JP7603966B2 - Tape cutter - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a tape cutter, and more specifically to a tape cutter that cuts a protective tape attached to one side of a plate material.

Conventionally, there have been proposals for signboards (also called internally illuminated signboards) that have a display panel such as an acrylic plate on the front and a light source inside the housing frame to display advertisements (for example, Patent Document 1).

The signboards mentioned above use a housing frame made of welded metal plates (such as stainless steel plates). Before welding, protective tape is applied to the entire surface of one side of the plate to protect it.

However, when welding metal plates, it is necessary to remove the protective tape that is applied to the entire surface of the plate, which is the part that will be welded (the weld allowance).

Until now, workers have had to manually make cuts in the protective tape that was attached to the area that would be the welding allowance in order to remove it.

JP 2007-25175 A

However, manually cutting slits in the protective tape attached to one side of the plate requires a lot of time and effort. Furthermore, manually cutting slits in the protective tape results in inconsistent work quality.

Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a tape cutter that can automatically cut a protective tape attached to one side of a plate material.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a tape cutter comprising a guide member that guides a plate material being held and transported from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction, and a cutter that cuts a protective tape attached to one side of the plate material, the guide member having an entrance through which the plate material transported from the upstream side in the transport direction can be inserted, a transport path extending from the entrance to the downstream side in the transport direction, and an exit provided at the end of the transport path through which the plate material can be inserted, the cutter being positioned at a cutting position where the blade direction is aligned with the transport direction and the tip of the blade can be brought into contact with one side of the plate material emerging from the exit.

Here, it is preferable that the cutter is provided with a biasing member that elastically biases the cutter to the cutting position.

The guide member preferably includes a stainless steel bottom plate, the plate is transported from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction so that the side to which the protective tape is attached faces the upper surface of the bottom plate, and a contact plate is preferably provided on the lower surface of the bottom plate for contacting the blade of the cutter arranged at the cutting position.

Furthermore, it is preferable that the cutter is configured to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction.

It is also preferable that the conveying path is configured so that its vertical width gradually narrows from the entrance to the exit.

It is also preferable that the conveying path is provided with an attachment for gradually narrowing the width in the left-right direction from the entrance to the exit.

According to the present invention, one side of the plate material that has passed through the guide member is configured to come into contact with the tip of the cutter blade. This makes it possible to automatically make a cut in the protective tape attached to one side of the plate material.

1A is a perspective view of a tape cutter according to an embodiment of the present invention as seen from the right side, and FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the tape cutter as viewed from the front. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which a plate material conveyed from a V-groove processing machine passes through a tape cutter. FIG. 5 is a view taken along the arrow V in FIG. 4 . 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining an attachment that can be attached to a transport path of the guide member. FIG.

1. Embodiment
A tape cutter according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 5. In the following, a tape cutter 1 shown in Figure 1 will be illustrated as an example of the tape cutter according to the present invention.

As shown in Figures 1(A) and (B), the tape cutter 1 is composed of a guide member 2 and two cutters 3L and 3R.

The guide member 2 is a member for passing the plate material BD (see Figures 4 and 5) used for the housing frame of the signboard through the inside and guiding it to the desired position.

The plate material BD is transported downstream in the transport direction toward the guide member 2 while being held by the machine performing the previous process.

As shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, a known V-groove processing machine is used as an example of a machine that performs the pre-processing. The V-groove processing machine is a machine that forms a V-groove in the surface of the plate material BD for bending the plate material BD.

However, the machine that performs the pre-processing step is not limited to a V-groove processing machine, and may be any other machine that can hold the plate material BD and transport it toward the guide member 2.

A V-groove is formed on one side (single side SU1) of the plate material BD by the V-groove processing machine described above. In addition, protective tape PT is attached to the entire surface of the other side (single side SU2) of the plate material BD.

Cutters 3L and 3R have blades 31L and 31R, and are tools used to make linear cuts on both ends of the protective tape PT attached to one side SU2 of the plate material BD.

As shown in Figures 1(A) and (B), the guide member 2 is configured with left and right side plates 21L, 21R, a top plate 23, and a bottom plate 25. The left and right side plates 21L, 21R, the top plate 23, and the bottom plate 25 are made of stainless steel plates.

The left and right side plates 21L, 21R are configured in a right-angled triangular shape when viewed from the side, with the upper ends inclined from the rear (upstream side in the conveying direction) to the front (upstream side in the conveying direction). A top plate 23 is provided on the upper ends of the left and right side plates 21L, 21R.

The top plate 23 is placed on the upper ends of the left and right side plates 21L and 21R, and is tilted downward from the rear to the front.

The front end of the top plate 23 (the end on the upstream side in the conveying direction) is positioned slightly away from the upper surface of the bottom plate 25. This creates a gap between the front end of the top plate 23 and the upper surface of the bottom plate 25. The gap between the front end of the top plate 23 and the upper surface of the bottom plate 25 functions as an exit EX of the conveying path 20, which will be described later.

The bottom plate 25 is attached to the lower ends of the left and right side plates 21L and 21R and extends approximately horizontally from the rear to the front.

As shown in FIG. 2, the guide member 2 has a transport path 20 that is partitioned by left and right side plates 21L, 21R, a top plate 23, and a bottom plate 25.

The upstream end (rear end) of the conveying path 20 in the conveying direction functions as the entrance EN (see FIG. 2). On the other hand, the downstream end (front end) of the conveying path 20 in the conveying direction functions as the exit EX (see FIG. 3). In other words, the conveying path 20 runs in the front-to-rear direction (conveying direction) from the entrance EN to the exit EX.

The entrance EN of the conveying path 20 is large enough to allow the plate material BD to pass through. The plate material BD conveyed by the V-groove processing machine enters the conveying path 20 through the entrance EN.

As described above, the exit EX of the conveying path 20 is formed by the gap formed between the front end of the top plate 23 and the upper surface of the bottom plate 25. The plate material BD that has passed through the conveying path 20 is sent out to the outside of the conveying path 20 via the exit EX.

The vertical width of the conveying path 20 gradually decreases from the entrance EN to the exit EX. Therefore, as is clear from a comparison of Figures 2 and 3, the vertical width of the entrance EN is wider than the vertical width of the exit EX.

As shown in Figs. 1(A) and (B), side plates 21L and 21R are provided with spring fixing portions 41L and 41R for fixing one end of springs 4L and 4R, respectively. Note that springs 4L and 4R are an example of a biasing member according to the present invention.

One end of the springs 4L, 4R is fixed to the spring fixing parts 41L, 41R described above, respectively. Meanwhile, the other end of the springs 4L, 4R is fixed to both the left and right ends of the cutter holding part 5, respectively. The cutter holding part 5 is a member that fixes (connects) and holds the body parts of the cutters 3L, 3R, and is a cylindrical shaft-shaped member that extends in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction (left-right direction).

The tension (biasing force) of the springs 4L, 4R is applied to the cutter holding part 5 in a direction that lifts the cutter holding part 5. Since the cutters 3L, 3R are held by the cutter holding part 5, the tension (biasing force) of the springs 4L, 4R is applied to the cutters 3L, 3R via the cutter holding part 5 in a direction that lifts the cutters 3L, 3R.

As shown in Figs. 1(A) and (B), an acrylic plate 27 is installed on the surface of the bottom plate 25 facing downward. The acrylic plate 27 is an abutment plate to prevent the blades 31L, 31R of the cutters 3L, 3R from directly abutting the bottom plate 25. By providing the acrylic plate 27, the blades 31L, 31R of the cutters 3L, 3R do not abut against the bottom plate 25.

The guide member 2 is attached to a bracket 6. The bracket 6 is supported by cylindrical support shafts 61L and 61R. The support shafts 61L and 61R are fixed to a pair of magnet holder bases 63L and 63R.

Between the support shafts 61L and 61R, a rotation support shaft 7 that rotatably supports the base ends of the cutters 3L and 3R extends in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction (left-right direction).

The cutters 3L and 3R rotate upward around the rotating shaft 7 due to the tension (biasing force) of the springs 4L and 4R.

As shown in Figures 1(A) and (B), when cutters 3L and 3R are rotated upward and positioned at the cutting position, blades 31L and 31R of cutters 3L and 3R come into contact with acrylic plate 27.

At the cutting position, the cutters 3L and 3R are positioned so that the orientation of the blades 31L and 31R coincides with the conveying direction of the plate material BD. In addition, at the cutting position, the cutters 3L and 3R are positioned so that the tips of the blades 31L and 31R come into contact with one side SU2 of the plate material BD emerging from the exit EX.

The cutters 3L, 3R are configured to be movable in the left-right direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the plate material BD so that the position of the cut can be changed. Specifically, the cutters 3L, 3R are configured to be movable in the left-right direction by changing the fixed positions (connection points) of the cutters 3L, 3R relative to the cutter holding portion 5.

In addition, when one side SU2 of the plate material BD coming out of the exit EX comes into contact with the tip of the blades 31L, 31R, a constant (uniform) pressure is applied to one side SU2 by the tension (biasing force) of the springs 4L, 4R described above.

Next, with reference to Figures 4 and 5, we will explain the operation of making a cut LN in the protective tape PT attached to one side SU2 of the plate material BD using the above-mentioned tape cutter 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the plate material BD is transported upstream in the transport direction while being held by the V-groove processing machine. At that time, the plate material BD is transported with one side SU1 on which the V-groove processing has been performed facing upward, and one side SU2 on which the protective tape PT has been applied facing downward.

The plate material BD transported from the V-groove processing machine enters the transport path 20 through the entrance EN of the guide member 2 and proceeds inside the transport path 20 toward the downstream side in the transport direction.

The vertical width of the conveying path 20 gradually narrows from the upstream side in the conveying direction to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Therefore, even if the plate material BD is slightly misaligned in the vertical direction when it enters the conveying path 20, the vertical position of the plate material BD is appropriately adjusted toward the exit EX as it passes through the conveying path 20.

When the tip of the plate material BD reaches the exit EX and goes outside the exit EX, one side SU2 of the plate material BD comes into contact with the tips of the blades 31L, 31R of the cutters 3L, 3R. When one side SU2 of the plate material BD comes into contact with the tips of the blades 31L, 31R, a certain amount of pressure is applied to one side SU2 of the plate material BD by the tension of the springs 4L, 4R.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the plate material BD is transported downstream in the transport direction while a certain pressure is applied to one side SU2 of the plate material BD, cuts LN are automatically formed on both the left and right ends of the protective tape TP attached to the one side SU2.

According to the embodiment described above, the plate material BD that has passed through the guide member 2 is configured to come into contact with the tips of the two cutters 3L and 3R. Therefore, it is possible to automatically make a cut LN (see FIG. 5) in the protective tape PT attached to one side SU2 of the plate material BD.

In addition, according to the embodiment described above, the cutters 3L, 3R are connected to the springs 4L, 4R that elastically bias the cutters 3L, 3R toward the above-mentioned cutting position via the cutter holding portion 5. In other words, the biasing force of the springs 4L, 4R is always applied to the cutters 3L, 3R toward the cutting position.

Therefore, when one side SU2 of the plate material BD comes into contact with the tips of the blades 31L, 31R of the cutters 3L, 3R, a constant pressure is applied to one side SU2 of the plate material BD. As a result, it becomes possible to make a cut LN with a constant pressure in the protective tape PT attached to one side SU2 of the plate material BD.

In addition, according to the embodiment described above, an acrylic plate 27 is installed on the surface of the bottom plate 25 facing downward. Therefore, the blades 31L, 31R of the cutters 3L, 3R do not come into contact with the bottom plate 25, and there is no risk of damaging the stainless steel bottom plate 25.

Furthermore, according to the above-described embodiment, the cutters 3L, 3R are configured to be movable in the left-right direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the plate material BD so that the position of the cut LN can be changed according to the left-right width of the plate material BD. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately adjust the positions of the cutters 3L, 3R according to the left-right width of the plate material BD, etc.

In addition, according to the above-described embodiment, the vertical width of the conveying path 20 gradually narrows from the entrance EN to the exit EX. Therefore, even if the plate material BD is slightly misaligned in the vertical direction when it enters the conveying path 20, the vertical position of the plate material BD can be adjusted to the correct position by passing through the conveying path 20.

2. Modifications
The tape cutter according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and improvements are possible within the scope of the claims.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, a case was illustrated in which the vertical width of the conveying path 20 gradually narrows as it moves from the entrance EN to the exit EX, but this is not limited to this.

As shown in FIG. 6, a pair of left and right attachments 8L, 8R may be attached to the transport path 20 so that the width of the transport path 20 in the left-right direction gradually narrows (reducing from width WD1 to width WD2) as it moves from the entrance EN to the exit EX.

The attachments 8L and 8R each have an inclined surface 81L and 81R. Therefore, even if a relatively narrow plate material BD is inserted into the conveying path 20 with some deviation in the left-right direction, the leading end of the plate material BD can be adjusted to the desired position by abutting against the inclined surface 81L and 81R.

As described above, the tape cutter of the present invention is suitable for making cuts in protective tape attached to one side of a plate material.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Tape cutter 2 Guide members 3L, 3R Cutters 4L, 4R Spring 5 Cutter holder 6 Bracket 7 Rotational support shafts 8L, 8R Attachment 20 Transport path 21L, 21R Left and right side plates 23 Top plate 25 Bottom plate 27 Acrylic plates 31L, 31R Blade
41L, 41R Spring fixing portion 61L, 61R Support shaft 63L, 63R Magnet holder base 81L, 81R Inclined surface BD Plate material EN Entrance EX Exit LN Slit PT Protective tape SU1 One side SU2 One side TP Protective tape

Claims (5)

a guide member that guides the plate material being held and transported from an upstream side to a downstream side in a transport direction;
a cutter for cutting a protective tape attached to one surface of the plate material;
Equipped with
the guide member has an entrance through which the plate material conveyed from the upstream side in the conveying direction can be inserted, a conveying path extending from the entrance to the downstream side in the conveying direction, and an exit provided at an end of the conveying path through which the plate material can be inserted,
the cutter is disposed at a cutting position where a blade direction coincides with the conveying direction and a tip of the blade can be brought into contact with the one surface of the plate material exiting from the outlet,
The guide member includes a stainless steel bottom plate,
the plate material is transported from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction such that the surface to which the protective tape is attached faces an upper surface of the bottom plate;
A tape cutter, characterized in that a contact plate is provided on the lower surface of the bottom plate for contacting the blade of the cutter when the cutter is positioned at the cutting position . The tape cutter according to claim 1, characterized in that the cutter is provided with a biasing member that elastically biases the cutter to the cutting position. 3. The tape cutter according to claim 1 , wherein the cutter is configured to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction. 4. The tape cutter according to claim 1 , wherein the conveying path is configured so that a width in the vertical direction gradually narrows from the entrance to the exit. 5. The tape cutter according to claim 1, wherein an attachment is attached to the transport path for gradually narrowing a width in the left-right direction from the entrance to the exit.

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