JP2010201847A - Molding apparatus and carrier - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To exactly position molding raw materials of various shapes, and to shorten a conveyance time. <P>SOLUTION: A suction pad 13 which carries out the suction holding of an optical element material 20 and a chuck 3 which holds and positions the optical element material 20 are fixed to a common suction tube 1 in common, and are lifted and lowered simultaneously by a suction tube vertical cylinder 12 and a suction tube vertical slide stage 6. The suction pad 13 can control a suction height position independently by a suction pad vertical mechanism 13a to hold the outer periphery of the optical element material 20 laid at an optical element positioning stand 8 between chucks 3 of a couple to position it, thereafter, only the suction pad 13 is dropped, and the suction holding of the top of the optical element material 20 is carried out, and the optical element material 20 in a state of having been positioned and conserved by the suction pad 13 and the chucks 3 is laid at high speed and accuracy by a molding bottom force 11 without making it drop out. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a molding apparatus and a conveying apparatus.

For example, in the field of manufacturing optical elements, mass production is performed by molding, and in such a mass production process, supply of a molding material to a molding machine is also automated.
In this case, the accuracy and speed of the molding material supply operation to the molding machine will improve productivity by reducing defective products and shortening tact time (the time required from molding material supply to completion of molding). It becomes important in the above.

Conventionally, a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known as a positioning technique in the optical material supply process before molding.
This prior art will be described with reference to FIG. 12, FIG. 13 and FIG. 12 is a top view in a state where an optical material is held, and FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 12, this optical material center positioning device 101 includes a reference member 111, three moving chucks 113a, 113b, 113c, and three driving units 112a, 112b, 112c that drive each of these chucks. The sensors 115a, 115b, and 115c are arranged at the tip of each chuck.

  That is, the reference member 111 has a shape in which a cylindrical recess is formed at the center of the disk-shaped member. The bottom surface of the central recess constitutes a support portion 111a that is a flat surface, and an annular outer frame portion 111b is provided on the outer peripheral side of the support portion 111a.

  The center position of the circular support portion 111a has a known three-dimensional coordinate and corresponds to a positioning point. A straight line passing through the positioning point and perpendicular to the support portion 111a corresponds to the positioning axis.

  In the outer frame portion 111b, three through holes 114a, 114b, and 114c that are perpendicular to the positioning shaft and radially extend are formed at three equal positions on the circumference, that is, every 120 ° of the circumference angle. These through-holes are inserted with straight bar-shaped chucks 113a, 113b, 113c having the same length, and are movable back and forth in the axial direction of each through-hole.

Each drive part 112a, 112b, 112c has drive sources (not shown), such as an air cylinder and a motor, and a deceleration / electrical mechanism (not shown).
The sensors 115a, 115b, and 115c are provided at the tips of the chucks 113a, 113b, and 113c in the approaching direction. This sensor position corresponds to the contact end.

  Each of the sensors 115a, 115b, and 115c detects that the tips of the chucks 113a, 113b, and 113c are in contact with an object, and a contact detection signal is provided in a control device (for example, inside the drive units 112a, 112b, and 112c). (Not shown).

Next, the operation of the conventional optical material center positioning apparatus 101 having such a configuration will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the optical material P to be positioned is a substantially disc-shaped material made of an optical material such as optical glass, has two convex curved surfaces, and has a side surface of the outer peripheral portion. Is formed in a cylindrical convex lens shape. The projected shape of each board surface is circular, and the center of this circle is the material center of this optical material P.

  First, the optical material P is placed on the support portion 111 a of the reference member 111. In this case, the placement position of the optical material P may be on the support portion 111a, and may be decentered from the positioning point. When the optical material P is placed on the support portion 111a, the surface of the optical material P on the support portion 111a side is supported by point contact on the support portion 111a by the center, that is, the material center.

  Next, by operating a control device (not shown), the ON / OFF switch of the drive unit is turned ON, the rotation direction switch is switched to any one, and the movement of each drive unit 112a, 112b, 112c is started. . As a result, the chucks 113a, 113b, 113c simultaneously move linearly in the direction approaching each other at the same speed. In this case, if the mounting position of the optical material P is deviated from the positioning point, the tip sensor of at least one chuck first comes into contact with the outer peripheral portion of the optical material P. In this case, a contact detection signal is output from the contacted sensor to the control device.

  Next, since the chuck that has come into contact with the optical material P continues to move in the approaching direction, the optical material P is pushed and moved by the chuck. The same applies to the other chucks. As a result, finally, contact detection signals are output from the sensors 115a, 115b, 115c at the tips of all chucks 113a, 113b, 113c to the control device. In this case, the control device turns off the ON / OFF switch and stops all the chucks 113a, 113b, and 113c.

  Since the three-dimensional coordinate value of the positioning point is known as described above, the suction pad mounted on the industrial robot arm or the like is moved so that the material center of the optical material P matches the center position of the suction pad. Thus, it can be adsorbed and held.

  However, if the chuck is loosened before the suction is completed, the position of the optical material P may be shifted. Therefore, after the suction is completed, each chuck is moved backward in the separation direction and loosened. After that, the optical material P is held by the suction pad and lifted, and the arm of the industrial robot is driven so that the center position of the optical material P matches the center position of the suction pad. If the center position coordinates are moved to a known concave mold and placed, the optical material P can be accurately placed on the concave part of the mold.

  In the above-described prior art, after the optical material P is positioned by the optical material center positioning device, the optical material P is separated by the positioning axis direction in order to shorten the tact time while being picked up by the suction pad, and is moved at high speed in the transport direction. In this case, there is a concern that the position of the optical material P is slightly shifted due to the acceleration accompanying the vertical movement and the acceleration accompanying the horizontal movement, and in the worst case, the optical material P may fall during the movement.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 14, when the optical material bent in a concave shape is positioned, the height of the positioning chuck with respect to the support portion 111a is fixed. Further, when the contact positions of the chucks 113a to 113c are low, there is a concern that the positioning of the optical material P is pushed upward and the positioning fails.

JP 10-29826 A

  The objective of this invention is providing the technique which can implement | achieve exact positioning of the shaping | molding raw material of various shapes, and shortening of conveyance time.

A first aspect of the present invention is a molding apparatus comprising at least one molding machine and a conveying device that conveys a molding material to the molding machine,
The transfer device
A mounting table on which the molding material is mounted;
A gripping mechanism for gripping the molding material located on the mounting table,
An adsorption mechanism for adsorbing and holding the molding material located on the mounting table;
A first moving mechanism that three-dimensionally displaces the gripping mechanism and the suction mechanism;
A second moving mechanism for independently displacing the suction mechanism with respect to the gripping mechanism;
A molding apparatus is provided.

A second aspect of the present invention is a conveying device for conveying a molding material to a molding machine,
A mounting table on which the molding material is mounted;
A gripping mechanism for gripping the molding material located on the mounting table,
An adsorption mechanism for adsorbing and holding the molding material located on the mounting table;
A first moving mechanism that three-dimensionally displaces the gripping mechanism and the suction mechanism;
A second moving mechanism for independently displacing the suction mechanism with respect to the gripping mechanism;
Is provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the technique which can implement | achieve exact positioning of the shaping | molding raw material of various shapes and shortening of conveyance time can be provided.

It is a schematic sectional side view which shows an example of a structure of the shaping | molding apparatus provided with the conveying apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic plan view which shows an example of a structure of the shaping | molding apparatus provided with the conveying apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram explaining the positioning operation | movement of the conveying apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram explaining the positioning operation | movement of the conveying apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of positioning and supply operation | movement of the optical element material by an optical element conveyance unit in the shaping | molding apparatus which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a top view explaining a prior art. It is sectional drawing explaining a prior art. It is sectional drawing explaining the technical subject of a prior art.

  In the present embodiment, as one aspect, in a transport mechanism in a molding apparatus such as an optical element, a configuration in which a front and rear slide stage and an upper and lower slide stage are integrated with a suction cylinder provided with an optical material positioning chuck and suction pad is disclosed. To do.

In the molding apparatus provided with the conveyance mechanism of this aspect, the optical material positioning chuck operates in conjunction with the displacement of the suction cylinder by the front and rear slide stages and the upper and lower slide stages.
That is, the optical material is adsorbed by the adsorption pad of the adsorption cylinder while the optical element is held by the positioning chuck, and the front and rear slide stages and the upper and lower slide stages are operated to position the optical material in the mold with high accuracy. Can be placed.

  In addition, since the optical material is reliably held from two directions orthogonal to each other by gripping by the positioning chuck and suction by the suction pad, even if the carry-in speed into the mold is increased, the optical material is not displaced. It does not occur, and the speed of transporting optical materials can be increased.

Thereby, the conveyance time of an optical material can be shortened, eliminating the positioning error of the optical material with respect to a shaping | molding die.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional side view showing an example of the configuration of a molding apparatus provided with a conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view illustrating an example of a configuration of a molding apparatus including a transport apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 and 4 are conceptual diagrams illustrating the positioning operation of the transport device according to the present embodiment.
In the present embodiment, in FIG. 1, the left-right direction is described as the X direction, the up-down direction as the Z direction, and the direction perpendicular to the paper surface as the Y direction. As an example, the Z direction is the vertical direction, and the XY plane is the horizontal plane.

(Constitution)
As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the molding apparatus M of the present embodiment includes a plurality of optical element molding machines 16 (molding machines) arranged in a line in a predetermined direction (in this case, the Y direction), An optical element molding machine 17 (molding machine), an optical element molding machine 18 (molding machine), an optical element molding machine 19 (molding machine), an optical element palette 15 provided in common to them, an optical element palette 15; An optical element conveying unit H (conveying device) is provided for carrying the optical element material 20 (molding material) and the molded optical element 20a between each of the optical element molding machines 16-19.

The operation of the molding apparatus M and the optical element transport unit H and the operation in cooperation with the optical element molding machines 16 to 19 are controlled by the control device 30.
Each of the optical element molding machines 16 to 19 is provided with a molding upper mold 10 and a molding lower mold 11 that are arranged to face each other in the vertical direction (in this case, the Z direction). The optical element material 20 supplied between the molding surface 11a and the molding surface 11a of the molding lower mold 11 is sandwiched to perform an operation of molding the optical element 20a to which the shape of the molding surface 10a and the molding surface 11a is transferred.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the optical element transport unit H provided in the molding apparatus M of the present embodiment has a suction cylinder upper and lower slide stage fixing plate 7 fixed on a base plate 9, and the suction cylinder upper and lower An adsorption cylinder vertical slide stage 6 (first moving mechanism) is fixed to the upper surface of the slide stage fixing plate 7.

  A suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 (first moving mechanism) is supported on the side surface of the suction cylinder vertical slide stage 6, and the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 extends along the suction cylinder vertical slide stage 6 in the vertical direction. It is configured to move up and down in the (Z direction).

The suction cylinder front and rear slide stage 5 is displaced so as to expand and contract in the X direction facing the arrangement region of the optical element molding machines 16 to 19.
Further, the upper end of the suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12 (first moving mechanism) is fixed to the lower surface of the end portion of the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 on the side close to the optical element molding machines 16-19.

  The suction cylinder 1 is fixed to the lower end of the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12. And by the expansion and contraction of the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12, the vertical movement (in the Z direction) of the suction cylinder 1 is performed.

  Below the adsorption cylinder 1, an optical element positioning table 8 (mounting table) is fixed to the side surface of the base plate 9 so as to be positioned between the base plate 9 and the arrangement region of the optical element molding machines 16 to 19. Has been placed.

  An optical element material 20 is placed on the optical element positioning table 8. The height in the Z direction of the mounting surface 8a of the optical element material 20 that is the upper surface of the optical element positioning table 8 is input and stored in the control device 30 in advance.

Further, a chuck fixing plate mounting jig 2 is horizontally fixed to the suction cylinder 1 so as to embrace the suction cylinder 1.
Further, the upper end portion of the chuck driving plate 4 is fixed to the end portion of the chuck fixing plate mounting jig 2 opposite to the suction cylinder 1, and the lower end portion of the chuck driving plate 4 is placed on the paper surface of FIG. A pair of chucks 3 (gripping mechanisms) facing in the vertical Y direction are provided.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3, a V-shaped gripping groove 3 a is provided on each opposing side surface of the pair of chucks 3, and each of the pair of chucks 3 is provided on the chuck driving plate 4. The moving mechanism (not shown) is displaced so as to approach and separate from each other in the facing direction (Y direction).

  Accordingly, as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the outer periphery of the optical element material 20 placed on the optical element positioning table 8 between the gripping grooves 3 a of the pair of chucks 3 supported by the suction cylinder 1. And the positioning operation of the optical axis center 20c of the optical element material 20 in the horizontal plane (XY plane) is performed.

  In addition, the XY plane in the optical element conveyance unit H of the optical axis center 20c of the optical element material 20 in the horizontal plane (XY plane) after being gripped and positioned by the pair of chucks 3 as shown in FIG. The positioning center position coordinate G is stored in the control device 30 in advance.

That is, the control device 30 performs a positioning operation so that the optical axis center 20c of the optical element material 20 matches the predetermined positioning center position coordinate G by gripping the pair of chucks 3.
In the case of the present embodiment, the optical element material 20 is gripped by the pair of chucks 3 at the height position (position in the Z direction) of the material maximum diameter D0 of the optical element material 20 placed on the optical element positioning table 8. And positioning operation is performed.

Depending on the type of optical element material 20, the height (hereinafter referred to as gripping height h0) of the portion of the material maximum diameter D0 (diameter in the Y direction) from the placement surface 8a differs.
That is, when different types of optical element materials 20 are molded in each of the plurality of optical element molding machines 16 to 19, the gripping height h 0 of the optical element material 20 is different in each molding machine.

  For this reason, in the case of the present embodiment, the grip height h0 in each of the plurality of optical element molding machines 16 to 19 is stored in advance in the control device 30 by a method such as teaching.

Then, the control device 30 positions the chuck 3 at the gripping height h0 corresponding to the maximum material diameter D0 in the Z direction for each of the various types of optical element materials 20.
3 shows a state before positioning (gripping) immediately after the optical element material 20 is placed on the optical element positioning table 8, and FIG. 4 shows the state of FIG. 3 by the gripping grooves 3a of the pair of chucks 3 from the state of FIG. A state in which the element material 20 is positioned is shown.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the suction cylinder 1 and the pair of chucks 3 supported by the suction cylinder 1 via the chuck fixing plate mounting jig 2 and the chuck driving plate 4 are the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders. 12, the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 and the suction cylinder vertical slide stage 6 are supported in common.

As a result, the suction cylinder 1 and the chuck 3 are simultaneously displaced in the same direction by the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5, the suction cylinder upper / lower slide stage 6, and the suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12.
Further, a suction pad 13 (suction mechanism) is built in the lower end of the suction cylinder 1. The suction pad 13 is independent of the lifting and lowering operation of the suction cylinder 1 and the chuck 3 by the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12 by a suction pad vertical mechanism 13a (second movement mechanism) such as a cylinder provided inside the suction cylinder 1. It can move in the vertical direction (Z direction).

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, the base plate 9 of the optical element transport unit H is a left-right slide disposed in a direction (Y direction) along the arrangement direction of the optical element molding machines 16 to 19 and the optical element palette 15. The optical element pallet 15 or the optical element molding machine 16 is placed on the stage 14 (first moving mechanism), and the entire optical element transport unit H moves in the Y direction along the left and right slide stages 14. It is possible to position the optical element transport unit H so as to face the arbitrary one of ˜19 in the X direction.

  Here, in the case of the present embodiment, the optical element transport unit H is directly opposed to any one of the plurality of optical element molding machines 16 to 19. It is optical in the Y direction so that the positioning center position coordinate G of the element positioning table 8 is included (matches) in the ZX plane including the central axis in the Z direction of the molding lower mold 11 of the target optical element molding machine. This means positioning the element transport unit H.

  The optical element pallet 15 is provided with a plurality of material storage recesses 15a, and each material storage recess 15a is configured to store the optical element material 20 before molding or the optical element 20a after molding.

As described above, the operations of the molding apparatus M and the optical element transport unit H of the present embodiment are controlled by the control device 30.
The control device 30 is configured by a computer, for example, and has a configuration in which a control operation of the molding device M and the optical element transport unit H is performed by executing a control program 31 installed in the control device 30.

In the case of the molding apparatus M of the present embodiment, the control device 30 is provided with a control table 32.
In the control table 32, as an example, gripping height data 32b and material maximum diameter data 32c are stored in association with each molding machine number 32a.

That is, the number uniquely assigned to each of the plurality of optical element molding machines 16 to 19 is stored in the molding machine number 32a.
The control device 30 recognizes the individual optical element molding machines 16 to 19 by the molding machine number 32a. In the control device 30, a correspondence relationship between the molding machine number 32a and the arrangement position of each optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19 in the Y direction (facing position with respect to the optical element transport unit H) is set in advance. ing.

  The data such as the gripping height h0 and the material maximum diameter D0 for each molding machine (type of optical element material 20) input to the control device 30 by a method such as teaching corresponds to the molding machine number 32a. Is remembered.

The control device 30 reads the data such as the corresponding gripping height h0 and the maximum material diameter D0 from the control table 32 when the optical element material 20 is positioned and supplied to each of the optical element molding machines 16 to 19. Thus, the operations of the optical element transport unit H and the molding apparatus M are controlled.
(Function)
Hereinafter, an example of the operation of the molding apparatus M and the optical element transport unit H of the present embodiment will be described.

  5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 show how the optical element material 20 is transported by the optical element transport unit H in the molding apparatus M of the present embodiment. FIG.

First, the control device 30 moves the optical element transport unit H to the position of the optical element palette 15 on the left and right slide stages 14.
Next, the control device 30 moves the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 to the optical element palette 15 in the X direction until the suction pad 13 is positioned directly above the target optical element material 20 placed on the optical element palette 15. Extend and move toward.

  Next, the control device 30 lowers (extends) the suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12 and further lowers the suction pad 13 by the suction pad vertical mechanism 13a. After the suction pad 13 comes into contact with the upper surface of the optical element material 20, the optical element material 20 is sucked and held on the suction pad 13 by introducing a negative pressure from a vacuum generator (not shown) into the suction pad 13.

  In this state, the control device 30 raises (retracts) the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12 of the optical element transport unit H to float the optical element material 20 from the optical element pallet 15 and moves the suction cylinder front and rear slide stage 5 in the X direction. To retract toward the optical element transport unit H side.

At this time, the control device 30 can perform an operation of gripping the outer peripheral position of the raw material maximum diameter D0 of the optical element material 20 with the pair of chucks 3 as necessary.
Furthermore, the control device 30 moves the optical element transport unit H holding the optical element material 20 on the left and right slide stages 14 in the Y direction to a target molding machine (that is, the current molding machine 16-19). Move to a position facing the molding machine that is not performing the molding operation.

  Next, the controller 30 advances (extends) the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 in the X direction to above the optical element positioning table 8, and moves the suction cylinder upper / lower slide stage 6 downward to move the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5. Then, the suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12 is lowered (elongated), and the suction pad 13 is lowered by the suction pad vertical mechanism 13a.

  Then, after detecting the contact between the lower surface of the optical element material 20 and the mounting surface 8a of the optical element positioning table 8, the control device 30 cuts off the negative pressure acting on the suction pad 13 by a vacuum device (not shown). To do.

When the gripping of the optical element material 20 by the chuck 3 is also used, the chuck 3 is opened to release the gripping state of the optical element material 20.
Note that the control device 30 makes the optical element material 20 come into contact with the placement surface 8a based on information such as a change in load in the Z direction acting on the suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12 and the suction cylinder upper / lower slide stage 6 (placement). Can be detected.

  In this state, the control device 30 raises (degenerates) the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12 of the optical element transport unit H. At this time, the optical element material 20 may be placed at an approximate position on the optical element positioning table 8.

Thereby, as shown in FIG. 5, the optical element material 20 is released from the suction holding state by the suction pad 13 and placed on the placement surface 8 a of the optical element positioning table 8.
Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the control device 30 is configured so that the chuck 3 is positioned at the gripping height h <b> 0 in a state where the pair of chucks 3 are opened with respect to the maximum material diameter D <b> 0 of the optical element material 20. The suction cylinder upper / lower cylinder 12 is lowered.

Then, the control device 30 closes the chuck 3 with the chuck drive plate 4 from the opened state as shown in FIG. 3 as shown in FIG.
That is, in the case of the present embodiment, the control device 30 changes the lowering position of the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12 in the Z direction according to the shape of the optical element material 20, and the optical element material 20 is positioned by the chuck 3. Is controlled to a height position (gripping height h0) at which the chuck 3 can reliably grip and position the portion of the optical element material 20 having the maximum material diameter D0, that is, the optical element material 20 so as not to be pushed upward.

  Thus, by closing the pair of chucks 3 as shown in FIG. 4, the position of the material maximum diameter D0 is gripped by the gripping groove 3a, and the optical axis center 20c of the optical element material 20 is positioned at the positioning center of the optical element positioning table 8. Positioning that matches the position coordinates G is performed.

  Next, the control device 30 lowers only the suction pad 13 by the suction pad up-and-down mechanism 13a as shown in FIG. The optical element material 20 is sucked and held on the suction pad 13 by applying a negative pressure due to the above to the suction pad 13.

  The control device 30 can detect that the suction pad 13 is in contact with the upper surface of the optical element material 20 based on a change in the load in the Z direction of the suction pad lifting mechanism 13a that supports the suction pad 13.

  As described above, in the case of the present embodiment, gripping (fixing) in the horizontal plane (XY plane) by the chuck 3 and suction holding by the suction pad 13 in the vertical direction (Z direction) orthogonal to the horizontal plane. Since the optical element material 20 is fixed from directions orthogonal to each other by the chuck 3 and the suction pad 13, the optical element material 20 can be reliably positioned and fixed.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 8, the control device 30 raises the suction cylinder upper and lower cylinders 12 (acts in the contraction direction), so that the optical element remains in the state where the positioning by the chuck 3 and the suction holding by the suction pad 13 are performed. The material 20 is raised to a predetermined carry-in height corresponding to the height of the molding lower mold 11 of the molding machine.

  Next, the control device 30 is arranged so that the optical element material 20 is positioned between the molding upper mold 10 and the molding lower mold 11 as shown in FIG. 9, that is, the optical axis center 20c of the optical element material 20 is molded. The suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 is advanced in the direction of the molding lower mold 11 so as to coincide with the central axis of the lower mold 11 in the Z direction.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the control device 30 moves the entire suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 supporting the suction cylinder 1 and the like downward by the suction cylinder upper / lower slide stage 6 in the Z direction, thereby forming the lower molding die 11. When the lower surface of the optical element material 20 comes into contact with the concave surface (molding surface 11a), the descent is stopped.

The control device 30 can detect that the lower surface of the optical element material 20 is in contact with the lower mold 11 due to a change in the support load on the suction cylinder upper and lower slide stages 6, for example.
Next, the control device 30 releases the suction of the optical element material 20 by the suction pad 13 by cutting off the negative pressure introduced to the suction pad 13 from a vacuum generator (not shown).

  Then, the controller 30 raises the suction pad 13 by the suction pad up-and-down mechanism 13a and separates it from the optical element material 20, and then opens the pair of chucks 3 as shown in FIG. Is released.

  Thereby, the operation of positioning and placing the optical element material 20 on the molding lower mold 11 by the optical element transport unit H is completed, and the control device 30 moves the suction cylinder vertical slide stage 6 upward in the Z direction, The suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 on which the suction cylinder 1 and the chuck 3 are supported is raised, and the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 is further retracted in the X direction away from the lower mold 11.

  Thus, in the case of the present embodiment, the lower mold 11 of the optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19 while positioning and holding the optical element material 20 by the two mechanisms of the chuck 3 and the suction pad 13. And since it supplies to the shaping | molding upper mold | type 10, the position shift and fall of the optical element material 20 can be prevented reliably.

  The control device 30 confirms that the suction cylinder front / rear slide stage 5 has moved back into the optical element transport unit H (that is, withdrawn from between the molding lower mold 11 and the molding upper mold 10) by a position detector (not shown). Then, a command to start molding is issued to the optical element molding machine (for example, the optical element molding machine 16) supplied with the optical element material 20.

  Upon receiving this command, the optical element molding machine 16 lowers the molding upper mold 10 downward in the Z direction, and forms the molding surface 11a of the molding lower mold 11 and the molding surface 10a of the molding upper mold 10 as shown in FIG. The optical element material 20 is sandwiched between them, and the molding operation of transferring the shapes of the molding surface 11a and the molding surface 10a to the optical element material 20 and molding the optical element material 20a is performed.

  After this molding operation, in the optical element molding machine 16, the molding upper mold 10 is raised in the Z direction, and the molded optical element 20a is positioned on the molding surface 11a of the molding lower mold 11 by gravity.

At this timing, the optical element molding machine 16 notifies the control device 30 of the completion of molding.
Receiving this notification, the control device 30 operates the optical element transport unit H in reverse to the series of supply operations shown in FIGS. 5 to 11 described above, and sucks and holds the optical element 20a of the molding lower mold 11 on the suction pad 13. Then, it is transported to the material storage recess 15a of the optical element pallet 15 or a post-molding dedicated storage pallet (not shown).

  When the optical element 20a is transported (recovered) from the molding lower mold 11 (optical element molding machine 16) to the material storage recess 15a of the optical element pallet 15, it is molded into the target material storage recess 15a of the optical element pallet 15. The subsequent optical element 20a only needs to be accommodated, and the control device 30 performs gripping and positioning of the optical element 20a by the pair of chucks 3 at the time of collection as necessary.

  For example, when the conveyance speed of the optical element 20a from the optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element pallet 15 is increased, the optical element 20a is sucked and held by the suction pad 13 and the outer periphery of the optical element 20a is gripped by the chuck 3. In combination, the optical element 20a can be more reliably held in the optical element transport unit H, and the optical element 20a being transported can be reliably prevented from falling off.

Thereby, the high-speed collection conveyance of the optical element 20a to the optical element pallet 15 is attained, and the time of the whole molding process can be shortened.
As described above, according to the molding apparatus M and the optical element transport unit H of the present embodiment, a pair of the optical element material 20 before molding is supplied to each of the optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19. By gripping the optical element 20a with the gripping groove 3a of the chuck 3, the optical element material 20 is positioned in the horizontal plane (XY plane), and then the optical element material 20 is sucked and held by the suction pad 13. The optical element material 20 can be accurately positioned and placed with respect to one molding lower mold 11 of the element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19, and a positional shift or a drop that occurs due to the conveyance of the optical element. Can be prevented.

  Further, when the optical element material 20 and the optical element 20a are held by the suction pad 13 and the chuck 3, the optical element palette 15 and the optical element molding can be performed without worrying about dropping of the optical element material 20 and the optical element 20a. By increasing the transport speed of the optical element material 20 and the optical element 20a between the machine 16 and the optical element molding machine 19, it is possible to shorten the required transport time.

  As a result, the tact time (from the supply of one optical element material 20 between the optical element palette 15 and the optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19 to the recovery of the molded and molded optical element 20a is required. Time) can be significantly reduced.

  In addition, due to the accurate supply of the optical element material 20 to the molding lower mold 11 by the optical element transport unit H, molding defects of the optical element 20a in the optical element molding machine 16 to the optical element molding machine 19 are also reduced.

As a result, the productivity of the molding apparatus M of the present embodiment is greatly improved.
Further, even when the optical element material 20 having various shapes with different height positions, that is, the holding height h0, is formed, the chuck 3 is held in accordance with the holding height h0 of each optical element material 20. Since the height position in the operation is set, no failure of the positioning operation occurs even when the optical element material 20 having various shapes is positioned by the chuck 3, and the optical element material 20 can be accurately positioned. .

That is, according to the molding apparatus M and the optical element transport unit H of the present embodiment, it is possible to realize accurate positioning of various shapes of molding materials and shortening of the transport time.
Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the configuration exemplified in the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

The molding material is not limited to the optical element material 20 and can be widely applied to the molding process of general articles.
[Appendix 1]
An optical element transport device for transporting an optical element material to a molding device,
A positioning table for positioning the optical element material;
A gripping mechanism for gripping the optical element material positioned by the positioning table;
An adsorption mechanism for adsorbing the optical element material positioned by the positioning table;
A moving mechanism for moving the optical element material to the molding device,
When the optical element material is moved by the moving mechanism, the optical element material is moved to a molding apparatus by using the gripping mechanism and the suction mechanism.

[Appendix 2]
The optical element transport device according to claim 1, wherein the optical element material is adsorbed by the adsorption mechanism in a direction in which the optical element material is held and a direction substantially perpendicular to the holding direction.

[Appendix 3]
An optical element conveying apparatus comprising an optical element positioning mechanism movable in the horizontal direction and a mechanism interlocking with the optical element positioning mechanism.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Adsorption cylinder 2 Chuck fixing plate attachment jig 3 Chuck 3a Gripping groove 4 Chuck drive plate 5 Adsorption cylinder front / rear slide stage 6 Adsorption cylinder upper / lower slide stage 7 Adsorption cylinder upper / lower slide stage fixing plate 8 Optical element positioning table 8a Mounting surface 9 Base Plate 10 Upper mold 10a Molding surface 11 Molded lower mold 11a Molding surface 12 Suction cylinder upper cylinder 13 Suction pad 13a Suction pad vertical mechanism 14 Left and right slide stage 15 Optical element palette 15a Material storage recesses 16-19 Optical element molding machine 20 Optical element Material 20a Optical element 20c Optical axis center 30 Control device 31 Control program 32 Control table 32a Molding machine number 32b Gripping height data 32c Material maximum diameter data D0 Material maximum diameter h0 Gripping height G Positioning center position coordinate H Optical element transport unit M Molding equipment

Claims (6)

A molding apparatus comprising: at least one molding machine; and a conveying device that conveys a molding material to the molding machine,
The transfer device
A mounting table on which the molding material is mounted;
A gripping mechanism for gripping the molding material located on the mounting table,
An adsorption mechanism for adsorbing and holding the molding material located on the mounting table;
A first moving mechanism that three-dimensionally displaces the gripping mechanism and the suction mechanism;
A second moving mechanism for independently displacing the suction mechanism with respect to the gripping mechanism;
A molding apparatus comprising:   The molding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a gripping direction of the molding material by the gripping mechanism and a suction direction of the molding material by the suction mechanism are substantially orthogonal to each other.   After the first movement mechanism positions and grips the gripping mechanism on the molding material, the second movement mechanism performs an operation of bringing the suction mechanism into contact with the molding material and holding it by suction. The molding apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2. A conveying device for conveying a molding material to a molding machine,
A mounting table on which the molding material is mounted;
A gripping mechanism for gripping the molding material located on the mounting table,
An adsorption mechanism for adsorbing and holding the molding material located on the mounting table;
A first moving mechanism that three-dimensionally displaces the gripping mechanism and the suction mechanism;
A second moving mechanism for independently displacing the suction mechanism with respect to the gripping mechanism;
A conveying apparatus comprising:   The conveying apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a gripping direction of the molding material by the gripping mechanism and a suction direction of the molding material by the suction mechanism are substantially orthogonal to each other.   After the first movement mechanism positions and grips the gripping mechanism on the molding material, the second movement mechanism performs an operation of bringing the suction mechanism into contact with the molding material and holding it by suction. The conveying device according to claim 4 or 5.