Manufacturing apparatus for electronic component structure, plasma irradiation apparatus, and manufacturing method for electronic component structure
The manufacturing apparatus addresses poor conductivity issues by using plasma treatment and crimping to connect electronic components to FPCs, resulting in high-performance and efficient production of electronic component structures.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2021119234
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2021-07-20
- Publication Date
- 2025-11-18
- Estimated Expiration
- 2041-07-20
AI Technical Summary
Poor electrical conductivity between electronic components and flexible printed circuits (FPCs) due to dirt or contaminants on electrodes using anisotropic conductive materials, leading to reduced performance and yield in electronic component structures.
A manufacturing apparatus and method that uses plasma gas irradiation and crimping to connect electronic components to a flexible substrate via anisotropic conductive material, including stages of plasma treatment and crimping to ensure proper alignment and bonding.
Enhances the manufacturing of high-performance electronic component structures with improved efficiency by ensuring clean and effective electrical connections.
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Abstract
Description
[Technical Field]
[0001] The present invention relates to a manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing an electronic component structure. [Background technology]
[0002] Flexible printed circuits (FPCs) are a commonly known type of printed circuit board. Because this type of board is extremely thin and highly flexible, it is used in moving parts of electronic devices such as cameras and mobile phones, and in bending parts due to space restrictions on board installation as electronic devices become smaller and thinner.
[0003] Generally, when an electronic component is connected to an FPC, the electronic component and the FPC are electrically connected and integrated via an anisotropic conductive material such as an anisotropic conductive film (ACF).
[0004] Patent Document 1 describes a manufacturing device in which a semiconductor chip, which serves as an electronic component, is electrically connected to a substrate via an anisotropic conductive adhesive. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]
[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2013-258294 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]
[0006] When connecting two components using anisotropic conductive material in this way, if dirt or other contaminants adhere to the surfaces of the electrodes of the electronic component and FPC on which the anisotropic conductive material is provided, poor electrical conductivity between these electronic components and the FPC may occur, potentially reducing the performance and yield of the final product (electronic component structure formed by connecting electronic components and FPC).
[0007] Therefore, the present invention provides a manufacturing device, etc. that can produce high-performance products and improve manufacturing efficiency when manufacturing electronic component structures in which electronic components are electrically connected to a flexible substrate. [Means for solving the problem]
[0008] A manufacturing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, and includes: a mounting table; a first loading section that loads and arranges one of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a second loading section that loads and arranges the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a first irradiation section that irradiates a surface of an electrode of the one component loaded onto the mounting table by the first loading section with plasma gas; a conductive material installation section that provides the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component that has been irradiated with the plasma gas; a crimping section that crimps the surface of the electrode of the one component onto the surface of the electrode of the one component onto which the anisotropic conductive material has been provided, in a state where the surface of the electrode of the other component is opposed to the surface of the electrode of the one component onto which the anisotropic conductive material has been provided, in a direction that intersects the surface direction of the mounting table along which the surface of the mounting table extends; and a carrying out section that carries out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the crimped one component and the other component, from the mounting table.
[0009] The manufacturing apparatus may further include a second irradiation unit that irradiates a plasma gas onto the surface of the electrode of the other component that is loaded onto the mounting table by the second loading unit before the one component and the other component are crimped together by the crimping unit.
[0010] Another aspect of the present invention provides a manufacturing apparatus for an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, and the manufacturing apparatus includes a mounting table, a first loading section that loads and arranges one of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table, a second loading section that loads and arranges the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table, a second irradiation section that irradiates a plasma gas onto the surface of the electrode of the other component loaded onto the mounting table by the second loading section, a conductive material installation section that provides the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component, a second crimping section that crimps the surface of the electrode of the other component irradiated with the plasma gas against the surface of the electrode of the one component on which the anisotropic conductive material is provided, in a direction that intersects the surface direction of the mounting table along which the surface of the mounting table extends, and a carrying out section that carries out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the crimped one component and the other component, from the mounting table.
[0011] The manufacturing apparatus may further include a transport mechanism that transports the mounting table from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction, wherein the first loading section loads and positions the one component in a first loading area of the transport mechanism, the conductive material installation section provides the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material installation area downstream of the first loading area of the transport mechanism, the second loading section loads and positions the other component in a second loading area of the transport mechanism downstream of the conductive material installation area, and the first irradiation section irradiates a plasma gas onto a surface of the electrode of the one component in a first plasma irradiation area that is positioned at the same position as the conductive material installation area.
[0012] The manufacturing apparatus may further include a transport mechanism that transports the mounting table from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction, wherein the first loading section loads and positions the one component in a first loading area of the transport mechanism, the conductive material installation section provides the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component in a conductive material installation area downstream of the first loading area of the transport mechanism, the second loading section loads and positions the other component in a second loading area downstream of the conductive material installation area of the transport mechanism, and the second irradiation section irradiates the plasma gas onto the surface of the electrode of the other component in a second plasma irradiation area located at the same position as the second loading area.
[0013] The manufacturing apparatus may further include a transport mechanism that transports the mounting table from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction, wherein the first loading section loads and positions the one component in a first loading area of the transport mechanism, the conductive material installation section provides the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component in a conductive material installation area downstream of the first loading area of the transport mechanism, the second loading section loads and positions the other component in a second loading area of the transport mechanism downstream of the conductive material installation area, the first irradiation section irradiates the surface of the electrode of the one component with plasma gas in a first plasma irradiation area located at the same position as the conductive material installation area, and the second irradiation section irradiates the surface of the electrode of the other component with plasma gas in a second plasma irradiation area located at the same position as the second loading area.
[0014] In the manufacturing apparatus, the crimping unit may crimp the electrode of the one component and the electrode of the other component in a crimping region that is located at the same position as the second plasma irradiation region.
[0015] In addition, in the above-mentioned manufacturing apparatus, the anisotropic conductive material is an anisotropic conductive film, and the crimping areas include an upstream crimping area located upstream of the conveying path and a downstream crimping area located downstream of the conveying path, and in the downstream crimping area, the electrode of one of the components crimped in the upstream crimping area and the electrode of the other component may be additionally crimped.
[0016] The manufacturing apparatus may further include, as the conveying mechanism, a first turntable that rotates in one direction about a first rotation axis, and a second turntable that is attached to the first turntable and rotates in one direction about a second rotation axis, wherein the first loading unit loads the one component into the first loading area of the first turntable, the conductive material installation unit installs the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component in the conductive material installation area downstream of the first loading area in the rotation direction of the first turntable, which is the conveying direction, and the second loading unit loads the other component into the second loading area of the second turntable, and a transfer unit that transfers the one component with the anisotropic conductive material from a transfer area of the first turntable that is located downstream of the conductive material installation area in the rotation direction of the first turntable to a receiving area of the second turntable that is away from the rotation direction of the second turntable, which is the conveying direction, relative to the second loading area.
[0017] Furthermore, a plasma irradiation device according to one aspect of the present invention is a plasma irradiation device used in the manufacture of an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, and is provided with an irradiation unit that irradiates plasma gas onto the surface of an electrode of at least one of the electronic component and the substrate.
[0018] Furthermore, one aspect of the present invention provides a manufacturing method for an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, the manufacturing method including the following steps: a first loading step of loading and arranging one of the electronic component and the substrate onto a mounting table; a second loading step of loading and arranging the other of the electronic component and the substrate onto the mounting table; a first irradiation step of irradiating a surface of an electrode of the one component loaded onto the mounting table in the first loading step with plasma gas; a conductive material installation step of providing the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component irradiated with the plasma gas; a crimping step of crimping the surface of the electrode of the one component against the surface of the electrode of the one component provided with the anisotropic conductive material in a direction intersecting the surface of the mounting table in which the surface of the mounting table extends; and a carry-out step of carrying out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the crimped one component and the other component, from the mounting table.
[0019] The manufacturing method may further include a second irradiation step of irradiating a plasma gas onto the surface of the electrode of the other component that has been loaded onto the mounting table in the second loading step, prior to the crimping step.
[0020] Furthermore, a manufacturing method according to one aspect of the present invention is a method for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, the method including: a first loading step of loading and arranging one of the electronic component and the substrate onto a mounting table; a second loading step of loading and arranging the other of the electronic component and the substrate onto the mounting table; a conductive material installation step of providing the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of an electrode of the one component loaded onto the mounting table in the first loading step; an irradiation step of irradiating the surface of the electrode of the other component loaded onto the mounting table in the second loading step with plasma gas; a crimping step of crimping the surface of the electrode of the other component irradiated with plasma gas against the surface of the electrode of the one component provided with the anisotropic conductive material in a direction intersecting the surface direction of the mounting table along which the surface of the mounting table extends; and a carry-out step of carrying out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the crimped one component and the other component, from the mounting table. [Effects of the Invention]
[0021] According to the above manufacturing apparatus and the like, when manufacturing electronic component structures, it is possible to manufacture high-performance products and improve manufacturing efficiency. [Brief explanation of the drawings]
[0022] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall plan view of a manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 1(A) is a front view showing the conductive material placement section of the manufacturing apparatus, as seen from the radially inner side of the first rotary table, and FIG. 1(B) is a bottom view illustrating the ACF tape used in the conductive material placement section. [Figure 3] FIG. 4 is a front view showing a first irradiation unit of the manufacturing apparatus, as viewed from the radial direction of the first rotary table. [Figure 4](A) is a front view showing the first alignment adjustment section of the manufacturing apparatus, as viewed from the circumferential direction of the first rotating table, and (B) is a front view showing the second alignment adjustment section of the manufacturing apparatus, as viewed from the circumferential direction of the second rotating table. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the transfer and pressure bonding unit and the second irradiation unit of the manufacturing apparatus, as viewed from the radially inner side of the second rotary table. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the downstream crimping section of the manufacturing apparatus, as seen from the radially inner side of the second rotary table. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0023] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. A manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is an apparatus for manufacturing an electronic component structure P in which a flexible substrate 300 is connected to an electronic component 100 via an anisotropic conductive film (anisotropic conductive material) 200. Hereinafter, the anisotropic conductive film 200 will be referred to as an ACF 200, and the flexible substrate 300 will be referred to as an FPC 300.
[0024] <Overall structure> 1, the manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment includes a first turntable 2, a second turntable 3 provided adjacent to the first turntable 2, a first carry-in section 4, a first alignment adjustment section 5, a conductive material placement section 6, and a first irradiation section 30 arranged on the first turntable 2, and a second carry-in section 7, a second alignment adjustment section 8, a transfer and crimping section (upstream crimping section) 9, a downstream crimping section 10, and a second irradiation section 40 arranged on the second turntable 3. The manufacturing apparatus 1 further includes a transfer section 11 that transfers electronic components 100 between the first turntable 2 and the second turntable 3, and an unloading section 12 arranged on the second turntable 3.
[0025] <First rotary table> The first turntable 2 is, for example, an index-type conveying table (conveying mechanism) and has a circular shape. In other words, the first turntable 2 is a conveying mechanism that conveys a mounting table along a circular movement trajectory, and the rotation direction of the first turntable 2 coincides with the conveying direction of the electronic component 100. A first rotation axis O1, which is the center of rotation of the first turntable 2, extends vertically. An upper surface 2a of the first turntable 2 faces upward. In other words, the table surface direction, which is the direction in which the surface of the first turntable 2 extends, coincides with the horizontal direction. The first turntable 2 rotates in one direction around the first rotation axis O1. The rotation speed, rotation start operation, and rotation stop operation of the first turntable 2 are controlled by a control device (not shown).
[0026] A plurality of mounting tables 13 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on the upper surface 2a of the first turntable 2. In this example, a total of four mounting tables 13 are arranged at 90-degree intervals. Note that a plurality of (here, two) accommodation holes 13a are formed in the upper surface (hereinafter referred to as the "mounting surface") of each mounting table 13, in which electronic components 100 are accommodated and positioned (see FIG. 2).
[0027] <Second rotary table> The second turntable 3, like the first turntable 2, is a circular, index-type conveying table (conveying mechanism). In other words, the second turntable 3 is a conveying mechanism that conveys a mounting table along a circular movement trajectory, and the rotation direction of the second turntable 3 coincides with the conveying direction of the electronic components 100. The second rotation axis O2, which is the rotation center of the second turntable 3, extends vertically. The second rotation axis O2 extends parallel to the first rotation axis O1 of the first turntable 2. Therefore, the second turntable 3 is disposed horizontally alongside the first turntable 2. The upper surface 3a of the second turntable 3 faces upward. In other words, the table surface direction, which is the direction in which the surface of the second turntable 3 extends, coincides with the horizontal direction. The second turntable 3 rotates in one direction around the second rotation axis O2. In this embodiment, the rotation direction of the second turntable 3 coincides with the rotation direction of the first turntable 2. The operation of the second turntable 3 is controlled by a control device (not shown), similar to the first turntable 2.
[0028] A plurality of mounting tables 14 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on the upper surface 3a of the second turntable 3. Here, a total of eight mounting tables 14 are arranged at 45-degree intervals. The upper surface (hereinafter referred to as the mounting surface) of each mounting table 14 is formed with a plurality of (four in this case) accommodation holes 14a for accommodating and positioning electronic components 100 onto which ACF 200 has been transferred (see FIG. 4). The plurality of accommodation holes 14a are arranged side by side in the tangential direction of the second turntable 3.
[0029] <First Loading Section> The first carry-in section 4 carries in and places the electronic component 100 above the placement surface of the placement table 13 in the first carry-in area A1 of the first turntable 2. The electronic component 100 may be an assembly of components such as a camera module or a communication module, or may be a single component. In this embodiment, multiple electronic components 100 (for example, two at a time) are placed on the first turntable 2. Specifically, the electronic components 100 are supported on the placement surface of the placement table 13. In this embodiment, a portion of the placement table 13 protrudes radially outward from the first turntable 2. The electronic component 100 is arranged on the portion of the placement table 13 that protrudes from the first turntable 2. The electronic components 100 are arranged side by side in the tangential direction of the first turntable 2 along the circumferential direction of the first turntable 2.
[0030] The first carry-in section 4 has a stocker 4a that stocks a plurality of electronic components 100, and a transfer mechanism 4b that transfers the electronic components 100 from the stocker 4a toward the first turntable 2. The transfer mechanism 4b has a chuck (not shown) that holds the electronic components 100 and moves them to the first turntable 2. The chuck may be, for example, a vacuum chuck that supports the electronic components 100 by suction.
[0031] <Conductive material installation section> The conductive material installation section 6 is arranged in the conductive material installation area A2 downstream (forward) of the first carry-in section 4 in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2. In this embodiment, the conductive material installation area A2 includes an upstream installation area A2a and a downstream installation area A2b, which are spaced apart from each other in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2. The upstream installation area A2a and the downstream installation area A2b are arranged at positions offset by 90 degrees in the rotation direction. The upstream installation area A2a is also arranged at a position offset by 90 degrees in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2 from the first carry-in area A1. In other words, the first carry-in area A1, the upstream installation area A2a, and the downstream installation area A2b are arranged at equal angular offsets from each other in the rotation direction. Each of the upstream installation area A2a and the downstream installation area A2b is provided with a conductive material installation section 6.
[0032] As shown in Figure 2, each conductive material installation section 6 has a bonding head 20 arranged above the mounting surface of the mounting table 13 of the first turntable 2, a cushioning material supply section 21 that supplies cushioning material 400 between the bonding head 20 and the mounting surface, and a conductive material supply section 22 that supplies ACF 200 between the cushioning material 400 and the mounting surface.
[0033] The bonding head 20 is adapted to be moved up and down in the direction of the first rotation axis O1 (see FIG. 1), that is, in the vertical direction, at predetermined timing by a control device (not shown).
[0034] The cushioning material supply unit 21 continuously supplies a tape-shaped cushioning material (cushioning material tape) 400 below the bonding head 20 using a supply roller 21a, and collects it using a collection roller 21b. The cushioning material 400 comes into contact with the bonding head 20 and is pressed downward when the bonding head 20 descends toward the mounting surface of the mounting table 13. The cushioning material 400 has the function of averaging the pressure from the bonding head 20 in the planar direction (horizontal direction) of the pressure surface of the bonding head 20 and also dissipating heat.
[0035] Conductive material supply unit 22 supplies tape-shaped ACF tape 202 stored on a reel to below buffer material 400 using supply roller 22a, and collects it using collection roller 22b. As shown in FIG. 2(B), ACF tape 202 has a structure in which an anisotropic conductive film (ACF) 200, in which conductive particles are dispersed in an adhesive, is laminated on support film 201, such as a PET material, which serves as a separator. When bonding head 20 descends toward the mounting surface, buffer material 400 contacts ACF tape 202 from above, and ACF tape 202 is pressed downward by bonding head 20. The pressed ACF tape 202 comes into contact with the surface of an electrode of electronic component 100, which has moved from first loading area A1 to conductive material placement area A2 by rotation of first turntable 2 as shown in FIG. 1, and ACF 200 is transferred.
[0036] As will be described in detail later, all (two) electronic components 100 initially placed on the mounting tables 13 in the first carry-in area A1 are transferred to the upstream installation area A2a by rotating the first turntable 2 by 90 degrees. In the upstream installation area A2a, the ACF 200 is transferred to one of the electronic components 100. Meanwhile, two electronic components 100 are placed on mounting tables 13 that are newly transferred to the first carry-in area A1. After completing the transfer of the ACF 200 to one of the electronic components 100 in the upstream installation area A2a, the mounting table 13 is transferred to the downstream installation area A2b by rotating the first turntable 2 by 90 degrees, where the ACF 200 is transferred to the other electronic component 100. At the same time, the mounting table 13 in the first carry-in area A1 is transferred to the upstream installation area A2a, where the ACF 200 is transferred to one of the electronic components 100.
[0037] Here, the conductive material placing unit 6 may be provided with a reference position adjustment mechanism that adjusts the horizontal position, inclination relative to the horizontal plane, and angle around the vertical axis of the placing table 13 so that the electronic component 100 supported on the placing table 13 is separated from the first turntable 2 and lifted upward together with the placing table 13 and positioned at a reference position. The reference position adjustment mechanism enables the conductive material placing unit 6 to attach the ACF 200 to the electronic component 100 while supporting the placing table 13 from below in a state in which the placing table 13 is separated from the upper surface 2 a of the first turntable 2 and is positioned horizontally.
[0038] <First irradiation section> 1 , the first irradiation unit 30 irradiates plasma gas G onto the surfaces of the electrodes of the electronic component 100 that have been loaded onto the first turntable 2 by the first loader 4. In this embodiment, for example, one first irradiation unit 30 is provided in each of the conductive material placement units 6 in the front-stage installation area A2a and the rear-stage installation area A2b. The first irradiation unit 30 irradiates plasma gas G onto the surfaces of the electrodes of the electronic component 100 before the ACF 200 is attached to the electronic component 100 in the first plasma irradiation area C1 that is located at the same position as the conductive material placement area A2.
[0039] 3, first irradiating unit 30 generates plasma gas G and irradiates the plasma gas G toward the surface of the electrode of electronic component 100. Here, first irradiating unit 30 generates, for example, atmospheric pressure plasma as plasma gas G. Atmospheric pressure plasma is a plasma gas generated under atmospheric pressure, for example, by using dielectric barrier discharge.
[0040] <First alignment adjustment unit> 1, the first alignment adjustment unit 5 has a front-stage alignment adjustment unit 5X and a rear-stage alignment adjustment unit 5Y. The front-stage alignment adjustment unit 5X is disposed in the front-stage installation area A2a, and is capable of adjusting the relative position (alignment) in a planar direction perpendicular to the first rotation axis O1 and / or a circumferential direction of the first rotation axis O1 so that the electrode surface of one electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 of the ACF tape 202 are properly overlapped when viewed from the direction of the first rotation axis O1, before the conductive material installation unit 6 attaches the ACF 200 to one electronic component 100 on the mounting table 13. Similarly, the rear-stage alignment adjustment unit 5Y is disposed in the rear-stage installation area A2b, and is capable of adjusting the relative positions (alignment) of the electrode surface of the other electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 of the ACF tape 202 so that they are correctly overlapped when viewed from the direction of the first rotation axis O1, before the conductive material installation unit 6 attaches the ACF 200 to the other electronic component 100 on the mounting table 13. The alignment adjustment is preferably performed before the irradiation of the plasma gas G, but may also be performed after the irradiation of the plasma gas G.
[0041] As shown in FIG. 4(A), the first alignment adjustment unit 5 (5X, 5Y) has sensors 5a that are provided in the front-stage installation area A2a and the rear-stage installation area A2b shown in FIG. 1, between the electrodes of the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200, and are movable in the radial direction of the first turntable 2. The sensors 5a include cameras using, for example, CCDs (Charge Coupled Devices) on both the top and bottom, and are capable of detecting the relative positions of the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 by capturing images of the surfaces of the electrodes of the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 almost simultaneously. The sensors 5a may be photoelectric sensors, laser sensors, or the like, but are not particularly limited. Furthermore, the sensors 5a may be configured to guide (guiduce) upper and lower images to a predetermined location using optical components such as prisms or optical fibers and convert them into digital images using a CCD or the like. A control device (not shown) controls the relative positions of the electrode surfaces of electronic component 100 and ACF 200 until sensor 5a detects that the surfaces are correctly aligned as viewed from the direction of first rotation axis O1. This positioning may be achieved by moving the entire conductive material providing unit 6 in a horizontal direction (in radial and circumferential directions when first turntable 2 is used as the reference), by moving only ACF tape 202 in the tape advancement direction and / or tape width direction, or by moving mounting table 13 in a horizontal direction (in radial and circumferential directions when first turntable 2 is used as the reference).
[0042] <Second loading section> 1 , the second carry-in section 7 carries the FPC 300 into the second carry-in area B1 of the second turntable 3, above the mounting surface of the mounting table 14 of the second turntable 3. In this embodiment, a plurality of (four in this example) electronic components 100 with ACFs 200 attached thereto are mounted on the mounting table 14, and therefore the FPC 300 is attached to each of the ACFs 200 of the four electronic components 100.
[0043] The second carry-in section 7 includes, for example, a stocker 7a that stocks a plurality of FPCs 300, and a transfer mechanism 7b that transfers the plurality of FPCs 300 in a line from the stocker 7a toward the second turntable 3. Downstream of the transfer mechanism 7b, a transfer and crimping section 9 is disposed that holds the transferred FPCs 300, transfers them to electronic components 100 on the mounting table 14, and pre-crimps them. Therefore, this second carry-in area B1 also serves as an upstream crimping area B3 that crimps the PFCs 300. As will be described in detail later, the second carry-in area B1 (upstream crimping area B3) is disposed at a position shifted by 45 degrees in the rotational direction (45 degrees downstream) from a receiving area B2, which will be described later.
[0044] <Transfer and crimping section (upstream crimping section)> 5, the transfer and crimping unit 9 includes a suction crimping head 9a, a heater 9b provided on the suction crimping head 9a, and a movement mechanism 9c that moves the suction crimping head 9a and the heater 9b together in a horizontal plane, around a vertical axis, and up and down. The heater 9b heats the crimping head 9a so that the temperature of the crimping head 9a reaches a predetermined temperature (e.g., 70°C) when the suction crimping head 9a presses the FPC 300.
[0045] The suction and crimping head 9a also functions as a suction pad and suction-holds the PFC 300. The suction and crimping head 9a, located downstream of the transfer mechanism 7b, suction-holds the surface of the FPC 300 opposite the electrode surface. The suction and crimping head 9a moves above the ACF 200 provided on the surface of the electronic component 100 and then descends to bring the electrode surface of the FPC 300 into close contact with the ACF 200. The head then applies heat and pressure from above the FPC 300. As a result, the electrode surface of the FPC 300 is pre-pressed to the ACF 200. In this embodiment, the pressure is applied with a force of 5 kgf for 0.6 seconds, for example, to pre-press the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300 together.
[0046] The suction and crimping head 9a can be moved by the moving mechanism 9c in the tangential direction of the second turntable 3. As a result, the FPC 300 can be sequentially placed and pre-crimped onto each of the electronic components 100 arranged in parallel in the tangential direction on the mounting table 14 that is stationary in the upstream crimping region B3.
[0047] Here, upstream crimping area B3 may be provided with a reference position adjustment mechanism that adjusts the horizontal position, inclination relative to the horizontal plane, and angle around the vertical axis so that electronic component 100 supported on mounting table 14 is lifted upward together with mounting table 14 and positioned at a reference position. The reference position adjustment mechanism enables FPC 300 to be transferred and pre-crimped to electronic component 100 by transfer and crimping device 9 while supporting mounting table 14 from below in a state in which mounting table 14 is spaced apart from upper surface 3a of second turntable 3 and is positioned horizontally.
[0048] <Delivery department> The transfer unit 11 is disposed between the first turntable 2 and the second turntable 3. The transfer unit 11 transfers the electronic component 100 provided with the ACF 200 from the transfer area A3 of the first turntable 2 to the receiving area B2 of the second turntable 3, and places the electronic component 100 on the placement surface of the placement table 14 of the second turntable 3. The transfer unit 11 also has a buffer table 11e that temporarily stores the electronic component 100 carried out from the transfer area A3.
[0049] The transfer area A3 of the first turntable 2 is located downstream of the conductive material placement area A2 in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2 and upstream of the first carry-in area A1. Specifically, the transfer area A3 is located at a position offset by 90 degrees in the rotation direction from the rear-stage placement area A2b of the conductive material placement area A2. The transfer area A3 is also located at a position offset by 90 degrees in the opposite direction to the rotation direction from the first carry-in area A1.
[0050] Furthermore, the receiving area B2 of the second turntable 3 is disposed at a position offset from the second carry-in area B1 in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3. Specifically, the receiving area B2 is disposed at a position offset by 45 degrees in the opposite direction to the rotation direction from the second carry-in area B1. In other words, the second carry-in area B1 is disposed downstream of the receiving area B2 in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3.
[0051] In this embodiment, the electronic components 100 are placed on the second turntable 3 by the transfer section 11 in groups of multiple electronic components (for example, four components (twice the number transferred at one time from the first turntable 2)). This is because the cycle time per unit of electronic components 100 on the first turntable 2 is shorter than the cycle time per unit of electronic components 100 on the second turntable 3. Specifically, the electronic components 100 are supported on the mounting surface of the mounting table 14. In this embodiment, at least a portion of the mounting table 14 protrudes from the upper surface 3a radially outward from the second turntable 3. The electronic components 100 are arranged on the portion of the mounting table 14 protruding from the second turntable 3. The electronic components 100 are arranged side by side in the tangential direction of the second turntable 3 along the circumferential direction of the second turntable 3.
[0052] The delivery unit 11 has a transfer mechanism 11a that transfers the electronic component 100 from the first turntable 2 to the second turntable 3. The transfer mechanism 11a has a chuck 11b that holds the electronic component 100 and moves it to the second turntable 3. The chuck may be, for example, a mechanical chuck that clamps and holds the electronic component 100. The chuck clamps and supports the electronic component 100 at a position that does not contact the ACF 200 transferred to the electronic component 100.
[0053] When the electronic components 100 placed on the mounting table 14 in the receiving area B2 are placed in the second loading area B1 by rotating the second turntable 3, the transfer and crimping section 9 places and temporarily crimps an FPC 300 on each of the electronic components 100.
[0054] Here, a first inspection camera 16 is installed on the first turntable 2 to monitor the state of the electronic components 100 on the first turntable 2. The first inspection camera 16 is arranged in a first inspection area A4 between the subsequent stage installation area A2b in the conductive material installation area A2 and the transfer area A3 in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2. In this embodiment, the first inspection area A4 is arranged at a position offset by 45 degrees in the rotation direction of the first turntable 2 from the subsequent stage installation area A2b. The first inspection camera 16 monitors for improper attachment of the ACF 200 to the electronic components 100. Poorly attached electronic components 100 are ejected from the first turntable 2 upstream of the transfer area A3 by, for example, an ejection device (not shown) so as not to be transferred to the second turntable 3.
[0055] <Second irradiation section> Returning to FIG. 1 , second irradiation unit 40 irradiates plasma gas G onto the surface of the electrodes of FPC 300 that has been carried into second turntable 3 by second carry-in unit 7. In this embodiment, second irradiation unit 40 is provided, for example, in transfer and pressure-bonding unit 9. Second irradiation unit 40 irradiates plasma gas G onto the surface of the electrodes of FPC 300 before FPC 300 is pressure-bonded to electronic component 100 in second plasma irradiation area C2 that is located at the same position as upstream pressure-bonding area B3. As shown in FIG. 6, the second irradiating section 40 generates, for example, atmospheric pressure plasma as the plasma gas G in the same manner as the first irradiating section 30, and irradiates the plasma gas G toward the surface of the electrode of the FPC 300.
[0056] <Downstream crimp section> Returning to FIG. 1 , the downstream crimping unit 10 is disposed in a downstream crimping area B4 on the second turntable 3, downstream of the upstream crimping area B3 (second carry-in area B1) in the rotation direction. In this embodiment, the downstream crimping area B4 includes a front-stage crimping area B4a and a rear-stage crimping area B4b, which are spaced 90 degrees apart in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3. The front-stage crimping area B4a is disposed at a position offset by 90 degrees in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3 from the upstream crimping area B3. That is, the upstream crimping area B3, the front-stage crimping area B4a, and the rear-stage crimping area B4b are disposed at equal angular offsets from one another in the rotation direction. One downstream crimping unit 10 is disposed in each of the front-stage crimping area B4a and the rear-stage crimping area B4b. Therefore, while only one upstream crimping region B3 is disposed, multiple downstream crimping regions B4 are disposed, and there are more downstream crimping regions B4 than upstream crimping regions B3.
[0057] As shown in Fig. 4, each downstream crimping unit 10 has multiple (two in this example) crimping heads 10a arranged above the mounting surface of the mounting table 14 of the second turntable 3, a heater 10b provided on each crimping head 10a, and a cushioning material supply unit 10c that supplies cushioning material 400 between the crimping head 10a and the mounting table 14 on the mounting surface. The crimping heads 10a are configured to be moved up and down in the vertical direction at predetermined timings by a control device (not shown). In the downstream crimping region B4, the downstream crimping unit 10 additionally crimps (mainly crimps) the set of electronic component 100 and FPC 300 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a component set) that has been pre-bonded in the upstream crimping region B3. In this embodiment, for example, a pressure of 10 kgf is applied for 1.5 seconds per crimping operation, and electronic component 100 and FPC 300 (component set) are fully crimped together with ACF 200 interposed therebetween. In other words, downstream crimping unit 10 continues the crimping operation for a longer period of time and at a higher surface pressure than transfer crimping unit 9.
[0058] The downstream crimping unit 10 in the front-stage crimping area B4a crimps half (two) of the four component sets on the mounting table 14. The downstream crimping unit 10 in the rear-stage crimping area B4b crimps the remaining half (two) of the four component sets, consisting of electronic components 100 (ACFs 200) and FPCs 300, on the mounting table 14. In particular, in this embodiment, the downstream crimping unit 10 in the front-stage crimping area B4a crimps unheated (pre-bonded or fully crimped) component sets between the two component sets to be crimped among the four component sets arranged in parallel. This prevents heat from one crimping head 10a from adversely affecting the adjacent crimping head 10a.
[0059] When the compression head 10a presses the FPC 300, the heater 10b heats the compression head 10a so that the temperature of the compression head 10a reaches a predetermined temperature (for example, 120° C.).
[0060] The cushioning material supply unit 10c continuously supplies cushioning material (cushioning material tape) 400 to above the FPC 300 below the crimping head 10a using a supply roller 10d, and collects it using a collection roller 10e. When the crimping head 10a descends toward the mounting surface of the mounting table 14, the cushioning material 400 comes into contact with the crimping head 10a and is pressed downward. In other words, the cushioning material 400 is supplied so as to be able to come into contact with the FPC 300 from above.
[0061] Here, similarly to the transfer and crimping unit 9, the downstream crimping unit 10 may also be provided with a reference position adjustment mechanism that adjusts the horizontal position, inclination relative to the horizontal plane, and angle around the vertical axis of the mounting table 14 so that the mounting table 14 is positioned at a reference position when the electronic component 100 supported on the mounting table 14 is separated from the second turntable 3 and lifted upward. The reference position adjustment mechanism enables the downstream crimping unit 10 to crimp the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300 together while supporting the mounting table 14 from below in a state in which the mounting table 14 is spaced apart from the upper surface 3a of the second turntable 3 and is positioned horizontally.
[0062] As will be described in more detail later, the mounting table 14 on which four sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 in a pre-bonded state are placed is transferred from the upstream crimping area B3 to the upstream crimping area B4a by a total of 90 degrees rotation of the second turntable 3. The mounting table 14 temporarily waits in the second inspection area B6 midway (45 degrees rotation phase). A control device (not shown) controls the four sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 in a pre-bonded state that have arrived at the upstream crimping area B4a so that two of the sets are fully crimped.
[0063] Thereafter, by rotating the second turntable 3 90 degrees, the mounting table 14 is transferred from the upstream crimping area B4a to the downstream crimping area B4b, but during this process, the mounting table 14 temporarily waits (at a 45-degree rotation phase). The four sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 that have arrived at the downstream crimping area B4b are controlled by a control device (not shown) so that the remaining two sets in the pre-bonded state are finally crimped. When the remaining two sets are finally crimped in the downstream crimping area B4b, the final crimping of all four sets on the mounting table 14 is completed. Note that during the final crimping in the downstream crimping area B4b, the four new sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 that were pre-bonded in the upstream crimping area B3 are positioned in the upstream crimping area B4a, so two of these sets are finally crimped simultaneously.
[0064] <Second alignment adjustment section> 1, before electronic component 100 and FPC 300 are pre-press-bonded together by transfer and crimping unit 9, second alignment adjustment unit 8 can adjust the relative positions (alignment) of the electrodes of electronic component 100 so that the surfaces of the electrodes of FPC 300 carried in by transfer and crimping unit 9 are properly aligned with the surfaces of the electrodes of electronic component 100 when viewed from the direction of second rotation axis O2. This relative position is the position in a planar direction perpendicular to second rotation axis O2 and / or in a rotational direction relative to second rotation axis O2.
[0065] As shown in FIG. 6(B), the second alignment adjustment unit 8 has a structure similar to that of the first alignment adjustment unit 5. Specifically, the second alignment adjustment unit 8 has a sensor 8a that is provided between the surface of the electrode of the electronic component 100 (or the ACF 200) and the surface of the electrode of the FPC 300 and is movable in the radial and / or circumferential directions of the second turntable 3. The sensor 8a includes cameras using, for example, CCDs (Charge Coupled Devices) on both the top and bottom, which capture images of the electrode surfaces of the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300, thereby detecting the relative positions of the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300. The sensor 8a may be a photoelectric sensor, a laser sensor, or the like, but is not particularly limited. Furthermore, the sensor 8a may be configured to guide (guiduce) the upper and lower images to a predetermined location using optical components such as a prism or optical fiber, and convert them into digital images using a CCD or the like. A control device (not shown) controls the relative positions of the electrodes of electronic component 100 (or ACF 200) and FPC 300 until sensor 8a detects that the surfaces of the electrodes are correctly aligned as viewed from the direction of first rotation axis O1. This positioning is achieved by moving the entire transfer and crimping unit 9 in a horizontal direction (in radial and circumferential directions when second rotary table 3 is used as the reference). However, mounting table 14 may also be moved in a horizontal direction.
[0066] <Export section> In the carry-out area B5 of the second turntable 3, the carry-out unit 12 carries out the set of electronic component 100 and FPC 300 that has been fully crimped, i.e., the electronic component structure P, out of the second turntable 3. The carry-out area B5 is located at a position shifted by 90 degrees downstream in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3 with respect to the subsequent-stage crimping area B4b in the downstream crimping area B4.
[0067] The unloading section 12 has a transfer mechanism 12a that transfers the electronic component structure P toward the outside of the second turntable 3, and a stocker 12b that stocks the electronic component structure P transferred by the transfer mechanism 12a. The transfer mechanism 12a has a chuck (not shown) that holds the electronic component structure P. For example, a vacuum chuck that supports the electronic component structure P by suction is used as the chuck.
[0068] Here, a second inspection camera 18 is installed on the second turntable 3 to monitor the state of the set of pre-crimped electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 on the second turntable 3. The second inspection camera 18 is disposed in a second inspection area B6 between the upstream crimping area B3 (second carry-in area B1) and the downstream crimping area B4 in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3. In this embodiment, the second inspection area B6 is disposed at a position offset by 45 degrees in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3 from the upstream crimping area B3. The second inspection camera 18 monitors for defective crimping between the electronic components 100 and FPCs 300. It is preferable that defectively crimped sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 are ejected from the second turntable 3 upstream of the downstream crimping area B4, for example, by an ejection device (not shown). This prevents final crimping in the downstream crimping area B4. Furthermore, if the discharge is not performed upstream of the downstream crimping area B4, it is preferable that the downstream crimping section 10 stops the lowering operation of the crimping head 10a in the downstream crimping area B4 only for the set of poorly crimped electronic component 100 and FPC 300.
[0069] <Manufacturing method> Next, we will explain a method for manufacturing the electronic component structure P. In the following explanation, we will explain a method for manufacturing the electronic component structure P using the above-mentioned manufacturing apparatus 1, but it is not necessarily limited to the case where the electronic component structure P is manufactured using the manufacturing apparatus 1.
[0070] First, the first carry-in unit 4 carries two electronic components 100 onto the mounting table 13 in the first carry-in area A1 of the first turntable 2 (first carry-in step). The first carry-in step is performed continuously. Thereafter, the first turntable 2 is rotated 90 degrees to transfer the mounting table 13 and the two electronic components 100 to the upstream installation area A2a in the conductive material installation area A2. At this time, the first turntable 2 may be temporarily stopped at a 45-degree phase midway to ensure time for inspection in the first inspection area A4, which will be described later.
[0071] The first irradiation unit 30 irradiates the surface of one electrode of two electronic components 100 positioned in the front-side installation area A2a with plasma gas G (first irradiation step). Next, the bonding head 20 of the conductive material installation unit 6 presses and transfers the ACF 200 onto the surface of the one electrode irradiated with plasma gas G in the front-side installation area A2a (conductive material installation step). After attachment is complete, the heated buffer material 400 is moved, allowing the accumulated heat in the buffer material 400 to escape from the bonding head 20 to the outside.
[0072] Next, the first turntable 2 is rotated 90 degrees to transfer the two electronic components (one of which has the ACF 200 transferred) from the front-stage installation area A2a to the rear-stage installation area A2b. At this time, the first turntable 2 may be temporarily stopped at a 45-degree phase midway to ensure time for inspection in the first inspection area A4, which will be described later.
[0073] The first irradiation unit 30 irradiates the surface of the electrode of the other (remaining) of the two electronic components 100 positioned in the rear-stage installation area A2b with plasma gas G (first irradiation step). Next, the bonding head 20 of the conductive material installation unit 6 presses and transfers the ACF 200 onto the surface of the electrode of the remaining electronic component 100 irradiated with plasma gas G in the rear-stage installation area A2b (conductive material installation step). At this time, two new electronic components have been transferred to the front-stage installation area A2a, so the ACF 200 is pressed and transferred onto the surface of the electrode of one of the electronic components.
[0074] That is, in this embodiment, the conductive material providing step is performed simultaneously in each of the areas A2a and A2b.
[0075] Thereafter, the first turntable 2 is rotated 90 degrees, and the two electronic components 100 in the rear stage installation area A2b are placed in the transfer area A3. In the transfer area A3, the electronic components 100 with the ACF 200 attached thereto are transferred to the receiving area B2 of the second turntable 3 using the transfer unit 11 (transfer step).
[0076] The two electronic components 100 pass through a first inspection area A4 on the way from the downstream installation area A2b to the transfer area A3. A first inspection camera 16 in the first inspection area A4 captures an image of the electronic components 100 in an extremely short time to determine whether the ACF 200 has been properly attached to the electronic components 100.
[0077] The above steps are performed successively on the first turntable 2. Therefore, the electronic components 100 are successively loaded onto the first turntable 2 by the first loading unit 4, and while they pass through the front-stage installation area A2a and the rear-stage installation area A2b, the ACF 200 is successively attached to the electronic components 100.
[0078] When the transfer of a total of four electronic components 100 (with ACFs 200) to the mounting table 14 waiting in the receiving area B2 is completed, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees, and these electronic components 100 (with ACFs 200) are placed in the second carry-in area B1. At this time, the second irradiator 40 irradiates the electrode surfaces of the FPCs 300 carried into the second carry-in area B1 with plasma gas G. Note that the area irradiated with plasma gas G is not limited to the second carry-in area B1. For example, the area irradiated with plasma gas G may be somewhere along the path along which the FPCs 300 are transferred from the transfer mechanism 7b to the second carry-in area B1.
[0079] Next, in the second carry-in area B1, the transfer and pressure-bonding unit 9 pre-press-bonds the FPC 300 to the ACF 200 of the electronic component 100 (second carry-in step, second irradiation step, and upstream pressure-bonding step).
[0080] Specifically, in the second carry-in area B1 (upstream crimping area B3), the suction and crimping head 9a of the transfer and crimping unit 9 suction-holds the FPC 300 carried in by the second carry-in unit 7 and transfers it above the electronic component 100. The second irradiation unit 40 irradiates the FPC 300 with plasma gas G, and the suction and crimping head 9a is then lowered to press the FPC 300 and pre-bond the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300 together via the ACF 200 (upstream crimping step). In the upstream crimping area B3, a total of four transfer, cleaning, and crimping operations are repeated to pre-bond the FPC 300 to each of the four electronic components 100 arranged in the upstream crimping area B3 in turn. That is, the second carry-in step and the upstream crimping step are performed consecutively multiple times in the upstream crimping area B3. During this time, a new electronic component 100 is also placed on the placement table 14 in the upstream receiving area B2.
[0081] Thereafter, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees to position the mounting table 14 in the second inspection area B6, and the second inspection camera 18 simultaneously captures images of the electronic components 100 and FPC 300 to determine the pre-compression bonded state of both. If a defect is detected in the pre-compression bonded state, the electronic components 100 and FPC 300 are prevented from undergoing full-compression bonding downstream. Even during this inspection, the second carry-in step and upstream-compression bonding step are performed on the next group of electronic components 100 in the upstream second carry-in area B1 (upstream-compression bonding area B3).
[0082] After the inspection in the second inspection area B6 is completed, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees to place the mounting table 14 in the upstream crimping area B4a (downstream crimping area B4). In the upstream crimping area B4a, for two of the four sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 that have been pre-bonded, the crimping head 10a of the downstream crimping unit 10 presses the FPCs 300 to finally crimp the FPCs 300 to the electronic components 100 (downstream crimping step). After the final crimping, the buffer material 400 is moved to release heat accumulated in and around the crimping head 10a during the downstream crimping step, thereby resetting the system. During this final crimping step (downstream crimping step / upstream side), the next four sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 are inspected in the upstream second inspection area B6.
[0083] When final crimping of some sets in the upstream crimping area B4a (downstream crimping area B4) is completed, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees, and the mounting table 14 is placed on standby at an intermediate standby position B7 between the upstream crimping area B4a and the downstream crimping area B4b (standby step). During this standby time, heat is dissipated from the electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 that have been fully crimped upstream, thereby homogenizing the heat throughout the mounting table 14. During this standby time, final crimping of some sets of electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 is performed (downstream crimping step) in the upstream upstream crimping area B4a (downstream crimping area B4).
[0084] After the standby step is completed, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees to place the mounting table 14 in the downstream crimping area B4b (downstream crimping area B4). In the downstream crimping area B4b, for the remaining two sets of four pre-bonded electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 that have not yet been fully crimped, the crimping head 10a of the downstream crimping unit 10 presses the FPCs 300 to fully crimp the FPCs 300 to the electronic components 100 (downstream crimping step). After the fully crimped, the buffer material 400 is moved to release heat accumulated in and around the crimping head 10a during the downstream crimping step to the outside, thereby resetting the electronic components 100. During this fully crimped process (downstream crimping step / later stage), the electronic components 100 and FPCs 300 are on standby at the upstream intermediate standby position B7. As a result, two sets of electronic component 100 and FPC 300 are simultaneously fully crimped in front-stage crimping region B4a and rear-stage crimping region B4b. In the case of a single mounting table 14, the downstream crimping step is performed twice by passing through regions B4a and B4b.
[0085] When the final crimping (downstream crimping step / rear side) in the rear crimping area B4b (downstream crimping area B4) is completed, the second turntable 3 is rotated 45 degrees and made to wait temporarily in the intermediate waiting area B8 (waiting step), and then the second turntable 3 is rotated another 45 degrees to place the final crimped electronic component structure P in the carry-out area B5. In the carry-out area B5, the electronic component structure P is carried out from the second turntable 3 by the carry-out unit 12.
[0086] The above steps are performed successively on the second turntable 3. Thus, the electronic components 100 and the FPC 300 are continuously pressure-bonded to each other, thereby producing the electronic component structure P. The electronic component structure P carried out by the carrying-out unit 12 is then subjected to an electrical conductivity test and, if necessary, the application and hardening of a reinforcing resin, and then prepared for shipment.
[0087] According to the manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment described above, plasma gas G is irradiated onto the electrode surfaces of the electronic component 100 placed on the first turntable 2, thereby decomposing and cleaning organic matter and other substances adhering to the electrode surfaces of the electronic component 100 to which the ACF 200 is attached. Furthermore, the irradiation of plasma gas G causes molecules on the electrode surface to react with ions and electrons in the plasma, activating the electrode surface and improving the adhesion of the electrode surface. This improves adhesion between the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 and prevents electrical conductivity problems. As a result, when manufacturing the final product, the electronic component structure P, a high-performance product can be manufactured, and manufacturing efficiency can be improved by increasing product yield.
[0088] Furthermore, because plasma gas G is irradiated onto the electrode surface of FPC 300 placed on second turntable 3, organic matter adhering to the electrode surface of FPC 300, which is pressure-bonded to the electrode surface of electronic component 100 to which ACF 200 is attached, can be decomposed and cleaned, activating the electrode surface and improving the adhesion of the electrode surface. This improves the adhesion between the electrode surface of electronic component 100 and the electrode surface of FPC 300 via ACF 200, preventing poor electrical conductivity between electronic component 100 and FPC 300. As a result, when manufacturing electronic component structure P as the final product, a high-performance product can be manufactured, and manufacturing efficiency can be further improved by improving product yield.
[0089] Furthermore, electronic component 100 is loaded and placed on first turntable 2, which serves as a conveying table, and FPC 300 is loaded and placed on second turntable 3. In this state, plasma gas G is irradiated onto the surfaces of the electrodes of electronic component 100 and FPC 300. Therefore, while electronic component 100 is being conveyed, plasma gas G can be irradiated during the manufacturing process of electronic component structure P. In particular, when first irradiation unit 30 and second irradiation unit 40 are devices that generate atmospheric pressure plasma as plasma gas G, the device can be made compact, and even if first irradiation unit 30 is placed on first turntable 2 and second irradiation unit 40 is placed on second turntable 3, it is possible to avoid an increase in the size of the entire manufacturing apparatus 1.
[0090] In this embodiment, first irradiating unit 30 is provided in conductive material placing unit 6 and irradiates electronic component 100 with plasma gas G in conductive material placing area A2. Second irradiating unit 40 is provided in transfer and crimping unit 9 and irradiates FPC 300 with plasma gas G in upstream crimping area B3. Therefore, ACF 200 can be attached to electronic component 100 immediately after irradiation with plasma gas G, and FPC 300 and electronic component 100 can be crimped together immediately after irradiation with plasma gas G. This makes it possible to perform the attachment and crimping of ACF 200 while maintaining the adhesiveness of the electrode surfaces of electronic component 100 and FPC 300 improved by plasma gas G, thereby preventing poor electrical conductivity between electronic component 100 and FPC 300.
[0091] Furthermore, the first turntable 2 and the second turntable 3 can be used as conveying tables to attach the ACF 200 to the electronic component 100 and to crimp the electronic component 100 to the FPC 300. This allows the electronic component structure P to be manufactured at a high speed and also allows the manufacturing apparatus 1 to take up less space.
[0092] Furthermore, since the upstream crimping area B3 is located in the same position as the second carry-in area B1 where the FPC 300 is carried in on the second turntable 3, it is possible to achieve further space savings in the manufacturing apparatus 1 compared to when these areas B1 and B3 are located in different positions. Furthermore, since the second carry-in area B1 and the upstream crimping area B3 are located in the same position, pre-crimping is performed at the same time as the carrying-in and positioning of the FPC 300 relative to the electronic component 100 is completed, and therefore it is possible to suppress deviation in the relative positions of the two.
[0093] Furthermore, after the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300 are pre-bonded in the upstream crimping area B3, the final crimping is performed in the downstream crimping area B4. During the pre-bonding process, the FPC 300 must be suction-held by the transfer and crimping unit 9, making it difficult to interpose the buffer material 400 between the suction crimping head 9a and the FPC 300, which can easily trap heat in the suction crimping head 9a. Furthermore, if a set of all electronic components 100 and FPC 300 is to be final-bonded in a single upstream crimping area B3, heat tends to accumulate in the upstream crimping area B3, creating an unstable ambient environment. Therefore, in this embodiment, the pre-bonding and final crimping processes are separated to reduce the amount of heat, pressure, and time applied during the pre-bonding process, thereby avoiding poor electrical conductivity due to the generation of air bubbles between the ACF 200 attached to the electronic component 100 and the FPC 300 during the initial crimping process. Meanwhile, in downstream crimping region B on the downstream side where the temperature and atmospheric environment of the crimping head are optimized, electronic component 100 and FPC 300 can be firmly crimped together by main crimping.
[0094] Furthermore, in the upstream crimping region B3, positioning and pre-bonding of the electronic component 100 and the FPC are performed simultaneously, which requires a certain amount of work time, but the work time can be reduced by the amount that the main crimping is performed downstream (downstream crimping region B4). On the other hand, in the downstream crimping region B4, although work time is required for the main crimping, the work time can be reduced by the amount that the positioning step of the electronic component 100 and the FPC is separated upstream (upstream crimping region B3). In this way, by rationally allocating the work time to the upstream crimping region B3 and the downstream crimping region B4 and performing these processes simultaneously in parallel, it is possible to speed up the manufacture of the electronic component structure P.
[0095] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the downstream crimping region B4 is also divided into multiple regions B4a and B4b, which reduces the number of component sets to be fully crimped in each region B4a and B4b, while also ensuring sufficient distance between the component sets to be fully crimped, thereby reducing the thermal influence between the component sets being fully crimped.
[0096] The first alignment adjustment unit 5 can adjust the positions of the electrode surfaces of the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 with high precision. Furthermore, by using a CCD camera as the sensor 5a of the first alignment adjustment unit 5, the positions of the electronic component 100 and the ACF 200 can be adjusted with a simple structure.
[0097] Similarly, second alignment adjustment unit 8 can adjust the positions of the electrodes of electronic component 100 and the electrodes of FPC 300 with high precision, preventing poor electrical conduction in electronic component structure P and improving product yield and production efficiency. Furthermore, by using a CCD camera as sensor 8a of second alignment adjustment unit 8, the positions of the electrodes of electronic component 100 and the electrodes of FPC 300 can be reliably adjusted with a simple structure.
[0098] Furthermore, the first turntable 2 is provided with a plurality of conductive material application areas A2 for applying the ACF 200, and the application of the ACF 200 can be carried out simultaneously in a plurality of areas A2a, A2b. This prevents the conductive material application step from becoming a bottleneck, and enables the electronic component structure P to be manufactured at a high speed.
[0099] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail with reference to the drawings, the configurations and combinations thereof in the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and additions, omissions, substitutions, and other modifications of the configurations are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, but is limited only by the claims.
[0100] For example, only one of first irradiating unit 30 and second irradiating unit 40 may be provided. Furthermore, first irradiating unit 30 may irradiate electronic component 100 with plasma gas G in a region on first turntable 2 that is upstream of conductive material placement region A2 and downstream of first carry-in region A1. Furthermore, second irradiating unit 40 may irradiate FPC 300 with plasma gas G in a region on second turntable 3 that is upstream of upstream crimping region B3 and downstream of receiving region B3.
[0101] For example, instead of ACF 200, an anisotropic conductive adhesive may be applied to the surface of the electrodes of electronic component 100 as the anisotropic conductive material. In this case, it is possible to complete the full-compression bonding by performing only one of the upstream-side pressure-bonding step and the downstream-side pressure-bonding step, without performing both. In other words, the pre-compression bonding step is not necessary.
[0102] Alternatively, the second carry-in area B1 may be located upstream of the receiving area B2 in the rotation direction of the second turntable 3. That is, in the second carry-in area B1, the FPC 300 may first be placed on the mounting table 14, and then the position of the electronic component 100 may be adjusted relative to the FPC 300 in the receiving area B2. In this case, the upstream crimping area B3 may be located at the same position as the receiving area B2. That is, in the receiving area B2, the electronic component 100 may be transferred from the first turntable 2 to the second turntable 3 so that the electrode surfaces of the electronic component 100 and the electrode surfaces of the FPC 300 overlap in the direction of the second rotation axis O2, and the upstream crimping step (pre-crimping) may be performed on the spot.
[0103] In the above embodiment, the case where ACF 200 is attached to electronic component 100 on first turntable 2 has been exemplified, but conversely, FPC 300 may be carried into first turntable 2 by first carry-in unit 4, and ACF 200 may be attached to the surface of the electrodes of FPC 300. In this case, electronic component 100 may be carried into second turntable 3 by second carry-in unit 7, and electronic component 100 may be pressure-bonded to FPC 300.
[0104] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a structure has been exemplified in which the conductive material placing device including the first carry-in unit 4 and the conductive material placing unit 6 is arranged along a circular movement locus that follows the rotational motion of the first turntable 2, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a structure in which these are arranged along a linear movement locus (including a U-shaped or L-shaped movement locus) is also possible. Also, a structure has been exemplified in which the crimping device including the second carry-in unit 7, the transfer and crimping unit 9, and the downstream crimping unit 10 is arranged along a circular movement locus that follows the rotational motion of the second turntable 3, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a structure in which these are arranged along a linear movement locus (including a U-shaped or L-shaped movement locus).
[0105] Furthermore, in this embodiment, an example has been given of parts being transported using the first rotating table 1 and the second rotating table 2, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the first loading step, conductive material installation step, second loading step, upstream crimping step, downstream crimping step, and carrying-out step may be performed along a single rotating table or a linear movement trajectory (including a U-shaped or L-shaped movement trajectory).
[0106] Alternatively, the electronic component structure P may be manufactured using a single crimping device including the second turntable 3, the second carry-in section 7, the transfer and crimping section 9, and the downstream crimping section 10. In this case, in the single crimping device, the receiving area B2 of the second turntable 3 serves as a first carry-in area into which the electronic component 100 to which the ACF 200 is attached is carried.
[0107] Furthermore, the plasma irradiation device including at least one of the first irradiation section 30 and the second irradiation section 40 may be applied to other manufacturing devices.
[0108] Furthermore, steps such as electrical conductivity testing, application and hardening of reinforcing resin may also be performed on a conveying device using a rotary table, similar to the first rotary table 2 and the second rotary table 3.
[0109] Furthermore, in this embodiment, a flexible substrate in which electrodes are formed on the surface of an insulating layer made of polyimide resin or the like is exemplified, but the substrate of the present invention is not limited to this. It may be a sheet-like silicone substrate in which a silicone resin sheet or the like is used instead of the insulating layer made of polyimide resin and electrodes are formed on the surface thereof, or any other type of substrate.
[0110] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the case where the turntables 2 and 3 and the mounting tables 13 and 14 are separate members has been exemplified, but the turntables 2 and 3 themselves may also serve as the mounting tables.
[0111] Furthermore, at each step of the manufacturing, traceability may be enabled by reading barcodes provided on electronic components 100 and FPCs 300. Furthermore, at the downstream crimping step, downstream crimping unit 10 may record the load, temperature, time, etc., during crimping. [Industrial Applicability]
[0112] According to the manufacturing apparatus and the like of the present invention, when manufacturing an electronic component structure, it is possible to manufacture a high-performance product and also to improve manufacturing efficiency. [Explanation of symbols]
[0113] 1. Manufacturing equipment (for electronic component structures) 2 First rotary table 2 First rotary table 2a Top side 3 Second rotary table 3a Top side 4. First Loading Section 5 First alignment adjustment section 5a Sensor 6 Conductive material installation section 7 Second loading area 8 Second alignment adjustment unit 9 Transfer and crimping section 10 Downstream crimp section 11 Delivery Department 12 Unloading section 13 Mounting table 14 Mounting table 16 First Inspection Camera 18 Second Inspection Camera 20 Bonding Head 21 Cushioning material supply section 22 Conductive material supply section 30 First irradiation section 40 Second irradiation section 100 Electronic Components 200 Anisotropic Conductive Film (ACF) 300 Flexible Printed Circuit (FPC) 400 Cushioning material A1 First loading area A2 Conductive material installation area A2a Front stage installation area A2b Rear installation area A3 Delivery area A4 First inspection area B1 Second loading area B2 Receiving area B3 Upstream crimp area B4 Downstream crimp area B4a Front side crimping area B4b Later side crimping area B5 Export area B6 Second Inspection Area C1 First plasma irradiation area C2 Second plasma irradiation region O1 First rotation axis O2 Second rotation axis P Electronic component structure G Plasma gas
Claims
1. An apparatus for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, A mounting table; a first loading section configured to load and place one of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a second loading section that loads and arranges the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a first irradiation unit that irradiates a surface of an electrode of the one component that is carried onto the mounting table by the first carry-in unit with a plasma gas; a conductive material placement unit that places the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component that is irradiated with the plasma gas; a crimping unit that crimps a surface of the electrode of the one component onto a surface of the electrode of the other component, the surface of the electrode of the one component being provided with the anisotropic conductive material, in a state where the surface of the mounting table faces the surface of the other component in a direction that intersects with a surface direction of the mounting table; a carrying-out unit that carries out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the one component and the other component that have been crimped, from the mounting table; a transport mechanism that transports the mounting table from the upstream side to the downstream side in a transport direction, the first loading section loads and places the one component into a first loading area of the transfer mechanism; the conductive material placement unit places the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placement area downstream of the first carry-in area in the transport mechanism; the second loading section loads and places the other component in a second loading area downstream of the conductive material placement area in the transport mechanism; the first irradiation unit irradiates a surface of the electrode of the one component with plasma gas in a first plasma irradiation area that is located at the same position as the conductive material placement area; The manufacturing apparatus for electronic component structures further comprises: The conveying mechanism includes a first rotary table that rotates in one direction about a first rotation axis, and a second rotary table that is provided in tandem with the first rotary table and rotates in one direction about a second rotation axis, the first loading unit loads the one component into the first loading area of the first rotary table; the conductive material placement unit places the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of the electrode of the one component in the conductive material placement area downstream of the first carry-in area in a rotation direction of the first turntable, which is the conveying direction; the second loading section loads the other part into the second loading area of the second rotary table; an electronic component structure manufacturing apparatus, further comprising a transfer section that transfers the one component provided with the anisotropic conductive material from a transfer area on the first turntable that is positioned downstream of the conductive material placement area in the rotation direction of the first turntable to a receiving area on the second turntable that is away in the rotation direction of the second turntable, which is the transport direction relative to the second loading area.
2. 2. The manufacturing apparatus for an electronic component structure according to claim 1, further comprising a second irradiation unit that irradiates a plasma gas onto a surface of an electrode of the other component that is carried onto the mounting table by the second carrying-in unit before the one component and the other component are crimped together by the crimping unit.
3. An apparatus for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, A mounting table; a first loading section configured to load and place one of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a second loading section that loads and arranges the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a second irradiation unit that irradiates a surface of an electrode of the other component that is carried onto the stage by the second carry-in unit with plasma gas; a conductive material placement portion for placing the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of the electrode of the one component; a crimping unit that crimps a surface of the electrode of the one component, on which the anisotropic conductive material is provided, to a surface of the electrode of the other component, on which the plasma gas is irradiated, in a state where the surface faces the surface of the mounting table in a direction intersecting a surface direction of the mounting table, on which the surface of the mounting table extends; a carrying-out unit that carries out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the one component and the other component that have been crimped, from the mounting table; a transport mechanism that transports the mounting table from the upstream side to the downstream side in a transport direction, the first loading section loads and places the one component into a first loading area of the transfer mechanism; the conductive material placement unit places the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placement area downstream of the first carry-in area in the transport mechanism; the second loading section loads and places the other component in a second loading area downstream of the conductive material placement area in the transport mechanism; the second irradiation unit irradiates the plasma gas onto a surface of the electrode of the other component in a second plasma irradiation area that is located at the same position as the second carry-in area; The manufacturing apparatus for electronic component structures further comprises: The conveying mechanism includes a first rotary table that rotates in one direction about a first rotation axis, and a second rotary table that is provided in tandem with the first rotary table and rotates in one direction about a second rotation axis, the first loading unit loads the one component into the first loading area of the first rotary table; the conductive material placement unit places the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of the electrode of the one component in the conductive material placement area downstream of the first carry-in area in a rotation direction of the first turntable, which is the conveying direction; the second loading section loads the other part into the second loading area of the second rotary table; an electronic component structure manufacturing apparatus, further comprising a transfer section that transfers the one component provided with the anisotropic conductive material from a transfer area on the first turntable that is positioned downstream of the conductive material placement area in the rotation direction of the first turntable to a receiving area on the second turntable that is away in the rotation direction of the second turntable, which is the transport direction relative to the second loading area.
4. A method for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, a first carrying-in step of carrying in and arranging one of the electronic component and the substrate on a mounting table; a second carrying-in step of carrying in and placing the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a first irradiation step of irradiating a surface of an electrode of the one component loaded onto the mounting table in the first loading step with plasma gas; a conductive material providing step of providing the anisotropic conductive material on the surface of the electrode of the one component irradiated with the plasma gas; a pressure-bonding step of pressure-bonding a surface of the electrode of the one component provided with the anisotropic conductive material to a surface of the electrode of the other component in a state where the surface of the mounting table is opposed to the surface of the mounting table in a direction intersecting a surface direction of the mounting table; a carrying-out step of carrying out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the one component and the other component that have been crimped, from the mounting table; a transport step of transporting the mounting table from an upstream side to a downstream side in a transport direction, In the first carry-in step, the one component is carried in and placed in a first carry-in area in the transport step; In the conductive material placing step, the anisotropic conductive material is provided on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placing area downstream of the first carry-in area in the transporting step; In the second carrying-in step, the other component is carried in and placed in a second carrying-in area downstream of the conductive material placement area in the transporting step, In the first irradiation step, a plasma gas is irradiated onto a surface of the electrode of the one component in a first plasma irradiation region that is located at the same position as the conductive material placement region, In the conveying step, conveyance is performed using a first rotary table that rotates in one direction about a first rotation axis and a second rotary table that is arranged next to the first rotary table and rotates in one direction about a second rotation axis, In the first carrying-in step, the one part is carried into the first carrying-in area of the first rotary table; the conductive material placing step includes providing the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placing area downstream of the first carry-in area in a rotation direction of the first turntable, which corresponds to the conveying direction; the second carrying-in step carries the other part into the second carrying-in area of the second rotary table; A method for manufacturing an electronic component structure, further comprising a transfer step of transferring one of the components provided with the anisotropic conductive material from a transfer area on the first turntable, which is arranged downstream of the conductive material installation area in the rotation direction of the first turntable, to a receiving area on the second turntable, which is away from the transfer area in the rotation direction of the second turntable, which is the transport direction relative to the second loading area.
5. 5. The method for manufacturing an electronic component structure according to claim 4, further comprising a second irradiation step of irradiating a surface of an electrode of the other component loaded onto the mounting table in the second loading step with plasma gas before the pressure bonding step.
6. A method for manufacturing an electronic component structure in which a substrate is connected to an electronic component via an anisotropic conductive material, a first carrying-in step of carrying in and arranging one of the electronic component and the substrate on a mounting table; a second carrying-in step of carrying in and placing the other of the electronic component and the substrate on the mounting table; a conductive material setting step of setting the anisotropic conductive material on a surface of the electrode of the one of the components that has been loaded onto the mounting table in the first loading step; an irradiation step of irradiating a surface of an electrode of the other component carried onto the stage in the second carrying step with plasma gas; a pressure-bonding step of pressure-bonding a surface of the electrode of the one component, on which the anisotropic conductive material is provided, to a surface of the electrode of the other component, on which the plasma gas is irradiated, in a state where the surface of the mounting table faces the surface of the mounting table in a direction intersecting a surface direction of the mounting table. a carrying-out step of carrying out the electronic component structure, which is a set of the one component and the other component that have been crimped, from the mounting table; a transport step of transporting the mounting table from an upstream side to a downstream side in a transport direction, In the first carry-in step, the one component is carried in and placed in a first carry-in area in the transport step; In the conductive material placing step, the anisotropic conductive material is provided on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placing area downstream of the first carry-in area in the transporting step; In the second carrying-in step, the other component is carried in and placed in a second carrying-in area downstream of the conductive material placement area in the transporting step, In the irradiation step, the plasma gas is irradiated onto a surface of the electrode of the other component in a second plasma irradiation area that is located at the same position as the second carry-in area; In the conveying step, conveyance is performed using a first rotary table that rotates in one direction about a first rotation axis and a second rotary table that is arranged next to the first rotary table and rotates in one direction about a second rotation axis, In the first carrying-in step, the one part is carried into the first carrying-in area of the first rotary table; In the conductive material placing step, the anisotropic conductive material is provided on a surface of an electrode of the one component in a conductive material placing area downstream of the first carry-in area in a rotation direction of the first turntable, which is the conveying direction; the second carrying-in step carries the other part into the second carrying-in area of the second rotary table; A method for manufacturing an electronic component structure, further comprising a transfer step of transferring one of the components provided with the anisotropic conductive material from a transfer area on the first turntable, which is arranged downstream of the conductive material installation area in the rotation direction of the first turntable, to a receiving area on the second turntable, which is away from the transfer area in the rotation direction of the second turntable, which is the transport direction relative to the second loading area.
Citation Information
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