Zierick Manufacturing Corporation

Greg Torigian

Janos Legrady

Hal Wylie

Jim Dicaprio

A feeder and method are disclosed for individually dispensing surface-mount contacts in a strip of tab-connected contacts on a pick-and-place machine having a pick-up member and pick-up station actuator for actuating the feeder when the pick-and-place machine is ready for pick-up surface-mount contact oriented along a predetermined direction at the pick-up station. The strip of contacts are fed from a roll or spool and the end received within a guide, with the strip being advanced to position the end contact or connector to be mounted suspended beyond the guide. When the component is ready to be mounted, it is sheared or severed at a connecting tab from the strip to free it. The component is temporarily held in place while the freed component is moved towards the vacuum pick-up nozzle of the pick-and-place machine, and released at such time that the pick-up member of vacuum nozzle has sufficiently engaged the contact to enable it to pick up the contact and remove it from the pick-up station.

Feeder and method of supplying a continuous strip of surface mount

An apparatus is described for individually inserting successive components of a series of components having mounting legs by movement of the components along an insertion direction to introduce the mounting legs into holes in a substrate at an insertion station. The apparatus includes a guide for guiding a strip of components along a feedpath generally normal to the insertion direction with the mounting legs oriented in the direction of the substrate surface. The strip is advanced stepwise after each insertion operation to position the next successive components of the strip at the insertion station. The carrier web between a components to be inserted and the next successive upstream component is centered relative to a web shearing line, a first cutting element at the insertion station being arranged for abutment against a carrier edge or line proximate to the mounting legs for preventing movement of that portion of the carrier web upstream of the shearing line in the insertion direction. The strip is moved relative to the cutting element to permit the strip to advance the next successive component to be inserted to the insertion station without being blocked by the first cutting element. A plunger is provided which moves along the insertion direction to shear the carrier web when the plunger is driven into engagement with that portion of the carrier web downstream of the shearing line and move it below the carrier edge or line. An insertion spoon carries the component towards and inserts it through the substrate.

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Mahopac, NY, United States of America

Greg Torigian