JP7703631B2 - Conductor forming device and conductor forming method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a conductor forming device and a conductor forming method.

It is known that a conductor having multiple linear sections arranged at intervals and multiple diagonal sections arranged at both ends of the linear sections can be formed by folding back a conductor wire group consisting of multiple conductor wires in the thickness direction, and the linear sections are double-layered (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2021-058076 A

Because the conductor wires are folded back in the thickness direction when they are formed, the arrangement pitch of the straight sections may be disturbed by springback that occurs in the conductor wires after folding. If the arrangement pitch of the straight sections is disturbed, the straight sections may interfere with the jig used during forming, or may interfere with the wall surface of the slot when inserted into the slot of the stator core. If such interference occurs, more contact pressure than necessary will be applied to the conductor wires, which may cause deformation of the conductor wires or damage to the insulating coating that covers the surface of the conductor wires.

The present invention aims to provide a conductor forming device and a conductor forming method that can fold and form a group of conductor wires without disturbing the arrangement pitch of the straight sections.

(1) The conductor forming device according to the present invention is a conductor forming device (for example, ... Conductor shaping device 200) includes a spacing maintenance jig (e.g., spacing maintenance jigs 220, 220A, and 220B described below) that maintains the spacing in the arrangement direction of the straight sections in the folded-back conductor wire group, and the spacing maintenance jig has a base (e.g., base 221 described below) that extends along the arrangement direction of the straight sections, and a plurality of pin members (e.g., pin members 222 described below) that protrude from the base and are inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction to maintain the spacing.

(2) In the conductor molding device described in (1) above, the pin member has a stopper portion (e.g., stopper portion 2222 described below) that prevents the stacked straight portions from lifting up by sandwiching the straight portions between the pin member and the base.

(3) In the conductor molding device described in (2) above, the pin member is provided on the base so that its position can be changed between a stop position where the stacked straight sections are clamped between the base and the stopper, and an insertion position where the pin member can be inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction without interference between the stopper and the straight sections.

(4) In the conductor forming device described in (3) above, the pin member has an axial portion (e.g., axial portion 2221 described below) that is aligned with the stacking direction of the straight portion, the stop portion is provided protruding radially from the axial portion, and the pin member is configured to be repositionable between the stop position and the insertion position by rotating around the axial portion.

(5) A conductor forming method according to the present invention is a conductor forming method for forming a conductor (e.g., conductor 100 described below) having a plurality of straight portions (e.g., straight portion 101 described below) arranged at intervals and a plurality of diagonal portions (e.g., coil end portion 102 described below) arranged at both ends of the straight portions, by folding back a conductor wire group (e.g., conductor wire group 10 described below) consisting of a plurality of conductor wires (e.g., conductor wire 1 described below) in the thickness direction, and in which the straight portions are doubly stacked, and in which, after the conductor wire group is folded back, pin members (e.g., pin member 222 described below) protruding from a base (e.g., base 221 described below) extending along the arrangement direction of the straight portions are inserted between the straight portions adjacent to each other in the arrangement direction, thereby maintaining the spacing.

(6) In the conductor forming method described in (5) above, the pin member has a stopper portion (e.g., stopper portion 2222 described below) that sandwiches the stacked straight sections between the base, and after the pin member is inserted between the straight sections adjacent to each other in the arrangement direction, the stopper portion prevents the stacked straight sections from lifting up.

(7) In the conductor molding method described in (6) above, the pin members are provided on the base so that their positions can be changed between a stop position where the stacked straight sections are sandwiched between the base and the stop portion, and an insertion position where the pin members can be inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction without interference between the stop portion and the straight sections, and when the pin members are inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction, the pin members are set to the insertion position, and after insertion, the pin members are set to the stop position, so that the stop portions prevent the stacked straight sections from floating up.

(8) In the conductor shaping method described above in (7), the pin member has an axial portion (e.g., axial portion 2221 described below) that is aligned with the stacking direction of the straight portion, and the stop portion is provided protruding radially from the axial portion, and the position of the pin member is changed between the stop position and the insertion position by rotating the pin member around the axial portion.

According to (1) and (5) above, by inserting a pin member between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction of the conductor group wire that is folded back, it is possible to prevent the arrangement pitch of the straight sections from being disturbed during forming. As a result, the straight sections do not interfere with the jig used during forming, and when the straight sections of the conductor after forming are inserted into the slots of the stator core, the straight sections do not interfere with the wall surfaces of the slots, etc., and there is no risk of deformation of the conductor wire or damage to the insulating coating that covers the surface of the conductor wire.

According to (2) and (6) above, the stopper of the pin member can prevent the stacked straight sections from floating up, so that a conductor with aligned straight sections can be formed without collapsing the stacked state.

According to (3) and (7) above, when the pin member is inserted, there is no risk of the pin member interfering with the straight portion and damaging the straight portion, and after the pin member is inserted, the stopper portion can prevent the straight portion from floating up.

According to (4) and (8) above, by simply rotating the pin member, it is possible to easily prevent interference with the straight portion during insertion and lifting of the straight portion due to the stopper after insertion.

1 is a front view showing an example of a conductor formed by the conductor forming method of the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a stator on which conductors are mounted. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a method for forming a U-shaped conductor wire. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state in which the conductor wires are overlapped. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a conductor shaping apparatus for carrying out the conductor shaping method of the present embodiment. FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a part of the gripping device before gripping the conductor wire. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a part of the gripping device after gripping the conductor wire. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a lower plate portion of the gap maintaining jig. FIG. 4 is a side view showing a pin member and a cam member of the gap maintaining jig. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 12. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the inside of a part of the gap maintaining jig by dashed lines. 13A to 13C are diagrams illustrating the operation of a cam member of the interval maintaining member. 13 is a plan view for explaining the insertion position and the stop position of the pin member of the gap maintaining jig. FIG. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating the relationship between the stopper portion and the leg portion of the pin member of the gap maintaining jig. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device. FIG. 13 is a plan view for explaining the arrangement of pin members of two gap maintaining jigs. 1A to 1C are diagrams illustrating a conductor forming method using a conductor forming device.

The following describes in detail an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an example of a conductor 100 formed by the conductor forming device and conductor forming method of the present embodiment. The conductor 100 is formed by bending a plurality of conductor wires 1. The conductor 100 of the present embodiment is a strip-shaped coil made of six conductor wires 1 and formed into a long strip in one direction (the X direction in FIG. 1).

The directions shown in the figures are defined as follows: The X direction is the length direction of the conductor 100. This X direction corresponds to the width direction of the conductor wire 1 that constitutes the conductor 100. The Y direction is the width direction of the conductor 100. This Y direction corresponds to the extension direction of the straight portion 101 of the conductor 100 and also corresponds to the length direction of the conductor wire 1. The Z direction is the thickness direction of the conductor 100. This Z direction corresponds to the thickness direction of the conductor wire 1. The X, Y, and Z directions in each figure correspond to the X, Y, and Z directions in the conductor 100, respectively.

The conductor 100 has a number of straight sections 101 arranged in parallel at regular intervals in the longitudinal direction, and a number of coil end sections 102 arranged at both ends of each straight section 101 in the extension direction. The straight sections 101 extend along the width direction of the conductor 100. The coil end sections 102 connect one end and the other end of every five straight sections 101, 101 alternately in a mountain shape along the longitudinal direction of the conductor 100. The coil end sections 102 are diagonal sections arranged at both ends of the straight sections 101.

The coil end portion 102 is formed in a mountain shape having an inclined portion 102a extending obliquely from a boundary portion 103 with the straight portion 101, and an apex 102b where the tips of the inclined portions 102a, 102a connected to the two straight portions 101, 101 are connected to each other. In the conductor 100, the straight portions 101, 101 formed by the two legs 12, 12 of the outer conductor wire 1 of each of the double-structure conductor wires 1, 1 are arranged every six in the length direction of the conductor 100, and the straight portions 101, 101 formed by the two legs 12, 12 of the inner conductor wire 1 are arranged every five in the length direction of the conductor 100.

As shown in FIG. 2, the conductor 100 is attached to the stator core 31 to form the stator 3 of the rotating electric machine. The stator core 31 has a number of teeth 33 that protrude radially toward an axial hole 32 that penetrates in the axial direction (perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 2). A number of slots 34 that open toward the axial hole 32 are formed between adjacent teeth 33, 33 in the circumferential direction. The conductor 100 is attached so that it goes around the stator core 31 multiple times by sequentially inserting the straight portions 101 into the slots 34. The coil end portions 102 of the conductor 100 protrude to both axial outsides of the stator core 31.

The conductor wire 1 constituting the conductor 100 is a continuous line that continues uninterrupted along the length of the conductor 100. As shown in FIG. 3, the straight conductor wire 1 is bent and shaped approximately at the center by the drawing tool 300. As a result, the conductor wire 1 is shaped into a U-shape having one U-shaped portion 11 and a pair of straight leg portions 12, 12.

As shown in FIG. 4, each conductor wire 1 is composed of a plurality of rectangular wires 1a. The rectangular wires 1a are metal wires such as copper wires having a substantially rectangular cross section. The surface of the rectangular wires 1a is covered with a resin insulating coating (not shown). In this embodiment, the conductor wire 1 is a divided wire in which two rectangular wires 1a, 1a are arranged in parallel in the width direction of the conductor wire 1 so that they are in close contact with each other. The conductor wire 1 is bent by the drawing tool 300 in the width direction of the conductor wire 1, which is the parallel direction of the rectangular wires 1a, 1a.

As shown in FIG. 5, each of the conductor wires 1 formed into a U-shape is doubled with the U-shaped portions 11 aligned on the same side, two wires each on the inside and two wires each on the outside. Three sets of two conductor wires 1, 1 arranged in the same way are stacked, shifted in the width direction, so that the twelve legs 12 are parallel to each other at regular intervals. This forms a conductor wire group 10 consisting of six U-shaped conductor wires 1. The conductor wire group 10 is formed into a conductor 100 using a conductor forming device 200 shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7.

Figures 6 and 7 show an overview of the configuration of the main parts of a conductor forming apparatus 200 according to one embodiment. As shown in Figure 6, the conductor forming apparatus 200 includes at least four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D, and a spacing maintaining jig 220 shown in Figure 7. The spacing maintaining jig 220 is not shown in Figure 6. Figure 7 shows only one spacing maintaining jig 220. However, it is desirable to provide at least two spacing maintaining jigs 220 in the conductor forming apparatus 200. In this embodiment, a case where the conductor wire group 10 is formed using two spacing maintaining jigs 220A and 220B will be described.

The gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D are configured to be able to grip and release the twelve legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10 at once. Since the four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D have the same configuration for gripping and releasing, the configuration of one gripping device 210 will be described with reference to Figures 8 to 10.

As shown in FIG. 8, the gripping device 210 is a rectangular parallelepiped that is formed long and extends across the twelve legs 12 arranged on the conductor wire group 10. The gripping device 210 has a fixed block 211 that extends along the length of the gripping device 210, and twelve movable blocks 212.

9 and 10, the fixed block 211 has twelve grooves 211a for accommodating the twelve legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10. The twelve movable blocks 212 are accommodated in the grooves 211a of the fixed block 211 so as to be movable along the X direction in the figure, leaving gaps G into which the legs 12 can fit. The gripping device 210 simultaneously moves all the movable blocks 212 in the grooves 211a in the directions of the white arrows in FIG. 9 by driving a driving mechanism (not shown). As a result, the gripping device 210 grips the legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10 that fit into each gap G by clamping them between the fixed block 211 and the movable block 212. The gripping direction of the legs 12 by the gripping device 210 is the parallel direction of the two rectangular wires 1a, 1a that make up the conductor wire 1. Therefore, the gripping device 210 grips the leg 12 of the conductor wire 1 by clamping it in the width direction of the conductor wire 1.

The four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D are arranged parallel to one another at intervals in the length direction (Y direction) of the conductor wire group 10 on the same side in the thickness direction (Z direction) of the conductor wire group 10. The conductor shaping device 200 shown in FIG. 6 shows the initial position of the shaping process. At this time, the gripping device 210A is arranged near each U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10. The gripping device 210B is arranged at a predetermined interval from the gripping device 210A on the side farther from each U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10 than the gripping device 210A. The gripping device 210C is arranged at a predetermined interval from the gripping device 210B on the side farther from each U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10 than the gripping device 210B. The gripping device 210D is positioned at a predetermined distance from the gripping device 210C, on the side farther from each U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10 than the gripping device 210C.

6, the side edge E1 of the gripping device 210A and the side edge E2 of the gripping device 210B, and the side edge E1 of the gripping device 210C and the side edge E2 of the gripping device 210D have the same distance L. The side edges E1 and E2 are two side edges that are arranged parallel to the plane that grips the leg 12 in the gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D. In the gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D, the side edge E1 is the side edge that is closer to the U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10, and the side edge E2 is the side edge that is farther from the U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10. The distance L is substantially the same as the length L in the extension direction of the straight portion 101 of the conductor 100 shown in FIG. 1.

The region between side edge E2 of gripping device 210A and side edge E1 of gripping device 210B in the conductor wire group 10, and the region between side edge E1 of gripping device 210C and side edge E2 of gripping device 210D each constitute a straight portion forming region 10A for forming the straight portion 101 of the conductor 100. Therefore, gripping devices 210A, 210B and gripping devices 210C, 210D each grip 12 legs 12 in the straight portion forming region 10A in the conductor wire group 10. In the legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10 shown in FIG. 6, the straight portion forming region 10A is shown in white.

The region between the side edge E2 of the gripping device 210B and the side edge E1 of the gripping device 210C in the conductor wire group 10 constitutes the coil end portion forming region 10B for forming the coil end portion 102 of the conductor 100. In the leg portion 12 of the conductor wire group 10 shown in FIG. 6, the coil end portion forming region 10B is indicated by hatching.

The straight section forming region 10A and the coil end section forming region 10B are arranged alternately from the U-shaped section 11 side of the conductor wire group 10 along the length direction (Y direction) of the leg section 12.

Of the four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D, the two gripping devices 210A and 210B closest to the U-shaped portion 11 of the conductor wire group 10 are arranged to be rotatable in forward and reverse directions about a virtual fold-back line J shown in FIG. 6 as an axis while maintaining the distance L by driving a rotation mechanism unit (not shown). The fold-back line J is set at an intermediate position between the gripping devices 210B and 210C along the X direction in FIG. 6. This intermediate position corresponds to the position of the apex 102b of the coil end portion 102 after the conductor wire group 10 is folded back. The fold-back line J is in a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the leg portion 12 and is arranged parallel to the length direction of the four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D. The gripping devices 210A and 210B gripping the leg portions 12 of the conductor wire group 10 rotate about the fold line J as an axis, so that the conductor wire group 10 is folded back at the center of the coil end portion forming region 10B between the gripping devices 210B and 210C. This completes the folding process.

The gripping devices 210A and 210B are arranged to be movable in parallel relative to the gripping devices 210C and 210D along the X direction in FIG. 6 while maintaining the distance L by driving a slanting mechanism (not shown). In the conductor forming device 200 of this embodiment, the gripping devices 210C and 210D are arranged to be immovable in the X direction, and the gripping devices 210A and 210B are arranged to be movable in parallel in the X direction. However, the gripping devices 210A and 210B may be arranged to be immovable in the X direction, and the gripping devices 210C and 210D may be arranged to be movable in parallel in the X direction. In addition, the gripping devices 210A and 210B and the gripping devices 210C and 210D may be arranged to be movable in parallel in opposite directions to each other. The gripping devices 210A and 210B gripping the leg portions 12 of the conductor wire group 10 move in parallel in the X direction relative to the gripping devices 210C and 210D, so that the coil end portion forming region 10B of the conductor wire group 10 between the gripping devices 210B and 210C is bent so as to be inclined obliquely with respect to the length direction of the leg portions 12. This completes the oblique movement process.

The spacing maintaining jigs 220A and 220B are placed in the straight section forming regions 10A and 10A between the gripping devices 210A and 210D and the gripping devices 210B and 210C that overlap after being folded back. Specifically, the spacing maintaining jigs 220A and 220B are placed in the region where two straight sections 101 and 101 are stacked in the thickness direction of the conductor wire group 10 in the straight section forming region 10A after the coil end section forming region 10B is folded back.

Since the two gap maintaining jigs 220A and 220B have the same configuration, the configuration of one gap maintaining jig 220 will be described with reference to Figures 7 and 11 to 16. The gap maintaining jig 220 has a base 221, multiple pin members 222, multiple cam members 223, and a drive unit 224.

The base 221 is formed in a long plate shape in the arrangement direction (X direction) of the multiple legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10. The width of the base 221 along the extension direction of the legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10 is wide enough to be accommodated between the gripping devices 210A and 210B, or between the gripping devices 210C and 210D (see FIG. 22). As shown in FIG. 7, the base 221 is composed of a lower plate portion 2211 and an upper plate portion 2212.

As shown in FIG. 11, the lower plate portion 2211 is provided with one guide groove 2211a and multiple cam member accommodating grooves 2211b. The guide groove 2211a is recessed into the upper surface of the lower plate portion 2211. The guide groove 2211a is disposed in the center of the width direction (Y direction) of the lower plate portion 2211 and extends linearly along the length direction (X direction) of the lower plate portion 2211.

The cam member accommodating grooves 2211b are circularly recessed into the upper surface of the lower plate portion 2211 and are arranged in a staggered pattern along the length of the lower plate portion 2211. The inner diameter and depth of the cam member accommodating grooves 2211b are greater than the width and depth of the guide grooves 2211a. The guide grooves 2211a run vertically through all of the cam member accommodating grooves 2211b. At the bottom of the cam member accommodating grooves 2211b, holes 2211c into which the rotating shafts 2231a of the cam members 223 described below are inserted are provided at eccentric positions.

The upper plate portion 2212 covers the guide groove 2211a and the multiple cam member accommodating grooves 2211b of the lower plate portion 2211. The upper plate portion 2212 is fixed to the lower plate portion 2211 by fixing members such as screws (not shown).

7, a plurality of pin members 222 are protruded from the upper plate portion 2212. The pin members 222 are provided in the same number as the cam member accommodating grooves 2211b provided in the lower plate portion 2211 of the base 221. The pin members 222 are arranged on the upper plate portion 2212 at a pitch that allows them to be inserted between the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) arranged in the coil end portion forming region 10B of the folded conductor wire group 10. In the spacing maintaining jig 220 of this embodiment, the plurality of pin members 222 are arranged in two rows along the length direction (X direction) of the base 221. The two rows of pin members 222 are arranged in a staggered pattern, similar to the cam member accommodating grooves 2211b. The pitch of the two rows of pin members 222 in the arrangement direction corresponds to the arrangement pitch of the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) in the coil end portion forming region 10B of the conductor wire group 10.

As shown in Figures 7 and 12, the pin member 222 has a shaft portion 2221 that protrudes perpendicularly from the upper plate portion 2212 of the base 221, and a stop portion 2222 provided at the tip of the shaft portion 2221.

The shaft portion 2221 constitutes the rotation axis of the pin member 222. The shaft portion 2221 penetrates the upper plate portion 2212 and is attached to a cam member 223 (described later) housed inside the base 221. The shaft portion 2221 extends along the stacking direction of the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) folded back in the straight portion forming region 10A. The protruding height of the shaft portion 2221 from the upper surface of the upper plate portion 2212 is approximately equal to the thickness of the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) in the stacking direction. The diameter of the shaft portion 2221 is approximately equal to the dimension S1 between the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) arranged in the width direction of the conductor wire group 10 shown in FIG. 16.

The stopper portion 2222 is formed in a horizontally long flat plate shape. The center portion of the stopper portion 2222 is attached to the tip of the shaft portion 2221, so that the stopper portion 2222 protrudes in opposite radial directions from the shaft portion 2221. As a result, the pin member 222 is formed in a T-shape when viewed from the side, as shown in FIG. 12.

As shown in FIG. 16, the width dimension S2 of the stopper 2222 is slightly smaller than the dimension S1 between the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) and is approximately equal to the diameter of the shaft 2221. The length dimension S3 of the stopper 2222 is approximately equal to the sum (S0 x 2 + S1) of twice the width dimension S0 of one leg 12 (straight portion 101) and the dimension S1 between adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101).

The cam member 223 is a member that transmits a driving force from the drive unit 224 described below to the pin member 222, thereby rotating the pin member 222 about the shaft portion 2221. As shown in Figures 12 to 14, the cam member 223 has a cam shaft portion 2231, a rotating shaft 2232, a cam arm portion 2233, and a cam pin 2234.

The cam shaft portion 2231 is a cylinder having an outer diameter larger than that of the shaft portion 2221 of the pin member 222. The shaft portion 2221 of the pin member 222 is coaxially attached to the upper surface of the cam shaft portion 2231. The rotating shaft 2232 protrudes downward from the center of the lower surface of the cam shaft portion 2231. The rotating shaft 2232 is arranged coaxially with the shaft portion 2221 of the pin member 222. The cam arm portion 2233 is a plate member protruding radially from the upper end portion of the cam shaft portion 2231. As shown in FIG. 13, the width of the cam arm portion 2233 is formed so that it is largest on the connection side with the cam shaft portion 2231 and gradually becomes smaller as it moves away from the cam shaft portion 2231. The cam pin 2234 protrudes downward from the lower surface of the tip of the cam arm portion 2233.

The cam members 223 are each housed in a cam member housing groove 2211b provided in the lower plate portion 2211 of the base 221. More specifically, the rotating shaft 2232 of the cam member 223 fits into a hole 2211c provided eccentrically in the cam member housing groove 2211b. As a result, as shown in FIG. 12, the entire cam member 223 is rotatably housed in the cam member housing groove 2211b. Note that in FIG. 11, only the two cam members 223 housed in the two cam member housing grooves 2211b are shown by virtual lines.

The driving unit 224 is a rod-shaped body that is long along the length of the base 221. The driving unit 224 is accommodated in the guide groove 2211a of the lower plate portion 2211 of the base 221 so as to be slidable along the length of the base 221. As shown in Figs. 14 and 15, the driving unit 224 is provided with a plurality of cam pin engagement holes 2241 that penetrate the driving unit 224. The cam pin engagement holes 2241 are elongated holes that are long in the width direction (Y direction) of the driving unit 224, and are arranged in the length direction (X direction) of the driving unit 224 with a number and pitch equal to the number and arrangement pitch of the cam member accommodation grooves 2211b. As shown in Figs. 7 and 14, one end 224a of the driving unit 224 protrudes outside the base 221 and is connected to a driving mechanism (not shown) for driving the interval maintaining jig 220.

As shown in Figures 14 and 15, in the cam member 223 in the cam member housing groove 2211b, the cam shaft portions 2231 are arranged in a staggered pattern on both sides of the drive portion 224 in the width direction, and the cam arms 2233 are arranged to cover the upper surface of the drive portion 224 from the cam shaft portions 2231. The cam pins 2234 provided on the cam arms 2233 are fitted into the corresponding cam pin engagement holes 2241 from the upper surface side of the drive portion 224.

When the drive unit 224 is operated by a drive mechanism (not shown) to move a predetermined distance in the length direction as shown in FIG. 15, the tips of the cam arms 2233 that engage with the drive unit 224 by the cam pins 2234 each move a predetermined distance in the same direction along the movement direction of the drive unit 224. This causes each cam member 223 to rotate 90° around the rotation shaft 2232. By each cam member 223 rotating 90°, the pin member 222 fixed to the cam member 223 also rotates 90°, and as shown in FIG. 16, the orientation of the stopper portion 2222 in the length direction changes by 90°.

The pin members 222 of the spacing maintaining jig 220 shown in Figures 7, 14, and 16 are arranged in an initial state. In the initial state, the stopper portions 2222 of each pin member 222 are arranged parallel to the extension direction of the leg portion 12 (straight portion 101) as shown by solid lines in Figure 16. As a result, all pin members 222 are arranged in an insertion position where they can be inserted between adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101). In the insertion position, there is no interference between the stopper portions 2222 and the leg portion 12 (straight portion 101).

On the other hand, in the initial state of the spacing maintaining jig 220, when each pin member 222 is rotated 90° by operating the drive unit 224, the stopper 2222 of each pin member 222 is positioned in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the leg 12 (straight portion 101), as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 16. As a result, all pin members 222 are positioned in a stop position where the stacked legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) on both sides of the shaft portion 2221 are sandwiched between the base 221 and the stopper 2222. Therefore, each pin member 222 is arranged so that it can be moved between the stopper position and the insertion position by rotating around the shaft portion 2221.

Next, a method for forming a conductor 100 from a conductor wire group 10 using the conductor forming device 200 will be described with reference to Figures 6 and 17 to 28.

First, as shown in FIG. 6, the conductor forming device 200 grips the twelve legs 12 of the conductor wire group 10 with four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D (gripping process). After that, the gripping devices 210A and 210B are rotated around the fold line J by the drive of a rotation mechanism (not shown), as shown in FIG. 17. This starts the folding process for the coil end portion forming region 10B in the conductor wire group 10 that is closest to the U-shaped portion 11.

At the beginning of the folding process, the conductor wire group 10 is folded back along the folding line J. Therefore, the straight portion forming region 10A of the conductor wire group 10 on one side being folded back and the straight portion forming region 10A of the conductor wire group 10 on the other side are folded back in a direction in which the legs 12 of the same conductor wires 1 overlap each other (first folding process).

As shown in FIG. 18, the primary folding process ends before the legs 12 of the conductor wires 1 constituting the folded conductor wire group 10 are completely folded back. Specifically, the gripping devices 210A and 210B rotate 150° from the state shown in FIG. 6 around the folding line J as an axis to fold back the conductor wire group 10. In FIG. 18 and subsequent figures, the four gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D are not shown except when describing the spacing jig 220.

After the first folding process is completed, the gripping devices 210A and 210B move parallel to the X1 direction as shown in FIG. 19 while maintaining the rotation angle at the end of the first folding process. The X1 direction is the direction along the width direction of the conductor 1 that constitutes the conductor wire group 10. The X1 direction is parallel to the folding line J.

By moving the gripping devices 210A and 210B in parallel, the legs 12 of the conductor wires 1 constituting the conductor wire group 10 in the coil end portion forming region 10B are inclined so that the inclination direction intersects in a mountain shape at the folding fulcrum. This starts the inclination process.

When the inclination process begins, the leg 12 of each conductor wire 1 forms a coil end portion 102 having two inclined portions 102a, 102a that cross diagonally relative to the vertex 102b, with the vertex 102b as the fulcrum for folding.

In the tilting process, the leg 12 tilts with the side edge E2 of the gripping device 210B and the side edge E1 of the gripping device 210C, which are arranged on either side of the coil end portion forming region 10B, as fulcrums. These fulcrums correspond to the boundary 103 between the coil end portion 102 and the straight portion 101.

After the oblique step is completed, as shown in FIG. 20, the gripping devices 210A and 210B further rotate about the fold line J as an axis so as to overlap the gripping devices 210C and 210D. The gripping devices 210A and 210B rotate 180° from the state shown in FIG. 6 around the fold line J as the center, and fold back the conductor wire group 10. As a result, the conductor wire group 10 is completely folded back, and the straight portion forming region 10A of the conductor wire group 10 on one side overlaps with the straight portion forming region 10A of the conductor wire group 10 on the other side (secondary fold back step).

When the secondary folding process is completed, the folding process for the first coil end portion forming region 10B of the conductor wire group 10 is completed. As a result, the overlapping straight portion forming regions 10A, 10A include an area in which two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) stacked in the thickness direction of the conductor wire group 10 are arranged.

After the folding process is completed, as shown in FIG. 21, one spacing jig 220A is inserted toward the overlapping straight portion forming areas 10A, 10A between the fixed side gripping devices 210C, 210D. At this time, the spacing jig 220A is in the initial state, and each pin member 222 is placed at the insertion position. Therefore, each pin member 222 is inserted between the adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) without interference between the stopper 2222 and the leg 12 (straight portion 101). The shaft portion 2221 of each pin member 222 is arranged along the stacking direction of the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101), and the stopper portion 2222 is arranged to protrude upward from the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101). In addition, the drive unit 240 is not shown in the spacing maintenance jig 220A shown in Figure 21.

After each pin member 222 is inserted between adjacent leg portions 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101), the drive unit 224 is operated to rotate each pin member 222 by 90° as shown in FIG. 22. This places each pin member 222 in a stop position, and as shown in FIG. 23, the two adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) are sandwiched between the stop portion 2222 and the base 221. The pin members 222 are arranged in a staggered pattern on the base 221, so that the stop portions 2222, 2222 of adjacent pin members 222, 222 in the longitudinal direction of the base 221 do not interfere with each other.

When the attachment of the spacing jig 220A is completed, the molding process for the first coil end portion forming region 10B is completed. After that, the gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D each release the grip of the leg portion 12 of the conductor wire 1. Furthermore, the gripping devices 210A and 210B return to the initial position shown in FIG. 6. Even if the gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D are released, the pin members 222 of the spacing jig 220A are inserted between the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) of the overlapping straight portion forming regions 10A, 10A. Therefore, the arrangement pitch of the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) is maintained without being disturbed by the shaft portion 2221 of each pin member 222.

Then, the conductor wire group 10 is transported a predetermined distance in the Y1 direction as shown in FIG. 24 by driving a transport mechanism (not shown) of the conductor shaping device 200. The Y1 direction is along the length direction of the conductors 1 constituting the conductor wire group 10. The Y1 direction is perpendicular to the folding line J. As a result, the conductor wire group 10 is transported to a position where the 12 legs 12 in the straight portion forming region 10A that were gripped by the gripping devices 210C, 210D in the previous process can be gripped by the gripping devices 210A, 210B that have returned to their initial positions (transport process).

After the conveying process, as shown in FIG. 25, the second coil end forming region 10B of the conductor wire group 10 gripped by the gripping devices 210A, 210B, 210C, and 210D is subjected to the same folding process and slanting process as described above. At this time, the spacing maintaining jig 220A is attached to the straight portion forming regions 10A, 10A that overlap due to the previous folding process, so the arrangement pitch of the legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) is not disturbed by being supported by the shaft portion 2221 of each pin member 222. Moreover, each pin member 222 is arranged at the stop position, and the two stacked legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) are sandwiched between the stop portion 2222 and the base 221. Therefore, the leg 12 (straight portion 101) does not float up, and there is no risk of the stacked state collapsing.

When the folding process of the second coil end portion forming region 10B is completed, the spacing maintaining jig 220A that was installed first is placed on the top side of the folded conductor wire group 10, as shown in FIG. 26. The spacing maintaining jig 220A is then returned to its initial state with each pin member 222 placed in the insertion position.

After the spacing jig 220A is returned to its initial position, as shown in FIG. 26, another spacing jig 220B is inserted into the conductor wire group 10 toward the overlapping straight portion forming areas 10A, 10A between the fixed side gripping devices 210C, 210D. At this time, the spacing jig 220B is in its initial state, and each pin member 222 is placed at the insertion position. Therefore, each pin member 222 is inserted between the adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101) without interference between the stopper 2222 and the leg 12 (straight portion 101). The shaft portion 2221 of each pin member 222 is arranged along the stacking direction of the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101), and the stopper portion 2222 is arranged to protrude upward from the two legs 12, 12 (straight portions 101, 101).

As a result, the two spacing maintaining jigs 220A, 220B are attached so as to overlap each other, sandwiching the straight portion forming regions 10A, 10A of the folded conductor wire group 10. At this time, the pin members 222 of each spacing maintaining jig 220A, 220B are all arranged in a staggered pattern, so that, as shown in FIG. 27, each pin member 222 of the spacing maintaining jig 220A attached first (schematically shown as white in FIG. 27) and each pin member of the spacing maintaining jig 220B attached later (schematically shown as filled in black in FIG. 27) are arranged to complement each other. Therefore, the pin members 222, 222 between the spacing maintaining jigs 220A, 220B do not interfere with each other.

After the spacing maintaining jig 220B is attached, the previously attached spacing maintaining jig 220A is removed as shown in FIG. 28. Thereafter, the spacing maintaining jig 220B positions each pin member 222 in a stop position, maintaining the arrangement pitch of adjacent legs 12, 12 (straight sections 101, 101) and preventing the stacked legs 12, 12 (straight sections 101, 101) from lifting up.

Then, in the same manner as above, the folding process and the oblique process for each coil end forming region 10B of the conductor wire group 10, and the process of alternately attaching the two spacing maintaining jigs 220A, 220B are repeated multiple times. In this way, the conductor 100 shown in FIG. 1 is formed. The spacing maintaining jigs 220A, 220B prevent the arrangement pitch of the straight portions 101 of the formed conductor 100 from being disturbed. Therefore, the straight portions 101 do not interfere with the jig used during forming, and when the straight portions 101 of the formed conductor 100 are inserted into the slots 34 of the stator core 31, the straight portions 101 do not interfere with the wall surfaces of the slots 34, etc., and there is no risk of deformation of the conductor wire 1 or damage to the insulating coating covering the surface of the conductor wire 1.

In addition, the stacked leg portions 12 (straight portions 101) are prevented from lifting up due to the folding back by the stopper portions 2222 of each pin member 222, so that each straight portion 101 in the molded conductor 100 is aligned while maintaining a predetermined arrangement pitch without losing its respective stacked state. Therefore, the conductor molding device 200 and conductor molding method of this embodiment make it possible to mold a high-quality conductor 100.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Conductor wire 10 Conductor wire group 100 Conductor 101 Straight portion 102 Coil end portion (oblique portion)
200 Conductor forming device 220, 220A, 220B Gap maintaining jig 221 Base 222 Pin member 2221 Shaft portion 2222 Stop portion

Claims (8)

A conductor forming device that forms a conductor having a plurality of linear portions arranged at intervals and a plurality of oblique portions disposed at both ends of the linear portions by folding back a conductor wire group consisting of a plurality of conductor wires in a thickness direction, the conductor having the linear portions doubly stacked,
a gap maintaining tool for maintaining the gap in an arrangement direction of the straight portions of the folded-back group of conductor wires,
The gap maintaining jig is a conductor forming device having a base extending along the arrangement direction of the straight sections, and a plurality of pin members protruding from the base and inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction to maintain the gap. The conductor forming device according to claim 1, wherein the pin member has a stopper portion that prevents the stacked straight sections from lifting up by sandwiching the straight sections between the pin member and the base. The conductor forming device according to claim 2, wherein the pin member is provided on the base so as to be positionable between a stop position where the stacked straight sections are sandwiched between the base and the stopper, and an insertion position where the pin member can be inserted between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction without interference between the stopper and the straight sections. the pin member has a shaft portion extending along a stacking direction of the straight portion,
The stop portion is provided so as to protrude radially from the shaft portion,
The conductor shaping device according to claim 3 , wherein the pin member is provided so as to be capable of changing its position between the stop position and the insertion position by rotating about the shaft portion. A conductor forming method for forming a conductor having a plurality of linear portions arranged at intervals and a plurality of oblique portions disposed at both ends of the linear portions by folding back a conductor wire group consisting of a plurality of conductor wires in a thickness direction, the conductor comprising the linear portions being double-layered, the method comprising:
A conductor shaping method in which, after folding back the group of conductor wires, the spacing is maintained by inserting multiple pin members protruding from a base extending along the arrangement direction of the straight sections between adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction. the pin member has a stopper portion that sandwiches the stacked linear portions between the pin member and the base,
The conductor shaping method according to claim 5 , further comprising the step of inserting the pin members between the adjacent straight sections in the arrangement direction, and then preventing the stacked straight sections from lifting up by the stoppers. the pin member is provided on the base so as to be positionally changeable between a stop position where the stacked straight portions are sandwiched between the base and the stop portion and an insertion position where the pin member can be inserted between the straight portions adjacent to each other in the arrangement direction without interference between the stop portion and the straight portions,
7. The conductor molding method according to claim 6, wherein when inserting the pin members between the straight sections adjacent to each other in the arrangement direction, the pin members are set to the insertion position, and after insertion, the pin members are set to the stop position, so that the stop portions prevent the stacked straight sections from lifting up. the pin member has a shaft portion extending along a stacking direction of the straight portion,
The stop portion is provided so as to protrude radially from the shaft portion,
The conductor shaping method according to claim 7 , wherein the position of the pin member is changed between the stop position and the insertion position by rotating the pin member about the shaft portion.

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