Head for handling electrical components

Abstract

A pick-up head especially for use in a machine for placing electrical components on a substrate comprises a tool holder mounted for movement, conveniently by a lead screw driven by a motor, between a plurality of datum positions and further positions remote therefrom, having means for interchangeably mounting a pick-up tool with a datum face of the tool located at a predetermined position relative to the tool holder. The head further comprises a plurality of orienting jaws mounted for movement towards and away from a component carried on the datum face of a tool on the tool holder when the holder is in one of the datum positions whereby the jaws can engage the component to orient the component. The jaws have a plurality of spaced sets of cooperating datum faces disposed generally transversely to the plane of the datum face of the tool in the holder, each set of datum faces being disposed so as to be capable of orienting a component carried by a tool mounted on the tool holder when the holder is at a corresponding one of said datum positions. A machine including the pick-up head comprises a tool support for supporting a plurality of tools and the machine is arranged so that tools carried by the pick-up head may be interchanged with tools in the tool support dependent upon the components which are to be handled. A wide range of component sizes can be handled using the single pick-up head.