GB2285432A

GB2285432A - Gripper and conveyor arrangement

Info

Publication number: GB2285432A
Application number: GB9426368A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Peter Schauss; Paul-Reiner Weissenberg
Original assignee: DE STA CO Metallerzeugnisse GmbH; Ford Werke GmbH
Current assignee: Ford Werke GmbH; DESTACO Europe GmbH
Priority date: 1993-12-29
Filing date: 1994-12-29
Publication date: 1995-07-12
Also published as: DE4344877C1; FR2714319A1; GB9426368D0

Abstract

The invention relates to a gripping and transporting apparatus, particularly for worktables of forming and punching presses, comprising a support (2) which is arranged in a manner which allows it to be displaced longitudinally on the worktable (1) of the press and on which is arranged, via a rotation device (4), a clamping gripper (3) oriented transversely to the longitudinal axis of the worktable. In order to make such an apparatus as compact as possible while at the same time achieving by the simplest means infinitely variable adjustability of the angle of rotation of the clamping gripper equipped with actuable clamping jaws, the rotation device (4) is, in accordance with the invention, in the form of a cuboid housing (4') containing at least one double-headed piston that can be moved between independently adjustable stops. The clamping gripper (3) is arranged on the rotary part (7) of the rotation device (4), said rotary part being infinitely variable in its angle of rotation, with its longitudinal axis (8) coaxial with or parallel to the axis of that end of its actuating cylinder (9) which is remote from the gripper. The shaft (7') of the rotary part (7), which shaft is provided with toothing (10), is in tangential engagement with the correspondingly toothed piston rod connecting the two heads of the piston. … <IMAGE> …

Description

- 1 Gripper and conveyer arrangement 2285432 The invention is concerned

with a gripper and conveyor arrangement for work tables of deforming and punching presses of the type as used, for example, in the automobile industry. It is also concerned with a rotating mechanism for a workpiece gripper.

Gripper and conveyor arrangements of the aforementioned type are taught, for example, by United States Patent 4,607,516, which serve for seizing workpieces to be processed (e.g. sheet bars, car body parts or the like) and for conveying them to and discharging them from the processing stations of the press. As a rule, two such arrangements are used for each working station; moreover, a plurality of working stations are normally provided on the work table of the press, wherein the workpieces are further deformed or punched step by step, with the supports of the clamping grippers automatically moving in controlled synchronism on guides arranged on both sides along the processing stations, with the supports or the clamping grippers provided thereon, in addition, being adjustable in a direction transverse of the guides for seizing the workpiece edges and for releasing them after deposition in the respective processing station in order to return thereafter to the pre-processing station to pick up the following workpiece. As a rule, the supports, in addition, are formed in a manner vertically adjustable to insure, in particular, positioning accuracy of the workpiece on the matrix of the press.

In processing operations of this type it is, as a rule, necessary for the workpieces to take in one or another processing station a position different from the one in 2 - the respective preliminary station. For this reason, the clamping grippers, in addition, are rotatably designed for movement in the direction of the X, Y and Z axes. The rotating mechanisms provided according to USPatent No. 4,607,516 are very complex and bulky which also applies to arrangements according to European Patent No. 0 377 039 and German Offenlegungschrift No. 32 36 107 the clamping grippers of which, in addition, are simple gripper forks. The same applies to a transporting arrangement on a multiple press according to German Auslegeschrift 1 189 359 which is intended to be used for the manufacture of nuts or the like workpieces, with finger-type elements provided with depressions for accommodating the workpieces rotatable by 1800 being commonly seated on a slide which in turn is seated on an element swivelable upwardly. The aforementioned transporting arrangement is not suitable for seizing workpieces to convey them from a processing station to another station for deposition and renewed release thereof.

Viewed from a first aspet the invention provides a gripper and conveyor arrangement comprising: a support longitudinally displaceable within guides on a work table; a rotating mechanism arranged on the support, with the rotating mechanism comprising a housing in which a shaft is rotatably arranged; a clamping gripper arranged on means for actuating the same, with the means being fixed to the head of the shaft and with the clamping gripper, the means for actuating the same and the shaft being arranged in a direction transverse to the longitudinal displacement direction of the support; a dual piston disposed within the housing of the rotating mechanism and displaceably arranged between two stops within a work chamber; a piston rod on which the two pistons are seated and which is formed as a gear rack, with the shaft between the pistons being provided with a toothing in engagement with the gear rack, and with the housing of the rotating mechanism being provided with connections for the operating fluids.

Viewed from a second aspect the invention provides a rotating mechanism for a workpiece gripper, comprising a shaft for rotating the workpiece gripper and piston means having a pair of piston heads connected by a piston rod and being reciprocable between two stops, the piston rod being in toothed engagement with the shaft such that displacement of the piston means causes rotation of the shaft.

is At least in its preferred forms, the invention provides a gripper and conveyor arrangement of a configuration simpler than and improved over the state-of-the-art systems, which is compact in design to readily enable a stepless adjustability of the angle of rotation of the clamping gripper furnished with actuable clamping jaws.

Commercially available automotive clamping grippers and conventional supports can be used with no need for any substantial changes, i.e. they simply require a corresponding fixing adjustment to the rotating mechanism or a fixing adjustment thereof to these elements, respectively. The rotating mechanism is merely to be mounted on the support, preferably as a compact block-shaped housing involving negligible space requirements, with the clamping gripper being directly fixed to the rotating part thereof as described hereinafter in greater detail. In a preferred embodiment, the entire adjusting mechanism for steplessly adjusting the angle of rotation of the rotating part and of the clamping gripper in - 4 communication therewith and provided with an automotive drive for actuating the clamping jaw substantially is restricted to three elements, namely to the piston, the shaft of the rotating part and the stops for the piston. The stops are preferably independently adjustable.

is An adjusting carriage of a lockable design can be provided between the rotating part and the clamping gripper, thereby meeting both alternatives, i.e. the coaxial or axially parallel (eccentric) association of the longitudinal axis to the rotating part should this be required in view of the required inclination and/or the point of access on the workpiece under consideration of the fact that the workpiece is not always to be inclined by the axis of rotation of the rotating part.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will hereinafter be described by way of example and in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. I schematically shows, partly in section, the gripper and conveyor arrangement mounted on a work table; Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the rotating mechanism along the line II-II in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 schematically shows a plan view of the arrangement of a plurality of gripper and conveyor means according to Fig. 1 on a work table; Fig. 4 shows a plan view of the gripper and conveyor arrangement; Fig. 5 shows a side view of the gripper and conveyor arrangement according to Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows the gripper and conveyor means, viewed in the direction of arrow A according to Fig. 4; and Fig. 7 schematically shows a special form of embodiment of the support according to Fig. 1.

As shown in Fig. 1, the gripper and conveyor arrangement of this embodiment substantially comprises three component parts, to wit: support 2, rotating mechanism 4 and clamping gripper 3 with the actuating element thereof in the form of a pneumatic cylinder. The clamping gripper is shown only in the form of an example of embodiment which does not require any closer description as clamping grippers of this and similar is types and functions are generally known in the art. The clamping gripper 3, its pneumatic cylinder 9 and rotating mechanism 4 with shaft 14 thereof in this order of sequence are coaxially associated on a common longitudinal axis 8.

As shown in Fig. 2, the rotating mechanism 4 of the gripper and conveyor arrangement, individually, is designed as follows:

Disposed in housing 41 of the rotating mechanism 4 is a dual piston K displaceably arranged between two stops 5 within a work chamber 12. The piston rod 15 on which the two pistons 6 are seated is formed as a gear rack. The shaft 14 between the pistons 6 is provided with a toothing 16 in engagement with the gear rack, and the housing 41 of the rotating mechanism 4 is provided with connections 13 for the operating fluids (see Fig. 4).

Fig. 2 shows the rotating mechanism 4 with two dual pistons K the piston rods 15 of which are in engagement with the toothing 16 of the shaft 14. The toothing 16 in the form of a pinion 17 is provided on the shaft 14 6 in a non-rotating way.

Fluid is applied in a correspondingly counter-current way through the connections 13 for the operating fluid to the two pistons 6 to which such fluid can be applied on each side thereof. The pistons are sealed both toward the piston rod side and toward the applying chambers 12 as shown but not described in any detail.

As shown in Fig. 2, one adjustable stop 5 is disposed in each of the applying chambers 12 of the lefthand pistons 6, which stops 5 enable the respectively desired range of adjustment of the angle of rotation for the rotating part 8 to be adjusted as is required for the working is station AS (see Fig. 3) or for the head 7 of the shaft 14 and, hence for the clamping gripper 3 as shown by way of example in Fig. 1. As shown, these stops 5 are very simple structural components in the form of screws or lock nuts sealed against the applying chambers 12 by means of sealants 11.

The gripper and conveyor arrangement is also shown in Figs. 4 and 6 and is provided with corresponding reference numerals. This form of embodiment exhibits a special feature. The pneumatic cylinder 9 is not directly secured to head 7 of shaft 14 as it is in Fig. 1, but is fixed to an adjustable carriage 18 which, as shown by Figs. 4,5 is adjustably connected to the head 7 of the shaft 14. This is effected by set screws 19 enabling the adjustable carriage 18 to be eccentrically adjusted relative to the axis 8 of the shaft 14 as required in certain work stations if a workpiece when transported to the next working station is not to be seized and swivelled in an axis of symmetry.

The support 2 of the gripper and conveyor mechanism as schematically shown in Fig. 7 is formed of two parts 20,21 which are adjustable in height relative to one another, thereby enabling the clamping gripper 3 to be adjusted to varying access heights.

It is advantageous if, in accordance with Fig. 3, the identically designed and compact gripper and conveyor arrangements of the invention as shown in Fig. I can be used for all working stations AS inclusive of those in the areas of the workpiece pick-up WA and the workpiece depositor WAI, although such arrangements differ from work station AS to work station AS in accordance with the requirements placed upon the adjustment of their angles of rotation and/or their coaxial or axially parallel adjustment to the head 7 per adjustable is carriage 18 and, optionally, the different height adjustments of the supports 2. As shown in Fig. 7 in broken lines and only schematically, the bottom part 20 of the support 2 can he displaceably arranged on a part 22 in the direction of the longitudinal axis 8 in order to enable the gripper and conveyor arrangement also to be adjusted in the direction of arrow Y as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 if so required by the width B of the workpiece W.

The arranging and working situation of a plurality of the afore-described gripper and conveyor arrangements on the work table 1 of a press oth erwise not shown is also illustrated in Fig. 3. Associated to each working station is a pair of gripper and conveyor arrangements which in their functional range FB move in controlled synchronism along the guides F of the work table in direction X. Moreover, the supports 2 only schematically shown are also formed, as previously mentioned, adjustable and controllable in synchronism in a direction transverse to the guides F in direction Y and, in addition, in the vertical direction Z.

8 While a full and complete description of the preferred embodiments of the invention has been set forth herein, it should be understood that modifications can be made without departing from the the scope of the invention.

Claims

Claims is 1. A gripper and conveyor arrangement comprising: a support

longitudinally displaceable within guides on a work table; a rotating mechanism mounted on the support, with the rotating mechanism consisting of a housing in which a shaft is rotatably disposed; a clamping gripper provided on means for actuating the same, with said means being secured to a head of the shaft, and with the clamping gripper, the means for actuating the same and the shaft being arranged in a direction transverse to the direction of the longitudinal displacement of the support; a dual piston arranged within the housing of the rotating mechanism and displaceably located between two stops within a working chamber; a piston rod on which are seated the two pistons and which is formed as a gear rack, with the shaft between the pistons being provided with a toothing in engagement with the gear rack and with the housing of the rotating mechanism being provided with the connections for the operating fluid.
2. A gripper and conveyor mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the means for actuating the clamping gripper is formed of a pneumatic cylinder.
3. A gripper and conveyor arrangement according to claim 2, wherein an adjustable carriage adjustable in a direction transverse to the shaft is provided on the head of the shaft externally of the casing, and the pneumatic cylinder is arranged thereon.
4. A gripper and conveyor arrangement according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the stops for the dual piston are adjustable.
5. A gripper and conveyor arrangement according to any preceding claim, wherein the toothing of the shaft is a pinion disposed on the shaft in a non-rotating way.

is
6. A gripper and conveyor arrangement according to any preceding claim, wherein a second dual piston is arranged in the housing in parallel to the first dual piston, which second dual piston is also in engagement with the toothing of the shaft.
7. A gripper and conveyor arrangement according to any preceding claim, wherein the support is formed of two parts and the upper part is arranged in a heightadjustable way in the lower part.
8. A rotating mechanism for a workpiece gripper, comprising a shaft for rotating the workpiece gripper and piston means having a pair of piston heads connected by a piston rod and being re iprocable between two stops, the piston rod being in toothed engagement with the shaft such that displacement of the piston means causes rotation of the shaft.
9. A gripper and conveyor arrangement comprising a workpiece gripper and a rotating mechanism therefor as claimed in claim 8.
10. A gripper and conveyor arrangement substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any of the accompanying drawings.
11. A rotating mechanism for a workpiece gripper substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any of the accompanying drawings.