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Mounting Feeders

A feeder can be mounted on your Vertex 4 with one smooth motion.

Installing the Spool Arm (8mm)​

8mm feeders come with a spool arm that holds a standard 7" spool of components directly on the feeder.

  1. Grab a spool arm and thimble.
  2. Insert the V-shaped side of the thimble into the spool arm, so the thimble and the block feature on the other end of the arm are on the same side.
  3. Make sure the flat side of the thimble faces the rest of the arm when inserting.
  4. Rotate the thimble 90 degrees so the flat side is facing downwards.
  5. Use a 2.0mm hex wrench to unscrew the countersunk screw in the spool slot.
  6. Insert the spool arm upright, with the flat side of the arm facing the PCB.
  7. Replace the screw.

Installing the Ramp (12mm)​

Most spools for 12mm tape are wider than the feeder, so they cannot be mounted to it. Instead, a ramp allows the tape to feed into the feeder from a floor-mounted spool.

  1. Use a 2.0mm hex wrench to unscrew the countersunk screw in the spool slot.
  2. Insert the ramp in the orientation shown, with the curve pointing to the tape opening.
  3. Replace the screw.

Mounting the Feeder​

Powder on the rail: A small amount of dust or powder developing on the feeder rail is totally normal. The feeder prints are designed slightly undersized so they wear in to exactly the right fit over a few insertion cycles. Brush any powder away and continue as normal.
A bit of force is OK: It can take a bit of force to mount your feeder, especially the first few times as the print breaks in. As long as you're aligned correctly, you can put a bit of force into mounting the feeder.

8mm and 12mm​

  1. Hold your feeder at a 45 degree angle downwards.
  2. Align the peg on the slot with the channel in the feeder.
  3. Ensure the feeder is hooked around the extrusion.
  4. Depress the locking arm.
  5. Pull down on the feeder until it pops into place.
  6. Release the lever arm.
  7. Double-check that the spring finger contacts on the feeder properly touch the metal pads on the slot.
Boot failure with many feeders mounted: Older power supplies cannot handle the inrush current from many feeders booting simultaneously, and the machine fails to start. Affects pre-v3.1 machines. Contact support for a replacement power supply.
Mounting inline with other feeders: If you're mounting a feeder inline with many others, reach under the spools to depress the lever arm, push forward to tip the feeder, then depress the lever from the top and remove. The feeder can also be mounted and removed without depressing the lever arm.

16mm and 24mm​

16mm and 24mm feeders mount the same way as 8mm and 12mm, by aligning the peg from the slot into the void in the feeder.

Touching the staging plate: The 16mm and 24mm feeders stick out a bit farther forward than the 8mm and 12mm versions. If they touch the staging plate when fully mounted, move your staging plates back 5mm for proper clearance — then redo OpenPnP calibration. This extension is required by the EIA-481-F taping standard (wider tape has a different exit path curvature requirement).
Next: Continue to your attached feeders in OpenPnP.