Tape Feeder Gear Unit Sensor Positioning for Thin Profile
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge is to create a thinner tape feeder for electronic component mounting apparatuses while maintaining accurate adjustment of the carrier tape's stop position after pitch feeding, as existing designs struggle to accommodate sensors due to the size of sprocket components.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves a gear unit with a sprocket and transmission gears, where a sensor detects the angle of a transmission gear with a 1:N rotation ratio to the final gear, allowing for accurate adjustment and thinning of the tape feeder by positioning the sensor to face a transmission gear, reducing the need for space along the rotation axis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the sensor is disposed to face the sprocket to detect rotation angle, then accurate pitch feeding is achieved, but the tape feeder thickness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the detection dimension from the width direction (facing the sprocket) to the thickness direction (facing the transmission gear). By detecting the rotation angle of the transmission gear through its side surface rather than facing the sprocket directly, the sensor can be positioned in the thickness direction, thereby reducing the overall tape feeder thickness while maintaining detection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The transmission gear serves as an intermediary element between the drive motor and the sprocket. By placing the sensor to detect the rotation angle of this intermediate transmission gear rather than the sprocket itself, the patent enables a more compact arrangement that reduces the tape feeder thickness while still providing accurate rotation information for pitch feeding control.
2Measurement precision
If the sprocket and sensor are arranged with sufficient space, then accurate rotation detection is possible, but the tape feeder cannot be made thin
Solution Approach 1:
The patent repositions the sensor arrangement from the width direction to the thickness direction by detecting the transmission gear's rotation through its side surface. This dimensional change allows sufficient sensor-sprocket spacing for accurate detection without increasing the width that would reduce the number of feeders that can be mounted per unit area.
3Measurement precision
If the sensor faces the sprocket side surface, then rotation angle can be detected, but the tape feeder width increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent detects the rotation angle by facing the transmission gear's side surface (thickness direction) rather than the sprocket's side surface (width direction). This changes the detection orientation from the width dimension to the thickness dimension, reducing the feeder housing width required while maintaining accurate rotation detection capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A gear unit 40 includes: a sprocket 32 including pins 31 provided on a periphery thereof and a final gear 42; and one or more transmission gears disposed between a drive motor 33 and the final gear 42. The pins 31 engage with feed holes provided at equal pitches in a carrier tape. A sensor 48 which detects an angle is provided to face a transmission gear, of the one or more transmission gears, of which a rotation ratio to the final gear 42 is 1:N (N is a positive integer).