Patent · US Expired

Automatic part positioning system

US4286201A · kind A · utility

12Cited by
5References
9Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 21, 1979
Grant dateAug 25, 1981
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 21, 1999

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH05K13/0061
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A system for precisely positioning a printed circuit board relative to a component insertion tool, the system including a circuit board-holding frame movable with two degrees of freedom in a plane by a servomechanism coupled to a photo detector assembly positioned on the opposite side of the printed circuit board from a light beam generator producing a single beam or a pair of parallel light beams spaced a distance equal to the distance between a pair of holes in the circuit board. Light pipes or a pair of orthogonally oriented wedge-shaped beam splitting members are positioned between the photo detector assembly and the circuit board for splitting each of the beams and thereby illuminating orthogonally oriented pairs of photo cells equally when the board is in a desired position relative to the light beams and providing to the servomechanism with an error signal to correct the position of the board when it is not in such alignment.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.