CN-112439967-B - Nozzle, system and method

Abstract

A nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a soldering operation. The nozzle includes a body portion having an inlet to receive a supply of solder, an outlet portion having an outlet to dispense solder, and a channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the outlet. The outlet portion is disposed above the inlet such that solder flows upwardly along the channel from the inlet to the outlet portion. The outlet portion has first and second overflow sections, each integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of the outlet, such that solder is dispensed from the outlet and flows through the first and/or second overflow sections. At least a portion of the first overflow section has a first width such that solder flowing through the first overflow section produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the first width. At least a portion of the second overflow section has a second width such that solder flowing through the second overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the second width. Methods of making such nozzles and methods of welding components with such nozzles are also disclosed.

Inventors

• Gorkin diplstratten

Assignees

• 伊利诺斯工具制品有限公司

Dates

Publication Date

20260508

Application Date

20200409

Priority Date

20190827

Claims (20)

1. 1. A nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a point-to-point soldering operation, wherein the nozzle is configured to rotate about an axis to a first position and a second position, the nozzle comprising: a body portion having: An inlet configured to receive a supply of solder; an outlet portion having one or more outlets, each of the one or more outlets configured to dispense solder, and At least one channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the one or more outlets; wherein the outlet portion is located above the inlet such that, in use, solder flows in a generally upward direction along the at least one channel from the inlet to the outlet portion, Wherein the outlet portion has a first overflow section and a second overflow section, each overflow section being integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets, wherein the outlet portion is configured to dispense the solder from the one or more outlets and to flow the solder through the first overflow section and/or the second overflow section, Wherein the first overflow section has a first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the first overflow section produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the first width, Wherein the second overflow section has a second width different from the first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the second overflow section produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the second width, and Wherein when the nozzle is in the first position, the nozzle is configured to flow the solder through the first overflow section without flowing through the second overflow section, and when the nozzle is in the second position, the nozzle is configured to flow the solder through the second overflow section without flowing through the first overflow section.
2. 2. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein the outlet portion has a first outlet and a second outlet.
3. 3. The nozzle of claim 2, wherein the first overflow section is integral with or connected to the first outlet, and wherein the second overflow section is integral with or connected to the second outlet.
4. 4. The nozzle of claim 2, wherein the body portion includes a first channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the first outlet and a second channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the second outlet.
5. 5. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first overflow section or the second overflow section includes a substantially straight portion in the peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets.
6. 6. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first overflow section or the second overflow section includes a recessed section or a stepped section within the peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets, and/or Wherein when the nozzle is in a vertically upright position, the flow resistance of a first flow path from the outlet portion through the first overflow section is lower than the flow resistance of a second flow path from the outlet portion to the second overflow section.
7. 7. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein the first and second overflow sections are located on opposite sides of the outlet portion, and/or Wherein the body portion of the nozzle further has an outer surface, a first guide portion and a second guide portion, Wherein the body portion defines a vertically extending central axis, Wherein the first overflow section has the first width of between 1mm and 4mm such that, in use, a surface tension between solder flowing through the first overflow section and the first guide portion creates a solder flow having a width corresponding to the first width, and Wherein the second overflow section has the second width between 4mm and 10mm, different from the first width, such that in use, surface tension between solder flowing through the second overflow section and the second guide portion produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the second width.
8. 8. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein the outlet portion has a third overflow section integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets, wherein at least a portion of the third overflow section has a third width different from the first and second widths, such that in use, solder flowing through the third overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the third width.
9. 9. The nozzle of claim 8, wherein the overflow sections are spaced around a periphery of the outlet portion.
10. 10. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein the nozzle comprises a plurality of stacked layers obtainable by deposition during additive manufacturing or 3D printing, the plurality of stacked layers being arranged to define the at least one channel.
11. 11. The nozzle of claim 1, wherein: the outlet portion includes a peripheral edge; the first overflow section includes a recessed section or a stepped section within the peripheral edge; The second overflow section is a straight section of the peripheral edge on the opposite side of the outlet portion from the first overflow section, and The peripheral edge having first and second straight portions extending between the recessed section or the stepped section of the first overflow section and the straight section of the second overflow section, the first and second straight portions of the peripheral edge being angled with respect to the first and second overflow sections, and Wherein when the nozzle is in a vertically upright position, the second overflow section extends higher than the first overflow section, and the first and second straight portions of the peripheral edge extend downwardly from the second overflow section to the first overflow section.
12. 12. A system for welding components, the system comprising: A liquid solder supply section; a nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a point-to-point soldering operation, wherein the nozzle is configured to rotate about an axis to a first position and a second position, the nozzle comprising: a body portion having: An inlet configured to receive a supply of solder; an outlet portion having one or more outlets, each of the one or more outlets being configured to dispense solder therefrom; A first guide portion; A second guide portion, and At least one channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the one or more outlets; wherein the outlet portion is located above the inlet such that, in use, solder flows in a generally upward direction along the at least one channel from the inlet to the outlet portion, Wherein the outlet portion has a first overflow section and a second overflow section, each overflow section being integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets, wherein the outlet portion is configured to dispense the solder from the one or more outlets and to flow the solder through the first overflow section and/or the second overflow section, Wherein the first overflow section has a first width such that, in use, surface tension between solder flowing through the first overflow section and the first guide portion produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the first width, Wherein the second overflow section has a second width different from the first width such that, in use, surface tension between solder flowing through the second overflow section and the second guide portion produces a solder flow having a width corresponding to the second width; a pump apparatus configured to pump solder from the solder supply to the nozzle, and An actuating device configured to vary an angle of the nozzle to control a width of the solder flow by controlling which of the first overflow section or the second overflow section receives overflow solder, and Wherein when the nozzle is in the first position, the nozzle is configured to flow the solder through the first overflow section without flowing through the second overflow section, and when the nozzle is in the second position, the nozzle is configured to flow the solder through the second overflow section without flowing through the first overflow section.
13. 13. The system of claim 12, the nozzle having a longitudinal axis, wherein the actuation device is configured to rotate the nozzle about its axis, and/or Wherein the body portion has an outer surface, and wherein the body portion defines a vertically extending central axis.
14. 14. The system of claim 12, the nozzle having a longitudinal axis, wherein the actuation device is configured to tilt at least one of the axis of the nozzle or the component to be welded to change an angle therebetween.
15. 15. A method of manufacturing a nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a soldering operation, the method comprising: Depositing a layer of material during additive manufacturing or 3D printing to build the nozzle according to any one of claims 1 to 11.
16. 16. A method of welding components, the method comprising: providing a system according to any one of claims 12 to 14; providing a component to be welded; Selecting a preferred overflow section based on the desired solder width; adjusting the relative orientation between the nozzle and the part to be soldered so that during a soldering operation the part will be soldered using a solder flow generated as solder flows through the preferred overflow section, and The welding operation being performed using the system according to any one of claims 12 to 14.
17. 17. A method according to claim 16, wherein the relative orientation between the nozzle and the component to be welded is adjusted by rotating the nozzle about its axis.
18. 18. A method according to claim 16, wherein the relative orientation between the nozzle and the component to be welded is adjusted by tilting the axis of the nozzle and/or the component to be welded to change the angle therebetween.
19. 19. A nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a point-to-point soldering operation during which each solder joint is individually soldered, the nozzle comprising: a body portion having: An inlet for receiving a supply of solder; an outlet portion having at least one outlet for dispensing solder therefrom, and At least one channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the at least one outlet; Wherein the outlet portion is adapted to be arranged above the inlet such that, in use, solder flows along the at least one channel in a generally upward direction from the inlet to the outlet portion, Wherein the outlet portion has a first overflow section and a second overflow section, each overflow section being integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of the at least one outlet such that, in use, the solder is dispensed from the at least one outlet and flows through the first and/or second overflow sections, Wherein the at least one outlet is sloped toward the first overflow section or the second overflow section, Wherein at least a portion of the first overflow section has a first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the first overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the first width, and Wherein at least a portion of the second overflow section has a second width different from the first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the second overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the second width.
20. 20. The nozzle of claim 19 wherein said first and second overflow sections are angled relative to adjacent portions of said peripheral edge.

Description

Nozzle, system and method Technical Field The present invention relates to a nozzle and in particular, but not exclusively, to a nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a soldering operation. The present invention relates to a method of welding with a nozzle and a method of manufacturing a nozzle. Background Selective soldering may be used in many soldering applications, such as soldering components of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs). In general, selective welding can be divided into two methods, multi-wave dip welding and point-to-point welding. In a multi-wave dip soldering process, a large size solder bath or soldering assembly 100 (shown in fig. 1 a) with a plate 102 is typically used, which includes a nozzle 104 to which liquid solder is pumped. The PCB (not shown) is lowered towards the nozzle such that the connector leads/pins (e.g. in a Cu (copper) panel) are immersed in the liquid solder present in the nozzle to form soldered connections/joints at corresponding locations on the PCB. That is, a plurality of solder connections may be formed simultaneously. Each multi-wave dip-welded assembly has a specific nozzle plate with a nozzle located at a desired weld location. The nozzle may have different shapes depending on the connector to be soldered and the free space on the assembly. Fig. 1b illustrates a typical nozzle 104 used in a multimodal dip welding process. For connectors with high bridging risk, a laser cut wire mesh 106 (provided separately from the nozzle itself) may be provided in the nozzle 104 to help avoid bridging of the solder. In a point-to-point soldering process, a small solder horn or soldering assembly 200 (shown in fig. 2) is typically used, which typically contains only one nozzle 204. In contrast to multi-wave soldering where connector pins are immersed in a nozzle, solder overflows from the nozzle 204 and the pins are dragged or immersed in the flowing solder (or conversely, the nozzle can be moved relative to the pins). Each welded joint is welded individually. Some known point-to-point solder assemblies include a solder flow director (SDC) 213 that projects a bridging fluid jet or stream toward the nozzle outlet and soldered pins to help prevent solder from bridging between adjacent soldered connections. Current SDCs can be bulky. In point-to-point soldering, a plurality of solder baths are typically used, each solder bath having a different nozzle size. For example, the first nozzle may be a smaller nozzle to weld fine pitch components and the second nozzle may be a larger/wider nozzle to weld larger pitch components (e.g., double row components) in a single drag. Such a need for multiple solder slots/nozzles may reduce throughput because production must be stopped in order to switch between nozzles. It would be advantageous to produce a nozzle that helps overcome the above problems. Disclosure of Invention According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a nozzle for directing a flow of solder during a soldering operation, the nozzle comprising: A body portion having: an inlet for receiving a supply of solder; An outlet portion having one or more outlets for dispensing solder therethrough, and At least one channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the one or more outlets; Wherein the outlet portion is adapted to be arranged above the inlet such that, in use, solder flows along the at least one channel in a generally upward direction from the inlet to the outlet portion, Wherein the outlet portion has a first overflow section and a second overflow section, each overflow section being integral with or connected to a peripheral edge of an outlet of the one or more outlets such that, in use, the solder is dispensed from the outlet of the one or more outlets and flows through the first overflow section and/or the second overflow section, Wherein at least a portion of the first overflow section has a first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the first overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the first width, and Wherein at least a portion of the second overflow section has a second width different from the first width such that, in use, solder flowing through the second overflow section produces a solder flow having a width substantially corresponding to the second width. Suitably, the first overflow section and the second overflow section are integral with or connected to a common outlet. Suitably, the outlet portion has a first outlet and a second outlet. Suitably, the first overflow section is integral with or connected to the first outlet, and wherein the second overflow section is integral with or connected to the second outlet. Suitably, the body portion comprises a first channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the first outlet and a second channel fluidly connecting the inlet to the second outlet. Suitably, the first overflow section and/or the second overflow section comprises a substantially