Storage case

Abstract

To provide a storage case in which an electronic component hardly clogs at a component take-out port and does not flow out at once regardless of the number of electronic components stored inside.SOLUTION: A storage case 1 of the present invention includes a case main body 2 having a storage space S capable of storing a component 50 therein, an inclined surface 7a provided between side walls 2122 in the case main body 2, a component outlet 6 provided at one end of the inclined surface 7a of the case main body 2, a cover member 3 configured to open and close the component outlet 6 by sliding along the component outlet 6, and a guide groove 62 formed in the side walls 2122 provided with the component outlet 6 and configured to guide sliding movement of the cover member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a storage case for electronic components. [Background technology]

[0002] When mounting electronic components on a substrate, a mounting apparatus is used to set and mount the electronic components at predetermined positions on the substrate, and it is necessary to supply the electronic components individually to such a mounting apparatus. One method for individually feeding electronic components to a mounting device is the tape feeder method, in which electronic components are embedded inside a tape-shaped carrier and then removed one by one. However, the tape feeder method generates waste such as tape and tape covers. In contrast to this, there is a method in which loose electronic components are placed in a storage case, and the electronic components fall by their own weight from a component removal opening formed at the bottom of the storage case into a feeder, which then supplies the electronic components individually to the mounting device (see Patent Document 1). This method does not generate waste such as tape or tape covers. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-295618 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when components are dropped by their own weight through a component removal opening formed at the bottom of the storage case, if the component removal opening at the bottom is large, the electronic components will fall out all at once. On the other hand, if the component outlet is made smaller to allow the desired number of electronic components to flow per unit time, clogging of the component outlet will occur if there are a large number of electronic components in the storage case. For this reason, it is necessary to limit the number of electronic components in the storage case to an amount that will prevent clogging. However, if the number of electronic components is limited, the number of electronic components that can be put into the storage case will be small, making it unsuitable for mass production.

[0005] To provide a storage case in which electronic components are unlikely to clog a component outlet and are unlikely to flow out all at once, regardless of the number of electronic components stored inside. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a storage case comprising a case body having an internal storage space capable of storing parts, an inclined surface provided between side wall portions within the case body, a part removal opening provided at one end of the inclined surface of the case body, a cover member that opens and closes the part removal opening by sliding along the part removal opening, and a guide groove formed in the side wall portion on which the part removal opening is provided, for guiding the sliding movement of the cover member. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a storage case in which electronic components are less likely to clog the component outlet and are less likely to spill out all at once, regardless of the number of electronic components stored inside. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the storage case seen from diagonally above, showing the component removal opening in an open state. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the interior of the storage case with the component outlet open. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the interior of the storage case with the component outlet closed; [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the storage case seen from diagonally below, showing the component outlet in a closed state. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a method of attaching a storage case to a feeder. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] A storage case 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of storage case 1 as seen obliquely from above. Storage case 1 stores electronic components 50 (shown in Fig. 2) as an example of components in a loose state inside, and is detachable from feeder 100, shown by the dotted line. Feeder 100 is a device that supplies electronic components 50 that flow out of storage case 1 to a mounting device (not shown). In this embodiment, the electronic component 50 is a capacitor, an inductor, or the like, and has a longitudinal length of 1.2 mm or less. The electronic component 50 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0010] Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the internal state of storage case 1 with second side wall portion 22 (described later) removed, showing a state in which component outlet 6 is open. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the internal state of storage case 1 with second side wall portion 22 (described later) removed, as in Fig. 2, showing a state in which component outlet 6 is closed. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of storage case 1 as seen obliquely from below. Fig. 5 is a diagram explaining how storage case 1 is attached to feeder 100.

[0011] (Storage case 1) The storage case 1 includes a case body 2, a cover member 3, a drive unit 4, and an RFID tag 5.

[0012] (Case body 2) The case body 2 is a container that includes a first side wall 21 and a second side wall 22, and a storage space S is formed inside by assembling the first side wall 21 and the second side wall 22. The case body 2 includes a top wall 2U, a bottom wall 2D, a front wall 2F, a rear wall 2B, a right side wall 2R on the first side wall 21 side, and a left side wall 2L on the second side wall 22 side. Electronic components 50 are stored loose inside the storage case 1.

[0013] In this specification, the up and down directions of the storage case 1 when the storage case 1 is attached to the feeder 100 are defined as the up and down directions of the storage case 1. The side of the storage case 1 where the component removal opening 6 is provided is defined as the front, and the opposite side is defined as the rear. When viewing the storage case 1 from the front, the right side is defined as the right, and the left side is defined as the left. The first side wall 21 is located on the right, and the second side wall 22 is located on the left. The front wall 2F, the rear wall 2B, the right side wall 2R, and the left side wall 2L are side walls that extend vertically, while the top wall 2U and the bottom wall 2D are walls that extend horizontally.

[0014] (Parts outlet 6) A component removal opening 6 is provided on the lower side of the front wall 2F of the case body 2. In this embodiment, the component removal opening 6 is a rectangular opening, but is not limited to a rectangular shape and may be, for example, a circular or elliptical opening. When the component removal opening 6 is open, its lower edge 6a is positioned vertically upward from the bottom surface of the bottom wall 2D on the feeder 100 side by a predetermined distance d = 3 mm to 6 mm.

[0015] (Slope 7a) Within the storage space S, a plate member 7 extends between the first side wall portion 21 and the second side wall portion 22. The upper surface of the plate member 7 extends from the rear toward the lower edge portion 6a of the component removal opening 6 at the front, forming an inclined surface 7a that is inclined so that the lower edge portion 6a is at the lowest side. The inclination angle θ of the inclined surface 7a is 3° to 10° with respect to the horizontal direction when the storage case 1 is attached to the feeder 100, and is 5° in this embodiment. It is even better if it is 5° to 7°.

[0016] (Cover member 3) The cover member 3 that covers the component outlet 6 extends continuously from the bottom wall 2D to the front wall 2F. The cover member 3 is a long, strip-shaped member, and although the material is not limited to this, in this embodiment it is made of PET (Polyethylene terephthalate), a material that has a certain degree of rigidity and is also bendable. The width of the cover member 3 is slightly larger than the width of the component outlet 6, and is a width that can cover the component outlet 6 without any gaps. 1.0 x 10^6 to 1.0 x 10^12 (1.0 x 10 6 ~1.0×10 12 If it is below 1.0 x 10^6, parts will be damaged by sudden voltage, and if it is above 1.0 x 10^12, parts will stick together due to static electricity. An opening 3a having substantially the same shape as the component outlet 6 is provided at the front end of the cover member 3. Note that the opening 3a does not necessarily have to have the same shape as the component outlet 6, but when the opening 3a and the component outlet 6 overlap, the opening that penetrates through them becomes an outlet for electronic components 50.

[0017] (Guide groove 62) On the other hand, above the component removal opening 6 on the front wall 2F of the case body 2, there is provided a cover sliding recess 61 recessed from the outside toward the inside. Vertically extending guide grooves 62 are provided on the left and right sides of the thickness direction of the front wall 2F in the portion where the component removal opening 6 and the cover sliding recess 61 are provided. The difference between the width of the guide grooves 62 and the thickness of the cover member 3 is 50 μm to 80 μm. Both ends of the cover member 3 extending in the longitudinal direction are inserted into the left and right guide grooves 62. The cover member 3 is guided by the guide grooves 62 and slides up and down on the front wall portion 2F.

[0018] (Drive unit 4) 2 and 3, a circular hole 3b is provided at the rear end of the cover member 3. A drive unit 4 that drives the cover member 3 to slide is attached to the hole 3b. The drive unit 4 is a rectangular member with flanges 4a extending outward on the upper left and right sides. A protrusion 4b is provided on the top surface of the drive unit 4, and the protrusion 4b is inserted into the hole 3b of the cover member 3 and protrudes upward.

[0019] Meanwhile, as shown in Fig. 4, the bottom wall 2D of the storage case 1 is provided with a drive unit sliding recess 23 that is recessed from the outside toward the inside. A long hole 24 is provided on the front side of the drive unit sliding recess 23, through which the cover member 3 can be inserted from the inner side to the outer side of the bottom wall 2D. The cover member 3 passes through the long hole 24 and extends to the outer side, which is the bottom surface of the drive unit sliding recess 23. Two recesses 26a and 26b are provided side by side in the front and rear on the outer surface of the drive unit sliding recess 23.

[0020] On the side surfaces in the thickness direction of the bottom wall 2D at the portion where the drive section sliding recess 23 is provided, drive grooves 25 shown in FIG. 4 are provided on the left and right sides, extending in the front-rear direction. The flange portion 4a of the drive unit 4 is inserted between the left and right drive groove portions 25. When the drive unit 4 is moved back and forth by an operator or another device, it is guided by the drive groove portions 25 and slides in the front-to-rear direction inside the drive unit sliding recess portion 23. At this time, the sliding range of the drive unit 4 is between the position where the protrusion 4b fits into the front recess 26a and the position where it fits into the rear recess 26b.

[0021] Details of Figure 5 will be described later, but as shown in Figure 5(c) and Figure 3, when the convex portion 4b of the drive unit 4 is in the front recess 26a, the opening 3a of the cover member 3 is located within the cover unit sliding recess 61 and does not overlap with the component removal opening 6, the entire component removal opening 6 is closed, and the electronic component 50 is not released to the outside.

[0022] 5(d) and 2, when the protrusion 4b of the drive unit 4 is in the rear recess 26b, the opening 3a of the cover member 3 overlaps with the component removal opening 6, opening the component removal opening 6. This allows the electronic component 50 to be removed.

[0023] (Gripping part 10) Grips 10 are provided on the rear and upper sides of the case body 2. In the embodiment, two types of grips 10 are provided: an upper grip 10A and a rear grip 10B, but this is not limiting and either one may be used, or the grips may be provided in other locations such as on the left and right sides or above and below the front. The upper gripping portions 10A are recesses provided at both the front and rear ends of the upper side of the case body 2. The rear gripping portions are recesses provided at both the top and bottom ends of the rear side of the case body 2. The gripping portions 10 are used, for example, when gripping by a robot hand during transportation.

[0024] (RFID tag 5) The case body 2 further has a through-hole 9 penetrating left and right at the bottom. An RFID tag 5 is attached to the upper surface inside the through-hole 9. The RFID tag 5 is a well-known device that includes a transmitter / receiver, a memory, an antenna, etc. Note that the RFID tag does not necessarily have to be a through-hole as long as it can accommodate an RFID tag, and the RFID tag may be attached to the case body.

[0025] 1, a reader / writer 105 is attached to the feeder 100. The reader / writer 105 can read or write information from the RFID tag 5 when the storage case 1 is attached to the feeder 100.

[0026] The case body 2 is further provided with a locked portion 8 and a T-slot portion 13 that extend downward from the outer surface of the bottom wall portion 2D.

[0027] (Locked part 8) In the embodiment, two locked portions 8 are provided: a front locked portion 8A and a rear locked portion 8B, but this is not limited thereto and there may be only one. Hereinafter, the portions common to the front locked portion 8A and the rear locked portion 8B will be collectively described as the locked portion 8. The locked portion 8 extends downward from above, and its lower end is bent backward by approximately 90 degrees, so that its cross section extending in the vertical and horizontal directions has an L-shape.

[0028] (T-slot part 13) In the embodiment, T-shaped slot 13 has two parts, front T-shaped slot 13A and rear T-shaped slot 13B, but is not limited to this and may have only one part. However, by dividing it into multiple parts, the sliding distance of storage case 1 when attached to feeder 100 can be shortened. Hereinafter, the common part between front T-shaped slot 13A and rear T-shaped slot 13B will be collectively described as T-shaped slot 13. As shown in Figure 4, the T-slot portion 13 has a thin neck portion 13a extending from above to below and a wide portion 13b located further below the thin neck portion 13a, and has a T-shape in cross section extending up, down, left, and right.

[0029] (Feeder 100 side) On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the feeder 100 is provided with a first mounting recess 101 and a second mounting recess 102 recessed downward from the top surface of the feeder 100.

[0030] (First mounting recess 101) The left and right width of the first mounting recess 101 provided on the front side is wide enough to insert the wide portion 13b of the T-slot portion 13, and the vertical depth is deeper than the vertical length of the wide portion 13b and shorter than the vertical length of the entire front T-slot portion 13A. Two locations on the top of first mounting recess 101 are provided with pressure plate portions 103 each having a slit 104 shown in FIG. 1 that is wide enough to allow insertion of narrow neck portion 13a but not wide portion 13b of the T-slot portion. The top surface of pressure plate portion 103 is a horizontal surface that continues from the top surface of feeder 100, and is provided with front pressure plate portion 103A and rear pressure plate portion 103B. The length from front to back of gap e between front pressure plate portion 103A and rear pressure plate portion 103B shown in FIG. 5(a) is a length that allows insertion of front T-slot portion 13A.

[0031] (Lock 108) The second mounting recess 102 is deeper than the first mounting recess 101, and is provided therein with a locking portion 108. In this embodiment, the locking portion 108 includes a front locking portion 108A and a rear locking portion 108B corresponding to the front locked portion 8A and the rear locked portion 8B, respectively.

[0032] (Front lock part 108A) The front locking portion 108A is a plate-like member with upward protrusions on the front and rear. The front and rear of the bottom surface of the front locking portion 108A are attached to the bottom of the second mounting recess 102 via springs. The front locking portion 108A can move up and down by means of these springs.

[0033] (Rear lock part 108B) The rear locking portion 108B is a plate-like member with upward protrusions on the front and rear. The front and rear of the bottom surface of the rear locking portion 108B are attached to the bottom of the second mounting recess 102 via springs. The center of the rear locking portion 108B is supported by a shaft p extending left and right. The rear locking portion 108B can swing around the shaft.

[0034] (Attaching operation) Next, the operation of attaching the storage case 1 to the feeder 100 will be described. Storage case 1 stores a large number of loose electronic components 50 inside, and component outlet 6 is closed. At this time, protrusion 4b of drive unit 4 is in front recess 26a, and component outlet 6 is entirely closed by opening 3a of cover member 3.

[0035] In this state, the storage case 1 is brought closer to the feeder 100 side so that the front T-slot portion 13A of the storage case 1 is inserted into the gap between the front pressure plate portion 103A and the rear pressure plate portion 103B, as shown by the white arrow in Figure 5(a). Then, the front T-slot portion 13A of the storage case 1 is inserted into the first mounting recess 101 through the gap e between the front retaining plate portion 103A and the rear retaining plate portion 103B. At the same time, the rear T-slot portion 13B of the storage case 1 is inserted into the first mounting recess 101 from behind the rear retaining plate portion 103B. At this time, the front locking portion 108A is pushed down by the driving portion 4 against the spring force. The front locking portion 108A does not rotate but moves down as a whole.

[0036] Next, the entire storage case 1 is slid forward as shown by the white arrow in FIG. 5(b). Then, front T-slot portion 13A and rear T-slot portion 13B slide along the bottom surface of first mounting recess 101, and wide portion 13b of front T-slot portion 13A fits under front pressure plate portion 103A, and wide portion 13b of rear T-slot portion 13B fits under rear pressure plate portion 103B. This fixes storage case 1 to feeder 100. The front surface of the front T-slot portion 13A abuts against the front surface of the first mounting recess 101, whereby the storage case 1 is positioned in the feeder 100.

[0037] In this state, the reader / writer 105 shown in FIG. 1 can read the information on the RFID tag 5. Since the RFID tag 5 is disposed inside the through-hole 9, it is unlikely to peel off or be damaged during transportation. The information storage section may be marked with a barcode, including two-dimensional barcodes, or identification characters or marks. Information corresponding to the identification characters or marks may be stored on the reading side, and after reading the identification characters or marks provided in the information storage section, the reading side may link them to the data stored therein, thereby transmitting the electronic components stored in this case and their information to the feeder 100 side.

[0038] Next, when the drive unit 4 is moved rearward as shown in FIG. 5(c), the opening 3a of the cover member 3 overlaps with the component outlet 6, and the component outlet 6 opens. At this time, as shown in Figure 5(d), the front protrusion of the rear locking portion 108B is pushed downward by the driving portion 4. The rear locking portion 108B rotates around the axis p, causing the rear protrusion of the rear locking portion 108B to rise. The rear protrusion comes into contact with the L-shaped rear end of the rear locked portion 8B.

[0039] Furthermore, when the drive unit 4 moves rearward, the front locking portion 108A, which had been pressed by the drive unit 4, is released. As a result, the front locking portion 108A rises due to the restoring force of the spring, and the protrusion at the front end of the front locking portion 108A abuts against the L-shaped rear end of the front locked portion 8A.

[0040] In this way, rear locking portion 108B locks rear locked portion 8B, and front locking portion 108A locks front locked portion 8A. Therefore, when cover member 3 opens component removal opening 6, storage case 1 cannot be removed from feeder 100.

[0041] In this state, electronic components 50 slide down along inclined surface 7a and are released from component outlet 6. At this time, the number of electronic components 50 flowing out per unit time can be controlled by adjusting the angle of inclined surface 7a, so the supply speed of electronic components 50 can be controlled. The released electronic components 50 are transported to a predetermined location by a transport unit (not shown) provided in the feeder 100. Unlike the embodiment, when the electronic component 50 falls vertically due to its own weight, it falls all at once, which may cause the component outlet 6 to become clogged with the electronic component 50. However, in the embodiment, the number of electronic components 50 flowing out per unit time can be controlled, so that regardless of the number of electronic components 50 stored inside, the electronic components 50 are less likely to clog the component removal port 6 and do not flow out all at once.

[0042] Furthermore, the thickness of electronic component 50 in the thinnest direction is, for example, 90 μm to 700 μm, which is greater than the difference of 50 μm to 80 μm between the width of guide groove 62 and the thickness of cover member 3, and therefore electronic component 50 will not get caught in the gap between guide groove 62 and cover member 3 when released. It is more preferable that electronic component 50 have a length in the longitudinal direction of 180 μm to 330 μm.

[0043] In this embodiment, when the component removal opening 6 is open, the position of the lower edge 6a is a predetermined distance d vertically upward from the bottom surface of the bottom wall 2D on the feeder 100 side. Therefore, the leaked electronic components 50 will not flow back into the component removal opening 6 from the conveying section (not shown) above the feeder 100 where they fall.

[0044] 2, when component outlet 6 is open, at least the lower edge 6a of component outlet 6 is located above the lower edge of opening 3a of cover member 3. Therefore, when electronic component 50 flows out, it is not caught on the lower edge of opening 3a of cover member 3 and prevented from flowing out.

[0045] The storage case 1 of the embodiment is provided with a gripping portion 10, so that it can be set in the feeder 100 using an automatic robot arm or the like.

[0046] The case body 2 is equipped with an RFID tag 5, and a reader / writer 105 is attached to the feeder 100 side, so that the reader / writer 105 can read information from the RFID tag 5. Therefore, the electronic components 50 in the storage case 1 can be easily managed.

[0047] (Variations) Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this and various modifications are possible.

[0048] (1) For example, in the embodiment, the T-slot portion 13 and the first mounting recess 101 are provided in the feeder 100, but this is not limited to this, and the T-slot portion may be provided in the feeder and the first recess may be provided in the storage case. Furthermore, although the locked portion 8 is provided on the storage case 1 and the locking portion 108 is provided on the feeder 100, this is not limitative, and the locked portion may be provided on the feeder 100 and the locking portion may be provided on the storage case 1.

[0049] (2) Feeder 100 may be provided with a separate vibration device for vibrating storage case 1. In this case, when the discharge speed of electronic components 50 decreases, the discharge speed can be increased by vibrating storage case 1 with the vibration device.

[0050] (3) In the embodiment, the inclined surface 7a is a flat surface, but is not limited to this and may be a curved surface. In this case, it may be a curved surface in the vertical, front-rear, and horizontal cross sections, or a curved surface in the vertical, front-rear, and horizontal cross sections. It may also be a combination of straight lines with different slopes in the vertical, front-rear, and vertical, horizontal cross sections. It may also be a combination of these curved and straight lines.

[0051] (4) The structure of the locking portion and the locked portion is not limited to the structure described in the embodiment. Any other structure may be used as long as it restricts removal of the storage case 1 from the feeder 100 when the component removal opening 6 is open.

[0052] (5) The RFID tag 5 may be placed at a location other than the through-hole 9. Furthermore, instead of the RFID tag 5, a medium on which externally readable information is recorded may be placed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] θ Tilt angle S storage space 1 storage case 2 Case body 2D bottom wall 2F front wall 3 Cover member 3a opening 4 Drive unit 5. RFID tags 6 Parts outlet 6a Lower edge 7a Slope 8 Locked part 10 Gripping part 13 T-slot section 21 First side wall portion 22 Second side wall 25 Drive groove 50 Electronic Components 62 Guide groove 100 Feeder 108 Rock Club

Claims

1. a case body having an internal storage space for storing components; an inclined surface provided between the side wall portions within the case body; a component removal opening provided at one end of the inclined surface of the case body; a cover member that opens and closes the component outlet by sliding along the component outlet; a guide groove formed in the side wall portion where the component removal opening is provided, the guide groove guiding the sliding movement of the cover member; Equipped with a storage case.

2. the inclined surface is inclined at an angle of 3° to 10° with respect to the horizontal direction when the storage case is attached to the feeder, so that the side of the lower edge of the component removal port, which will be the lower side when the storage case is attached to the feeder, is positioned downward in the vertical direction. The storage case according to claim 1 .

3. the lower edge of the component removal opening is spaced apart vertically above the bottom surface of the storage case; The storage case according to claim 2.

4. A grip portion is provided on the outer wall of the storage case. The storage case according to claim 1 .

5. The difference between the width of the guide groove and the thickness of the cover member is 50 μm to 80 μm. The storage case according to claim 1 .

6. a drive unit that drives the cover member to slide, the drive unit being provided on an outer wall portion other than the side wall portion on which the component removal opening is provided; The storage case according to claim 5.

7. a locking portion is provided on one of the storage case or the feeder, and a locking portion is provided on the other of the storage case or the feeder, which engages with the locking portion when the storage case is attached to the feeder, thereby locking the storage case to the feeder; The storage case according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

8. The storage case is provided with an information storage section. The storage case according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

9. The part has a longitudinal length of 1.2 mm or less. The storage case according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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