US 5,343,997 AGranted

Method and device for successively feeding of components to a mounting apparatus

OwnerHenning Maerkedahlinventor

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Abstract

A feeding device in accordance with the invention comprises a dosing wheel driven by a drive mechanism which rotates on a horizontal axis; a plurality of carrier shelves for receiving the components and attached to an inside periphery of the dosing wheel; an opening disposed in the dosing wheel for supplying the components to the carrier shelves disposed inside the dosing wheel; an inclined sorting groove projecting partly into the dosing wheel and having a V-shaped cross section and a bottom surface having a width corresponding to a width of the components; an open groove positioned between the sorting groove and a covered feeder channel with the open groove having a width which corresponds to the width of the components and with the feeder channel having a cross section corresponding to a cross section of the components; a first air nozzle positioned in front of the feeder channel for blowing away components which are incorrectly oriented to pass into the feeder channel; a forward directed second air nozzle positioned inside the entrance of the feeder channel for blowing the components forward in the feeder channel towards a delivering position; and a delivering mechanism for lifting components in the feeder channel upwards to the delivering position.

Claims13

Dependent claims

A method for successively feeding loose components including SMD-components, to a delivery position of a mounting apparatus with the components having a distance between terminal ends which is larger than a width of the components comprising;

supplying a quantity of loose components to a dosing wheel rotating on a horizontal axis so that the components are carried by carrier shelves disposed along an inside periphery of the dosing wheel upwards to an elevated position;
causing the components to fall from the elevated position into an inclined sorting groove having a V-shaped cross section and a bottom surface having a width corresponding to a width of the components;
causing the components to slide from the sorting groove into an open groove having a width corresponding to a width of the components so that components which do not have a correct orientation in the open groove are blown away by a first air stream contacting the components not having the correct orientation;
causing the components to slide from the open channel to a feeder channel having a cross section which corresponds to a cross section of the components so that components which are correctly oriented in the feeder channel are conveyed by contact with a second air stream in a direction of movement of the components in the feeder channel;
and
causing delivery of the components after passage through the feeder channel to the delivery position by moving the components upward from the end of the feeder channel to the delivery position.

3 more elements

A feeding device comprising:

a dosing wheel driven by a drive mechanism, the wheel rotating on a horizontal axis;
a plurality of carrier shelves for receiving components, the shelves being attached to an inside periphery of the dosing wheel;
a filling opening disposed in the dosing wheel for supplying the components to the carrier shelves disposed inside the dosing wheel;
an inclined sorting groove projecting partly into the dosing wheel and having a V-shaped cross section and a bottom surface having a width corresponding to a width of components;
an open channel positioned between the sorting groove and a covered feeder channel with the open channel having a width which corresponds to the width of the components with the feeder channel having a cross section corresponding to a cross section of the components;
a first air nozzle positioned in front of the feeder channel for producing a first air stream contacting components not having the correct orientation for blowing away components which are not correctly orientated to pass into the feeder channel;
a second air nozzle positioned inside the entrance of the feeder channel for producing a second air stream contacting the components in the feeder channel for blowing the components forward in the feeder channel towards a delivering position;
and
a delivering mechanism for lifting components in the feeder channel upward to the delivering position.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.