Component-placing device and component-placing method

Abstract

[Problem] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a component-placing device and a component-placing method for placing a component in a predetermined place by a highly versatile method that is applicable to various components at a low cost. [Solution] Provided is a component-placing method for placing a component in a predetermined place. The component-placing method comprises: a step for holding a component, steps s1 and s3 for irradiating light from directly above at least a portion of the held component and at least a portion of a predetermined place where the component is to be placed to create a shadow of the outer shape of the component on the surface of the predetermined place; and steps s2 and s4 for moving the component and placing the component in the predetermined place on the basis of the shadow.

Description

Component placement device and component placement method

[0001] The present invention relates to a component placement device and a component placement method.

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are component placement devices and component placement methods for placing components at predetermined locations.

[0003] JP 11-261298 A JP 2014-212235 A

[0004] The invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 can quickly detect the orientation of an electronic component held by a suction nozzle of a mounting head using horizontal light, but has the problem of being unable to grasp the positional relationship between the electronic component and the circuit board.The invention disclosed in Patent Document 2 can identify the mounting position of an electronic component from an image of an obliquely positioned imaging means using vertical spot light, but has the problem of being unable to grasp the positional relationship between the electronic component and the circuit board.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above, and aims to provide a component placement device and a component placement method that place components in predetermined locations using a low-cost, highly versatile method that can be applied to a variety of components.

[0006] The above object is achieved by a component placement method for placing a component at a predetermined location, the method comprising the steps of: holding the component; moving the component; irradiating light from directly above onto at least a portion of the predetermined location to create a shadow of the outline of the component at the predetermined location; and placing the component at the predetermined location based on the shadow.

[0007] The above object is also achieved by the above component arrangement method, wherein the light is parallel light.

[0008] Furthermore, the above object can be achieved by a component placement method for placing a component at a predetermined location, the method comprising the steps of: holding the component; moving the component; irradiating the predetermined location with a spot light; and placing the component based on the spot light irradiated at the predetermined location.

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a component placement device and a component placement method that place components at predetermined locations using a low-cost, highly versatile method that can be applied to a variety of components.

[0010] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 20 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machines 1, 10, and 20 according to the first to third embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machines 1, 10, and 20 according to the first to third embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 30 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machine 30 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machine 30 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machine 30 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an electronic component mounting method used in the electronic component mounting machine 30 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a diagram illustrating an electronic component mounting machine 40 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an electronic component mounting machine 40 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.FIG.

[0011] Electronic component mounting machines 1, 10, 20, 30, and 40 and electronic component mounting methods according to embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 14. Note that in all of the following drawings, the dimensions and proportions of each component may be shown as appropriate to facilitate understanding.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component mounting machine 1 includes a stage 2 on which a circuit board b is mounted, a moving unit 3 that moves an electronic component a in the X, Y, and Z directions, an electronic component a, a holding unit 5 that holds the electronic component a, a light 6 positioned directly above the circuit board b, and a camera 7 and a monitor 8 that are linked to the moving unit 3. The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has a highly versatile configuration because the circuit board is fixed and electronic components are mounted. If the electronic components are moved manually, the camera 7 and the monitor 8 may not be necessary. Furthermore, the stage 2 may rotate in the θ direction.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component mounting machine 10 includes a stage 2 on which a circuit board b is mounted, a moving unit 12 that moves the circuit board in the X, Y, and Z directions, a moving unit 13 that moves an electronic component a, an electronic component a, a holding unit 5 that holds the electronic component a, a light 6 positioned directly above the circuit board b, a camera 7 that takes images from diagonally above, a monitor 8, and a shielding unit 9 that blocks light from the room lighting 100. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the electronic components are mounted by moving the circuit board, so the moving unit 13 only needs to move the electronic component to a predetermined position, and the camera 7 can be fixed. Even in this embodiment, if the circuit board is moved manually, the camera 7 and monitor 8 may not be necessary.

[0014] The holder 5 used in the electronic component mounting machines 1 and 10 uses a suction nozzle to suck and hold electronic components. The holder 5 employs a suction nozzle extending diagonally downward to avoid blocking the light from the light source 6. The illumination surface of the light source 6 is configured to be parallel to the circuit board b so that the light emitted from the light source 6 strikes the circuit board b perpendicularly. In this embodiment, parallel light is preferred for the light emitted from the light source 6, but light other than parallel light may also be used. Visible light in a short wavelength range with minimal light deflection is preferred to create accurate shadows, and a monochromatic LED such as green or blue is preferred as the light source. It is also preferred that the light source 6 include light sources of multiple wavelength ranges (e.g., LEDs in the red wavelength range, LEDs in the green wavelength range, and LEDs in the blue wavelength range) and that these multiple light sources be used arbitrarily. Using light sources of multiple wavelength ranges allows the light source 6 to be distinguished from room light when no shielding unit 9 is provided, and also allows the light source 6 to be distinguished from the light of other devices when multiple units are used simultaneously in close proximity. In the present invention, the phrase "the lighting 6 is located directly above at least a part of the electronic component a and at least a part of the circuit board b" means that a part of the illumination surface onto which light is irradiated from the lighting 6, a part of the electronic component a, and a part of the circuit board b are located vertically. The present invention is applicable to both an apparatus in which electronic components are mounted by fixing the circuit board as shown in Fig. 1 and an apparatus in which both the circuit board and the electronic components are moved to mount the electronic components as shown in Fig. 2.

[0015] 3 is a schematic diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 20 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component mounting machine 20 has a configuration in which a holder 5 for holding an electronic component a and a light 6 move together.

[0016] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for mounting electronic components used in the electronic component mounting machines 1 and 10 according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

[0017] In the illumination step of step S1, the illumination 6 is used to irradiate both the electronic component a and the circuit board b with light from directly above, so that the shadow of the outline of the electronic component a is projected onto the surface of the circuit board b.

[0018] In the moving / rotating step S2, the electronic component a and the circuit board b are moved and rotated.

[0019] Next, in the shadow confirmation step of step S3, the shadow of the outline of electronic component a projected onto circuit board b is confirmed. If it is determined that the shadow of electronic component a is directly above the mounting location (if Yes), the next step S4 is executed, and if it is determined that the shadow of the outline of electronic component a is not directly above the mounting location (if No), step S2 is executed. In the shadow confirmation step of step S3, the judgment may be made by a person, by image processing based on an image captured by camera 7, or mechanically based on the amount of light detected by an optical sensor (not shown).

[0020] In the placement step of step S4, electronic component a is placed on circuit board b. Specifically, electronic component a or circuit board b is moved in the height direction to bond electronic component a and circuit board b, and the negative pressure of the suction nozzle is released to place electronic component a on circuit board b.

[0021] 5 and 6 are conceptual diagrams showing examples of cases where the result of the shadow confirmation step in step S3 is No and examples of cases where the result of the shadow confirmation step in step S3 is Yes. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which the shadow k of electronic component a is shifted to the right from the mounting location on circuit board b. In the state shown in FIG. 5, the shadow k is not in the predetermined location, resulting in a No result in the shadow confirmation step in step S3. On the other hand, in the state shown in FIG. 6, the shadow k is in the predetermined location, resulting in a Yes result in the shadow confirmation step in step S3. Also, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a mark mj or a reference mark kj may be attached to circuit board b, and the result of the shadow confirmation step in step S3 may be determined as Yes based on whether the mark mj is within the shadow k or whether the shadow k is not covering the reference mark. In the shadow confirmation step in step S3, the mark mj or the reference mark kj may be determined by image processing based on an image captured by camera 7. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the reference mark kj used in this embodiment. Fig. 11(a) shows an example in which the shadow k falls on two of the four rectangular marks of a cross-shaped reference mark kj, resulting in a "Yes" result in the shadow confirmation step of step S3. Fig. 11(b) shows an example in which the shadow k falls on a portion of the circular reference mark kj that is 1 / 4 of its area, resulting in a "Yes" result in the shadow confirmation step of step S3. Fig. 11(c) shows an example in which the shadow k falls on one of the square portions of a reference mark kj that is made up of four squares, resulting in a "Yes" result in the shadow confirmation step of step S3.

[0022] As described above, the electronic component mounting machines 1, 10, 20 and electronic component mounting methods according to the embodiments of the present invention have the following advantages: (a) Since lighting positioned directly above the electronic components is used to confirm the shadows of the electronic components immediately before placement on the circuit board, the positional relationship between the electronic components and the circuit board can be directly grasped, allowing the electronic components to be accurately mounted on the circuit board. (b) Since the positional relationship between the electronic components and the circuit board can be directly grasped, cameras and monitors are not required when placing electronic components manually.

[0023] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 30 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component mounting machine 30 includes a stage 2 on which a circuit board b is mounted, a moving unit 3 that moves an electronic component a in the X, Y, and Z directions, an electronic component a, a holding unit 5 that holds the electronic component a, a light 26 positioned directly above the circuit board b, and a camera 7 and a monitor 8 that are linked to the moving unit 3. The embodiment shown in FIG. 7 has a highly versatile configuration because the circuit board is fixed and electronic components are mounted. If the electronic components are moved manually, the camera 7 and monitor 8 may not be necessary.

[0024] The illumination 26 is an illumination for irradiating the surface of the circuit board b with multiple (three in this example) spot lights sp. In this embodiment, the spot lights are circular lights with a diameter of approximately 1 to 5 mm, but any light having a consistent contour shape will suffice. The illumination 6 is an illumination having laser diodes 26a, 26b, and 26c. The light-emitting surfaces of the laser diodes 26a to 26c are configured to be parallel to the circuit board b. Furthermore, the illumination 26 is configured so that each of the laser diodes 26a, 26b, and 26c is movable in the X and Y directions. The laser diodes 26a, 26b, and 26c are moved to irradiate the spot lights on the three corners of the area on the surface of the circuit board b where the electronic component a will be placed. The number of spot lights may be one, two, four, or five or more. Furthermore, the laser diodes 26a to 26c may be red, green, or blue laser diodes. In this case, the spot light projected onto the substrate may be read by, for example, three photodiodes with color filters (a photodiode that responds only to red, a photodiode that responds only to green, and a photodiode that responds only to blue), without using the image from the camera 7. The spot light projected onto the substrate may be read by an image sensor. The illumination 26 may be an LED or other collimated light.

[0025] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for mounting electronic components used in electronic component mounting machine 30 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] In the illumination step of step S11, the illumination 26 is used to irradiate the circuit board b with light from directly above, and spotlight is applied to three corners of the area on the surface of the circuit board b where the electronic component a is to be placed.

[0027] In the moving / rotating step S2, the electronic component a is moved and rotated.

[0028] Next, in the light confirmation step of step S13, the reflected light of the spot light irradiated onto the circuit board b is confirmed. If there is no reflected light from all the spot lights, it is determined that the electronic component a is directly above the mounting location (if Yes), and the next step S4 is executed. If there is a spot light, it is determined that the electronic component a is not directly above the mounting location (if No), and the next step S2 is executed. In the light confirmation step of step S13, the determination may be made by a person, by image processing based on an image captured by the camera 7, or mechanically based on the amount of light detected by an optical sensor (not shown). Note that in the light confirmation step of step S13, it may be determined whether the electronic component a is directly above the mounting location based on the intensity of the reflected light of the spot light. If the spot light is large compared to the electronic component a, the spot light may not be completely hidden by the electronic component a. In such a case, it is determined whether the electronic component a is directly above the mounting location by capturing the change in the intensity of the reflected light of the spot light.

[0029] In the placement step of step S4, electronic component a is placed on circuit board b. Specifically, electronic component a is moved in the height direction to bond electronic component a to circuit board b, and the negative pressure of the suction nozzle is released to place electronic component a on circuit board b.

[0030] 9 and 10 are conceptual diagrams showing an example of a case where the answer to the light confirmation step in step S13 is No and an example of a case where the answer to the light confirmation step in step S13 is Yes. In Fig. 9, since there are three spot lights, it is determined that electronic component a is not directly above the mounting location, resulting in a case where the answer to the light confirmation step in step S13 is No. On the other hand, in the state shown in Fig. 10, there are zero spot lights, so it is determined that electronic component a is directly above the mounting location, resulting in a case where the answer to the light confirmation step in step S13 is Yes.

[0031] 12 is a schematic diagram of an electronic component mounting machine 40 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. The electronic component mounting machine 40 has a configuration in which a holder 5 for holding an electronic component a and a light 26 move together.

[0032] 13 is an enlarged view of an electronic component mounting machine 40 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the laser diodes 26a, 26b, and 26c of the illumination device 26 are each moved in the XY direction, and the spot lights sp1, sp2, and sp3 illuminate three of the four corners of the electronic component a and also illuminate the surface (three locations) of the circuit board b.

[0033] 14 is an image diagram showing an example of a case where the result of the light confirmation step in step S13 in Fig. 8 is Yes when electronic component mounting machine 40 according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention is used. When three spot lights sp1 to sp3 are illuminating the reference marks kj (three of the four reference marks kj) at the position where electronic component a is to be placed, it is determined that electronic component a is directly above the mounting location.

[0034] (a) By using lighting placed directly above the electronic components and projecting a spot of light onto the circuit board, the positional relationship between the electronic components and the circuit board can be directly grasped, allowing the electronic components to be accurately mounted on the circuit board. (b) Because the positional relationship between the electronic components and the circuit board can be directly grasped, cameras and monitors are not required when placing electronic components manually. (c) Because the positional relationship between the electronic components and the circuit board can be grasped by the presence or absence of detection of light projected onto the circuit board, there is no need to use advanced image processing.

[0035] The above-described embodiment illustrates an electronic component placement device that places electronic components on a printed circuit board. However, the present invention can also be used in cases where electronic components are placed on an object or location other than the printed circuit board (e.g., a tray, etc.). The object on which electronic components are placed is not limited to a circuit board, but can also be a flat plate. A flat plate is one that can hold the bottom of the component (fit to a certain extent) when the component is placed, even if the rest of the plate is warped or uneven.

[0036] The above-described embodiment is merely one embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is applicable to a wide range of applications, from small components such as electronic parts to components placed in home appliances and automobiles, and to components used in arranging buildings using a crane. Specifically, by configuring the holding unit 5 and the moving unit 3 as robotic arms, home appliance components and automobile components can be placed in predetermined locations. Furthermore, when components used in arranging buildings using a crane, the holding unit 5 and the moving unit 3 can be configured as a crane structure, allowing the components used in the building to be placed in predetermined locations.

[0037] The above-described embodiment is a preferred example of the present invention, and various technically preferable limitations are applied thereto, but the scope of the present invention is not unduly limited by the above description. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in the above-described embodiment are essential components of the present invention. Furthermore, the configurations described in the above-described embodiment may be added to or combined with each other.

[0038] The present invention can be widely used in component placement devices and placement methods for placing components at predetermined locations.

[0039] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1, 10, 20, 30, 40 Electronic component placement machine 2 Stage 3, 12, 13 Moving unit 5 Holding unit 6, 26 Lighting 7 Camera 8 Monitor 9 Shielding unit 100 Lighting 26a, 26b, 26c Laser diode

Claims

1. A component placement method for placing a component at a predetermined location, comprising: a step of holding the component; a step of moving the component; a step of irradiating light from directly above onto both at least a portion of the component and at least a portion of the predetermined location to create a shadow of the component's outline at the predetermined location; and a step of placing the component at the predetermined location based on the shadow.

Images