EP2684473A1

EP2684473A1 - Lower washer supply device of clothes hook and eye attaching apparatus

Info

Publication number: EP2684473A1
Application number: EP12755071.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Kiyotaka ITADANI; Fukuo OISHI
Original assignee: Morito Co Ltd
Current assignee: Morito Co Ltd
Priority date: 2011-03-08
Filing date: 2012-03-07
Publication date: 2014-01-15
Also published as: EP2684473A4; KR20140053852A; CN103415224A; WO2012121271A1; CN103415224B; JP2012184532A

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a device for continuously conveying lower washers adjacent to each other to a driving position. [Solution] The present invention is a lower washer supply device of a clothes hook and eye attaching apparatus. A conveyance path (6) is configured to dispose thereon a plurality of lower washers (12) adjacent to each other and advance the lower washers (12) one by one on the conveyance path. The conveyance path (6) is divided into a front side conveyance path (62) and a back side conveyance path (63), and the front side conveyance path (62) is vertically movable with respect to the back side conveyance path (63). Immediately before a swaging step, two lower washers (12) located at the boundary between the front and back side conveyance paths are engaged with vertically movable pins (81, 82), and thereby the positions thereof are fixed.

Description

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an attaching apparatus for attaching, to an opening portion of clothes, a female or male hook-and-eye fastener for closing the opening portion, and particularly to a device for supplying a bottom washer of the hook-and-eye fastener.

Background Art

A female and male hook-and-eye fasteners are formed by a female element and a male element, respectively, being attached to a bottom washer via fabric. FIGS. 1 and 2, which accompany the present specification, show a male hook-and-eye fastener 1 and a female hook-and-eye fastener 1A, respectively. A male element 11 and a bottom washer 12 of the male hook-and-eye fastener 1 are clamped by a leg portion 14 of the male element, and a female element 11A and a bottom washer 12A of the female hook-and-eye fastener 1A are clamped by a leg portion 14A of the female element.
Known examples of an attaching apparatus for attaching female and male hook-and-eye fasteners to an opening portion of clothes include the technologies according to JP 7-54254U and JP 7-90708A . Also known is the technology according to JP 2010-90510A for increasing the efficiency of the operation for loading bottom washers into a holder of a driving machine.

Summary of the Invention

Problem to be Solved by the Invention

As described in the above related technologies, the bottom washer and the female element or male element are separately supplied from a first holder having a cylindrical shape and a second holder having a dished shape, respectively, and are pressed onto fabric at the central front portion of the attaching apparatus so as to be coupled firmly. The bottom washer is dispensed one at a time from the first holder, and is conveyed by a washer pushing rod to the driving position.
In this method, the washer pushing rod reciprocates between the dispensing position in the holder and the driving position. This reciprocating movement is time-consuming and also uneconomical, and is likely to cause inaccurate positioning.
It is an object of the present invention to eliminate the use of a method that involves dispensing bottom washers one at a time from the holder, and provide a device that continuously conveys the bottom washers to the driving position.

Means for Solving Problem

According to the present invention, there is provided a bottom washer supply device of a clothing hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus, including: a male or a female element holder for housing either a male element or a female element; a conveyance chute that causes either the male element or the female element to be conveyed to a work table where driving takes place; a bottom washer holder for housing a bottom washer; a conveyance path that causes the bottom washer to be conveyed to the work table; and a hammer for clamping either the male element or the female element with the bottom washer, wherein the conveyance path is configured such that a plurality of the bottom washers are disposed adjacent to one another on the conveyance path, and the bottom washers are moved forward by an amount corresponding to a single bottom washer on the conveyance path, the conveyance path is divided into a front conveyance path and a rear conveyance path, the front conveyance path being vertically movable relative to the rear conveyance path, and, immediately before the clamping is performed, two bottom washers located in a boundary between the conveyance paths are fixed in position by vertically movable pins (claim 1).
When the bottom washers are for use in a male hook-and-eye fastener, the pins are fixed in position by being inserted into central holes of the bottom washers (claim 2).
When the bottom washers are for use in a female hook-and-eye fastener, the pins are fixed in position by being inserted into shoulder corner space portions of the bottom washers (claim 3).
Preferably, the front conveyance path is integrated with the work table so as to vertically move together (claim 4).

Effects of the Invention

According to the present invention, a plurality of bottom washers adjacent to one another are sequentially fed to the conveyance path, and it is thus no longer necessary to use a pushing rod having a long stroke. This eliminates wasted movement and is economical. Furthermore, immediately before clamping is performed, two bottom washers located in a boundary between the conveyance paths are fixed in position by vertically movable pins, thus allowing the clamping operation to be performed accurately.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of Drawings

[FIGS. 11 FIGS. 1 are perspective views of a male hook-and-eye fastener, with
FIG. 1(a) showing a state before attachment and FIG. 1(b) showing a state after attachment.
[FIGS. 2] FIGS. 2 are perspective views of a female hook-and-eye fastener, with FIG. 2(a) showing a state before attachment and FIG. 2(b) showing a state after attachment.
[FIG. 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of a male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 4] FIG. 4 is a plan view of the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 5] FIG. 5 is a left side view of the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 6] FIG. 6 is a plan view of a bottom washer conveyance path of the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIGS. 7] FIGS. 7(a) to 7(c) are side views illustrating stages of a bottom washer positioning mechanism attached to the bottom washer conveyance path of the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which pilot pins are fixed in position by being inserted into holes of the bottom washers of the male hook-and-eye fasteners.
[FIG. 9] FIG. 9 is a front view of a female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 10] FIG. 10 is a plan view of the female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 11] FIG. 11 is a left side view of the female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 12] FIG. 12 is a plan view of a bottom washer conveyance path of the female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIGS. 13] FIGS. 13(a) to 13(c) are side views illustrating stages of a bottom washer positioning mechanism attached to the bottom washer conveyance path of the female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus.
[FIG. 14] FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a state in which pilot pins are fixed in position by being inserted into shoulder corner spaces of the bottom washers of the female hook-and-eye fasteners.

Embodiment 1

In FIGS. 3 to 8, which show a male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus, a male element 11 (see FIGS. 1) housed in a male element holder 2 is conveyed through a male element conveyance chute 3 to a work table 4 where driving takes place. This mechanism of the present embodiment is the same as those of the related technologies, and the details of the mechanism are described, for example, in JP 7-54254U .
Meanwhile, bottom washers 12 (see FIGS. 1) housed in a bottom washer holder 5 are dispensed one at a time from the lowermost part, and are placed onto a conveyance path 6 on the upper face of the apparatus. The bottom washer holder 5 is also the same as those used in the related technologies, and its details are described, for example, in JP 2010-90510A .
As shown in the plan views of FIGS. 4 and 6, the bottom washer conveyance path 6 has a shallow groove 61 formed in the longitudinal direction. The bottom washers 12 are pushed out one at a time from the lowermost part of the bottom washer holder 5 by a drive device to the driving position of the work table 4 such that fifteen bottom washers are aligned. The drive device is, for example, an air cylinder 65, which pushes the rearmost bottom washer 12₁₅ forward by a width corresponding to that of a single bottom washer 12.
The conveyance path 6 is divided at a position between the seventh and eighth bottom washers 12₇ and 12₈, counting from the front end side of the bottom washers. A front end conveyance path 62 and the work table 4 are integrated together so as to be vertically movable relative to a rear end conveyance path 63. The front end conveyance path 62 and the work table 4 are moved down by a driving pressure during the driving of the male hook-and-eye fastener, and are moved back to the original height by a bottom spring 7 when that pressure is released.
FIGS. 7 show a bottom washer positioning mechanism attached to the conveyance path 6 for the bottom washer 12 of the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus, showing side views taken at a position between the seventh and eighth bottom washers 12₇ and 12₈ from the front end side of the bottom washers. The positioning of the bottom washers is performed through the advancement and retraction of pilot pins 81 and 82 attached to the bottom face of the conveyance path.
FIG. 7(a) shows the initial state. The conveyance path 6 is horizontal, and the bottom washers 12 move forward without being obstructed. When the leading bottom washer 12₁ is located at the center of the work table 4, the male element 11 is in the driving position, and fabric F is set at a predetermined position (i.e., when the preparation is completed), the operator turns on a foot switch (not shown). Then, the pilot pins 81 and 82 are moved up to the seventh and eighth bottom washers by being pushed up by drive devices (e.g., air cylinders 83 and 84) so as to be inserted into central holes 13 (see FIGS. 1) of the bottom washers 12 as shown in FIGS. 7(b) and 8, and thereby the positions of the bottom washers 12 are temporarily fixed.
In this state, a hammer 9 located above the work table 4 is moved down so as to clamp the male element 11 and the bottom washer 12 through the application of pressure. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7(c), the front end conveyance path 62 and the work table 4 are moved down relative to the rear end conveyance path 63 in order to buffer the pressure applied by the hammer 9. Since each of the bottom washers 12 remain fixed in position, there will be no positional displacement.
When the clamping operation ends, the front end conveyance path 62 and the work table 4 are moved back to the original position by the spring 7. The front end conveyance path 62 is provided with a stopper 64 at its tail end. The stopper 64 engages with the rear end conveyance path 63, and thus the front and rear conveyance paths 62 and 63 are retained in the horizontal position.
The front and rear conveyance paths 62 and 63 are brought into the horizontal state, and the pilot pins 81 and 82 are moved down by being pulled down by the air cylinders 83 and 84, resulting in the initial state shown in FIG. 7(a). Thereafter, this operation is repeated.

Embodiment 2

The female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus is shown in FIGS. 9 to 14. A female element 11A housed in a female element holder 2A is conveyed through a female element conveyance chute 3A to a work table 4A where driving takes place, and is clamped on the work table 4A. This is performed in substantially the same manner as with the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus. Thus, the same parts as those of Embodiment 1 are denoted by the corresponding reference numerals with a suffix "A", and the detailed description thereof has been omitted.
The female hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus is different from the male hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus in that, as shown in FIGS. 2, the bottom washer 12A of the female hook-and-eye fastener 1A is O-ring shaped and pilot pins 81A and 82A cannot be inserted through the center of the bottom washer. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 14, the pilot pins are vertically moved in small spaces 15 located between shoulder corner portions of the bottom washers in order to perform the positioning of the bottom washers.
Additionally, in this embodiment, the location where the conveyance path is divided is between the sixth and seventh bottom washers 12A₆ and 12A₇, counting from the front end side of the bottom washers. In this way, the location of the division and the number of bottom washers to be aligned are not absolute, and may rather be selected as appropriate depending on the size of the machinery.

Citation List

Patent Documents

Patent Document 1: JP 7-54254U
Patent Document 2: JP 7-90708A
Patent Document 3: JP 2010-90510A

Reference Signs List

1: Male hook-and-eye fastener
11 Male element
12 Bottom washer
13 Central hole
14 Leg portion
1A: Female hook-and-eye fastener
11A Female element
12A Bottom washer
14A Leg portion
15 Shoulder corner space
2: Male element holder
2A: Female element holder
3: Male element conveyance chute
3A: Female element conveyance chute
4, 4A: Work table
5, 5A: Bottom washer holder
6, 6A: Bottom washer conveyance path
61, 61A Groove
62, 62A Front end conveyance path
63, 63A Rear end conveyance path
64, 64A Stopper
7, 7A: Bottom spring
81, 82, 81A, 82A Pilot pin
83, 84, 83A, 84A Air cylinder
9, 9A: Hammer
F: Fabric

Claims

A bottom washer supply device of a clothing hook-and-eye fastener attaching apparatus, comprising:
a male element holder (3) or a female element holder (3A) for housing either a male element (1) or a female element (1A);

a conveyance chute (3, 3A) that causes either the male element or the female element to be conveyed to a work table (4, 4A) where driving takes place;

a bottom washer holder (5, 5A) for housing a bottom washer (12, 12A);

a conveyance path (6, 6A) that causes the bottom washer (12, 12A) to be conveyed to the work table (4, 4A); and

a hammer (9, 9A) for clamping either the male element or the female element (1, 1A) with the bottom washer (12, 12A),

wherein the conveyance path (6, 6A) is configured such that a plurality of the bottom washers (12, 12A) are disposed adjacent to one another on the conveyance path, and the bottom washers (12, 12A) are moved forward by an amount corresponding to a single bottom washer on the conveyance path,

the conveyance path (6, 6A) is divided into a front conveyance path (62, 62A) and a rear conveyance path (63, 63A), the front conveyance path (62, 62A) being vertically movable relative to the rear conveyance path (63, 63A), and,

immediately before the clamping is performed, two bottom washers (12, 12A) located in a boundary between the front and rear conveyance paths are fixed in position by being engaged with vertically movable pins (81, 82).
The device according to claim 1,
wherein the bottom washers (12) are for use in a male hook-and-eye fastener, and the pins (81, 82) are fixed in position by being inserted into central holes (13) of the bottom washers.
The device according to claim 1,
wherein the bottom washers (12A) are for use in a female hook-and-eye fastener, and the pins (81, 82) are fixed in position by being inserted into shoulder corner space portions (15) of the bottom washers.
The device according to claim 1,
wherein the front conveyance path (62, 62A) is integrated with the work table (4, 4A) so as to vertically move together.