part BH is grasped by the pair of gripping portions 23 (details will be described later).

[0026] 4(a) and 4(b), a shank 36 is provided on the upper part of the body 21 via a shank base 35. The shank 36 has a truncated cone shape that narrows toward the top. A disc-shaped reflector 37 that extends along the horizontal plane (XY plane) is provided at the boundary between the shank base 35 and the shank 36.

[0027] 4(a) and 4(b), pressure supply passage 31 provided in body portion 21 is connected from shank portion 36 through shank portion base portion 35 to communication passage 32R, which communicates with two piston portion sliding spaces 32. Therefore, when pressure (negative pressure or positive pressure) from pressure source SR is supplied to pressure supply passage 31 through valve unit 20, the pressure is transmitted from communication passage 32R to the two piston portion sliding spaces 32, causing the two piston portions 22 to move in opposite directions. Therefore, when negative pressure and positive pressure are alternately supplied to pressure supply passage 31, the pair of gripping portions 23 open and close in response.

[0028] 5A and 5B are side views of a gripping device 18 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, showing (a) a state in which a pair of gripping sections is operated in a closing direction, and (b) a state in which the pair of gripping sections is operated in an opening direction. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5A, when negative pressure P1 is supplied from the pressure supply passage 31 into the through passage 32K, the negative pressure draws the two piston sections 22 closer to each other (arrow A1 in FIG. 5A), and the pair of gripping sections 23 move closer to each other (closing direction) (arrow A2 in FIG. 5A). On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5B, when positive pressure P2 is supplied from the pressure supply passage 31 into the through passage 32K, the positive pressure pushes the two piston sections 22 away from each other (arrow B1 in FIG. 5B), and the pair of gripping sections 23 move away from each other (opening direction) (arrow B2 in FIG. 5B).

[0029] In this way, in the gripping device 18 of this embodiment, when negative pressure P1 is supplied to the pressure supply path 31, the negative pressure P1 draws the two piston portions 22 closer to each other, causing the pair of gripping portions 23 to move in the closing direction, and when positive pressure P2 is supplied to the pressure supply path 31, the positive pressure P2 pushes the two piston portions 22 away from each other, causing the pair of gripping portions 23 to move in the opening direction.

[0030] 3, coupler 17, which connects gripping device 18 to shaft member 16, is arranged on either side of shaft member 16 and is configured to include a pair of locking arms 41 extending vertically along shaft member 16, and arm holding portions 42 made of band-shaped members that pull and hold the upper portions of each of the pair of locking arms 41 against the side surfaces of shaft member 16. Each of the pair of locking arms 41 has a curved locking portion 41L at its lower end.

[0031] 3, a shank receiving hole 43 having an inner surface that is a truncated cone formed by inverting the truncated cone shape of the shank 36 of the gripping device 18 is formed at the lower end of the shaft member 16. When the shank 36 of the gripping device 18 is inserted from below the shaft member 16, the shank 36 is received in the shank receiving hole 43 with its surface shape matching the inner shape of the shank receiving hole 43.

[0032] In the process of receiving the shank portion 36 into the shank portion receiving hole 43, the locking portions 41L of the pair of locking arms 41 come into contact with the truncated cone shape of the shank portion 36, and then the pair of locking arms 41 are pushed apart laterally to match the flared shape of the shank portion 36. When the locking portions 41L reach the locking portion fitting grooves 36M (FIG. 3) formed at the base of the shank portion 36, the pair of locking arms 41 are released from their spread apart state, and the locking portions 41L fit into the locking portion fitting grooves 36M. As a result, the gripping device 18 is locked by the pair of locking arms 41, and is attached to the lower end of the shaft member 16 (FIG. 2).

[0033] In FIG. 1, camera 15 is provided in an area between transport conveyor 11 and component supply unit 12 on base 10. Camera 15 has an imaging field of view facing upward. After mount head 14 has gripping device 18 grip a component BH in pocket PK of tray TR, camera 15 moves so that the component BH passes above camera 15 (described below). At this time, camera 15 captures and recognizes the component BH passing above from below. Note that the aforementioned reflector 37 provided on gripping device 18 has the function of reflecting illumination light emitted from camera 15 downward when camera 15 captures an image of component BH gripped by gripping device 18 from below, allowing camera 15 to capture a silhouette image of component BH.

[0034] 6 shows a control system for each component of the component mounting device 1, controlled by a control unit 50. The control unit 50 controls the transport of the board KB by the transport conveyor 11 and its positioning at the work position, the supply of components BH by the component supply unit 12 (pulling out and storing the drawer table 12T), the movement of the mounting head 14 by the head movement mechanism 13, the movement (lifting and rotating) of each shaft member 16 by the shaft member drive unit 19, and the supply of pressure into each shaft member 16 (i.e., into the gripping device 18) by the valve unit 20. The control unit 50 also controls the capture of images of the components BH by the camera 15. The control unit 50 recognizes the shape of the component BH from the image of the component BH captured by the camera 15 and calculates the positional deviation of the component BH relative to the shaft center axis 16J (FIG. 3) along the Z direction of the shaft member 16.

[0035] 7(a), (b), (c), and (d) are explanatory diagrams of the operation when a component is gripped by a gripping device 18 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. When the component mounting device 1 configured as described above performs a component mounting operation of mounting a component BH on a board KB, the transport conveyor 11 first operates to carry in a board KB supplied from outside the component mounting device 1 and position it at the work position. Once the board KB is positioned at the work position, the head moving mechanism 13 moves the mounting head 14 above the tray TR. Then, one of the multiple gripping devices 18 provided on the mounting head 14 is positioned above the component BH to be mounted on the board KB from among the multiple components BH placed on the tray TR (FIG. 7(a), gripping device positioning process).

[0036] Once the mounting head 14 has positioned the gripping device 18 above the part BH, the control unit 50 actuates the shaft member driving unit 19 to lower the shaft member 16 (i.e., the gripping device 18), while actuating the valve unit 20 so that positive pressure P2 from the pressure source SR is supplied into the through-passage 32K (i.e., the two piston member sliding spaces 32) via the piping HK, the pressure conduit 16K, and the pressure supply path 31. This causes the pair of gripping parts 23 to move away from each other (arrows B2 shown in FIG. 7(b)), and they become ready to grip the part BH (FIG. 7(b) Grip preparation process).

[0037] Thus, in this embodiment, when the control unit 50 causes the gripping device 18 to grip the part BH, it moves the pair of gripping sections 23 in the opening direction while moving the gripping device 18 toward the part BH from above. This reduces the time required for the gripping device 18 to grip the part BH compared to when the pair of gripping sections 23 are moved in the opening direction and then the gripping device 18 is lowered.

[0038] When the gripping device 18 is brought close to the part BH from above and the pressing portion 34 provided on the body portion 21 of the gripping device 18 comes into contact with the upper surface of the part BH, the control unit 50 stops the descent of the shaft member 16 (i.e., the descent of the gripping device 18) (FIG. 7(c)). After the descent of the shaft member 16 is stopped, the control unit 50 actuates the valve unit 20 so that negative pressure P1 from the pressure source SR is supplied into the through passage 32K (the two piston portion sliding spaces 32). This causes the pair of gripping portions 23 to move closer to each other (arrow A2 shown in FIG. 7(d)), and the part BH is gripped by the pair of gripping portions 23 (FIG. 7(d) - part gripping process).

[0039] 8(a), 8(b), and 8(c) are explanatory diagrams illustrating the operation of gripping a part using gripping device 18 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Here, as shown in FIG. 8(a), it is assumed that the midpoint between the pair of gripping units 23 and the center position of part BH in the width direction (the gripping direction of the pair of gripping units 23) do not vertically coincide, and part BH is gripped in a state in which there is a positional misalignment ΔCT in the width direction of part BH. In FIG. 8(a), the vertical axis that passes through the midpoint between the pair of gripping units 23 and coincides with shaft central axis 16J is represented by gripping central axis HJ (see also FIG. 3), and the vertical axis that passes through the center position of part BH in the width direction is represented by part central axis BJ.

[0040] In this case, when negative pressure P1 is supplied to pressure supply path 31 and the pair of gripping portions 23 move in the closing direction (arrow A2 shown in FIG. 8(b)), one of the pair of gripping portions 23 first comes into contact with component BH (FIG. 8(b)). As a result, component BH is subjected to a pressing force from the gripping portion 23 in a direction toward the other gripping portion 23, but because component BH is pressed against the bottom surface of tray TR by pressing portion 34, component BH does not move, and therefore the gripping portion 23 that is in contact with component BH does not move in the gripping direction (the direction toward the other gripping portion 23).

[0041] However, in this embodiment, the two piston sliding spaces 32 are mutually connected through a communication passage 32R to which the pressure supply passage 31 is connected, and the pair of gripping portions 23 move synchronously in opposite directions when neither of the pair of gripping portions 23 is constrained, but when the movement of one of the pair of gripping portions 23 is constrained, only the other gripping portion 23 moves. Therefore, as described above, even if negative pressure P1 is supplied to the pressure supply passage 31 and the movement of one gripping portion 23 is constrained while the pair of gripping portions 23 are moving in directions toward each other, the other gripping portion 23 continues to move (arrow A2 shown in FIG. 8(c)), and the part BH is eventually gripped by the pair of gripping portions 23 (FIG. 8(c)).

[0042] After the mounting head 14 grips the component BH with the gripping device 18, it raises the shaft member 16 with the shaft member driving unit 19 to pick up the component BH. During the gripping process of the component BH with the gripping device 18, the component BH does not move on the tray TR from the time it is held down by the holding unit 34 until it is completely gripped by the pair of grippers 23, so the positional deviation ΔCT remains the same as it was initially. Therefore, when the mounting head 14 picks up the component BH, the shaft center axis 16J of the shaft member 16 and the center position of the component BH are misaligned by the positional deviation ΔCT.

[0043] After the control unit 50 has gripped and picked up the component BH in the pocket PK of the tray TR using the gripping device 18 as described above, it moves the mounting head 14 so that the picked-up component BH passes above the camera 15. This causes the camera 15 to capture an image of the component BH from below, and the control unit 50 recognizes the component BH based on the image captured by the camera 15 and calculates the positional deviation ΔCT of the component BH relative to the shaft central axis 16J.

[0044] After the control unit 50 has the camera 15 capture an image of the component BH, it moves the mounting head 14 to above the board KB. Then, after taking into account (correcting) the positional deviation ΔCT of the component BH relative to the vertical axis of the shaft member 16 calculated by the image capture by the camera 15, the control unit 50 mounts the component BH at a predetermined position (target component mounting position) on the board KB.

[0045] Once the mounting head 14 has mounted all of the components BH to be mounted on the board KB in this manner, the transport conveyor 11 carries the board KB out (to the downstream process side) of the component mounting device 1. This completes the component mounting work for one board KB.

[0046] As described above, the component mounting device 1 in this embodiment includes a transport conveyor 11 as a substrate positioning unit that positions the substrate KB at a predetermined position, a component supply unit 12 that supplies components BH, a mounting head 14 to which a gripping device 18 is attached, and a control unit 50 that supplies pressure from the outside (specifically, from a pressure source SR) to the gripping device 18 to cause the gripping device 18 to grip the component BH, and controls the mounting head 14 so that the component BH gripped by the gripping device 18 is mounted on the substrate KB.

[0047] As described above, gripping device 18 in this embodiment grips part BH, which is an object to be gripped, by opening and closing a pair of gripping parts 23, and includes body part 21 having therein pressure supply path 31 to which pressure is supplied and two piston part sliding spaces 32 to which the pressure supplied to pressure supply path 31 is individually transmitted, and two piston parts 22 fitted into each of the two piston part sliding spaces 32. The pair of gripping parts 23 is integrated with each of the two piston parts 22, and when pressure is supplied from pressure supply path 31 to each of the two piston part sliding spaces 32, the two piston parts 22 move in opposite directions within the two piston part sliding spaces 32, and the pair of gripping parts 23 move in a closing direction (towards each other), thereby gripping part BH.

[0048] In the gripping device 18 having such a configuration, when the movement of the pair of gripping parts 23 is not restricted, they move synchronously in opposite directions, but when the movement of one of the pair of gripping parts 23 is restricted, the other gripping part 23 continues to move and grips the part BH. Therefore, the part BH can be gripped properly without strict alignment with the part BH to be gripped.

[0049] Furthermore, the component gripping method using the component mounting device 1 in the above-described embodiment includes a step of positioning and fixing the gripping device 18 above the component BH (gripping device positioning step), a step of moving the pair of gripping sections 23 in an opening direction while bringing the gripping device 18 positioned above the component BH closer to the component BH from above (gripping preparation step), and a step of moving the pair of gripping sections 23 in a closing direction after bringing the gripping device 18 closer to the component BH, thereby gripping the component BH with the pair of gripping sections 23 (component gripping step).

[0050] In the above embodiment, the communicating passage 32R connecting the two piston sliding spaces 32 has the same inner diameter as the two piston sliding spaces 32, but the inner diameter of the communicating passage 32R does not have to be the same as the inner diameters of the two piston sliding spaces 32. Also, although the two piston sliding spaces 32 are arranged coaxially, the two piston sliding spaces 32 do not necessarily have to be arranged coaxially.

[0051] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, when negative pressure P1 is supplied to the pressure supply path 31, the pair of gripping portions 23 move in a closing direction, and when positive pressure P2 is supplied to the pressure supply path 31, the pair of gripping portions 23 move in an opening direction. However, when pressure is supplied from the pressure supply path 31 to each of the two piston portion sliding spaces 32, the two piston portions 22 move in opposite directions within the two piston portion sliding spaces 32, and the pair of gripping portions 23 move in a closing direction (toward each other), thereby gripping the part BH. The relationship between the supplied pressure (whether negative pressure P1 or positive pressure P2) and the direction in which the pair of gripping portions 23 move may be reversed.

[0052] 9A and 9B are side views of a gripping device according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present disclosure, showing (a) a state in which a pair of gripping sections is actuated in a closing direction, and (b) a state in which the pair of gripping sections is actuated in an opening direction. A gripping device 18A in FIGS. 9A and 9B shows an example (modification) thereof, in which when a positive pressure P2 is supplied to a pressure supply path 31, the positive pressure P2 draws two piston sections 22 closer to each other, moving the pair of gripping sections 23 in a closing direction. When a negative pressure P1 is supplied to a pressure supply path 31, the negative pressure P1 pushes the two piston sections 22 away from each other, moving the pair of gripping sections 23 in an opening direction. In FIGS. 9A and 9B, components of gripping device 18A having the same functions as those of gripping device 18 described above are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0053] Even with this modified gripping device 18A, as with the previously described gripping device 18, when pressure is supplied from the pressure supply path 31 to each of the two piston portion sliding spaces 32, the two piston portions 22 move in opposite directions within the two piston portion sliding spaces 32, and the pair of gripping portions 23 move in closing (approaching each other) directions to grip the part BH, thereby achieving the same effect as the previously described gripping device 18.

[0054] As described above, in the gripping device 18 (component mounting device 1 equipped with gripping device 18) of this embodiment, even when the movement of one of the pair of gripping sections 23 is restricted, the other gripping section 23 continues to move, so that when gripping part BH, even if the middle position of the pair of gripping sections 23 and the center position in the width direction of part BH do not match up vertically and only one gripping section 23 comes into contact with part BH first, part BH can be gripped normally. In this way, with gripping device 18 of this embodiment, the object to be gripped (part BH) can be gripped normally without strict alignment with the object to be gripped.

[0055] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the holding portion 34 provided on the body portion 21 of the gripping device 18 is fixed to the body portion 21, but it may be configured to be freely extended and retracted in the vertical direction by a cylinder or the like.

[0056] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the piston portion 22 and the grip portion 23 are made of separate members, and the grip portion 23 is attached to the piston portion 22 to form an integrated unit, but the piston portion 22 and the grip portion 23 may be made of a single member. In this case, the terms "piston portion 22" and "grip portion 23" each refer to parts of that member. [Industrial Applicability]

[0057] A gripping device, a component mounting device, and a component gripping method are provided that can normally grip a gripping object without strict alignment with the gripping object when gripping the gripping object. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 1. Parts mounting device 11 Transfer conveyor (board positioning section) 12 Parts Supply Department 14 Mounting head 16 Shaft member 18,18A gripping device 21 Body 21M side 22 Piston section 23 Gripping part 31 Pressure supply line 32 Piston sliding space 32K throughway 34 Presser foot 50 control section TR Tray BH parts (grasped object) KB board

Claims

1. A gripping device that grips an object to be gripped by opening and closing a pair of gripping parts, a body portion having therein a pressure supply passage to which pressure is supplied and two piston portion sliding spaces to which the pressure supplied to the pressure supply passage is individually transmitted; two piston portions inserted into the two piston portion sliding spaces, respectively; The pair of gripping portions are integrated with each of the two piston portions, and when pressure is supplied from the pressure supply path to each of the two piston portion sliding spaces, the two piston portions move in opposite directions within the two piston portion sliding spaces, and the pair of gripping portions move in a closing direction to grip the object to be gripped.

2. the two piston sliding spaces are formed by a part of a space within one through-passage provided so as to open to each of a pair of opposing side surfaces of the body portion, and the pressure supply passage is connected between the two piston sliding spaces; The gripping device according to claim 1 .

3. When negative pressure is supplied to the pressure supply path, the two piston portions are drawn toward each other by the negative pressure, and the pair of gripping portions move in a closing direction, and when positive pressure is supplied to the pressure supply path, the two piston portions are pushed away from each other by the positive pressure, and the pair of gripping portions move in an opening direction. The gripping device according to claim 1 .

4. When the object to be grasped is grasped by the pair of gripping parts, a pressing part that presses the object to be grasped from above is provided on the body part, The gripping device according to claim 1 .

5. a substrate positioning unit that positions the substrate at a predetermined position; a component supply unit that supplies components as objects to be grasped; a mounting head equipped with the gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 4; a control unit that supplies pressure supplied from an external source to the gripping device to cause the gripping device to grip the component, and controls the mounting head so that the component gripped by the gripping device is mounted on the substrate; A component mounting device comprising:

6. A component gripping method using the component mounting device according to claim 5, positioning the gripping device above the part; a step of moving the gripping device positioned above the component in a direction to open the pair of gripping portions while approaching the component from above; a step of moving the gripping device close to the component and then moving the pair of gripping parts in a closing direction to grip the component with the pair of gripping parts; A part gripping method comprising:

Images