JP2003001535A - Workpiece supporting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a workpiece supporting apparatus which can be used in common for a plurality of kinds of workpieces at low cost. SOLUTION: The workpiece supporting apparatus comprises a plurality of workpiece supporting means 10 which has an abutting part 111 abut-able against the workpiece W and can support one workpiece W in cooperation with each other, guiding means 20 for movably guiding the workpiece supporting means 10 such that the abutting part 111 can move in the vertical direction by the movement of the guiding means 20, movement restricting means 25 which can restrict the downward movement of the abutting part 111 to arbitrary height and release the restriction, moving means 30 which can automatically operate to move the workpiece supporting means 10 such that the abutting part 111 comes to the set height so as to correspond to the various kinds of workpieces W when the moving means 30 has been positioned at the required position corresponding to each workpiece supporting means 10, and transferring means 40 which can automatically transfer the elevating means 30 by turns to the required position corresponding to each workpiece supporting means 10.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a work supporting device for positioning and mounting a work for punching or welding the work, and in particular, to easily support a plurality of types of works having different shapes. The present invention relates to a work supporting device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a laser beam has been used for drilling and welding without applying a pressing force to a work. This is due to the slight difference in specifications of the work,
This is because partial processing can be easily performed when changing the hole position or adding a mounting part. When such non-contact processing is performed, since no pressing force is applied to the work, it is sufficient to simply position and support the work.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6, a workpiece machining apparatus 100 for machining a synthetic resin bumper of an automobile with a laser beam is provided in front of an articulated robot 70 in which a laser torch 72 is attached to a wrist 71 at the tip of an arm. , Two work supporting devices 200 for positioning and placing a synthetic resin bumper, which is the work W, are installed on the turntable 500, and the robot 70 punches the work W set on one of the work supporting devices 200. Next, the next work W is set in the other work supporting device 200 and is made to stand by, and when the drilling of the previous work W is completed, the turntable 50
The next work W that has already been set by rotating 0
Is processed by the robot 70, the work W that has been processed is taken out from the work supporting device 200, and the next work W is further placed on the empty work supporting device 200 to be used by waiting. It

That is, the work supporting device 200 is placed in the reference hole 540 on the turntable 500 so as to be positioned by the reference pin 430. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the rotary disk 500 has a V-shaped structure in which a disk-shaped upper plate 510 and a lower plate 520 are pivotally supported by a rotary shaft 530, and the disk-shaped upper plate 510 and the lower plate 520 face each other near the outer periphery of the plates 510 and 520. A groove is formed, and a large number of rotating balls 550 are arranged in the V-shaped groove to rotatably support the upper plate 510 on the lower plate 520. And the upper plate 51
The reference pin 43 provided on the base frame 400 of the work supporting device 200 is provided with two pairs of reference holes 540 at appropriate positions.
By inserting 0 into this reference hole 540,
If a plurality of types of this work supporting device 200 are prepared by deciding the position on 0, they can be placed at substantially the same position.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the work supporting device 200 is mounted on a base frame 400 made of a rectangular thick steel plate which is positioned by inserting a reference pin 430 into a reference hole 540 of an upper plate 510 of a turntable 500. A plurality of plate-shaped brackets 410 are erected at substantially equal intervals, a plate-shaped or block-shaped work receiving portion 420 matching the cross-sectional shape of the work W is attached above the brackets 410, and the work receiving portion 420 is provided. A work W is placed on top. In particular,
A bumper (workpiece W) having a substantially U-shaped cross section is provided with a work receiving portion 420 having an outer shape having the same shape as the inner wall surface of the U-shaped cross section so that the U-shaped cross section opens downward. The work W is attached to the bracket 410 so as to match a plurality of lateral cross sections and heights of W, and the work W is placed and fixed on the work receiving portion 420.

[0006]

However, in this conventional work supporting device 200, since the work receiving portion 420 uses only one work W, a plurality of kinds of works W are processed. Is a work supporting device 200 having a work receiving portion 420 having a shape for each work W.
Had to be prepared, and there was a problem that the equipment cost was high for a large variety of small-scale production. In addition, preparing such various kinds of work supporting devices 200 requires a large space in the factory, and requires a lot of setup time such as frequent replacement of the work supporting devices 200 on the turntable 500, which is short. It was not easy to switch to many types of work W in.

For this reason, individually independent shaft cylinders 800 as shown in FIG. 8 are prepared for each work receiving portion, and a large number of these shaft cylinders 800 are arranged side by side to form the piston rod 8 thereof.
It is conceivable that the height of the work receiving part attached to the tip of 10 is adjusted by the control device 820 connected by the wiring / piping 830 to correspond to the cross section of the work W, and thus adapted to various kinds of works. . However, in such a work supporting device 200, there are many shaft cylinders 80.
Since the control device 820 is required for each 0, the cost is high,
It wasn't practical.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive work supporting device which can be commonly used for plural kinds of works in order to solve such a problem.

[0009]

A work supporting device according to the present invention is a work supporting device that can be commonly used for a plurality of types of works having different shapes, and has a contact portion at one end that can contact the work. A plurality of work supporting means capable of supporting one work in cooperation with each other; guide means for movably guiding the work supporting means so that the contact portion moves up and down by the movement thereof; It is possible to regulate the downward movement of the abutting portion at an arbitrary height, and to automatically release the movement regulating means capable of releasing this regulation and predetermined positions corresponding to the work supporting means. And moving means for moving the work supporting means so that the abutting portion has a height set corresponding to the various works, and a predetermined moving means for moving the moving means. Can be automatically transferred to the position in sequence Characterized in that it comprises a feed means. According to this structure, the moving means sequentially transfers the moving means to the corresponding predetermined positions of the respective work supporting means, while the moving means arranges the respective work supporting means, and the abutting portions thereof are arranged along the shape of the work. Thus, it can be automatically moved to a preset position. Therefore, since only one moving means is required to move the plurality of work supporting means, it is possible to obtain an inexpensive work supporting device suitable for a large variety of small quantity production.

Further, in the work supporting device according to the present invention, the work supporting means has an operating portion operated by the moving means, and is movable by this operation. The operating units are arranged in one row and can be operated in the same direction. Therefore, since the operation units operated by the moving unit are arranged in one row and can be operated in the same direction, the transfer unit for transferring the moving unit operating the operation unit is simplified, and the moving unit and the transfer unit are moved. Resetting to another work based on teaching can be done in a short time.

Further, the work supporting apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the movement restricting means allows the movement of the work supporting means such that the contact portion moves upward in the restricted state. Therefore, the movement of the work supporting means until the contact portion of the work supporting means comes into contact with the work is allowed.
When the movement is stopped further, the position can be fixed automatically, and the work can be surely supported.

Further, the work supporting apparatus according to the present invention is characterized by comprising control means capable of simultaneously operating the movement restricting means in the restricted and deregulated states. Therefore,
By restricting a plurality of work supporting means at the same time, the contact portion can be positioned based on teaching, and by releasing the restriction at the same time, switching of the work supporting means to the next work can be set in a short time.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, an embodiment of a work supporting device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The work supporting device of the present embodiment is provided in a work processing device for a synthetic resin bumper of a vehicle.
Here, FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing a work processing device for a synthetic resin bumper, and FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a work supporting device.

(Structure) First, the structure of a work processing device for a synthetic resin bumper to which the work supporting device of the present embodiment is applied will be described. Workpiece processing device 1 for synthetic resin bumpers
As shown in FIG. 1, a multi-joint robot 70 having a laser torch 72 attached to a wrist 71 in order to make a hole for attaching an optional part of a synthetic resin bumper as a work W, and the multi-joint robot. A work supporting device 2 including a work supporting means 10, a guiding means 20, a moving means 30, a transferring means 40, a base frame 60, and the like is placed on a turntable 50 installed in front of 70. The work support means 10 is configured to position and fix a bumper which is the work W.

Next, the structure of the work supporting device 2 of the present embodiment will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the work supporting device 2 includes a plurality of work supporting means 10 for supporting the work W by contacting the surface of the work W, and a guiding means for guiding the vertical movement of each work supporting means 10. 20 and the operation portion 13 at the lower end of the work supporting means 10 protruding from the guiding means 20 to press each work supporting means 10 into contact with the contact portion 1.
Moving means 30 for moving 11 so as to be arranged along the surface of the work W, transfer means 40 for sequentially transferring this moving means 30 to a position where each operating portion 13 can be pressed, and these work supporting means 10, guides. Means 20, moving means 30
And a base frame 60 for positioning and fixing the transfer means 40 via a pillar 61.

The work supporting means 10 includes a support shaft 11 having a cylindrical shaft portion 112 as shown in FIG. 3 and a spherical contact portion 111 provided on the upper end of the shaft portion 112 for contacting a work, and the support shaft. Wire 12 connected to the lower end of shaft 11
And an operating portion 13 attached to the other end of the wire 12. Further, a stopper 113 extending from the shaft 112 in an eaves-like shape is provided at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the shaft 112.
And a sawtooth 114 having a downwardly inclined surface is formed on a part of the outer surface of the shaft 112 below the stopper 113. The thickness direction of the work W (in the case of a bumper,
Two rows of work supporting means 10 are provided in the vertical direction when mounted on a vehicle.

The guide means 20 is connected to the outer cylinder 21 into which the shaft 112 is slidably movable, and the lower end of the outer cylinder 21, and the guide pipe 2 in which the wire 12 is inserted.
3, a lower end of the guide pipe 23 is connected, and a base block 24 having a slide hole 241 in which the operation portion 13 is slidably inserted is provided at a corresponding position to which the guide pipe 23 is connected; Holding plate 2 for positioning and fixing the cylinder 21
2 and.

The outer cylinder 21 has a flange portion 211 formed at the upper end,
A bottom portion 21 having a wire through hole 213 at the center at the lower end
2 has a bottomed cylindrical shape, and a lateral hole 21 is formed on the outer surface of the intermediate portion in the up-down direction facing the serrated teeth 114 of the shaft portion 112.
4 is provided. Then, a plurality of the outer cylinders 21 are held on the holding plate 22, the lateral holes 214 face the opposite side of the holding plate 22, and the upper ends thereof are substantially parallel to the outer shape of the work W, and the outer cylinders are formed. Welding is carried out so that 21 has an equal pitch.

The base block 24 allows the prism to lie down,
Sliding holes 241 are vertically formed in a line in the longitudinal direction of the central portion in the number corresponding to the number of the work supporting means 10. The lower end of the guide pipe 23 is connected to the upper end of the sliding hole 241 to slide. The operation portion 13 projects downward from the lower end of the hole 241.

A movement restricting means 25 is provided above the lateral hole 214 of the outer cylinder 21. The movement restricting means 25 includes a base 251 attached to the outer cylinder 21, and the base 251.
Attached to the bracket 252, an L-shaped arm 253 having an intermediate portion supported by a shaft pin 257 provided on the bracket 252, and an electromagnet attached to the base 251 and capable of attracting one end (upper end) of the arm 253. 255
And a spring 256 mounted between the base 251 and the arm 253. The other end (lower end) of the arm 253 is bent into an L-shape and protrudes from the lateral hole 214 into the outer cylinder 21, and the tip thereof is a serrated tooth 114 of the support shaft 11.
When the electromagnet 255 is not energized, the pawl portion 254 is biased by the spring 256 in the direction in which it engages with the serrated teeth 114.

Next, the moving means 30 is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a lateral slide rail 41 of a transfer means 40 which will be described later.
The vertical slide rail 31 supported by the vertical slide rail 31 and the pressing rod 32 supported by the vertical slide rail 31. The vertical slide rail 31 may be a hydraulic cylinder, an electric cylinder, or the like that is attached to the pressing rod 32 and moves up and down.

Next, the transfer means 40 is arranged in parallel with the base block 24 of the guide means 20, and the moving means 30 is used.
The horizontal slide rail 41 that allows the vertical slide rail 31 to be horizontally moved can be used as long as the moving means 30 can be moved left and right.

And, a large number of these work supporting means 1
0, guiding means 20 and moving means 30, transfer means 40
As shown in the side view of FIG. 4, a guide pipe 23 having an upper end connected to the bottom portion 212 of the outer cylinder 21 of the guide means 20 provided on the left and right in FIG. The wire 1 connected to the sliding holes 241 arranged in a row in the block 24 and having the upper end inserted into the guide pipe 23
2 is connected to the lower end of the base block 24 so that the lower end abuts the lower end of the operating portion 13 protruding downward from the base block 24.
The pressing rod 32 is arranged so that the center thereof coincides with the center of the operating portion 13, and the base 61 is supported by the support column 61.
It is attached to 0. A reference pin is provided on the lower surface of the base frame 60 as in the conventional case, and a reference hole is formed in the turntable 50 to position the work supporting device 2.

(Operation) Next, the operation of the work supporting device will be described. First, the work supporting device 2 is set in the initial state. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the control means S is operated to energize the electromagnet 255 of the movement restricting means 25 attached to the outer cylinder 21 of the guide means 20 to bring it into a magnetized state, and the upper end of the arm 253 is electromagnet 255. Adsorbed on the arm 253
5 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 5 with the shaft pin 257 as the center of rotation, and the lower end claw portion 254 is provided with the sawtooth 1 of the support shaft 11.
The engagement with 14 is released and the regulation is released. Therefore, the support shaft 11 of the work supporting means 10 moves downward by its own weight, and the stopper 113 causes the outer cylinder 21 to move.
The initial state is that it comes into contact with the collar portion 211 and stops.

When the work W to be mounted on the work supporting device 2 is determined, the energization of the electromagnets 255 of all the movement restricting means 25 is stopped and the spring 253 repels the arm 253 around the shaft pin 257. In FIG. 5, the claw portion 254 is rotated in the clockwise direction so that the claw portion 254 can be engaged with the serrated teeth 114. Then, for example, the work supporting device 2
By moving the contact portions 111 of the work supporting means 10 at the four positions located on both the left and right ends of the movable body 30 to a predetermined height by the moving means 30, the claw portions 254 of the movement restricting means 25 and the serrated teeth 114 are engaged. The height of the support shaft 111 is maintained.

Work support device 2 in the above-described state
The work W is gently mounted so as to abut the abutting portions 111 of the work supporting means 10 at the left and right ends of the workpiece W, respectively. Then, the pressing rod 32 of the moving means 30 is moved laterally along the horizontal slide rail 41 of the transfer means 40 via the vertical slide rail 31, and the operating portion protruding from the sliding hole 241 of the base block 24. 13 is temporarily stopped below 13 and the pressing rod 32 is raised along the vertical slide rail 31, the upper end of the pressing rod 32 is brought into contact with the lower end of the operating portion 13, and further pushed upward to push the support shaft 11 downward. The contact portion 111 provided at the tip is raised until it contacts the lower surface of the work W. Then, the increased amount is stored in the storage device of the control means S. As described above, the support shaft 11 does not drop due to the engagement between the claw portion 254 of the movement restricting means 25 and the serrated teeth 114, and retains its position if the pushing rod 32 stops rising.

The push rod 32 is lowered to automatically stop the moving means 30 along the lateral slide rail 41 below the next operating portion 13, and at this position the push rod 32 is again raised to raise the support shaft 11. The abutting portion 111 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the work W, the above operation is repeated for each operation portion 13, and the initial teaching as the work supporting device 2 is completed. Based on this teaching result, the other work supporting device 2
The support shaft 11 of the work supporting means 10 is raised and held so as to correspond to the work W. This teaching operation
The processing is performed for each type of work to be processed, and is stored in the storage device of the control means S for each type of work.

Then, the work W is positioned and placed on the work supporting device 2, and the work W is laser-processed. Work W
While the laser beam is being laser-processed, the next workpiece W of the same type is mounted and set on another workpiece support device 2.
Then, when the laser processing of the previous work W is completed, the turntable 50 is rotated to position the next work W in front of the robot 70, the controller S is operated to operate the robot 70, and the robot 70 operates. While the work W is being laser processed, the work W is taken out and the work W placed on the front work support device 2 is taken out, and the next work W is mounted on the work support device 2 and stands by. . Thereafter, the laser processing of the works W is performed one after another in the same manner, and one lot is produced.

When the next lot, that is, another type of work W is to be produced, the work support device 2 is returned to the initial state. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the controller S is operated to energize the electromagnet 255 of the movement restricting means 25 to bring it into a magnetized state, and the upper end of the arm 253 is attracted to the electromagnet 255.
The arm 253 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 5 with the axis pin 257 as the center of rotation, and the claw portion 254 at the lower end is supported by the support shaft 1.
The engagement with the serrated teeth 114 provided on 11 is released to release the movement restriction. Then, the support shaft 11, the wire 12 and the operating portion 13 which constitute the work supporting means 10 are lowered by their own weights, and the stopper 113 causes the flange portion 21 of the outer cylinder 21.
Stand by in the initial state of contact with 1.

In the initial state of the work supporting device 2, the moving means 30 and the transferring means 40 are operated to move the work supporting means 10 based on the data previously taught, and a new work W is dealt with. The work supporting device 2 is used. That is, first, the moving means 30 is moved by the transfer means 40 to the operation portion 13 of the first work supporting means 10.
Is moved to the corresponding position and stopped, and the pushing rod 32 of the moving means 30 is raised by a required amount to push up the lower end of the operating portion 13. Then, the wire 12 and the support shaft 11 continuous with the operation portion 13 also rise, and the contact portion 111 rises by a required amount. At this time, since the energization of the electromagnet 255 of the movement restricting means 25 is stopped, the claw portion 254 of the arm 253 is urged by the spring 256 to engage one tooth of the serrated tooth 114 of the support shaft 11. While rising. Then, when the pushing rod 32 is lowered by stopping the ascent, the support shaft 11 is also lowered slightly, but the claw portion 254 engages with the serrated teeth 114 at that position to stop the fall of the support shaft 11 and abut. The part 111 is maintained at the required height.

Next, the transfer means 40 is automatically operated to move the pressing rod 32 of the moving means 30 to the next work supporting means 1.
0 is transferred to the corresponding position of the operating portion 13 and stopped, and the pressing rod 32 is automatically raised to press the operating portion 13 upward to maintain the contact portion 111 at a required height in the same manner as above. . By repeating this operation, all the work supporting means 10 are lifted and positioned so as to match the shape of the work W, and the work supporting device 2 having a new shape is formed. Then, a new work W is placed on the new work support device 2 and laser processing is performed to produce a new lot.

As described above, the plurality of work supporting means 10 having the abutting portion 111 capable of abutting the work W at one end and supporting one work W in cooperation with each other, and the work supporting means 10 are provided. Guide means 20 for movably guiding the contact portion 111 so as to move up and down by the movement thereof, and the downward movement of the contact portion 111 can be regulated at an arbitrary height, and Movement restriction means 25 capable of releasing the restriction,
When the work supporting means 10 is placed at a predetermined position corresponding to each work supporting means 10, the work supporting means 10 is automatically operated.
A moving means 30 for moving the contact portion 111 to a height set corresponding to the various works W;
Since the moving means 30 is provided with the transferring means 40 capable of automatically and sequentially transferring the moving means 30 to a predetermined position corresponding to each of the work supporting means 10, the moving means moves the moving means to a predetermined position corresponding to each work supporting means. It is possible to automatically move the respective work supporting means by the moving means to the preset position so that the abutting portion is arranged along the shape of the work while being sequentially transferred to the position. Therefore, since only one moving means is required to move the plurality of work supporting means, it is possible to obtain an inexpensive work supporting device suitable for small-lot production of various kinds.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, in the above embodiment,
Although the base block of the guiding means is provided with the sliding holes in a straight line, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same number of rows as the rows of the work supporting means can be used. Further, although the work processing device in which the work supporting device is placed on the rotary plate has been shown, the work supporting device may slide laterally instead of the rotary plate.

[0034]

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is a work supporting device that can be commonly used for a plurality of types of works having different shapes, and has a contact portion at one end that can contact the work, and cooperates with each other to form one work. A plurality of work supporting means capable of supporting the work, a guiding means for movably guiding the work supporting means so that the contact portion moves up and down by the movement, and the contact portion moving downward. Can be regulated at an arbitrary height, and movement regulation means capable of releasing this regulation, and automatically actuated when arranged at a predetermined position corresponding to each work supporting means,
Moving means for moving the work supporting means so that the contact portion has a height set corresponding to the various works, and the moving means is automatically automatically moved to predetermined positions corresponding to the respective work supporting means. Since the transfer means sequentially transfers the moving means to the corresponding predetermined positions of the respective work supporting means, the moving means moves the respective work supporting means to the contact portion thereof. At a preset position so that is arranged along the shape of the workpiece,
It can be moved automatically. Therefore, only one moving means for moving the plurality of work supporting means is required.
It has become possible to obtain an inexpensive work support device suitable for various types of small-quantity production.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing a work processing device for a synthetic resin bumper to which a work supporting device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a work supporting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of work supporting means constituting the work supporting device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of the work supporting device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing the operation of the work supporting means that constitutes the work supporting device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an overall perspective view showing a work processing device for a synthetic resin bumper to which a conventional work supporting device is applied.

FIG. 7 is a front sectional view of a conventional work supporting device.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing another example of a conventional work supporting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Work processing equipment 2 Work support device 10 Work support means 11 Support shaft 13 Operation part 20 Guide means 21 Outer cylinder 23 Guide pipe 25 Movement restriction means 30 means of transportation 31 Vertical slide rail 32 pressing rod 40 Transfer means 41 Horizontal slide rail 50 turntable 60 base frame 70 Articulated robot W work

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A work supporting device that can be commonly used for a plurality of types of works having different shapes, and has a contact portion that can contact the work at one end, and can support one work in cooperation with each other. A plurality of workpiece supporting means, a guide means for movably guiding the workpiece supporting means so that the contact portion moves up and down by the movement, and a downward movement of the contact portion. And the movement restricting means capable of releasing the restriction, and automatically actuated when the work supporting means is placed at a predetermined position corresponding to each of the work supporting means. Moving means for moving the parts so as to have a height set corresponding to the various works, and transfer means capable of sequentially and automatically transferring the moving means to predetermined positions corresponding to the respective work supporting means, A work characterized by having Lifting apparatus. 2. The work supporting device according to claim 1, wherein the work supporting means has an operating portion operated by the moving means, and is movable by this operation. The work supporting device is characterized in that the operating portions of the supporting means are arranged in one row and can be operated in the same direction. 3. The work supporting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the movement restricting means permits movement of the work supporting means in which the contact portion moves upward in a restricted state. Work support device. 4. The work supporting device according to claim 1, further comprising a control means capable of simultaneously operating the movement restricting means in a restricting and deregulating state. Work support device.