JP7639487B2 - Control panels and machine tools - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a control panel and a machine tool.

The machine tool described in Patent Document 1 includes a control box. The control box houses electrical components. The cooling fin section is provided on the left side of the control box and cools the electrical components housed in the control box. The fin enclosure covers the cooling fin section. The fan is provided below the cooling fin section and is fixed to the left side of the control box via multiple supports. The fan draws air into the fin enclosure and blows it toward the left side of the control box.

The wind blown by the fan spreads from the left side of the control box to the entire inside of the fin enclosure. Some of the wind that spreads to the entire inside of the fin enclosure passes through the cooling fins, dissipating heat from the cooling fins and cooling the electrical components.

JP 2016-221609 A

Some of the air blown by the fan does not pass through the cooling fins, so the control box of the machine tool mentioned above sometimes cannot adequately cool the electrical components.

The object of the present invention is to provide a control panel and machine tool that can sufficiently cool electrical components.

The control panel according to the first aspect of the present invention comprises electrical components for controlling a machine tool, a storage box for storing the electrical components, a heat dissipation mechanism connected to the electrical components and partially disposed outside a specified wall of the storage box, and dissipating heat from the electrical components to the outside of the storage box, a housing arranged outside the specified wall alongside the heat dissipation mechanism outside the storage box, and having a plurality of walls and a hollow space surrounded by the plurality of walls, and a blower fixed to the outside of the housing and to a first wall part of the plurality of walls, blowing air toward the housing, and the housing is characterized in that it has a first opening that opens the first wall part toward the blower and communicates with the hollow space, and a second opening that opens toward the heat dissipation mechanism and communicates with the hollow space.

In the control panel of the first embodiment, the air sent by the blower enters the housing through the first opening and flows through the second opening to the heat dissipation mechanism. Because the air sent by the blower does not spread in the control panel and flows to the heat dissipation mechanism, the heat dissipation mechanism can effectively release heat from the electrical components and sufficiently cool the electrical components.

In the first embodiment, the second opening may cover a portion of the heat dissipation mechanism. The air blown by the blower flows through the heat dissipation mechanism without spreading further, allowing the electrical components to be sufficiently cooled.

In the first aspect, the housing may have a cross wall portion that stands from the first wall portion toward the outside of the housing on the heat dissipation mechanism side of the blower and extends in a cross direction that crosses a predetermined direction in which the blower and the heat dissipation mechanism are aligned. The cross wall portion of the control panel prevents the air flowing through the heat dissipation mechanism from returning to the blower, so that the electrical components can be cooled more sufficiently.

In the first embodiment, the housing may have a second wall portion that constitutes the lower end of the housing closed. The second wall portion of the housing receives mist-like liquid (e.g., cutting fluid for a machine tool) that scatters from a storage box or the like, improving the convenience of the control panel.

In the first aspect, the housing may have a hole that opens the second wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion, and a plug that closes the hole. By removing the plug from the hole, the liquid received by the second wall portion can be drained from the hole, further improving the convenience of the control panel.

The machine tool according to the second aspect of the present invention is characterized by having a control panel according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The machine tool according to the second aspect can achieve the same effects as the first aspect.

FIG. FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a left side view of the control panel 20 with the cover 30 removed. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II in FIG. 3 . FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged view of the periphery of the housing 40 shown in FIG. 5 . FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the housing 40 from diagonally below on the left. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the housing 40 from diagonally above and to the left.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, the left/right, front/back, and up/down directions are used as indicated by arrows in the figures. The left/right, front/back, and up/down directions of the machine tool 1 correspond to the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis directions of the machine tool 1, respectively.

The structure of the machine tool 1 will be described with reference to Figure 1. The machine tool 1 is a vertical machine tool with a spindle (not shown) extending in the Z-axis direction. The machine tool 1 comprises a base 2, a column 5, a spindle head 7, a main body cover 3, and a control panel 20. The base 2 is an iron base. The column 5 is erected at the rear of the upper part of the base 2. A Z-axis movement mechanism (not shown) is located in front of the column 5. The spindle head 7 is located in front of the Z-axis movement mechanism. The spindle head 7 can be moved in the Z-axis direction by the Z-axis movement mechanism.

The spindle head 7 supports the spindle so that it can rotate around a rotation axis parallel to the Z-axis direction. A tool (not shown) is attached to the spindle, which performs cutting and other processes on a workpiece (not shown) fixed to the top surface of a work table (not shown). The work table is located at the front and top of the base 2. The main body cover 3 is fixed to the top of the base 2 and surrounds the spindle and work table.

The structure of the control panel 20 will be described with reference to Figures 2 to 8. The control panel 20 includes a storage box 21. The storage box 21 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped with a front wall 201 and a left wall 202. The storage box 21 includes a right mounting portion 22 and a left mounting portion 23 on the outside of the front wall 201. The right mounting portion 22 is disposed on the right side of the front wall 201, and the left mounting portion 23 is disposed on the left side of the front wall 201. The right mounting portion 22 and the left mounting portion 23 extend in the vertical direction and protrude forward from the front wall 201. The right mounting portion 22 and the left mounting portion 23 of the storage box 21 are attached and fixed to the rear of the column 5. The storage box 21 stores various electrical components that control the machine tool 1. The various electrical components include, for example, an input/output board 93 (see Figure 5), a control board 94 (see Figure 5), a DC switching power supply, a breaker, an inverter, a wiring duct, a servo amplifier, etc.

The storage box 21 has a door 203 on the opposite side to the column 5. For example, when inspecting the control panel 20, an operator opens the door 203 and inspects, replaces, repairs, etc., various electrical components stored in the storage box 21. The door 203 has a grip 24 on the lower left that is used to lock and unlock the door 203 and is grasped by the operator when opening the door 203.

As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the control panel 20 has a cover 30, a heat dissipation mechanism 90, a housing 40, an upper cover 60, and an electric wire insertion section 70 on the left wall 202. The cover 30 covers the heat dissipation mechanism 90, the housing 40, and the blower 50 on the outside of the storage box 21 (see Figures 3 and 4).

The cover 30 has a flat left wall 301, a rear wall 302, a front wall 303, and fixing parts 304 and 305. The left wall 301 extends in the up-down and front-to-rear directions. The rear wall 302 protrudes to the right from the rear end of the left wall 301, and the front wall 303 protrudes to the right from the front end of the left wall 301. The fixing part 304 protrudes rearward from the right end of the rear wall 302, and the fixing part 305 protrudes forward from the right end of the front wall 303. The fixing parts 304 and 305 of the cover 30 are attached and fixed to the center of the left wall 202 of the storage box 21.

The cover 30 has a plurality of openings 31 that extend vertically and penetrate horizontally in the lower part of the left wall 301. The plurality of openings 31 are air intakes through which the blower 50 described below takes in air. The openings 31 are located in the lower part of the left wall 301 around the opposing part 310 that faces the blower 50 (see Figures 3 and 6). In this embodiment, the plurality of openings 31 are located on the front and rear sides of the opposing part 310, respectively. The openings 31 located on the rear side of the opposing part 310 are called rear openings 311, and the openings 31 located on the front side of the opposing part 310 are called front openings 312.

The upper part of the left wall 301 has multiple exhaust ports 321 that extend in the front-rear direction and penetrate in the left-right direction. The upper parts of the rear wall 302 and front wall 303 have multiple exhaust ports 322, 323 (see FIG. 5) that extend in the left-right direction and penetrate in the front-rear direction. The multiple exhaust ports 321 to 323 are located above the external heat dissipation mechanism 901 described below.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the heat dissipation mechanism 90 is placed in the center of the left wall 202. The heat dissipation mechanism 90 is a heat sink equipped with multiple cooling fins extending in the vertical and horizontal directions. The heat dissipation mechanism 90 is placed penetrating the center of the left wall 202 in the horizontal direction. The heat dissipation mechanism 90 has an external heat dissipation mechanism 901 and an internal heat dissipation mechanism 902. The external heat dissipation mechanism 901 is placed outside the storage box 21, and the internal heat dissipation mechanism 902 is placed inside the storage box 21. The internal heat dissipation mechanism 902 is connected to the electrical components stored in the storage box 21.

As shown in Figures 4, 6 to 8, the housing 40 is a generally rectangular parallelepiped that is arranged outside the storage box 21 and below the external heat dissipation mechanism 901. The housing 40 has walls 401, 403 to 405, fixing parts 406 to 408, a hollow part 43, a first opening 41, a second opening 42, an intersecting wall part 44, and a plug 46.

The wall portions 401, 403-405 and the fixing portions 406-408 are flat. The hollow portion 43 is disposed inside the area surrounded by the wall portions 401, 403-405. The wall portion 401 extends in the vertical and front-rear directions. It is disposed to the left of the external heat dissipation mechanism 901 in the left-right direction (see FIG. 6). The first opening 41 opens in the left-right direction at the center of the wall portion 401 and communicates with the hollow portion 43. The blower 50 (described later) is fixed to the left side of the wall portion 401 so as to cover the first opening 41.

Wall portion 403 protrudes to the right from the rear end of wall portion 401, wall portion 404 protrudes to the right from the front end of wall portion 401, and wall portion 405 protrudes to the right from the bottom end of wall portion 401. The second opening 42 is located inside the area surrounded by the upper ends of walls 401, 403, and 404. The second opening 42 opens on the heat dissipation mechanism 90 side of the housing 40 and communicates with the hollow portion 43. The second opening 42 is located above the bottom end of the off-board heat dissipation mechanism 901 and passes through the bottom end of the off-board heat dissipation mechanism 901.

The fixing part 406 protrudes rearward from the right end of the wall part 403, the fixing part 407 protrudes forward from the right end of the wall part 404, and the fixing part 408 protrudes downward from the front end of the wall part 405. The fixing parts 406 to 408 of the housing 40 are attached and fixed to the left wall 202 of the storage box 21.

The cross wall portion 44 protrudes to the left from the upper end of the wall portion 401 and is a flat plate extending in the front-rear direction. The cross wall portion 44 extends to the left close to the left wall 301 of the cover 30 (see FIG. 6). The rear end of the cross wall portion 44 is located rearward of the rear end of the wall portion 401, and the front end of the cross wall portion 44 is located forward of the front end of the wall portion 401. The rear of the wall portion 405 is open in the vertical direction and has a hole 45 that communicates with the hollow portion 43. The inner wall of the hole 45 forms a screw thread. The plug 46 is a male screw that screws into the screw thread of the hole 45 to close the hole 45.

The blower 50 is, for example, an axial fan. A protective wire mesh 51 is placed at the left end of the blower 50. The protective wire mesh 51 prevents relatively large foreign objects from entering the inside of the blower 50. The blower 50 takes in the surrounding air and blows it to the right.

The upper cover 60 is arranged to cover the upper side of the cover 30. There is a gap between the upper cover 60 and the cover 30 in the vertical direction. The upper cover 60 is a plate-like shape that protrudes in the horizontal direction from the left wall 202 of the storage box 21, then bends in the vertical direction and extends in the front-rear direction. The electric wire insertion section 70 has an insertion hole (not shown) that penetrates the left wall 202 in the horizontal direction, and holds the electric wire that electrically connects the electrical components inside the storage box 21 to the external device by inserting it therethrough. The upper cover 60 supports the electric wire.

The air flow in the cover 30 will be explained. When the machine tool 1 is operating, the various electrical components inside the storage box 21 generate heat, so the blower 50 is driven and the heat dissipation mechanism 90 releases the heat to cool the electrical components. The blower 50 takes in air from outside the cover 30 through multiple openings 31 in the cover 30, etc., and blows it to the right. The wind blown by the blower 50 flows into the hollow portion 43 through the first opening 41, and flows to the outside of the housing 40 through the second opening 42.

The wind that flows outside the housing 40 flows upward and passes through the inside of the external heat dissipation mechanism 901. At this time, the heat dissipation mechanism 90 releases heat due to the wind blown by the blower 50, and cools the electrical components inside the storage box 21 connected to the heat dissipation mechanism 90. The wind that passes through the inside of the external heat dissipation mechanism 901 flows to the outside of the cover 30 through the multiple exhaust ports 321-323 and the gap between the upper cover 60 and the cover 30. Some of the wind that flows to the outside of the housing 40 may wind back toward the housing 40, but the cross wall portion 44 prevents the blower 50 from taking in the wind that has winded back toward the housing 40 again.

As described above, the control panel 20 is disposed behind the column 5 in the machine tool 1. The control panel 20 includes a storage box 21. The storage box 21 stores electrical components such as an input/output board 93 and a control board 94 that control the machine tool 1. The control panel 20 includes a heat dissipation mechanism 90, a housing 40, and a blower 50 on the left wall 202 of the storage box 21. The heat dissipation mechanism 90 includes an external heat dissipation mechanism 901 disposed outside the storage box 21 and an internal heat dissipation mechanism 902 disposed inside the storage box 21. The internal heat dissipation mechanism 902 is connected to the electrical components. The housing 40 is disposed below the external heat dissipation mechanism 901 outside the storage box 21. The housing 40 has a plurality of walls including the wall 401, a hollow portion 43 inside the housing 40 surrounded by the plurality of walls, and a second opening 42 at the upper end that communicates with the hollow portion 43 and opens the heat dissipation mechanism 90 side of the housing 40. The wall portion 401 has a first opening 41 that is open in the center and communicates with the hollow portion 43. The wall portion 401 fixes the blower 50 so as to cover the first opening 41. The air blown by the blower 50 flows into the hollow portion 43 through the first opening 41, and flows to the heat dissipation mechanism 90 through the second opening 42. Because the air blown by the blower 50 flows into the heat dissipation mechanism 90 without spreading, the heat dissipation mechanism 90 effectively dissipates heat from the electrical components. Therefore, the control panel 20 can sufficiently cool the electrical components by the heat dissipation mechanism 90.

The second opening 42 is located above the lower end of the external heat dissipation mechanism 901 and covers the lower end of the external heat dissipation mechanism 901. The air sent by the blower 50 flows into the heat dissipation mechanism 90 without spreading further, so that the control panel 20 can sufficiently cool the electrical components by the heat dissipation mechanism 90.

The housing 40 has a cross wall 44 at the upper end of the wall 401. The cross wall 44 protrudes to the left from the upper end of the wall 401 and is a flat plate extending in the front-to-rear direction. Some of the air blown by the blower 50 and flowing to the outside of the housing 40 may wind back toward the housing 40. At that time, the cross wall 44 prevents the blower 50 from taking in the air that has winded back toward the housing 40 again, so the control panel 20 can sufficiently cool the electrical components with the heat dissipation mechanism 90.

The lower end of the housing 40 is closed by a wall 405. The wall 405 can receive mist of liquid such as cutting agent that is scattered when the machine tool 1 performs cutting processing. This improves the convenience of the control panel 20.

The housing 40 has a vertical opening at the rear of the wall portion 405, a hole 45 that communicates with the hollow portion 43, and a plug 46 that closes the hole 45. By removing the plug 46 from the hole 45, the housing 40 can drain liquids such as cutting agent that have been received by the wall portion 405 through the hole 45. This further improves the convenience of the control panel 20.

In the above embodiment, the input/output board 93 and the control board 94 are examples of electrical components of the present invention. The left wall 202 is an example of a specified wall. The wall portion 401 is an example of a first wall portion. The up-down direction is an example of a specified direction. The front-rear direction is an example of an intersecting direction. The wall portion 405 is an example of a second wall portion.

The present invention can be modified in various ways from the above embodiment. The various modified examples described below can be combined with each other as long as no contradictions arise. For example, the machine tool 1 in the above embodiment is a vertical machine tool with a spindle extending in the Z-axis direction, but the present invention can also be applied to a horizontal machine tool with a spindle extending horizontally.

The heat dissipation mechanism 90, the blower 50, and the cover 30 may be arranged on an outer wall of the storage box 21 other than the left wall 202. The blower 50 and the heat dissipation mechanism 90 may be arranged on different outer walls of the storage box 21. In this case, the control panel 20 may be provided with a duct through which the air blown by the blower 50 flows to the heat dissipation mechanism 90. The cover 30 only needs to cover the blower 50, and does not need to cover the heat dissipation mechanism 90.

The opening 31 may be located around the opposing portion 310 on the left wall 301, and the location of the opening 31 may be changed in various ways. For example, the opening 31 may be located at a position other than the sandwiched position (above the opposing portion 310) between the blower 50 and the heat dissipation mechanism 90 in the vertical direction. That is, the opening 31 may be located below the opposing portion 310. When the cover 30 does not place the opening 31 at the sandwiched position, the control panel 20 can suppress interference between the wind taken in by the blower 50 through the opening 31 and the wind sent from the blower 50 toward the heat dissipation mechanism 90. Therefore, the control panel 20 can effectively release heat from the electrical components from the heat dissipation mechanism 90 by the wind sent by the blower 50.

In the above embodiment, the cover 30 has the rear opening 311 on the rear side of the opposing portion 310 and the front opening 312 on the front side of the opposing portion 310, but at least one of the rear opening 311 and the front opening 312 may be provided. The cover 30 may also have the air intake port of the blower 50 located at a position other than the opening 31 in the left wall 301. For example, the cover 30 may have the air intake port of the blower 50 located at the rear wall 302 and the lower part of the front wall 303.

The cover 30 does not need to be provided with multiple exhaust ports 321-323. In this case, it is sufficient if the air blown by the blower 50 is discharged to the outside of the cover 30 through a gap between the upper cover 60 and the cover 30 or the like. The cover 30 in the above embodiment opens in the vertical direction, but either the upper end or the lower end may be closed. If the lower end of the cover 30 is closed, the lower end of the cover 30 can receive atomized liquid such as cutting agent that is scattered when the machine tool 1 performs cutting processing. This improves the convenience of the control panel 20.

The housing 40 is not limited to the above embodiment as long as it can fix the blower 50 and can take in the air blown by the blower 50 and then discharge it to the heat dissipation mechanism 90. For example, the housing 40 may be substantially octahedral. The housing 40 may be partially curved.

The housing 40 may have the blower 50 fixed to the walls 403 to 405. In this case, the first opening 41 is disposed in the wall 403 to 405 to which the blower 50 is fixed. The housing 40 may have an opening communicating with the hollow portion 43 in addition to the first opening 41, the second opening 42, and the hole 45.

The second opening 42 of the housing 40 does not have to cover the lower end of the heat dissipation mechanism 90. When the housing 40 and the heat dissipation mechanism 90 are placed separately, the control panel 20 may have a baffle plate extending vertically between the housing 40 and the heat dissipation mechanism 90 on the left wall 202 to prevent the air discharged from the second opening 42 from spreading and flowing inside the cover 30. The housing 40 may be placed in a position other than below the heat dissipation mechanism 90. In this case, it is desirable that the cooling fins of the heat dissipation mechanism 90 extend in a direction that allows the air discharged from the second opening 42 to pass through the inside of the heat dissipation mechanism 90.

The housing 40 may not have the cross wall portion 44. In this case, instead of the cross wall portion 44, the heat dissipation mechanism 90 may have a flat wall that protrudes leftward from the lower portion and extends in the front-to-rear direction. The cover 30 may have a flat wall that protrudes inward (rightward) toward the lower portion of the heat dissipation mechanism 90 and extends in the front-to-rear direction. The wall portion 405 may not have the hole 45. The plug 46 is an example of a plug for blocking the hole 45, and a door that slides on the outside of the wall portion 405 may block the hole 45. A nut with a female thread may be fixed to the wall portion 405, and a bolt with a male thread may be used as a plug.

1 Machine tool 20 Control panel 21 Storage box 30 Cover 31 Opening 40 Housing 41 First opening 42 Second opening 43 Hollow portion 44 Intersecting wall portion 45 Hole 46 Plug 50 Blower 90 Heat dissipation mechanism 93 Input/output board 94 Control board 202, 301 Left wall 301 Opposing portion 311 Rear opening 312 Front openings 321 to 323 Exhaust port 401, 405 Wall portion

Claims (10)

Electrical components for controlling the machine tool;
A storage box for storing the electrical components;
a heat dissipation mechanism connected to the electrical component and having a portion disposed outside a predetermined wall of the storage box;
a housing provided on the outside of the predetermined wall alongside the heat dissipation mechanism located on the outside of the storage box, the housing having a plurality of walls and a hollow space surrounded by the plurality of walls;
a blower fixed to an outer side of the housing and to a first wall portion of the plurality of walls,
The housing includes:
a first opening portion that opens the first wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
a second opening portion that is open to the heat dissipation mechanism side and communicates with the hollow portion,
a direction in which the blower and the first opening are arranged and a direction in which the blower and the second opening are arranged intersect with each other,
A control panel, wherein the second opening passes through a portion of the heat dissipation mechanism. The control panel described in claim 1, characterized in that the housing has a cross wall portion that protrudes from the first wall portion toward the outside of the housing on the heat dissipation mechanism side of the blower and extends in a cross direction that crosses a specific direction in which the blower and the heat dissipation mechanism are aligned. 3. The control panel according to claim 1, wherein the housing is disposed below the heat dissipation mechanism, and a second wall portion constituting a lower end of the housing is closed. The housing includes:
a hole that opens the second wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
4. The control panel according to claim 3, further comprising a plug for closing said hole. Electrical components for controlling the machine tool;
A storage box for storing the electrical components;
a heat dissipation mechanism connected to the electrical component and having a portion disposed outside a predetermined wall of the storage box;
a housing provided on the outside of the predetermined wall alongside the heat dissipation mechanism located on the outside of the storage box, the housing having a plurality of walls and a hollow space surrounded by the plurality of walls;
a blower fixed to an outer side of the housing and to a first wall portion of the plurality of walls,
The housing includes:
a first opening portion that opens the first wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
a second opening portion that is open to the heat dissipation mechanism side and communicates with the hollow portion,
a direction in which the blower and the first opening are arranged and a direction in which the blower and the second opening are arranged intersect with each other,
The control panel is characterized in that the housing has a cross wall portion that protrudes from the first wall portion toward the outside of the housing on the heat dissipation mechanism side of the blower, and extends in a cross direction that intersects a specific direction in which the blower and the heat dissipation mechanism are aligned. 6. The control panel according to claim 5, wherein the housing is disposed below the heat dissipation mechanism, and a second wall portion constituting a lower end of the housing is closed. The housing includes:
a hole that opens the second wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
7. The control panel according to claim 6, further comprising a plug for closing said hole. Electrical components for controlling the machine tool;
A storage box for storing the electrical components;
a heat dissipation mechanism connected to the electrical component and having a portion disposed outside a predetermined wall of the storage box;
a housing provided on the outside of the predetermined wall alongside the heat dissipation mechanism located on the outside of the storage box, the housing having a plurality of walls and a hollow space surrounded by the plurality of walls;
a blower fixed to an outer side of the housing and to a first wall portion of the plurality of walls,
The housing includes:
a first opening portion that opens the first wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
a second opening portion that is open to the heat dissipation mechanism side and communicates with the hollow portion,
a direction in which the blower and the first opening are arranged and a direction in which the blower and the second opening are arranged intersect with each other,
A control panel characterized in that the housing is positioned below the heat dissipation mechanism and a second wall portion that constitutes the lower end of the housing is closed. The housing includes:
a hole that opens the second wall portion and communicates with the hollow portion;
9. The control panel according to claim 8 , further comprising a plug for closing said hole. A machine tool comprising a control panel according to any one of claims 1 to 9 .

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