JP2007132429A - Linear guide device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a means for preventing the edges of spherical recessed surfaces formed in the spacer parts of a belt retainer from deforming, and also for preventing rolling elements from falling off when a slider is removed. <P>SOLUTION: The belt retainer of the linear guide device comprises the spacer parts holding balls circulating in a circulation passage, apart from each other, and a connection belt connecting the spacer parts to each other. The spherical recessed surfaces in slidable contact with the balls are formed in the spacer parts on the outer peripheral side of the circulation passage. The outer peripheral surfaces of the spacer parts are formed larger than the edges of the spherical recessed surfaces. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a linear guide device that is provided in a guide unit of a machine device such as a machine tool, a manufacturing apparatus, or a measuring instrument and that moves a moving table such as a table linearly.

  A conventional linear guide device is formed by opposing a return path provided in a bowl-shaped slider, a direction changing path provided in an end cap, a rail track groove provided in a rail, and a slider track groove provided in a slider. A belt retainer having a spacer part that connects a load path and forms a circulation path, and holds and separates adjacent balls when circulating in the circulation path, and a connecting belt that connects the spacer parts. A linear guide device is constructed by loading the balls held on the outer periphery, and a circular arc concave surface is provided on the outer peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer portion so that the thickness of the cross-sectional shape is constant, and a spherical concave surface is provided on the inner peripheral side. In addition to preventing the wear of the inner peripheral edge of the spacer part from the fan shape, a spherical concave surface is also provided on the outer peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer part to make the cross-sectional shape fan-shaped and from the slider rail The ball is prevented from falling off during removal (for example, see Patent Document 1). .).

In addition, in a linear guide device having a similar configuration, there is a linear guide device that is formed into a drum shape by providing spherical concave surfaces on both end surfaces of the spacer (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
Furthermore, in a linear guide device having a similar configuration, two discs are juxtaposed to form a spacer, and a spherical concave surface is provided on each ball-side end surface to form a drum shape, or the spacer is a semi-disc. In some cases, the connecting belt is shifted in position on the front and back sides, and a spherical concave surface obtained by halving the spherical concave surface is provided on each ball side end surface to increase the bending angle of the connecting belt (for example, patents). Reference 3).
JP 2002-130272 A (mainly, page 7, paragraphs 0039 to 0042, FIGS. 8 and 16) JP-A-5-52217 (mainly second page, paragraph 0013-paragraph 0015, FIG. 1) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-351255 (mainly, page 8 paragraph 0048 to page 9 paragraph 0053, FIGS. 3 and 4)

In general, the belt cage is resin-molded by injection molding using a resin material in order to make the connecting belt or the like flexible.
However, in the technique of the conventional Patent Document 1 described above, the edge of the spherical concave surface formed at the spacer is formed directly on the outer surface of the spacer, so that the apex angle is 90 degrees. There is a fear that the resin will not reach the thin part at the time of resin molding, and the defective part will be easily formed, and the designed shape may not be obtained.

In addition, since the thin-walled part is easily deformed, it is easy to be crushed or chipped when the ball is assembled into the belt cage, making it difficult to incorporate the ball due to interference between the belt cage and the ball, and the manufacturability of the linear guide device May be reduced.
This also applies to the drum-shaped spacer portion of Patent Document 2, and the drum-shaped spacer portion of the two-sheet configuration of Patent Document 3 and the spacer portion of a semicircular disk.

On the other hand, in assembling the linear guide device to the mechanical device, the assembly work is often performed by removing the slider from the rail in order to facilitate the assembly of the rail.
In such a case, in the technique of Patent Document 1, an arc concave surface is provided on the outer side of the circulation path of the spacer portion so that the thickness of the cross-sectional shape is constant, and a spherical concave surface is provided on the inner peripheral side. Since the cross-sectional shape is fan-shaped, the ball tends to fall out through the arc concave surface on the rail side that is outside the circulation path when the slider is removed, and the workability of the assembling work may be reduced.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and is a means for preventing deformation of an edge such as a spherical concave surface formed in a spacer and preventing the rolling element from falling off when the slider is removed. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention includes a rail having a rail rolling element guide surface, a slider rolling element guide surface facing the rail rolling element guide surface, and a return path. A reciprocating slider, an end cap disposed at the front and rear end portions in the moving direction of the slider, having a direction changing path, a load path formed by the rail rolling element guide surface and the slider rolling element guide surface, A rolling element that circulates in a circulation path that connects the load path with the direction change path and a return path, a spacer that separates and holds the adjacent rolling elements when circulating in the circulation path, and A linear guide device comprising a belt holder having a connecting belt for connecting the spacer portion, wherein the spacer portion is in contact with the sliding contact surface with which the rolling elements are in sliding contact with the outer peripheral side of the circulation path. Outline larger than tangent edge Characterized in that it comprises and.

  As a result, the present invention can prevent the ball from falling off to the side of the rail when the slider is removed, improve the workability of the assembly work of the rail, etc. The apex angle is increased so that there is no thin portion, the deformation of the thin portion can be prevented, the occurrence of a defective portion during resin molding can be prevented, and a predetermined shape can be easily formed. The effect is obtained.

  Embodiments of a linear guide device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a belt holder according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a front view showing an assembled state of the slider according to the first embodiment, FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a circulation path of the first embodiment, and FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the 1 belt holder.
FIG. 2 shows the state where the end cap is removed.
2 and 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a linear guide device.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a rail of the linear guide device 1, which is a long rod-shaped member made of a steel material such as alloy steel. Both of the rail side surfaces are substantially circular as rail rolling element guide surfaces along the longitudinal direction. A rail track groove 3 having an arcuate cross section is formed.
Reference numeral 4 denotes a slider, which is a bowl-shaped member having a substantially U-shaped cross-section made of a steel material such as an alloy steel. Both sleeve walls 4a have a slider rolling element guide surface inside. A slider raceway groove 5 having a substantially arc-shaped cross section is provided to face the rail raceway groove 3.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a ball as a rolling element, which is a sphere made of a steel material such as alloy steel.
Reference numeral 7 denotes an end cap, which is made of a metal material, a resin material, or the like, and is arranged at the front and rear ends of the slider 4 in the moving direction of the slider 4 (referred to as slider moving direction) as shown in FIG.
A ball 6 rolls between the slider raceway groove 5 and the rail raceway groove 3 arranged opposite to each other, and a load path 8 that supports the load of the slider 4 that moves on the rail 2 is formed.

Reference numeral 9 denotes a return path, and a ball 6 is attached to a cylindrical sleeve 10 made of a resin material fitted in a through hole penetrating the slider 4 in the slider moving direction provided in the thick portion of both sleeve walls 4a of the slider 4. Are provided corresponding to each slider raceway groove 5 as a through hole having a circular cross section having an inner diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the slider.
A not-shown concave portion and a convex portion are provided at a joint portion between the end caps 7 at both ends of the sleeve 10, and a guide portion 21 described later is positioned and locked so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a direction change path provided in the end cap 7, which is a curved path having a circular cross section for connecting the load path 8 and the return path 9 of the slider 4. It has a function of turning the circulation direction.
The load path 8 and the return path 9 are connected by the direction change path 11 to form a track-like circulation path 12 for athletics in which the ball 6 circulates as the slider 4 moves.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a belt cage, which is manufactured by molding means such as injection molding using a resin material or the like, and prevents contact between adjacent balls 6 when circulating through the circulation path 12 as shown in FIGS. The spacers 16 are spaced from each other, and the spacers 16 are connected to each other, and the connecting belts 17 that connect the spacers 16 in the direction of a line connecting the centers of the balls 6 (referred to as a center connecting line CL).
The spacer portion 16 is a disk-like member having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the ball 6, and is formed on the front end surface 16 a and the rear end surface 16 b in the direction of the center connecting line CL on the outer periphery 12 a side of the circulation path 12. A spherical concave surface 18 as a sliding contact surface having a center on the center connecting line CL and having a radius larger than the radius of the ball 6, and an outer surface of the spacer portion 16 formed on the inner circumference 12 b side of the circulation path 12. A circular arc concave surface 19 as a rolling element insertion guide surface having a radius substantially equal to that of the spherical concave surface 18 connecting the outer peripheral surface 16c and the spherical concave surface 18 is provided.

Further, the outer peripheral surface 16 c of the spacer 16 is formed to have a larger radius than the edge 18 a of the spherical concave surface 18. Therefore, a part of the front end surface 16a and the rear end surface 16b remains between the edge 18a of the spherical concave surface 18 and the outer peripheral surface 16c, and the apex angle of the edge 18a is 90 degrees or more.
The connecting belt 17 is a belt-like member having a plurality of pockets 20 for accommodating the balls 6 as shown in FIG. 3, and the spacer 16 is connected to the inner periphery 12b of the circulation path 12 from the center connecting line CL as shown in FIG. The two side portions 17a along the central connection line CL function as the guide portion 21 when the ball 6 is circulated while holding the ball 6.

Reference numerals 22 a, 22 b, and 22 c are guide grooves, which are grooves having a square cross section formed along the circulation path 12, and guide the guide portion 21 of the connecting belt 17 of the belt holder 15 that moves along the circulation path 12.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the guide groove 22 a is formed along the return path 9 of the slider 4, and the guide groove 22 b is formed wider than the guide groove 22 a along the direction changing path 11 of the end cap 7. Yes.

  Further, the guide groove 22c is formed along the slider moving direction, and the notches at both ends of the flat plate-like first holding member 24a attached to the inside of the slider 4 and the inner surface of the slider 4, the substantially triangular cross section. The guide groove 22a is substantially defined by the notch at the top of the second holding member 24b on the rail 2 side, the side surface of the rail 2, the notch at the end of the third holding member 24c having a substantially square cross section, and the inner surface of the slider 4. It is formed in the same width.

The joint portions of the first, second, and third holding members 24a, 24b, and 24c with the end caps 7 at both ends are provided with concave portions and convex portions (not shown). It is locked at a predetermined site inside.
A predetermined amount of lubricant (for example, grease) is sealed in the circulation path 12, and a belt holder 15 holding a plurality of balls 6 by spacers 16 guides the guide portion 21 of the connecting belt 17. A ball 6 that is fitted in each guide groove 22 and circulates in the circulation path 12 with the movement of the slider 4 rolls between the rail raceway groove 3 and the slider raceway groove 5 constituting the load path 8. Thus, the load applied to the slider 4 is supported so as to freely reciprocate.

The operation of the above configuration will be described.
The ball 6 loaded in the circulation path 12 is accommodated in the pocket 20 of the coupling belt 17 of the belt holder 15 guided by the guide grooves 22 in the guide grooves 22, and the spherical concave surface of the front and rear spacers 16 in the circulation direction. 18, the spherical surface is held, and circulates while moving the circulation path 12 along with the movement of the slider 4 in a state in which contact with each other and drop-off from the load path 8 are prevented.

When the ball 6 that has rolled while sliding on the spherical concave surface 18 in the load path 8 reaches the direction changing path 11, the contact point with the spacer 16 of the ball 6 is shown in FIG. 3 due to the inclination of the spacer 16. In this way, it moves to the inner circumference 12b side of the circulation path 12 and moves while making sliding contact with the arc concave surface 19, and when it reaches the return path 9, it moves while making sliding contact with the spherical concave surface 18 again.
As described above, since the arcuate concave surface 19 is provided on the inner periphery 12b side of the circulation path 12 in the spacer portion 16 of the present embodiment, the movement of the ball 6 in the direction change path 11 becomes smooth.

Further, since the arc concave surface 19 connects the spherical concave surface 18 and the outer peripheral surface 16c in a bowl shape, if the ball 6 is poured, it can be easily accommodated in the pocket 20 of the connecting belt 17, and the belt retainer 15 can be accommodated. Assembling property of the ball 6 can be improved.
The ball 6 loaded in the circulation path 12 is accommodated in the pocket 20 of the coupling belt 17 of the belt holder 15 guided by the guide grooves 22 in the guide grooves 22, and the spherical concave surface of the front and rear spacers 16 in the circulation direction. 18, the spherical surface is held, and circulates while moving the circulation path 12 along with the movement of the slider 4 in a state in which contact with each other and drop-off from the load path 8 are prevented.

When the ball 6 that has rolled while sliding on the spherical concave surface 18 in the load path 8 reaches the direction changing path 11, the contact point with the spacer 16 of the ball 6 is shown in FIG. 3 due to the inclination of the spacer 16. In this way, it moves to the inner circumference 12b side of the circulation path 12 and moves while making sliding contact with the arc concave surface 19, and when it reaches the return path 9, it moves while making sliding contact with the spherical concave surface 18 again.
As described above, in this embodiment, a spherical concave surface on which the ball slides is provided on the outer peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer portion connected by the connecting belt of the belt cage, and the outer peripheral surface of the spacer portion is a spherical concave surface. It is possible to prevent the ball from dropping out to the rail side when removing the slider, to improve the workability of the assembly work of the rail, etc. The apex angle is 90 degrees or more, there is no thin part, the deformation of the thin part can be prevented and the occurrence of a defective part during resin molding can be prevented, and a predetermined shape is easily formed. be able to.

In addition, by providing a bowl-shaped arc concave surface connecting the spherical concave surface and the outer peripheral surface of the spacer portion on the inner peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer portion, smooth movement of the ball on the direction change path is achieved. The ball can be easily accommodated in the pocket of the connecting belt, and the manufacturability of the linear guide device can be improved.
In the present embodiment, the corner portion of the outer peripheral surface 16c of the spacer portion 16 on the inner peripheral 12b side of the circulation path 12 is illustrated as being a right angle in FIG. 4, but the spacer portion 16 is shown in FIG. A chamfer 26 may be provided at the corner between the outer peripheral surface 16c on the inner peripheral 12b side and the front end surface 16a or the rear end surface 16b. In this way, it is possible to prevent the corner portion from being deformed or damaged when the corner portion of the outer peripheral surface 16c on the inner periphery 12b side of the spacer portion 16 receives external force.

  The chamfer 26 shown in FIG. 5 is a flat C chamfer, but may be a chamfer 26 having a curved surface shown in FIG. The chamfer 26 shown in FIG. 6 (a) is an example in which the curved surface is formed by a circular arc surface of a quarter arc, and FIG. 6 (b) is formed by an arc surface that smoothly connects only the outer peripheral surface 16c. For example, FIG. 6C shows an example in which the curved surface is formed by an arcuate surface that is connected to the outer peripheral surface 16c and the front end surface 16a or the rear end surface 16b at an angle. Among these, a chamfer 26 in which the curved surface is formed by a quarter circular arc surface and smoothly connected to the outer peripheral surface 16c and the front end surface 16a or the rear end surface 16b most effectively prevents the deformation of the corner portion. Can do.

  Further, in the present embodiment, a part of the front end surface 16a or the rear end surface 16b is left as a plane between the edge 18a of the spherical concave surface 18 on the inner periphery 12b side of the circulation path 12 of the spacer portion 16 and the outer peripheral surface 16c. However, as shown in FIG. 7, the inclined surface 28 may be inclined between the edge 18 a and the outer peripheral surface 16 c toward the center of the spacer 16 in the thickness direction. Even if it does in this way, the apex angle of the edge 18a and the apex angle of the corner | angular part of the outer peripheral surface 16c can be 90 degree | times or more, and it can prevent that a resin reaches | attains easily at the time of resin molding, and a defect part arises. it can.

Moreover, in the example of FIG. 7, since the chamfer 26 is provided in the corner | angular part by the side of the inner periphery 12b of the circulation path 12 of the outer peripheral surface 16c of the spacer part 16, when a corner | angular part receives external force, Deformation and breakage can be prevented.
In the above embodiment, the linear guide device using balls as rolling elements has been described as an example, but the same applies to a linear guide device using rollers as rolling elements. In this case, the rail rolling element guide surface and the slider rolling element guide surface forming the load path are composed of a rail raceway surface on which the roller rolls and a slider raceway surface, and the outer peripheral surface of the roller is the sliding surface of the spacer. The effect similar to the above can be obtained by forming the arc surface in sliding contact and forming the rolling element insertion guide surface as a plane connecting to the arc surface.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the belt cage of the second embodiment.
In addition, the same part as the said Example 1 attaches | subjects the same code | symbol, and abbreviate | omits the description.
The belt retainer 15 of the present embodiment is configured by the spacer 16 and the connecting belt 17 as in the first embodiment. However, the corner of the outer peripheral surface 16c of the spacer 16 is all around the circumference. A chamfer 26 having a curved surface is provided, and the connecting belt 17 connects the spacer 16 on the center connecting line CL.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a spherical concave surface, and the spherical concave surface 18 of the first embodiment is also formed on the inner circumference 12b side of the circulation path 12 with the central connection line CL as a symmetric line, and between the edge 30a and the outer circumferential face 16c. As in the first embodiment, the front end face 16a and the rear end face 16b are partially left, and the apex angle of the edge 30a is 90 degrees or more.
If comprised as mentioned above, the belt holder 15 will have a symmetrical shape on the outer circumference 12a side and the inner circumference 12b side of the circulation path 12 with the center connecting line CL as the symmetry line.

  In addition, the cage belt of this embodiment is configured to prevent the balls 6 from falling off on both sides of the circulation path 12 on the outer circumference 12a side and the inner circumference 12b side. 6 is required to be accommodated in the pocket 20, but since the apex angle of the edge 30a of the spherical concave surface 30 is 90 degrees or more and there is no thin portion, there is no space in the spacer 16 when the ball 6 is assembled. There will be no deformation or breakage.

  As described above, in this embodiment, a spherical concave surface on which the ball slides is provided on the outer peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer portion connected by the connecting belt of the belt cage, and the outer peripheral surface of the spacer portion is a spherical concave surface. It is possible to prevent the ball from dropping out to the rail side when removing the slider, to improve the workability of the assembly work of the rail, etc. The apex angle is 90 degrees or more, there is no thin part, the deformation of the thin part can be prevented and the occurrence of a defective part during resin molding can be prevented, and a predetermined shape is easily formed. be able to.

Further, since the belt holder is formed in a symmetric shape with the center connecting line CL as a symmetric line, the belt holder can be incorporated without worrying about the front and back of the belt holder when the belt holder is incorporated into the slider. Can be speeded up.
In this embodiment, a linear guide device using balls as rolling elements has been described as an example, but the same applies to a linear guide device using rollers as rolling elements. In this case, the rail rolling element guide surface and the slider rolling element guide surface that form the load path are composed of a rail raceway surface on which the roller rolls and a slider raceway surface, and the outer peripheral surface of the roller slides on the spherical concave surface of the spacer. If formed as a contact arcuate surface, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  In each of the above embodiments, the spacer is described as having a disk shape. However, the shape of the spacer is not limited to a circle, and may be an ellipse or an octagon. Even with such a shape, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

The perspective view which shows the belt holder of Example 1. FIG. The front view which shows the assembly state of the slider of Example 1. FIG. Explanatory drawing which shows the circulation path of Example 1. The expanded sectional view showing the belt maintenance machine of Example 1. The expanded sectional view which shows the other form of the spacer part of Example 1 Explanatory drawing which shows the other chamfering shape of the inner peripheral side of the circulation path of the spacer part of Example 1. FIG. The expanded sectional view which shows the other form of the spacer part of Example 1 The expanded sectional view which shows the belt holder of Example 2.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Linear guide apparatus 2 Rail 3 Rail track groove 4 Slider 4a Sleeve wall 5 Slider track groove 6 Ball 7 End cap 8 Load path 9 Return path 10 Sleeve 11 Direction change path 12 Circulation path 12a Outer periphery 12b Inner periphery 15 Between belt holders 16 Seat 16a Front end surface 16b Rear end surface 16c Outer peripheral surface 17 Connection belt 17a Side portion 18, 30 Spherical concave surface 18a, 30a Edge 19 Arc concave surface 20 Pocket 21 Guide portion 22, 22a, 22b, 22c Guide groove 24 Holding member 24a First member Holding member 24b Second holding member 24c Second holding member 26 Chamfer 28 Inclined surface

Claims (5)

A rail having a rail rolling element guide surface, a slider rolling element guide surface facing the rail rolling element guide surface, and a return path, and a linearly reciprocating slider, and a moving direction of the slider An end cap that is disposed at the front and rear ends of the rail, has a direction change path, a load path formed by the rail rolling element guide surface and the slider rolling element guide surface, and the load path is defined by the direction change path and the return path. A belt having a rolling element that circulates in the circulation path connected by the above, a spacer that separates and holds the adjacent rolling elements when circulating in the circulation path, and a connecting belt that connects the spacer. In a linear guide device provided with a cage,
The linear guide device, wherein the spacer portion includes, on the outer peripheral side of the circulation path, a slidable contact surface on which the rolling element slidably contacts and an outer surface larger than an edge of the slidable contact surface. In claim 1,
The linear guide device, wherein the spacer has a rolling element insertion guide surface that connects the sliding contact surface and the outer surface on the inner peripheral side of the circulation path. In claim 1 or claim 2,
The linear guide device, wherein an apex angle of an edge of the sliding contact surface is 90 degrees or more. In claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3,
A linear guide device characterized in that chamfers are provided at corners of the outer surface. In claim 4,
The linear guide device, wherein the chamfered shape is a shape having a curved surface.