Verification and lockout apparatus for bulk feeder
First Claim
1. A bulk circuit component feeder for delivering components contained within a cassette, said feeder comprising:
- a feeder housing defining a component cassette receiving area, said receiving area including a cassette mounting means for registration with said cassette, said housing defining an opening for receiving components from said cassette;
a gate slidable within said cassette receiving area of said housing and interfacing with said mounting means, said gate slidable to cover said opening in a closed position and uncover said opening in an open position upon the attachment of said cassette to said housing;
a spring positioned to bias said gate toward said closed position; and
a biased latch mounted to said housing and engageable with said gate for preventing sliding of said gate toward the open position.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A bulk component feeder is provided for delivering components contained with a bulk cassette. The feeder includes a feeder housing defining a component cassette receiving area. The receiving area includes a cassette mounting means for registration with the cassette, and the housing defines an opening for receiving components from the cassette. A gate slidable within the cassette receiving area interfaces with a mounting means, and the gate is slidable to cover the opening in a closed position and uncover the opening in an open position upon attachment of the cassette to the housing. A spring is used to bias the gate toward the closed position, and a latch is mounted to the housing and is engagable with the gate to prevent sliding of the gale toward the open position and thereby prevent installation of the cassette.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A bulk circuit component feeder for delivering components contained within a cassette, said feeder comprising:
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a feeder housing defining a component cassette receiving area, said receiving area including a cassette mounting means for registration with said cassette, said housing defining an opening for receiving components from said cassette;
a gate slidable within said cassette receiving area of said housing and interfacing with said mounting means, said gate slidable to cover said opening in a closed position and uncover said opening in an open position upon the attachment of said cassette to said housing;
a spring positioned to bias said gate toward said closed position; and
a biased latch mounted to said housing and engageable with said gate for preventing sliding of said gate toward the open position. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A bulk circuit component feeder for delivering components contained within a component cassette, said feeder comprising:
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a feeder housing;
a cassette receiving area on said housing, said receiving area including a pair of spaced apart sidewalls adapted to receive said cassette therebetween;
a gate slidably mounted within said cassette receiving area, said gate being slidably displaceable from a closed position to an open position by a portion of said cassette to allow insertion of said cassette into said receiving area, said gate being biased toward said closed position; and
a plunger mounted to said housing and configured to selectively prevent the slidable displacement of said gate by said cassette, thereby preventing the insertion of said cassette into said receiving area. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A method for supplying a plurality of circuit components for installation to a circuit board, said method comprising the steps of:
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providing a bulk cassette containing a plurality of circuit components, said cassette defining at least one opening for supplying said components therethrough, said cassette including mounting grooves and an identification means on said cassette for identifying the type of bulk components contained in said cassette;
providing at least one bulk component feeder for delivering said components to a component mounting device, said feeder including a housing defining a mounting means for registration with said grooves on said cassette and an opening for receiving components from said cassette, a gate mounted on said housing to slidably cover said opening, and a latch releasably engageable with said gate to prevent the sliding of said gate;
scanning the identification means on said cassette to determine the type of bulk components in said bulk cassette; and
releasing said latch based on said scanning to allow said gate to uncover said opening. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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Specification