Vibration feeding apparatus and method
AssigneeAsm Technology Singapore Pte Ltd
InventorsHo Chi Wong, Ping Kong Choy, Chung Yin Lau, Xiao Feng Li
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A vibration feeding apparatus comprises an alignment track that is operative to receive electronic components and to arrange the electronic components in a desired orientation by vibrating and accelerating the electronic components located on the alignment track. An inspection station rejects electronic components that are not in the desired orientation onto a reject track for reintroduction to the alignment track. A spreading unit adjacent to the alignment track then transfers rejected electronic components from the reject track to the alignment track for arranging the electronic components in the desired orientation.
Claims20
A vibration feeding apparatus comprising:
- an alignment track that is operative to receive electronic components and to arrange the electronic components in a desired orientation by vibrating and accelerating the electronic components located on the alignment track;
- an inspection station operative to reject electronic components that are not in the desired orientation onto a reject track for reintroduction to the alignment track;
- and
- a spreading unit adjacent to the alignment track for transferring rejected electronic components from the reject track to the alignment track for arranging the electronic components in the desired orientation;
- wherein the spreading unit comprises a plurality of hatched steps adjacent to the alignment track, each hatched step being separated from another hatched step by a raised edge which extends from the alignment track at an angle.
A method of feeding electronic components in a desired orientation, comprising the steps of:
- introducing electronic components onto an alignment track;
- vibrating and accelerating the electronic components on the alignment track to arrange the electronic components in the desired orientation on the alignment track;
- determining at an inspection station whether each of the electronic components is in the desired orientation;
- and
- rejecting, by the inspection station, electronic components that are not in the desired orientation onto a reject track and thereafter reintroducing the rejected electronic components, via a spreading unit, from the reject track onto the alignment track for arranging the electronic components in the desired orientation,
- wherein the spreading unit is adjacent to the alignment track, and the spreading unit comprises a plurality of hatched steps adjacent to the alignment track, each hatched step being separated from another hatched step by a raised edge which extends from the alignment track at an angle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.