A machine for manufacturing compact discs, for instance

(54) (56)

PATENTHARE M2 Engineering AB, Box 22 164 93 Kista SE

INVENTOR'S OFFICE NAME

CALLED PUBLICATIONS:

Stefan Olin, Hägersten SE

Lennart Sjöö

Machine for the production of, for example, CDs (57)

EP Al 0 574 975 (G11B 7/26), DE C2 3 720 525 (B05C 13/02), DE 02 3 629 045 (B29D 17/00), DE Al 4 235 676 (B65G 49/07) SUMMARY:

Machine for the production of CDs performs a number of manufacturing steps included in a complete manufacturing process.

A central manipulator (X) has a number of radially outward manipulator arms (A, B, C..E) and performs reciprocating rotary movements in a first plane as well as lifting and lowering movements in a second plane according to predetermined and controlling the manufacturing process. program.

The manipulator arms (A, B, C, ..E) perform successive movement of discs from position (eg 4) to position (5) to pre-determined working positions required by the program for successive execution of manufacturing steps included in the manufacturing process.

One (A) of the manipulator arms has an upper, releasable portion (21) of a vacuum lock (21-22-23) and, after a lowering motion, delivers this portion (21) to an intermediate portion (22) of the vacuum lock, which intermediate portion is integral. fixed part in a chamber lid (250) to vacuum chamber (25). In it is a multi-arm, internal manipulator (20), which in one of its arms has placed a lower part (23) of the vacuum lock (21-22-23) and which is arranged for carrying out a vacuum-demanding manufacturing step in the complete manufacturing process.

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The numbers in brackets indicate international identification code, INID code. Letters in clamps indicate international document code.

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TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a machine for manufacturing e.g. CD's. Specifically, a machine is intended to carry out a number of manufacturing steps included in a complete manufacturing process.

BACKGROUND OF THE ART

In the systems available for the production of CDs, there are a number of different solutions, all of which are based on either OEM components available on the market with standard solutions therein, or their own solutions, which usually contain several separate pneumatic functions, manipulators or one to two. industrial robots.

Several separate pneumatic functions, manipulators and, respectively, industrial robots cause large investment costs, increased maintenance, many sources of error, difficult troubleshooting work and large spare parts stock. The object of the present invention is to eliminate this disadvantage.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

A machine of the kind mentioned above comprises a central manipulator having a plurality of radially outwardly directed manipulator arms. The manipulator is arranged for carrying out reciprocating rotary movements in a first plane as well as lifting and lowering movements in a second plane perpendicular to the first plane in accordance with a predetermined and control process program. The manipulator arms are arranged for the successive movement of discs from position to position to pre-determined working positions required by the program for carrying out manufacturing steps included in the manufacturing process.

According to the invention, the central manipulator is arranged to cooperate, via one of the manipulator arms, with an internal manipulator located in a vacuum chamber for carrying out a vacuum demanding manufacturing step in the complete manufacturing process. These and other features of a machine according to the invention are set forth in the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION

The invention will be described in more detail in connection with the accompanying drawings, where schematically

Fig. 1 is a top view of the machine, and

Fig. 2 is a sectional side view of a part of a dry arm and vacuum lock included in the machine according to Fig. 1.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In Fig. 1 a central manipulator X is shown with a number of (5) radially outwardly directed manipulator arms A, B, C, D, E. The central manipulator is arranged for carrying forward (clockwise) and reverse (counterclockwise) rotary movements, see solid arrow 10 respectively, dashed arrow 11, in a first plane h (horizontal) and lifting and lowering movements in a second plane v (vertical) perpendicular to the first plane in accordance with a predetermined and a manufacturing process for C D boards controlling program. The manipulator arms AE are arranged for the successive movement of the disks from position to position to the predetermined working positions required by the program for successive execution of manufacturing steps included in the manufacturing process. The various positions are designated 4, 5, 6,7,8, 9, 12, 14, 16, and 18. Some of the manufacturing steps will now be somewhat touched upon.

The manipulator arm A, which in Fig. 1 is in position 4, is indexed “to position 5 carrying from position 4 by means of suction cups a blank for CD to position 5, where the blank is delivered. In this position, the arm also has a function in connection with a vacuum lock 21-22-23 to a vacuum chamber 25, which will be described in more detail in connection with Fig. 2.

While the arm A is moved from position 4 to position 5, it moves:

o arm B from position 5 to position 9, carrying an aluminum coated disc;

the arm C from position 9 to position 12, carrying a disc coated over the aluminum layer;

the arm D from position 12 to position 14, leading to a position 12 with strong UV light cured disc;

o arm E from position 14 to position 16, leading to a disc sighted at position 14 with respect to defects, damage and / or cosmetic defects. The record has been found approved. On the other hand, if the disc has been found unapproved, the arm E swings out to position 18 by means of a pneumatic cylinder mounted on the central manipulator X.

As can be seen in Fig. 2, the manipulator arm A has at its outer end an upper, releasably arranged portion 21 of a vacuum lock 21-22-23 and is arranged to deliver in the predetermined position, namely position 5, and after a lowering movement the upper portion. 21 on an intermediate portion 22 of the vacuum lock, which intermediate portion forms an integral part of a chamber lid 250 to the vacuum chamber 25. In this chamber there is an internal manipulator 20 for carrying out a vacuum demanding manufacturing step in the complete manufacturing process. The manipulator 20 is four-leaf-shaped (has four arms) and has an arm 201, the outer end of which is formed with a fixed part 23_: which forms the lower moving part of the vacuum lock 21-22-23

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With a system of valves for vacuum pumping or pressure increase in the vacuum lock 21 22-23, it is achieved that the arm A delivers a disk in the intermediate part 22, the arm 201 intercepts and transports the disk to a waiting station at position 6 in the chamber 25, further to a position 7 for coating with aluminum by cathode stitching, on to a waiting station 8 and finally back to position 5, where the arm B is now located and takes the disc to the position 9, see Fig. 1.

As already indicated, one of the arms of the central manipulator X, namely the arm E, is arranged to, in addition to participating in the rotary movement of the central manipulator X in one direction, namely position 16, additionally perform an individual rotational movement a piece to a subsequent position 18, this provided that special impulse comes from the said program, indicating that the disc in question was not found approved at the inspection in position 14.

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