Component-recognizing apparatus, surface-mounting apparatus, and component-inspecting apparatus

Abstract

In an apparatus adapted to scan a lower side of an electronic component being suction-held by a suction-holding nozzle, to perform image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component, this invention is intended to perform a transfer operation under a condition that the suction-holding nozzle is arranged closer to an upper surface of a base, wherein the optical path directed downwardly from the suction-holding nozzle is bended in a lateral direction by a first optical path changing member and then further bended in another direction by a second optical path changing member to allow image-sensing means to capture an image of a lower surface of the suction-holding nozzle, and the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle is illuminated along the lateral optical path changed by the first optical path changing member.

1 . A component-recognizing apparatus comprising a movable head unit having a suction-holding nozzle capable of suction-holding an electronic component and a scanning unit which is installed to the head unit in relatively displaceable with respect to the suction-holding nozzle, the scanning unit being operable to capture an image for image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle,
 said scanning unit including:   a first optical path changing member which is adapted to be located beneath the suction-holding nozzle and is operable to bend the optical path directed downwardly from the suction-holding nozzle in a lateral direction during the image-sensing operation;   a second optical path changing member operable to further bend the bended optical path in another direction;   lower-surface image-sensing means disposed in the optical path changed by the second optical path changing member, the lower-surface image-sensing means is operable to capture an image of a lower surface of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle through the first and second optical path changing members; and   illumination means operable to emit illumination light onto the lower surface of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle, along at least the lateral optical path changed by the first optical path changing member.   
   
   
       2 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1 ,
 wherein the illumination means is provided approximately on an extension line of the light directed from the first optical path changing member toward the second optical path changing member, so as to emit the illumination light from behind an optical path changing surface of the second optical path changing member toward the first optical path changing member,   the optical path changing surface of the second optical path changing member is a translucent surface formed as operable to allow the light of the illumination means provided behind an optical path changing surface to pass therethrough forwardly, and   the illumination means is adapted to illuminate the lower surface of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle, with the illumination light bended by the first optical path changing member after passing through the optical path changing surface of the second optical path changing member.   
   
   
       3 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 2 , wherein the optical path changing surface of the second optical path changing member is in the form of a half mirror as the translucent surface. 
   
   
       4 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 2 , wherein the optical path changing surface of the second optical path changing member is in the form of a reflecting prism as the translucent surface. 
   
   
       5 . A component-recognizing apparatus comprising a movable head unit having a suction-holding nozzle capable of suction-holding an electronic component and a scanning unit which is installed to the head unit in relatively displaceable with respect to the suction-holding nozzle, the scanning unit being operable to capture an image for image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle,
 said scanning unit including:   a first optical path changing member which is adapted to be located beneath the suction-holding nozzle and is operable to bend the optical path directed downwardly from the suction-holding nozzle in a lateral direction during the image-sensing operation;   a second optical path changing member operable to further bend the bended optical path in another direction so that the bended optical path directs upwardly at a given elevation angle relative to a horizontal plane; and   image-sensing means disposed in the optical path changed by the second optical path changing member, the image-sensing means is operable to capture an image of a lower surface of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle through the first and second optical path changing members.   
   
   
       6 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the first optical path changing member is operable to reflect the optical path striking from beneath the nozzle to the base on approximately horizontally lateral side by about 90 degrees.   
   
   
       7 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the first optical path changing member is in the form of a mirror.   
   
   
       8 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the first optical path changing member is in the form of a prism.   
   
   
       9 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the second optical path changing member is in the form of a mirror.   
   
   
       10 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the second optical path changing member is in the form of a prism.   
   
   
       11 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 5 ,
 wherein the image-sensing means is in the form of a line sensor,   an image sensor of the line sensor are arranged to be inclined with respect to a horizontal direction in such a manner that a direction of the image sensor is set approximately perpendicular to a movement direction along which an image of the electronic component is moved on the image sensor as the scanning unit moves along a row of the suction-holding nozzles.   
   
   
       12 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1 ,
 wherein the head unit includes a row of the suction-holding nozzles; and   the scanning unit is adapted to be moved along the row of suction-holding nozzles to capture an image of suction-held conditions of the electronic component being suction-held by each of the suction-holding nozzles, in a sequential manner.   
   
   
       13 . A component-recognizing apparatus comprising a row of suction-holding nozzles each capable of suction-holding an electronic component and a scanning unit which is installed to the head unit, the scanning unit is adapted to be relatively displaced with respect to the suction-holding nozzles to perform sequential scanning so as to capture an image for image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component being suction-held by each of the suction-holding nozzles,
 the scanning unit including:   a lower-surface image taking section operable to take an image of a lower surface of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle when the lower-surface image taking section passes beneath each of the suction-holding nozzles during the scanning operation of the scanning unit; and   lower-surface image-sensing means operable to capture an image of the lower surface of the electronic component introduced through the lower-surface image taking section,   wherein the scanning unit has a shape configured, in terms of a large-size electronic component having a size exceeding an image-capturing region determined by the lower-surface image taking section and the lower-surface image-sensing means, to be spaced apart from each of the suction-holding nozzles by a given distance, to avoid interference with the large-size electronic component being suction-held by at least one of the suction-holding nozzles, during the scanning operation of the scanning unit.   
   
   
       14 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 13 ,
 wherein the scanning unit has a recess which allows for taking an image of any electronic component falling within an image-capturing region determined by the lower-surface image taking section and the lower-surface image-sensing means, and allows to have a given distance from each of the suction-holding nozzles to avoid interference with the large-size electronic component, in the given region thereof.   
   
   
       15 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1 , wherein:
 the first optical path changing member is operable to change by about 90 degrees the optical path directed from a lower side of the nozzle toward the base on approximately horizontally lateral side; and   the second optical path changing member is operable to change further the optical path from the first optical path changing member, by about 90 degrees.   
   
   
       16 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1 , comprising a slit formed between the suction-holding nozzle and the first optical path changing member to restrict a light-passing area. 
   
   
       17 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 13 , comprising:
 an optical path changing member operable to bend the light along a lateral side, after the light taken from the lower surface of the electronic component through the lower-surface image taking section,   wherein a support member which supports the optical path changing member has an upper surface located below an upper surface of in conformity to an undulating shape of the large-size electronic component.   
   
   
       18 . The component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 17 ,
 wherein the scanning unit includes:   side-area image-sensing means disposed lateral to and in side-by-side relation to the lower-surface image-sensing means, to capture an image of an electronic component from a lateral side of the electronic component; and   a side-image taking section oriented toward a lateral region of the electronic component, to introduce the image into the side-area image-sensing means,   wherein the side-image taking section has a lower end located below an upper surface of the optical path changing member.   
   
   
       19 . A surface-mounting apparatus comprising a movable head unit having a suction-holding nozzle capable of suction-holding an electronic component, the surface-mounting apparatus being adapted to pick up an electronic component from a component feed section by the suction-holding nozzle, and to mount the electronic component onto a board, after taking an image of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle to perform image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component relative to the suction-holding nozzle,
 wherein the surface-mounting apparatus is equipped with the component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1  as a means to perform the image recognition of the conditions of electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle.   
   
   
       20 . A component-inspecting apparatus comprising a movable head unit having a suction-holding nozzle capable of suction-holding an electronic component, the component-inspecting apparatus being adapted to pick up an electronic component from a component feed section by the suction-holding nozzle, and to transfer the electronic component to inspection means to carry out various inspections, after taking an image of the electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle to perform image recognition of suction-held conditions of the electronic component relative to the suction-holding nozzle,
 wherein the component-inspecting apparatus is equipped with the component-recognizing apparatus as defined in  claim 1 , as a means to perform the image recognition of the conditions of electronic component being suction-held by the suction-holding nozzle.