JP4074510B2 - Laminate workpiece separation device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an apparatus for separating stacked workpieces that can adsorb and separate one workpiece from the surface layer of the stacked workpieces, and can be used for conveyance, assembly with other components, or the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Separation device that uses vacuum suction or magnetic force suction of the workpiece on the surface of the laminated workpiece when taking out one workpiece from the laminated workpiece in order on a part assembly line, etc. Is absorbed and separated from the laminated workpiece.
However, the stacked workpieces may be difficult to separate from each other due to adhesion of oil, dust, etc. When two or more workpieces are overlapped when trying to separate with the above-described separating device in such a state At the same time, it may be removed from the laminated workpiece. Since it is difficult to transport the workpiece to the next process, etc. as it is, it is devised so that it is not picked up at the time of separation, or the second and subsequent workpieces are removed from the picked up workpiece. Doing work.
[0003]
For example, in Patent Document 1, a repulsive force is generated between works by the magnetic force of a permanent magnet to facilitate separation of the works. Further, in Patent Document 2, when a plurality of sheets are taken out by an adsorber provided with a separation plate, it is possible to detach the second and subsequent workpieces so that the second workpiece hits the separation plate. A device is described. In addition, when separating, a method is used in which a second workpiece is pressed from the side by a jig, or air is blown to the separated workpiece to blow off the second and subsequent workpieces. .
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-216868 [Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-328044
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 is difficult to apply to a work that is not a magnetic material, and may cause a problem due to the magnetism remaining by a permanent magnet depending on the work, which limits the application range. There is. Moreover, the apparatus described in Patent Document 2 has a problem that it is difficult to align the separation plate and the second workpiece. Furthermore, with the method of pressing the second workpiece from the side, it is difficult to accurately align the jig with the second workpiece, and the thickness of the jig is less than that of the workpiece, especially for thin workpieces. It is difficult to make it sufficiently small, and it becomes difficult to hold only the second sheet. In addition, the thin work may be tilted and cannot be suppressed successfully. Further, in the method of blowing off with air, it is very difficult to blow air between the first and second sheets, and there is a possibility that the second workpiece is scattered outside.
[0006]
The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and when separating a single workpiece from the stacked workpieces, the separation of the stacked workpieces that can reliably adsorb and separate only one of the workpieces. An object is to provide an apparatus.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 of the separating apparatus for laminated workpieces of the present invention is a separating apparatus for separating one workpiece on the surface layer from the laminated workpieces, and the surface layer of the laminated workpieces An adsorption part for adsorbing a work from the surface side of the surface work and a side suction part for applying a suction force to a side surface of at least the second layer of the stacked works , the suction part and the side suction The portion is by vacuum suction .
[0009]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the multilayer work separating apparatus according to the first aspect , wherein the suction portion and the side suction portion can independently control a vacuum suction operation.
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the separator for a laminated workpiece according to the first aspect , wherein the suction portion valve for adjusting the vacuum suction operation for the suction portion and the suction portion for adjusting the vacuum suction operation for the side suction portion. And a valve for each.
[0011]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the multilayer workpiece separator according to the first aspect, wherein the side suction portion has a plurality of side suction ports arranged along an outer peripheral side of the multilayer workpiece. .
[0012]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the laminated workpiece separating apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the plurality of side suction ports are arranged at equal angular intervals.
[0013]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the multilayer workpiece separating apparatus according to the first aspect, further comprising a multilayer workpiece moving device that moves the multilayer workpiece separated from the surface layer workpiece in preparation for separation of the next layer workpiece. To do.
[0014]
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the multilayer workpiece separation device according to the first aspect, further comprising a suction port moving device that moves the suction port of the suction portion to and away from the surface layer workpiece to be separated. To do.
[0015]
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the first aspect of the present invention, the apparatus for separating a laminated work includes a separation detection device for detecting separation of the surface workpiece by the suction portion.
[0016]
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the eighth aspect , the operation of the suction valve, the suction valve, the workpiece moving device, and the suction port moving device is performed based on the separation detection by the separation detection device. A control unit for controlling is provided.
[0017]
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the first aspect, the separating apparatus for the laminated work includes a guide unit that holds the laminated work along the laminating direction and enables the laminated work to move in the laminating direction. It is characterized by.
[0018]
The separator for a laminated workpiece according to claim 11 is the invention according to claim 10 , wherein the guide portion is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the inner peripheral portion of the guide portion and the suction port of the side suction portion are communicated with each other. It is characterized by being.
[0019]
That is, according to the present invention, a suction force can be applied to the stacked workpieces from the side by the suction portion, and an adsorption force can be applied to the surface layer workpiece from the surface side by the suction portion. . In the surface layer work, the suction force applied from the front side acts on the work more effectively than the side suction force acting only on the side surface. Therefore, unless the side suction force is particularly increased, the suction part Can be easily adsorbed and removed from the laminated workpiece. On the other hand, in the second workpiece, the suction force by the suction portion does not act or acts only slightly, and in some cases, the suction force acts between the first workpiece and oil or dust. However, these suction forces are slight relative to the suction force from the side, and even when the first workpiece is taken out by the suction portion, the current position is held by the side suction force, and the first To be taken out together with the workpiece. As a result, only the first workpiece is reliably separated by the suction portion. The suction force from the side may be applied to at least the second workpiece, but may be applied to the outermost workpiece to be separated or the third and subsequent workpieces.
[0020]
In the suction part and the side suction part, a vacuum suction force is used .
It is desirable that the operations of the suction part and the side suction part can be controlled independently. As a result, the suction force and suction force on / off are individually controlled to enable reliable and smooth separation work. The operation control can be performed by providing a suction part valve in the suction part and providing a suction part valve in the side suction part to control the opening and closing and the opening degree of these valves.
[0021]
Further, a plurality of suction ports of the side suction portion may be arranged along the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral side of the workpiece, and in that case, it is desirable to arrange them at equal angular intervals. As a result, a lateral suction force can be applied to the laminated workpiece from a plurality of locations, and the disordered alignment (lateral deviation or inclination) of the laminated workpiece can be prevented as much as possible. Further, the laminated workpiece may be held by a guide portion that enables movement of the laminated workpiece in the lamination direction. The guide part reliably prevents misalignment of the stacked workpieces. By making this guide part cylindrical, the work holding ability is further enhanced. Further, when the inner peripheral portion of the cylindrical guide portion communicates with the suction port of the side suction portion and the laminated workpiece is stored in the guide portion, the outer peripheral portion of the workpiece and the inner peripheral portion of the guide portion are slightly If a small gap is formed, the side suction force acts on the outer periphery of the laminated workpiece through this gap, and the side suction force can be evenly applied along the outer circumferential direction. Become.
[0022]
Usually, the suction part is capable of moving at least the suction port to and away from the stacked workpieces, and makes contact with the surface layer workpiece or close to a slight distance to apply suction force, and then sucks the suction port. The surface layer work can be separated by moving it away from the laminated work. The separation / contact movement can be executed by a suction port moving device configured by a driving device such as a motor and an appropriate motion mechanism for transmitting a driving force. The separation / contact operation may be performed only on the suction port or may be performed on the entire suction unit.
[0023]
When separating the surface layer work by the suction part, it is desirable to provide a detection device for detecting the separation. The detection device may be a device that directly detects the movement of the separated work itself, or may be a device that indirectly detects the movement position at the suction port, pressure fluctuation at the suction portion, or the like. .
[0024]
When the surface layer workpiece is separated by the suction part, the position of the outermost layer workpiece in the laminated workpiece is different. For this reason, after separating the surface layer workpiece, it is desirable to correct the positional relationship of the laminated workpiece with respect to the suction portion and the side suction portion. In this case, it is possible to move the suction part and the side suction part, but it is usually easier to move the laminated workpiece. The stacked workpiece can be moved by moving the stacked workpiece in the stacking direction by the amount of separation of the surface workpiece. The workpiece moving device is composed of a driving device such as a motor and an appropriate motion mechanism that transmits the driving force. Can be executed.
[0025]
The suction part valve, the suction part valve, the workpiece moving device, and the suction port moving device are preferably controlled in association with each other by the control unit, and more preferably controlled based on the separation detection result by the separation device. . For example, the control unit closes the suction unit valve to stop the side suction based on the separation detection, and operates the workpiece moving device to move the stacked workpiece to prepare for the next workpiece separation. By performing the side suction until the separation of the workpiece is detected in this way, the side suction portion can reliably prevent the second and subsequent workpieces from being taken out simultaneously.
[0026]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a separating apparatus for a laminated workpiece according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of a laminated workpiece separating apparatus. The separation device has a suction portion 10 having a suction port 11, and a vacuum suction device (not shown) is connected to the pipe joint 12 communicating with the suction port 11 via a valve V 1 (shown in FIG. 3). ing. The suction portion 10 can be moved up and down (shown in FIG. 1) by a motor M1 (shown in FIG. 3) and a motion mechanism (not shown) constituting the suction port moving device of the present invention. A pressure gauge 13 is provided to measure the spatial pressure to reach. The measurement result by the pressure gauge 13 is sent as a measurement signal to the control unit 1 described later.
[0027]
A work placement table 20 is installed below the suction unit 10, and the placement table 20 is provided with a cylindrical guide portion 21 on which the stacked workpieces 30 can be placed inside. The central axis of the guide portion 21 coincides with the central axis of the suction portion 10.
In addition, a side suction passage 26 extending from the outer peripheral side toward the guide portion 21 is formed in the work placement table 20, and the side suction passage 26 penetrates the cylindrical wall of the guide portion 21. Open to the inner peripheral side of the guide portion 21. The opening is a side suction port 21 a, and the side suction passage 25 and the side suction port 21 a constitute a side suction unit 25. Further, the other end side of the suction passage 26 opens to the side of the work placement table 20 and communicates with the pipe joint 27. The pipe joint 27 is connected to a vacuum suction device (not shown) through a valve V2 (shown in FIG. 3).
[0028]
In addition, the stacked workpieces 30 are disposed on a bar magazine 40 that is positioned below the guide portion 21 and disposed coaxially with the guide portion 21. In this embodiment, the work 30 has a thin ring shape, the inner diameter is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the bar magazine 40, and can be stacked along the bar magazine 40. The diameter is slightly smaller than the cylindrical hole of the guide portion 21 and can be inserted into the cylindrical hole of the guide portion 21. A detection groove 21b is formed in the guide portion 21 along the radial direction at the upper end, and workpiece check sensors 28 are arranged on both sides of the detection groove 21b. The workpiece check sensor 28 defines the detection groove 21b. The work 30 to be closed is detected.
[0029]
A cylindrical elevating part 41 is fitted on the outer periphery of the rod magazine 40 so as to be slidable. The elevating member 41 has an outer diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of the workpiece 30, and the guide part It can be inserted into the 20 cylindrical holes. A lifting device guide shaft 22 is attached to the other side of the work placement table 20 along the vertical direction, and a lifting device 42 is attached to the guide shaft 22 so as to be slidable up and down. The lifting device 42 is driven by a motor M2 (shown in FIG. 3) and moves up and down along the guide shaft 22. The lifting device 42 is provided with a lifting hook 43 that extends laterally toward the lifting portion 41, and the lifting hook 43 is engaged with a lifting portion sleeve 41 a provided at the lower end of the lifting portion 41. Is possible. By this engagement, the elevating part 41 can be raised as the raising hook 43 is raised. As described above, the motor M2, the guide shaft 22, the lifting device 42, the lifting hook 43, and the lifting portion 41 constitute the workpiece moving device of the present invention.
[0030]
The motors M1 and M2 and the valves V1 and V2 are connected to the control unit 1 and can be controlled by the control unit 1 as shown in FIG. For example, the control unit 1 can be configured by a CPU (not shown) and a program for controlling the CPU. In addition, the measurement result by the pressure gauge 13 and the detection result by the work confirmation sensor 28 are input to the control unit 1. Further, the control unit 1 can calculate the vertical position of the suction port 11 by a signal for controlling the operation of the motor M1, and the suction unit 10 moves the workpiece 30 from the fluctuation of the measured pressure obtained by the vertical position and the pressure gauge. Whether it is separated or not can be detected. That is, in this embodiment, the control unit 1 and the pressure gauge 13 constitute a separation detection device. In the present invention, the separation detection device can also be configured to directly detect the workpiece 30 adsorbed to the adsorption unit 10 by a sensor.
[0031]
Next, the operation of the separation device will be described.
First, the work 30 is stacked on the elevating part 41 fitted on the outer periphery of the bar magazine 40, the motor M <b> 2 is operated according to a command from the control unit 1, and the elevating device 42 is raised along the guide shaft 22. Then, the lifting hook 43 engages with the lifting / lowering part sleeve 41a and lifts the lifting / lowering part 41. The elevating part 41 raises the laminated work 30 along the cylindrical hole in the guide part 21. When the outermost layer workpiece 30 a of the laminated workpieces 30 moves to the upper end side of the cylindrical hole of the guide portion 21, the outermost layer workpiece 30 a is detected by the workpiece confirmation sensor 28, and the detection result is transmitted to the control unit 1. In the control unit 1, the operation of the motor M2 is stopped according to the detection result. As a result, the rising of the laminated workpiece 30 is stopped, and the outermost layer workpiece 30a is placed at a predetermined position in the guide portion 21 in preparation for separation.
[0032]
Next, the motor M1 is controlled by a command from the control unit 1, the suction unit 10 is lowered, and the valves V1 and V2 are opened. Then, a vacuum suction force by a vacuum suction device (not shown) acts on the suction port 11 through the pipe joint 12, and a vacuum suction force by a vacuum suction device (not shown) acts on the suction port 21 a through the pipe joint 27. The suction force by the suction port 21a further acts on a small gap between the guide portion 21 and the outer peripheral portion of the laminated work 30, and sucks the laminated work 30 from the lateral direction. On the other hand, when the suction port 11 comes close to the outermost layer of the stacked workpiece, the suction force by the suction port 11 acts on the surface of the outermost layer workpiece 30a, and finally the outermost layer workpiece 30a is sucked to the suction portion 10 by the suction port 11. Let This adsorption can be detected by a change in pressure measured by the pressure gauge 13.
[0033]
Next, after the suction is detected, the motor M1 is reversed by a command from the control unit 1, and the suction unit 10 is raised while the outermost layer work 30a is being sucked as shown in FIG. At this time, as described above, a lateral suction force is applied to the side surface of the laminated workpiece 30, and the laminated positions are maintained except for the outermost layer workpiece 30 a that is attracted and raised by a large force. It is possible to prevent the first and subsequent workpieces 30 from being taken out simultaneously with the outermost layer workpiece. In addition, the thin workpiece can be prevented from tilting, and the next workpiece can be smoothly attracted and separated. Further, according to this method, the work is not scattered outside the bar magazine as in the prior art.
When the adsorption unit 10 is raised to a predetermined position and the pressure measured by the pressure gauge 13 indicates an adsorption state, the control unit 1 determines that separation has been performed (separation detection is performed). )
[0034]
After that, the workpiece 30a that has been separated by suction can be transported by moving the suction portion 10 in the lateral direction. Further, the control unit 1 closes the valve V <b> 2 according to the separation detection, and stops the side suction in the side suction unit 25. Next, in response to a command from the control unit 1, the motor M <b> 2 is operated to raise the lifting device 42, and the lifting hook 43, the lifting unit 41, and the laminated work 30 are raised accordingly. Then, when the outermost layer workpiece (the second workpiece before the separation process) of the laminated workpiece 30 is raised to a predetermined position, the workpiece is detected by the workpiece confirmation sensor 28, and the result is sent to the control unit 1. Reportedly. In the control unit 1, the operation of the motor M <b> 2, that is, the lifting of the lifting device 42 is stopped according to the detection result. By these operations, the next outermost work is placed in a predetermined position in preparation for separation. By performing the above-described separation process for this laminated workpiece, one workpiece on the outermost layer is separated. By repeating the above steps, the workpieces can be separated one by one from the stacked workpieces, and only one workpiece can be reliably separated even when the steps are repeated.
[0035]
In the above embodiment, the suction from the side surface of the laminated workpiece has been described as being performed by one suction port 21a. However, as shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of suction ports 21a are provided on the outer peripheral side of the laminated workpiece 30. It is also possible to perform side suction simultaneously from each suction port 21a so that the suction force is applied as evenly as possible to the side surface of the laminated workpiece.
In each of the embodiments described above, a thin ring-shaped workpiece is shown as a workpiece to be separated. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and is separated from the surface layer by adsorption in a stacked state. Widely applicable to workpieces. When a plurality of suction ports are provided, one side suction part may be provided, and a plurality of suction ports may be provided so as to communicate with the side suction part, or a plurality of side suction parts may be provided. A plurality of suction ports may be arranged.
[0036]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the laminated work separating apparatus of the present invention, the separating work for separating one surface workpiece from the laminated workpiece, the surface workpiece of the laminated workpiece is separated from the surface workpiece. A suction part that sucks from the surface side; and a side suction part that applies a suction force to a side surface of at least a second layer of the stacked works , wherein the suction part and the side suction part are formed by vacuum suction. since those, and reliably separated only outermost layer of the workpiece, to prevent the two subsequent work is taken out at the same time. In addition, since the alignment of the stacked workpieces left at the time of separation is also maintained, subsequent workpiece separation can be performed smoothly.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front cross-sectional view showing an entire laminated workpiece separating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is also a plan view.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system in the same manner.
FIG. 4 is a front sectional view showing the operating state.
FIG. 5 is a plan view of a separation device according to another embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Control Unit 10 Suction Unit 11 Suction Port 13 Pressure Gauge 21 Guide Portion 21a Suction Port 22 Guide Shaft 25 Side Suction Portion 26 Suction Passage 28 Work Check Sensor 30 Workpiece 30a Top Surface Workpiece 40 Bar Magazine 41 Lifting Unit 41a Lifting Unit Sleeve 42 Lifting device 43 Hook for raising

Claims (11)

A separation device for separating a single workpiece on a surface layer from a laminated workpiece, an adsorption part for adsorbing the surface workpiece of the laminated workpiece from the surface side of the surface workpiece, and at least two layers of the laminated workpieces An apparatus for separating a laminated workpiece , comprising: a side suction portion that applies a suction force to a side surface of an eye workpiece , wherein the suction portion and the side suction portion are by vacuum suction . Wherein the adsorbing part and the side suction unit, separation device piled workpieces according to claim 1, characterized in that it is possible to control the respective vacuum suction operation independently. A suction unit valve for adjusting the vacuum suction operation to the suction portion, the separation of the piled workpieces according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises respectively a valve for sucking unit to adjust the vacuum suction operation for the lateral suction unit apparatus.   The laminated work separating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the side suction part has a plurality of side suction ports arranged along an outer peripheral side of the laminated work. The apparatus for separating laminated workpieces according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of side suction ports are arranged at equiangular intervals.   The apparatus for separating a laminated workpiece according to claim 1, further comprising a laminated workpiece moving device that moves the laminated workpiece obtained by separating the workpiece on the surface layer in preparation for separating the workpiece on the next layer.   The apparatus for separating stacked workpieces according to claim 1, further comprising a suction port moving device that moves the suction port of the suction unit toward and away from the surface layer workpiece to be separated.   The apparatus for separating a laminated workpiece according to claim 1, further comprising a separation detection device that detects separation of a surface workpiece by the suction unit. 9. The separation of stacked workpieces according to claim 8, further comprising a control unit that controls operations of the suction valve, the suction valve, the workpiece moving device, and the suction port moving device based on the separation detection by the separation detection device. apparatus.   The apparatus for separating a laminated workpiece according to claim 1, further comprising a guide unit that holds the laminated workpiece along the lamination direction and enables the laminated workpiece to move in the lamination direction. 11. The apparatus for separating laminated workpieces according to claim 10, wherein the guide portion is formed in a cylindrical shape, and an inner peripheral portion of the guide portion and a suction port of the side suction portion are communicated with each other.

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