Soldering tip, soldering apparatus equipped therewith, and soldering method

Abstract

This soldering iron tip allows for soldering even electronic components with short terminal pitches without needing to change the tip. [Solution] The soldering iron tip 5a is a columnar soldering iron tip that is detachably attached to the main body of a device having a heat source, and has one or more solder holes 51 that penetrate in the axial direction of the soldering iron tip 5a and into which solder pieces are supplied, and a groove 52 that extends in a direction intersecting the solder piece supply direction and is recessed on the upstream side in the solder piece supply direction on the downstream end face of the soldering iron tip 5a, and at least a part of the opening of the solder hole 51 on the downstream side in the solder piece supply direction is formed on the bottom surface of the groove 52.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a soldering tip, a soldering apparatus provided with the same, and a soldering method.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, many electrical devices have mounted electronic circuits on which electronic components are mounted. In an electronic circuit, a terminal or a wire of an electronic component is inserted into a through hole (via hole) formed in a printed circuit board, and the tip portion thereof is soldered to a wiring pattern (land) formed around the through hole, thereby mounting and fixing the electronic component and the wire to the printed circuit board. A method using a cylindrical soldering tip is widely used for soldering such a terminal of an electronic component and a land. For example, in Patent Document 1, while the tip of a terminal (or wire) protruding from a through hole is surrounded by the inner surface of the barrel of the soldering tip, a solder piece is supplied into the soldering tip, and the soldering tip is heated to melt the solder piece and supply the melted solder (molten solder) evenly around the terminal of the electronic component, thereby soldering the terminal of the electronic component and the land.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In recent years, with the miniaturization of printed circuit boards and electronic components, the pitch between terminals of electronic components has become shorter. Therefore, when soldering a terminal and a surface electrode using the cylindrical soldering tip, it has been necessary to use soldering tips with different tip shapes for each printed circuit board and electronic component so that the soldering tip does not interfere with adjacent terminals. It takes time to replace the soldering tip, and it is also necessary to prepare a plurality of types of soldering tips.

[0005] Furthermore, with conventional soldering iron tips, when soldering each of the multiple pin terminals of an electronic component to its corresponding land, after soldering one pin terminal to the land was complete, when moving the soldering iron tip to the next pin terminal, it was necessary to ensure that the distance between the underside of the soldering iron tip and the substrate was greater than the length of the pin terminal's protrusion from the substrate, so that the soldering iron tip would not come into contact with the pin terminal.

[0006] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a soldering iron tip, a soldering apparatus, and a soldering method that can solder electronic components with short terminal pitches without changing the soldering iron tip.

[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a soldering iron tip, a soldering apparatus, and a soldering method that can move relative to each of the multiple pin terminals of an electronic component and their corresponding land, even when the distance between the lower surface of the soldering iron tip and the substrate is shorter than the protrusion length of the pin terminal from the substrate. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] One embodiment of the soldering iron tip according to the present invention that achieves the above objective is a columnar soldering iron tip that is detachably attached to a device body having a heat source, the soldering iron tip having one or more solder holes that penetrate in the axial direction of the soldering iron tip and into which solder pieces are supplied, and a groove portion that extends in a direction intersecting the soldering iron tip and is recessed on the upstream side in the soldering iron tip, wherein at least a part of the opening of the soldering iron hole on the downstream side in the soldering iron tip is formed on the bottom surface of the groove portion.

[0009] In the soldering iron tip of the above configuration, there may be two or more soldering holes, and in a plan view, the central axis points of the two or more soldering holes are located at predetermined intervals on a first straight line, and the groove extends in the direction of the first straight line.

[0010] Furthermore, in the soldering iron tip with the above configuration, the distance between the central axes of two or more adjacent solder holes may be a positive integer multiple of any of the following distances: 5.1 mm, 3 mm, 2.54 mm, 1.27 mm, 0.8 mm, 0.65 mm, or 0.5 mm.

[0011] Furthermore, one embodiment of the soldering apparatus according to the present invention that achieves the above objective comprises a soldering iron tip as described in any of the above and a device body to which the soldering iron tip is detachably attached, wherein the device body comprises a heat source for heating the soldering iron tip and a solder piece supply unit for supplying solder pieces to the solder holes.

[0012] Furthermore, one embodiment of the soldering method according to the present invention that achieves the above objective is a soldering method in which a plurality of pin terminals formed at predetermined intervals in a first straight direction, protruding outward from the component body of an electronic component, are inserted from one side to the other side of a plurality of through-holes formed on a printed circuit board corresponding to the pin terminals, and the pin terminals protruding from the other side of the through-holes and the land formed on the outer peripheral edge of the other side opening of the through-holes are soldered using the soldering apparatus described in claim 4, wherein the depth of the groove portion of the soldering iron tip is such that the pin terminals are on the other side of the through-holes The method is characterized by comprising: a first step of moving the soldering iron tip relative to the printed circuit board such that the groove is deeper than the protruding length, the width of the groove is greater than the outer diameter of the pin terminal, the direction of extension of the groove is in the direction of the first straight line, and the pin terminal protruding from the other side of the through hole is located in the groove; a second step of supplying solder pieces into the solder holes after the first step; a third step of heating and melting the solder pieces supplied into the solder holes; and a fourth step of moving the soldering iron tip relative to the printed circuit board in the direction of the first straight line after the third step.

[0013] In the soldering method with the above configuration, in the fourth step, the soldering iron tip may be moved relative to the printed circuit board in the first straight line direction, such that the distance between the downstream end face of the soldering iron tip in the solder piece supply direction and the printed circuit board is less than or equal to the protrusion length of the pin terminal from the other side of the through hole.

[0014] Also, in the soldering method having the above-described configuration, the number of solder holes is two or more, and in a plan view, the central axis points of the two or more solder holes are located on one straight line at a predetermined interval, and the distance between the central axes of the two or more solder holes is a positive integer multiple of the formation interval of the pin terminals. This configuration may be adopted.

Effect of the Invention

[0015] According to the spatula tip, soldering apparatus, and soldering method of the present invention, even for an electronic component with a short pitch between terminals, soldering can be performed without replacing the spatula tip. In addition, preheating of terminals and the like of the next soldering target can be efficiently performed.

[0016] Also, according to the spatula tip, soldering apparatus, and soldering method of the present invention, it is possible to relatively move the spatula tip with respect to the printed circuit board in a state where the distance between the lower surface of the spatula tip and the printed circuit board is equal to or less than the protruding length from the through hole of the pin terminal, and the working efficiency is higher than the conventional one.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0017] [Figure 1] It is a perspective view of a spatula tip 5a according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] It is a cross-sectional view taken along line A - A of the spatula tip 5a in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] It is a bottom view of the spatula tip 5a in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] It is a bottom view of a spatula tip in which the inner diameter of the lower end opening of the solder hole is larger than the width of the groove portion. [Figure 5] It is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a soldering apparatus according to the present invention. [Figure 6] It is a vertical cross-sectional view of the apparatus main body A 1. [Figure 7] It is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of soldering using the spatula tip 5a. [Figure 8] It is a perspective view of a spatula tip 5b according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] It is a cross-sectional view taken along line B - B of the spatula tip 5b in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] It is a cross-sectional view taken along line C - C of the spatula tip 5b in FIG. 8. [Figure 11] It is a plan view of the tip 5b of FIG. 8. [Figure 12] It is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of soldering using the tip 5b. [Figure 13] It is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of soldering using a tip with a long distance between the central axes of the solder holes. [Figure 14] It is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of soldering when the distance between the central axes of the solder holes and the formation interval of the pin terminals are different.

Embodiments for Carrying out the Invention

[0018] Hereinafter, the tip, soldering apparatus, and soldering method according to the present invention will be described in more detail, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments in any way. In the following embodiments, the "solder piece supply direction" is the vertical direction, and the "direction of the first straight line" is the first direction. Also, the first direction is a direction orthogonal to the vertical direction, and the second direction is a direction orthogonal to the vertical direction and the first direction. The "first direction", "second direction", and "vertical direction" in this specification shall mean the first direction, second direction, and vertical direction shown in each figure.

[0019] (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a perspective view showing a first embodiment of a tip according to the present invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 show a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A and a bottom view of the tip of FIG. 1.

[0020] The tip 5a shown in these figures is a tip that can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body A1 of a soldering apparatus AP (shown in FIG. 5) described later. The tip 5a is cylindrical and has a circumferential groove 53 with a semi-circular cross-section slightly above the center in the vertical direction. As will be described later, from the center in the vertical direction to the upper part of the tip 5a, when attaching the tip 5a to the apparatus main body A1, it is fitted into the recess 421 (shown in FIG. 6) of the connection unit 4 (shown in FIG. 6). The circumferential groove 53 of the tip 5a is used when fixing the tip 5a to the connection unit 4 after fitting the upper part of the tip 5a into the recess 421 of the connection unit 4. The fixing of the tip 5a to the connection unit 4 will be described later.

[0021] The soldering iron tip 5a also has a rectangular groove 52 on its underside that is continuous in the first direction. The shape, depth, and width of the groove 52 are determined appropriately considering the shape and arrangement of the object to be soldered. For example, if the object to be soldered is a pin terminal, the shape, depth, and width of the groove 52 are determined considering the shape and thickness of the pin terminal, the length of the pin terminal protruding from the printed circuit board (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "board") CB, etc.

[0022] The soldering iron tip 5a has a central axis common to the central axis Ca (shown in Figure 2) of the soldering iron tip 5a and has a soldering hole 51 that penetrates in the vertical direction. The soldering hole 51 plays the role of heating and melting the solder pieces Wh supplied from the solder piece supply section F (shown in Figure 6) of the soldering device AP (shown in Figure 5). As shown in Figure 2, the soldering hole 51 has a large diameter section at the top, a small diameter section at the bottom, and a reduced diameter section connected to the lower end of the large diameter section and the upper end of the small diameter section. The solder pieces Wh supplied from the upper end opening of the soldering hole 51 enter the soldering hole 51 from the large diameter section and are guided by the reduced diameter section to move smoothly to the small diameter section. Of course, the shape of the soldering hole 51 is not limited to this, and for example, the entire vertical direction may have the same diameter, or it may be continuously reduced in diameter from the top to the bottom.

[0023] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the lower end opening of the solder hole 51 (the opening on the downstream side in the solder piece supply direction) opens to the bottom surface (top surface in Figure 2) of the groove 52. The inner diameter of the lower end opening of the solder hole 51 is appropriately determined from the outer diameter of the solder piece Wh, etc., and is determined independently of the width of the groove 52 (length in the second direction). The width of the groove 52 is determined within a range that does not cause interference between the soldering iron tip 5a and adjacent terminals. Therefore, as shown in Figure 4, the inner diameter of the lower end opening of the solder hole 51 may be larger than the width of the groove 52.

[0024] As will be described later, heat from the heater H (shown in Figure 6) is transferred to the soldering iron tip 5a, and this heat melts the solder piece Wh supplied into the solder hole 51. For this reason, the soldering iron tip 5a is made of a material with high thermal conductivity, such as ceramics such as silicon carbide or aluminum nitride, or metals such as tungsten.

[0025] (Soldering device) A soldering apparatus according to the present invention will now be described. Figure 5 shows a perspective view illustrating one embodiment of the soldering apparatus according to the present invention. The soldering apparatus AP shown in Figure 5 is a diagram of a soldering apparatus AP used when soldering an electronic component Ep to a substrate CB. The soldering iron tip used is the soldering iron tip 5a of the first embodiment. Eight through-holes Th are formed in the substrate CB fixed to the jig Gj, and lands Ld are formed on the inner surface and periphery of each through-hole Th. Eight pin terminals P extending from an electronic component Ep located on the back side of the substrate CB are inserted from bottom to top into each of these eight through-holes Th, and the tips of the pin terminals P protrude from the top surface of the substrate CB. The top surface of the substrate CB is covered with solder resist SR except for the electrode portion.

[0026] The soldering device AP comprises a manipulator ML as a means of movement having a multi-joint arm Am, a device body A1 attached to the tip of the manipulator ML, and a control device Cont. The control device Cont controls the operation of the manipulator ML, the device body A1, and the like.

[0027] The manipulator ML is mounted on a base Bs, and the articulated arm Am is rotatable at each of its multiple joints. The control means Cont controls the rotational movement of the articulated arm Am of the manipulator ML to move the device body A1 to a desired position in the first direction, second direction, and vertical direction. The control means Cont also controls the operation of the cutter unit 2, drive mechanism 3, solder feeding mechanism F, and heater (heat source) H of the device body A1 shown in Figure 6.

[0028] (Main unit of the device) Figure 6 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of the main body A1 of the device. Note that in Figure 6, a portion of the housing has been cut away to show the inside of the main body A1 of the device.

[0029] The main body A1 of the device comprises a solder feeding mechanism F, a cutter unit 2, a drive mechanism 3, a connection unit 4, and a heater (heat source) H. In this embodiment, the solder feeding mechanism F and the cutter unit 2 constitute the solder piece supply unit of the present invention.

[0030] The solder feeding mechanism F is responsible for supplying a desired length of solder Wh to the cutter unit 2. The solder feeding mechanism F comprises a pair of feed rollers R and a guide tube T. The pair of feed rollers R rotate by gripping the sides of the solder wire W, thereby feeding the solder wire W downwards. The pair of feed rollers R are biased toward each other, and this biasing force grips the solder wire W. The length of the fed solder wire W (length of the solder piece Wh) is measured (determined) by the rotation angle (number of rotations) of the feed rollers R.

[0031] The guide tube T is an elastically deformable tube, and its upper end is positioned close to the part of the feed roller R from which the solder wire W is fed. The lower end of the guide tube T is provided to communicate with the upper blade hole 211 of the cutter upper blade 21. The lower end of the guide tube T moves in accordance with the sliding of the cutter upper blade 21, and the guide tube T has a length and shape that prevents it from being excessively pulled or stretched within the range of motion of the cutter upper blade 21.

[0032] The cutter unit 2 is a cutting tool that cuts the solder wire W fed by the solder feeding mechanism F into solder pieces Wh of a predetermined length. The cutter unit 2 comprises an upper cutter blade 21, a lower cutter blade 22, and a pusher pin 23.

[0033] The lower cutter blade 22 is fixed. The lower cutter blade 22 is equipped with a lower blade hole 221 and a gas inlet hole 222. The lower blade hole 221 is a through hole that penetrates the lower cutter blade 22 in the vertical direction, and the solder wire W that has penetrated the upper blade hole 211 of the upper cutter blade 21 is inserted into it. The upper edge of the lower blade hole 221 is formed in a cutting edge shape. The solder wire W is cut into solder pieces Wh of a predetermined length using the upper blade hole 211 and the lower blade hole 221. The cut solder pieces Wh fall downward into the lower blade hole 221 by their own weight or pushed by the pusher pin 23. The lower blade hole 221 is in communication with the solder hole 51 of the soldering iron tip 5a via the solder supply hole 422 of the connection unit 4. The solder pieces Wh that have fallen into the lower blade hole 221 reach the solder supply hole 422 and then fall into the solder hole 51.

[0034] The gas inlet hole 222 is a hole that connects the outer surface of the cutter's lower blade 22 to the lower blade hole 221. An inert gas, such as nitrogen gas, is supplied to the gas inlet hole 222 from a gas supply unit (not shown). The inert gas passes through the lower blade hole 221 and the solder supply hole 422 to reach the solder hole 51. The inert gas is mainly blown into the solder hole 51 during the soldering process to suppress the oxidation of the solder pieces Wh when they are heated and melted.

[0035] The upper cutter blade 21 is positioned on the upper and lower surfaces of the lower cutter blade 22. The upper cutter blade 21 slides in a second direction on the upper surface of the lower cutter blade 22 in the vertical direction. The upper cutter blade 21 is slid by the drive mechanism 3.

[0036] The cutter upper blade 21 is provided with an upper blade hole 211 and a pin hole 212. The upper blade hole 211 is a through hole that penetrates the cutter upper blade 21 in the vertical direction, and solder wire W fed from the solder feeding mechanism F is inserted into the upper blade hole 211. The lower edge of the upper blade hole 211 is formed in a cutting edge shape. The pin hole 212 is a through hole that penetrates the cutter upper blade 21 in the vertical direction. The rod portion 231 of the pusher pin 23, which will be described later, is slidably inserted into the pin hole 212.

[0037] The pusher pin 23 has a rod portion 231, a head portion 232, and a spring 233. The rod portion 231 is a cylindrical member and is slidably inserted into the pin hole 212. When the pusher pin 23 moves downward in the vertical direction, the tip of the rod portion 23 protrudes from the pin hole 212. The head portion 232 is connected to the upper axial end of the rod portion 231. The head portion 232 is a disc shape with an outer diameter larger than the inner diameter of the pin hole 212. The head portion 232 is not inserted into the pin hole 212. In other words, the head portion 232 acts as a stopper, restricting the movement of the rod portion 231 into the pin hole 212.

[0038] The spring 233 is a compression coil spring that surrounds the radially outer side of the rod portion 231. The lower end of the spring 233 is in contact with the upper surface of the cutter upper blade 21, and the upper end is in contact with the lower surface of the head portion 232. That is, the spring 233 receives a reaction force from the upper surface of the cutter upper blade 21, pushing the head portion 232 upward. As a result, the rod portion 231 connected to the head portion 232 is lifted upward, and the lower end of the rod portion 231 is kept from protruding from the lower end of the pin hole 212. The lower end of the rod portion 231 is provided with a retainer (not shown) to prevent it from coming out of the pin hole 212.

[0039] The pusher pin 23 pushes downward the solder piece Wh remaining in the lower blade hole 221 after being cut by the upper cutter blade 21 and the lower cutter blade 22. The pusher pin 23 is constantly pushed upward, that is, away from the lower cutter blade 22, by the elastic force of the spring 233. In other words, when the head portion 232 is pushed, the rod portion 231 protrudes downward from the lower end in the vertical direction of the pin hole 212. The head portion 232 is then pushed by the cam member 33 of the drive mechanism 3.

[0040] In the cutter upper blade 21, the upper blade hole 211 and the pin hole 212 are arranged side by side in a second direction. By sliding in the second direction, the cutter upper blade 21 moves to a position where the upper blade hole 211 and the lower blade hole 221 overlap vertically, or where the pin hole 212 and the lower blade hole 221 overlap vertically. The cutter upper blade 21 may also slide such that when it slides to one sliding end, the upper blade hole 211 and the lower blade hole 221 overlap, and when it slides to the other sliding end, the pin hole 212 and the lower blade hole 221 overlap.

[0041] Then, with the upper blade hole 211 and the lower blade hole 221 overlapping in the vertical direction, when solder wire W is fed from the solder feeding mechanism F, the solder wire W that has passed through the upper blade hole 211 is inserted into the lower blade hole 221. As described above, the lower edge of the upper blade hole 211 is formed in a cutting edge shape, and the upper edge of the lower blade hole 221 is also formed in a cutting edge shape. The lower surface of the upper cutter blade 21 is in contact with the upper surface of the lower cutter blade 22. Therefore, with the solder wire W inserted into the lower blade hole 221, the upper cutter blade 21 slides in the second direction, and the solder wire W is cut by the cutting edges of the upper blade hole 211 and the lower blade hole 221, respectively.

[0042] The upper cutter blade 21 is slid in a second direction by the cam member 33. Therefore, the upper cutter blade 21 and the pusher pin 23 are synchronized with the cam member 33. The cam member 33 pushes the head portion 232 when the pin hole 212 aligns vertically with the lower blade hole 221. Therefore, when the upper cutter blade 21 slides in a second direction, the tip of the rod portion 231 of the pusher pin 23 is housed in the pin hole 212. This prevents contact between the tip of the rod portion 231 and the upper surface of the lower cutter blade 22 when the upper cutter blade 21 slides in a second direction, thereby preventing deformation, damage, etc., of the tip of the rod portion 231 and / or the lower cutter blade 22.

[0043] As the upper cutter blade 21 slides in the second direction, the lower blade hole 211 and the pin hole 212 overlap in the vertical direction. With the pin hole 212 overlapping the lower blade hole 211, the head portion 232 is pushed by the cam member 33. This causes the pusher pin 23 to move downward in the vertical direction. When the pusher pin 23 protrudes downward in the vertical direction from the pin hole 212, a portion of the pusher pin 23 is inserted into the lower blade hole 211. If there is a piece of solder Wh remaining at the entrance of the lower blade hole 211 after cutting the solder wire W, the tip of the pusher pin 23 pushes the piece of solder Wh, causing it to fall out.

[0044] The holding portion 12 of the main body A1 holds the air cylinder 31 of the drive mechanism 3, which will be described later. The connection unit fixing portion 14 is a member that fixes the connection unit 4 and is provided at the vertical end (lower end) of the wall 11.

[0045] The drive mechanism 3 includes an air cylinder 31, a piston rod 32, a cam member 33, a slider portion 34, and a guide shaft 35. The air cylinder 31 is a bottomed cylindrical shape. The piston rod 32 is housed inside the air cylinder 31, and the piston rod 32 is driven to slide (extend and retract) by the pressure of air supplied from the outside. The air cylinder 31 and the piston rod 32 constitute the actuator of the drive mechanism 3. The piston rod 32 is positioned inside the air cylinder 31, and a portion of it always protrudes from one end of the air cylinder 31 in the axial direction (in this case, the lower end in the vertical direction). The air cylinder 31 is held by the holding portion 12 such that the surface from which the piston rod 32 protrudes faces the cutter unit 2, that is, it faces downward in the vertical direction.

[0046] The piston rod 32 passes through a through hole (not shown) provided in the holding portion 12. The piston rod 32 is provided parallel to the guide shaft 35 and reciprocates linearly along the guide shaft 35. The tip of the piston rod 32 is fixed to the cam member 33, and the cam member 33 slides vertically as the piston rod 32 extends and retracts. The sliding of the cam member 33 is guided by the guide shaft 35.

[0047] The lower end of the guide shaft 35 is fitted into a recessed hole in the lower cutter blade 22, and is screwed and fixed to the lower cutter blade 22 with a screw 351. The upper part of the guide shaft 35 passes through a hole in the holding part 12, and its movement is restricted by a pin 352. In other words, the guide shaft 35 is fixed to the lower cutter blade 22 by the screw 351 and to the holding part 12 by the pin 352.

[0048] In this embodiment, the guide shaft 35 is fixed by a screw 351 and a pin 352, but it is not limited to this, and may be fixed by other fixing methods such as press-fitting or welding. Also, in this embodiment, the guide shaft 35 is a cylindrical member, but it is not limited to this, and a polygonal cross-sectional shape or an ellipse may be used.

[0049] The cam member 33 is a rectangular member and comprises a recess 330 formed by cutting out a rectangular portion of its long side, and a cylindrical support portion 331 connected to the cam member 33 and having a through hole through which the guide shaft 35 passes. The slider portion 34 is slidably arranged in the recess 330 (in the second direction and in the vertical direction). The support portion 331 has a shape that extends parallel to the guide shaft 35 and is provided to suppress rattling of the cam member 33. In other words, if the cam member 33 has a certain thickness and is configured to be less prone to rattling, the cylindrical portion may be omitted, and the support portion 331 may be made up of only the through hole.

[0050] The cam member 33 comprises a cylindrical pin 332 provided in the middle of the recess 330 with its central axis perpendicular to the guide shaft 35, a pin pushing portion 333 adjacent to the recess 330 that pushes the pusher pin 23, and a bearing 334 positioned inside the support portion 331. The pin 332 is inserted into a cam groove 340, which will be described later, provided in the slider portion 34. The bearing 334 is fitted onto the guide shaft 35 and is a component that allows the cam member 33 to slide smoothly without rattling.

[0051] The slider portion 34 is a rectangular plate-shaped member and is integrally formed with the cutter upper blade 21. The slider portion 34 is provided with a cam groove 340 that penetrates in the thickness direction and extends in the longitudinal direction. The cam groove 340 has a first groove portion 341 extending parallel to the guide shaft 35 on the upper side and a second groove portion 342 also extending parallel to the guide shaft 35 on the lower side. The first groove portion 341 and the second groove portion 342 are offset in the second direction, and the cam groove 340 is provided with a connecting groove portion 343 that connects the first groove portion 341 and the second groove portion 342.

[0052] A pin 332 of the cam member 33 is inserted into the cam groove 340, and as the cam member 33 moves along the guide shaft 35, the pin 332 slides along the inner surface of the cam groove 340. When the pin 332 is positioned in the connecting groove portion 343 of the cam groove 340, it presses against the inner surface of the connecting groove portion 343. As a result, the slider portion 34 and the cutter upper blade 21 integrally formed on the slider portion 34 move in a direction (second direction) that intersects with the sliding direction (up and down direction) of the cam member 33 (sliding relative to the cutter lower blade 22).

[0053] In this embodiment, a configuration in which the cam member 33 has a pin 332 and the slide portion 34 has a cam groove 340 is described, but in reality, a configuration in which the cam member has a cam groove and the slide portion has a pin may also be used.

[0054] In this embodiment, pneumatics is used as the actuator for the drive mechanism 3, but it is not limited to this, and a fluid other than air (for example, hydraulic fluid) may be used (hydraulic). Furthermore, it is not limited to using a fluid, but electricity such as a motor or solenoid may be used. In this embodiment, one actuator, a cam, and a cam groove are used to slide the upper cutter blade 21 and press the pusher pin 23, but it is not limited to this. For example, multiple actuators (2) may be provided to slide the upper cutter blade 21 and press the pusher pin 23.

[0055] The connection unit 4 is a unit for detachably attaching the trowel tip 5a. The connection unit 4 is fixed to a connection unit fixing part 14 provided at the lower end of the wall 22. A heater H is wrapped around the outer circumference of the connection unit 4. The heater H generates heat when electricity is applied and is a heat source for heating and melting the solder piece Wh supplied into the solder hole 51.

[0056] The connecting unit 4 has a cylindrical shape and includes a circular cross-section recess 421 at its axial end for attaching the soldering iron tip 5a, and a solder supply hole 422 that penetrates from the center of the bottom of the recess 421 to the opposite side. The connecting unit 4 is provided in contact with the cutter's lower blade 22 so that the solder supply hole 422 and the lower blade hole 221 are in communication. By providing the connecting unit 4 in this way, the solder piece Wh moves from the lower blade hole 221 to the solder supply hole 422.

[0057] The trowel tip 5a is inserted into the recess 421 of the connecting unit 4 and secured in place by a retaining mechanism. The retaining mechanism comprises a support portion 141 hanging down from the end of the connecting unit fixing portion 14, a rod 142 supported horizontally at the lower part of the support portion 141 so as to be movable, and a compression coil spring 143 that biases the rod 142 toward the connecting unit 4. The connecting unit 4 is provided with a hole (not shown) in the recess 421 at a position facing the circumferential groove 53 when the trowel tip 5a is installed, so that a part of the rod 142 can be exposed.

[0058] When attaching the trowel tip 5a to the connecting unit 4, the rod 142 is pulled out against the biasing force of the compression coil spring 143 until it is no longer exposed in the recess 421 of the connecting unit 4. Then the trowel tip 5a is attached to the recess 421 of the connecting unit 4. After that, the force applied to the rod 142 is released. The rod 142 moves towards the connecting unit 4 due to the biasing force of the compression coil spring 143 and engages with the circumferential groove 53 of the trowel tip 5a. This fixes the trowel tip 5a in place of the connecting unit 4. Conversely, when removing the trowel tip 5a from the connecting unit 4, the rod 142 is pulled out against the biasing force of the compression coil spring 143 until it is no longer exposed in the recess 421 of the connecting unit 4. This releases the engagement of the rod 142 with the circumferential groove 53 of the trowel tip 5a, and the trowel tip 5a can be pulled out downward from the connecting unit 4.

[0059] The soldering hole 51 of the soldering iron tip 5a is in communication with the solder supply hole 421 of the connection unit 4, and solder pieces Wh are supplied from the solder supply hole 421. The soldering iron tip 5a receives heat from the heater H, and this heat melts the solder pieces Wh. For this reason, the soldering iron tip 5a is made of a material with high thermal conductivity, such as ceramics such as silicon carbide and aluminum nitride, or metals such as tungsten.

[0060] (Soldering process) This explanation will use the soldering device AP shown in Figure 5 as an example to solder eight pin terminals P extending from an electronic component Ep to a land Ld on a circuit board CB.

[0061] As shown in Figure 7, eight pin terminals P formed at predetermined intervals are inserted from below to above through through holes Th formed in the substrate CB, and protrude a predetermined length from the surface of the substrate CB. The depth of the groove 52 of the trowel tip 5a is deeper than the length of the pin terminals P protruding from the surface of the substrate CB, and the width of the groove 52 is set to be larger than the outer diameter of the pin terminals P.

[0062] (1st step) The device body A1 is moved in a first and second direction by the manipulator ML (shown in Figure 5) to position it relative to the land Ld on the substrate CB. Specifically, as shown in Figure 7, the soldering tip 5a is positioned so that the soldering hole 51 is above the first pin terminal P from the left, and the device body A1 is moved downward so that the lower surface of the soldering tip 5a comes into contact with the substrate CB. However, it is also acceptable for the lower surface of the soldering tip 5a and the substrate CB not to come into contact, and for a small gap to be provided between them.

[0063] Here, since the direction of extension of the groove 52 of the trowel tip 5a and the direction of formation of the eight pin terminals P are the same (first direction), the trowel tip 5a does not interfere with adjacent pin terminals P even when the formation interval of the pin terminals P is short. For this reason, there is no need to replace the trowel tip with one that does not interfere with adjacent pin terminals P, as in the conventional method. In addition, preheating of adjacent pin terminals P is also possible.

[0064] (2nd process) Solder pieces Wh are supplied to the soldering hole 51 of the soldering iron tip 5a. In this embodiment, the supplied solder pieces Wh come into contact with the upper end of the pin terminal P. Alternatively, the relationship between the inner diameter of the soldering hole 51, the outer diameter of the pin terminal P, and the outer diameter of the solder pieces Wh may be adjusted so that the solder pieces Wh fall onto the land Ld of the substrate CB.

[0065] (3rd step) Next, the supplied solder piece Wh is heated and melted in the solder hole 51 of the soldering iron tip 5a, and the pin terminal P and the land Ld are soldered together.

[0066] (4th step) In Figure 7, when the first pin terminal P from the left is soldered, the soldering iron tip 5a is moved by the manipulator ML (shown in Figure 5) to the right in the first direction of Figure 7 by a distance equal to the spacing between the pin terminals P. As a result, the soldering hole 51 is positioned above the second pin terminal P from the left. Here, since the direction of extension of the groove 52 of the soldering iron tip 5a and the direction of formation of the eight pin terminals P are the same (first direction), after moving the soldering iron tip 5a relatively upward to a position less than or equal to the protrusion length of the pin terminal P, preferably to a position where the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5a does not contact the substrate CB, or if the contact between the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5a and the substrate CB is weak, the soldering iron tip 5a can be moved to the position of the next pin terminal P without moving the soldering iron tip 5a relatively upward. This increases work efficiency compared to the conventional method, where the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5a was moved to a position above the upper end of the pin terminal P before moving the soldering iron tip 5a to the position of the next pin terminal P.

[0067] Then, the first to third steps described above are performed on the second pin terminal P to perform soldering, and in the fourth step, the soldering iron tip 5a moves from the second pin terminal P to the third pin terminal P, and so on, until the eighth pin terminal P is soldered in order.

[0068] In the above embodiment, the substrate CB was fixed and the main body A1 of the device was moved, but it is also acceptable to fix the main body A1 and move the substrate CB, or to move both the main body A1 and the substrate CB to bring the lower surface of the trowel tip 5a into contact with the substrate CB.

[0069] The movement control of the trowel tip 5a by the control means Cont may be performed based on a value that has been input in advance, or based on a detection signal from a detection means (not shown), such as a contact sensor.

[0070] (Second Embodiment) Figure 8 shows a perspective view illustrating a second embodiment of the trowel tip according to the present invention, and Figures 9, 10, and 11 show cross-sectional views along line BB, line CC, and plan view of the trowel tip of Figure 8. Note that the same components and parts as those of the trowel tip 5a of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions may be omitted.

[0071] The soldering iron tip 5b shown in these figures is a soldering iron tip that can be attached to and detached from the main body A1 of the soldering device AP, similar to the soldering iron tip 5a of the first embodiment. The soldering iron tip 5b has a shape in which a cylindrical portion 54 and a rectangular prism portion 55 are joined in the vertical direction and are integrally molded. The cylindrical portion 54 is inserted into the recess 421 of the connection unit 4 when attaching the soldering iron tip 5b to the main body A1 of the soldering device AP. The cylindrical portion 54 has a circumferential groove 53 with a semicircular cross-section on its lower side. As described above, the circumferential groove 53 is used to fix the soldering iron tip 5b to the main body A1 of the soldering device AP in a detachable manner when attaching the soldering iron tip 5b to the main body A1 of the soldering device AP.

[0072] Unlike the soldering iron tip 5a of the first embodiment, the soldering iron tip 5b of the second embodiment has a rectangular prism at its lower part. This is because the soldering iron tip 5b has two soldering holes 51a, 51b, and it is necessary to heat the two soldering points uniformly and quickly to a predetermined temperature suitable for soldering, and for this purpose, the heat capacity of the soldering iron tip 5b needs to be increased. Of course, the shape of the lower part of the soldering iron tip 5b is not limited to a rectangular prism, as long as it is a shape that can heat multiple soldering points uniformly and quickly, it may be, for example, a cylindrical part with a larger diameter than the upper cylindrical part of the soldering iron tip 5b. The shape of the lower part of the soldering iron tip 5b is determined taking into consideration the shape of the terminals of the electronic components, etc.

[0073] The soldering iron tip 5b has a rectangular groove 52 on the lower surface of the rectangular prism portion 55 that is continuous in the first direction. The shape, depth, and width of the groove 52 are determined appropriately considering the shape and arrangement of the object to be soldered. For example, if the object to be soldered is a pin terminal P, the shape, depth, and width of the groove 52 are determined considering the shape and thickness of the pin terminal P, the length of the pin terminal P protruding from the printed circuit board, etc.

[0074] The soldering iron tip 5b has two solder holes 51a and 51b that penetrate vertically. Solder pieces Wh are supplied to the solder holes 51a and 51b from above. The two solder holes 51a and 51b are identical in shape, and their structure is the same as that of the solder hole 51 in the first embodiment. The lower end openings of the two solder holes 51a and 51b open to the bottom surface (top surface in Figures 9 and 10) of the groove 52.

[0075] As shown in Figure 11, the two solder holes 51a and 51b are formed on the soldering iron tip 5b such that, in a plan view, the central axis points CP1 and CP2 of the two solder holes 51a and 51b are located on the center line (first straight line) L1 of the groove 52. The distance d between the central axis points CP1 and CP2 is appropriately determined considering the formation pitch of the terminals to be soldered. Specifically, the distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51 is preferably a positive integer multiple of the formation pitch of the terminals of the electronic component to be soldered. The formation pitch of the terminals of electronic components is usually one of 5.1 mm, 3 mm, 2.54 mm, 1.27 mm, 0.8 mm, 0.65 mm, or 0.5 mm.

[0076] (Soldering process) The following explanation will be given using the soldering device AP shown in Figure 5 as an example, where the soldering iron tip 5b is attached and the eight pin terminals P extending from the electronic component Ep are soldered to the lands Ld on the circuit board CB, as described above. The main body A1 of the soldering device AP to which the soldering iron tip 5b is attached is provided with two solder feeding mechanisms F, as shown in Figure 6, arranged side by side in the first direction (perpendicular to the plane of the paper in Figure 6).

[0077] The depth of the groove 52 of the soldering iron tip 5b is greater than the protrusion length of the pin terminal P from the surface of the substrate CB, and the width of the groove 52 is set to be greater than the outer diameter of the pin terminal P. The distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51a, 51b of the soldering iron tip 5b (shown in Figure 11) is set to be the same as the formation spacing of the pin terminals P.

[0078] (1st step) The device body A1 is moved in a first and second direction by the manipulator ML (shown in Figure 5) to position it relative to the land Ld on the substrate CB. Specifically, as shown in Figure 12, the solder holes 51a, 51b of the soldering iron tip 5b are positioned above the first and second pin terminals P from the left, and as the device body A1 is moved vertically, the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5b comes into contact with the substrate CB. At this time, the first and second pin terminals P are located below the solder holes 51a, 51b within the groove 52 of the soldering iron tip 5b. A small gap may be provided between the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5b and the substrate CB.

[0079] Here, since the direction of extension of the groove 52 of the trowel tip 5b and the direction of formation of the eight pin terminals P are the same (first direction), as in the first embodiment, even if the spacing between the pin terminals P is short, the trowel tip 5b does not interfere with the adjacent pin terminal P, and there is no need to replace it with a trowel tip 5b that does not interfere with the adjacent pin terminal P, as in the conventional method.

[0080] (2nd process) Solder pieces Wh are supplied to the solder holes 51a and 51b of the soldering iron tip 5b, respectively. In this embodiment, the supplied solder pieces Wh come into contact with the upper ends of the first and second pin terminals P, respectively. Alternatively, the relationship between the inner diameters of the solder holes 51a and 51b, the outer diameter of the pin terminals P, and the outer diameter of the solder pieces Wh may be adjusted so that the solder pieces Wh fall onto the land Ld of the substrate CB.

[0081] (3rd step) Next, the supplied solder piece Wh is heated and melted in the solder hole 51 of the soldering iron tip 5b, and the first and second pin terminals P are soldered to the land Ld, respectively.

[0082] (4th step) In Figure 12, when the first and second pin terminals P from the left are soldered, the soldering iron tip 5b is moved to the right in the first direction by the manipulator ML (shown in Figure 5) by a distance twice the distance between the pin terminals P (the same as the distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51). As a result, the solder holes 51a and 51b are positioned above the third and fourth pin terminals P from the left. Here, since the direction of extension of the groove portion 52 of the soldering iron tip 5b and the direction of formation of the eight pin terminals P are the same direction (first direction), similar to the first embodiment, after moving the soldering iron tip 5b relatively upward to a length less than or equal to the protrusion length of the pin terminal P, preferably to a degree that the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5b does not contact the substrate CB, or if the contact between the lower surface of the soldering iron tip 5b and the substrate CB is weak, the soldering iron tip 5b can be moved to the position of the next pin terminal P without moving it relatively upward.

[0083] Then, at the third and fourth pin terminals P from the left, the aforementioned processes from the first to third steps are carried out and soldering is performed. In the fourth step, the soldering iron tip 5b moves from the third and fourth pin terminals P to the fifth and sixth pin terminals P, and the same process is continued up to the seventh and eighth pin terminals P.

[0084] (Third embodiment) Figure 13 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the soldering iron tip according to the present invention. The soldering iron tip 5c shown in this figure has the same structure as the soldering iron tip 5b of the second embodiment, except that the distance d between the central axes of the two solder holes 51a and 51b is different. The distance d between the central axes of the two solder holes 51a and 51b of the soldering iron tip 5c is twice the formation interval P1 of the pin terminals P. With a soldering iron tip 5c configured in this way, it is possible to deal with cases where the formation interval of the pin terminals P is very short and it is not possible to form solder holes on the soldering iron tip at the same interval as the pin terminals P.

[0085] When soldering a pin terminal P to a land Ld using a soldering iron tip 5c with this configuration, for example, in Figure 13, the soldering iron tip 5c solders the first and third pin terminals P from the left. Next, the soldering iron tip 5c moves to the right by the distance of one pin terminal spacing P1 and solders the second and fourth pin terminals P. Then, the soldering iron tip 5c moves to the right by a distance of three times the pin terminal spacing P1 and solders the fifth and seventh pin terminals P. After that, the soldering iron tip 5c moves to the right by the distance of one pin terminal spacing P1 and solders the eighth pin terminal P.

[0086] In the embodiments described above, the distance d between the central axes of the two solder holes 51a and 51b was set to twice the formation interval of the pin terminals P. However, the distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51 may be set to three times, four times, etc., the formation interval P1 of the pin terminals P, corresponding to the formation interval of the pin terminals P. Furthermore, the number of solder holes may be three or more, depending on the efficiency of the soldering process.

[0087] (Fourth Embodiment) This explains that soldering is possible even when using a soldering iron tip in which the distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51a and 51b is not a positive integer multiple of the formation interval of the pin terminals P. In other words, by appropriately selecting and determining the distance d between the central axes of the solder holes 51a and 51b, it may be possible to solder pin terminals P with different formation intervals using a single type of soldering iron tip.

[0088] Figures 14(a), (b), and (c) are vertical cross-sectional views when soldering pin terminals P with different formation intervals P2, P3, and P4 using the same soldering iron tip 5b. Figures 14(a) and (b) show the case where pin terminals P, where the formation interval P2 and P3 is shorter than the distance d between the central axes of two solder holes 51a and 51b, are soldered using the soldering iron tip 5b. In Figure 14(a), the solder Wh supplied to the solder holes 51a and 51b falls outward from the center between the two pin terminals P and contacts the land Ld. In Figure 14(b), the solder Wh supplied to the solder hole 51a falls outward from the center between the two pin terminals P and contacts the land Ld, while the solder Wh supplied to the solder hole 51b contacts the upper end of the pin terminal P. Figure 14(c) shows the case where pin terminals P, where the formation interval P4 is longer than the distance d between the central axes of two solder holes 51a and 51b, are soldered using the soldering iron tip 5b. The solder pieces Wh supplied to the solder holes 51a and 51b fall inward from the center between the two pin terminals P, and come into contact with the land Ld.

[0089] In all cases shown in Figures 14(a), (b), and (c), the solder piece Wh that comes into contact with the tip of the pin terminal P or the land Ld is melted by heating with the soldering iron tip 5b, and the pin terminal P and the land are soldered together. [Industrial applicability]

[0090] According to the soldering tip, soldering apparatus, and soldering method of the present invention, even electronic components with short terminal pitches can be soldered without changing the soldering tip. Furthermore, preheating of terminals to be soldered next can be performed efficiently. In addition, according to the soldering tip, soldering apparatus, and soldering method of the present invention, it is possible to move the soldering tip relatively while keeping the distance between the lower surface of the soldering tip and the printed circuit board less than or equal to the protrusion length from the through-hole of the pin terminal, thereby improving work efficiency compared to conventional methods. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 5a, 5b, 5c trowel tip 51, 51a, 51b Solder holes 52 Groove d Distance between the central axes of solder holes 51a and 51b H Heater (heat source) P pin terminal A1 Main unit of the device AP Soldering Machine CB circuit board (printed circuit board) CP1, CP2: Central axis point of solder holes 51a, 51b Ep electronic components Ld Land Th Through Hole Wh solder piece

Claims

1. A columnar trowel tip that is detachably attached to the main body of a device having a heat source, The soldering iron tip has one or more solder holes that penetrate in the axial direction and into which solder pieces are supplied, The end face of the soldering iron tip on the downstream side in the soldering direction has a groove that extends in a direction intersecting the soldering direction and is recessed on the upstream side in the soldering direction. The soldering iron tip is characterized in that at least a portion of the opening of the solder hole on the downstream side in the solder piece supply direction is formed on the bottom surface of the groove.

2. The aforementioned solder holes are two or more, The trowel tip according to claim 1, wherein, in a plan view, the central axis points of the two or more solder holes are located at predetermined intervals on a first straight line, and the groove extends in the direction of the first straight line.

3. The soldering iron tip according to claim 2, wherein the distance between the central axes of the two or more solder holes is a positive integer multiple of any of the following distances: 5.1 mm, 3 mm, 2.54 mm, 1.27 mm, 0.8 mm, 0.65 mm, or 0.5 mm.

4. A trowel tip according to any one of claims 1 to 3 above, The device body to which the trowel tip is detachably attached, It has, The main body of the aforementioned device is A heat source for heating the tip of the trowel, A solder piece supply unit that supplies solder pieces to the solder holes, A soldering device characterized by being equipped with [a specific feature].

5. A soldering method comprising: inserting a plurality of pin terminals, which protrude outward from the main body of an electronic component and are formed at predetermined intervals in a first straight direction, through a plurality of through-holes formed on a printed circuit board corresponding to the pin terminals, from one side to the other; and soldering the pin terminals protruding from the other side of the through-holes to a land formed on the outer peripheral edge of the other side opening of the through-holes, using the soldering apparatus described in claim 4, The depth of the groove on the trowel tip is greater than the length of the protrusion from the other side of the through-hole of the pin terminal, and the width of the groove is greater than the outer diameter of the pin terminal. A first step is to move the soldering iron tip relative to the printed circuit board such that the direction of extension of the groove is in the direction of the first straight line, and the pin terminal protruding from the other side of the through hole is located within the groove; A second step involves supplying solder pieces into the solder holes after the first step, A third step involves heating and melting the solder piece supplied into the solder hole, A fourth step is to move the trowel tip relative to the printed circuit board in the direction of the first straight line, after the third step. A soldering method characterized by having [a certain feature].

6. The soldering method according to claim 5, wherein in the fourth step, the soldering iron tip is moved relative to the printed circuit board in the first straight line direction, such that the distance between the downstream end face of the soldering iron tip in the solder piece supply direction and the printed circuit board is less than or equal to the protrusion length of the pin terminal from the other side of the through hole.

7. The aforementioned solder holes are two or more, In a plan view, the central axis points of the two or more solder holes are located on a straight line at predetermined intervals, The soldering method according to claim 5, wherein the distance between the central axes of the two or more solder holes is a positive integer multiple of the spacing between the pin terminals.

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