Detection device and detection method

Abstract

A magnet is disposed on a pressing member in a discharge tool in such a manner that magnetic poles are aligned in the moving direction of the pressing member. The discharge tool discharges a liquid material loaded therein by the pressing member pushing out the liquid material. A magnetic sensor is disposed outside the discharge tool and detects the magnetic poles of the magnet. This detection device detects the position of the pressing member on the basis of the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor when the discharge tool and the magnetic sensor are relatively moved along the moving direction of the pressing member.

Description

Detection device and detection method

[0001] The present invention relates to a detection device that detects the position of a pressing member and the like.

[0002] The following patent documents describe a technique for detecting the remaining amount of a liquid material in a discharging tool that discharges the liquid material filled therein by a pressing member.

[0003] JP-A-2006-212506, JP-A-2011-147838

[0004] In order to detect the remaining amount of the liquid material filled in the discharging tool, for example, by detecting the position of the pressing member as in the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the remaining amount of the liquid material can be appropriately detected. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to more accurately detect the position of the pressing member. Another object is to appropriately detect the position of a moving body that moves in a predetermined direction, such as the pressing member.

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, this specification discloses a detection device including a magnet disposed on the pressing member such that magnetic poles are arranged in the moving direction of the pressing member in a discharging tool that discharges the liquid material filled therein by pushing it out with the pressing member, a magnetic sensor disposed outside the discharging tool for detecting the magnetic poles of the magnet, and detecting the position of the pressing member based on the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor when the discharging tool and the magnetic sensor are relatively moved along the moving direction of the pressing member.

[0006] Also, in order to solve the above problems, this specification discloses a detection method using a magnet disposed on a moving body that moves in a predetermined direction such that magnetic poles are arranged in the predetermined direction and a magnetic sensor for detecting the magnetic poles of the magnet, and detecting the position of the moving body at the timing when the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor are switched when the moving body and the magnetic sensor are relatively moved along the predetermined direction.

[0007] In this disclosure, for example, the position of the pressing member is detected based on the magnetic pole detected by the magnetic sensor when the dispensing tool and the magnetic sensor are moved relative to each other along the direction of movement of the pressing member. This allows for appropriate detection of the position of the pressing member. In addition, for example, the position of the moving body is detected at the moment when the magnetic pole detected by the magnetic sensor switches when the moving body and the magnetic sensor are moved relative to each other along a predetermined direction. This allows for appropriate detection of the position of the moving body.

[0008] This is a perspective view showing an electronic component mounting system. This is a plan view showing a work unit. This is a perspective view showing the dispensing head with the cartridge in the raised position. This is a cross-sectional view showing the cartridge and syringe. This is a perspective view showing the dispensing head with the cartridge in the lowered position. This is a diagram showing a method for detecting the remaining amount of adhesive using a metal sensor. This is a diagram showing a method for detecting the remaining amount of adhesive using a magnetic sensor. This is a diagram showing the relative positions of the syringe and the magnetic sensor.

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the figures, as embodiments for carrying out the present invention.

[0010] Figure 1 shows an electronic component mounting system 10. The electronic component mounting system 10 consists of one system base 12 and one work unit 16 mounted on the system base 12. As shown in Figure 2, the work unit 16 is equipped with two board-to-board work machines 18. The two board-to-board work machines 18 are arranged adjacent to each other, and the direction in which the two board-to-board work machines 18 are aligned is called the X-axis direction, and the horizontal direction perpendicular to that direction is called the Y-axis direction. Figure 2 is a plan view showing the interior of the work unit 16 from a top-down perspective.

[0011] The two substrate handling machines 18 have substantially the same structure, and each substrate handling machine 18 mainly consists of a work machine body 20, a transport device 22, a moving device 24, and a feeder holding base 26. The work machine body 20 is composed of a frame 32 and a beam 34 (see Figure 1) mounted on the frame 32.

[0012] The transport device 22 is equipped with two conveyor devices 40 and 42. The conveyor devices 40 and 42 are arranged on the frame 32 parallel to each other and extending in the X-axis direction. The conveyor devices 40 and 42 transport the circuit boards they support in the X-axis direction using electromagnetic motors (not shown). The circuit boards are also held in place at predetermined positions by a board holding device (not shown).

[0013] The mobile device 24 is an XY robot type mobile device and includes an electromagnetic motor (not shown) that slides the slider 50 in the X-axis direction and an electromagnetic motor (not shown) that slides it in the Y-axis direction. The slider 50 can be selectively fitted with either a mounting head 60 or a discharge head 62. Either the mounting head 60 or the discharge head 62 attached to the slider moves to any position on the frame 32 by the operation of the two electromagnetic motors.

[0014] The mounting head 60 is used to mount electronic components onto a circuit board. A suction nozzle 66 is provided on the lower end surface of the mounting head 60. The suction nozzle 66 is connected to a positive and negative pressure supply device (not shown) via negative pressure air and positive pressure air passages. The suction nozzle 66 attracts and holds electronic components using negative pressure and releases the held electronic components using positive pressure. The mounting head 60 also has a nozzle lifting device (not shown) that raises and lowers the suction nozzle 66. The nozzle lifting device allows the mounting head 60 to change the vertical position of the held electronic component. The suction nozzle 66 is detachable from the mounting head 60 and can be replaced according to the size of the electronic component, etc. The mounting head 60 is attached to the slider 50b of the right-hand board-to-board work machine 18b of the two board-to-board work machines 18.

[0015] Furthermore, the dispensing head 62 dispenses adhesive onto the circuit board. As shown in Figure 3, the dispensing head 62 comprises a head body 70, a cartridge 72, and a syringe 74. The head body 70 is detachably mounted on the slider 50, and the lower end of the head body 70 is generally arched. The cartridge 72 is generally cylindrical and pot-shaped, and is detachably mounted on the adapter 75 inside the arched lower end of the head body 70.

[0016] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, the syringe 74 is composed of an outer cylinder 76, a plunger 78, and a nozzle 80. The outer cylinder 76 is generally cylindrical in shape, with its inner diameter reduced at the lower end. The nozzle 80 is fitted to the lower end of the outer cylinder 76 where the inner diameter is reduced. The plunger 78 is slidably disposed inside the outer cylinder 76, and the interior of the outer cylinder 76 is partitioned by the plunger 78, creating a space 82 below the plunger 78. This space 82 is filled with adhesive 84, and when the plunger 78 is pressed downward, the adhesive 84 is discharged from the tip of the nozzle 80.

[0017] Furthermore, the external dimensions of the syringe 74 are slightly smaller than the internal dimensions of the cartridge 72, and the syringe 74 is housed inside the cartridge 72. A through-hole 86 is formed in the bottom surface of the cartridge 72, and the nozzle 80 of the syringe 74 housed inside the cartridge 72 extends downward from the bottom surface of the cartridge 72 through the through-hole 86. The syringe 74 is detachably housed in the cartridge 72, and it is possible to replace it with a new syringe 74 when the amount of adhesive 84 inside decreases.

[0018] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the adapter 75 to which the cartridge 72 is mounted is held so as to be able to move up and down inside the arch shape at the lower end of the head body 70, and moves up and down by the operation of the lifting device 88.Therefore, in the discharge head 62, the cartridge 72 with the syringe 74 housed inside is mounted on the adapter 75, and as shown in Figure 5, the cartridge 72 is lowered by the operation of the lifting device 88, causing the syringe 74 to discharge adhesive 84 onto the circuit board.Note that, as shown in Figure 2, the discharge head 62 is attached to the slider 50a of the left-hand circuit board work machine 18a of the two circuit board work machines 18.

[0019] Furthermore, the feeder holder 26 of the substrate processing machine 18 is located at one end of the frame 32 in the Y-axis direction, and multiple tape feeders 90 can be attached to the feeder holder 26. The tape feeders 90 house tape-formed components, which are constructed by taping electronic components, in a wound state. The tape feeders 90 then feed out the tape-formed components using a feeding device (not shown). As a result, the tape feeders 90 attached to the feeder holder 26 supply electronic components at the supply position by feeding out the tape-formed components. The tape feeders 90 are detachable from the feeder holder 26, allowing for replacement of electronic components, etc.

[0020] In the work unit 16, as described above, adhesive is dispensed onto the circuit board in the board-to-board work machine 18a, and electronic components are mounted onto the circuit board in the board-to-board work machine 18b. Specifically, the work unit 16 is equipped with a control device (see Figure 1) 100. In the work unit 16, when a circuit board is loaded into the board-to-board work machine 18a, the transport device 22a of the board-to-board work machine 18a transports the circuit board to the work position at the command of the control device 100 and holds the circuit board fixedly in that position. Then, the moving device 24a is activated at the command of the control device 100, causing the dispensing head 62 to move above the circuit board and dispense adhesive 84 onto the upper surface of the circuit board using a syringe 74. At this time, the dispensing head 62 dispenses the adhesive 84 at the position on the circuit board where the electronic components are to be mounted. When the dispensing of the adhesive 84 by the dispensing head 62 is completed, the circuit board is removed from the board-to-board work machine 18a and loaded into the board-to-board work machine 18b.

[0021] When a circuit board is loaded into the circuit board handling machine 18b, the transport device 22b of the circuit board handling machine 18b transports the circuit board to the work position according to a command from the control device 100 and holds the circuit board fixedly in that position. In addition, the tape feeder 90 of the circuit board handling machine 18b feeds out tape-formed components according to a command from the control device 100 and supplies electronic components to the supply position. Then, the moving device 24b is activated according to a command from the control device 100, causing the mounting head 60 to move above the supply position of the electronic components and to pick up and hold the electronic components with the suction nozzle 66. Furthermore, the moving device 24b is activated according to a command from the control device 100, causing the mounting head 60 to move above the planned mounting position of the electronic components on the circuit board, that is, above the position where the adhesive is dispensed, and mounts the held electronic components onto the circuit board. As a result, the electronic components are mounted on the circuit board in a state where they are bonded to the predetermined position with adhesive.

[0022] Thus, in the work unit 16, adhesive 84 is dispensed onto the circuit board by the circuit board work machine 18a, and electronic components are mounted onto the circuit board by the circuit board work machine 18b. For this reason, when the amount of adhesive 84 in the syringe 74 decreases due to the dispensing of adhesive 84 by the dispensing head 62 in the circuit board work machine 18a, it is necessary to replace the syringe 74 with a new one. Therefore, it is desirable to detect the remaining amount of adhesive 84 in the syringe 74, but conventional methods for detecting the remaining amount of adhesive 84 have had various problems.

[0023] Specifically, in the conventional method for detecting the remaining amount of adhesive 84, as shown in Figure 6, a metal seal 110 is attached around the entire circumference of the outer surface of the plunger 78, and a metal sensor 112 for detecting the proximity of metal is disposed on the head body 70 of the discharge head 62. As mentioned above, in the discharge head 62, the syringe 74 is housed in a cartridge 72, and the cartridge 72 moves up and down by the operation of a lifting device 88. The direction in which the cartridge 72 moves up and down is the same as the direction in which the plunger 78 moves in the syringe 74 housed in the cartridge 72. The metal sensor 112 is fixed to the head body 70 so as to face the syringe 74 in the left-right direction. Therefore, as the cartridge 72 moves up and down in the discharge head 62, the syringe 74 and the metal sensor 112 move relative to each other in the direction of the cartridge 72's movement. Note that in Figure 6, the cartridge 72 that houses the syringe 74 and the head body 70 to which the metal sensor 112 is fixed are omitted.

[0024] Furthermore, in the discharge head 62, a reference position for the plunger 78 is set, and the cartridge 72 is raised and lowered by the lifting device 88 so that the upper end of the plunger 78 coincides with the reference position in the vertical direction. Then, from the state where the upper end of the plunger 78 coincides with the reference position in the vertical direction, the cartridge 72 is lowered. At this time, the syringe 74 descends together with the cartridge 72, and when the metal seal 110 attached to the plunger 78 of the syringe 74 faces the metal sensor 112 in the left-right direction, the metal sensor 112 detects the metal seal 110. The position of the upper end of the syringe 74 at this time becomes the detection position. In this way, the descent distance X when the syringe 74 descends from the reference position to the detection position is calculated as the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74. Thus, in the conventional method for detecting the remaining amount of adhesive 84, the position of the plunger 78 is detected using the metal sensor 112, and the remaining amount of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74 is calculated based on the position of the plunger 78.

[0025] However, because the detection distance for metal by the metal sensor 112 is very short, it may not be possible to install the metal sensor 112 depending on the structure of the dispensing head 62. Also, if a larger metal sensor 112 is installed to increase the detection distance, it is necessary to secure a large installation space, which may result in the dispensing head 62 becoming larger. Furthermore, although the syringe 74 is filled with adhesive, there are also syringes that are filled with liquid materials containing metal, such as solder or silver paste. When attempting to detect the remaining amount in such a syringe using the metal sensor, the metal sensor may react to the metal contained in the liquid material, and may not be able to properly detect the metal seal 110 attached to the plunger 78. In such cases, it is not possible to properly detect the remaining amount of liquid material filled in the syringe.

[0026] In light of these considerations, the dispensing head 62 uses a magnetic sensor to detect the position of the plunger 78, and the remaining amount of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74 is calculated based on the position of the plunger 78. Specifically, as shown in Figure 7, a magnet 120 is disposed inside the plunger 78. The magnet 120 is generally disc-shaped, with one side of the disc being the south pole and the other side being the north pole. The magnet 120 is disposed inside the plunger 78 such that the south pole side faces downward and the north pole side faces upward. The magnet 120 is disposed inside the plunger 78 so as to be perpendicular to the direction of movement of the plunger 78 inside the outer cylinder 76.

[0027] Furthermore, the magnetic sensor 122 is fixed to the head body 70 so as to face the syringe 74 in the left-right direction. Specifically, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, the magnetic sensor 122 is fixed to the portion of the head body 70 corresponding to the arch-shaped gate where the cartridge 72 is disposed, so as to face the cartridge 72. As a result, when the cartridge 72 moves up and down in the dispensing head 62, the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 move relative to each other in the direction of the up and down movement of the cartridge 72. Note that in Figure 7, the cartridge 72 that houses the syringe 74 and the head body 70 to which the magnetic sensor 122 is fixed are omitted.

[0028] Furthermore, the relative positional relationship between the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 in the vertical direction of the cartridge 72 is set based on the syringe 74 when the plunger 78 has moved to the bottom inner surface of the outer cylinder 76 and the amount of adhesive remaining is zero or almost zero, as shown in Figure 8. Specifically, the upper end of the plunger 78 is set as the reference position when the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 coincide in a direction perpendicular to the direction of movement of the plunger 78 when the plunger 78 has moved to the bottom inner surface of the outer cylinder 76. Therefore, as shown in Figure 7, when there is adhesive 84 remaining on the plunger 78, if the cartridge 72 is raised or lowered by the lifting device 88 so that the reference position and the upper end of the plunger 78 coincide in the vertical direction, the plunger 78 will be positioned above the magnetic sensor 122. Then, the cartridge 72 containing the syringe 74 is lowered to a position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other. The position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 face each other is the position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 coincide in a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction of the cartridge 72. The downward distance X of the cartridge 72 at this time is the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 remaining in the syringe 74. In this way, the relative positional relationship between the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 is set to the position shown in Figure 8, and the upper end of the syringe 74 at that positional relationship is set to the reference position. Then, by detecting the downward distance X of the cartridge 72 from the reference position with the magnetic sensor 122, the detected downward distance X is calculated as the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 remaining in the syringe 74.

[0029] The position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other is determined based on the magnetic pole detected by the magnetic sensor 122. Specifically, when the reference position and the upper end of the plunger 78 coincide in the vertical direction, the magnetic sensor 122 is located below the magnet 120 of the plunger 78, and therefore the magnetic sensor 122 detects the south pole on the lower surface of the magnet 120. Furthermore, even when the cartridge 72 containing the syringe 74 is lowered and the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 approaches the magnetic sensor 122, the magnetic sensor 122 is still located below the magnet 120 and therefore detects the south pole. When the cartridge 72 is lowered to a position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other, the magnetic sensor 122 stops detecting the magnetic pole. Then, when the cartridge 72 is lowered from a position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other, the magnetic sensor 122 is positioned above the magnet 120 of the plunger 78, and therefore the magnetic sensor 122 detects the north pole on the upper surface of the magnet 120. In other words, when the cartridge 72 is lowered from a state where the reference position and the upper end of the plunger 78 coincide in the vertical direction, the magnetic sensor 122 initially detects the south pole, and then stops detecting the magnetic pole when the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other. For this reason, the position where the magnetic sensor 122 stops detecting the magnetic pole after detecting the south pole, that is, the position where the magnetic pole detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switches, is the position where the magnet 120 of the plunger 78 and the magnetic sensor 122 are directly facing each other, and is the position where the magnet 120 is detected by the magnetic sensor 122.

[0030] Therefore, the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 in the syringe 74 is calculated based on the detection position of the magnet 120 detected by the magnetic sensor 122, that is, the detection position of the plunger. Specifically, the detection value from the magnetic sensor 122 is input to the control device 100. The control device 100 also measures the descent distance of the cartridge 72 when it is lowered from a state where the reference position and the upper end of the plunger 78 coincide in the vertical direction. For this reason, the control device 100 determines the descent distance X of the cartridge 72 from the reference position to the detection position, using the upper end position of the syringe 74 at the time when the magnetic sensor 122 detects the south pole and then stops detecting a magnetic pole as the detection position. As described above, the descent distance X of the cartridge 72 from the reference position to the detection position is the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 in the syringe 74. For this reason, the control device 100 calculates the descent distance X of the cartridge 72 from the reference position to the detection position as the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 in the syringe 74.

[0031] In this way, the magnetic sensor 122 detects the position of the plunger at the moment when it stops detecting a magnetic pole after detecting the south pole, that is, at the moment when the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switches, and the control device 100 calculates the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 based on that plunger position. In other words, a detection device 130 consisting of the magnet 120, the magnetic sensor 122, and the control device 100 is provided, and the remaining amount X of adhesive 84 can be suitably detected by this detection device 130. For this reason, even if, for example, the structure of the discharge head 62 makes it impossible to place the magnet 120 and the magnetic sensor 122 close together, by using a magnet 120 with strong magnetic force, the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 can be detected by the magnetic sensor 122. This prevents the discharge head 62 from becoming larger. Furthermore, since the detection of magnetic poles by the magnetic sensor 122 is not affected by metal, even if the syringe is filled with a liquid material containing metal such as solder or silver paste, the remaining amount of liquid material in the syringe can be appropriately detected by using the magnetic sensor 122.

[0032] In the above embodiment, the dispensing head 62 is an example of a dispensing head. The cartridge 72 is an example of a cartridge. The syringe 74 is an example of a dispensing device. The plunger 78 is an example of a pressing member and a moving body. The adhesive 84 is an example of a liquid material. The control device 100 is an example of an information processing device. The magnet 120 is an example of a magnet. The magnetic sensor 122 is an example of a magnetic sensor. The detection device 130 is an example of a detection device.

[0033] In the embodiment described above, the following effects are achieved.

[0034] The detection device 130 includes a magnet 120 disposed on the plunger 78 and a magnetic sensor 122 for detecting the magnetic poles of the magnet 120. The position of the plunger 78 is detected based on the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor 122 when the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 are moved relative to each other along the direction of movement of the plunger 78. As a result, even if the liquid material contains metal such as solder, the position of the plunger 78 can be appropriately detected without being affected by the metal.

[0035] Furthermore, the control device 100 calculates the remaining amount of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74 based on the relative positional relationship between the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 shown in Figure 8, and the position of the plunger 78 detected based on the magnetic poles of the magnetic sensor 122. In other words, as shown in Figure 7, the control device 100 calculates the remaining amount of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74 as the downward distance X from the reference position to the detection position of the syringe 74. This allows for the accurate calculation of the remaining amount of adhesive 84 filled in the syringe 74.

[0036] The detection device 130 detects the position of the plunger at the moment when the magnetic sensor 122 stops detecting a magnetic pole after detecting the south pole, that is, at the moment when the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switches. This allows the position of the plunger 78 to be detected appropriately.

[0037] Furthermore, the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 are arranged on the dispensing head 62. This allows for the accurate calculation of the remaining amount of adhesive 84 dispensed by the dispensing head 62.

[0038] Furthermore, the syringe 74 is held by the dispensing head 62 so as to be movable along the direction of movement of the plunger 78, and the magnetic sensor 122 is fixedly mounted on the dispensing head 62. As the syringe 74 moves along the direction of movement of the plunger 78, the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 move relative to each other along the direction of movement of the plunger 78. The lifting device 88 that moves the plunger 78 is a device used when the dispensing head 62 dispenses the adhesive 84. In this way, the syringe 74 and the magnetic sensor 122 can be moved relative to each other using the conventional lifting device 88.

[0039] Furthermore, the syringe 74 is held in place by the dispensing head 62 so as to be movable along the direction of movement of the syringe 74 while it is housed in the cartridge 72. The syringe 74 housed in the cartridge 72 is replaceable. This allows the position of the plunger 78 to be appropriately detected for various syringes 74, even when different syringes 74 are housed in the cartridge 72.

[0040] Furthermore, when the plunger 78 is considered as a moving body that moves in a predetermined direction, a magnet 120 is arranged on the plunger 78 such that its magnetic poles are aligned in that predetermined direction, and the magnetic poles of the magnet 120 are detected by the magnetic sensor 122. When the plunger 78 as a moving body and the magnetic sensor 122 are moved relative to each other along the predetermined direction, the position of the plunger 78 as a moving body at the moment when the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switch is detected. This makes it possible to appropriately detect the position of the plunger 78 moving in the predetermined direction.

[0041] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented in various forms with various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art. Specifically, for example, in the above embodiment, the plunger 78 is employed as the moving body, but various other moving bodies can be adopted as long as they move in a predetermined direction. The predetermined direction in which the moving body moves includes not only a linearly extending direction but also various directions such as a curved shape and a spiral shape.

[0042] In the above embodiment, the position of the plunger 78 at the timing when the magnetic sensor 122 stops detecting the magnetic pole after detecting the S pole is detected. On the other hand, the position of the plunger 78 at the timing when the magnetic sensor 122 stops detecting the magnetic pole after detecting the N pole may also be detected. Further, the position of the plunger 78 at the timing when the magnetic sensor 122 detects the other pole of the S pole and the N pole after detecting one of the S pole and the N pole, that is, at the timing when the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switches from one of the S pole and the N pole to the other of the S pole and the N pole, may also be detected.

[0043] In the above embodiment, the position of the plunger 78 at the timing when the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 detected by the magnetic sensor 122 switches is detected. On the other hand, instead of the switching timing, for example, the position of the plunger 78 at the timing when the magnetic sensor 122 does not detect the magnetic pole of the magnet 120 may be detected.

[0044] In the above embodiment, the plunger 78 is employed as the pressing member. However, for example, a pressing member that extrudes solder by sliding contact within a solder pot filled with solder may be adopted. The solder supply device composed of such a pressing member and a solder pot functions as a solder discharging tool that discharges solder from the bottom surface of the solder pot or a hole formed in the pressing member.

[0045] In the above embodiment, the adhesive 84 is employed as the liquid material. However, various liquid materials can be adopted as long as they are liquid members. For example, liquid materials used in mounting substrates such as the above adhesive 84, solder, flux, underfill, etc. can be adopted.

[0046] 62: Dispensing head 72: Cartridge 74: Syringe (dispensing device) 78: Plunger (pressing member) (moving body) 84: Adhesive (liquid material) 100: Control device (information processing device) 120: Magnet 122: Magnetic sensor 130: Detection device

Claims

1. A magnet disposed on a pressing member of a dispensing device that dispenses a liquid material filled inside by pushing it out with a pressing member, such that the magnetic poles are aligned in the direction of movement of the pressing member; a magnetic sensor disposed outside the dispensing device for detecting the magnetic poles of the magnet; and a detection device that detects the position of the pressing member based on the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor when the dispensing device and the magnetic sensor are moved relative to each other along the direction of movement of the pressing member.

2. The detection device according to claim 1, further comprising an information processing device that calculates the remaining amount of liquid material filled in the dispensing device based on the relative positional relationship between the dispensing device and the magnetic sensor and the position of the pressing member detected based on the magnetic pole of the magnetic sensor.

3. The detection device according to claim 1, which detects the position of the pressing member at the timing when the magnetic pole detected by the magnetic sensor switches.

4. The detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the dispensing device and the magnetic sensor are arranged on the dispensing head.

5. The detection device according to claim 4, wherein the dispensing device is held by the dispensing head so as to be movable along the direction of movement of the pressing member, the magnetic sensor is fixedly disposed on the dispensing head, and as the dispensing device moves along the direction of movement of the pressing member, the dispensing device and the magnetic sensor move relative to each other along the direction of movement of the pressing member.

6. The detection device according to claim 5, wherein the dispensing device is housed in a cartridge and is held by the dispensing head so as to be movable along the direction of movement of the pressing member, and the dispensing device housed in the cartridge is replaceable.

7. A detection method for detecting the position of a moving body at the moment when the magnetic poles detected by the magnetic sensor switch when the moving body and the magnetic sensor are moved relative to each other along the predetermined direction, using a magnet arranged on the moving body so that its magnetic poles are aligned in the predetermined direction, and a magnetic sensor for detecting the magnetic poles of the magnet.

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