JP2008254652A - Method and device for fitting lid member - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of fitting a lid member, which aligns a right and a left clearances between a vehicle body and the lid member. <P>SOLUTION: A trunk lid 25 is moved close to a rear opening 57 of the vehicle body 11 by a rear first robot 26 as shown in Fig.(a). The rear first robot 26 supports the trunk lid 26, and at the same time, a laser irradiation unit 34 and a camera 35 attached to second robots 21 and 22 measure the left clearance C1 and the right clearance C2 as shown in Fig.(b). The trunk lid 25 is moved right or left by a right and left moving mechanism 39 so that the right and the left clearances are formed into the nearly the same clearances C3 and C4 in Fig.(c). A hinge connector is fastened to the vehicle body by fastening mechanisms 32 and 32 attached to the second robots 21 and 22. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in technology for attaching lid members such as a trunk lid and a tailgate of a vehicle to a vehicle body.

In a vehicle, a trunk lid, a tailgate, a hood hood, and the like (hereinafter referred to as a lid member) are attached to the vehicle body via a hinge. Conventionally, this attachment work has been entrusted manually, but automatic assembly is being promoted as part of labor saving. What is important in automatic assembly is the management of the gap between the vehicle body and the lid member. This is because it is necessary to fasten the hinge to the vehicle body or the lid member after setting the gap to a predetermined gap.
A technique for automatically measuring a gap between a vehicle body and a lid member has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-18224 (FIG. 3)

Patent document 1 is demonstrated based on the following figure.
FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the basic principle of the conventional technique, in which the measuring device 103 is allowed to face between the vehicle body 101 and the lid member 102. The measuring device 103 is provided with a laser emitter 104 and a CCD camera 105. A laser beam 106 is irradiated between the vehicle body 101 and the lid member 102 by the laser emitter 104, and the irradiation surface is observed by the CCD camera 105, whereby a left-right gap exists between the vehicle body 101 and the lid member 102. DA and the gap DB in the front-rear direction can be measured.

By the way, it is desirable that the upper edge or the lower edge is fixed to the vehicle body via a hinge, and the lid member 102 has a left and right clearance with the vehicle body. This is because when the left and right gaps are not uniform, the appearance is deteriorated.
Since Patent Literature 1 does not have a technical idea of aligning the left and right gaps, it cannot be applied to the attachment of the lid member.

  Moreover, at the time before the lid member is attached, the posture of the hinge (hinge connector) varies. If one end of the hinge is previously attached to the lid member, the posture of the hinge connector changes while the lid member is carried to the vicinity of the vehicle body. Therefore, conventionally, the posture of the hinge connector has been corrected manually. Manpower is a hindrance to automation.

  Therefore, there is a demand for an attachment technique that can align the left and right gaps between the vehicle body and the lid member and that can automatically adjust the posture of the hinge connector.

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a lid member mounting method and apparatus capable of aligning the left and right gaps between the vehicle body and the lid member and automatically adjusting the posture of the hinge connector. .

In the invention according to claim 1, the lid member is positioned on the vehicle body by the first robot, and the hinge member extending from the lid member is fastened by the second robot to attach the lid member to the vehicle body. In the mounting method,
A hinge posture adjustment step in which the lid member held by the first robot is exposed to the posture adjustment member, and a hinge connector extending from the lid member is applied to the posture adjustment member to obtain a predetermined posture;
Moving the lid member to the mounting position of the vehicle body with the first robot;
Measuring the left and right gaps between the lid member and the vehicle body using a laser irradiator and a camera each attached to the second robot;
A step of moving the lid member left and right by the first robot so that a difference between the obtained left gap and right gap is equal to or less than a tolerance;
And a step of fastening the hinge connector by the second robot.

In the invention according to claim 2, the lid member is positioned on the vehicle body by the first robot, and the lid member is attached to the vehicle body by fastening the lid member or the hinge connector extending from the vehicle body by the second robot. In the member mounting device,
The lid member mounting apparatus includes a fastening mechanism such as a nutrunner for the second robot, a laser irradiator for irradiating a laser beam, and a camera for photographing an irradiation surface, and the lid member placed in the vicinity of the vehicle body And a control unit that controls the difference between the left gap and the right gap to be equal to or less than the allowable difference based on the information of the camera that captured the left and right gaps between the vehicle body and the vehicle body.

In the invention which concerns on Claim 1, the attitude | position of a hinge coupling tool can be adjusted automatically at a hinge attitude | position adjustment process. Then, the left and right gaps are measured using a laser and a camera, and the left and right positions of the lid member are adjusted so that the left and right gaps are aligned.
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, while attaching the right-and-left clearance gap between a vehicle body and a cover member, the attachment method of the cover member which can adjust the attitude | position of a hinge coupling tool automatically is provided.

In the invention which concerns on Claim 2, the 2nd robot provided with fastening mechanisms, such as a nut runner, was equipped with the laser irradiation device which irradiates a laser beam, and the camera which image | photographs an irradiation surface.
A dedicated robot for moving the laser irradiator and camera is not required. Since the second robot measures not only the fastening operation but also the left and right gaps, the second robot can be effectively used.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are viewed in the direction of the reference numerals.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a part of a vehicle assembly line including a lid member mounting apparatus according to the present invention. The vehicle assembly line 10 includes a conveyor 12 for horizontally conveying a vehicle body 11 and a bonnet as a lid member. A front first robot 14 for transporting 13, a bonnet platform 15 placed near the front first robot 14 for placing the hood 13 before mounting, and hinges 16, 16 extending from the hood 13. Corresponding to the attitude adjustment member 17 provided on the bonnet platform 15, four second robots 18, 19, 21, 22 disposed on the front, rear, left and right of the vehicle body 11, and the front first robot A front control unit 23 for controlling 14 and two second robots 18 and 19, a rear first robot 26 for carrying a trunk lid 25 as a lid member, and a rear first unit A trunk mounting base 27 on which the trunk lid 25 before mounting is placed, and a posture adjusting member 29 provided on the trunk mounting base 27 corresponding to the hinges 28, 28 extending from the trunk lid 25; The rear first robot 26 and the rear control unit 31 for controlling the two second robots 21 and 22.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the tip of the second robot according to the present invention. The second robots 18, 19, 21, and 22 are a fastening mechanism 32 such as a nut runner and a laser that irradiates a laser beam 33. An irradiator 34 and a camera 35 for photographing the irradiated surface are provided.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a left-right moving mechanism and a lid holding mechanism provided at the tip of the rear first robot according to the present invention. The rear first robot 26 includes a linear actuator 37, which is a horizontal actuator. The frame 38 is supported so as to be horizontally movable. That is, the left / right moving mechanism 39 is composed of a linear actuator 37 and a horizontal frame 38. When the linear actuator 37 receives a command from the outside, the horizontal frame 38 is moved to the horizontal frame 38 with an accuracy of 0.1 mm as indicated by the arrows (1) or (2). Move.

  If a 6-axis robot or the like is adopted as the rear first robot 26, the robot itself can have a highly accurate horizontal position adjustment function. In this case, the linear actuator 37 and the left / right moving mechanism 39 can be omitted.

  A lid holding mechanism 40 is provided on such a horizontal frame 38. The lid holding mechanism 40 includes, for example, a rear cross member 41 extending along the horizontal frame 38, longitudinal members 42 and 42 extending forward from the rear cross member 41, and the front of the longitudinal members 42 and 42 passed to the front ends. Cross member 43, cylinders 44, 44 provided at both ends of the front cross member 43, front vacuum cups 45, 45 provided at the ends of these cylinders 44, 44, horizontal frame 38 or rear cross member The rear vacuum cups 46, 46 provided in 41.

  FIG. 4 is a side view of the trunk platform. The trunk platform 27 includes a support frame 48 and a posture adjusting member 29 on the platform 47, and the trunk lid 25 is mounted on the support frame 48 before being mounted on the vehicle body. be able to. The posture adjustment member 29 can be a simple handrail-shaped structure including a horizontal bar 51 and a support column 52 that connects the horizontal bar 51 to the base 47.

  The trunk lid 25 before installation includes a hinge 28 including a U-shaped bracket 53, a hinge pin 54, and a hinge connector 55. The hinge connector 55 is not fixed in posture and is indicated by an imaginary line ( The posture may be 3) or (4). This is because the hinge connector 55 may rotate around the hinge pin 54 when subjected to strong vibration in the process of being transported so far.

Therefore, the posture of the hinge is adjusted as follows.
First, in FIG. 4, the trunk lid 25 is held by the lid holding mechanism 40 and lifted. Next, the hinge connector 55 is placed on the horizontal bar 51. Subsequent steps will be described with reference to the following drawings.
FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a hinge posture adjusting process according to the present invention. In FIG. 5A, the hinge connector 55 is pressed against the horizontal bar 51. Then, the hinge connector 55 rotates in the clockwise direction, and when the stopper piece 56 hits the U-shaped bracket 53, it does not rotate any more. The posture of (b) is the adjustment start position (origin position).

  The rear first robot 26 (FIG. 4) inserts the hinge connector 55 under the horizontal bar 51 and rotates the hinge connector 55 by an angle θ1 from the origin position. This angle θ1 is an angle suitable for the next work.

  If the hinge posture adjusting process described above is performed, the posture of the hinge connector 55 is an angle suitable for the next operation for the trunk lid 25 that has been loaded in an uncertain state. Can be adjusted.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view from the step of moving the lid member to the step of fastening the hinge. As shown in (a), the trunk lid 25 is brought close to the rear opening 57 of the vehicle body 11 by the rear first robot 26. (Open arrow)
As shown in (b), while the trunk lid 25 is supported by the rear first robot 26, the laser irradiators 34 and 34 attached to the second robots 21 and 22 and the cameras 35 and 35 have a left gap C1. And measure the C2 gap on the right. Since each of the two robots 21 and 22 is used for measurement, the measurement can be completed in less than half the time compared with the case of using one robot.

  In (c), the left / right moving mechanism 39 moves the trunk lid 25 to the left or right so that the left and right gaps are substantially the same C3 and C4. Next, the hinge coupling 55 (FIG. 5) is fastened to the vehicle body by the fastening mechanisms 32, 32 attached to the second robots 21, 22.

That is, in FIG. 1, a rear first robot 26 that transports the trunk lid 25, a trunk platform 27 that is disposed in the vicinity of the rear first robot 26 and places the trunk lid 25 before mounting, and the trunk lid 25. A posture adjusting member 29 provided on the trunk platform 27 corresponding to the hinges 28, 28 extending from the rear, the rear first robot 26 and the rear controller 21 for controlling the two second robots 21, 22. The trunk lid 25 can be attached to the vehicle body 11.
The same applies to the tailgate.

  Further, in FIG. 1, a front first robot 14 for transporting the bonnet 13, a bonnet platform 15 that is disposed in the vicinity of the front first robot 14 and mounts the bonnet 13 before mounting, A posture adjusting member 17 provided on the bonnet platform 15 corresponding to the extending hinges 16, 16, two second robots 18, 19 disposed on the left and right of the front part of the vehicle body 11, and a front part The bonnet 13 can be attached to the vehicle body 11 with the first robot 14 and the front control unit 23 that controls the two second robots 18 and 19.

As described above, the attachment method according to the present invention can be summarized as follows.
A hinge posture adjustment step in which the lid member 25 held by the first robot 26 faces the posture adjustment member 29 and a hinge connector extending from the lid member 25 is applied to the posture adjustment member 29 to obtain a predetermined posture. (FIG. 5), a step of moving the lid member 25 to the attachment position of the vehicle body 11 by the first robot 26 (FIG. 6A), the lid member 25 and the vehicle body 11 placed in the vicinity of the vehicle body 11 The left and right gaps are measured using the laser irradiator 34 and the camera 35 attached to the second robots 21 and 22, respectively (FIG. 6B), and the obtained left gap C1 and right The step of moving the lid member 25 left and right by the first robot 26 (FIG. 6C) so that the difference from the gap C2 is equal to or less than the tolerance, and the second robots 21 and 22 are hinged. Step of fastening the connector (FIG. 6 (c A), characterized by comprising the.

The lid member 25 may be a trunk lid, a hood, a hood, or a tailgate.
A flow when the method of the present invention is applied to the tailgate will be described next.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a method for attaching the tailgate, which will be described with reference to FIG. The flow in the left column of the figure represents the action of the rear first robot, and the flow in the right column of the figure represents the action of the second robot.

In step (hereinafter abbreviated as ST) 01, the rear first robot places a tailgate on the platform (FIG. 1, reference numeral 27) from the conveyor.
The mounting table has a centering function, and positions the mounted tailgate (ST02). Then, the rear first robot adjusts the angle of the hinge in the manner described with reference to FIG. 5 (ST03).

  On the other hand, the second robot (FIG. 1, reference numerals 21 and 22) receives bolts or nuts from the stocker (ST04). Next, it moves to the tailgate mounting position of the vehicle body (ST05). And a hinge attachment hole is detected and a position is memorize | stored in preparation for the bolt fastening of a post process (ST06). Next, the second robot moves to the tailgate (ST07), detects a hinge bolt or a hinge hole, and stores the position (ST08).

Based on the position information of the hinge bolt or hinge hole detected in ST08, the correction information related to the rear first robot is calculated, and the correction value is sent.
In ST09, the rear first robot is kept waiting until a correction value is sent. When the correction value is received, the tailgate is moved to the mounting position of the vehicle body (ST10).

  On the other hand, the second robot moves to a gap measurement position and stands by (ST11). When the left and right gaps can be measured, measurement is performed as shown in FIG. 6B (ST12). And it moves to a bolt fastening position (ST13).

  In ST14, the rear first robot is put on standby until the left and right gaps are measured by the second robot. When the left and right gaps are measured, the tailgate is moved to the left or right until the left and right gaps are the same (substantially the same) (ST15).

  In ST16, the second robot stands by until the tail gate position correction (correction to the left and right) performed by the rear first robot is completed. When the tail gate position correction is completed, the second robot tightens the bolt or nut (ST17) and returns to the original position (ST18).

  The rear first robot continues to hold the tailgate until the bolts or nuts are tightened (ST19). When the tightening of the bolt or nut is completed, it returns to the original position (ST20).

  According to the method of the present invention, there is provided a method for attaching a lid member that can align the left and right gaps between the vehicle body and the lid member and can automatically adjust the posture of the hinge.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a modified example of FIG. 2. The second robots 18, 19, 21, and 22 include fastening mechanisms 32 </ b> L and 32 </ b> R such as nutrunners, a laser irradiator 34 that irradiates a laser beam 33, and irradiation. And a camera 35 for photographing the surface.

  When the measurement object is measured by the laser irradiator 34 and the camera 35, the second robots 18, 19, 21, and 22 turn the tip of the robot arm 180 ° to set the fastening mechanisms 32L and 32R as the tightening objects. Let it come.

Since the two fastening mechanisms 32L and 32R are provided, for example, the first bolt can be fastened by the fastening mechanism 32L, and then the second bolt in the vicinity of the first bolt can be fastened by the fastening mechanism 32R.
The two fastening mechanisms 32L and 32R are arranged in a V shape so that the fastening mechanism 32R does not get in the way when the fastening mechanism 32L is operated. Thus, the fastening mechanism 32L or 32R can be inserted into a narrow place.

  The present invention is suitable for an attaching operation for attaching a lid member to a vehicle body.

It is a perspective view which shows a part of vehicle assembly line including the attachment apparatus of the cover member which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the front-end | tip of the 2nd robot which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the right-and-left movement mechanism with which the front-end | tip of the rear part 1st robot which concerns on this invention was equipped, and the cover holding | maintenance mechanism. It is a side view of a trunk mounting base. It is a figure explaining the hinge attitude | position adjustment process which concerns on this invention. It is explanatory drawing from the process of moving a cover member to the process of fastening a hinge. It is a flowchart explaining the attachment method of a tailgate. It is a figure which shows the example of a change of FIG. It is a figure explaining the basic principle of the prior art.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Car body, 13, 25 ... Cover member, 14, 26 ... 1st robot, 17, 29 ... Posture adjustment mechanism, 18, 19, 21, 22 ... 2nd robot, 23, 31 ... Control part, 28 ... Hinge, 32, 32L, 32R ... fastening mechanism, 34 ... laser irradiator, 35 ... camera, 40 ... lid holding mechanism, 55 ... hinge connector, C1 ... left gap, C2 ... right gap, C3, C4 ... almost A gap of the same size.

Claims (2)

In the lid member mounting method of attaching the lid member to the vehicle body by positioning the lid member on the vehicle body by the first robot and fastening the hinge connector extending from the lid member by the second robot.
A hinge posture adjustment step in which the lid member held by the first robot is exposed to the posture adjustment member, and a hinge connector extending from the lid member is applied to the posture adjustment member to obtain a predetermined posture;
Moving the lid member to the mounting position of the vehicle body with the first robot;
Measuring the left and right gaps between the lid member and the vehicle body using a laser irradiator and a camera each attached to the second robot;
A step of moving the lid member left and right by the first robot so that a difference between the obtained left gap and right gap is equal to or less than a tolerance;
And a step of fastening the hinge connector by the second robot. In the lid member mounting apparatus for attaching the lid member to the vehicle body by positioning the lid member on the vehicle body by the first robot and fastening the hinge member extending from the lid member or the vehicle body by the second robot.
The lid member mounting apparatus includes a fastening mechanism such as a nutrunner for the second robot, a laser irradiator for irradiating a laser beam, and a camera for photographing an irradiation surface, and the lid member placed in the vicinity of the vehicle body The lid member is provided with a control unit that controls the difference between the left gap and the right gap to be equal to or less than a tolerance based on the information of the camera that captured the left and right gaps between the vehicle body and the vehicle body. Mounting device.

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