JP6515646B2 - Parts supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present application relates to a component supply device.

  Various industrial products such as electronic devices are composed of various parts. Parts constituting an industrial product are assembled using, for example, a fastening member such as a screw. Therefore, in recent years, FA (Factory Automation) equipment (hereinafter referred to as "automatic machine") that handles screws, for example, is used at a production site of industrial products in order to improve productivity (for example, Patent Document 1) -3).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-1454 JP, 2013-151367, A JP-A-7-299674

  Automatic machines that handle various parts at a production site of industrial products are required to assemble the parts in appropriate positions. However, the parts supplied from the parts maker are, for example, provided from the parts maker in a state in which the parts are placed in a tray in which the parts are arranged in rows and columns, or from the parts maker in a state stored in a container containing a large number of parts. There is a thing. Therefore, in order to allow the automatic machine to handle the parts in an appropriate posture, an automatic machine that handles parts may, for example, be provided with an alignment feeder which supplies the automatic machines while adjusting the posture of the parts.

  As an apparatus for supplying components to an automatic machine while adjusting the posture of the parts, for example, the parts are dropped by their own weight to a supporting part such as a groove or a hole which supports the parts in a specified posture, or conveyed by gas pressure such as air. It is possible to think However, in the case of a device that drops the component by its own weight onto a support that supports the component in a prescribed posture, the component may be supported while being inclined by the support. Also, in the case of a device that conveys a component to the support by the pressure of gas such as air, if the component is supported in an inclined state by the support, the pressure of the gas remains with the component inclined at the support. It may keep its attitude.

  Thus, the present application discloses a component supply apparatus capable of supplying components to an automatic machine in an appropriate posture.

  The present application discloses the following component supply device. That is, in the component supply device disclosed in the present application, a component to be picked by an automatic machine is a flow path along with the gas, and a guide surface having a cross-sectional shape along the outer shape of the component is formed along the transport route. A transport path having an opening for picking up parts at the end of the path, a support portion formed at the end of the transport path and supporting the component that has flowed to the end of the transport path, the transport A gas exhaust path formed at the end of the path, and a first gas exhaust path provided at a position where an opening is closed by the component flowing to the end of the transfer path, and formed at the end of the transfer path And a second gas exhaust path provided at a position where an opening is not blocked by the component flowing to the end of the transfer path.

  If it is the said components supply apparatus, components can be supplied to an automatic machine in an appropriate attitude | position.

FIG. 1 is a view showing an arrival unit according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is an internal structural view of the support portion. FIG. 3 is a view showing the movement of the transport part in the arrival unit 1. FIG. 4 is a view showing the vicinity of the end of the transport path of the arrival unit according to the first modification. FIG. 5 is a view showing a component supply device according to a first comparative example. FIG. 6A is a view showing a component supply device according to a second comparative example. FIG. 6B is a view showing a component supply device according to a third comparative example. FIG. 7 is a view showing an arrival unit according to a second modification.

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described. The embodiments shown below are merely examples, and the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the following aspects.

  FIG. 1 is a view showing an arrival unit according to the embodiment. The arrival unit 1 is an example of the “component supply device” in the present application. The arrival unit 1 is a rectangular parallelepiped member which forms the transport path 2 inside. A tube 101 communicating with the transport path 2 is connected to the arrival unit 1. The transport path 2 formed inside the arrival unit 1 is a path for transporting the transport part 103 to be picked up by the picking tool 102 (which is an example of the “automatic machine” in the present application). In the transport path 2, a guide surface 3 having a cross-sectional shape along the outer shape of the transport component 103 is formed along the transport path 2. In addition, an opening 4 for component extraction, which opens upward at the end of the conveyance path 2, is formed in the conveyance path 2. In the transport path 2, a transport part 103 flowing with the gas flows in the tube 101.

  The arrival unit 1 comprises a support 5. The support portion 5 is formed at the end of the transport path 2 and supports the components flowing to the end of the transport path 2. FIG. 2 is an internal structural view of the support portion 5. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the arrival unit 1 in which a male screw is used as the conveyance part 103 is illustrated. Further, in the present embodiment, the guide surface 3 having a T-shaped cross-sectional shape along the outer shape when the male screw is viewed from the side is illustrated so that the male screw flows in the transport path 2 together with the gas. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the support portion 5 formed at the end of the transport path 2 has a support bottom surface 6 for supporting the head portion of the male screw which is the carrier part 103 from below, the head of the male screw and the male And a support side 7 supporting the shaft of the screw from the side. However, the support part 5 is not limited to what supports the conveyance components 103 by surface. The support portion 5 can have an appropriate shape according to the form of the conveyance part 103. For example, even if the conveyance part 103 which has flowed to the end of the conveyance path 2 is uneven as it supports the conveyance part 103 by point contact or line contact Good.

  In addition, the arrival unit 1 includes a main exhaust path 8 and a sub exhaust path 9 which are formed at the end of the transport path 2. The main exhaust path 8 is an example of the “first gas exhaust path” in the present application. Further, the sub exhaust path 9 is an example of the “second gas exhaust path” in the present application. The main exhaust path 8 is provided at a position where the opening is closed by the conveying part 103 which has flowed to the end of the conveying path 2 and in the present embodiment where the external thread is the conveying part 103, the head of the male screw is downward. It is formed to open downward from the central portion of the support bottom surface 6 to be supported. The sub exhaust path 9 is provided at a position where the opening is not blocked by the conveyance part 103 that has flowed to the end of the conveyance path 2, and in the present embodiment where the external thread is the conveyance part 103, It is formed on the upstream side of the transport path 2 in the support side surface 7 that supports the shaft from the side. The sizes of the openings of the main exhaust path 8 and the sub exhaust path 9 are smaller than the size of the conveyance part 103. In addition, the size of the opening of the sub exhaust path 9 is smaller than the size of the opening of the main exhaust path 8.

  The main exhaust path 8 and the sub exhaust path 9 may form an exhaust port on the outer surface of the arrival unit 1, or may communicate with an exhaust tube or the like connected to the arrival unit 1. Good.

  Further, in the present embodiment, a member having a rectangular parallelepiped appearance is illustrated as the arrival unit 1. However, the arrival unit 1 is not limited to one having such an outer shape. The arrival unit 1 may have an outer shape other than a rectangular parallelepiped.

  FIG. 3 is a view showing the movement of the conveyance part 103 in the arrival unit 1. The transport component 103 flowing with the gas in the tube 101 flows into the transport path 2 communicating with the tube 101 (see FIG. 3A). The transport part 103 which has flowed into the transport path 2 is supported by the guide surface 3 formed along the transport path 2 and flows together with the gas in the transport path 2 while generally maintaining the posture (see FIG. 3B) ). The transport component 103 flowing with the gas in the transport path 2 eventually flows to the end of the transport path 2 and is supported by the support 5. The transport component 103 supported by the support portion 5 blocks the opening of the main exhaust path 8, so that a pressure difference is generated between the transport path 2 through which the gas flows and the main exhaust path 8 where the flow of the gas is blocked. For this reason, the conveyance component 103 is in a state of being pressed to the opening of the main exhaust path 8 with a pressure difference. The transport part 103 supported by the support 5 is picked by the picking tool 102 through the opening 4 (see FIG. 3C).

  In the arrival unit 1, even if the transport part 103 flowing with the gas in the tube 101 flows into the transport path 2 of the arrival unit 1 and flows to the end of the transport path 2 and the main exhaust path 8 is blocked, The gas continues to flow out of the sub exhaust line 9. The sub exhaust path 9 is formed on the upstream side of the transport path 2 on the support side surface 7 that supports the male screw as the transport component 103 from the side. Accordingly, the gas flowing through the transport path 2 continues to flow into the sub-exhaust path 9 of the support side surface 7 immediately adjacent to the transport part 103 supported by the support 5 at the end of the transport path 2. As the gas continues to flow into the sub-exhaust path 9 of the support side 7 just beside the transport part 103, the transport part 103 supported by the support 5 is slightly shaken by the flow of gas. Then, since the opening of the sub exhaust path 9 is smaller than the opening of the main exhaust path 8, the force swinging the conveying part 103 causes the pressure of the conveyance path 2 and the main exhaust path 8 to press the conveying part 103 against the opening of the main exhaust path 8. It does not exceed the power of the difference. Thus, the transport component 103 is kept pressed against the opening of the main exhaust path 8. Therefore, even if the transport part 103 is supported by the support portion 5 in a state deviating slightly from the prescribed posture, the transport part 103 is shaken by receiving the flow of gas, whereby the posture of the transport part 103 is obtained. The posture of the conveyance part 103 is corrected so as to conform to the shape of the support portion 5 which defines. Then, the picking tool 102 can pick the transport part 103 in an appropriate posture.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the main exhaust passage 8 and the sub exhaust passage 9 were each provided 1 each, the components supply apparatus disclosed by this application is not limited to this. The arrival unit 1 according to the above embodiment may have two or more main exhaust paths 8 or may have two or more sub exhaust paths 9.

  FIG. 4 is a view showing the vicinity of the end of the transport path of the arrival unit according to the first modification. The arrival unit 1A according to the first modification has substantially the same configuration as the arrival unit 1 according to the embodiment, but has two sub exhaust paths 9A. The two sub exhaust paths 9A are formed to extend from the end of the transfer path 2A to both sides of the transfer path 2A. As in the case of the sub-exhaust path 9 of the above embodiment, each sub-exhaust path 9A is provided at a position where the opening of the transport component 103 that has flowed to the end of the transport path 2A is not blocked.

In the arrival unit 1A according to the first modification as well as the arrival unit 1 of the above embodiment, the transport part 103 flows into the transport path 2A of the arrival unit 1A and flows to the end of the transport path 2A to be the main exhaust path Even if 8A is blocked, gas continues to flow out of the two sub exhaust paths 9A. The sub exhaust path 9A is formed on the upstream side of the transport path 2A in the support side surface 7A that supports the male screw as the transport component 103 from the side. Therefore, the gas flowing through the transfer path 2A continues to flow into the sub exhaust path 9A, and the transfer component 103 supported by the support 5A is slightly shaken by the flow of gas. Therefore, even if the transport part 103 is supported by the support 5A in a state where the transport part 103 deviates slightly from the prescribed posture, the posture of the transport part 103 is corrected.

  FIG. 5 is a view showing a component supply device according to a first comparative example. In the component supply device 51A according to the first comparative example, the male screw 104 is dropped onto the support 55A. The male screw 104 that has fallen to the support portion 55A of the component supply device 51A is assembled to the product by the driver 105. In the component supply device 51A according to the comparative example, when the male screw 104 is dropped to the support portion 55A, the impact when the male screw 104 is inclined in the process of dropping the male screw 104 to the support portion 55A or drops to the support portion 55A. In some cases, the posture of the male screw 104 may be inclined. The external thread 104 whose posture is inclined by the support portion 55A hardly reaches a prescribed posture unless vibration or the like is applied from the outside.

  FIG. 6A is a view showing a component supply device according to a second comparative example. The component supply device 51B according to the second comparative example is the arrival unit 1 according to the embodiment from which the sub exhaust path 9 is omitted, and the other parts are the same as the arrival unit 1 according to the embodiment. In the component supply device 51B having no configuration corresponding to the sub exhaust path 9 described above, the support portion 55B supports the transport component 103 when the transport component 103 flows to the end of the transport route 52B. In the state where the support portion 55B supports the transport component 103, the opening of the main exhaust path 58B is closed by the transport component 103, so that the flow of gas flowing through the transport route 52B is obstructed and the posture of the transport component 103 varies. Or, the posture of the conveying part 103 may be inclined due to the backflow of gas or the like.

  FIG. 6B is a view showing a component supply device according to a third comparative example. The component supply device 51C according to the third comparative example expands the diameter of the main exhaust passage 58B of the component supply device 51B according to the second comparative example, and the opening of the main exhaust passage 58B is blocked by the male screw as the conveyance component 103. The other components are the same as those of the component supply device 51B according to the second comparative example. In the component supply device 51C according to the third comparative example, when the transport component 103 flows to the end of the transport path 52C, the support 55C supports the transport component 103. Even when the support portion 55C supports the transport component 103, the opening of the main exhaust path 58C is not completely closed by the transport component 103, so that the transport flow receiving the gas flow from the transport path 52C to the main exhaust path 58C The part 103 is shaken. Therefore, even if the transport component 103 is supported by the support 55C in a state slightly deviated from the prescribed posture, the transport component 103 is shaken by receiving the flow of gas, thereby defining the posture of the transport component 103. The posture of the conveyance part 103 is corrected so as to conform to the shape of the supporting portion 55C. However, in the component supply device 51C according to the third comparative example, since the diameter of the main exhaust path 58C is large, the transport component 103 may pass through the main exhaust path 58C.

  On the other hand, in the case of the arrival unit 1 according to the embodiment and the arrival unit 1A according to the modification, the posture of the conveyance part 103 is corrected by the conveyance part 103 being slightly shaken by receiving the flow of gas. .

By the way, although the external thread was illustrated as conveyance part 103 in the above-mentioned embodiment and modification, the parts supply device indicated by the present application is not limited to what handles the part of external thread. The above embodiment and modifications can be applied to supply of various parts such as LSI (Large Scale Integration), IC (Integrated Circuit), transistors, capacitors, nuts, springs, washers, etc. The shapes of the guide surface 3 and the support portion 5 and the forms of the main exhaust path 8 and the sub exhaust path 9 may be modified. FIG. 7 is a view showing an arrival unit according to a second modification. For example, in the case of using the IC as the transport part 103, as in the arrival unit 1B of the second modification shown in FIG. 7, the square opening 4B along the outer shape of the IC as the transport part 103 and the terminals of the IC A guide surface 3B or a support 5B having a cross-sectional shape having a groove or the like to be fitted is provided. In the embodiment and the modification described above, the shape of each part may be appropriately changed according to the component to be supplied, as in the arrival unit 1B shown as the second modification.

1, 1A, 1B ··· Arrival unit: 2, 2A, 52B, 52C ··· Transport path: 3, 3B · · Guide surface: 4 · · Openings: 5, 5A, 5B, 55A, 55B, 55C · · · Supporting part: 6 · · · Supporting bottom surface: 7, 7 A · · Supporting side surface: 8, 8 A, 58 B, 58 C · · Main exhaust path: 9, 9 A · · Sub exhaust path: 51 A, 51 B, 51 C · · Parts supply device: 101 · · Tube: 102 · · Picking tool: 103 · · Conveying parts: 104 · · Male thread: 105 · · Driver

Claims (5)

A pathway component to be picked in the automatic machine flows with the gas, parts guiding surface of the cross-sectional shape along the outer shape of the part is formed along the front Kikei path is opened upward at the end of the previous Kikei path A transport path having an opening for taking out;
A support formed at an end of the transfer path and supporting the component flowing to the end of the transfer path;
A gas exhaust path formed at the end of the transport path, and a first gas exhaust path provided at a position at which an opening is blocked by the component flowing to the end of the transport path;
A second gas exhaust path formed from the end of the transfer path toward the side in the transfer direction of the transfer path, the second part provided at a position where the opening does not get blocked by the component flowing to the end of the transfer path A gas exhaust path of
Parts supply device. The first gas exhaust path is a gas exhaust path that opens downward from the support portion,
The component supply device according to claim 1. The support portion has a support bottom surface for supporting the component flowing down to the end of the transport path from below and a support side surface for supporting the component from the side.
The parts supply apparatus of Claim 1 or 2. The first gas exhaust path is formed downward of the support bottom surface,
The second gas exhaust path is formed laterally from the support side to the transport path.
The component supply apparatus according to claim 3. The transport path is a path through which the male screw, which is the component, flows together with the gas, and the guide surface having a T-shaped cross section along the outer shape when the male thread is viewed from the side is along the transport path A round opening for taking out an external thread that opens upward at the end of the transfer path,
The support portion supports the head of the male screw from below with the support bottom, and supports the head of the male screw and an axis of the male screw from the side with the support side.
The parts supply apparatus of Claim 3 or 4.