Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Siemens S.a.

Daniel Hosten

Lothar Floegel

Luc Boone

Marc De Vogelaere

Marcel Heermann

Karl H Houska

Wilfried Denys

Josef Van Puymbroeck

Joachim Hauck

Apparatus for treating printed circuit boards

Device for the electrolytic treatment of plate-shaped workpieces

Device for processing flat workpieces, in particular printed circuit

For the electrophoretic application of a lacquer onto plate-shaped work pieces, the work pieces are conveyed on a horizontal throughput path through a cell wherein a lacquer deposition bath and at least one electrode are situated. The anodic or cathodic contacting of the traversing work pieces occurs via an endlessly circulating contacting drive preferably formed by a metal band and via a contact element arranged outside the cell for the feed of the anode current or cathode current to the contacting drive. The lacquer deposited on the contacting drive in the cell is in turn removed via a cleaning arrangement outside the cell and, thus, a reliable contacting of the work pieces is guaranteed. The apparatus is particularly suitable for the electrophoretic application of etching resists, plating resists and solder resists onto printed circuit boards.

Apparatus for electrophoretic application of a lacquer onto plate-shaped

An electroplating apparatus having a plurality of upper electrolyte feeder elements and upper electrolyte discharge elements aligned transversely relative to a throughput path of the printed circuit boards and arranged in alternation above the throughput path, a plurality of lower electrolyte feeder elements and lower electrolyte discharge elements aligned transversely relative to the throughput path and arranged in alternation under the throughput path, wherein each lower electrolyte discharge element is positioned opposite an upper electrolyte feeder element and each upper electrolyte discharge elements is positioned opposite a lower electrolyte feeder element, and wherein vertical and horizontal flow components of the electrolyte solution result and their direction alternatingly changes as seen along the throughput path of the printed circuit boards.

Electroplating means for perforated printed circuit boards to be treated

An electroplating device for sheet-like circuit boards characterized by an upper and lower electrode extending on opposite sides of a path for the boards, electrolyte headers being arranged adjacent the inlet and the outlet of the apparatus above and below the path for the boards and wash jets being arranged above the path for discharging electrolyte solution vertically against the boards as they pass therethrough.

Electroplating apparatus for plate-shaped workpieces

An electroplating apparatus for plate-shaped workpieces, particularly printed circuit boards which are guided through an electrolytic solution in a horizontal path for the application of metal has a conveying arrangement comprising laterally arranged upper band drives and laterally arranged lower band drives whereby the workpieces are entrained in a friction-actuated fashion between a lower run of the upper band drive and an upper run of the lower band drive. In addition, a sealing wall is arranged between the upper and lower runs of each of the band drives to produce a sealing arrangement for a laterally exposed edge of the workpiece, which is engaged by a contacting mechanism for the cathodic contacting of the workpiece projecting through the band drives.

An improvement in an electroplating apparatus which has a conveyor arrangement which conveys a workpiece through an electrolyte bath with an edge portion of each of the workpieces extending laterally out of the bath in a sealed relationship and being engaged by a contact arrangement characterized by the contact arrangement being constructed as an endlessly moving belt having either brushes or contact spring pairs for engaging the edge of the workpiece. In addition, the belt is arranged to move over two pulleys to provide a run adjacent the edge and a return run which passes through a cleaning arrangement which is an electrolytic demetallization cell.

Electroplating apparatus for plate-shaped workpieces, particularly

An electroplating apparatus for plate-shaped workpieces which are conveyed in a horizontal path through an electrolytic cell characterized by the edges of the workpieces being grasped via contact elements that are secured on an endless circular flexible metal band. The side face of the metal band facing toward the workpiece glides above and below the conveyor and contact elements on guide and seal elements that extend in the wall of the cell along the horizontal direction. The metal band and conveyor and contact elements simultaneously have the job of conveying the workpiece, of cathodic contacting of the workpiece and of sealing an electroplating cell against the emergence of electrolyte solution.

An electroplating apparatus, which has the workpieces, such as printed circuit boards, being conducted through an electrolyte solution in a horizontal path, has cathodic contacting by contact clamps, which move with the workpiece through the device. In order to guarantee a reliable supply of cathode current with a low thermal heating and a low wear of the contacts, which are also simultaneously resistant to the corrosion of the conducting parts, a live rail is provided that comprises a core composed of a material of high electrical conductivity, such as copper, and is covered by an envelope composed of a material having a high resistance to corrosion, such as titanium. Contact springs, preferably composed of titanium, are connected to the live rail in a mechanical and electrical conductive fashion, such as by spot welding, and engage each of the contact clamps as they move along the path.

An electroplating apparatus for plating plate-shaped workpieces, particularly printed circuit boards, as they move in a horizontal path through a tank of electrolyte between an upper anode and a lower anode characterized by the device including four electrolyte headers arranged with a pair at the input of the path between the upper and lower anodes, and a pair at the end of the path between the upper and lower anodes, with each pair having one header disposed above the path and one header disposed below the path. Each of the headers as a plurality of openings extending at an attack angle to the horizontal path to create both horizontal and vertical components for a flow of the electrolyte between the surfaces of the workpieces and each of the upper and lower anodes.

A treatment facility, which has a continuous circulation of a treatment fluid between a supply reservoir and a treatment cell, characterized by an arrangement to prevent frothing and/or foaming of the treatment fluid being returned to the reservoir. The arrangement includes a distributor having an exit slot which is positioned in the reservoir with the exit slot being above the level of the fluid in the reservoir.

Treatment facility particularly for printed circuit boards to be treated

An apparatus for electroplating plate-shaped workpieces, such as a printed circuit board, having a cell, an arrangement for conducting the workpiece through the cell, and anodes arranged in the cell in contact with the electrolyte solution characterized by an arrangement to cathodically connect the workpiece including at least one tong-shaped contact clamp for gripping the workpiece and arrangement for moving the clamp along with the workpiece, as is conveyed through the cell. Preferably, the arrangement for moving is an endless drive of a continuous member, such as a chain or a plurality of belts, and a plurality of contact clamps are spaced along this member to grip the edge portion of the workpieces.

An electrolysis device for electrolytic deposition of a metal on at least one surface of the tape which has been precoated with a metal provides an electrolytic metal deposition band in which there is a first electrode for connection to a first voltage source. A tape drive is provided for moving the tape through the bath including first guide rollers defining a single loop for the tape through the bath. A second electrode is provided in the tape path and mounted to contact the tape above the entrance to the bath and over an area of the one metallized surface and is connected to a second source potential. Second guide rollers along the tape path downstream of the bath, including a second guide roller contact the metallized surface and is connected to a third source potential.

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Handzame, Belgium

Daniel Hosten