JP6989946B2 - Painting equipment and painting gun - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a painting apparatus and a painting gun.

For example, in a painting line that paints the body of an automobile, most of the painting is done automatically by the robot, but partial corrections are generally done by the manual work of the operator, so-called hand-blown painting. be. In this hand-blown painting, one worker is often in charge of painting a large number of colors in order to handle a large number of colors with a small number of workers. In this case, the painting apparatus used by the operator includes a plurality of painting guns corresponding to each of the plurality of paint colors, and a gun rack for hooking each painting gun. Then, the worker switches the color of the paint by selecting one paint gun corresponding to the designated color from the plurality of paint guns hanging on the gun rack and switching the paint gun.

Generally, the gun rack is provided with a name plate corresponding to each painted gun, for example. Information indicating the color of the paint discharged from the corresponding paint gun, for example, the name of the paint color, the identification number, and the like are described on each name plate. The operator relies on the information provided by this nameplate to select a paint gun that corresponds to the specified paint. However, in general, the names and identification numbers of similar colors are often similar. Therefore, in the conventional configuration that relies only on the information on the name plate, for example, when paint guns of similar colors are arranged adjacent to each other, the operator mistakenly reads the name plate, thereby removing the paint gun. I made a mistake. Therefore, for example, a technique has been considered in which an indicator lamp corresponding to each paint color is provided in the gun rack and only the indicator lamp of the color to be selected is turned on to encourage the operator to select the paint gun.

However, once the worker holds the paint gun in his / her hand, he / she tends to keep an eye on his / her hand and the object to be painted until the painting with the paint gun is completed. For this reason, even if the worker picks up the wrong paint gun, it is difficult to notice the mistake of the paint gun by looking at the indicator light of the gun rack after that, and the worker actually starts painting. In many cases, the mistake of the paint gun was not noticed until the paint was ejected.

Further, for example, at the time of cleaning, when a plurality of paint guns are removed from the gun rack at the same time and then each paint gun is returned to the gun rack, the return may be mistaken. Then, the correspondence between the paint gun and the indicator light is broken, and as a result, even if the operator selects the paint gun hanging on the lighting part of the indicator light, the paint is different from the specified color. It will be painted. For this reason, the conventional configuration has not been able to sufficiently cope with the mistake of returning to the gun rack.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-90283

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to select and paint a designated one painting gun from a large number of painting guns, and to suppress mistakes in taking the painting gun and to paint a color. The purpose is to provide a painting device and a painting gun capable of preventing the mistake of the above.

The painting apparatus of the embodiment includes a plurality of painting guns that discharge paint of a preset color according to an operation of an operator, and a control panel that supplies driving power to the plurality of the painting guns. The paint gun has a display unit capable of displaying information. The control panel causes the display unit of one of the painting guns corresponding to the color of the paint to be painted next among the plurality of painting guns to display a warning display indicating that the painting gun is to be used next. ..

Further, the painting gun of the embodiment is a painting gun that discharges paint of a preset color according to the operation of the operator, and is scheduled to be used next under the control from the control panel that supplies the driving power. It is equipped with a display unit that can display a notice display indicating.

The figure which shows the example of the use mode of the coating apparatus by 1st Embodiment schematicly. The figure which shows roughly the structure of the coating apparatus by 1st Embodiment The figure which shows an example of the display mode of the display part about the coating apparatus by 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the display mode of the display part about the coating apparatus by another embodiment (the 1). FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a display mode of a display unit for a coating device according to another embodiment (No. 2). The figure which shows an example of the display mode of the display part about the coating apparatus by another embodiment (the 3).

Hereinafter, a plurality of embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
(First Embodiment)
First, the overall configuration of the coating apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIG. The painting device 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a painting device that manually paints the object to be painted 90 by hand blowing. In the case of the present embodiment, the coating device 10 is, for example, an electrostatic coating device that charges a paint to a high voltage of about −10 kV to −100 V and sprays it in a mist form. The coating device 10 is not limited to the electrostatic coating device. Further, the type of paint used in the painting apparatus 10 may be liquid or powder.

As shown in FIG. 1, the painting apparatus 10 includes a plurality of painting guns 20, a gun rack 30, and a control panel 40. In the example of FIG. 1, the painting apparatus 10 is configured to include four painting guns 20, but the specific number of painting guns 20 is not limited to that of this example. For example, in the case of a hand-blown painting line of an automobile, the painting device 10 may include 10 to 20 painting guns 20.

Each paint gun 20 is connected to a source of paint of a different color via a paint hose 51. As a result, paints of different colors are supplied to each paint gun 20 via the paint hose 51. Further, each coating gun 20 is connected to an air supply source such as an air compressor via an air hose 52. The compressed air required for discharging the paint is supplied to each paint gun 20 via the air hose 52.

As shown in FIG. 1, each coating gun 20 has a gun body 21, a trigger 22, and a hanger portion 23. The gun body 21 is made of a synthetic resin such as a polyacetal resin or a fluororesin having an electrical insulating property. By operating the trigger 22, the operator can eject the paint of the color preset in the paint gun 20 from the tip of the gun body 21. The hanger portion 23 is formed, for example, in a U shape in which a part thereof is open downward.

The gun rack 30 has a plurality of name plates 31 and a plurality of hook portions 32. The number of name plates 31 and hook portions 32 is equal to the number of paint guns 20, and each name plate 31 and hook portions 32 correspond to each paint gun 20. On each name plate 31, for example, the name and symbol of the color of the paint are described as information indicating the color of the paint of the corresponding paint gun 20. Each hook portion 32 is configured so that the hanger portion 23 of each coating gun 20 can be hooked. The operator hooks the hanger portion 23 of the paint gun 20 on the corresponding hook portion 32 to arrange the paint gun 20 on the gun rack 30.

Each paint gun 20 is connected to the control panel 40 via a connection cable 53, respectively. The control panel 40 supplies driving power to each coating gun 20. The control panel 40 is connected to the host device 80. The host device 80 manages, for example, the object to be coated 90 flowing on the conveyor 91, and transmits an instruction signal instructing the coating color of the object to be coated 90 to the control panel 40. Upon receiving the instruction signal, the control panel 40 supplies driving power to the coating gun 20 corresponding to the instruction signal, enabling electrostatic coating based on the operation of the trigger 22 by the operator.

Next, a specific configuration of the coating gun 20 and the control panel 40 will be described with reference to FIG. Note that FIG. 2 is a diagram in which one painting gun 20 is connected to the control panel 40, but in reality, a plurality of painting guns 20 are connected to one control panel 40. The paint gun 20 has a paint valve 24, an air valve 25, a nozzle 26, a high voltage generation unit 27, a high voltage output unit 28, a display unit 29, and the like, in addition to the gun body 21, the trigger 22, and the hanger unit 23. ..

The paint valve 24 and the air valve 25 are opened by the pulling operation of the trigger 22. The paint valve 24 is connected to the paint pump 54 and the paint tank 55 as paint supply sources via the paint hose 51. The paint in the paint tank 55 is supplied to the paint valve 24 by the paint pump 54 through the paint hose 51. The paint hose 51 is made of, for example, a hose made of synthetic resin having electrical insulation. The air valve 25 is connected to the compressor 56 via the air hose 52. The compressed air generated by the compressor 56 is supplied to the air valve 25 through the air hose 52.

The nozzle 26 is provided at the tip of the gun body 21. Although not shown in detail, the inside of the nozzle 26 is provided with a paint supply port, an atomizing air hole, and a pattern forming air hole. The output side of the paint valve 24 is connected to the paint supply port of the nozzle 26. The output side of the air valve 25 is connected to the atomized air hole and the pattern forming air hole of the nozzle 26. When the trigger 22 is pulled to release the paint valve 24 and the air valve 25, the paint is supplied to the nozzle 26 via the paint valve 24 and compressed air is supplied via the air valve 25. The paint supplied to the nozzle 26 is atomized by the compressed air discharged from the atomized air hole, and is formed into a shape suitable for painting, that is, a painting pattern by the compressed air discharged from the pattern forming air hole and sprayed. Will be done.

The high voltage generation unit 27 is a so-called cascade, and outputs a DC high voltage proportional to the input AC voltage. In the present embodiment, the high voltage generation unit 27 boosts the voltage of the drive power supplied from the control panel 40 by about 5,000 times, thereby outputting a high voltage. The connection cable 53 connecting the paint gun 20 and the control panel 40 includes a power line 531, a control line 532, and a current detection line 533. The power line 531 is for supplying an AC voltage to the paint gun 20. The control line 532 is for transmitting a signal and electric power for operating the display unit 29. The current detection line 533 is for detecting the current flowing through the high voltage generation unit 27. The outer peripheral side of the connection cable 53 is protected by being covered with, for example, a protective tube having electrical insulation.

The high voltage generation unit 27 has an input transformer 271, a voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272, and an output resistance 273. The input transformer 271 electrically insulates between the control panel 40 and the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272, and outputs the AC voltage supplied from the control panel 40 to the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272. The voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272 is composed of, for example, a Cockcroft-Walton type step-up rectifier circuit. The voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272 boosts and rectifies the AC voltage input from the input transformer 271 and converts it into a high DC voltage.

The DC high voltage output from the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272 is supplied to the high voltage output unit 28 via the output resistor 273, and is used as a DC output voltage of, for example, about -10 kV to -100 kV from the high voltage output unit 28. It is output. The high voltage output unit 28 is composed of, for example, a pin-shaped metal electrode, and is provided in the vicinity of the nozzle 26 or inside the nozzle 26. Therefore, a direct current output voltage output from the high voltage output unit 28 is applied to the fine particles of the paint sprayed from the nozzle 26.

The voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272 can set the polarity of the output voltage to either positive or negative with respect to the ground potential by changing the direction of a diode (not shown) in the circuit. In the case of this embodiment, the polarity of the output voltage of the voltage doubler rectifier circuit 272 is configured to be negative with respect to the ground potential. Therefore, the finely divided paint is charged with a negative high voltage.

The display unit 29 is composed of, for example, a light source such as a monochromatic LED or a light bulb, and can emit monochromatic light. The display unit 29 is provided at a position that can be visually recognized by the operator when the operator holds the gun body 21 in his / her hand. For example, the display unit 29 is provided on the gun body 21 on the opposite side of the nozzle 26. The display unit 29 is connected to the control panel 40 via the control line 532.

The display unit 29 can present specific information to the operator depending on the lighting state. The display unit 29 is controlled to turn on, blink, and turn off based on the signal from the control panel 40. In the case of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the state in which the display unit 29 is blinking means a notice display. The notice display is a display indicating that the painting gun 20 is used for painting the next painting, that is, the next object to be painted 90. Further, the state in which the display unit 29 is lit means an in-use display. The in-use display indicates that the paint gun 20 is currently being used for painting, that is, that the paint charged to a high voltage is being discharged. In this way, the in-use display is displayed in a manner different from the notice display.

The state in which the display unit 29 is turned off means that the paint gun 20 is not currently used and is not planned to be used in the next painting. In the present embodiment, the lighting, blinking, and extinguishing of the display unit 29 are based on the visual recognition of the operator. That is, for example, the lighting state of the display unit 29 includes a state in which the display unit 29 is blinking at such a high speed that the operator cannot recognize that the display unit 29 is blinking.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control panel 40 has a current detection unit 41, a power supply unit 42, a control unit 43, an air flow switch 44, and an operation panel 45. The current detection unit 41 is connected to the high voltage generation unit 27 via the current detection line 533. The current detection unit 41 detects the magnitude of the current flowing through the high voltage generation unit 27, and gives the detection result to the control unit 43. The power supply unit 42 is connected to the high voltage generation unit 27 via the power line 531. Although not shown in detail, the power supply unit 42 includes a switching element, an output transformer, a DC power supply unit, and an oscillation circuit. The power supply unit 42 supplies the high voltage generation unit 27 with an AC pulse voltage having an arbitrary voltage of, for example, about 2 V to 20 V and a frequency of about 20 kHz as a drive voltage.

The control unit 43 is composed of a CPU (not shown) and a microcomputer having a ROM, RAM, and the like. By controlling the output of the power supply unit 42, the control unit 43 can control the value of the output voltage output from the high voltage generation unit 27 of the paint gun 20 and the output and stop of the output voltage.

The air flow switch 44 is provided in the middle of the air hose 52 that connects the air valve 25 and the compressor 56. The air flow switch 44 operates when air flows through the air hose 52 and outputs a signal to the control unit 43. The signal output by the airflow switch 44 at that time is referred to as a trigger detection signal.

The control unit 43 outputs an AC pulse voltage from the power supply unit 42 when a trigger detection signal is input from the airflow switch 44 during normal operation, that is, when an overcurrent abnormality has not occurred in the high voltage generation unit 27. As a result, a high voltage output voltage for electrostatic coating is output from the high voltage generation unit 27. Then, when the AC pulse voltage is output from the power supply unit 42, the control unit 43 transmits a signal for displaying the in-use display to the display unit 29. In the case of the present embodiment, the control unit 43 lights the display unit 29 as an in-use display.

The operation panel 45 has a plurality of switches 451 and a display 452. The operator makes various settings by operating the switches 451. Further, the display 452 displays the setting contents, the current operating status, and the like. Further, the control panel 40 may have an alarm such as a buzzer (not shown).

Further, the control unit 43 is communicably connected to the host device 80. The host device 80 transmits an instruction signal indicating the next coating color of the object to be coated 90 to the control unit 43. When the control unit 43 receives an instruction signal from the host device 80, the control unit 43 is one of the paint guns 20 connected to the control panel 40, which corresponds to the color of the paint to be painted next, based on the instruction signal. To identify. Then, the control unit 43 blinks the display unit 29 of one of the paint guns 20 specified among the paint guns 20, so that the paint gun 20 to be used next displays the notice display.

When the paint gun 20 currently used and the paint gun 20 to be used next are the same, in the present embodiment, the control unit 43 gives priority to the in-use display over the notice display. That is, when one coating gun 20 specified based on the instruction signal received from the host device 80 is the coating gun 20 currently in use, the control unit 43 determines that the coating gun 20 in use is of the operator. While the trigger 22 continues, the display unit 29 is turned on as an in-use display. Then, the control unit 43 blinks the display unit 29 as a warning display after the operation of the trigger 22 of the operator is released and the painting work is completed.

As described above, the painting apparatus 10 of the present embodiment includes a plurality of painting guns 20 and a control panel 40. The painting gun 20 has a display unit 29 capable of displaying information, and can discharge paint of a preset color according to an operation of an operator. The control panel 40 supplies driving power to each coating gun 20. Then, the control panel 40 displays a notice indicating that the paint gun 20 is to be used next on the display unit 29 of one paint gun 20 corresponding to the color of the paint to be painted next among the paint guns 20. Display.

According to the painting device 10, the operator can use the painting gun 20 on which the notice display is displayed, that is, the painting gun 20 in which the display unit 29 is blinking, from among the plurality of painting guns 20 hanging on the gun rack 30. Can be selected and used for the next painting operation. Therefore, the coating gun 20 to be used next can be appropriately selected.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the display unit 29 is provided on the painting gun 20. Therefore, even if the operator picks up the wrong paint gun 20, he / she can see the display state of the display unit 29 of the paint gun 20 in his / her hand, that is, in his / her own hand. By checking whether or not the display unit 29 of a certain paint gun 20 is blinking, it is possible to easily grasp whether or not the paint gun 20 picked up is correct. Therefore, even if the worker picks up the wrong paint gun 20, it becomes easier to notice at the stage before painting, and as a result, the mistake of the paint color can be more reliably suppressed. ..

Further, for example, when the paint guns 20 are removed from the gun rack 30 at the same time during cleaning or the like, there is a possibility that the paint guns 20 may not be returned to the correct positions on the gun rack 30 due to an error in the return of the operator. That is, when the paint gun 20 is removed from the gun rack 30 at the same time and then the paint guns 20 are returned to the gun rack 30, the positions of the paint guns 20 may be misaligned. Then, the color of the paint described on the name plate 31 and the color of the paint actually discharged from the paint gun 20 are different from each other. As a result, if the worker who believes in the description of the name plate 31 uses the painting gun 20 as it is, the object to be painted 90 will be painted with the wrong color.

On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, the display unit 29 is provided on the coating gun 20 as described above. For this reason, the color of the paint written on the name plate 31 is different from the color of the paint actually discharged from the paint gun 20 by mistakenly returning the paint gun 20, and as a result, the work of believing the description of the name plate 31. Even if a person picks up the wrong paint gun 20, if the display unit 29 of the paint gun 20 that is picked up is not displayed in the notice display, that is, if the display unit 29 is not blinking. The operator can easily notice that the paint gun 20 is not the one to be used next. As a result, according to the coating apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, it is possible to more reliably suppress an error in the coating color.

Further, the control panel 40 displays an in-use display indicating that painting is in progress on the display unit 29 of one of the painting guns 20 that discharges the paint in response to the operation of the operator among the painting guns 20. It is displayed in a mode different from the notice display. According to this, the operator can know that a high voltage is applied to the paint discharged from the paint gun 20, for example, by looking at the in-use display displayed on the display unit 29. As a result, the worker becomes more concerned about safety, and the safety of work is enhanced. Further, by displaying not only the notice display but also the in-use display on the display unit 29, the function of the display unit 29 can be effectively utilized. That is, the indicator light 29 serves both as an indicator light for displaying the in-use display and as an indicator light for displaying the notice display. As a result, the number of parts can be reduced as compared with the case where the indicator lamps for displaying the notice display and the in-use display are separately provided, and as a result, the manufacturing cost of the coating gun 20 can be reduced.

(Other embodiments)
The display unit 29 is not limited to a single-color LED or a light bulb, and may be composed of, for example, a two-color or a multi-color LED. For example, the display unit 29 may be configured with a two-color LED that can be switched between two colors, yellow and red. In this case, as shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 43 may cause the display unit 29 to emit light in yellow as a notice display and the display unit 29 to emit light in red as an in-use display, for example.

Further, the display unit 29 is not limited to one light source, and may be configured by, for example, two light sources. In this case, for example, two first indicator lights and second indicator lights are provided side by side as the display unit 29. The first indicator lamp and the second indicator lamp can be composed of, for example, a monochromatic LED, a multicolor LED, a light bulb, or the like. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 43 turns on the first indicator lamp and turns off the second indicator lamp in the case of a notice display, and turns off the first indicator lamp in the case of an in-use display. The second indicator light may be turned on.

Further, the display unit 29 is not limited to the light source, and may be configured by, for example, a liquid crystal panel capable of displaying characters and symbols. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, in the case of a notice display, the control unit 43 displays the characters of "next color" on the liquid crystal panel, and in the case of an in-use display, "high voltage is being applied" to the liquid crystal panel. May be displayed.

Further, the display unit 29 is not limited to the above-mentioned one, and may be, for example, a segment display capable of displaying numbers, or an analog meter used for a voltmeter or an ammeter. When a segment display is used as the display unit 29, for example, the display mode of the notice display and the in-use display may be separated according to the numerical value to be displayed. Further, when an analog meter is used as the display unit 29, the display mode of the notice display and the in-use display may be separated according to, for example, the swing width and the cycle of the needle.

It should be noted that each embodiment is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawings, and may be appropriately modified and implemented without departing from the gist of the invention.

In the drawings, 10 is a painting device, 20 is a painting gun, 29 is a display unit, and 40 is a control panel.

Claims (3)

Multiple paint guns that eject paint of preset colors according to the operator's operation,
It is equipped with a control panel that supplies drive power to the plurality of paint guns.
The paint gun has a display unit capable of displaying information.
The control panel causes the display unit of one of the painting guns corresponding to the color of the paint to be painted next among the plurality of painting guns to display a warning display indicating that the painting gun is to be used next. ,
Painting equipment. The control panel displays an in-use display indicating that the paint gun is currently in use on the display unit of one of the paint guns that discharges paint in response to an operator's operation among the plurality of paint guns. Display in a different mode from
The coating apparatus according to claim 1. It is a painting gun that discharges paint of a preset color according to the operation of the operator.
It is equipped with a display unit that can display a notice display indicating that it is scheduled to be used next by control from the control panel that supplies drive power.
Paint gun.

Images