DUT Handling Apparatus with 3D Shape Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic component handling apparatuses face issues with operation rate and DUT breakage due to incorrect accommodation states in customer trays, such as empty, overlapping, or inclined positions, which can cause pick-and-place devices to malfunction or damage components.
Innovation Solution
An electronic component handling apparatus equipped with a sensor to acquire three-dimensional shape data of the DUT container, a processor to correct and analyze the data for inclination and height, and determine the accommodation state of DUTs, allowing for pre-approach detection of abnormal states and improved handling accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the pick-and-place device operates without detecting accommodation state, then the handling process is simple and fast, but the device may stop due to empty pockets or damage DUT due to inclined/overlapping placement
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of the accommodation state (empty pockets, inclined placement, overlapping DUT) using a sensor before the pick-and-place operation. This advance detection allows the system to identify and avoid problematic pockets, preventing device stops and DUT damage while maintaining a relatively simple overall system architecture.
2Reliability
If the pick-and-place device skips abnormal pockets, then DUT damage is prevented, but the operation rate decreases due to frequent stopping and position adjustments
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor detects abnormal pockets (empty, inclined, overlapping) in advance before the pick-and-place head reaches them. This allows the system to pre-plan its path, skipping abnormal pockets efficiently without unnecessary stopping or position adjustments during the main operation cycle, thereby maintaining high operation rates while protecting DUT integrity.
3Measurement precision
If the sensor detects three-dimensional shape data for all pockets, then accurate accommodation state determination is achieved, but the data processing time and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system focuses measurement and analysis resources on critical local features of the accommodation state - specifically detecting height and inclination angles at key measurement points within each pocket. By concentrating on these essential local characteristics rather than processing all possible data points, the system achieves accurate detection of abnormal states (empty pockets, inclined placement, overlapping) while minimizing data processing time and computational load.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic component handling apparatus handles a device under test (DUT). The electronic component handling apparatus includes: a set plate that holds a DUT container including a plurality of pockets each of which accommodates the DUT; a sensor that acquires three-dimensional shape data of the DUT container; and a processor that corrects the shape data based on an inclination of the set plate, extracts a height and an inclination of a predetermined region corresponding to the DUT in a first pocket among the pockets, from the shape data corrected by the processor, and determines an accommodation state of the DUT in the first pocket based on an extraction result obtained by the processor.