JP2001231125A - Rubber plug inserting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a highly reliable rubber plug inserting apparatus that can prevent defective insertion of a rubber cap to the end portion of a wire without necessity of checking for supplement of rubber plug to a worker. SOLUTION: A rubber plug inserting apparatus 10 comprises a passing check sensor 71 for detecting, at the predetermined position, passing of a plurality of rubber plugs 14 provided at an aligning feeder 16 and transferred in the aligned condition, a control section 72 for determining the rubber plug supply failure when the passing check sensor 71 does not detect the passing of rubber plugs 14 for the predetermined period, and a notifying means 73 for notifying the rubber plug supply failure. In addition to an accommodation drum 15 for accommodating a plurality of rubber plugs 14, a rubber plug supply section 11 including a aligning feeder 16 for sequentially transferring a plurality of rubber plugs 14 in the aligned condition, and a rubber plug loading section 13 for loading the rubber plugs 14 supplied from this rubber plug supply section 11 to the wire end portion, are provided. Owing to such structure, it is no longer required to always monitor the remaining amount of the rubber plugs 14, thereby preventing insertion failure of rubber plug 14.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rubber plug insertion device for attaching a rubber plug to an end of an electric wire.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a rubber plug insertion device includes a rubber plug supply unit that stores a large number of rubber plugs to be attached to the ends of electric wires and sequentially aligns and sends the rubber plugs, a rubber plug transfer unit, and a rubber plug mounting unit. And As shown in FIG. 7, the rubber stopper supply section includes a storage drum 1 and an alignment feeder 3 that aligns and feeds the rubber stoppers 2 supplied from the storage drum 1 in a line. A large number of rubber stoppers 2 are loaded into the storage drum 1 as needed, and the rotation of the drum causes the rubber stoppers 2 to move.
Drop into the groove 3A of the alignment feeder 3 so that the rubber plugs 2 are sequentially pushed out. The rubber plug 2 pushed out along the alignment feeder 3 in this way reaches the rubber plug pushing-out portion 4 and is pushed out to the rubber plug mounting portion 5 at a predetermined timing.

[0003]

However, in the conventional rubber plug insertion device provided with the above rubber plug supply section, if the number of the rubber plugs 2 in the storage drum is insufficient, the rubber is inserted into the groove 3A of the alignment feeder 3. Stopper 2 can no longer be inserted and alignment feeder 3
There is a problem that the rubber stopper 2 placed on the upper part stops moving and the rubber stopper 2 cannot be carried to the rubber stopper pushing part 4.

When replenishing the rubber stopper 2 to the storage drum 1, an operator visually judges the number of rubber stoppers 2 in the storage drum 1 and inserts the rubber stopper 2. For this reason, if the worker forgets to refill the rubber plug 2 or delays replenishment, the operation of mounting the rubber plug 2 on the electric wire terminal is continued without the rubber plug 2 being supplied, so-called empty insertion. However, there was a problem that it would progress.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a highly reliable rubber plug insertion device which can prevent empty insertion of a rubber plug into an electric wire terminal without requiring an operator to confirm refilling of a rubber plug. I have.

[0006]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A rubber stopper supply unit having a storage drum for accommodating a plurality of rubber stoppers, an alignment feeder for sequentially transporting the plurality of rubber stoppers in the storage drum in an aligned state, and a rubber stopper supply unit. A rubber plug insertion device comprising a rubber plug mounting portion for mounting the rubber plug to an electric wire terminal, wherein the rubber plug is provided in the alignment feeder and passes through the plurality of rubber plugs conveyed in an aligned state at a predetermined position. And a control unit for determining that the supply of the rubber plug is defective when the passage confirmation sensor does not detect the passage of the rubber plug for a certain period of time, and a notification unit for notifying that the supply of the rubber plug is defective. It is characterized by the following.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the passage confirmation sensor detects that the rubber plug does not pass through the alignment feeder for a predetermined time (detects a shortage of supply), the detection signal is sent to the control unit. And the control section outputs a notification drive signal to the notification means based on the detection signal. The notification means generates a recognition signal (a signal such as an alarm or a blinking of a lamp) for causing the worker to recognize the insufficient supply of the rubber plug by, for example, sound or light. For this reason, the worker does not need to monitor the rubber plug supply state of the rubber plug insertion device, and the number of operation steps can be reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the rubber plug insertion device according to the first aspect, wherein the control unit stops the operation of the rubber plug insertion device when the rubber plug supply is insufficient. .

Therefore, according to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect, when the passage recognition sensor detects the insufficient supply of the rubber plug in the alignment feeder, it outputs a detection signal to the control unit. The control unit outputs a control signal for stopping the operation of the rubber plug insertion device. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the empty insertion operation of inserting the rubber plug into the wire terminal without the rubber plug. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the rubber stopper from erroneously supplying the unmounted wire harness.

[0010] Further, the invention according to claim 3 is based on claim 1.
Or the rubber stopper insertion device according to claim 2, wherein the alignment feeder is configured to vibrate the elongate transport table provided from the storage drum to the rubber plug mounting unit side. A vibration drive source for sending the rubber plugs aligned in a row on the carrier to the rubber stopper mounting portion side, wherein the passage confirmation sensor is arranged in the middle of the carrier. .

Therefore, according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first and second aspects of the present invention, the rubber plug placed on the alignment feeder can be efficiently removed by vibrating the vibration driving source. And it can be reliably conveyed to the rubber stopper mounting part side.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The details of a rubber plug insertion device according to the present invention will be described below based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view of a rubber plug insertion device 10 of the present embodiment,
FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device 10, and FIG. 3 is a side view of the terminal side of the device 10. As shown in FIG.
Numeral 0 generally comprises a rubber plug supply section 11, a rubber plug transfer section 12, and a rubber plug mounting section 13 on a base B.

The rubber stopper supply section 11 includes a housing drum 15 for accommodating a large number of rubber stoppers 14, and an alignment feeder 16 for aligning the rubber stoppers 14 supplied from the storage drum 15 in a line and sending them to the rubber transfer section 12. And In the rubber stopper supply unit 11, the accommodating drum 15 makes a rotational movement, so that a large number of rubber stoppers 14 accommodated in the accommodating drum 15 fall one by one into the alignment groove 16A of the alignment feeder 16, and are sequentially. The rubber stopper 14 is pushed out to the rubber transfer section 12 side.

A vibration device 70 is provided below the alignment feeder 16 as a vibration drive source for applying a slight vibration to the alignment feeder 16 in order to smoothly send the rubber plug 14 on the alignment feeder 16 to the rubber plug transfer section 12. Are connected.

In the middle of the alignment feeder 16, a pair of passage recognition sensors 71 are disposed so as to face both sides in the width direction. This passage recognition sensor 71
Detects that the rubber stopper 14 has not passed over the alignment feeder 16 for a certain period of time at this installation position. This pass recognition sensor 71 is, as shown in FIG.
It is connected to the control unit 72. Further, the control unit 72
For example, it is connected to notification means 73 such as an alarm device.
Therefore, when the passage recognition sensor 71 does not pass through the rubber plug 14 for a certain period of time, a supply shortage signal is output to the control unit 72.

The controller 72 outputs a drive signal for driving the notifying means 73 when the supply shortage signal is input. As a result, by the operation of the notification means 73,
The operator can immediately recognize that the number of the rubber stoppers 14 in the storage drum 15 is insufficient, and
Can be used as a guide for performing the replenishment work. Further, the control unit 72 outputs a control signal for stopping the operation of the rubber plug insertion device 10 when the supply shortage signal is input from the passage recognition sensor 71. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the empty insertion operation from being performed without the rubber stopper 14.

The rubber stopper delivery section 12 is provided with the alignment feeder 1.
6 is provided with a rubber plug push-out portion 17 disposed at the end portion (an end portion located on the downstream side of the flow of the rubber plug 14), and a rotary transfer portion 18 disposed above the rubber plug push-out portion 17. ing.

Here, the configuration of the rubber plug pushing section 17 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4A is a front view of the rubber stopper pushing section 17, and FIG. 4B is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. As shown in FIG. 4B, the rubber plug push-out portion 17 includes an escape base 20 in which a pin insertion space 19 penetrating vertically is formed, and a pin insertion space 19.
It has an escape pin 21 fitted up and down so as to be able to move up and down, and a rubber plug standby portion 22 formed above the pin insertion space 19.

The rubber plug standby section 22 is a gap communicating with the alignment groove 16A of the alignment feeder 16, and the rubber plug 14 which has reached the rubber plug standby section 22 is moved by the escape pin 21 to the rotary transfer section 18 side. (Upward). As shown in FIG. 4B, a transfer pin insertion recess 21A into which a tip of a transfer pin 29 described later can be inserted is formed at the upper end of the escape pin 21.

The escape pin 21 is moved up and down in the pin insertion space 19 below the escape pin 21.
The large-diameter portion 23 that defines the vertical up-and-down stroke is integrally formed. Further, a flange 24 having a diameter larger than that of the large-diameter portion 23 is formed integrally with a lower portion of the large-diameter portion 23 and moves up and down in the pin insertion space 19 together with the large-diameter portion 23.

Further, a piston rod 25 extending downward is integrally formed below the flange portion 24. The lower part of the piston rod 25 is introduced into a jig cylinder (not shown), and is driven up and down by the jig cylinder.

The large diameter portion 2 is provided on the flange portion 24.
The coil spring 26 is arranged in a compressed state so as to surround the escape pin 3 and the escape pin 21. The upper end of the coil spring 26 is connected to the upper end surface 1 of the pin insertion space 19.
9A is in contact. For this reason, the flange portion 24 is constantly urged downward by the coil spring 26.

Next, the structure of the rotary transfer section 18 which constitutes the rubber plug transfer section 12 together with the rubber plug pushing section 17 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIG. In addition,
FIG. 5A is a front explanatory view showing the positional relationship among the rubber plug pushing section 17, the rotation transfer section 18, and the rubber plug mounting section 13, and FIG.
(B) is an explanatory plan view showing the positional relationship among the rubber plug pushing-out part 17, the rotation transfer part 18, and the rubber plug mounting part 13.

The rotary transfer section 18 is provided with a rubber stopper pushing section 17.
A rotating shaft 27 disposed above and along the horizontal direction, and a rotating block 28 fixed to the rotating shaft 27.
And four transfer pins 29 fixed around the rotating block 28 at right angles to each other.

Further, as shown in FIG.
A transmission pulley 30 that extends toward the side of the device and receives the transmission of the rotational driving force is journaled and fixed. further,
As shown in the figure, a drive shaft 31 is arranged in the lower part of the apparatus in parallel with the rotary shaft 27, and a drive pulley 32 is supported by the drive shaft 31. The transmission-side pulley 30 and the drive-side pulley 32 are attached to an endless belt 33.
Is wrapped around.

The rotation of the drive shaft 31 is set so as to rotate the rotation shaft 27 by 90 °, and the timing of the rotation is defined in accordance with the operation of the rubber plug mounting portion 13 described later. I have. The rotation direction of the transfer pin 29 is clockwise in FIG. 1, and the transfer pin 29 that has passed the rubber stopper 14 from the rubber stopper push-out unit 17.
Is configured to supply the rubber plug 14 to the rubber plug mounting portion 29 described later by rotating the rubber plug 14 by 90 °.

Next, the configuration of the rubber plug mounting portion 13 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 5. The rubber plug mounting portion 13 of the present embodiment is provided on the apparatus main body side and is capable of moving up and down and moving in the mounting front and rear direction. A pair of upper and lower rubber plug holders 36, a lower rubber plug holder 37 and an upper insertion guide 38, A lower insertion guide 39 is provided.

The structure of the upper rubber stopper holder 36 will be described. The upper rubber stopper holder 36 is, as shown in FIG.
A rubber stopper accommodating recess 45 for accommodating an upper half of the rubber stopper 14 (a half divided by a plane passing through the rotation axis of the rubber stopper 14) is formed on a lower surface. As shown in FIG. 5 (a), the upper insertion guide 38 has an insertion protrusion 49 having a groove 49A on its lower surface and having an arcuate cross section to be inserted into the cylindrical hole of the rubber plug 14 to secure an electric wire insertion passage. Has been established. Lower rubber stopper holder 37
A rubber stopper housing recess 58 for housing the lower half of the rubber stopper 14 is formed on the upper surface. The lower insertion guide 39 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), an insertion projection 62 having an arc-shaped cross section and having a groove 62A on the upper surface is provided so as to be inserted into the cylindrical hole of the rubber plug 14 to secure an electric wire insertion passage. And
The above-mentioned upper and lower rubber plug holders 36 and 37 and the upper and lower insertion guides 38 and 39 can be operated to move closer to and away from each other and to move in the front-rear direction of the apparatus by driving means (not shown). Therefore, the rubber stopper 14 can be captured and moved to the electric wire side.

By the way, behind the rubber plug mounting portion 13 (on the side opposite to the rotary transfer portion 18), an electric wire terminal holding portion 66 is arranged as shown in FIG. As shown in the drawing, the wire terminal holding portion 66 is supplied and arranged every time a wire terminal 67 to which the rubber plug 14 is attached is provided.

The configuration of the rubber plug insertion device 10 of the present embodiment has been described above.
The operation and operation of 0 will be described.

First, the accommodating drum 15 of the rubber stopper supply section 11
The inner rubber stopper 14 is arranged on the alignment feeder 16 in accordance with the rotation and vibration of the storage drum 15 and sequentially sends out the rubber stopper 14. At this time, since the alignment feeder 16 is vibrated by the vibration device 70, the rubber stopper 14 can be transported smoothly. The rubber plug 14 that has moved along the alignment feeder 16 and reached the rubber plug standby section 22 (see FIG. 5A) of the rubber alignment push-out section 17 is pushed upward by the escape pin 21 at a predetermined timing. . At this time, since the transfer pin 29 of the rotary transfer unit 18 is waiting above the rubber plug standby unit 22, as a result of the rise of the rubber plug 14,
The transfer pin 29 is inserted and held in the cylindrical hole of the rubber stopper 14 (the state shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B).

Next, the rubber stopper 1 is attached to the transfer pin 29 facing downward.
After 4 is held, the drive shaft 31 of the drive-side pulley 32 is rotated by a predetermined rotation angle based on a drive signal output by a control unit (not shown). Accordingly, the rotation of the rotation block 28 is transmitted via the endless belt 33 and the transmission-side pulley 30, and the rotation block 28 performs a 90 ° rotation. By this rotational movement, the transfer pin 29 holding the rubber stopper 14 becomes
It is close to the rubber stopper mounting part 13.

In such a state, the rubber stopper mounting portion 1
In 3, the upper and lower rubber stopper holders 36 and 37 move to positions above and below the rubber stopper 14 held by the transfer pins 29. Thereafter, the rubber stopper 14 is wrapped and accommodated and held by the rubber stopper accommodating recesses 45, 58 of the upper and lower rubber stopper holders 36, 37.
While maintaining this state, the driving means rearward (rubber stopper 1).
The rubber stopper 14 can be separated from the transfer pin 29 by transferring the same in the direction of pulling out the transfer pin 29 from the transfer pin 29). Thereafter, the upper and lower insertion guides 38 and 39 are joined and inserted into the cylindrical hole of the rubber stopper 14 to secure a wire insertion space.

By bringing the rubber plug mounting portion 13 holding the rubber plug 14 and the wire terminal holding portion 66 relatively close to each other, the wire terminal 6 is inserted into the cylindrical hole of the rubber plug 14.
7 can be inserted. Subsequent processing may be performed by a known terminal processing step. After attaching the rubber plug 14 to one electric wire terminal 67 in this way, the new electric wire terminal 67 is set in the electric wire terminal holding portion 66 and the above process is repeated, so that the mounting of the rubber plug 14 is continuously performed. It can be performed efficiently and efficiently.

In particular, in this embodiment, the alignment feeder 16
If the passage recognition sensor 71 detects that the rubber plug 14 has not passed for a certain period of time, the supply shortage signal is output to the control unit 72. The control section 72 outputs a drive signal to the notifying means 73 based on the supply shortage signal. The notifying means 73 which has received the drive signal makes it possible for the operator to recognize that the rubber stopper 14 is insufficient by performing, for example, an alarm or blinking of a lamp.

In the rubber plug insertion device 10 according to the present embodiment, the control unit 72 controls the passage recognition sensor 71 by the above-described configuration.
When the supply shortage signal is input from the
A control signal for stopping the operation of the device is output. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the empty insertion operation from being performed without the rubber stopper 14.

The control section 72 of the rubber plug insertion device 10 of the present embodiment includes the following control contents in addition to the above control. Hereinafter, the control method will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the operation of the rubber plug insertion device 10 is started (step S1), and it is determined whether or not the passage recognition sensor 71 is ON (step S2). As a result, if the passage recognition sensor 71 is ON, the process proceeds to step S3. If the passage recognition sensor 71 is in the ON state, it is next determined whether the rubber stopper 14 is returning to the home position or moving to the standby position (step S3).

If NO in step S3, the rubber plug insertion device 10 is stopped, and if YES, the process proceeds to the next step S4. In step S4, it is determined whether another error has occurred. If there are any other errors,
The operation of the rubber plug insertion device 10 is stopped. If no error has occurred outside, it is determined whether or not the start command of the rubber plug insertion operation is ON (Step S).
5). If the start command for the rubber plug insertion operation is ON, the timer of the passage recognition sensor 71 is started (step S6).

Next, the timer of the passage recognition sensor 71 is set to 30.
It is determined whether or not seconds have elapsed (step S7). If 30 seconds have elapsed, the control in step S8 is performed to cause a rubber plug supply failure error. In other words, when the operator replenishes the rubber stopper 14 into the storage drum 15 and presses the error reset switch, the controller 7
In step 2, an error reset is performed (step S9).

Although the embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and various changes accompanying the gist of the configuration are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, when a supply shortage signal is output from the passage recognition sensor 71 provided in the alignment feeder 16 of the rubber plug supply unit 11,
Although the control for stopping the operation of the rubber plug insertion device 10 at the same time as the driving of the notification means 73 is performed, any one of the controls may be performed.

In the above embodiment, the rubber stopper 14
Is transferred to the rubber stopper mounting section 13 using the rotary transfer section 18, but other transfer means may be applied.

[0043]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, it is not necessary for an operator to monitor the rubber plug supply state of the rubber plug insertion device, and the number of work steps can be reduced. effective.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, when the passage recognition sensor detects an insufficient supply of the rubber plug in the alignment feeder, a detection signal is sent to the control unit. The control unit outputs a control signal for stopping the operation of the rubber plug insertion device, so that the effect of preventing the empty insertion operation of performing the rubber plug insertion operation on the wire terminal without the rubber plug is performed. is there. As a result, it is possible to reliably prevent the rubber plug from erroneously supplying an unmounted wire harness, and to obtain a highly reliable rubber plug insertion device.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first and second aspects of the present invention, by vibrating the vibration driving source, the rubber stopper placed on the alignment feeder can be removed. There is an effect that the transfer can be efficiently and reliably performed to the rubber stopper mounting portion side.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of a rubber plug insertion device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the rubber plug insertion device of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the rubber plug insertion device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4A is a front view of a main part showing a rubber stopper pushing portion in the embodiment, and FIG. 4B is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 5A is a front view showing a positional relationship between a rubber plug transfer section 12 and a rubber plug mounting section 13 in the rubber plug insertion device of the embodiment, and FIG. 5B is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a control method according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a rubber plug supply unit in a conventional rubber plug insertion device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Rubber plug insertion device 11 Rubber plug supply part 13 Rubber plug mounting part 14 Rubber plug 15 Housing drum 16 Alignment feeder 67 Electric wire terminal 70 Vibration device 71 Passage recognition sensor 72 Control unit 73 Notification means

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A rubber stopper supply unit having a storage drum for accommodating a plurality of rubber stoppers, an alignment feeder for sequentially transporting the plurality of rubber stoppers in the storage drum in an aligned state, and a rubber stopper supply unit. And a rubber plug mounting unit for mounting the rubber plug supplied from the unit to an electric wire terminal, the rubber plug insertion device comprising: a plurality of the rubber plugs provided in the alignment feeder and conveyed in an aligned state. A passage confirmation sensor that detects passage at a predetermined position, a control unit that determines that the rubber stopper supply is defective when the passage confirmation sensor does not detect the passage of the rubber stopper for a certain period of time, and notifies that the rubber stopper supply is defective. A rubber plug insertion device comprising a notification means. 2. The rubber plug insertion device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stops the operation of the rubber plug insertion device when the rubber plug supply is insufficient. 3. The rubber stopper insertion device according to claim 1, wherein the aligning feeder includes a long conveyance table disposed from the storage drum to the rubber stopper mounting portion. A vibration drive source that sends the rubber plugs aligned in a row on the carrier by vibrating the carrier to the rubber stopper mounting portion side, wherein the passage confirmation sensor is disposed in the middle of the carrier. A rubber stopper insertion device characterized by being carried out.