Surface mount component dispensing system

A system for dispensing surface mount components on carrier tape, comprising:

• a dispenser on which tape is coiled, including a pair of circular side walls spaced slightly greater than a width of the carrier tape and having a diameter of about 4 inches, and printed information on an outer face of one of said circular side walls said information being positioned within an outer circle concentric with a perimeter of said circular side wall;
• a central cylindrical drive hub including three radially outwardly directed drive fingers circumferentially spaced about said hub;
• a cylindrical wall connecting said side wall at a location between said drive fingers and a perimeter of said side walls;
• at least two connecting portions between said cylindrical wall and said drive hub for centering and supporting said hub at the center of said cylindrical wall;
• a pair of tape receiving slots extending from an outer surface of said cylindrical wall radially inward to a location proximate said hub, said radially inwardly directed slots diametrically opposed across said hub and circumferentially spaced around said hub an equal distance from one of said fingers;
• and
• a package/display box sized to receive said dispenser and having a display window defining an opening in one panel adjacent said dispenser face, said window surrounding said outer circle so that the information is visible through said opening regardless of the rotational orientation of the dispenser within the box.

A system for dispensing surface mount components, comprising:

• a carrier tape defining receptacles spaced along the tape, said receptacles holding surface mount components therein, one surface mount component per receptacle;
• a spool dispenser for said tape;
• a package/display box sized to receive said dispenser in a manner to permit the dispenser to rotate in the box, said box comprising a front panel, a rear panel parallel to and spaced from said front panel, and a plurality of end walls joining adjacent edges of said panels to close said box, said front panel including a large, centrally located circular display window which reveals a majority of an end wall of the dispenser within;
• and
• an aperture in one end wall of said box for manually dispensing the tape from the dispenser within the box, said aperture formed proximate a corner between two end walls spaced from said corner to form an edge directed away from said corner.

A method of packaging surface mount component carrier tape, said carrier tape defining receptacles spaced along the tape, said receptacles holding surface mount components therein, one surface mount component per receptacle, said carrier tape being coiled on a spool dispenser having a pair of spaced circular end walls joined by a hub, said receptacles on said coiled tape facing radially outward, said method comprising the steps of:

• positioning said spool dispenser in a package/display box sized to receive said dispenser in a manner to permit the dispenser to rotate in the box, said box comprising a front panel, a rear panel parallel to and spaced from said front panel, and a plurality of end walls joining adjacent edges of said panels to close said box;
• forming a small aperture in one end wall of said box for manually dispensing the tape from the dispenser within the box, said aperture formed proximate a corner between two end walls and spaced from said corner to form an edge directed away from said corner to interfere with said radially outwardly facing receptacles on said carrier tape;
• and
• dispensing a length of said tape from the dispenser within the box by way of said aperture.