Abstract:
Provided are tape feeding and recovering modules for a tape feeder, and a tape feeder including the tape feeding module and the recovering module. The tape feeding module feeds a tape storing a plurality of electronic components in a predetermined pitch by driving a sprocket which inserts its teeth into the tape. And the recovering module exposes the plurality of electrical components by removing a top cover from a top surface of the tape and discharges the top cover from the tape feeder.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to tape feeding and recovering modules for use in a tape feeder of an electronic component mounting apparatus, and a tape feeder including the tape feeding and recovering modules. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
   Electronic component mounting apparatuses automatically mount electronic components on a circuit substrate. Electronic component mounting apparatuses carry out a series of mounting operations by picking up electronic components from a component supplying unit, moving the electronic components above a circuit substrate and mounting the electronic components on top of the circuit substrate. The component supplying unit includes a plurality of tape feeders mounted on a feeder base at predetermined intervals. As is known in the surface mount technology (SMT) art, such tape feeders remove a top cover from a tape that stores electronic components (e.g., integrated circuit chips), thereby allowing a mounting head (e.g., a vacuum nozzle) to pick up the exposed electronic components from the tape and deposit the picked-up electronic components on a circuit substrate (e.g., PCB). 
     FIG. 1  is a view of a tape feeder disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-35396. The tape feeder includes a frame  10 , a tape transporter  50  that is mounted on one part of the frame  10 , a top cover recovering element  70  that is mounted on another part of the frame  10 , and a power element  80  that provides power to the tape transporter  50  and the top cover recovering element  70 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the tape transporter  50  drives a sprocket  30  that feeds a tape  1  to a location where an electronic component  4  is to be picked up (i.e., a location proximate a mounting head  200 ). Further, the top cover recovering element  70  drives a first recovering gear  61  to output a top cover  3 , which is removed from the top surface of the tape  1 . 
   Transporting holes (i.e., where teeth of the sprocket  30  are inserted) are formed on both of the right and left sides of the tape  1 . The tape transporter  50  drives the sprocket  30  to transport the tape  1  to the location where an electronic component  4  on the tape  1  (e.g., in a pocket of the tape  1 ) is to be picked up via a mounting head  200 . The tape transporter  50  includes a feeding worm wheel  51  fixed to the sprocket  30  and a feeding power transmitter  52  having a feeding worm gear  52   a  formed on one end thereof. The feeding worm gear  52   a  is meshed with the feeding worm wheel  51  to turn the sprocket  30 . A first driving gear  52   b  meshed with a power gear of the power element  80  is formed on the opposite end of the feeding power transmitter  52 . That is, feeding worm gear  52   a  and first driving gear  52   b  are disposed on opposing ends of the feeding power transmitter  52 . 
   The top cover  3 , which is attached to the top surface of the tape  1 , is peeled from the tape  1  via the first recovering gear  61  and a second recovering gear  62  before the electronic component  4  reaches the pickup location. The top cover  3  is held between the first and second recovering gears  61 ,  62 , which are formed on another part of the frame  10  distal from the tape transporter  50 , so that the top cover  3  is discharged from the tape feeder by rotating the first and second recovering gears  61 ,  62 . As can be appreciated from  FIG. 1 , the tape  1  is fed from a storage location (not shown) and moved first upwards and counterclockwise toward a shutter  20  by the tape transporter  50  driving sprocket  30  such that as the tape  1  moves along the shutter  20  the top cover  3  is separated from the tape  1  (e.g., by a direction conversion slot or the like) and fed away from the pick up location via the recovering element  70  and recovering gears  61 ,  62 . Thus, the electronic components  4  stored on the tape  1  are transported to the pickup location with the top cover  3  removed from the tape  1  and are picked up at the pickup location by the mounting head  200 . The first recovering gear  61  receives power from first and second recovering power transmitters  71  and  72  that are coupled to each other. In more detail, a second driving gear  71   a  that is coupled with a power gear of the power element  80  through a first driving gear  52   b  is formed on one end of the first recovering power transmitter  71 , and a second worm gear  71   b  that is coupled with the second recovering power transmitter  72  is formed on the opposite end of the first recovering power transmitter  71 . The second recovering power transmitter  72  includes a worm wheel  72   a  that is meshed with the worm gear  71   b  and an intermediary gear  72   b  to which the worm wheel  72   a  is fixed. Thus, in response to the worm gear  71   b  and worm wheel  72   a , the intermediary gear  72   b  drives the first receiving gear  61 . As shown, the tape feeder further includes a rotation speed detector  90  mounted on the same axis as the feeding power transmitter  52  to detect the rotation speed of the power element  80 . The tape feeder also includes a shutter  20  that exposes one of the electronic components  4 , thereby allowing the mounting head  200  to picks up the electronic component  4 . 
   However, since the conventional tape feeder has a complex driving mechanism as described-above, designing and manufacturing a tape feeder is difficult. Particularly, by having a tape feeder structure in which a plurality of components are assembled, individually mounted on a frame, aligned and tested, the number of manhours required to assemble the tape feeder is great thereby increasing the cost of the finished tape feeder. 
   The width of a tape supplied to a tape feeder varies according to the type of electronic components stored on the tape. Therefore, a tape feeder needs to be selected according to the width of the tape to be fed. However, in conventional tape feeders, components are manufactured with different specifications according to the widths of the tape feeders even if the functions of the components do no change from tape feeder to tape feeder, and the arrangements of the components are also different according to the type of the tape feeders. This results in an increase in the number of types of components that are used in the tape feeders, and causes a waste of resources and manhours. 
   Moreover, since the conventional tape feeder is assembled from a plurality of interconnected components, man-hours and costs required for the maintenance and repair of the tape feeder are increased. For example, one can appreciate that it may be easier or more efficient to replace the entire tape feeder instead of repairing it since the tape transporter  50  and the top cover recovering element  70  are coupled together and commonly driven by the power source  80 . Also, when repair of the tape feeder is delayed, the efficiency of the SMT operation is decreased. 
   Therefore, in view of the foregoing, a tape feeder wherein the tape transporter and the recovering element are modular would be desirable. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention provides a tape feeder with a modular construction, and tape feeding and recovering modules therefor. 
   One embodiment of the present invention also provides a tape feeding module and a recovering module for a tape feeder that have substantially identical structures, and a tape feeder having the substantially identical tape feeding and recovering modules. 
   According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tape feeding module for a tape feeder that feeds a tape, which stores electronic components, in a predetermined pitch by driving a sprocket that inserts its teeth into the tape. The tape feeding module includes: a module housing; a driving motor disposed at one part of the module housing; a mounting axis disposed at another part of the module housing and coupled to the sprocket; and a transmission that transfers power between the driving motor and the mounting axis to drive the sprocket. 
   According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recovering module for a tape feeder. The recovering module discharges a top cover, which is attached to a top surface of a tape, by driving at least one of a pair of recovering gears so that the top cover passes between the recovering gears and is discharged. The recovering module includes: a module housing; a driving motor mounted on one part of the module housing; a mounting axis formed on another part of the module housing and on which the recovering gear is mounted; and a transmission that transfers power between the driving motor and the mounting axis to drive the at least one recovering gear. 
   According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tape feeder that removes a top cover attached to top of a tape storing electronic components while feeding the tape in a predetermined pitch and allows the electronic components to be sequentially picked up by a mounting head. The tape feeder includes: a frame; a tape feeding module that is mounted on one part of the frame and has a sprocket mounted thereon, teeth of the sprocket being inserted in the tape to feed the tape; and a recovering module that is mounted on another part of the frame and includes one of a pair of recovering gears mounted on the recovering module to remove the top cover, the pair of recovering gears discharging the top cover attached to the top of the tape by placing the top cover between the recovering gears. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a conventional tape feeder; 
       FIGS. 2 and 3  are perspective side views of a tape feeder according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  is a first side perspective view of a tape feeding module for use in the exemplary tape feeder of  FIGS. 2 and 3 ; 
       FIG. 5  is a second side perspective view of the tape feeding module of  FIG. 4 , partially exploded to show the general arrangement of internal components; 
       FIG. 6  is a first side perspective view of a recovering module for use in the exemplary tape feeder of  FIGS. 2 and 3 ; and 
       FIG. 7  is a second side perspective view of the recovering module of  FIG. 6 , partially exploded to show the general arrangement of internal components. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown. 
     FIGS. 2 and 3  are perspective views of two sides of a tape feeder according to an embodiment of the present invention. The tape feeder includes a frame  110  that directly or indirectly serves to support the remaining components of the tape feeder. That is, as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the frame  110  supports: a tape feeding module  150  comprising a sprocket  130  that feeds a tape  1 ; a recovering module  170  comprising a recovering gear  161  that cooperates with a second recovering gear  162  to recover a top cover  3 , which covers the top surface of the tape  1 , in a direction which is the opposite to the direction the tape  1  is fed; and recovering guides  155  that guide the top cover  3  away from the tap  1  and toward the recovering gears  161 ,  162 . Although not shown in the drawing, one can appreciate that a components reel, spool or the like on which the tape  1  having the plurality of electronic components may be mounted on the frame  110  so that the electronic components on the tape  1  are transported to a pickup location by the sprocket  130  for picking up by a mounting head  200 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , the tape  1  is transported to the bottom of a tape guide  120  through a feeding guide  115 . The sprocket  130  ( FIG. 3 ) is driven by the tape feeding module  150 , which has a modular construction that facilitates assembly and disassembly of the module  150  to the frame  110 . The tape feeding module  150  will be described hereafter in more detail. 
   A direction conversion slot  120 ′ is formed on the tape guide  120  so that as the tape  1  passes along the tape guide  120 , the top cover  3  is separated from the top surface of the tape  1  by the direction conversion slot  120 ′ and is transported in a direction opposite to the direction in which the tape  1  is fed. In more detail, the top cover  3  is transported to another part of the frame  110  via the recovering guides  155  and by passing through the pair of recovering gears  161 ,  162  so that the top cover  3  is discharged away from the tape feeder. The recovering guides  155  may be rollers to reduce friction on the top cover  3 . Alternatively, the recovering guides  155  may be low-friction stationary pins, rods or the like. The top cover  3  is moved by the first and second recovering gears  161  and  162  after traveling through the recovering guides  155 . As best illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the top cover  3  is threaded or woven between the three guides  155  such that the cover  3  contacts the upper surfaces of the outer guides and contacts the lower surface of the inner guide. In this way the guides  155  and recovering gears  161 ,  162  apply a predetermined tension to the top cover  3 , thus preventing stretching or twisting of the top cover  3 . 
   The pair of recovering gears includes first and second recovering gears  161  and  162  that mesh with each other. The first recovering gear  161  is driven by a recovering module  170 . Similar to the tape feeding module  150 , the recovering module  170  has a modular construction that facilitates assembly and disassembly of the module  170  to the frame  110 . The recovering module  170  will be described hereafter in more detail. As best illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the second recovering gear  162  is affixed to the frame  110  and is meshed with the first recovering gear  161 , thus rotating when the first recovering gear  161  is driven by the recovering module  170 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , the top cover  3  is output from the tape feeder after being compressed between the first and second recovering gears  161  and  162 . As the top cover  3  is removed from the tape  1  in the tape feeding process, the electronic components stored in the tape  1  are sequentially exposed so that the exposed electronic components can be picked up by the mounting head  200  for mounting on a circuit substrate (not shown). 
     FIGS. 4 and 5  are perspective views illustrating two sides of the tape feeding module  150  according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the tape feeding module  150  includes a module housing  151  and a sprocket  130  installed thereon. Further, the module housing  151  encloses a driving motor  152  installed at one part of the module housing  151 , a mounting axis  159 , which is distal from the driving motor  152 , on which the sprocket  130  is mounted, and a transmission that connects a power axis  152   a  (i.e., shaft) of the driving motor  152  and the mounting axis  159  so that they are mutually linked. As shown in  FIG. 5 , the transmission comprises a meshed gear train including gears  154 ,  155 ,  156  and  157  in a series, but the transmission may be other transmission means known in the art such as a belt, chain, linkage or the like. 
   The driving motor  152  may be inserted in a motor recess  151   a  formed at one part of the module housing  151 . A servomotor with an encoder (not shown) mounted thereon may be used as the driving motor  152 , but other motors such as stepping motors may be employed as well. The amount of rotation of the driving motor  152  can be sensed by counting the number of pulse signals generated by the encoder according to the operation of the driving motor  152 , and by servo-mechanism, the rotation of the driving motor  152  can be appropriately controlled. 
   A driving gear  153  coupled to the power axis  152   a  rotates according to the operation of the driving motor  152  and the rotating force of the driving gear  153  is transmitted to a mounting axis gear  158  via first, second, third, and fourth idle gears  154 ,  155 ,  156 , and  157 , respectively, that are meshed with each other to be mutually linked. As a result, when the driving motor  152  operates, the mounting gear  158  rotates to turn the mounting axis  159 , thereby turning the sprocket  130 . In more detail, when the driving gear  153  rotates, the first, second, and third idle gears  154 ,  155 , and  156  that are sequentially coupled cooperate with one another to rotate the fourth idle gear  157 . Then, the mounting axis gear  158  that is meshed with the fourth idle gear  157  rotates, and consequently, the mounting axis  159  together with the sprocket  130  also rotates. The first, second, and third idle gears  154 ,  155 , and  156  may have different outer diameters, and may respectively include large gears  154   a ,  155   a ,  156   a  and small gears  154   b ,  155   b , and  156   b  that are coaxial with the first, second, and third idle gears  154 ,  155 , and  156 . As can be appreciated the axes for the gears  154 - 157  may be integral with the housing  151  for supporting the gears, but the axes may alternatively be integral with the gears  154 - 157  and supported (e.g., journaled) by the module housing  151 . The module housing  151  in which the driving motor  152  and the first, second, third, and fourth idle gears  154 ,  155 ,  156 , and  157  are supported is sealed by a cover  141  to protect the components therein. The cover  141  may be removed to maintain or repair the internal components (e.g., motor  152 ) of the module  150 . The sprocket  130  is supported by the mounting axis  159  and teeth are formed on the outer circumference of the sprocket  130 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , the tape  1  has a predetermined pitch that corresponds with the pitch of the teeth on the sprocket  130 . That is, the sprocket teeth are sequentially inserted into a plurality of feeding holes  1 ′ formed in a line on the tape  1  to advance the tape  1 . 
     FIGS. 6 and 7  are perspective views illustrating two sides of the recovering module  170  according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to  FIG. 7 , the recovering module  170  includes a module housing  171  and a first recovering gear  161  mounted thereon. Further, the module housing  171  encloses a driving motor  172  mounted on one part of the module housing  171 , a mounting axis  179  that is disposed at another part of the module housing  171  distal from the driving motor  172  and on which the first recovering gear  161  is mounted, and a transmission that transfers power between a power axis  172   a  (i.e., shaft) of the driving motor  172  and the mounting axis  179  so that they are mutually linked. As shown in  FIG. 7 , the transmission comprises a meshed gear train including gears  174 ,  175 ,  176  and  177  in a series, but the transmission may be other transmission means known in the art such as a belt, chain, linkage or the like. The gear train includes a driving gear  173  coupled to the power axis  172   a , first, second, third and fourth idle gears  174 ,  175 ,  176 , and  177 , respectively, that are meshed with one another, and a mounting axis gear  178  that is coupled to the mounting axis  179 . The first, second, and third idle gears  174 ,  175 , and  176  may have different outer diameters and may respectively include large gears  174   a ,  175   a ,  176   a  and small gears  174   b ,  175   b ,  176   b  that are coaxial with the respective first, second, and third idle gears  174 ,  175 , and  176 . 
   The driving motor  172  can be inserted in a motor recess  171   a  formed at one part of the module housing  171 . As with the driving motor  152  of the tape feeding module  150 , a servomotor with an encoder (not shown) mounted thereon may be used as the driving motor  172 , but other motors such as stepping motors may be employed as well. The amount of rotation of the driving motor  172  can be sensed by counting the number of pulse signals generated by the encoder according to the operation of the driving motor  172 , and by servo-mechanism and feedback control, the rotation of the driving motor  172  can be appropriately controlled and adjusted. The driving gear  173  coupled to the power axis  172   a  rotates according to the operation of the driving motor  172 . The rotation power of the driving gear  173  is transmitted to the mounting axis gear  178  via the first, second, third, and fourth idle gears  174 ,  175 ,  176 , and  177 , which are meshed with one another to be mutually connected, thereby rotating the mounting axis  179  and consequently, the first recovering gear  161  coupled to the mounting axis  179 . When the first recovering gear  161  rotates, the second recovering gear  162  (see  FIG. 2 ), which is meshed with the first recovering gear  161 , rotates in the opposite direction, and the top cover  3  is discharged from the tape feeder by passing between the first and second recovering gears  161 ,  162 . The module housing  171  may be sealed by a cover  142  to protect the components within the housing  171 . The cover  142  may be removed to maintain or repair the internal components (e.g., motor  172 ) of the module  170 . 
   In the present embodiment, the tape feeding module  150  and the recovering module  170  have modular constructions to facilitate assembly and repair of the tape feeder. Since the tape feeding module  150  and recovering module  170  are modular the number of manhours for assembling the tape feeding module  150  and recovering module  170  and manufacturing costs thereof can be reduced. In addition, the structure of the tape feeding module  150  and the recovering module  170  does not need to be changed according to the type of the tape feeder or the width of the tape  1  relative to the size of the electronic components that are supplied. That is, the same tape feeding module  150  and recovering module  170  can be employed or retrofit in many tape feeders. 
   In one exemplary embodiment, the tape feeding module  150  and the recovering module  170  may have substantially the same structure, as can be appreciated by comparing  FIGS. 5 and 7 . That is, although the tape feeding module  150  and the recovering module  170  are described herein individually, the modules may have substantially the same structure except that the sprocket  130  is mounted on the mounting axis  159  of the tape feeding module  150  to feed the tape  1 , whereas the recovering gear  161  is mounted on the mounting axis  179  of the recovering module  170  to discharge the top cover  3 . 
   While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims.