Automatic empty flatpack carrier sorter

#The present invention relates to automated manufacturing and, in particular, relates to a sorter that places empty flatpack carriers into identified storage bins.

#In the area of automated manufacturing of printed circuit boards many different components are placed on each board. One type of component is a so called flat pack which is an integrated circuit device in a low-profile package with external leads in the same plane as the package itself. The leads may extend from two or all from sides of the package. As received at the assembly plant, the flatpacks are stacked in reusable carriers. In the past, as these empty carriers were ejected from the robot assembly system, they fell into a container in a random fashion so that hand sorting is required to separate the different carriers. This is clearly a very tedious task and is not effective in a large production facility.

#An electronic component sorting device is shown by U.S. Pat. No. 4,429,275 which is incorporated by reference. This device examines components having leads eminating in one direction, i.e., axial; after appropriate testing, each component is dropped into a chute that leads to a container having rotating bins. The container is rotated to place the appropriate bin under the chute in accordance with the testing results on that particular device.

#FIG. 1 illustrates by block diagram the flatpack assembly device of the present invention;

#FIG. 2 illustrates by block diagram the bin control electronics;

#FIG. 3 illustrates several flatpacks; and

#In the present invention, electronic devices having intergrated circuits therein are packaged as so-called flatpacks 10 having a plurality of leads 12 that radiate radially in the plane of the device as shown in FIG. 3. Similar electronic devices are built in flatpacks 10 having different widths and even different lead counts because of different sources. These flatpacks 10 of the same configuration are attached in a vertical manner in a carrier 42 as shown in FIG. 4 which is suppled by the Millross Controls, Inc. Company, for example.

#In a large assembly line where many different flatpacks 10 are used, the empty carriers are collected and returned to the flatpack source for restocking. In the case where several thousands of carriers are collected, sorting of each different carrier becomes a very tedious task.

#Referring to FIG. 1, a partial flatpack assembly system 14 is shown in block diagram. The means of moving the printed circuit board, not shown, onto which flatpacks 10 are placed is not shown.