Other

Interbake Foods, Inc.

Gregory W Holcomb

Samuel R Holcomb

Scott A Hogan

Scott A Smith

A horizontal oscillatory feeder apparatus is disclosed for feeding a plurality of different types of electrical components of varying mass along respective tracks to component pick-up stations. The components and the tracks are supported on a base plate, which is excited in an oscillatory movement. The movement of the base plate is constrained so that movement is permitted only along an axis parallel to the feeder tracks. An excitation apparatus excites the base plate so that the acceleration forces applied to the components in a desired direction of movement exceeds the frictional force tending to prevent slippage of the components on the tracks; the acceleration forces applied to the components in the opposite direction are limited so that the components do not slip on the track in the opposite direction to the desired movement. A component clamp may be located at the end of the respective tracks to clamp the components in place at respective pick-up locations once the components have been fed forward to the pick-up locations by the effect of the oscillatory movement.

Horizontal oscillatory feeder

An axial lead component feeder is described, which includes a lead cutting and forming station, at which the processed parts are presented at a part pickup location for robotic pickup. Taped axial lead components are fed to a lower process-start location. A cut/form pneumatic cylinder drives a lower die support block upward, directly passing cutting die carried by the support block through captured components leads to cut the leads to a desired length. In the same upward stroke of the cylinder, the leads are formed, and the processed part presented at the pickup location. The feeder has many advantages, including narrow footprint and low Z axis profile, reduced number of change tooling parts, increased part refresh rate and improved scrap tape removal.

Axial lead electrical component feeder

A component lead cutting apparatus for tape-fed radial lead electrical components is disclosed. The taped components are driven through the machine by a rotary index wheel, with the cutting station element adjacent the wheel periphery. Clamping and cutting die elements are placed at the cutting station, and are actuated by a pneumatic cylinder to clamp and cut the lead components. The apparatus includes adjustment elements readily accessible from the top of the machine to raise or lower the index wheel and thereby adjust for different lead cut lengths, and to position the wheel to accommodate different tape sprocket opening configurations. The machine has a compact, narrow footprint, so that the machine is space-efficient.

Radial lead component feeder having a narrow footprint

A circuit board assembly system is disclosed. One aspect of the system is the robotic end effector for gripping and inserting each component into the circuit board. The end effector includes a compliance mechanism which compensates for variations in body-to-lead configurations to permit components to be precisely placed without damage to the component body or leads. Another aspect of the system is a programmable lead clinching system for clinching leads of each component as the component is inserted into the circuit board. The clinching system includes a clinch element and a drive system for driving the clinch element through a predetermined series of strokes to clinch the component leads. The system further includes a component presentation module, with a plurality of component feeder devices for feeding a number of different component types, and a presentation robot for sequentially selecting each component to be inserted in the board and delivering the component to a part presentation station. The system further includes a component lead straightening and cutting system. This latter system operates in combination with the presentation robot to straighten the leads of each component and cut the leads to a predetermined length. The disclosed system provides a flexible component insertion capability for inserting a wide variety of component types into different types of circuit boards. The system is reconfigurable to a different product without substantial mechanical retooling.

Circuit assembly system

A tube magazine component feeder is disclosed. The component feeder is reconfigurable to accommodate different tube magazine sizes and different component configurations. The component feeder includes a pair of upright masts for supporting loaded tube magazines in a stacked upright manner. The spatial separation of the two masts is adjustable to accommodate different tube magazine lengths. Other elements of the component feeder are adjustable or replaceable so as to quickly and easily adapt the device to a different tube magazine size or different component configuration.

Tube magazine component feeder

A component lead cutting and forming apparatus for axial lead electronic components respectively having first and second leads secured to tape, including bending dies for supporting the first and second leads of an axial lead component in process. The bending dies are supported by slide blocks, and strain relief clamps selectively clamp the first and second leads against the bending dies. First and second parallel carriage blocks, which are adjustable in separation, support the slide blocks. Driving apparatus including an air cylinder translates the slide blocks between a first position and a second position in a linear direction generally orthogonal to the orientation of the axial leads of the component in process, and further controls cutting blades for cutting the leads of the component in process. The cutting blades are secured in parallel cutting blade support blocks which are adjustable as to separation. Bending rollers supported by the carriage blocks cooperate with the bending dies to bend the leads of the axial lead component in process as the slide blocks are linearly translated from the first position to the second position. When the slide blocks are in the second position, grippers grasp the processed component legs and translate the component for robotic pick-up presentation.

Variable axial lead electrical component feeder

A component insertion end effector for robotic equipment is disclosed. The end effector is particularly adapted for printed circuit insertion of electrical component whose relationship between component body and leads varies from the nominal dimensions. The end effector compensates for variations in body-to-lead configurations to permit components to be precisely placed without damaging the component body or its leads. The effector comprises a pneumatic gripping mechanism which is coupled to the robot arm by a compliance mechanism. The compliance mechanism is operable in two states, the first state in which the gripping mechanism is freely movable throughout a predetermined range of movement with respect to the robot arm, and a second state in which the gripping mechanism is fixedly secured in relation to the robot arm. An actuating mechanism is adapted to configure the compliance mechanism into the first state while the gripping mechanism initially grips the component to be gripped, so that the component is gripped without preloading or deforming the component or its leads. The actuating mechanism is adapted then to configure the compliance mechanism into the second state for the component insertion. A novel release mechanism is provided to release the component from the gripping mechanism after insertion, which is adapted to allow effective of the gripping mechanism insertion and release in a densely populated board.

End effector for robotic equipment

A component lead cutting and forming apparatus which includes a movable carriage and a bending die secured thereto for supporting the first and second leads of an axial lead component in process. A translatable cutting and forming assembly is provided for (a) providing strain relief clamping of the leads of the component in process against the component supporting bending die, (b) cutting the leads of the component in process, and (c) cooperating with the component supporting bending die to bend the leads of the component in process, when the movable carriage and the component supporting bending die is in a first position beneath the translatable cutting and forming assembly. Driving apparatus translates the movable carriage between such first position and a second position, wherein at the second position the axial lead component having cut and formed leads is presented for robotic pick-up.

A component lead cutting and forming apparatus for radial lead electrical components secured to tape, including first and second stations for processing each of the electrical components. The first station includes clamping apparatus for strain relief clamping the component lead, and also for supporting and aligning the body of the component. Blades and bending dies located at the first station cut and form a selected lead. The second station includes clamping apparatus for strain relief clamping the remaining uncut leads, and also includes blades for cutting the remaining uncut leads.

Radial lead electrical component feeder

An ice cream sandwich with a wrapper sheet thereon is raised by an elevator to the level of a horizontal trackway during which side and bottom panels of the wrapper sheet are downfolded along the sides of the sandwich. A horizontally slidable and reciprocable pusher and folding device pushes the sandwich and wrapper sheet off the elevator device onto and along the trackway. During this operation folding devices in the form of combination vertically extending elevator guide members and folding devices which form parts of the pusher and folding device coact to infold the bottom panels of the wrapper sheet under the bottom surface of the sandwich. As the sandwich is moved over the horizontal trackway folding devices embodied in the pusher and folding device act to infold the trailing end panels of the wrapper sheet against the end walls of the sandwich; folding devices embodied in the pusher and folding device cooperate with stationary folding devices on the trackway to infold the leading end panels of the wrapper sheet against the end walls of the sandwich; stationary folding devices on the trackway upfold the bottom end-sealing panels of the wrapper sheet over the end panels and downfold the top end-sealing panels against the bottom end-sealing panels. The thus folded top and bottom end-sealing panels are then heat-sealed together following which the sandwich is moved through a cooling device to the delivery or discharge end of the trackway.

Growing community of inventors

Irvine, CA, United States of America

Gregory W Holcomb