IP Library Granted Patent US 12,319,513
Granted Patent B2
US 12,319,513 · App. 18/262,502 · Granted Jun 3, 2025

Bulk feeder and component mounting machine

Inventors: Yusuke Yamazaki (Chiryu, JP); Yuji Kawasaki (Nagoya, JP)
Assignee: FUJI CORPORATION
B65G47/145B23P19/001H05K13/02H05K13/081
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,319,513
App. No.
18/262,502
Granted
Jun 3, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

A bulk feeder includes a feeder main body, a track member provided to be vibratable with respect to the feeder main body and formed with a conveyance path through which multiple components are conveyed and a supply region that communicates with the conveyance path and opens upward to collect the multiple components, an excitation device configured to apply vibration to the track member so that the multiple components are conveyed along the conveyance path, a shutter provided above the track member to close an opening of the supply region, and a driving device configured to open or close the shutter to separate the shutter from the track member when the shutter shifts from a closed state to an open state.

Claims (40)

1. A bulk feeder comprising:

a feeder main body;

a track member provided to be vibratable with respect to the feeder main body and formed with a conveyance path through which multiple components are conveyed and a supply region that communicates with the conveyance path and opens upward to collect the multiple components;

an excitation device configured to apply vibration to the track member so that the multiple components are conveyed along the conveyance path;

a shutter provided above the track member to close an opening of the supply region;

a driving device configured to open or close the shutter to separate the shutter from the track member when the shutter shifts from a closed state to an open state; and

a slider configured to support the shutter and movable along a rail.

2. The bulk feeder according to claim 1 ,

wherein the rail extends in a front-rear direction and an up-down direction of the feeder main body.

3. The bulk feeder according to claim 2 , wherein the driving device further includes

a pin extending in a width direction of the feeder main body and locking in the front-rear direction with respect to the slider,

an arm configured to support the pin and provided to be rotatable about a horizontal axis extending in the width direction with respect to the feeder main body,

a motor configured to rotate the arm, and

an elastic member configured to connect the feeder main body and the slider and bias the slider to a lower end side in the rail.

4. The bulk feeder according to claim 2 , further comprising:

a dock moving integrally with the slider;

a sensor configured to detect a position of the dock when the shutter shifts to the open state; and

a drive control section configured to control a movement of the slider based on a result detected by the sensor.

5. A bulk feeder comprising:

a feeder main body:

a track member provided to be vibratable with respect to the feeder main body and formed with a conveyance path through which multiple components are conveyed and a supply region that communicates with the conveyance path and opens upward to collect the multiple components;

an excitation device configured to apply vibration to the track member so that the multiple components are conveyed along the conveyance path:

a shutter provided above the track member to close an opening of the supply region; and

a driving device configured to open or close the shutter to separate the shutter from the track member when the shutter shifts from a closed state to an open state,

wherein an opening/closing operation of the shutter includes an intermediate state which is a state between the closed state and the open state, and in the intermediate state, the shutter is separated from the track member by at least an amplitude of the track member vibrated by excitation of the excitation device and restricts protruding of a component from the opening of the supply region.

6. The bulk feeder according to claim 5 , wherein the shutter includes

an upper wall portion which comes into contact with the track member in the closed state to close the opening of the supply region and is separated from the track member in the intermediate state, and

a pair of side wall portions which is located outside the track member in a width direction and extends downward from both end edges of the upper wall portion to restrict protruding of the component from the opening of the supply region together with the upper wall portion in the intermediate state.

7. The bulk feeder according to claim 5 , wherein the shutter is brought into the open state when the bulk feeder supplies the multiple components, and is brought into the intermediate state when the excitation device applies vibration to the track member.

8. A component mounting machine comprising:

a component supply device provided with the bulk feeder according to claim 1 ; and

a control device configured to control a supply operation of the components by the bulk feeder and an opening/closing operation of the shutter.

9. The component mounting machine according to claim 8 , wherein the opening/closing operation of the shutter includes an intermediate state which is a state between the closed state and the open state, and in the intermediate state, the shutter is separated from the track member by at least an amplitude of the track member vibrated by excitation of the excitation device and restricts protruding of the component from the opening of the supply region,

the component mounting machine further comprises

a component transfer device configured to transfer the components supplied by the component supply device to a substrate,

a camera configured to image the supply region, and

a state recognition section configured to recognize a supply state of the multiple components in the supply region based on image data acquired by imaging of the camera, and

the control device sets

the shutter to the open state during a period in which the camera images the supply region and a period in which the component transfer device collects the component from the supply region, and

the shutter to the closed state or the intermediate state during a period in which the component collected by the component transfer device is transferred to the substrate and a period in which the bulk feeder conveys the multiple components.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 21, 2023
From: YAMAZAKI, YUSUKE; KAWASAKI, YUJI
To: FUJI CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 064342/0486 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240076136A1 · Mar 7, 2024
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Cited By (1)
US 12,473,150