JP3136532B2 - How to supply parts for assembly lines such as automobiles - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for supplying assembled parts to an assembly line of an automobile or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, a work placed on a slat conveyor moving at a constant speed in an automobile assembly line,
For example, parts required to be assembled to a cab of a truck are conventionally stored in parts shelves fixedly arranged on both sides of a slat conveyor in accordance with an assembling process. For this reason, an operator has to perform an assembling operation by moving back and forth between the cab of the truck to be worked continuously moving at a constant speed and the parts shelf fixedly arranged.

However, in this method, a component supply vehicle must come and go to each component shelf fixedly arranged corresponding to each process to supply and accumulate components. The dedicated floor area increases, and the floor utilization efficiency decreases. In addition, there is a problem of labor for supply,
When the worker frequently moves between the fixed parts shelf and the cab of the moving truck, there is a lot of worker's parts transportation work, and when the assembly of parts is not completed between the determined assembly process areas. Has a problem that the productivity is low, for example, the line may be stopped.

[0004] Therefore, as a method of supplying parts for an assembly line of automobiles and the like for the purpose of solving such a problem,
For example, there is one disclosed in JP-A-2-243234. In this apparatus, a mounting part of an assembly parts shelf is provided on a work carrier for conveying a work at a constant speed, and the parts carrier is conveyed by a shelf carrier to a start end of the work carrier on the assembly line, and the work carrier is transported. The work and the parts shelf are transferred onto the upper mounting portion, and are conveyed together by the work conveyance cart. And the said shelf conveyance apparatus is the structure which provides the hanger for hanging a shelf below the suspension type monorail train which self-propelled along a guide rail. Then, the shelves containing the necessary assembly parts are transported along the guide rails to the starting end of the work carrier and transported to the work carrier, and then lowered onto the work carrier. The component shelf in which the components have been emptied after the assembly has been completed is suspended at the terminal end, and is suspended again to be transported to the component storage area.

[0005] As described above, by mounting the parts shelf on the work carrier and carrying it together with the work, a space for providing the fixed parts shelf along the work carrier becomes unnecessary, and Since the shelf transport device is of a suspension type, it is not necessary to secure a passage for the parts supply vehicle, and the floor use efficiency can be improved. In addition, the distance between the work and the component shelf is reduced, and the working efficiency of the worker is improved.

[0006]

However, in the above-described supply method, the parts shelf is fixedly mounted on one side of the work carrier, so that the parts shelf and the work are close to each other. However, it is necessary to frequently move between the parts shelf and the work during the assembling work. In particular, when assembling parts in the area of the work opposite to the parts shelf, the work must be detoured one by one when going between the work and the parts shelf, which is problematic in terms of work efficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a method of supplying parts to an assembly line for an automobile or the like, which can minimize the traffic between the parts shelf and the work during the assembling work and further improve the work efficiency. The purpose is to propose.

[0008]

For this reason, in the method for supplying parts of an assembly line for automobiles and the like according to the present invention, the wheels are free wheels.
Provided with a plurality of movable parts shelves trolley, housed in the parts per shelf carriage corresponding collectively parts assembled to each area assembly work, the beginning of the slat conveyor such as an automobile assembly line to move by placing the workpiece The plurality of parts shelf carts are placed on a slat conveyor in the section, and each parts shelf cart is arranged around the work in correspondence with the assembly area of the work,
A work, an operator, and the plurality of component shelves are transported together.

Further, the work assembling area is divided into a front part, a left part, and a right part, and a parts shelf truck mainly storing the front parts is arranged in front of the work, and the parts mainly storing the left parts. It is preferable to arrange the shelf cart on the left side of the work, and to arrange the parts shelf cart mainly for storing right-side assembled parts on the right side of the work. Further, it is preferable that a plurality of parts rack trucks are mutually locked, connected to a tow truck as a united truck, and transferred to the slat conveyor start end.

[0010] Further, a moving path of the towing vehicle is provided around the slat conveyor of the assembly line, and the plurality of component shelving carts, which are mutually locked and united, are transferred along the moving path to the starting end of the slat conveyor. Then, the towing vehicle is moved to the end of the slat conveyor and made to stand by, and the plurality of empty component shelving vehicles after the completion of the assembling operation are mutually locked again and connected to the waiting towing vehicle as a united vehicle to form a part. It is good to transfer to a storage place.

[0011] Further, a parts storage is arranged near the slat conveyor, and a plurality of fixed parts shelves are provided in the parts storage corresponding to a work assembling area, and the united truck transported by the towing vehicle is divided here. It is preferable to store the assembled parts while moving them along the corresponding fixed parts shelves, lock them together again, connect them to the waiting tractor as a united truck, and then transfer them to the start end of the slat conveyor. .

[0012]

[0013]

In this configuration, a plurality of movable parts shelving carts containing necessary parts are directly mounted on the slat conveyor of the assembly line together with the work mounted on the slat conveyor of the assembly line and moving. Therefore, the worker, the work, and the component shelf are conveyed together by the slat conveyor, and the corresponding component shelf carts can be moved and arranged in the vicinity of each assembly area of the work. For this reason, there is almost no need for the worker to move between the parts shelf and the work, and it is easy to take out the assembled parts from the parts shelf cart, so that the working time is reduced, the working efficiency is improved, and the productivity is improved. . Further, since a fixed arrangement component shelf arranged along the slat conveyor is not required, the surroundings are clear, the clutter is eliminated, and the environment is improved. Furthermore,
A free wheel that can change the direction of the parts shelf cart freely
This makes it easier to move parts shelving carts,
Standing work becomes easier.

[0014] Further, if the parts shelves are locked to each other and connected to the towing vehicle as a united car and transferred to the start end of the slat conveyor, the space for transferring the parts shelves is small and the floor use area is reduced. In addition to being able to reduce the number, the transfer efficiency of the parts shelf truck is improved. Also, in the parts storage area, multiple fixed parts shelves corresponding to the work assembly area are installed,
If the parts shelving truck that has been united and transported by the towing vehicle is divided and moved along each corresponding fixed parts shelf to store necessary parts, parts can be stored for each parts shelving vehicle, There is no error in storing parts, and the efficiency of storing parts is improved.

[0015]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an overall system configuration of an embodiment in which the method for supplying parts of an assembly line of an automobile or the like according to the present invention is applied to an assembly line of an automobile. In FIG. 1, an assembly line 1
In the figure, the slat conveyor 2 in which the slats are continuously fixed on the endless chain is moving at a constant speed. On the slat conveyor 2, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, a cab 4 of a truck is placed as a work on a jig 3 fixed to the slat conveyor 2, and at a constant speed as the slat conveyor 2 moves. Conveyed. Further, on the slat conveyor 2, there is provided a component shelf mounting space for mounting a plurality of component shelf carts A, B, C movable around the cab 4. Necessary assembly parts are stored in the parts shelf carts A to C collectively for each assembly area of the cab 4. For example, the assembling area of the cab 4 is divided into a front portion, a left side portion, a right side portion, and the like, and the front assembling parts are mainly in the parts shelf truck A, the left side assembling parts are mainly in the parts shelf truck B,
Mainly, the right-side assembling parts store necessary assembling parts in the parts shelf truck C and so on. These parts shelf carts A ~
C is the starting end of the slat conveyor 2 (left side in FIG. 1)
The slat conveyor 2 is placed on the slat conveyor 2 and is disposed near the corresponding assembling area of the cab 4 according to the assembled parts stored therein. As the slat conveyor 2 moves, the slat conveyor is moved together with the operator and the cab 4. The cab 4 is conveyed to a terminal end (right side in FIG. 1), and a part assembling operation to the cab 4 is performed by an operator on the slat conveyor 2 during the conveyance.

In the vicinity of the end of the slat conveyor 2,
A parts storage space 5 in which parts to be stored in the parts racks A to C are provided. The component storage space 5 is provided with a plurality of fixed component shelves 6 at intervals so as to correspond to the divided mounting areas of the cab 4. Slat conveyor 2
A moving path 8 of a towing vehicle 7 that is connected to the parts racks A to C and transfers the parts racks A to C is provided around the parts storage space 5. In the moving path 8, a dividing station 9 for separating the component shelving vehicles A to C from the towing vehicle 7 and a standby station 10 for waiting the subsequent towing vehicle 7 in front of the dividing station 9 are provided on the starting end side of the slat conveyor 2. .
Also, on the end side of the slat conveyor 2, a uniting station 11 for connecting the parts shelf trucks A to C unloaded from the slat conveyor 2 to the towing vehicle 7, and a towing vehicle 7 in front of the uniting station 11.
There is provided a standby station 12 for waiting for the vehicle. Further, on a moving path 8 around the parts storage 5, a dividing station 13 for separating the empty parts racks A to C transferred by the towing vehicle 7 from the towing vehicle 7, and assembly parts from each fixed parts shelf 6. A merging station 14 is provided for merging the component shelves A to C after storage with the towing vehicle 7.

As a moving system for the towing vehicle 7, for example, the moving path 8 is formed of aluminum tape, light is projected from the towing vehicle 7 side to the moving path 8, and the reflected light is received by the towing vehicle 7 side. The towing vehicle 7 moves along the moving path 8 based on the received light signal.
Is to be self-propelled. The towing vehicle 7 has a built-in control unit, and sends and receives signals to and from a separately installed controller body to control starting and stopping of the towing vehicle 7.

Next, the parts shelving trucks A to C and the towing vehicle 7 used in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. Each of the parts shelf trucks A to C of this embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is formed in a frame shape by a pipe 21 and has a universal wheel 22 whose direction can be freely changed. And, for example, the parts shelf truck C
As shown by, a partition is provided in accordance with the assembled parts to be stored. Note that partitions are similarly provided for the parts shelf carts A and B, but the partitions are omitted in the drawings.
Further, for example, the parts shelf truck A is provided with a connecting portion 23 for connecting to the connecting portion 7A of the towing vehicle 7 shown in FIG. Further, the parts shelving trucks A to C can be connected to each other. For example, a hook 24 is provided on the pipe 21 on the parts shelving car A side, and the parts shelving cars B and C connected to the parts shelving car A are connected to each other. The pipe 21 is provided with a ring 25 which can be engaged with the hook 24, and the locking portion between the parts shelf cart B and the parts shelf cart C is also provided with a hook 24 on one side and a ring 25 on the other side. It is. And, when the parts shelves A to C are mutually locked,
As shown in FIG. 5, a single box-shaped united truck 26 is configured.

Next, the operation of the component supply system of this embodiment will be described. First, in the parts storage 5, the parts shelves A to C are moved along the fixed parts shelves 6 on which necessary assembly parts are placed, while the parts shelves A to C are moved.
Store necessary parts in C. For example, the parts shelf truck A mainly for storing the front assembly parts is moved along the fixed parts shelf 6 (located at the lower side in FIG. 1) where the front assembly parts are mainly placed, and is mainly moved. The parts shelf truck B for storing the left-side assembled parts is moved along the fixed parts shelf 6 (located at the upper side in FIG. 1) where the left-side assembled parts are placed, and mainly stores the right-side assembled parts. The parts shelf truck C to be moved is moved along the fixed parts shelf 6 (located in the middle in FIG. 1) where mainly the right-side assembled parts are placed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the component shelves A to C, in which the necessary assembled parts have been stored, are interlocked with each other by hooks 24 and rings 25 to form a coalescing truck 26 as a coalescing station 14. Is connected to the towing vehicle 7 which is waiting.
When the united truck 26 composed of the parts shelf trucks A to C is connected to the towing vehicle 7, a signal indicating the completion of the connection is generated and the towing vehicle 7 is connected.
Travels along the moving path 8 to the start end of the slat conveyor 2 and waits at the standby station 10. Then, after confirming that the towing vehicle 7 in the front has started from the dividing station 9, the vehicle advances to the dividing station 9 and stops. here,
The united truck 26 is separated from the towing vehicle 7 and is transferred onto the slat conveyor 2 by the operator as the united truck 26. The towing vehicle 7 from which the combined truck 26 has been separated moves along the moving path 8 to the standby station 12 at the end of the slat conveyor 2 and stands by.

On the other hand, the worker disassembles the combined truck 26 transferred onto the slat conveyor 2 and moves and disposes the disassembled parts shelf trucks A to C in the vicinity of the corresponding cab 4 assembling areas. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the parts shelf truck A mainly storing the front assembly parts is in front of the cab 4, and the parts shelf truck B mainly storing the left assembly parts is the left side of the cab 4. The parts shelf truck C mainly storing right-side assembled parts is arranged on the right side of the cab 4. Then, until the slat conveyor 2 reaches the end portion, the worker assembles necessary components to the cab 4 on the slat conveyor 2 to perform an assembling operation of the cab 4. During the assembling work, the work may be performed by freely moving the parts shelf carts A to C on the slat conveyor 2 according to the assembling work place. When the assembling work is completed and the end portion of the slat conveyor 2 is reached, each of the parts shelf trucks A to C
Is empty, and the parts shelf trucks A to C are mutually locked and lowered from the slat conveyor 2 as the united truck 26.

Combined cart lowered from slat conveyor 2
26 is connected to the towing vehicle 7 that has moved from the standby station 12, and the towing vehicle 7 travels along the moving path 8 and once passes through the coalescing station 14 of the parts storage 5 as shown by the arrow in FIG. At the splitting station 13 on the opposite side. And, here, the parts storage worker is the parts shelf truck A ~
C is disassembled, and as described above, the necessary assembling parts are stored while being moved along the corresponding fixed parts shelf 6 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. From the slat conveyor 2 to the starting end side of the slat conveyor 2.

According to the parts supply method of the assembly line, the parts shelves A to C are directly placed on the slat conveyor 2 and transported together with the cab 4, and the parts shelves A to C are Necessary parts are collectively stored for each assembly area of the cab 4, and since the component shelves A to C are free to move, the component shelves A to C are arranged near the corresponding assembly areas, respectively. This eliminates the need to move between the parts shelf and the cab 4, which is a work, as compared with the conventional parts supply system, and also makes it easier to take out parts from the parts shelf, and to determine parts and assembly locations during assembly work. The correspondence is easy to understand. Further, it is possible to prevent the assembly line from being stopped even when the assembling is not completed within the determined assembling process area. For this reason, work time can be shortened, and productivity is improved by improving work efficiency. In addition, there is no parts shelf provided along the slat conveyor 2 as in the case of the fixed parts shelf method.
Work environment is improved without clutter.

Also, since the parts racks A to C are combined with each other and transported in a compact form, the parts racks A
C. The transfer space of C. can be reduced, the floor occupied area can be reduced, and the floor use efficiency can be improved. Also,
In the parts storage area where parts are stored in the parts shelf trucks A to C, the parts to be assembled are divided for each mounting area of the cab 4 and are provided in the plurality of fixed parts shelves 6. The storage operation can be performed, and the storage operation of the parts on the parts shelf trucks A to C is easy, and the storage error of the parts is eliminated.

Further, since the wheels of the parts racks A to C are free wheels whose directions can be freely changed, the work of moving the parts racks A to C is easy, and the assembling work of the operator is further improved. It will be easier to do. In the present embodiment, the work has been described as a cab of a truck.
It goes without saying that other assembly units such as an engine and a transmission may be used.

Further, although an example has been shown in which the work is assembled into three regions, that is, a front region, a left region, and a right region, the region can be freely selected as appropriate according to workability. In this case, it is desirable to provide a number of parts racks corresponding to the number of divided areas. Further, the moving system of the towing vehicle is not limited to the one in the present embodiment, and various conventionally known moving systems can be adopted.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of movable parts shelves are directly mounted on a slat conveyor of an assembly line and conveyed together with a work.
Necessary parts are collectively stored in each parts shelf truck for each work assembly area.By arranging each parts shelf truck near the corresponding assembly area, parts can be compared to the conventional parts supply system. There is no need to go back and forth between the shelf and the work. In addition, it is easy to take out the parts from the parts shelf, and it is easy to understand the correspondence between the parts and the assembling place during the assembling work. Further, it is possible to prevent the assembly line from being stopped even when the assembling is not completed within the determined assembling process area. Therefore, the working time can be reduced,
Productivity is improved by improving work efficiency. Further, unlike the fixed component shelf system, there is no need to provide fixed component shelves along the slat conveyor, so that the surrounding environment is good and the working environment is good without clutter. And the wheels of the parts shelf cart
Parts shelving cart because it is a universal wheel whose direction can be changed freely
Movement work becomes easier and the worker's assembling work can be performed even more.
It will be easier.

Further, since the parts racks are combined with each other to form a compact form and connected to the towing vehicle for transfer, the transfer space for the parts racks can be reduced, the floor occupied area can be reduced, and the floor space can be reduced. It is possible to increase utilization efficiency. Also, in the parts storage area where parts are stored in the parts shelf cart, the parts to be assembled are divided for each work assembling area and provided on a plurality of fixed parts shelves. It is easy to store parts on the shelf cart, and there is no error in storing parts.

Further, by making the wheels of the parts rack truck free wheels whose direction can be freely changed, the work of moving the parts rack truck becomes easy and the assembly work of the operator becomes easier.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall system diagram of an embodiment of a method for supplying parts of an assembly line for automobiles and the like according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed view of the assembly line of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a parts shelf cart applied to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a towing vehicle applied to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a combined state of the parts rack truck and the towing truck.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Assembly line 2 Slat conveyor 4 Cab 5 Parts storage 6 Fixed parts shelf 7 Towing vehicle 8 Moving path 24 Hook 25 Ring A, B, C Parts shelf cart

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-4-183540 (JP, A) JP-A-2-65934 (JP, A) JP-A-4-183541 (JP, A) 29073 (JP, Y2) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B62D 65/00 B23P 21/00

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] A plurality of movable parts shelves having wheels as free wheels are provided, and assembled parts are collectively stored for each work assembling area, stored in each corresponding parts shelves, and the work is placed and moved. The plurality of component shelves are placed on the slat conveyor at the starting end of the slat conveyor of the assembly line for automobiles, etc., and each component shelving is arranged around the work in correspondence with the work assembling area, and work with the work is performed. A part supply method for an assembling line of an automobile or the like, wherein the part carrier and the plurality of parts rack carts are transported together. 2. The work assembling area includes a front part, a left part,
Divided into the right side, a parts shelf truck that mainly stores the front assembly parts is placed in front of the work, a parts shelf cart that mainly stores the left assembly parts is placed on the left side of the work, and mainly the right assembly parts are stored 2. The parts supply method for an assembly line for an automobile or the like according to claim 1, wherein the parts shelf cart is arranged on the right side of the work. 3. The assembly line for automobiles according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of parts shelves are interlocked with each other, connected to a tractor as a united car and transferred to a slat conveyor starting end. Parts supply method. 4. A moving path for a towing vehicle is provided around a slat conveyor on an assembly line, and the plurality of parts racks, which are mutually engaged and combined into a combined cart, are transferred along the moving path to a slat conveyor starting end. Then, the towing vehicle is moved to the end of the slat conveyor and made to stand by, and the plurality of empty component shelving vehicles after the completion of the assembling operation are mutually locked again and connected to the waiting towing vehicle as a united vehicle to form a part. 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the parts are transferred to a storage area. 5. A parts storage is arranged near the slat conveyor, and a plurality of fixed parts shelves are provided in the parts storage corresponding to a work assembling area, and the united truck transported by the towing vehicle is divided here. After storing the assembled parts while moving them along the corresponding fixed parts shelves, locking them together again and connecting them to the waiting towing vehicle as a combined truck,
5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the parts are transferred to a slat conveyor start end.