JP2000102153A - Mobile cable body and industrial device using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile cable body which can reconcile low-noise traveling and high-speed traveling, and besides can elongate the life, avoiding the friction between the fellow cables, and an industrial device using the same. SOLUTION: This is a mobile cable body whose one end is fixed to a mover reciprocated rectilinearly and the other end of it is fixed in immobile state and also performs circular bending with a specified radius, accompanying the shifting of the mover. In this case, the mobile cable possesses a flexible base 6 for bending, a cable 3 arranged to go in width wise direction of the flexible base 6, a plurality of outer corrected teeth 7 being fixed at specified pitches to the flexible base 6 to come on outer periphery side and being kept in roughly rectilinear condition in longitudinal direction, and a plurality of inner corrected teeth 8 being fixed at specified pitches to the flexible base 6 to come on inner periphery side and having a shape part 8a to keep the circular form.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a linear reciprocating apparatus which fixes one end of an electric wire to a moving body which linearly reciprocates on a track and attaches the other end to a fixed portion to supply and transmit power or a signal. In the protection of electric wires, in particular, the present invention relates to a movable electric wire body for maintaining a stable posture at a horizontal or vertical or a predetermined inclination angle of a movable electric wire for supplying and transmitting power or a signal to a moving device of a production machine, and an industrial device using the same. Things.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an electric wire for supplying power or transmitting a signal to a device that performs a linear reciprocating movement has a function of continuously bending in the shape of a "tsu" repeatedly with the reciprocating movement of a moving body. For this reason, a "robot electric wire" which is highly flexible is used for the electric wire. It is important for the robot electric wire that the electric wire does not bend unnecessarily at the bent portion and that the posture suitable for reciprocation is always maintained.

[0003] As described above, a "cable carrier (trade name)" is used in which a wire is not bent more than necessary at a bent portion, is bent so as to draw an arc of a predetermined radius, and is bent only in one direction. I have. In order to store and guide the above-mentioned robot electric wire or the hose of hydraulic pressure, pneumatic pressure, etc. in this cable carrier, one end of the cable carrier is fixed to the moving body, and the other end is fixed to the fixed portion. I have.

[0004] This cable carrier is disclosed, for example, in
As disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 187645, a component called a link having a pin portion and a hole portion fitted with the pin portion is continuously fitted to obtain a desired length. Pins and links are generally made of plastic or steel, with a box shape as the basic type, one side of which has an openable / closable or removable shape so that wires and hoses can be stored after assembly, and has a predetermined radius The pin portion that bends into an arc shape and prevents further bending acts as a stopper that performs limited movement using the cocoon-shaped hole as a guide, and is configured as a chain type in appearance.

[0005]

However, if such a cable carrier is used, it slides on the pin and the hole every time the cable is bent. There is a disadvantage that noise such as friction noise and collision noise cannot be avoided. For this reason, if the moving speed is several meters per second, the noise level exceeds 80 db, so that even if the running noise generated between the guide rails and the bearings that constitute the moving body is reduced in any way, the noise level is as described above. However, as long as a commercially available cable carrier configured as described above is used, the effect of noise reduction cannot be obtained, and there has been a problem that it has not been possible to meet the recent demand for high-speed and low-noise equipment.

A plurality of multi-core electric wires and hoses are accommodated in the cable carrier. A so-called robot cable which is resistant to bending fatigue and has a long life is generally used for these multi-core electric wires. It is a target. However, the life of the robot cable is not determined only by the bending radius and the number of times of bending, and it has been found that there are not a few disconnections due to film damage due to friction between the wires in the cable carrier. For this reason, when using a cable carrier with a structure in which a plurality of robot cables (electric wires) are stored in the same room, the life of the wires is shortened rather than the purpose of protecting the wires. There was a problem.

On the other hand, the causes of the noise generated by the precise linear reciprocating mechanism are the noise of a motor-driven drive unit using a feed screw, a rack and pinion, and a timing belt.
There are roughly three types of noise: running part noise such as starting rails (guides) and running wheels (bearings), and cable-bearing noise. Of these, drive section noise and running section noise are resin pinions,
A resin roller is used, and a low-noise linear guide (trade name) and the like are also commercially available and frequently used, so that a low-noise traveling mechanism can be realized relatively easily.

[0008] However, the higher the speed of the cable carrier noise increases in proportion to the moving speed, the higher the noise occurs.
It has been found that cable-bearing noise is the noise of friction and impact between adjacent links, and the banging between the links and the support frame that supports one side bent into a "". The hitting sound between the support frame of the cable carrier and the link can be somewhat reduced by arranging a cushioning material between the support frame and the link, but it is not possible to reduce the friction sound and the impact sound between the links. As a result, as long as a cable carrier is used, a low-noise, high-speed moving device cannot be realized.
In addition, a cable carrier that stores a plurality of electric wires in one room has a problem of shortening the life of the electric wires.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and is a movable type that can achieve both low-noise traveling and high-speed traveling, and can also extend the life by avoiding friction between electric wires. An object is to provide an electric wire body and an industrial device using the same.

Means for Solving the Problems The above-mentioned problems are solved,
In order to achieve the object, the present invention fixes one end to a moving body that is linearly driven reciprocally, and fixes the other end in an immovable state, and by supporting the moving body with a support table, the moving body moves with the movement of the moving body. A movable electric wire body that bends in an arc shape having a predetermined radius, and a flexible base having flexibility for the bending,
An electric wire arranged along the width direction of the flexible base,
A plurality of outer orthodontic teeth that maintain the flexible base in a substantially linear shape in the longitudinal direction by being fixed at a predetermined pitch to the base that is on the outer peripheral side during the bending, And a plurality of inner orthodontic teeth fixed to the flexible base at a predetermined pitch and having a shape that maintains the arc shape.

An industrial apparatus using a movable electric wire body, wherein the movable body is linearly reciprocated and the movable means is mounted on a moving means mounted on the movable body for performing a predetermined operation. By providing at least power supply via the electric wire, noise of the movable electric wire generated due to the movement of the moving body is reduced.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an example of a configuration of a main part of an industrial machine 100, in which moving bodies 21 and 121 which are driven linearly reciprocally move in a horizontal direction (arrow X direction) and a vertical direction, respectively. A state of being guided by the guide rails 20 and 120 (in the direction of arrow Z) is shown. Although not shown, the moving body may reciprocate linearly in an oblique direction in some cases. A motor (not shown) is incorporated in each of the moving bodies 21 and 121, and a predetermined power is supplied to the motor from the drive control device 23 via the electric wire 3, and a predetermined position detection electric signal is exchanged. , The motor is driven in the directions of the arrows (X and Z directions) in accordance with the forward and reverse driving of the output shaft of the motor. In addition, each moving body 2
Reference numerals 1 and 121 denote work hands 25 for performing a predetermined work.
The work hand is configured to perform a predetermined work on a work (not shown) by supplying power, air pressure, hydraulic pressure, and the like to the work hand. These air pressure and hydraulic pressure are supplied from the air compressor 24, a hydraulic pump and the like via the movable hose 4.

In the industrial apparatus 100 configured as described above, between the control device 23, the compressor 24 and the like, and the moving body, as shown in FIG. A movable electric wire body 1 is provided that moves along the support bases 2 and 102 so as to be bent in the shape of the solid line and the position indicated by the alternate long and short dash line. This movable wire body 1
Is fixed at one end to the mounting portion 22 of the moving body 21 by the fixture 5, and the other end is fixed to the base from the floor by the fixture 5 so as not to be immovable. By fixing both ends in this way, the moving body moves while performing an arc-shaped bend of a predetermined radius R with the movement of the moving body, thereby preventing the electric wire from being unnecessarily bent.

The movable electric wire 1 moves horizontally.
In the case of, by moving while supporting on the support base 2, it guides in the horizontal direction without hanging down by its own weight, and prevents an extra load from being applied to the fixture 5. I do. In addition, the movable electric wire body 1 that moves in the vertical direction hangs down due to its own weight, but the downward direction matches the moving direction.
Is not always necessary, but rather the support base 1 as a cover.
02 is provided. In particular, when guiding in a diagonal direction, a rubber permanent magnet is stuck on the support base 102, and an iron piece is provided on the movable electric wire body 1 so that the movable wire body 1 is appropriately attracted and held by the rubber permanent magnet. You may comprise so that it may guide along a support stand.

Movable electric wire 1 attached as described above
When at least power is supplied via the power supply, noise can be reduced even when the moving body is driven at high speed. Hereinafter, the reason will be described by describing the configuration of the movable electric wire body 1 in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2A is a front view mainly showing a bent portion of the movable electric wire 1, and FIG.
FIG. 3A is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG.

First, in FIG. 2B, the electric wires 3 can be integrally formed after being arranged in a single row in the width direction of the flexible base 6 having flexibility for bending. It bends and deforms together with the flexible base 6. When the flexible base 6 is bent as shown in FIG. 2 (a), the abutting surfaces 7a abut against the outer peripheral surface, so that the flexible base is substantially moved in the longitudinal direction. A plurality of outer orthodontic teeth 7 maintained in a straight line are fixed at a predetermined pitch P at equal intervals. Further, the surface portion 7b of the outer orthodontic teeth 7 is formed in a planar shape because it is carried on the support base 2.

On the other hand, a plurality of inner orthodontic teeth 8 having a shape portion 8a for maintaining an arc shape having a radius R at a target position are fixed to the flexible base portion 6 which is on the inner peripheral side when bent. The shape portions 8a abut on each other as shown in the drawing to allow the flexible base 6 to bend at the radius R and restrict further bending, and the relationship between the radius R and the pitch P Determines the inclination angle の of the shape portion 8a.

The flexible base 6 can be made of various industrial rubber materials, synthetic resin materials, silicone elastomers, and other materials having physical properties including bending durability and electrical insulation. By being integrally molded with 7 and the inner orthodontic teeth 8, it can be manufactured at low cost. Alternatively, it may be prepared as a separate component and mechanically fixed so as to sandwich the electric wire, and configured as shown in the figure.

According to the movable electric wire body 1 obtained in this way, the soft elastic orthodontic teeth can be hit, and the noise at the time of bending the electric wire is greatly reduced as compared with the conventional chain type. did it. That is, as shown in FIG.
The bendable movable electric wires 3 are arranged in a row, and the electric wires are covered with a flexible base 6 made of a highly flexible elastic material to form a flat shape. Are brought into contact with each other to obtain a predetermined curvature so that the center of the movable electric wire can maintain the approximate radius of curvature R. The inner orthodontic teeth 8 have an interlocking shape that does not interfere with each other when they are in a straight line.

Each of the orthodontic teeth provided on the front and back of the flexible base 6 is provided at equal intervals, and the contact surface of the orthodontic teeth is preferably made of a soft elastic material. By forming the elastic orthodontic teeth on the front and back surfaces of the flat electric wire, the rotational friction of the links seen by the cable carrier is drastically reduced (or eliminated), and the hitting sound of the hard material, the links, is completely eliminated. Was.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view generally corresponding to the sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 2 (a). In FIG. 3, the same reference numerals are given to the components already described and the description is omitted. In FIG. 3A, the electric wires 3 are arranged in three rows and in multiple stages. Also, the inner orthodontic teeth 8 provided on the front and back of the flexible base 6 are fixed only at the central portion, and the outer orthodontic teeth 7 are arranged on both sides. Alternatively, conversely, the inner orthodontic teeth 8 may be fixed to both sides, and the outer orthodontic teeth 7 may be arranged at the center.

Subsequently, in FIG. 3 (b), a plurality of bendable multi-core electric wires 3 covering the outer skin 9 are arranged, and a robot electric wire is used for these, and the radius of curvature R becomes the center of the robot electric wire. To do. In this case, since the outer skins 9 of the robot electric wires do not rub against each other, a mechanical electric wire fatigue life determined by the number of times of bending is guaranteed.

FIG. 3C shows the corrective teeth for maintaining the posture of the electric wire 3 in a predetermined shape, as shown in FIG.
And a part of the outer orthodontic teeth 7 are formed so as to be continuous, and are fixed to both ends of the flexible base 6. As described above, the orthodontic teeth do not necessarily need to be provided on the front and back of the flat surface, and there is no problem even on the side surface.

FIG. 3D is characterized in that a part of the orthodontic teeth provided on the flat surface is formed as an opening 7c which is opened in the longitudinal direction of the electric wire. The opening shape may be any of a round, a long circle, and a corner. A hose such as a hydraulic pressure or a pneumatic pressure can be attached to the opening shape portion 7c from the outside. It is provided to facilitate sliding when bending. Providing a plurality of opening portions 7c to which the hose can be attached and detached in this manner facilitates the work of assembling the piping and wiring.

FIG. 3 (e) shows an opening 6 a directly formed in the flexible base 6. With such a configuration, the electric wire 3 and a hose for hydraulic pressure, pneumatic pressure, etc. Can be attached from the outside.

4 and 5 are external perspective views of the movable electric wire body 1. In the movable electric wire body 1 shown in FIG. 2, a flexible base 6, outer corrective teeth 7, and inner corrective teeth are provided. When it is difficult to maintain a predetermined shape at the time of contact with each other when a soft material is used when integrally molded with
A state is shown in which reinforcing members 10, 11, and 12 for maintaining the tooth shape are attached to the inner and outer orthodontic teeth 8 and 7 in order to maintain a predetermined shape.

In FIG. 4, the reinforcing member 10 is processed from a resin such as plastic or steel or the like and is set on a mounting portion formed on the outer orthodontic teeth 7, and then fixed at a position shown in FIG. Further, the reinforcing member 11 is fixed after being inserted into the hole formed in the inner orthodontic teeth 8.

In FIG. 5, a reinforcing member 12 injection-molded from a resin material has a pair of arm portions 12 as shown in FIG.
a is formed integrally with each other at the tip end of FIG. 1a, and these arms 12a are expanded in the direction of the arrow to form a flexible base 6, outer corrective teeth 7, and inner corrective teeth 8 in a side view. It is completed by setting in the part. With the above-described configuration, the impact of the adjacent orthodontic teeth causes the elastic body to collide at the same time, and the posture is maintained by the reinforcing members 10 and 1.
By being strongly supported by 1 and 12, curvature maintainability and straight line maintainability become higher.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the movable electric wire body 1 and shows a state in which concave portions 7c and convex portions 7d overlapping each other are alternately formed on the outer orthodontic teeth 7. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent foreign matter from entering at a position where the outer orthodontic teeth 7 are located in a straight line. Therefore, the configuration is optimal in a work environment where there is a risk of foreign matter being mixed.

As described above, a plurality of electric wires are wrapped in a flat shape with a flexible elastic material, and orthodontic teeth that can be bent in only one direction are integrally formed at a fixed pitch, formed by fusion, or formed by other methods. In addition, since the reinforcing member for reinforcing the shape of the orthodontic teeth can be attached and detached with one touch, a stable posture can be maintained, and the noise is drastically reduced as compared with the above-described cable carrier. In addition, the friction between the electric wires 9 is eliminated, and the life can be made closer to the expected value (the number of times of bending). In other words, the noise of the cable carrier, which has been a bottleneck, is eliminated to realize a low-noise device, and since the electric wire can be prevented from being damaged due to friction, the reliability of the device is further increased, which can greatly contribute to productivity.

Focusing on the fact that noise is generated when the above cable carrier is formed into a chain by linking formed engineering plastic links or pressed steel links, and instead of the cable carrier, the bending posture and the electric wire are used. By forming a shape that can maintain linearity, it is suitable for a linear reciprocating movement mechanism that requires low noise, can realize low noise of the whole equipment, and also prevents the outer sheath of the wire from fraying, The service life can be made closer to the expected service life.

[0033]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide a movable electric wire body that can achieve both low-noise traveling and high-speed traveling, and that can eliminate the damage due to friction between electric wires and extend the life thereof, and an industrial device using the same.

[0034]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a configuration example of a main part of an industrial machine 100.

FIG. 2A is a front view mainly showing a bent portion of the movable electric wire 1, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2 (b).

FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the movable electric wire body 1 showing a state where the reinforcing members 10 and 11 are attached.

FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of the movable electric wire body 1 showing a state in which the integrally molded reinforcing member 12 is attached.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the movable electric wire 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Movable electric wire body 2 Support base 3 Electric wire 4 Movable hose 5 Fixture 6 Flexible base 7 Outer orthodontic teeth 8 Inner orthodontic teeth 9 Outer skin 10, 11, 12 Reinforcement member 20 Guide rail 21 Moving body 25 Work hand

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A movable electric wire body, one end of which is fixed to a moving body which is driven linearly reciprocally, and the other end of which is fixed in an immovable state, and which bends in an arc shape having a predetermined radius as the moving body moves. A flexible base having flexibility for the bending, an electric wire arranged along the width direction of the flexible base, and a predetermined position on the flexible base which is an outer peripheral side at the time of the bending. By being fixed at a pitch, a plurality of outer orthodontic teeth that maintain the flexible base in a substantially straight line in the longitudinal direction, and fixed at a predetermined pitch to the flexible base that is an inner peripheral side during the bending,
A movable electric wire body comprising: a plurality of inner orthodontic teeth having a shape portion that maintains the arc shape. 2. The movable electric wire body according to claim 1, wherein the flexible base, the outer orthodontic teeth, and the inner orthodontic teeth are integrally molded with the electric wires using a flexible material. 3. The movable type according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the electric wires are arranged in a single row along the width direction of the flexible base. Wire body. 4. The movable type according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the electric wires are arranged in a plurality of rows along the width direction of the flexible base. Wire body. 5. A plurality of multi-core electric wires having the same diameter or different diameters, which are the electric wires, are arranged in a single row along the width direction of the flexible base. The movable electric wire body according to claim 2. 6. The outer orthodontic teeth are distributed in two rows along both side edges of the flexible base, and the inner orthodontic teeth are distributed in one row along a central portion of the flexible base. The movable electric wire according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the outer orthodontic teeth and the inner orthodontic teeth are partly continuously formed and distributed in two rows along both side ends of the flexible base. Item 6. A movable electric wire according to any one of Items 5. 8. The method according to claim 8, wherein an opening-shaped portion is formed along the longitudinal direction of the flexible base in the outer orthodontic tooth so that another flexible body including a fluid supply pipe can be held in the opening-shaped portion. The movable electric wire body according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: 9. The outer orthodontic tooth according to claim 1, wherein concave portions and convex portions overlapping each other are alternately formed.
The movable electric wire body according to claim 5. 10. The electric wire or the fluid supply pipe is detachable by forming an opening in the flexible base along the longitudinal direction.
3. The movable electric wire according to claim 1. 11. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a reinforcing member for keeping one or both of the outer orthodontic teeth and the inner orthodontic teeth in a predetermined shape. Item 10. A movable electric wire according to any one of Items 8 and 9. 12. An industrial apparatus using the movable electric wire body according to claim 1, wherein the movable electric body is linearly reciprocally driven, and the movable body is moved to perform a predetermined operation. By providing at least power supply to the working means mounted on the body via the movable electric wire body, it is possible to reduce noise of the movable electric wire body caused by movement of the moving body. An industrial device using a movable electric wire body characterized by the following. 13. The movable electric wire body according to claim 12, further comprising one or both of a predetermined signal transmission / reception and a predetermined fluid supply to the working means via the movable electric wire body. Industrial equipment using.