JPH0232097B2 - CHOJAKUBUTSUYOROODA - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a loader for long objects, specifically, for example, in the manufacturing process of a crankshaft, the unprocessed crankshaft is transported by a transport device (belt conveyor, etc.). The shaft may be transferred and placed on a mounting table (bevel, etc.) near a processing device such as a lathe, or conversely, the processed shaft on the mounting table may be returned to the transport device and placed there. The present invention relates to a loader for long objects used in such applications.

As mentioned above, in order to transport a long object between two positions: the transport device and the mounting table near the processing device, conventionally, a conveyor type loader that can be driven in the forward and reverse directions is placed between the two positions. Transfer the unprocessed workpiece on the device to the loader and transport it to the mounting table side, then transfer the processed workpiece on the mounting stand to the loader, and place the unprocessed workpiece on the empty mounting table. After that, the workpiece is transported to the transport device and placed on the transport device, which requires frequent reloading of the work on the loader and requires two
The cycle time for exchanging items is long, which is one of the factors that hinders the improvement of work efficiency.

Furthermore, there is the inconvenience that it is not possible to pass between the transfer device and the mounting table, and the overall arrangement space is required to be large.

Therefore, the present inventors provided a pair of arms that swing back and forth between the transport device and the mounting table so as to be able to move near and far from each other, and move the unprocessed workpiece on the transport device onto the mounting table or , developed a loader that sequentially and repeatedly transfers workpieces on a mounting table onto a transport device.

According to the above configuration, the loader can be installed in a narrow space, it is possible to pass through the side of the loader, and there is no need to transfer articles to the loader. There was still room for improvement in that the replacement cycle time was long.

As a result of further efforts, the inventors of the present invention were able to shorten the cycle time and improve work efficiency, thereby providing a loader for long objects with excellent functionality. This is what I am trying to do.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings, taking as an example a loader installed in a part of a crankshaft manufacturing line as an example of a long product.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, a long object loader 1 is installed between a conveyor 2 for conveying a long object A, an example of which is a crankshaft, and a mounting table 3 near a processing device. It is located in

This loader 1 for long objects is provided with a pair of rails 4, 4 on a base 5 along the article conveying direction of the conveyor 2, and a pair of support frames 6, 4, which are movable horizontally along the rails 4, 4. 6 is placed on the shelf,
The pair of support frames 6, 6 are configured to be movable toward and away from each other by a first drive device 8 provided in a sliding mechanism 7.

First and second arms 11 and 12 whose axes are oriented in the moving direction of the support frames 6 and 6 are supported by the support frames 6 and 6, respectively, with their axes parallel to each other. At the same time, the support frames 6, 6 are provided with a swing drive mechanism 9 that swings each pair of first and second arms 11, 11, 12, 12 in a contralateral manner, and the drive mechanism 9
A second drive device 10 is interlocked with the pair of arms 11, 11, 12, 12, and the elongated object A is connected to the opposing free end sides of each pair of arms 11, 11, 12, 12 as the support frames 6, 6 relatively approach. A gripping portion 13 for gripping is provided.

Specifically, the sliding mechanism 7 includes a first drive device 8
An air cylinder as an example is attached to the base 5, and a rack 14 is connected to the cylinder rod, and frames 15, 1 are installed on both sides of the rack 14.
A pinion 16 that engages with the rack 14 is attached to a support shaft 17 spanning the frames 15 and 15, and racks 18 and 19 that engage with the pinion 16 above and below it.
are connected with pins to each of the support frames 6, 6, and the member 2 for preventing the upper rack 18 from floating
0, 20 and the supporting member 2 of the lower rack 19
1 and 21 are attached across the frames 15 and 15, and a steady rest member 22 for the rack 14 is provided whose position can be adjusted freely by means of bolts 23. The pair of support frames 6, 6 simultaneously approach each other relatively,
Along with this, each pair of gripping parts 13, 13 come relatively close to each other in order to grip the long object A, and the cylinder 8
In order to release the grip on the elongated object A by the contraction operation, each pair of gripping portions 13, 13 are spaced apart from each other.

Next, the swing drive device 9 attaches a geared motor as an example of the second drive device 10 to one of the support frames 6, and directs its deceleration output shaft 24 in the direction of movement of the support frame. A shaft 25 of different diameters (such as a spline shaft, a serration shaft, or a type of serration shaft with a small number of teeth as shown in the figure) is installed across the support frames 6, 6.
A gear G 2, which is installed to be relatively rotatable and slidable relative to the frames 6, 6 and engages with the reduction drive gear G via an intermediate gear G ₁ , is fitted with the different diameter shaft ₂₅ . At the same time, a gear G ₃ having the same number of teeth as the gear G ₂ is fitted with a different diameter on the other end side of the different diameter shaft 25, and gears G ₄ and G ₅ mesh with these gears G ₂ and G ₃ . , the pair of first arms 11,1
1 is fixed to each of support shafts 26, 26 which are connected to each other.

Further, each of the second arms 12, 12 is supported by the different diameter shaft 25 via a different diameter fitting structure 27, 27, and the fitting structure 27, 27 is supported by each of the support frames 6, 6. The first and second arms 11, 11, 12, 12 of each pair are connected to each other so that only the relative rotation is possible, and as the second drive device 10 rotates the deceleration drive gear G forward and backward, each pair of the first and second arms 11, 11, 12, 12 becomes opposite to each other. It is designed to swing in the forward and reverse directions.

The different diameter fitting structure 27 is configured by two flanged cylinder bodies 2 that are fitted with different diameters to the different diameter shaft 25.
8, 28 are fitted into the boss 29 of the second arm 12 from both sides, and the cylinder bodies 28, 2
8 is bolted to the boss 29, and the boss 2
An annular groove a is formed in the support frame 9, and members 30, 30 having a crank-shaped cross section that fit into the groove a are attached to the support frame 6.

When the long object gripping part 13 reaches a predetermined position on the conveyor 2, the long object gripping part 13 is attached to a cylindrical block 13a, a part of which has been cut out along the upper surface of the conveyor, in a mortar shape. The first and second arms 1
1 and 12 are removably bolted to mounting members 31 that are connected to each other.

A fixed support structure 3 is provided on the upper part of the frames 15, 15 to restrain movement of the different diameter shaft 25 in the axial direction.
2 is provided.

This support structure 32 includes a cylindrical body 33 that fits into the shaft 25 of different diameters, which is bolted to the shaft 25, and a cylindrical body 33 that fits into the shaft 25 of different diameters.
Bearings 34, 34 are located on both sides of 3, and
The boss 35 supporting the bearings 34, 34 is attached to the frames 15, 15, and the bearing fixing member 3
6 and 36 are connected to the boss 35 by bolts.

Now, the center of the long object A conveyed by the conveyor 2 is located at the intersection point P and Q of the center trajectories of the gripping part 13 when the first and second arms 11 and 12 rotate around parallel axes. The lengths of the first and second arms 11 and 12 are set so that the center of the long object A on the mounting table 3 is located respectively, and
A first position
, and the center of the gripping portion of the other second arm 12 substantially coincides with the center of the elongated object on the mounting table 3.
In this state, when both arms 11 and 12 are reversely swung upward by the second drive device 10, the center of the gripping portion of the first arm 11 is located on the elongated object on the mounting table. gears G ₂ , G ₄ and G ₃ , at the center and so that the center of the gripping portion of the second arm 12 approximately coincides with the center of the long object on the conveyor, respectively.
The number of teeth is set to _G5 .

Further, a cam 37 is provided at the shaft end of one of the first arm support shafts 26, and limit switches S ₁ , S ₂ , S ₃ are driven by the cam 37.
is attached to a bracket 38 connected to the support frame 6, a switch S1 indicates that the first arm 11 is in the first position X, a switch _S3 indicates that the first arm ₁₁ is in the second position Y, and the intermediate The switches _S2 are adapted to detect that they are at position Z, respectively.

Moreover, one support frame 6 is attached to the base 5.
A switch _S4 detects a first state B in which each pair of first and second arms 11, 11, 12, 12 grips the elongated object A and a second state C in which they release the grip, using the movement of , _S5 is provided.

A stopper 39 is provided near the conveyor 2, which forcibly stops the driven conveyance of the long object A when the long object A reaches the point where it is clamped by the first arms 11, 11. Further, a switch _S6 is provided which detects the long object A whose conveyance has been stopped by the stopper 39 and stops the drive of the conveyor 2.

The stopper 39 is provided to be able to swing vertically between a closed position D for stopping a long object and an open position E for releasing the stop, and switches S ₇ and S are provided to detect the two positions D and E, respectively. ₈ are provided.

An example of the operation of the loader 1 for long objects having the above structure over time is shown as a time chart in FIG. 5, and the operation of the loader 1 will be explained below based on this time chart.

Note that the first and second arms 11, 11, 1
2 and 12 are both in the intermediate position Z of the standing posture, and
In the second state C of unclamping, the stopper 3
9 is in the closed position D, the conveyor 2 is conveying the unprocessed long object A, and the processed long object A is present on the mounting table 3. This will be described as an initial state. .

First, when the long object A being conveyed by the conveyor 2 is stopped by the stopper 39, the switch _S6 is activated at the same time or slightly in advance of this, and the conveyor is stopped accordingly. 2 stops, the stopper 39 is switched to the open position E, and the switch _S8 is activated.

Then, the second drive device 10 rotates normally, and the gripping parts 13, 13 of the first arms 11, 11 are placed on both ends of the elongated object A on the conveyor, and the gripping parts 13 of the second arms 12, 12 are placed on both ends of the long object A on the conveyor. , 13 swing oppositely on both sides of the long object A on the mounting table, and the first
When the arms 11, 11 reach the first position X, the switch _S1 is activated.

Along with this, the second drive device 10 stops, the first drive device 8 starts operating, the pair of support frames 6, 6 relatively approach each other, and the first arm gripping parts 13, 13 move toward each other on the conveyor. Further, the second arm gripping parts 13, 13 grip the elongated object on the mounting table.

At this time, even if the long object A is slightly misaligned with respect to the grip part 13, it can be effectively brought to the center by the action of the mortar-shaped recess 13b, and it can be reliably prevented from falling off during movement. .

When switch _S4 detects that long object A is being held,
When the first drive device 8 stops, the second drive device 10 operates in reverse, and the first and second arms 1
1, 11, 12, and 12 swing in the opposite direction to the above, and transfer the unprocessed long object A to the mounting table 3 and the processed long object A to the conveyor 2.

During this period, switch _S2 detects the arm intermediate position Z, which is electrically interlocked.

Due to the above, switch S ₃ is connected to the first arm 1.
When the second position Y of 1 and 11 is detected, the second position Y is detected.
When the drive device 10 stops, the first drive device 8 operates to move the pair of support frames 6, 6 apart from each other, and the first and second arms 11, 11, 1
The holding of the elongated object A by the gripping parts 13 . . 2 and 12 is released.

When the switch _S5 detects this second position C for releasing the clamp, the first drive device 8 stops, and
The second drive device 10 rotates normally again, and the first and second arms 11, 11, 12, 12 both swing counterclockwise toward the intermediate position Z.

When the switch _S2 detects the arm intermediate position Z, it stops the first drive device 8 and drives the conveyor 2 again, and
The stopper 39 is switched to the closed position D after a delay of a set time (set by a timer, etc.) sufficient for the processed long object A to pass through the stopper 39, or after the passage is confirmed by a limit switch, etc. , this condition is detected by switch _S7 .

This completes the cycle of transferring two articles to different locations.

In addition, by providing a switch _S4 that detects the relative approach position of the pair of support frames 6, 6, that is, the first state B of holding a long object, so that the position can be changed and fixed in the direction of movement of the support frames, the length can be adjusted. It is possible to hold long objects A with different sizes, or the gripping portion 13...
A similar function can be obtained by replacing the stopper 39 with one of a different length. At least in the latter case, the position of the stopper 39 must be changed to the upper side in the conveyor direction, or It is necessary to change only the gripping parts 13, 13 to ones having different lengths.

FIG. 6 shows a modification of the loader 1. In this device, struts 40, 40 constituting the base 5 are formed to be expandable and retractable, and drive devices 41, 41 are provided for expanding and contracting the struts 40, 40, and the first and second arms 11 , 11, 12, 12 toward the intermediate position Z, the height of the loader 1 can be substantially reduced, making it possible to reduce the height of the loader 1. It is preferable for installation in places such as

As explained above, the loader for long objects according to the present invention includes a pair of support frames that are movable near and far from each other by the first drive device, and different diameter shafts that are driven by the second drive device. The first and second support frames are constructed such that they can rotate and slide relative to the pair of support frames, and are swung oppositely around axes that are parallel to each other in the movement direction of the support frames as the different diameter shafts rotate. The second arm is supported by each of the pair of support frames, and a grip portion is provided on the free end side of each pair of first and second arms for clamping a long object as the support frames relatively approach. It is characterized by having the following.

That is, one drive device (second) causes each pair of arms to swing simultaneously and in opposite directions, while another drive device (first
) allows the two sets of arms to be switched to the clamping and clamping release states at the same time, thereby making it possible to move articles in two different positions at the same time. While taking advantage of the advantages of the previously developed loader with a pair of arms, it was now possible to exchange items in half the cycle time compared to the previous model, and this resulted in a significant improvement in work efficiency. .

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of a loader for long objects according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a schematic front view, FIG. 2 is a side view of the same,
3 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the main part, FIG. 4 is a side view of the main part, FIG. 5 is a time chart, and FIG. 6 is a schematic front view of another embodiment. 6... Support frame, 8... First drive device, 10...
2nd drive device, 11...first arm, 12...second arm, 13...gripping part, 25...different diameter shaft, A...long object.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1 A pair of support frames are provided so as to be movable near and far from each other by a first drive device, and shafts of different diameters driven by a second drive device are provided with respect to the pair of support frames. The pair of first and second arms are constructed such that they can rotate and slide relative to each other, and swing oppositely around mutually parallel axes in the direction of movement of the support frame as the different diameter shafts rotate. It is characterized by being supported by each support frame and provided with a grip part on the free end side of each pair of first and second arms for gripping a long object as the support frame approaches relative to each other. A loader for long objects. 2. The long object loader according to claim 1, further comprising a third drive device for raising and lowering the base relative to the pair of support arms.