GB2141687A

GB2141687A - Apparatus for taping wire harness

Info

Publication number: GB2141687A
Application number: GB08414227A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michio Fukuda; Shiro Kitamura; Sinkichi Miwa; Noaki Kuroda
Original assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd
Current assignee: Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd
Priority date: 1983-06-02
Filing date: 1984-06-04
Publication date: 1985-01-03
Also published as: GB8414227D0; FR2547103B1; JPS59224013A; FR2547103A1; GB2141687B

Abstract

The apparatus has a table assembly (3, 5) movable longitudinally and transversely within a horizontal plane, a taping head (6) suspended from the table assembly, swivel and lifting mechanisms (13, 14) for effecting a swivel motion and vertical movement of the taping head, and a taping mechanism (12) suspended from the lower end of the lifting mechanism and adapted to effect a taping on the wire bundles of the wire harness. An automatic controller (44) is provided for controlling the operation of the table assembly, swivel mechanism, lifting mechanism and the taping mechanism. In accordance with a previously given program, thereby to make the taping mechanism tape the wire bundles (17) of the harness. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Taping apparatus for wire harness BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a taping apparatus for a wire harness which is an assembly of electric wires for use in, for example, automotive electric wiring. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a taping apparatus which can automatically wind a tape around a wire harness which has a main line and a bundle of branch wires branching from the main line.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART Hitherto, various taping apparatus have been proposed for winding a tape around an elongated member such as the wire bundle of a wire harness. These known taping apparatus, however, are intended for tape winding only on a simple straight member having no branch. Namely, none of these known taping apparatus could perform a continuous tape winding around a wire harness having bundles of branch wires. The taping on a wire harness with these known taping apparatus, therefore, has to be conducted in a discontinuous manner by moving the wire harness intermittently relatively to the taping apparatus so as to bring the successive portions to be taped, e.g. branch wires and main wire between adjacent branch wires, to the tape winding position.Consequently, the taping on the whole part of the wire harness inconveniently requires a complicated process including a frequent change of position of the wire harness which is quite undesirable from the current demand for mass-production of wire harnesses.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a taping apparatus which can perform an automatic and continuous taping on a wire harness having a number of bundles of branch wires, thereby improving the production efficiency.

To this end, according to the invention, there is provided a taping apparatus for taping a wire harness, comprising: table means movable longitudinally and transversely within a horizontal plane; a taping head suspended from the table means; swivel and lifting means for effecting a swivel motion and vertical movement of the taping head; a taping means suspended from the lower end of the lifting means and adapted to effect a taping on the wire bundles of the wire harness; a drawing plate disposed under the taping means and adapted to support the bundles of wire harness such that the bundles are lifted above the surface of the drawing plate; and an automatic controller adapted to control the operation of the table means, swivel means, lifting means and the taping means, in accordance with a previously given program; whereby the bundles of wire harness above the drawing plate is automatically taped hv the taping means.

Using this taping apparatus, it is possible to effect an automatic and continuous taping on the bundle of main wires and on each of bundles of branch wires of a wire harness, so that the efficiency of production of the taped wire harness is increased.

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become clear from the following description of the preferred embodiment when the same is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a front elevational view of the whole part of a wire harness taping apparatus in accordance with invention; Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the wire harness taping apparatus as shown in Fig. 1; Figure 3 is a front elevational view of a taping mechanism incorporated in the taping apparatus shown in Fig. 1; Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the taping mechanism as shown in Fig. 3; Figure 5 is a plan view of a wire harness developed on a plane of a drawing plate; and Figures 6 and 7 are illustrations showing the taping operation performed by the taping apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODI MENT Referring first to Figs. 1 to 4 showing an embodiment of the taping apparatus in accordance with the invention, the taping apparatus has a pair of transverse rails 2A, 2B mounted on a column constituted by legs 1.

A traversing table 3 is carried by the transverse rails 2A, 2B to run along the latter.

A pair of feed rails 4A and 4B are fixed to the lower end of the traverse table 3. A feed table 5 is carried by the feed rails 4A, 4B so as to run along these rails 4A, 4B. A taping head 6 is suspended from the feed table 5. Thus, the taping head 6 is movable in the feed direction and transverse direction within a horizontal plane by the movements of the feeding table 5 and the traversing table 3.

More specifically, the trasversing table 3 is carried by the transverse rails "A, 2B through wheels 7, and runs along the rails 2A, 2B as indicated by arrows A under a highly precise position control performed by a timing belt 8 which is wound round a driving wheel 9.

Namely, the traversing table 3 is connected to a portion of the timing belt 8 which in turn is driven by a driving motor 40 carried by one end (left end as viewed in Fig. 1) of the transverse rail 2B, so that the traversing table 3 moves to the left and right as viewed in Fig.

1 (see arrows A) when the driving motor 40 operates in one and the other direction. The feed rails 4A, 4B fixed to the lower end of the traversing table 3 have a substantial length and extend in the direction normal to the transverse rails 2A, 2B. The feed table 5 is carried by the feed rails 4A, 4B through wheels so as to run along these rails under a precise position control as is the case of the traversing table 3. Namely, as shown in Fig.

2, the feed table 5 is connected to a portion of a timing belt 10 which is adapted to be driven by a driving motor 11, so that the feed table 5 moves to the left and right as viewed in Fig. 2 (see arrows B) when the driving motor 11 operates in one and the other direction.

The taping head 6 suspended from the feed table 5 is provided with a taping mechanism 1 2 adapted to wind a tape on the bundle 1 7 of electric wires of a wire harness which is laid on a later-mentioned drawing plate 1 5.

The taping head 6 is further provided with a lifting mechanism 14 for moving the taping mechanism up and down, and a swivel mechanism 1 3 adapted to change the orientation of the taping mechanism 1 2.

More specifically, the lifting mechanism 14 is constituted by a suitable means such as a vertically extendable and retractable rod driven by a pneumatic cylinder. The lifting mechanism 14, therefore, permits an adjustment of the vertical distance between the taping mechanism 1 2 and the drawing plate 1 5. On the other hand, the swivel mechanism 1 3 incorporates a gear by means of which the taping mechanism 1 2 is rotated around the vertical axis 6' of the taping head 6, thereby changing the orientation of the taping mechanism 1 2. The taping mechanism 12 is suspended from the lower end of the taping head 6 through the intermediary of the lifting mechanism 14.

As will be seen from Figs. 3 and 4, the taping mechanism 1 2 has three rolls 41, 42, 43, a belt 22 going round these rolls 41, 42, 43 and a turning member 1 8 engaging wih the belt 22 and adapted to be turned by the belt 22. The turning member 1 8 has a downward opening 1 9 defining a cavity for receiving the bundle 1 7 of the wires to be taped.

The turning member 1 8 carries a tape roll 20 fixed thereto. In operation, the end 20a of a tape extracted from the tape roll 20 is wound round the bundle 1 7 of the wires, and then the roll 41 serving as a driving roll is rotated to drive the belt 22 in one direction so that the turning member 1 8 makes a turning motion to wind the tape on the bundle of electric wires. This taping mechanism employing the turning member for effecting the taping is known from, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 38671 published on November 22, 1979.

In the arrangement shown in Figs. 3 and 4, an insertion guide for facilitating the insertion of the bundle 1 7 of the wires, as well as wire collecting levers 23, is provided on the lower end of the taping mechanism 1 2. The wire collecting levers 23 are adapted to be swung as indicated by arrows D (see Fig. 3) so as to contact and press upwardly the lower side of the bundle 1 7 of wires received by the cavity of the turning member 18, so as to compact the bundle to realize a tight taping of the wire bundle 17.

A drawing plate 1 5 is disposed within the column 1 beneath the taping head 6 at a suitable level. Wire holders 1 6 each having a bifurcated upper end are disposed on the drawing plate 1 5 at a suitable pitch. As shown in Fig. 5, the wire bundle 1 7 is laid on these holders 1 6 such that the branch bundles 1781 to 17B5, which project in various angles and directions from the bundle 1 7A of main wire, are developed straight in a horizontal plane.Thus, the wire bundle 1 7 is held by the holders 1 6 leaving, between the bundle 1 7 and the upper surface of the draw ing plate 15, a clearance large enough to permit the taping operation, and is tightened suitably to prevent excessive slack between adjacent holders 16. In the attached Figure, a reference numeral 26 designates a connector housing.

In the taping apparatus of the invention having the described construction, the taping head 6 is movable three dimensionally in the directions of X, Y and Z axes, i.e. in the longitudinal and transverse directions in a horizontal plane and also vertically, by the operation of the traversing table 3, feed table 5 and the lifting mechanism 14. At the same time, the orientation of the taping mechanism 1 2 is variable around the axis 6' of the taping head. Consequently, the taping mechanism 1 2 can make a three-dimensional movement with respect to the drawing plate 1 5.

The taping apparatus further has an auto matic controller which performs an automatic control of the three-dimensional movement and the taping operation of the taping mecha nism 1 2 in accordance with a program which is inputted beforehand. This automatic con troller 44 includes a circuit (denoted by E in Fig. 1) for controlling the driving motor for driving the feed table 5, a circuit (F) for controlling the driving motor 40 of the traversing table 3, a circuit (G) for controlling a motor (not shown) for rotating the taping head 6, a circuit (H) for controlling the driving motor of the driving roll 41 in the taping mechanism 1 2, a circuit (J) for controlling solenoid valves which in turn control the oper ation of the pneumatic cylinder of the lifting mechanism 14, and other necessary circuits.

The operation of the described embodiment of the taping apparatus is as follows. Refer ring to Figs. 5 to 7, the taping head 6 is moved three dimensionally along the bundle 1 7A of main wires and bundles 1 7B1 to 1 7B5 of branch wires of the wire harness laid on the drawing plate 1 5. During this movement, the taping mechanism 1 2 catches each bundle to perform the taping on the bundle.

For instance, it is assumed here that the taping head 6 is moved in the direction of arrow K in Fig. 6 to wind the tape around the branch wire bundle 17B2. As the taping head 6 approaches the point 17'of intersection between the bundle 1 7A of main wires and the branch wire bundle 17B2, the taping head 6 stops the taping and then it jumps over the branch wire bundle 1 7B2 to clear the latter by the operation of the lifting mechanism 14.

The taping mechanism 1 2 then catches the adjacent portion of the next section of the main wire bundle 1 7A and is moved in the direction of the arrow L to continue the taping operation. Thus, the end portions of the tape bundles 1 7A and 1 7B2 near the point 17' of intersection is left untaped, although a linear tape section 25 is stretched over these end portions between the branch wire bundle 17B2 and the main wire bundle 17A. After the completion of the taping by the taping apparatus, therefore, a manual tape winding is conducted to completely cover the untaped end portions of these bundles near the point of intersection.

A program is determined beforehand in accordance with the configuration of the wire harness to be taped, to determine the sequence of operation and the factors of each operation such as direction of movement of the taping head 6, moving speed of the taping head 6, lifting of the taping mechanism 12, swivel angle, jumping and so forth.

Consequently, the taping is conducted sequentially and automatically in accordance with the program.

For effecting the taping over the entire part of the wire harness having a multiplicity of branch wire bundles as shown Fig. 5, the taping apparatus of the invention operates in a manner explained hereinunder. Referring to Fig. 7, the taping head 6 moves first in the direction of an arrow M to wind the tape on the main wire bundle 1 7 up to a position near the point 17' of intersection. The taping head reaching this position makes a jump as explained before, and catches the portion of the branch wire bundle 1 7B2 near the point 17' of intersection. The taping head 6 then makes a temporary winding 27 on this portion of the branch wire bundle 1 7B2 by winding the tape by two or three turns around this portion.

Subsequently, while suspending the taping operation, the taping head 6 moves to the distal end of the branch wire bundle 1 7B2 and after making a turn at the distal end, moves backwardly towards the point 17' of intersection while effecting the taping in such a manner as to involve the linear tape portion 28 which was extended during the movement of the taping head towards the distal end.

Then, the taping head 6 makes a jump over the point 17' of intersection to catch the next section of the main wire bundle 17A. The taping head 6 then moves as indicated by an arrow P to perform the taping on this section of the main wire bundle 17A. This operation is repeated each time the taping head 6 reaches a point 17' of intersection so that all parts of the wire harness having the main wire harness having the main wire bundle 1 7A and branch wire bundles 1 781 to 17B5, except the portions around the points 17' of intersection, are covered by the tape automatically.

This series of automatic taping operations is initiated by manually extracting the tape from the tape roll 20 and manually winding the starting end 20a of the tape around the portion of the wire harness at which the winding is to be started. The taping can be made in various forms such as half-lap taping, no lap taping and so forth, by suitably adjusting the speed of movement of the taping head 6.

Preferably, the taping head 6 of the taping apparatus of the invention is provided with a tilting mechanism for tilting the taping head 6 as indicated by broken line in Fig. 2. Such a tilting mechanism will further improve the performance of the taping head 6. It is also preferred to arrange the drawing plate 1 5 tiltably in order to facilitate the laying of the wire harness 1 7.

As will be understood from the foregoing description, the invention provides a taping apparatus which can perform an automatic taping on the wire bundles of a wire harness, thereby remarkably improving the efficiency of production of insulated wire harnesses.

Claims

1. A taping apparatus for taping a wire harness, comprising: table means movable longitudinally and transversely within a horizontal plane; a taping head suspended from said table means; swivel and lifting means for effecting a swivel motion and vertical movement of said taping head; a taping means suspended from the lower end of said lifting means and adapted to effect a taping on the wire bundles of said wire harness; a drawing plate disposed under said taping means adapted to support said bundles of wire harness such that the bundles are lifted above the surface of said drawing plate; and an automatic controller adapted to control the operation of said table means, swivel means, lifting means and said taping means, in accordance with a previously given program; whereby said bundles of wire harness above said drawing plate is automatically taped by said taping means.

2. A taping apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the table means includes a traversing table mounted for movement along rails and a feed table mounted for movement along rails positioned normal to said traversing table rails.

3. A taping apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the traversing table and feed table are each connected to a portion of a respective timing belt which is driven in either direction by a driving motor.

4. A tapering apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the lifting means includes an extendable and retractable, fluid operated, piston and cylinder arrangement which adjusts the distance between the taping means and said drawing plate.

5. A tapering apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the swivel means includes a gear which rotates the taping means around the vertical axis of the taping head, thereby changing the orientation of the taping means.

6. A tapering apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the taping means comprises three rollers, a belt passing around said rollers and a member engaging with, and turned by said belt, the turning member having a downwardly directed opening defining a cavity for receiving the wire bundle to be taped and a tape rail mounted thereon.

7. A taping apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the lower end of the taping means is provided with a wire bundle insertion guide and wire collecting levers which, in use, engage and compact the wire bundle to effect a tight taping thereof.

8. A taping apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the drawing plate is provided with wire holders each having a bifurcated upper end which, in use, support the wire bundle above the upper surface of the plate to provide sufficient clearance to effect the taping operation.

9. A tapering apparatus as claimed in any of claims 3 to 8, in their appendancy to claim 2, wherein the controller includes a circuit controlling the feed table drive motor, a circuit controlling the traversing drive motor, a circuit for controlling a motor for rotating the taping head, a circuit for controlling a driving motor of the taping means and a circuit for operating solenoid valves which control the lifting means.

10. A taping apparatus for taping a wire harness substantially as described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.