Patent ID: 8192578

Claim:
A chip pickup apparatus for picking up a chip of a plate shape adhered on a sheet, comprising: a sheet holding portion which holds the sheet; a picking nozzle which is moved up and down by a nozzle elevation mechanism relatively with respect to the sheet holding portion and abuts against an upper surface of the chip to thereby suck and hold the chip and to keep the chip in a flat state; and a releasing promotion mechanism which is disposed below the sheet holding portion and abuts against a lower surface of the sheet to promote releasing of the chip from the sheet, wherein the releasing promotion mechanism includes: an elevation portion which has an abutment supporting surface that abuts against the lower surface of the sheet to support the sheet from a lower side thereof and which moves up and down relatively with respect to the sheet holding portion; suction holes which are provided outside of a chip lower support area for supporting the chip from a lower side thereof at the abutment supporting surface and suck and hold the sheet from the lower surface side thereof; and a push-up portion having a flexible push-up surface which is provided within the chip lower support area at the abutment supporting surface and abuts against the lower surface of the sheet to push the sheet up, and wherein the push-up portion has an original upwardly protruded curved surface shape, the push-up portion is abutted against the lower surface of the sheet so that the push-up surface follows along the lower surface in a flat surface state, deformed from the original upwardly protruded curved surface shape, in a moved down state of the picking nozzle, and in a chip picking operation where, as the picking nozzle sucking and holding the chip is moved up to pick up the chip, the push-up surface returns to the original upwardly protruded curved surface shape and pushes the lower surface of the sheet up to thereby release an outer peripheral side of the chip from the sheet, and wherein the push-up portion is spherical.