JP2006062035A - Bar material feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect the success/failure of primary introduction of a bar material into a bar material feeder. <P>SOLUTION: When a rear guide member 4 of the upper stage is connected to a front guide member 3, the bar material A loaded extending between both is delivered onto the front guide member while a primary introducing member 7 slides on the rear guide member of the upper stage. When a rear guide member of the lower stage is connected to the front guide member, the bar material is moved forward on the front guide member while a secondary introducing member 8 slides from the rear guide member of the lower stage to the front guide member. A sensor 30 for detecting that the primary introducing member has delivered the bar material onto the front guide member is provided to locate in a position close to the bar material in the primary introduction, and locate in a position away from the moving path of the secondary introducing member in the secondary introduction. Thus, the success/failure of the primary introduction can be properly detected not to obstruct the movement of the secondary introduction member. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a bar feeder that supplies a bar to a bar processing machine such as a lathe.

  Some bar feeders include one front guide member and two rear guide members. In such a bar feeder, when one bar is loaded so as to straddle the front guide member and the one rear guide member, the primary introduction member slides on the one rear guide member while moving forward. When the bar is fed onto the part guide member and the bar is fed onto the front guide member, the rear guide member is switched from one to the other, and the secondary introduction member is switched from the other rear guide member to the front guide member. The bar is advanced on the front guide member while sliding to the front. The bar that moves forward on the front guide member is supplied to a lathe and processed by the lathe for each predetermined dimension. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

As described above, in the bar feeder, either one of the two rear guide members is switched with respect to the front guide member. Therefore, in the primary introduction of the bar, the bar is moved forward from the one rear guide member. It is necessary to confirm that the part has been properly pushed out by the guide member. Conventionally, when it is detected by a rotary encoder or the like attached to the drive device of the primary introduction member that the primary introduction member has reached the forward end, the rear guide member is switched from one to the other as the bar is normally pushed out. It is like that. When the rear guide member is switched from one to the other, the secondary introduction member moves from the other rear guide member to the front guide member, and feeds the bar to the lathe.
JP 2001-246503 A

  If the rod is relatively thick and rigid and there is no need to consider deformation such as bending, it is judged that the primary introduction of the rod has been completed because the primary introduction member has reached the forward end as in the past. There was no problem. However, if the bar becomes thin, for example, 1 mmφ, even if a slight resistance is applied to the tip of the bar during the primary introduction, the bar will be bent and jump out of the front and rear guide members, or the bar will be introduced primarily. There is a case where it fits into a gap between the member and the rear guide member. Conventionally, even in such a case, it is determined that the primary introduction has been normally performed, and there is a problem that the next process is started.

  As a means for preventing such a problem, a sensor for detecting the presence of the bar is arranged at a predetermined position, and when this sensor detects that the bar is normally pushed out by the front guide member, the rear guide member is It is also conceivable to switch from one to the other. However, this sensor needs to be arranged so that a certain gap is left between the extruded bar and the sensor so as not to hinder the progress of the secondary introduction member. For this reason, for example, when the bar is thin, 1 mmφ or less, or is made of a material that is difficult to detect with a sensor, the detection of the bar becomes unstable and the extrusion of the bar is completed. There is a problem that it cannot be reliably detected.

  An object of this invention is to provide the bar feeder which can solve such a problem.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that one front guide member (3) and two rear guide members (4, 5) that are switched and connected to the front guide member (3). ), And when one rear guide member (4) is connected to the front guide member (3), the rod is loaded so as to straddle the front guide member (3) and one rear guide member (4) The material (A) is fed onto the front guide member (3) while the primary introduction member (7) slides on the one rear guide member (4), and the other rear guide member (5) is fed to the front guide member. When connected to (3), the secondary introduction member (8) slides from the other rear guide member (5) to the front guide member (3) while moving the bar (A) on the front guide member (3). In the bar feeder that is moved forward by the primary introduction member (7), the bar (A) The sensor (30) for detecting that it has been fed onto the part guide member (3) is in a position close to the rod (A) at the time of primary introduction, and from the movement path of the secondary introduction member (8) at the time of secondary introduction. A bar feeder provided to be in a separated position is adopted.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the bar feeder according to the first aspect, the sensor (30) is attached to a link device (31) interlocked with a switching operation of the rear guide members (4, 5). Adopt a bar feeder.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the sensor (30) is in a position close to the rod (A) at the time of primary introduction, and at a position away from the movement path of the secondary introduction member (8) at the time of secondary introduction. Therefore, it is possible to properly detect the feeding of the bar (A) by, for example, bringing the sensor (30) into contact with the bar (A) at the time of primary introduction. The movement of the secondary introduction member (8) can be prevented from being hindered by being separated from the movement path of the secondary introduction member (8). Therefore, for example, even if the bar (A) is very thin or made of a material difficult to detect with the sensor (30), the primary introduction of the bar (A) can be detected stably. The bar (A) can be appropriately supplied to a processing machine such as a lathe.

  According to the invention which concerns on Claim 2, a sensor (30) can be moved easily between two positions.

  The best mode for carrying out the invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the bar feeder 1 is installed horizontally on the floor, and an NC lathe 2 which is a bar processing machine is installed adjacent to the bar feeder 1.

  A mechanism unit shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is installed on the frame 1a shown in FIG. 1 of the bar feeder 1 and is covered by a cover 1b connected to the frame 1a so as to be opened and closed. Further, a bar supply shelf (not shown) for storing a large number of bar materials and sending them one by one to the mechanism unit is arranged behind the bar material feeder 1 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the mechanism of the bar feeder 1 includes one front guide member 3, two rear guide members 4 and 5 coupled in parallel, and two Connection switching means 6 for selectively connecting either one of the rear guide members 4 and 5 to the front guide member 3, and the front guide member 3 and one rear guide member 4 as shown in FIG. The primary introduction member 7 that feeds the rod A loaded so as to stride over the front guide member 3 while sliding on the one rear guide member 4, and the rod A is fed onto the front guide member 3, As shown in FIG. 3, when the other rear guide member 5 is connected to the front guide member 3 by the connection switching means 6, the bar A is moved forward while sliding from the other rear guide member 5 to the front guide member 3. A secondary introduction member 8 that is further advanced on the part guide member 3.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the front guide member 3 is disposed at a location near the NC lathe 2 on the frame 1a. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front guide member 3 is formed of a groove material having a substantially U-shaped cross section, and as shown in FIG. 1, the extension line of the axis is the axis of the main shaft 2a of the NC lathe 2. It is fixed on the frame 1a so as to match. The groove of the front guide member 3 has a size and a shape that can receive and store one falling bar A. The bar A can be of various diameters, lengths, and materials, but the bar A used in this embodiment is a thin metal bar that is 1 mmφ or less and is easily bent.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the rear guide members 4 and 5 are configured in two upper and lower stages. The upper rear guide member 4 and the lower rear guide member 5 are integrated by being fixed to the front and rear bases 9 and 10 at their front and rear ends, and the rear base 10 is integrated with the frame 1a via the horizontal pivot shaft 11. Retained. As shown in FIG. 2, the horizontal pivot 11 is supported at both ends on the frame 1 a via bearings 12 and 13. As a result, the upper and lower rear guide members 4, 5 can be integrally rotated up and down on the frame 1a with the horizontal pivot 11 as a fulcrum.

  The grooves of the groove members constituting the upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 have a size and a shape that can receive and store the rear part of one falling bar A.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the connection switching means 6 is specifically operated by a cylinder / piston device 29. This cylinder / piston device 29 is connected to the rear guide members 4, 5 and the frame. It is arrange | positioned between 1a. Specifically, the pivot arm 27 is pin-coupled to the frame 1a so as to be pivotable within a vertical plane, and the pin 27a at the tip of the pivot arm 27 extends in a substantially horizontal direction formed on the front base 9. The cylinder / piston device 29 is pin-connected between the middle portion of the rotating arm 27 and the frame 1a. The rotary arm 27 and the like may be omitted, and the cylinder / piston device 29 may be directly connected to the front base 9 and the frame 1a. When the cylinder / piston device 29 is extended, the lower rear guide member 5 and the front guide member 3 are linearly communicated as shown in FIG. 3, and when the cylinder / piston device 29 is contracted, the cylinder / piston device 29 shown in FIG. Thus, the upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 rotate downward with the horizontal pivot 11 as a fulcrum, and the upper rear guide member 4 communicates with the front guide member 3. FIG. 4A shows the posture of the rear guide members 4 and 5 when receiving a new material of the rod A, and the rod A is loaded so as to straddle the front guide member 3 and the upper rear guide member 4. In the groove, the bar A bends as shown by the solid line in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the primary introduction member 7 is a slider that slides in the groove of the upper rear guide member 4, and is specifically formed of a round bar. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a winding transmission device is employed as the driving means for the primary introduction member 7.

  The winding transmission device includes an endless timing belt 14 that is a winding body, front and rear pulleys 15 and 16 around which the endless timing belt 14 is wound, and a motor 17 that is a driving source. The primary introduction member 7 is connected to the endless timing belt 14 via a connection arm 18. The front pulley 15 is a driven vehicle and is rotatably held by the rear guide members 4 and 5 via a bracket 28 as shown in FIG. The rear pulley 16 is a prime mover and is held on the horizontal pivot 11 via a primary introduction clutch 19 which is an electromagnetic clutch. The motor 17 is installed on the frame 1a, and its output shaft is coupled to the shaft end of the horizontal pivot 11 which is a driving shaft through a coupling 17a. When the primary introduction clutch 19 is turned on, the rotation of the motor 17 is transmitted from the rear pulley 16 to the endless timing belt 14, and the primary introduction member 7 slides in the upper rear guide member 4. The motor 17 can be rotated forward or backward, and the primary introduction member 7 moves forward or backward in the upper rear guide member 4 in accordance with forward or reverse rotation of the motor 17. When the front and rear guide members 3 and 5 are connected to the state shown in FIG. 4A, and the rod A is inserted into the grooves of the guide members 3 and 5 as shown in FIG. Advances in the rear guide member 5 in the upper stage, and feeds the bar A to the front guide member 3.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the secondary introduction member 8 is a slider that slides in the groove of the lower rear guide member 5, and is specifically formed of a round bar. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a winding transmission device is employed for the driving means of the secondary introduction member 8 as in the case of the primary introduction member 7.

  The winding transmission device includes an endless timing belt 20 that is a winding body, and front and rear pulleys 21 and 22 around which the endless timing belt 20 is stretched. As a driving source, a motor 17 for driving the primary introduction member 7 is shared. The front pulley 21 is a driven vehicle, and is rotatably held via a bearing 23 at a position near the NC lathe 2 in the frame 1a. The rear pulley 22 is a prime mover, and is held on the horizontal pivot 11 via a secondary introduction clutch 24 that is an electromagnetic clutch. As a result of the endless timing belt 20 being stretched between the front and rear pulleys 21 and 22, the endless timing belt 20 extends horizontally between the front and rear ends of the bar feeder. The secondary introduction member 8 is connected to the endless timing belt 20 via a connection arm 25. When the secondary introduction clutch 24 is turned on, the rotation of the motor 17 is transmitted from the rear pulley 22 to the endless timing belt 20, and the secondary introduction member 8 is moved to the lower rear guide member 5 and the front part according to the forward and reverse rotation of the motor 17. The guide member 3 moves forward or backward. When the bar A is fed into the front guide member 3 by the primary introduction member 7 in the state shown in FIG. 4A, the rear guide members 4 and 5 are moved from the state shown in FIG. In the state shown in FIG. 3, the secondary introduction member 8 slides from the lower rear guide member 5 to the front guide member 3, and the bar A is further advanced on the front guide member 3. As a result, the bar A is fed into the NC lathe 2 and processed by the NC lathe 2.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a rotary encoder 26 is attached to the other end of the horizontal pivot 11 via a coupling 26a. The winding transmission for driving the primary introduction member 7 and the secondary introduction member 8 uses the horizontal pivot shaft 11 as a common drive shaft, so that this single control is used for controlling both the primary introduction member 7 and the secondary introduction member 8. The rotary encoder 26 can be used. That is, the single rotary encoder 26 can detect the movement amounts of both the primary introduction member 7 and the secondary introduction member 8. As a result of detecting the movement amounts of the primary introduction member and the secondary introduction member by the rotary encoder 26, the primary introduction member 7 and the secondary introduction member 8 are position-controlled with high accuracy by a motor 17 such as a servo motor.

  As described above, in this bar feeder, either one of the upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 is switched with respect to the front guide member 3. It is necessary to confirm that the material A has been normally pushed from the one rear guide member 4 to the front guide member 3, and as shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6 to FIG. The sensor 30 is disposed at a predetermined location. The sensor 30 is specifically a proximity switch. When the sensor 30 detects that the bar A has been normally pushed out to the front guide member 3, the rear guide members 4 and 5 are switched from one to the other, and the secondary introduction member 8 is switched to the other rear guide member 5. To the front guide member 3 to feed the bar A to the NC lathe 2.

  The sensor 30 is held at the moving means so as to be in a position close to the rod A at the time of primary introduction, but at a position away from the movement path of the secondary introduction member 8 at the time of secondary introduction. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3, 6 to 10, it is attached to a link device 31 that interlocks with the switching operation of the rear guide members 4, 5.

  The link device 31 is a four-bar rotation chain, and is a bracket-like fixed link 31a fixed perpendicularly to the frame 1a, and swing links 31b, 31c of substantially the same length that are respectively pin-connected to the upper and lower portions of the fixed link 31a. And an elevating link 31d pin-coupled to the tip of the swing link. A lever 31e is fixed to one end of the upper swing link 31b, and a contact pin 31f that contacts the lower end of the lower rear guide member 5 is horizontally fixed to the tip of the lever 31e. Further, between the pins of the predetermined links 31b and 31c, there is a tension coil spring 32 that is an elastic body for urging the link device 31 so that the contact pin 31f always contacts the lower end of the lower rear guide member 5. It is handed over. The sensor 30 is held by the lifting link 31d via the holding member 33.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, when the upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 are inclined downward during the primary introduction, the contact pin 31f is pressed by the lower rear guide member 5 to raise the elevating link 31d. 30 approaches bar A. As a result, the sensor 30 appropriately detects the completion of the primary introduction of the bar A. In FIG. 9, symbol A1 indicates the position of the rear end of the bar A during the primary introduction, and symbol A2 indicates the position of the rear end of the bar A when the primary introduction is completed. When the primary introduction is completed, the rear end of the bar A falls from the upper rear guide member 4 and contacts the sensor 30. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, when the primary introduction is completed and the rear guide members 4 and 5 are raised, the lever 31f is rotated upward by the tension action of the tension coil spring 32, the elevating link 31d is lowered, and the sensor 30 Is separated from the moving path of the secondary introduction member 8. As a result, it is possible to prevent the sensor 30 from obstructing the movement of the secondary introduction member 8 during the secondary introduction.

Next, the operation of the bar feeder having the above configuration will be described.
(1) The upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 of the bar feeder 1 are initially in the positions shown in FIGS. 11A, 7, 2, and 3, and the lower rear guide member 5 is the front guide. It communicates with the member 3. In this state, the groove of the lower rear guide member 5 and the groove of the front guide member 3 are linearly connected.

(2) As shown in FIG. 11 (B), FIG. 9, FIG. 4 (A) and FIG. 5, the cylinder / piston device 29 of the connection switching means 6 is contracted, and the upper and lower rear guide members 4, 5 are moved. The horizontal pivot 11 is turned downward by a small angle. Thereby, the upper rear guide member 4 communicates with the front guide member 3.
In conjunction with the downward rotation of the upper and lower rear guide members 4, 5, the elevating link 31 d of the link device 31 rises and the sensor 30 approaches the bar A.

(3) As shown in FIG. 11 (C), FIG. 4 (A) and FIG. 4 (B), a new material which is one bar A from the bar supply shelf (not shown) is a guide member 3, 4 and falls into the groove of the front guide member 3 and the groove of the rear guide member 4 on the upper stage.

(4) As shown in FIG. 11D, when the motor 17 rotates forward and the primary introduction clutch 19 is turned on, the endless timing belt 14 travels. As shown in FIG. 7 slides forward on the upper rear guide member 4. As a result, the bar A loaded so as to straddle the front guide member 3 and the upper rear guide member 4 in the above (3) is pushed out onto the front guide member 3, and the entire bar A is in the upper stage. It moves from the rear guide member 4 onto the front guide member 3. As a result, the rear end of the bar A drops from the position A1 to the position A2 and contacts the sensor 30. Thereby, the presence of the bar A and the completion of the primary introduction are detected. The amount by which the rod A is pushed out by the primary introduction member 7 is controlled by detecting the amount of movement of the primary introduction member 7 by the rotary encoder 26.

(5) When the presence of the bar A and the completion of the primary introduction are detected, as shown in FIGS. 11 (E), 3 and 5, the cylinder / piston device 29, which is the connection switching means 6, extends. The upper and lower rear guide members 4 and 5 are rotated upward with the horizontal pivot 11 as a fulcrum. As a result, the upper rear guide member 4 is disconnected from the front guide member 3, and the lower rear guide member 5 communicates with the front guide member 3 in a straight line.
Further, as shown in FIG. 7, in conjunction with the upward rotation of the upper and lower rear guide members 4, 5, the elevating link 31 d of the link device 31 is lowered and the sensor 30 moves the secondary introduction member 8. Leave the route.
Thereafter, the motor 17 rotates in the reverse direction and the primary introduction clutch 19 is turned on, whereby the endless timing belt 14 travels in the reverse direction. Return to.

(6) As shown in FIG. 11 (F), when the motor 17 rotates forward and the secondary introduction clutch 24 is turned on, the endless timing belt 20 travels, and the secondary introduction member 8 moves to the rear part of the lower stage. Slide forward from the guide member 5 to the front guide member 3. At this time, since the sensor 30 is separated from the path along which the secondary introduction member 8 moves while sliding, the secondary introduction member 8 slides without being obstructed by the sensor 30. Thereby, the bar A pushed out onto the front guide member 3 in the above (4) is pushed from the rear by the tip of the secondary introduction member 8, and the front guide member 3 is moved toward the NC lathe 2. Slide. The feed amount of the bar A by the secondary introduction member 8 is detected through detection of the movement amount of the secondary introduction member 8 by the rotary encoder 26.

(7) When one bar A is consumed, the motor 17 rotates in reverse and the secondary introduction clutch 24 is turned on, whereby the endless timing belt 20 travels in reverse and the secondary introduction member 8 The front guide member 3 and the lower rear guide member 5 are slid rearward to return to the original positions in the lower rear guide member 5. After that, the bar feeder 1 continues the processing of the bar A by repeating the operations (1) to (7) shown in FIGS.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the connection switching means is not limited to the cylinder / piston device, but can be other means such as a cam device, and the drive means for the primary and secondary introduction members are also included. Not only the winding transmission device but also other means such as a cylinder / piston device can be used. Further, the means for switching the position of the sensor is not limited to the link device, but may be other means such as a cam device or a cylinder / piston device.

It is a front view of the bar feeder according to the present invention. It is a top view inside the bar feeder shown in FIG. It is a front view inside the bar feeder shown in FIG. (A) is a front view of the inside of a bar feeder at the time of new material supply, (B) is a front view which shows the state of the new material in a bar feeder. It is a front view which shows a connection switching means. It is a top view which shows the link apparatus for changing the position of a sensor. It is a front view which shows the link apparatus for changing the position of a sensor in the state which the sensor fell. FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG. It is a front view which shows the link apparatus for changing the position of a sensor in the state which the sensor raised. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. 9. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the bar feeder which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS A ... Bar material 1 ... Bar material feeder 3 ... Front part guide member 4, 5 ... Rear part guide member 7 ... Primary introduction member 8 ... Secondary introduction member 30 ... Sensor 31 ... Link apparatus

Claims (2)

  One front guide member and two rear guide members that are switched and connected to the front guide member, and when one rear guide member is connected to the front guide member, the front guide member and one of the front guide members When the rod loaded so as to straddle the rear guide member is sent out on the front guide member while the primary introduction member slides on the one rear guide member, and the other rear guide member is connected to the front guide member In the bar feeder, the secondary introduction member slides from the other rear guide member to the front guide member and advances the bar on the front guide member. The sensor for detecting that the material has been fed onto the guide member is located close to the bar during the primary introduction, and is located away from the movement path of the secondary introduction member during the secondary introduction. Bar feeder to be.   2. The bar feeder according to claim 1, wherein the sensor is attached to a link device that interlocks with a switching operation of the rear guide member.

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