Micron Technology Incorporated

Micron Electronics, Inc.

Derek T Smith

Roland Ochoa

Tony T Ibarra

Merle Bicknell

Todd D Higgins

A carrier tape recycling apparatus for receiving bare carrier tape from a manufacturing system and for winding the carrier tape onto a plurality of tape reels for reuse. The carrier tape recycling apparatus includes a reel drive mechanism configured to support and rotationally drive a plurality of tape reels such that bare carrier tape dispensed from the manufacturing system may be wound onto the tape reels. The reel drive mechanism provides a slip drive allowing each tape reel disposed in the recycling apparatus to rotate and receive carrier tape independent of other tape reels disposed in the recycling apparatus, so as to compensate for variation in the rate at which carrier tape is supplied to each tape reel disposed in the carrier tape recycling apparatus. The present invention also includes a method of using the recycling apparatus to recycle bare carrier tape dispensed from a manufacturing system.

Carrier tape recycling apparatus and method of recycling carrier tape

A system and method for assembling components onto a circuit board is disclosed. The system includes: a thermal chamber for receiving a plurality of components therein and for heating the plurality of components at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined length of time; an outfeed slot located on a wall of the thermal chamber which allows at least one component from the plurality of components to pass therethrough and emerge externally of the thermal chamber; and a pick and place machine, located adjacent to the thermal chamber, which automatically retrieves the at least one component which has passed through the outfeed slot and automatically places the at least one component onto a designated circuit board. The method includes: placing at least one component into an interior chamber of a thermal oven; heating the at least one component at a predetermined temperature within the thermal oven for a predetermined length of time; passing the at least one component through an outfeed slot located on a wall of the thermal oven, at the expiration of the predetermined length of time, such that the at least one component emerges externally of the thermal oven; and retrieving the at least one component which emerges from the thermal oven through the outfeed slot with an automated pick and place machine which thereafter places the at least one component onto a designated circuit board.

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Eagle, ID, United States of America

Derek T Smith