JP2000103515A - Aligning device for flat tube - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an aligning device for flat tubes for transferring the tubes cut into a given length to the lower part at high speed, and also rotating the tubes 90 deg. to align them lengthwisely to extremely shorten an aligning time. SOLUTION: An aligning device 1 for flat tubes 11 is equipped with a tube lowering mechanism 3 for engaging the flat tubes 11, horizontally carried in a lengthwise direction at the nearly horizontal attitude of the long diameter of a cross section, with the respective screw grooves 35 of plural vertical axis screws 34 to lower the tubes 11 downward, a chute 4 having a guide slope 41, having a nearly 1/4 cylindrical surface state for communicating between the charging port 46 of the tubes 11 at the upper end and a takeoff port 47 at the lower end, and being installed in the lower part of the mechanism 3, and a tube supporting mechanism 5 for supporting the tubes 11 charged into the slope 41 from the lower part to prevent the falling of the tubes 11, and also turning them while overlapping them charged successively in a width direction.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flat tube aligning apparatus for aligning a large number of flat tubes cut to a predetermined length in a thickness direction.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a core of a heat exchanger such as a radiator or a heater for a vehicle, a flat tube 11 made of aluminum, copper or the like is used as shown in FIG. The flat tube 11 is formed, cut, and aligned in the following steps as shown in the conceptual diagram of FIG. 1) The tube material B is drawn out from the roll R by the tube forming machine A, rolled while running in the longitudinal direction, and the joining line is welded to manufacture the tube material T. 2) Next, the tube material T sent out from the tube forming machine A is formed into a flat shape by the tube running and cutting machine C, and cut into a predetermined length.
Run one after another. 3) A tube transport / alignment device D is installed at the end of the tube travel cutting machine C, and the flat tube 11 is transported in the direction perpendicular to the delivery direction (travel direction) of the flat tube 11 in the next process.

In the conventional tube transport / alignment device D, the cut flat tube 11 is transported at high speed in the horizontal direction.
The tubes are turned and aligned in the orthogonal direction by the tube alignment device 15. The aligned flat tube 11 has a major axis (width) W in cross section.
Are stacked in a vertical state (hereinafter, a state in which the posture is vertical and a state in which the major axis is horizontal is horizontal) in the thickness (short axis of the cross section) E direction, and are packaged in a predetermined number. For this reason, it is necessary to rotate the horizontal flat tube 11 sent from the tube running cutter C by 90 degrees by the tube aligning device 15 to make it vertical.

[0004]

As shown in FIG. 6, the change of the posture from horizontal to vertical is achieved by horizontally moving two screws 13 having screw grooves 12 whose width gradually decreases and whose depth gradually increases. It can be performed by an attitude changing device 16 which is arranged and connects these two screws 13 to the output shaft of the motor M via a coupling 14. The flat tube 11 is 1
Both ends are fitted into the two screw grooves 12 one by one, and gradually rise while being transported to the left in the drawing as the two screws 13 rotate. It is difficult to increase the speed of the posture changing device 16, and it takes about 0.3 seconds to align one flat tube 11.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to enable a flat tube cut to a predetermined length to be rolled downward at a high speed and to be rotated 90 degrees to be vertically aligned, thereby significantly shortening the alignment time. It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for aligning a flat tube.

[0006]

A flat tube aligning apparatus according to the present invention comprises a plurality of longitudinal screws horizontally arranged at intervals shorter than the length of the flat tubes, and a driving means for the longitudinal screws, and has a cross section. A tube lowering mechanism for lowering the flat tube, which has been conveyed horizontally in the length direction in a substantially horizontal posture in a longitudinal direction, by engaging the screw grooves of the plurality of longitudinal screws and lowering the flat tube; and A chute having a substantially quarter-cylindrical guide slope which is installed below, has an upper end serving as an inlet of the flat tube, and a lower end serving as an outlet, and communicating between the inlet and the outlet; A tube support mechanism that supports the flat tubes inserted into the guide slope from below and prevents them from falling, and rotates while flattening the flat tubes that have been inserted one after another in the thickness direction. Provided.

In the present invention, the flat tube inserted into the screw groove descends due to the rotation of the screw, and
Each book is fitted into the guide slope of the chute. The flat tubes successively fitted into the guide slopes are aligned while rotating about a 90-degree axis, and are discharged from the outlet. For this reason, the flat tube can be automatically rotated 90 degrees from a horizontal posture and aligned in a vertical state,
The time required for aligning one flat tube can be greatly reduced.

[0010] According to the second aspect of the present invention, the flat tube is inserted into the screw groove of the tube lowering mechanism by the pinch roll of the tube transport mechanism. Since the speed of the flat tube can be increased by the pinch roll, the flat tube continuously cut by the traveling cutting device can be separated and inserted into the screw groove at high speed. The configuration described in claim 3 is convenient for the work of packing a predetermined number of pieces in the width direction.
According to the configuration of the fourth aspect, it is possible to automate the operation of lowering the flat tube conveyed horizontally and putting it into the chute.

[0009]

1 to 4 show an apparatus 1 for aligning a flat tube 11 according to the present invention. The width (longest diameter of section) W and the thickness (short diameter of section) shown in FIG. E) The tube transport mechanism 2 for horizontally transporting the flat tube 11 having the length L in the axial direction (length direction), and the flat tube 11 that is provided side by side at the end of the tube transport mechanism 2 and is transported. It has a tube lowering mechanism 3 that pushes down, and a chute 4 that is installed below the tube lowering mechanism 3 and that rotates the flat tubes 11 vertically from side to side while overlapping in the thickness direction. The chute 4 is provided with a tube support mechanism 5 that supports the lower surface of the inserted flat tube 11 and prevents the flat tube 11 from falling down. These tube transport mechanism 2, tube lowering mechanism 3, and tube support mechanism 5
It is controlled by the control mechanism 6 (see FIG. 2).

The tube transport mechanism 2 includes a horizontally long machine frame 21.
And a pinch roll 22 in which four pairs are horizontally arranged on the surface of the machine casing 21. The pinch roll 22 is provided with a groove 23 into which the side of the flat tube 11 fits.
It is driven by a motor (not shown) provided in the machine casing 21. The flat tube 11 sent out from the tube running cutter C shown in FIG. 5B is sequentially sandwiched between four pairs of pinch rolls 22 rotating on both sides, and is in a horizontal (substantially horizontal) posture. , And is conveyed horizontally in the axial direction and rightward in the figure (transport direction).

The drive motor of the pinch roll 22 is controlled by the control mechanism 6, and conveys the flat tube 11 at a speed twice the carrying speed. Thereby, separation of the flat tubes 11 cut by the tube traveling cutting machine C is ensured, the trouble that the front and rear flat tubes 11 collide is prevented, and a large number of flat tubes 11 can be transported in a short time. ing. Thereby, the flat tube 1
While eliminating problems such as deformation due to the contact of 1,
This contributes to speeding up the work of aligning the flat tubes 11.

The tube lowering mechanism 3 has a base 31 installed on the floor 10 and a base 32 horizontally fixed to an upper end of the base 31. On the upper surface of the base 32, four motors 33 having a vertical axis are arranged in a row in the transport direction. Below the base 32, a vertical axis screw 34 that is rotationally driven by each motor 33 is connected. In each screw 34, a predetermined position of the upper end of the screw groove 35 is positioned between a pair of upper and lower pinch rolls 22 (the flat tube 11).
Horizontal movement level).

The flat tubes 11 carried out of the tube transport mechanism 2 are screwed into the screw grooves 3 of the four screws 34.
5 and collides with the stop wall 36 and stops. An impact absorbing material 37 is attached to the stop wall 36 to prevent the flat tube 11 from being deformed due to collision. An optical sensor 61 is provided between the tube transport mechanism 2 and the tube lowering mechanism 3.
When the passage of the flat tube 11 is detected, each motor 33 is rotated by a predetermined rotation angle (predetermined time) by the control mechanism 6 to rotate the screw 34. As a result, the flat tube 11 inserted into the screw groove 35 is automatically lowered.

The chute 4 is provided with a guide slope 41 into which the flat tube 11 is lowered and fitted. The guide slope 41 has a width W1 (a length in a radial direction about the horizontal axis) between the slope base 42 and the cover 43 fixed to the slope base 42, which is larger than the width W of the flat tube 11. It is formed as a cylindrical-shaped gap of about 90 degrees having a horizontal axis set to be large. The cover 43 has seven slits 44 formed in the cylindrical surface direction. The upper end of the cover 43 is extended to the same level as the screw 34 to form a stop wall 36. The stop wall 36
The flat tube 11 inserted in the screw groove 35 is prevented from falling off.

The tube support mechanism 5 includes a flat tube 11
Pillars 5 erected on the floor 10 at intervals somewhat wider than the length L
1, 51, a rotating shaft 52 rotatably mounted on the upper ends of the columns 51, 51, and a motor 53 for rotating the rotating shaft 52. A turning arm 54 is attached to the turning shaft 52, and the turning arm 54 has seven fingers 55 that can be inserted into the guide slope 41 through the slit 44 in the distal direction. Hand 56 and telescopic hand 5
Six cylinders 57 are attached. The motor 53 and the cylinder 57 are controlled by the control mechanism 6.

The guide slope 41 has an input port 46 of the flat tube 11 whose upper end is opened immediately below the screw groove 35.
The lower end is an outlet 47 for taking out the flat tube 11 in the horizontal direction. A tube mounting table 48 on which the flat tubes 11 stacked in a line in the width direction in a vertical position are connected to the outlet 47, and a movable tube stopper 49 is provided on the upper surface of the tube mounting table 48. .

As shown in FIG. 3A, the first flat tube 11 inserted into the guide slope 41 from the input port 46 has its lower surface supported by the fingers 55 of the extended telescopic hand 56 and falls downward. Is prevented. As shown in (b) of FIG.
Are rotated in such a manner as to push down, and are overlapped in the thickness E direction, and shift downward from horizontal to vertical with the rotation of the rotation arm 54.

When a predetermined number of flat tubes 11 are accommodated in the guide slope 41, as shown in FIG.
Temporarily retracts the telescopic hand 56 and pivots upward (left rotation direction in the figure), pushes the telescopic hand 56 on the upper end of the flat tube 11 and pushes it downward. At this time, the first flat tube 11 and the flat tube 11 in the vicinity thereof are vertically overlapped with each other, and the flat tube 11 is attached to the movable tube stopper 49 on the upper surface of the tube installation base 48 at the lower end near the horizontal of the guide slope 41. Since the lower surface support 11 is transferred, it does not fall off.

Thus, a predetermined number of flat tubes 11
Is pushed out from the outlet 47 to the tube installation table 48, but the first flat tube 11 and the flat tube 11 in the vicinity thereof are supported by the tube stopper 49, and the vertical posture is maintained. The flat tubes 11 on the tube mounting table 48 which are arranged in a line in the width direction in this vertical posture are packed by a human hand or a robot. In this embodiment,
The time required from the supply to the tube transport mechanism 2 to the alignment to the tube setting table 48 can be shortened to about 0.1 second for one flat tube 11.

Incidentally, by arranging two tube support mechanisms 5 on the chute 4 and alternately supporting and extruding a predetermined number of flat tubes 11, the alignment operation can be continued.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a tube alignment device.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the tube alignment device.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the tube alignment device for explaining the operation.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the tube alignment device for explaining the operation.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional tube forming, cutting, and conveying device.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a tube alignment device as a comparative example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 Flat tube aligning device 2 Tube transport mechanism 3 Tube lowering mechanism 4 Chute 5 Tube support mechanism 6 Control mechanism 11 Flat tube 22 Pinch roll 33 Motor (drive means) 34 Vertical screw (vertical screw) 35 Screw groove 41 Guide slope 46 Input port 47 Outlet port 54 Rotating arm 56 Telescopic hand

Claims (4)

[Claims] A plurality of vertical screws arranged horizontally at intervals shorter than the length of the flat tube, and a driving means for the vertical screws; A tube lowering mechanism for lowering the flat tube that has been engaged with each of the screw grooves of the plurality of longitudinal screws and lowering the same; A chute having a substantially quarter-cylindrical guide slope communicating between the inlet and the outlet, and a flat tube inserted into the guide slope supported from below. A flat tube aligning device, comprising: a tube support mechanism for preventing falling and rotating one by one while stacking flat tubes successively placed in the thickness direction. 2. The flat tube aligning device according to claim 1, further comprising: a pinch roll and a driving unit for the pinch roll, the flat tube being held by the pinch roll being provided before the tube lowering mechanism. A flat tube aligning device, comprising: a tube transport mechanism that horizontally carries out a tube in a longitudinal direction with a major axis of a cross section of the tube being substantially horizontal and inserts the tube into the screw groove. 3. The flat tube aligning device according to claim 1, wherein the tube support mechanism includes a rotating arm that rotates around a center axis of the guide slope, and a tip end of the rotating arm. It comprises a telescopic hand that is telescopically attached, driving means for the rotating arm and the telescopic hand, and a control mechanism for the driving means, wherein the control mechanism is pushed into the guide slope from the input port. The lower surface of the flat tube is supported by the extended telescopic hand, and when the number of the flat tubes reaches a predetermined number, the telescopic hand is shrunk to rotate, and then the telescopic hand is extended to extend the upper surface of the uppermost flat tube. A flat tube group is pushed out from the outlet by pressing the flat tube group. 4. The flat tube aligning device according to claim 1, wherein the tube lowering mechanism comprises:
Detecting means for detecting the intrusion of the flat tube, and a control mechanism of the screw driving means, when the intrusion of the flat tube is detected, until the flat tube in the screw groove reaches the inlet, the screw is moved. An apparatus for aligning a flat tube, which is rotated.