A PRINTING CIRCUIT BOARD JUMPER WIRE WIRING DEVICE

Abstract: A device which can improve the efficiency of jumper wire wiring work through automatic coiling and soldering of both conductor parts of a jumper wire (7) to selected pins (11, 12) of the multiple pins protruding from a printed circuit board.

Description: This invention relates to a printing circuit board jumper wire wiring device according to the preamble of the patent claim 1. From the US-A-3 960 309 an apparatus for bonding pre-twisted wires to a number of conductive pads on a circuit board is known. This apparatus applies pre-twisted wires from a spool, drawing the endless wires from pin to pin. This apparatus is not able to work up cut pieces of isolated wires peeled on their ends. This invention automates the process of jumper wire wiring and increases the efficiency and accuracy of the work. The many characteristics and advantages of this invention will be clarified in the following detailed description which makes reference to the attached drawings. Fig. 1 is a plan view of the first embodiment of this invention, a printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device. Fig. 2 is a side view of the device shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an overall side view showing the jumper wire wiring device of the first embodiment of this invention. Fig. 4 is an expanded view of the lead wire showing the conductor part as detected by the sensor finger. Fig. 5 is an expanded plan view of the lead wire showing the lead wire before it is coiled around the pin. Fig. 6 is an expanded side view corresponding to Fig. 11 but following coiling of the lead wire. Fig. 7 is an expanded side view showing the wrapping pin, and Fig. 8 is a side view, corresponding to Fig. 1, of another embodiment of this invention. Preferred Embodiments of the Invention The following description outlines the preferred embodiments of this invention as shown in Figs. 1 to 8 and will describe in detail the jumper wire wiring device 2 of this invention, with reference to Figs. 3 to 7. The entire jumper wire wiring device 2 is mounted on the head 9 of a freely movable and rotating robot arm 8, and comprises a setting finger 36, a sensor finger 37, a wrapping mechanism 38 and a soldering mechanism 39. Each of these move up and down independently via individually provided cylinders 40, 41, 42, and 43, which radiate out from the wrapping mechanism 38 mounted in the center. The whole jumper wire wiring device 2 moves through the movement of the robot arm 8, and one end of the jumper wire 7 gripped by the setting finger 36. With the setting finger 36 holding one end of the jumper wire 7, the entire jumper wire wiring device 2 is moved by the robot arm 8 to the printed circuit board 10 which is fixed by the positioning tool 51, and the conductor part 6 of the jumper wire 7 is positioned right next to one of the pins 11 to be soldered. Next, the wrapping mechanism 38 is brought down and the conductor part 6 of the jumper wire 7 is caught between the wrapping pin 53 at the edge of the wrapping mechanism 38 and the pin 11 on top of the printed circuit board 10. (Fig. 5). The wrapping pin 53 is mounted in position off center from the front edge of the wrapping mechanism 38 (See Fig. 7). Thus the conductor part 6 is coiled around pin 11 by the rotation of the wrapping pin 53 in the specified direction i.e. its rotation as if around the circumference of pin 11 (See Figs. 5 and 6). Once the conductor part 6 has been coiled around the pin 11, the soldering mechanism 39 descends and the solder iron tip 54 is pushed up to touch pin 11 around which the conductor part 6 is coiled. Thread solder 55 is automatically supplied from a supply nozzle 52 to the iron tip 54 and soldering is performed automatically. This completes the soldering of one end of the jumper wire 7. Next, the head 9 rotates 180 degrees to face the reverse direction, and the setting finger 36 descends together with the sensor finger 37 and lightly grips the the jumper wire 7 of which one end has already been soldered, at the opposite end from which it was previously held. This light grip is obtained by the shallow insertion of the arrowhead piston 45 of the cylinder 44 between the rear ends of the claws 46. At this point, the sensor finger 37 descends and lightly grips the jumper wire 7 together with the setting finger 36 but slightly towards the front of the wire. Then, both this sensor finger 37 and the setting finger 36 slide quickly, together still holding the jumper wire 7, towards a position forward of the opposite end of the jumper wire 7. Close to the conductor part 6 of the other end, the the sliding motion is slowed, and when the sensor finger 37 reaches part of the conductor part 6 (See Fig. 4), the sensorclaw 48 of the sensor finger 37 passes the conductor part 6 of the other end of the jumper wire 7, thus detecting its position. Once its position is detected, a signal is transmitted to a control part not shown in the diagram and the arrowhead piston 50 of the other cylinder 49 in the setting finger 36 is inserted, this time with force, deep between the ends of the gripclaws 46. Then the ends of the gripclaws 46 close, holding the other end of the jumper wire 7 tightly in a fixed position. Once the setting finger 36 has a tight hold on the jumper wire 7, the role of the sensor finger 37 is complete, and it is lifted away. After that, the conductor part 6 of jumper wire 7 is positioned right next to pin 12 which has not yet been soldered and is then coiled and soldered as outlined above. In this way the jumper wire 7 is soldered to the two pins 11,12 on the printed circuit board, thus completing the wiring of the jumper wire 7. In the above description, the position of the conductor part 6 was detected using the sensor finger 37; however, an optical sensor can also be used, or the slide distance of the setting finger 36 can be matched in advance with the length of the jumper wire 7, and the device set up to slide only that fixed distance to grip the other end of the jumper wire 7. Fig. 8 shows another embodiment of this invention. This embodiment is provided with two jumper wire wiring devices 56. These two jumper wire wiring devices 56 grip and extract both ends of the jumper wire 7 from an existing wiring feeder 57 at once, and gripping those ends, convey them to any optional pins 11, 12 on the printed circuit board 10. After setting both ends in position at the two pins 11 and 12, coiling and soldering are performed simultaneously on the pins 11 and 12. This makes the wiring work even more efficient. The printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device of this invention, as outlined in the description above, can automatically provide a solder connection between any optional two pins on the printed circuit board using a prepared jumper wire. In this way, by automating jumper wire wiring work which previously could only be done manually, it is now possible to perform more wiring work both accurately and quickly.

Claims: A printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device (2) for connecting cut pieces of wires with protruding pins of a circuit board which is mounted on the head (9) of a freely rotating robot arm (8) with a setting finger (36) which can move in any direction, characterized in that the setting finger successively grips the ends of the jumper wire (7) and positions successively the exposed ends of the jumper wire (7) respectively at the two pins (11,12) which protrude from the printed circuit board (10) and to which they are to be soldered, a wrapping mechanism (38) which at its end has a circularly rotating wrapping pin (53) which coils the conductor part (6) of the jumper wire (7) around the pins (11,12) which protrude from the printed circuit board (10), and a soldering mechanism (39) which while continously supplying thread solder (55) to a soldering iron tip (54), solders the conductor part (6) coiled around the pin by the wrapping mechanism (38). The printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device (2) of Claim 1 which is provided with a wrapping mechanism (38) having a wrapping pin (53) mounted off-center at the front which rotates in a circular motion while pressing on the outside of the conductor part (6) of the jumper wire (7), to coil it around the pin which projects from the printed circuit board. The printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device (2) of Claim 1 in which a setting finger (36), a wrapping mechanism (38), a soldering mechanism (39), and a sensor finger (37) are mounted independently movable up and down on individual cylinders (40,41,42,43) which radiate from the central wrapping mechanism (38). The printed circuit board jumper wire wiring device (2) of Claim 1 which has a sensor finger (37) which together with a setting finger (36) lightly grips the jumper wire (7) of which one conductor end has been already coiled around a pin which projects from the printed circuit board (10), and in that position with the sensor finger (37) lightly gripping a part slightly towards the other end in relation to the part gripped by the setting finger (36), together with the setting finger(36) slides quickly towards the other end of the jumper wire (7), sliding more slowly once approaching the conductor part (6) at the other end, and finally once detecting the conductor end, sending a signal to the setting finger (36) which strongly grips the other end of the jumper wire (7) in a fixed position, the sensor finger (37) then moving upwards away from the wiring.

Inventors: KAWAGUCHI, SEIJI
Applicants: APOLLO SEIKO LTD.
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B23K1
IPC codes: B23K3, H05K13