JP5397276B2 - Substrate molding apparatus and substrate manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a base material forming apparatus and a base material manufacturing method, in which a plate-like body made of a material containing vegetable fibers and a thermoplastic resin is conveyed in a suspended state and formed into a predetermined shape.

Conventionally, a thermoformed fiber board formed into a plate shape by a press machine after forming a mat shape through blender process and former process, which is composed of almost the same amount of fibers of thermoplastic resin such as polypropylene and vegetable fiber. Are known. As the vegetable fiber, kenaf fiber, jute fiber or the like is used. In particular, when kenaf fibers are used, kenaf has the property of absorbing a large amount of CO ₂ by photosynthesis, and is fast in growth, so it is effective for global environmental conservation. Such a thermoformed fiberboard manufacturing method is disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1. A molded product obtained by heating a mixture of a thermoplastic resin and vegetable fibers, such as this thermoformed fiber board, and then molding the mixture into a predetermined shape using a cold press mold. Is hereinafter referred to as a substrate.

  In the base material forming step, a method of transporting the plate-like body W in a suspended state is known when the plate-like body constituting the base material is transported. 18 and 19 show an example of a conventional base material forming apparatus 300 that places a hanger 230 on which a plate-like body W is suspended on a slide rail 258 and conveys the hanger 230 along the slide rail 258. It is a thing. FIG. 18 is a side view of a preheating device 250 and a part of the main heating device 240, which are a part of a conventional base material forming apparatus, as viewed from the side. FIG. 19 is an enlarged side view of a part of the heating device 240 and the hanger 230 of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the hanger 230 includes a shaft 232. Two clamps 234 for sandwiching the upper edge of the plate-like body W are attached to the lower portion of the shaft 232. Two rollers 236 are attached to the upper portion of the shaft 232. The roller 236 is rotatably mounted on the slide rail 258. A drive chain 256 is disposed along the slide rail 258 in the vicinity of the slide rail 258. The drive chain 256 is wound around a pair of sprockets 254, and can be driven by the rotation of the pair of sprockets 254. A pair of stoppers 257 are attached to the drive chain 256 so as to correspond to the respective rollers 236 and are arranged on both sides in the conveying direction of the respective rollers 236. The hanger 30 on which the roller 236 is placed on the slide rail 258 is moved leftward in the horizontal direction along the slide rail 258 when the drive chain 256 is driven in a state where the roller 236 is disposed between the stoppers 257 (FIG. 18). In the direction of arrow A).

  As shown in FIG. 18, the slide rail 258 extends in the horizontal direction from the preheating device 250 to the carry-in portion of the main heating device 240. The preheating device 250 includes a first heating furnace 250A and a second heating furnace 250B. The hanger 230 in a state where the plate-like body W is suspended is put into the first heating furnace 250A of the preheating device 250, and horizontally along the slide rail 258 from the first heating furnace 250A to the carrying-in portion of the main heating device 240. To be transported. The hanger 230 conveyed along the slide rail 258 is first conveyed to a predetermined position of the first heating furnace 250A, stopped at that position, and heated for a predetermined time. Subsequently, it is conveyed to a predetermined position of the second heating furnace 250B, stopped at that position, and heated for a predetermined time. Then, the hanger 230 is conveyed to the carrying-in part of this heating apparatus 240, and stops. Then, the hanger 230 is replaced with a transport device (not shown) of the main heating device 240 and the plate-like body W is heated while being transported in the main heating device.

JP 2009-262431 A

  However, in the above-described conventional base material forming apparatus 300, both the stopper 257 and the roller 236 are configured so that the roller 236 of the hanger 230 can be smoothly locked to the drive chain 256 and can be released smoothly at the carry-in portion of the heating apparatus 240. It is necessary to provide a predetermined clearance between them. Therefore, the roller 236 attached to the hanger 230 is rotatably mounted on the slide rail 258, and the hanger 230 is accurately placed at a predetermined position by the inertial force or vibration during conveyance in the carry-in portion of the heating device 240. It cannot be stopped. As a result, the stop position of the hanger 230 is shifted, and when the hanger 230 is replaced on a moving device (not shown) in the heating device 240, the hanger 230 is shifted from the predetermined position and conveyed in that state. Therefore, there is a possibility that a conveyance abnormality occurs and the operation rate of the base material forming apparatus 300 is lowered.

  The present invention has been created in view of the above problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a base material forming apparatus and a base material manufacturing method capable of accurately stopping a base material at a predetermined position when the base material is conveyed in a suspended state. .

  The technology disclosed in the present specification is a base material forming apparatus that conveys a plate-like body made of a material containing vegetable fibers and a thermoplastic resin in a suspended state, and forms the plate-like body into a predetermined shape. A holding device that holds the plate-like body by suspending the plate-like body, and a conveyance rail that extends along the conveyance direction of the plate-like body, and the holding device is placed on the conveyance rail And a roller that movably supports the holding device, and the conveying rail engages with the roller to thereby provide an engaging surface that regulates movement of the holding device along the conveying rail. The present invention relates to a base material forming apparatus.

  According to the above-mentioned base material forming device, when the holding device is stopped at a predetermined position, the movement of the holding device along the conveyance rail is restricted by engaging the roller with the engagement surface of the conveyance rail. For this reason, the holding device can be accurately stopped at a predetermined position.

  In the base material forming apparatus, a notch is provided on the transport rail, and the engagement surface is configured by at least a pair of inclined surfaces constituting the notch. One of the inclined surfaces located on the most downstream side in the conveying direction may have a larger rising angle from a plane parallel to the moving surface of the conveying rail than the other inclined surfaces.

  At the most downstream side in the transport direction on the transport rail, it is necessary to reliably stop the holding device and perform a replacement operation of the holding device. According to the above configuration, as the rising angle from the plane parallel to the moving surface of the conveyance rail on the inclined plane increases, the roller becomes difficult to pass through the inclined plane. By setting the rising angle to be larger than that of other inclined surfaces, the movement of the holding device can be effectively restricted. For this reason, the holding device can be reliably stopped at a predetermined position at the most downstream side in the transport direction.

  In the base material forming apparatus, the holding device has a plurality of the rollers, and the transport rail has a plurality of the cutout portions into which the rollers are individually fitted in correspondence with the plurality of rollers. You may have.

  According to said structure, each roller of a holding | maintenance apparatus fits in a some notch part separately, and the movement of a holding | maintenance apparatus is controlled effectively. For this reason, the holding device can be reliably stopped at a predetermined position.

  The base material forming apparatus includes a preheating device for preheating the plate-like body, and a main heating device for further heating the plate-like body preheated by the preheating device, The plate-like body may be transported from the preheating device to a carry-in portion of the main heating device.

  According to said structure, when conveying a plate-shaped object from the preliminary heating apparatus to the carrying-in part of this heating apparatus, a holding | maintenance apparatus can be effectively stopped in a predetermined position.

  In another aspect of the technology disclosed in the present specification, a plate-like body made of a material containing vegetable fibers and a thermoplastic resin is suspended from a holding device, and the holding device is placed on a transport device, A method of manufacturing a base material comprising: a heating step of heating a plate-like body while being transferred along a transfer rail; and a molding step of forming the plate-like body heated in the heating step into a base material. A roller provided in the holding device is placed on a conveyance rail extending toward the carry-in portion of the heating process, and the holding device is conveyed to the carry-in portion of the heating step along the conveyance rail Then, by engaging the roller with an engagement surface provided on the most downstream side in the transport direction of the transport rail, the movement of the holding device along the transport rail is restricted, and the holding device is moved to the transport device. Of base material with loading process to be transferred to On.

  According to the above-described substrate manufacturing method, when the holding device is transferred from the carrying rail in the carry-in process to the transfer rail in the heating process, the holding device can be accurately stopped at a predetermined position on the most downstream side of the carrying rail.

  Said manufacturing method may be equipped with the preheating process which preheats, conveying the said plate-shaped body along the said conveyance rail between the said carrying-in process and the said heating process.

  According to this method, heating unevenness can be eliminated by heating the plate-like body to the inside in the preheating step, and the heating time of the plate-like body in the heating step can be shortened to improve productivity.

  According to the technology disclosed in the present specification, a substrate forming apparatus and a substrate manufacturing method capable of accurately stopping a substrate at a predetermined position when the substrate is conveyed in a suspended state. Can be provided.

The flowchart of the manufacturing method of the base material K which concerns on Embodiment 1 is shown. It is sectional drawing of the preforming die 10 for preforming the plate-shaped body W, and shows the state before the preforming die 10 closes. It is sectional drawing of the preforming die 10 for preforming the plate-shaped body W, and shows the state after the preforming die 10 is closed. It is sectional drawing of the main shaping | molding die 20 for carrying out the main shaping | molding of the preforming body W1, and the state before the main shaping | molding die 20 closes and the state by which the preforming die was introduced into the center of a set are shown. It is sectional drawing of the main shaping | molding die 20 for carrying out the main shaping | molding of the preforming body W1, and the state before the main shaping | molding die 20 closes and the state where the preforming die is arrange | positioned at the shaping | molding center side are shown. It is sectional drawing of the main shaping | molding die 20 for carrying out the main shaping | molding of the preforming body W1, and shows the state after the main shaping | molding die 20 closed. The perspective view which looked at the state by which the plate-shaped body W was suspended by the hanger 30 from diagonally forward is shown. The side view which looked at the state by which the plate-shaped body W was suspended by the hanger 30 from the side is shown. An overall perspective view of the substrate forming apparatus 100 is shown. The top view showing the approximate second half part of substrate forming device 100 is shown. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a substantially first half of the base material forming apparatus 100. The side view showing the substantially first half part of the base-material shaping | molding apparatus 100 is shown. The top view of the hanger 30 mounted in the 1st slide rail 58a is shown. The side view of the hanger 30 mounted in the 1st slide rail 58a is shown. The side view which expanded the 1st slide rail 58a located in this heating apparatus 40 is shown. The side view of the hanger 130 mounted in the 1st slide rail 158a which concerns on Embodiment 2 is shown. The side view which expanded the 1st slide rail 158a located in this heating apparatus 140 is shown. The side view showing the approximate front half part of the conventional base-material shaping | molding apparatus 300 is shown. The side view of the hanger 230 mounted in the conventional slide rail 258 is shown.

<Embodiment 1>
Embodiment 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a manufacturing method of the substrate K. As shown in FIG. 1, in order to manufacture the base material K, after heating the plate-shaped body W which consists of the material which mixed the vegetable fiber and the thermoplastic resin (preheating process), the heated plate-shaped body W Is further heated (main heating step), the heated plate-like body W is preformed into a preformed body W1 (preliminary molding step), and the preformed body W1 is main-molded into the substrate K (main molding step). Thereby, the base material K shape | molded by the predetermined shape can be obtained.

The vegetable fiber contained in the plate-like body W is a plant-derived fiber material. Such a fiber material can be collected from, for example, cotton, hemp, sisal, jute, kenaf and the like. Of these, kenaf is particularly preferred. This is because kenaf is effective for global environmental conservation because it grows quickly and absorbs a lot of CO ₂ . Also, it is possible to collect relatively long and strong fibers from kenaf bast.

  As the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate-like body W, for example, polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polylactic acid (PLA), or the like can be used. Among these, polypropylene is particularly preferable.

  In order to manufacture the plate-like body W, after making it into a mat shape by blending the material which mixed the vegetable fiber and the thermoplastic resin, the obtained mat body is shape | molded in a plate shape with a hot press. Thereby, the plate-shaped body W which has predetermined | prescribed thickness can be manufactured. Such a manufacturing method of the plate-like body W is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2001-179716 and 2002-371455. The plate-like body W may be referred to by another name such as “fiber sheet for thermoforming” or “pre-board”.

  By heating the plate-like body W, the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate-like body W can be melted. For example, when the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate-like body W is polypropylene, since the melting point of polypropylene is 160 ° C. to 170 ° C., the plate-like body W is heated to a temperature higher than this (for example, 200 ° C.). Thus, the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate-like body W can be melted.

  2 and 3 are cross-sectional views of a preforming mold 10 for preforming the plate-like body W. FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the preforming mold 10 has a pair of molds 12 and 14. Among these, one metal mold | die 12 has the shape where the center part was dented, and the other metal mold | die 14 has the shape where the center part protruded. The pair of molds 12 and 14 are arranged on the left and right so that the mold surfaces face each other. And the plate-shaped body W is arrange | positioned in the state suspended from the mold surface of the metal mold | dies 12 and 14 at the up-down direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the pair of molds 12 and 14 constituting the preforming mold 10 is suspended in the vertical direction by moving the mold 12 toward the mold 14 and closing the mold, for example. The plate-like body W can be pressed from both the front and back sides. Thereby, the plate-like body W is shape | molded by the preforming body W1.

  4, 5, and 6 are cross-sectional views of the main mold 20 for main molding the plate-like body W. FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the main mold 20 has a pair of molds 22 and 24. Among these, one metal mold | die 22 has a shape where the center part was dented, and the other metal mold | die 24 has the shape where the center part protruded. The pair of molds 22 and 24 are arranged on the left and right so that the mold surfaces 22a and 24a face each other. In FIG. 4, the position of the preform W1 disposed at the center of both mold surfaces 22a and 24a is hereinafter referred to as “set center”.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the preform W <b> 1 is arranged in advance on the mold surface 24 a side (molding center side) of the other mold 24 prior to the press work performed by both the molds 22 and 24. Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the pair of molds 22 and 24 constituting the main mold 20 are suspended in the vertical direction by moving the mold 22 toward the mold 24 and closing the mold, for example. It is possible to press the plate W in a state from both the front and back sides.

  As the main mold 20 for main molding the preform W1, a cold press mold is used. The “cold press” here means press molding performed without positively heating the mold surface of the main mold 20, but the mold surface 22 a of the main mold 20 by processing heat or frictional heat. 24a is heated to some extent. By pressing the heated plate W with the main mold 20 (cold press die), the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate W is cooled and solidified. Thereby, the base material K shape | molded by the predetermined shape can be obtained (refer FIG. 6). In FIG. 6, the position of the base material K arranged at the center of both mold surfaces 22 a and 24 a is hereinafter referred to as “molding center”.

  The base material K thus obtained is lightweight and high in strength, and therefore can be used as a base material for vehicle interior materials. For example, the base material K can be used for door trims, instrument panels, seat back boards, partition boards, console boxes, pillar garnishes, quarter trims, and the like.

  As can be seen from a comparison between FIG. 2 and FIG. 4, the clearance CL <b> 1 of the pair of molds 12 and 14 constituting the preforming mold 10 is larger than the clearance CL <b> 2 of the pair of molds 22 and 24 constituting the main mold 20. Is also set larger. For example, when CL2 is 5 mm, the clearance CL1 is set to 10 mm, which is larger than that. Therefore, instead of forming the plate-like body W into the base material K at a time, the plate-like body W is first formed into the preformed body W1, and then the preformed body W1 is formed into the base material K. Thus, it is possible to form in steps (in two steps).

  Further, the preform W1 introduced to the center of the set in the main molding step is moved to the center of the molding to perform the main molding, so that the preform W1 is locked in the middle of closing the molds 22, 24. This can be avoided, and it can be regulated that the central portion of the base material K is stretched and thinned after press working.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the hanger 30 for holding the plate-like body W in a suspended state. FIG. 8 is a side view of the hanger 30.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the hanger 30 is provided with a shaft 32 made of a metal pipe-like member such as iron or aluminum. The length of the shaft 32 is formed larger than the lateral width of the plate-like body W. Two clamps 34 for sandwiching the upper edge portion of the plate-like body W are attached to the lower portion of the shaft 32. A roller 36 mounted on a slide rail 62 described later is attached to the upper portion of the shaft 32. A pair of attachment members 38 are provided at both ends of the shaft 32, and the roller 36 is attached to the upper portion of the shaft 32 via the attachment member 38. The rollers 36 are attached to the front surface and the back surface of the attachment member 38, respectively. Accordingly, the four rollers 36 are attached to the hanger 30. The clamp 34 and the attachment member 38 are connected by a bolt (not shown) penetrating the shaft 32 up and down.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the clamp 34 has a pair of clamping members made of a metal plate member such as iron or aluminum. Both the clamping members are configured such that the upper edge of the plate-like body W can be clamped by opening and closing the lower end thereof with the hinge 35 as a fulcrum. That is, one of the holding members can be opened and closed between a closed position for holding the upper edge of the plate-like body W and an open position for releasing the upper edge of the plate-like body W with respect to the other. Yes. A spring member 37 is attached between the upper end portions of the both clamping members, and the lower end portions of the both clamping members are urged by the spring member 37 in the closing direction with the hinge 35 as a fulcrum. An anti-slip groove 34a for restricting the plate-like body W from falling downward is formed on the inner surface side of the lower end portions of both clamping members.

  FIG. 9 is an overall perspective view of the base material forming apparatus 100 for forming the base material K, and FIG. 10 is a top view of the base material forming apparatus 100. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the base material forming apparatus 100 includes a heating device that heats the plate-like body W. The heating device includes a preheating device 50 and a main heating device 40. The preheating device 50 and the main heating device 40 are arranged in this order from the inlet side of the base material forming device 100, and the main heating device 40 is arranged substantially vertically and substantially horizontally with the preheating device 50 in plan view. . That is, the preheating device 50 and the main heating device 40 are connected in an arrangement orthogonal to the substantially L shape in plan view. The plate-like body W is heated to about 170 ° C. by the preheating device 50 and is put into the heating device 40 in a heated state.

  The heating device 40 includes a hot-air circulating heating furnace 42 that can uniformly heat the plate-shaped body W by passing the plate-shaped body W therein, and the plate-shaped body W that is transported inside the heating furnace 42. And a transfer device 44 that can be used. The internal temperature of the heating furnace 42 is set to, for example, 200 ° C. (an example of the “predetermined temperature” in the present invention), and the plate-like body W heated in the vicinity of 170 ° C. is heated to 200 ° C. and held. The molten state of the thermoplastic resin contained in the plate-like body W can be maintained.

  The conveying device 44 is constituted by two chain conveyors 46a and 46b arranged in parallel, and the two chain conveyors 46a and 46b are driven in synchronization. Both ends of the shaft 32 constituting the hanger 30 are placed on the upper surfaces of the two chain conveyors 46a and 46b. Thereby, the conveying apparatus 44 can convey the plate-shaped body W hold | maintained in the state suspended by the hanger 30 in the inside of the heating furnace 42. FIG.

  Inside the heating furnace 42, a preforming die 10 for pre-forming the plate-like body W is installed. The conveying device 44 and the preforming die 10 are installed at an offset position inside the heating furnace 42. The “offset position” here means “a position where the central axes are separated from each other”. Specifically, the central axis P1 of the transport device 44 and the central axis P2 of the preforming die 10 are in the horizontal direction. This means that the position is far away.

  A main mold 20 is installed below the preforming mold 10. The preforming mold 10 and the main mold 20 are arranged at an offset position. Here, the “offset position” means “a position where the central axes are separated from each other”. Specifically, the central axis P2 of the preforming mold 10 and the central axis P3 of the main mold 20 are vertically moved. It means the position away in the direction.

  In addition, the substantially second half part of the heating furnace 42 is formed in a substantially L shape (see FIG. 10) in a plan view, and can accommodate both the conveying device 44 and the preforming die 10 arranged at the offset position. Yes. The main mold 20 is installed below the preforming mold 10 and outside the heating furnace 42.

  As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the base material forming apparatus 100 includes a first hanger delivery mechanism 80 a for delivering the hanger 30 from the first slide rail 58 a to the conveyance device 44, and a second slide rail from the conveyance device 44. A second hanger delivery mechanism 80b for delivering the hanger 30 to 58b is provided. The first hanger delivery mechanism 80a and the second hanger delivery mechanism 80b each include two arms 81, and the two arms 81 can lift both ends of the shaft 32 constituting the hanger 30 from below. ing.

  Furthermore, the base material forming apparatus 100 includes a first plate-like body transfer mechanism 60a for transferring the plate-like body W from the inlet side of the preheating device 50 to the main heating device 40, and the plate-like body W from the transport device 44. And a second plate-like body transfer mechanism 60b for transferring to the preforming die 10. The second plate-shaped body transfer mechanism 60b includes a second slide rail 58b disposed substantially vertically and substantially horizontally in plan view behind the transport device 44, and a hanger placed on the second slide rail 58b. It is comprised by the 2nd horizontal direction moving mechanism 64b which can move 30 to a horizontal direction. The first plate transfer mechanism 60a will be described in detail later.

  The second horizontal movement mechanism 64b can move the hanger 30 placed on the second slide rail 58b in the horizontal direction. When the roller 36 is placed on the second slide rail 58b, only the two rollers 36 attached to one side of the attachment member 38 are placed. Accordingly, the second plate-like body transfer mechanism 60b configured by the second slide rail 58b and the second horizontal movement mechanism 64b moves the hanger 30 placed on the second slide rail 58b in the horizontal direction. The plate-like body W held by the hanger 30 can be transferred from the transport device 44 to the preforming die 10.

  The hanger 30 conveyed to the preforming die 10 by the second horizontal movement mechanism 64 b is received by the hanger transfer mechanism 66. As shown in FIG. 9, the hanger transfer mechanism 66 has a pair of arms 67 and can transfer the plate-like body W or the preform W1 with both ends of the shaft 32 supported by both arms 67. . The preform W1 is transferred from the preforming die 10 to the main die 20 by the hanger transfer mechanism 66.

  Next, the configuration of the preheating device 50 will be described with reference to the drawings of FIGS. FIG. 11 is a plan view of the preheating device 50 as viewed from above. FIG. 12 is a side view of the preheating device 50 as viewed from the side.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the preheating device 50 includes a first heating furnace 50A and a second heating furnace 50B, and includes the first plate-like body transfer mechanism 60a described above. Each heating furnace 50A, 50B is provided with a plurality of jetting parts 51 for jetting superheated steam. These ejection parts 51 are disposed in the ejection part piping 52, and the ejection part piping 52 is disposed opposite to the front and back sides of the plate-like body W. The plate-like body W held on the hanger 30 is stopped at a predetermined position in each of the heating furnaces 50A and 50B while moving in the transporting direction in the preheating device 50, and the two jet part pipes 52 arranged to face each other. Heated evenly from both sides. For this reason, the heating time of the plate-like body W in this heating process can be shortened.

  The first plate-like body transfer mechanism 60a includes a first slide rail 58a disposed substantially vertically and substantially horizontally in plan view with the transport device 44 in front of the transport device 44, and a hanger placed on the first slide rail 58a. And a first horizontal movement mechanism 64a (see FIG. 12) for moving 30 in the horizontal direction. When the roller 36 is placed on the first slide rail 58a, only the two rollers 36 attached to the other surface side of the attachment member 38 are placed. Since the roller 36 placed on the slide rail fits deeply into a groove (not shown) of the slide rail, it is difficult to come off the slide rail. For this reason, the hanger 30 can be stably conveyed along the 1st slide rail 58a and the 2nd slide rail 58b even in the state in which only the two rollers 36 were mounted in this way.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the first horizontal movement mechanism 64 a includes a pair of sprockets 54 and a drive chain 56. The pair of sprockets 54 is provided at both ends of the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a. A drive chain 56 is wound around the pair of sprockets 54. By rotating the pair of sprockets 54 clockwise or counterclockwise by an electric motor (not shown), the drive chain 56 passing under the sprockets 54 can be driven leftward or rightward.

  FIG. 13 is an enlarged top view of the hanger 30 placed on the first slide rail 58a and stopped at a predetermined position in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40. FIG. FIG. 14 is an enlarged side view of the hanger 30 placed on the first slide rail 58a and stopped at a predetermined position in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40. FIG. 15 is an enlarged side view of the first slide rail 58a located in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a pair of stoppers 57 are provided on a part of the drive chain 56. Both stoppers 57 are configured to be able to abut the attachment member 38 of the hanger 30 from both sides in the transport direction. As shown in FIG. 12, the hanger 30 put into the preheating device 50 is placed on the first slide rail 58 a in a state in which the attachment member 38 can come into contact with the stopper 57. The hanger 30 placed on the first slide rail 58a is conveyed in the horizontal direction along the first slide rail 58a as the drive chain 56 is driven with the attachment member 38 in contact with the stopper 57.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the first slide rail 58a is provided with a plurality of notches 59a to 59f. Each notch 59a-59f has an engagement surface. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, in the first slide rail 58a located in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40, the notch 59e has an engagement surface 61a, and the notch 59f has an engagement surface 61b. Have. As shown in FIG. 15, the engagement surface 61a is configured by a plurality of inclined surfaces 63a to 63d, and the engagement surface 61b is configured by a plurality of inclined surfaces 63e to 63g. Note that an inclined surface (an inclined surface positioned on the most downstream side in the conveying direction of the plate-like body W) 63g located on the leftmost side of the first slide rail 58a is a surface P parallel to the moving surface 58a1 of the first slide rail 58a. Is defined by an angle formed by another inclined surface and a surface P parallel to the moving surface 58a1 of the first slide rail 58a (for example, an angle t1 formed by the inclined surface 63d or an angle t2 formed by the inclined surface 63e). large.

  Each notch part 59a-59f is formed in the magnitude | size into which the roller 36 attached to the hanger 30 fits separately. For this reason, the roller 36 that has moved to the notches 59a to 59f is fitted into the notches 59a to 59f by the weight of the hanger 30 from which the plate-like body W is suspended. The roller 36 fitted into the cut portions 59a to 59e needs to get over each engagement surface 61a in order to move in the transport direction from the cut portions 59a to 59e. For this reason, when each roller 36 fits into each notch part 59a-59f, the movement along the 1st slide rail 58a of the hanger 30 is controlled effectively, and the hanger 30 is stopped at a predetermined position accurately. Can do.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 12, each notch part 59a-59f is predetermined in the 1st heating furnace 50A of the preheating apparatus 50, the 2nd heating furnace 50B, and the carrying-in part 40A of this heating apparatus 40. Two are formed at each position. Hereinafter, the two notches formed in the first slide rails 58a in each of the heating furnaces 50A and 50B or in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating apparatus 40 will be referred to as a pair of notches. The pair of cutout portions 59 a to 59 f are formed at an interval substantially equal to the interval between the pair of attachment members 38, 38 provided on the hanger 30. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, the pair of cutout portions 59e and 59f provided on the first slide rail 58a located in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40 includes a pair of attachment members 38 provided on the hanger 30. , 38 at equal intervals. For this reason, the rollers 36 respectively attached to the pair of attachment members 38, 38 are simultaneously fitted into the pair of notches 59e, 59f.

  Now, in the carrying-in process, the hanger 30 thrown into the inlet side of the preheating device 50 in a state where the plate-like body W is suspended is horizontally directed along the first slide rail 58a in the preheating process (FIG. 12). In the direction of arrow A). In the preheating step, when the hanger 30 is conveyed to the pair of notches 59a and 59b in the first heating furnace 50A, the rollers 36 are simultaneously fitted into the pair of notches 59a and 59b. At the same time, the driving of the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a is stopped. As a result, the hanger 30 stops in a state where the roller 36 is fitted in the notches 59a and 59b. Since each roller 36 is engaged with the pair of cutout portions 59a and 59b, each roller 36 and each engagement surface 61a are engaged with each other, so that the movement of the hanger 30 along the conveying direction is restricted. And the 1st preheating of the plate-shaped body W is performed in the state which the hanger 30 stopped in the predetermined position in 50 A of 1st heating furnaces.

  When the first preheating of the plate-like body W is completed, the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a is driven again, and a force toward the left side in the horizontal direction is applied to the hanger 30. Thereby, each roller 36 fitted in the pair of notches 59a and 59b gets over each engagement surface 61a, and the engagement between each roller 36 and each engagement surface 61a is released. Then, the hanger 30 is conveyed again to the left in the horizontal direction along the first slide rail 58a. When the hanger 30 is conveyed to the pair of cutout portions 59c and 59d in the second heating furnace 50B, the rollers 36 are simultaneously fitted into the pair of cutout portions 59c and 59d. At the same time, the driving of the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a is stopped. As a result, the hanger 30 stops in a state where the rollers 36 are fitted in the pair of cutout portions 59a and 59b. Since each roller 36 is engaged with the pair of cutout portions 59a and 59b, each roller 36 and each engagement surface 61a are engaged with each other, so that the movement of the hanger 30 along the conveying direction is restricted. And the 2nd preliminary heating of the plate-shaped body W is performed in the state which the hanger 30 stopped in the predetermined position in the 2nd heating furnace 50B.

  When the second preheating of the plate-like body W is finished, the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a is driven again, the engagement between each roller 36 and each engagement surface 61a is disengaged, and the hanger 30 is moved to the first slide rail 58a. Are again transported to the left in the horizontal direction. When the hanger 30 is conveyed to the pair of cutout portions 59e and 59f in the carry-in portion 40A of the heating device 40, the rollers 36 are simultaneously fitted into the pair of cutout portions 59e and 59f. At the same time, the driving of the first horizontal movement mechanism 64a is stopped. As a result, the hanger 30 stops in a state where the rollers 36 are fitted in the pair of cutout portions 59e and 59f. Since each roller 36 fits into a pair of notch parts 59e and 59f, each roller 36 and each engagement surface 61a and 61b engage, Therefore The movement along the conveyance direction of the hanger 30 is controlled. When the hanger 30 stops in a state where the rollers 36 are fitted in the pair of notches 59e and 59f, the hanger 30 is transferred from the first slide rail 58a to the transport device 44 by the first hanger delivery mechanism 80a. . By transporting the hanger 30 by the transporting device 44, the plate-like body W is further heated in the main heating device 40.

  As described above, in the base material forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the movement of the hanger 30 is restricted by fitting the rollers 36 of the hanger 30 into the notches 59a to 59f of the first slide rail 58a. The hanger 30 can be accurately stopped at a predetermined position. Thereby, since the hanger 30 is accurately transferred to the predetermined position of the transport device 44 and transported, abnormal transport of the plate-like body W can be suppressed, and the operating rate of the substrate forming apparatus 100 can be improved. .

  Further, since the hanger 30 is transferred to the transport mechanism 44 at the most downstream side in the transport direction of the first slide rail 58a, it is not necessary to transport the hanger 30 along the first slide rail 58a any more, and the hanger 30 is surely secured. It needs to be stopped. In the base material forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the notch portions 59a to 59f are configured by a plurality of inclined surfaces, and an inclined surface 63g located on the most downstream side in the transport direction on the first slide rail 58a; The angle s rising from the plane P parallel to the moving surface 58a1 of the first slide rail 58a is larger than the angles t1 and t2 rising from the other inclined surfaces and the plane P parallel to the moving surface 58a1 of the first slide rail 58a. Thereby, in the inclined surface 63g located on the most downstream side in the transport direction, the roller 36 is less likely to get over the inclined surface 63g as compared with the other inclined surfaces 63a to 63f, and the movement of the hanger 30 is effectively restricted. . For this reason, the hanger 30 can be reliably stopped at a predetermined position on the most downstream side in the transport direction.

  Further, in the base material forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the hanger 30 has a plurality of rollers 36, and the first slide rails 58a are fitted into the rollers 36 individually corresponding to the plurality of rollers 36. It has a plurality of notches 59a-59f. Accordingly, each roller 36 of the hanger 30 is individually fitted into the plurality of notches 59a to 59f, and the movement of the hanger 30 is effectively restricted. For this reason, the hanger 30 can be reliably stopped at a predetermined position.

  Further, in the substrate manufacturing process, the main heating process is the most time consuming process, and the number of plate-like bodies W arranged in the main heating device 50 is large. The plate-like body W becomes a defective product. For this reason, it is requested | required to suppress as much as possible that a conveyance abnormality generate | occur | produces, when transferring from the preheating apparatus 50 to this heating apparatus 40. FIG. In the base material forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the base material forming apparatus 100 includes a preheating device 50 that preheats the plate-like body, and a main heating device 40 that further heats the plate-like body W. The first slide rail 58a is configured to convey the plate-like body W from the preheating device 50 to the carry-in portion 40A of the main heating device 40. For this reason, it can suppress that conveyance abnormality generate | occur | produces when transferring to 40 A of carrying-in parts of this heating apparatus 40 from the preheating apparatus 50. FIG.

<Embodiment 2>
FIG. 16 shows an enlarged top view of the hanger 130 placed on the first slide rail 158a and stopped at a predetermined position in the heating device in the base material forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 17 shows an enlarged side view of the hanger 130 placed on the first slide rail 158a and stopped at a predetermined position in the heating apparatus. In the second embodiment, the size of the engaging surface of the notch is different from that of the first embodiment. Since the other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, description of the structure, operation, and effect is omitted. 16 and 17, the members obtained by adding the numeral 100 to the reference numerals in FIGS. 14 and 15 are the same as those described in the first embodiment.

  In the base material forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the engagement surface 161 of one notch 159 has a distance between a pair of attachment members 38, 38 provided on the hanger 130. The size is approximately the same. That is, the two rollers 136 respectively attached to the pair of attachment members 38 and 38 can be fitted into one notch 159 at the same time. Even in such a configuration, the rollers 136 and the engagement surface 161 are engaged with each other by fitting the two rollers 136 into one notch 159, so that the movement of the hanger 130 along the conveying direction can be performed. Effectively regulated.

  The correspondence between the configuration of the embodiment and the configuration of the present invention will be described. The hangers 30 and 130 are examples of the “holding device”. The first slide rails 58a and 158a and the second slide rail 58b are examples of the “transport rail”.

The modifications of the above embodiments are listed below.
(1) In each of the embodiments described above, the configuration in which the cutout portion is provided in the first slide rail is illustrated, but the configuration in which the cutout portion is provided in the second slide rail may be employed.

(2) The size of the cutout portion is not limited as long as the movement of the hanger along the first slide rail is restricted by fitting the roller into the cutout portion.

(3) In each of the above embodiments, superheated steam is exemplified as the heat medium, but water vapor or air may be used as the heat medium.

(4) In each of the above embodiments, the plate-like body is formed on the base material by the preforming step and the main forming step, but the plate-like body may be formed on the base material at a time.

(5) In each of the above embodiments, the plate-like body W is heated separately in the preliminary heating step and the main heating step. However, in one heating step, the plate is formed using both the heat medium (superheated steam) and hot air. The body W may be heated.

  As mentioned above, although the Example of this invention was described in detail, these are only illustrations and do not limit a claim. The technology described in the claims includes various modifications and changes of the specific examples illustrated above.

  The technical elements described in this specification or the drawings exhibit technical usefulness alone or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations described in the claims at the time of filing. In addition, the technology exemplified in this specification or the drawings can achieve a plurality of objects at the same time, and has technical usefulness by achieving one of the objects.

  10: Preliminary mold, 12, 14, 22, 24: Mold, 20: Main mold, 22a, 24a: Mold surface, 30, 130, 230: Hanger, 32, 132, 232: Shaft, 34, 134, 234: clamp, 34a: groove, 35: hinge, 36, 136, 236: roller, 37: spring member, 38, 138, 238: mounting member, 40, 240: main heating device, 42: heating furnace, 44: transport Apparatus, 46a, 46b: chain conveyor, 50, 250: preheating apparatus, 50A, 250A: first heating furnace, 50B, 250B: second heating furnace, 51: ejection section, 52: ejection section piping, 54: sprocket, 56: drive chain, 58a, 158a: first slide rail, 58a1, 158a1: moving surface, 58b: second slide rail, 59a to 59f, 159: notch 61a, 61b, 161: engagement surface, 63a-63g, 163a-163c: inclined surface, 60a: first plate-like body transfer mechanism, 60b: second plate-like body transfer mechanism, 64a: first horizontal direction moving mechanism 64b: second horizontal movement mechanism, 66: hanger transfer mechanism, 67: arm, 80a: first hanger delivery mechanism, 80b: second hanger delivery mechanism, 100, 200, 300: substrate molding apparatus, 258: slide rail

Claims (6)

A substrate forming apparatus that conveys a plate-like body made of a material containing a vegetable fiber and a thermoplastic resin in a suspended state and molds it into a predetermined shape,
A holding device for holding the plate-like body by suspending the plate-like body;
A transport rail extending along the transport direction of the plate-like body,
The holding device has a roller that is movably supported by being placed on the transport rail,
The base material forming apparatus, wherein the transport rail has an engagement surface that engages with the roller to restrict movement of the holding device along the transport rail. A notch is provided on the transport rail, and the engagement surface is constituted by at least a pair of inclined surfaces constituting the notch,
The one inclined surface located on the most downstream side in the conveying direction of the conveying rail has a larger rising angle from a plane parallel to the moving surface of the conveying rail than the other inclined surfaces. Item 2. The substrate molding apparatus according to Item 1. The holding device has a plurality of the rollers,
The base material forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the conveyance rail has a plurality of the cutout portions into which the rollers are individually fitted in correspondence with the plurality of rollers. A preheating device for preheating the plate-like body;
A heating device for further heating the plate-like body preheated by the preheating device,
The substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the conveyance rail conveys the plate-like body from the preheating device to a carry-in portion of the main heating device. Molding equipment. A heating step of suspending a plate-like body made of a material containing vegetable fibers and a thermoplastic resin on a holding device, and heating the plate-like body while transporting the plate-like body in a state where the holding device is placed on the transport device;
A forming step of forming the plate-like body heated in the heating step into a base material,
Conveying said the conveying rails toward the loading portion is extended in the heating step, placing a roller provided on the holding device, the holding device along the conveying rail to said carrying portion of the heating step Then, by engaging the roller with an engagement surface provided on the most downstream side in the transport direction of the transport rail, the movement of the holding device along the transport rail is restricted, and the holding device is moved to the transport device. A method for producing a base material, comprising a carrying-in step of transferring to a substrate.   The method for producing a base material according to claim 5, further comprising a preheating step of preheating the plate-like body between the carrying-in step and the heating step.

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