JP2017185588A - Wire saw device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To flexibly cope with even a variety of processing methods when processing and cutting a workpiece by using a wire saw.SOLUTION: A wire saw device 1 includes: one robot arm 2 which can be freely moved under multi-axial control; a wire saw unit 3 connected to the robot arm 2; a wire 8 stretched over a plurality of pulleys supported pivotally in the wire saw unit 3; and a workpiece cutting/processing region 20 set between the pulleys. While the robot arm 2 is moved in a preset direction, the wire 8 of the wire saw unit 3 is run, and a workpiece is cut into a predetermined shape by pressing the wire against the held workpiece. The robot arm 2 or the wire saw unit 3 can be vibrated to process and cut the workpiece depending on the type of the workpiece.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a wire saw device that cuts a workpiece by using a robot arm that can be controlled in multiple axes with multiple joints.

Conventionally, it is a wire saw device that presses and cuts a work such as silicon or sapphire on a wire row formed by winding a single wire between a plurality of groove rollers, and the wire is formed of a steel wire. A fixed abrasive type wire saw apparatus using a fixed abrasive wire in which abrasive grains such as diamond are fixed to a core wire by electrodeposition, resin or the like is known.

In processing of a normal wire saw device, a workpiece is processed and fed to a running wire by a processing feeding device. Since this processing feed direction is a uniaxial direction, it cannot flexibly cope with various workpieces and various processing modes, for example, processing into curved shapes.

In order to solve the above problems, the following various wire saw devices have been proposed as devices capable of cutting various workpieces and various processing modes.

For the wire suspended between the two cutting rollers, the center line of rotation of the cutting roller is maintained in a state perpendicular to the curved surface to be processed. The center line of rotation of the cutting roller is changed in the direction of elevation and depression in the processing direction, and the cutting roller follows the change in elevation and depression of the curved surface. In accordance with this, a cutting method has been performed in which a wire suspended on a roller is pressed against a workpiece to form a curved surface on the workpiece (for example, Patent Document 1).

In addition, the robot arm is equipped with a chuck that holds the workpiece, and a multi-axis controllable robot arm moves to hold the workpiece while maintaining the workpiece within the working range of the robot arm. There is also a wire saw device that moves a workpiece to the cutting processing area and presses and cuts the workpiece against a traveling wire (for example, Patent Document 2).

Furthermore, there is also a wire saw device having a wire guide head at the tip of the robot arm of two industrial robots. A wire is suspended between the two wire guide heads, and the wire is pressed against a workpiece placed within the operation range of the wire guide head, and cutting is performed in accordance with the movement of the robot arm (for example, Patent Document 3).

JP 2014-73549 A JP 2014-133273 A Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-136300

The wire saw device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is characterized by processing a large workpiece into a curved shape. Therefore, in order to prevent the left and right cutting rollers on which the wire is suspended from interfering with the workpiece, it is necessary to dispose the left and right cutting rollers with a certain distance or more. As a result, there is a problem that the apparatus becomes large.

The wire saw device disclosed in Patent Document 2 can freely move because the robot arm can be controlled in multiple axes and can rotate freely. However, since the base end of the robot arm is attached to the base and the workpiece is only held by opening and closing the chuck attached to the tip, depending on the size and weight of the workpiece, Lack of stability in holding power. For this reason, the workpiece may fall off the chuck due to a load when the workpiece is cut.

In the wire saw device disclosed in Patent Document 3, one robot arm moves to the other robot arm by the point that two robot arms are fixed on the base and the wire suspended from each wire head. Considering the points that must be synchronized, the movable range of the robot arm is limited. As a result, the place where the workpiece is arranged is limited. Further, there is a problem that it is difficult to synchronize the robot arms and the control becomes complicated.

Accordingly, the object of the present invention is to secure a wide movable range of the robot arm when cutting the workpiece of the wire saw device, and within this range, various cutting can be performed regardless of the orientation and direction of the workpiece. An object of the present invention is to provide a wire saw device that can be processed and that can flexibly cope with the type and size of a workpiece.

Based on the above problems, the present invention organically combines a robot arm, a wire, a wire saw unit, a nozzle, and a robot control device to configure the device, and supports a wide variety of workpiece processing modes. Is made possible.

That is, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention of claim 1 includes a robot arm that can be freely moved by multi-axis control, a wire saw unit connected to the robot arm, and a wire saw unit. The wire saw unit having a wire stretched over a plurality of pulleys supported on a shaft and a workpiece cutting region set between the pulleys, while moving the robot arm in a preset direction In a wire saw apparatus that cuts the workpiece into a predetermined shape by pressing the wire against the workpiece to be held, the wire saw unit has a nozzle that injects at least one air. The nozzles inject air into the wire in the workpiece cutting area and the cutting surface of the workpiece, thereby A wire saw apparatus is characterized in that so as to remove.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a tool changer is provided at the tip of the robot arm, and the robot arm and the wire saw unit are detachable via the tool changer. Wire saw device.

The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that the wire saw unit is provided with a rotation shaft, and the workpiece is cut while the wire saw unit is swung at a predetermined angle around the rotation shaft. The wire saw device according to any one of claims 1 and 2.

The invention according to claim 4 is the wire saw device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the workpiece is cut while the robot arm is swung.

In the wire saw apparatus according to the present invention, the robot arm and the wire saw unit are connected via a tool changer having a rotatable motion function. Further, since the robot arm is integrated, the robot arm can be easily exchanged according to the shape and size of the workpiece, and the installation space for the apparatus is not so much required. Furthermore, since a method (dry type) that removes cutting waste with air blown from the nozzle is adopted, it is not necessary to use cleaning liquid discharged toward the processing part for cleaning purposes, and cost can be reduced. There is no need to dispose of the cleaning solution and it is environmentally friendly. Since the wire saw unit can be moved freely by the operation of the robot arm, the wire suspended on the wire saw unit is pressed against the workpiece, and not only the workpiece is cut into a flat shape but also cut into a curved shape. Various processing forms can be realized.

In addition, the wire saw unit provided at the tip of the robot arm is detachable because it is connected to a tool changer that connects the robot arm and the wire saw unit. When exchanging the wire and pulley, the wire saw unit is removed from the robot arm body, so that an operator can easily perform fine work at a distance closer to himself / herself. Therefore, it is excellent in maintainability.

Moreover, the wire saw unit and the wire can be easily exchanged selectively depending on the type and size of the workpiece.

In particular, depending on the type of workpiece, machining and cutting may be difficult by simply pressing a traveling wire against the workpiece surface. In such a case, the cutting can be easily performed by swinging the robot arm or the wire saw unit. Generally, when the contact length of the workpiece increases due to the size of the workpiece, the load on the wire increases and the processing accuracy decreases. However, by bringing the contact of the wire closer to the point contact, pressure is applied intensively to the processing point, the load on the wire is reduced, and a reduction in processing accuracy is suppressed. In addition, the operation of the swinging wire saw makes it difficult to collect cutting waste.

1 is a partially broken overall view of a wire saw device according to the present invention. It is an enlarged plan view of a wire saw unit according to the present invention. It is an AA direction enlarged front view of FIG. 2 based on this invention. FIG. 3 is a swing motion of the enlarged front view in the AA direction of FIG. 2 according to the present invention. It is an expanded sectional view of the tool changer based on this invention. (A) is explanatory drawing showing the holding | maintenance method of the air permeable member which is a workpiece based on this invention, (b) is covering the honeycomb member, swinging the wire saw unit based on this invention. It is explanatory drawing showing the method of cutting a workpiece.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a partially broken overall view of a wire saw device 1 of the present invention.

The wire saw device 1 has a wire saw unit 3 that is detachably connected via a tool changer 7 that is coupled to the tip of the robot arm 2.

The wire saw unit 3 shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 shows a male part 18 of the tool changer 7 (shown in FIG. 5) on the robot arm 2 side and a female part 19 of the tool changer 7 on the wire saw unit 3 side. The robot arm 2 is detachably mounted by being engaged by an appropriate means such as a plunger that does not. When the internal motor (not shown) of the robot arm 2 is operated, the rotary shaft 15 is driven, and the rotation of the rotating body 12 is appropriately controlled by a drive control device (not shown), whereby the tool changer 7 can be rotated. It becomes. Although the wire saw unit 3 can also be rotated 360 degrees through the tool changer 7 in accordance with the movement of the rotating body 12, the rotation angle is controlled by the drive control device when actually cutting. Inside the wire saw unit 3, two guide pulleys 4a and 4b, a plurality of rotating pulleys 5, and a drive source (not shown) for rotating the rotating pulley 5 are provided. Here, at least one of the plurality of rotating pulleys 5 is a tension pulley for tension adjustment. Further, the wire 8 passes through the V grooves of the guide pulleys 4a and 4b provided at the tip of the wire saw unit 3, and a cutting region 20 is formed between the guide pulleys 4a and 4b. The entire wire saw unit 3 can be covered with a cover made of a lightweight member having excellent durability (for example, carbon fiber).

The wire 8 wound around the rotary pulley 5 inside the wire saw unit 3 is formed in an endless shape. It is preferable to use a wire of a fixed abrasive method in which abrasive grains such as diamond are fixed on the wire surface by electrodeposition or resin.

The robot arm 2 has a proximal end attached to the base 9. The robot arm 2 is a multi-joint multi-joint that can be controlled in multiple axes and can freely move up and down, rotate, and move. Using the base 9 as a fulcrum, the robot 9 is operated by an internal motor (not shown) of the robot arm 2, and the movement path of the robot arm 2 is controlled by a drive control device (not shown). By the controlled movement of the robot arm 2, the wire 8 is pressed not in the thrust direction of the V grooves of the guide pulleys 4a and 4b but in the radial direction, and the workpiece 6 is cut.

FIG. 5 shows one of the embodiments for attaching and detaching the robot arm 2 and the wire saw unit 3. A substrate 17a of the tool changer 7 is attached on the rotatable rotator 12 arranged on the robot arm 2 side. On the other hand, the board 17b of the tool changer 7 is attached on the connection bracket 11 arranged on the wire saw unit 3 side. The board 17a has a male part 18 and the board 17b has a female part 19, and the male part 18 engages with the female part 19 when the board 17a and the board 17b come into contact with each other. As a result, the robot arm 2 and the wire saw unit 3 can be detached. A connection portion of the tool changer 7 on the wire saw unit 3 side is formed in the connection bracket 11. That is, the tool changer 7 is connected in the connection bracket 11, and the robot arm 2 and the wire saw unit 3 are brought into contact with each other, so that the tool changer 7 can be rotated even if the wire saw unit moves freely. The load applied to the connecting portion of is reduced.

Moreover, the board | substrates 17a and 17b of the tool changer 7 are provided with the some connector which mutually opposes. Among them, the connectors 13a and 13b are connectors for supplying power to the wire saw unit 3, and the connectors 14a and 14b are connectors for supplying air to the nozzle. Simultaneously with the engagement of the male part 18 and the female part 19, the opposing connectors 14a, 14b are also engaged.

The nozzle 10 is disposed on the upper surface of the main body of the wire saw unit 3 and blows air to the cutting surface of the workpiece to blow off and remove the cutting waste. In order to prevent the deviation of the air discharge range, it is desirable to provide a pair of nozzles approximately symmetrically across the center line of the wire saw unit 3. As a preferable arrangement position of the nozzle 10, the air discharge port of the nozzle 10 is more preferable than the wire 8 suspended in the cutting processing area of the wire saw unit 3 so as not to contact the workpiece when cutting the workpiece. In addition, it is desirable to provide the air so that it does not protrude, and at the same time, within the range where the air sufficiently reaches the cut surface of the workpiece, that is, near the tip of the wire saw unit 3. Air is supplied to the nozzle 10 by discharging air from an air supply source (not shown) inside the robot arm 2. The air discharged from the air supply source passes through the air supply hose 16 in the robot arm 2 and is connected to the connector via the air supply connectors 14 a and 14 b of the tool changer 7. The nozzle 10 is reached from the air supply hose 16 disposed in the nozzle. In this case, a suitable cooling mechanism may be provided in the wire saw device 1 to discharge air that cools the cut surface of the workpiece. Moreover, you may provide the function which collects cutting waste separately. For example, a suction source (not shown) is arranged in the wire saw device 1, and one of the nozzles 10 can suck cutting waste, or the wire saw device 1 is combined with a suction blower device separately from the nozzle 10. By doing so, it becomes possible to suppress scattering of the cutting waste to the periphery and reduce contamination.

With the above-described series of configurations, the wire saw device 1 of the present invention can flexibly cope with various processing modes. As the robot arm 2 moves in a predetermined direction, the wire saw unit 3 moves to the position of the workpiece 6 appropriately held by means. The wire 8 suspended on the wire saw unit 3 circulates along with the rotation of the rotary pulley 5. Due to the movement of the robot arm 2, the cutting area 20 of the wire 8 is pressed against the lower surface of the workpiece 6 (shown in FIG. 4), and the rotatable wire saw unit 3 adjusts the swing angle as appropriate, The workpiece 6 is cut into a desired shape while removing cutting waste with the air discharged from 10.

In the wire saw device 1 of the present invention, the articulated robot arm 2 that can move up and down, rotate, and move freely can move freely, and in conjunction with the movement of the wire saw unit 3 that can rotate, the workpiece is planarly shaped. Not only can it be cut into a curved surface. In addition to such flexible cutting performance, it has an excellent aspect in terms of cooperation with external devices. If it is within the movable range of the robot arm 2, it is possible to receive support from an external device within the movable range regardless of the azimuth direction. Therefore, it is not necessary to attach an extra mechanism to the apparatus, and the mobility is not deteriorated. For example, a device capable of detecting the wire diameter of the wire 8 at a high speed is installed in the movable range of the robot arm 2. If the wire 8 is periodically moved to the position of the device by the movement of the robot arm 2, the wire saw device 1 of the present invention itself does not have a mechanism for detecting the wear of the wire 8, but the external device. According to the detected data, the wire can be replaced spontaneously before the wire 8 is disconnected due to wear.

Further, by not attaching an extra mechanism to the wire saw device 1 of the present invention, the main body of the device is simplified, an increase in size is prevented, and an extra space for installation is not required. For example, two devices are arranged side by side and moved simultaneously, and a wire 8 dimension detection device is installed between the two devices. By doing so, it is also possible to share one detection device by two devices of the present invention, and work efficiency in a limited installation space is increased.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 (a) and 6 (b) as one mode of cutting according to the type of workpiece. For example, mention will be made of a method for cutting a honeycomb member that is lightweight, high in strength, and excellent in shock absorption.

In the honeycomb member, a large number of through holes are arranged in parallel in the longitudinal direction with a cell wall therebetween. Due to the shape of the through hole, it has air permeability. When cutting the workpiece of the honeycomb member, a table 21 as shown in FIG. 6A is used. The table 21 has a suction hole 23, and the workpiece 6 is placed in the vertical direction on the holding surface 21a. The workpiece 6 is made of, for example, aramid fiber, aluminum or the like as the material of the honeycomb member. Further, a honeycomb-shaped member may be sandwiched between carbon fiber reinforced resins (CFRP), and various breathable members may be used instead of the honeycomb-shaped member. The workpiece 6 is formed larger than the table 21. If the portion to be processed protrudes from the table 21, the table 21 does not interfere with the wire saw unit 3 during processing and cutting.

In the table 21, after the workpiece 6 is placed on the table 21, the upper surface is covered with a non-breathable member 22. At this time, the non-breathable member 22 is made of a nylon sheet, a resin plate, or the like. When a suction mechanism (not shown) inside the table 21 is operated, the non-breathable member 22 is sucked through the suction hole 23 of the table 21 and sucked onto the table 21. Since the workpiece 6 has air permeability, the suction force acting on the non-breathable member 22 covering the upper surface of the workpiece 6 presses the entire workpiece 6 against the table 21. Thus, the workpiece 6 fixed to the table 21 can be stably cut.

FIG. 4 shows a mode in which the wire 8 traveling in front of the guide pulleys 4 a and 4 b is pressed and cut so as to face the lower surface of the workpiece 6. As the cutting process proceeds, a load is applied to the hollow cell wall unique to the workpiece 6 that is a honeycomb member. In order to prevent excessive deformation and deformation of the hollow shape, it is preferable that the wire saw unit 3 is cut while being swung at a predetermined angle. Depending on other cutting conditions, the robot arm 2 may be swung without rocking the wire saw unit 3. By performing these swing machining cuts, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of burrs.

When swinging the wire saw unit 3, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, guide pulleys 4 a and 4 b are arranged vertically with respect to the front and front of the wire saw unit 3, and the drive source (not shown) is the wire saw unit 3. Provided. In this way, since the rotating shaft 15 can be swung around the fulcrum, the control can be simplified. The swing angle can be controlled by a drive control device (not shown). In FIG. 4, the U-shaped tip of the wire saw unit 3 is swung up and down. Since the guide pulleys 4a and 4b are placed vertically, a load is applied in the vertical direction of the V-groove, so that it is difficult to disconnect. On the other hand, when the wire saw unit 3 is reciprocally swung in the left-right parallel direction with the rotary shaft 15 as a fulcrum, the wire saw unit 3 tip and front face are loaded so that a load is applied in the vertical direction of the V groove of the guide pulleys 4a and 4b. The guide pulleys 4a and 4b are preferably provided horizontally. The direction in which the guide pulleys 4a and 4b are placed can be adjusted as appropriate depending on how the guide pulleys 4a and 4b are swung. Accordingly, the arrangement of the rotary pulley 5 provided near the guide pulleys 4a and 4b may be adjusted as appropriate.

On the other hand, in the case of swinging the robot arm 2, it is not particularly limited as long as it is a swingable mechanism. For example, at least one joint among a plurality of joints connecting a plurality of links to each other includes an actuator, Oscillation may be realized.

As a result, the swing of the wire 8 is generated, the contact length of the wire 8 with the workpiece 6 is shortened, the load on both the workpiece 6 and the wire 8 is reduced, and the hollow shape of the workpiece 6 is reduced. This reduces the burden on the cell wall and stabilizes the machining accuracy.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated examples described above, and various modifications can be made within the scope shown in the claims without departing from the gist of the present invention. In other words, embodiments obtained by combining technical means appropriately changed within the scope of the claims are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wire saw apparatus 2 Robot arm 3 Wire saw unit 4a Guide pulley 4b Guide pulley 5 Rotating pulley 6 Work piece 7 Tool changer 8 Wire 9 Base 10 Nozzle 11 Connection bracket 12 Rotating body 13a Power supply connector 13b Power supply connector 14a Air supply connector 14b Air supply connector 15 Rotating shaft 16 Air supply hose 17a Substrate 17b Substrate 18 Male part 19 Female part 20 Cutting area 21 Table 21a Holding surface 22 Non-breathable member 23 Adsorption hole

Claims (4)

One robot arm that can be freely moved by multi-axis control, a wire saw unit connected to the robot arm, wires hung on a plurality of pulleys pivotally supported in the wire saw unit, and the pulley A workpiece cutting machining area set in between, and moving the wire of the wire saw unit while moving the robot arm in a preset direction, to the workpiece holding the wire In a wire saw apparatus for cutting the workpiece into a predetermined shape by pressing, the wire saw unit has a nozzle for injecting at least one air, and the nozzle is a wire and a workpiece in the workpiece cutting area. A wire saw device characterized in that cutting waste is removed by injecting air onto the cut surface of the wire. The wire saw device according to claim 1, wherein a tool changer is provided at a tip of the robot arm, and the robot arm and the wire saw unit are detachable through the tool changer. 3. The workpiece according to claim 1, wherein the wire saw unit is provided with a rotation shaft, and the workpiece is cut while the wire saw unit is swung at a predetermined angle around the rotation shaft. A wire saw device according to claim 1. The wire saw device according to claim 1, wherein the workpiece is cut while the robot arm is swung.

Images