Component mounting method and component mounting apparatus

• US 6,289,582 B1
• Filed: 12/10/1998
• Issued: 09/18/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Maenishi, Yasuhiro, Kuribayashi, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Arbes, Carl J.
• Application Number:
  US09/202,180
• Time in Patent Office: 1,013 Days
• Field of Search: 298/25, 298/32, 297/40, 295/641, 298/33
• US Class Current: 29/832
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 13/085 Production planning, e.g. of allocation of products to machines, of mounting sequences at machine or facility level
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/4913 Assembling to base an electrical component, e.g., capacitor, etc.
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49131 by utilizing optical sighting device
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/5137 including assembling or disassembling station
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53178 Chip component

Abstract

Components are arrayed on a component feeder (4) along a direction in which the component feeder moves, in correspondence to respective mounting sequences of the components to be mounted on their respective component mounting positions in a printed board (1). The components arrayed in the array order are successively moved along the mounting sequence by successively moving the component feeder in the feeder moving direction. Thus, the components are mounted to the printed board successively by the component holder.

Claims

1. A component mounting method comprising:

defining a mounting sequence of a plurality of different types of components to be mounted on a printed circuit board;

arraying component accommodating units accommodating the components in a component feeder in accordance with the mounting sequence, a total number of component accommodating units arrayed in the component feeder being equal to a total number of components to be mounted on each printed circuit board, each of the component accommodating units accommodating one type of component;

arranging the printed circuit board on a movable X-Y table;

successively removing a component from each of the respective component accommodating units in the component feeder by using a component holder;

successively moving the component feeder in a predetermined feeder moving direction after the component is successively removed from each of the respective component accommodating units in the component feeder;

holding at least one of the removed components at a component holding position by using the component holder;

moving the at least one held component to a component releasing position by using the component holder;

moving the X-Y table so as to align a component mounting position on the printed circuit board with the component releasing position;

releasing the at least one held component at the component releasing position; and

mounting the released component at the component mounting position on the printed circuit board.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said defining of the mounting sequence comprises defining a mounting sequence such that said moving of the X-Y table is minimized.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units comprises arraying a first component accommodating unit to an nth component accommodating unit in order in the component feeder in the feeder moving direction, wherein n is an integer of at least 2;

and

wherein when the printed circuit board is moved to an initial mounting position by the X-Y table at a start of the component mounting method, said defining of the mounting sequence for the components in the first component accommodating unit to the components in the nth component accommodating unit comprises defining a mounting sequence such that an immediate component mounting position at which an immediate component is to be mounted is closest to a succeeding mounting position at which a succeeding component is to be next mounted after the immediate component is mounted.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units comprises arraying a first component accommodating unit to an nth component accommodating unit in order in the component feeder in the feeder moving direction, wherein n is an integer of at least 2;

and

wherein when the printed circuit board is moved to an initial mounting position by the X-Y table at a start of the component mounting method, said defining of the mounting sequence for the components in the first component accommodating unit to the components in the nth component accommodating unit comprises defining a mounting sequence such that an immediate component mounting position at which an immediate component is to be mounted is closest to a succeeding mounting position at which a succeeding component is to be next mounted after the immediate component is mounted.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein when the X-Y table is movable along an X-axis parallel to the feeder moving direction and along a Y-axis perpendicular to the X-axis and within a plane of the X-axis, said defining of the mounting sequence for the plurality of different types of components comprises defining the mounting sequence such that said mounting of the released components is to be conducted along a first direction of the X-axis at a first point along the Y-axis, and when said mounting along the first direction of the X-axis at the first point along the Y-axis is complete, the X-Y table is to be moved to a second point along the Y-axis adjacent to the first point and said mounting is to be conducted along a second direction of the X-axis opposite the first direction at the second point along the Y-axis, said mounting to be performed successively.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units comprises:

classifying the different types of components into groups according to a mounting cycle time for each of the types of components such that each component in each of the groups has a same mounting cycle time;

arranging the component accommodating units containing the types of components of each group in the component feeder such that the groups are arranged in ascending order within the component feeder along the feeder moving direction from a group having a shortest mounting cycle time to a group having a largest mounting cycle time; and

arranging the component accommodating units in each of the groups according to the mounting sequence such that a movement of the X-Y table is minimized.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said defining of the mounting sequence comprises defining a mounting sequence such that said moving of the X-Y table is minimized.

12. A component mounting method comprising:

defining a mounting sequence of a plurality of different types components to be mounted on a printed circuit board;

gathering the components into groups, each of the groups including components of a same type;

positioning each of the groups of components in a respective one of a plurality of component accommodating units, a total number of component accommodating units being equal to a total number of components to be mounted on each printed circuit board;

arraying the component accommodating units in a component feeder irrespective of the mounting sequence;

arranging the printed circuit board on a movable X-Y table;

successively moving the component feeder according to the mounting sequence so as to place at least one component of a respective one of the component accommodating units at a component removing position;

successively removing the at least one component from the component feeder by using a component holder after the at least one component has been moved to the component removing position;

holding the at least one removed component at a component holding position by using the component holder;

moving the at least one held component to a component releasing position by using the component holder;

moving the X-Y table so as to align a component mounting position on the printed circuit board with the component releasing position;

releasing the at least one held component at the component releasing position; and

mounting the released component at the component mounting position on the printed circuit board.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units comprises arraying a first component accommodating unit to an nth component accommodating unit in order in the component feeder in the feeder moving direction, wherein n is an integer of at least 2;

and

wherein when the printed circuit board is moved to an initial mounting position by the X-Y table at a start of the component mounting method, said defining of the mounting sequence for the components in the first component accommodating unit to the components in the nth component accommodating unit comprises defining a mounting sequence such that an immediate component mounting position at which an immediate component is to be mounted is closest to a succeeding mounting position at which a succeeding component is to be next mounted after the immediate component is mounted.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein when the X-Y table is movable along an X-axis parallel to the feeder moving direction and along a Y-axis perpendicular to the X-axis and within a plane of the X-axis, said defining of the mounting sequence for the plurality of different types of components comprises defining the mounting sequence such that said mounting of the released components is to be conducted along a first direction of the X-axis at a first point along the Y-axis, and when said mounting along the first direction of the X-axis at the first point along the Y-axis is complete, the X-Y table is to be moved to a second point along the Y-axis adjacent to the first point and said mounting is to be conducted along a second direction of the X-axis opposite the first direction at the second point along the Y-axis, said mounting to be performed successively.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein said arraying of the component accommodating units in the component feeder comprises accommodating one type of component in each of the component accommodating units along the feeder moving direction in accordance with the mounting sequence such that each of the component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

17. A component mounting apparatus comprising:

a component holder having a component holding portion for holding a component to be mounted on a printed circuit board and for releasing the held component at a component releasing position, said component holder being operable to move between an initial component holding position and the component releasing position;

a component feeder for holding a plurality of component accommodating units arrayed in said component feeder along a component feeder moving direction, a total number of component accommodating units being equal to a total number of components to be mounted on each printed circuit board, each of said component accommodating units accommodating a plurality of one type of components, said component feeder being operable to successively move in the component feeder moving direction after a component from each of the component accommodating units is removed by said component holding portion of said component holder;

a movable X-Y table for holding the printed circuit board and for moving the printed circuit board relative to said component holder to a component mounting position; and

a component-mounting controller for controlling an operation of said movable X-Y table based on a predetermined mounting sequence of the components such that the component mounting position of the printed circuit board is aligned with the component releasing position of said component holder.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:

when a first component accommodating unit to an nth component accommodating unit are arrayed in order in said component feeder along the feeder moving direction, wherein n is an integer of at least 2, and when the printed circuit board is moved to an initial mounting position by said X-Y table at a start of the component mounting method, and when the X-Y table is movable along an X-axis parallel to the feeder moving direction and along a Y-axis perpendicular to the X-axis and within a plane of the X-axis;

said component-mounting controller being operable to control the predetermined mounting sequence such that mounting of the released components is conducted along a first direction of the X-axis at a first point along the Y-axis, and when the mounting along the first direction of the X-axis at the first point along the Y-axis is complete, said component-mounting controller is operable to move said X-Y table to a second point along the Y-axis adjacent to the first point so that mounting is conducted along a second direction of the X-axis opposite the first direction at the second point along the Y-axis; and

said component-mounting controller being operable to control the mounting sequence such that the mounting is performed successively so that an immediate component mounting position at which an immediate component is to be mounted is closest to a succeeding mounting position at which a succeeding component is to be next mounted after the immediate component is mounted.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein said component accommodating units are to be arrayed in said component feeder by classifying different types of components into groups according to a mounting cycle time for each of the components such that each component in each of the groups has a same mounting cycle time;

arranging said component accommodating units in said component feeder such that the groups are arranged in ascending order within said component feeder along the feeder moving direction from a group having a shortest mounting cycle time to a group having a largest mounting cycle time; and

arranging said component accommodating units accommodating components from each of the groups according to the mounting sequence such that a movement of said X-Y table is minimized.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said component feeder is adapted to hold component accommodating units accommodating components from one of a plurality of groups, each of the groups including components of a same type, and the groups are to be arrayed in said component feeder irrespective of the mounting sequence;

said component feeder being operable to successively move according to the mounting sequence so as to successively place the components at a component removing position; and

said component holder being operable to successively mount the components at the component mounting position on the printed circuit board.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein each of said component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

22. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein said component feeder is adapted to hold component accommodating units accommodating components from one of a plurality of groups, each of the groups including components of a same type, and the groups are to be arrayed in said component feeder irrespective of the mounting sequence;

said component feeder being operable to successively move according to the mounting sequence so as to successively place the components at a component removing position; and

said component holder being operable to successively mount the components at the component mounting position on the printed circuit board.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein each of said component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.

24. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein each of said component accommodating units accommodates an equal number of components.