JP2018053938A - Foreign matter removal device and linear guide - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent foreign matter from entering between a rolling surface of a raceway member and a rolling body, in a linear guide.SOLUTION: A foreign matter removal device is configured to move together with a moving member when the moving member moves along a raceway member. The foreign matter removal device includes a taking-in unit configured to take therein foreign matter or liquid existing on an upper surface of the raceway member, and a discharge passage configured to discharge the foreign matter and liquid taken into the taking-in unit to the outside. A discharge port of the discharge passage is opened at a position outside a side surface of the raceway member in a direction vertical to a lateral direction with respect to a longitudinal direction of the raceway member, on a wall surface of the foreign matter removal device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a foreign matter removing device that removes foreign matter on a track member of a linear guide, and a linear guide including the device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a linear guide including a linearly formed track member and a moving member that relatively moves along the longitudinal direction of the track member is known. In this linear guide, a moving member is assembled to the track member with a plurality of rolling elements sandwiched between the side surfaces of the track member. In a linear guide having such a configuration, if foreign matter such as dust enters the gap between the track member and the moving member, vibration during movement of the moving member increases or damage such as wear of the linear guide is caused. There is a problem of progress. For this reason, a technique for suppressing the entry of foreign matter into the gap between the track member and the moving member has been developed. As such a technique, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which end plates are attached to both ends in a moving direction of a moving block that is a moving member. A seal member for sealing a gap between the track rail as a track member and the moving block is attached to the end plate. By this seal member, entry into the gap between the track rail and the moving block is suppressed.

JP 2013-122296 A

  Here, depending on the environment in which the linear guide is used, a situation in which foreign matter such as dust exists on the upper surface of the raceway member may occur. In an environment in which the raceway member of the linear guide is exposed to a liquid such as coolant, a situation may occur in which liquid containing foreign matter such as dust exists on the upper surface of the raceway member. In the linear guide provided with the sealing member for sealing the gap between the track member and the moving member as described above, when such a situation occurs, the moving member moves along the track member. The seal member slides on the top surface of the raceway member, whereby the foreign matter or the liquid containing the foreign matter on the top surface of the raceway member is wiped by the seal member, thereby the liquid containing the foreign matter or the foreign matter. Will move sideways along the seal member. And the foreign material which moved to the side on the upper surface of a track member or the liquid containing a foreign material will fall along the side surface of this track member. In such a case, even if the seal member is provided, there is a possibility that a foreign substance or a liquid containing the foreign substance may enter the gap between the side surface of the raceway member and the moving member. And the rolling surface which contact | connects a rolling element is formed in the side surface of a track member. If foreign matter or liquid containing foreign matter enters between the side surface of the raceway member and the moving member and foreign matter enters between the rolling surface of the raceway member and the rolling element, damage such as increased vibration or wear The problem of progress is likely to occur.

  This invention is made in view of the above problems, and provides the technique which can suppress that a foreign material enters between a rolling surface of a track member and a rolling element in a linear guide. For the purpose.

In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a foreign matter removing apparatus that moves together with a moving member when the moving member moves along the track member, the foreign matter or liquid present on the upper surface of the track member is removed. A foreign matter removing device in which a taking-in portion that takes in the inside and a discharge passage that discharges the foreign matter or liquid taken into the taking-in portion to the outside is employed.

  More specifically, the foreign matter removing device according to the present invention includes a linear member including a linearly formed track member and a moving member that is assembled to the track member and relatively moves along the longitudinal direction of the track member. A linear guide which is a guide and is assembled to a raceway member with a plurality of rolling elements interposed between the raceway member and a rolling surface formed on a side surface of the raceway member. A foreign matter removing device that is attached to an end and moves along the longitudinal direction of the track member together with the moving member, the upper portion being in contact with the upper surface of the track member and surrounding the upper surface, and both sides of the upper portion A side portion extending downward from the end portion, and the upper portion is a space having an opening that opens to a wall surface on the opposite side to the wall surface connected to the moving member in the upper portion. The track member An intake portion for taking in foreign matter or liquid existing on the upper surface is formed, and is a space communicating with the intake portion, and the foreign matter or liquid taken in the intake portion is removed by the foreign matter removing device. A discharge passage that discharges to the outside of the track member, and has a discharge port that opens to a position outside the side surface of the track member in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track member on the wall surface of the foreign matter removing device. A discharge passage is formed.

  Here, in the present invention, in an environment where the linear guide is used, the upper direction in the gravity direction is defined as “upper” and the lower direction in the gravity direction is defined as “lower”. Further, a wall surface located above the track member is defined as an “upper surface”. Further, a wall surface located on the side of the track member (direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction with respect to the longitudinal direction) is defined as a “side surface”.

  The foreign matter removing apparatus according to the present invention is attached to the end of the moving member of the linear guide in the moving direction, and moves along the longitudinal direction of the track member as the moving member moves. And the foreign material removal apparatus has an upper part and a side part. The upper part is formed so as to surround the upper surface while being in contact with the upper surface of the track member. The side portion extends downward from both side end portions of the upper portion.

  In addition, an intake portion is formed in the upper portion of the foreign matter removing apparatus. The taking-in part is formed as a space having an opening that opens on the wall surface on the opposite side to the wall surface connected to the moving member in the upper part. Then, when the foreign matter removing device moves together with the moving member in the direction in which the opening is formed, the foreign matter or liquid existing on the upper surface of the track member is taken into the take-in portion from the open portion.

  Furthermore, a discharge passage is formed in the foreign matter removing device. The discharge passage is formed as a space communicating with the intake portion formed in the upper portion, and is a passage for discharging the liquid taken into the intake portion to the outside of the foreign matter removing device. The discharge passage has a discharge port that opens at a position outside the side surface of the track member in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track member on the wall surface of the foreign substance removing device. By discharging the foreign matter or liquid from the discharge port formed at such a position, it is possible to suppress the foreign matter or liquid from flowing down on the rolling surface formed on the side surface of the raceway member. .

  According to the present invention, even when foreign matter or liquid containing foreign matter is present on the upper surface of the raceway member, the foreign matter or liquid is taken into the take-in portion of the foreign matter removing device and is passed through the discharge passage. It is discharged outside the removal device. At this time, the foreign matter discharged to the outside of the foreign matter removing apparatus or the liquid containing the foreign matter is prevented from being transferred through the rolling surface of the raceway member. Therefore, it can suppress that a foreign material enters between a rolling surface of a track member and a rolling element.

According to the present invention, in the linear guide, it is possible to prevent foreign matter from entering between the rolling surface of the raceway member and the rolling element.

It is a 1st figure which shows schematic structure of a linear guide provided with the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a 2nd figure which shows schematic structure of a linear guide provided with the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a 3rd figure which shows schematic structure of a linear guide provided with the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a 4th figure which shows schematic structure of a linear guide provided with the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on the modification of Example 1 of this invention. It is a 1st figure which shows schematic structure of the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a 2nd figure which shows schematic structure of the foreign material removal apparatus which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the conventional linear guide.

  Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like of the components described in the present embodiment are not intended to limit the technical scope of the invention to those unless otherwise specified.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a linear guide 1 to which a foreign matter removing apparatus 10 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention is applied. The linear guide 1 is assembled in a track shape with a track rail 3 as a track member formed in a straight line, and a plurality of balls as a plurality of rolling elements, and an infinite circulation path of the ball inside. It is comprised from the moving block 2 as a moving member provided with. In the linear guide 1, the ball as a rolling element circulates in the endless circulation path of the moving block 2, so that the moving block 2 relatively moves in the longitudinal direction on the track rail 3.

  A plurality of bolt mounting holes 32 are formed in the track rail 3 at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal center axis of the upper surface 33 from the upper surface 33 to the lower surface direction. The track rail 3 can be fixed to a fixing member such as a bed or a column by fastening a steel fixing bolt to the bolt mounting hole 32. Further, on both the left and right side surfaces 34 of the track rail 3 that do not interfere with the bolt mounting holes 32, two ball rolling surfaces 31 on which the balls roll are formed along the longitudinal direction as rolling surfaces. ing. That is, a total of four ball rolling surfaces 31 are formed on the track rail 3. In addition, in the track rail 3 according to the present embodiment, four ball rolling surfaces 31 are formed. The number and arrangement of the ball rolling surfaces 31 depend on the application of the linear guide 1 and the magnitude of the load load. The settings can be changed as appropriate.

  The moving block 2 includes a block main body 4 having a mounting surface 41 to which a movable body such as a table is fixed, and a pair of lids attached to both end portions 41a and 41b in the relative movement direction of the block main body 4. As an end plate 5. The end plate 5 is provided with a seal member (not shown in FIG. 1) (corresponding to the second seal member according to the present invention), and the seal member seals the gap between the end plate 5 and the track rail 3. doing. Thereby, foreign matter such as dust attached to the track rail 3 is prevented from entering the moving block 2. Further, in the linear guide 1, a foreign substance removing device 10 is attached to an end portion in the moving direction of the moving block 2 in the end plate 5 provided on the end 41 a side of the block main body 4. The configuration of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 will be described later.

  Here, there are cases where the track rail 3 is exposed to a coolant that is a liquid, such as when the linear guide 1 is used inside a machine tool or the like. At this time, the coolant may contain foreign matter such as cutting waste. Therefore, in an environment where the track rail 3 is exposed to the coolant, a situation may occur in which coolant containing foreign matter exists on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3. Even when such a situation occurs, the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 is mounted when the moving block 2 moves on the track rail 3 by mounting the sealing member as described above on the end plate 5. In this case, the coolant containing foreign matter is prevented from entering the gap between the end plate 5 and the track rail 3.

  Here, in the conventional linear guide, the flow of the coolant when the coolant is present on the upper surface of the track rail will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a conventional linear guide 21 in which the end plate 25 of the moving block 22 is not provided with the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. As with the end plate 5 of the moving block 2 shown in FIG. 1, a seal member 30 that seals the gap between the end plate 25 and the track rail 23 is attached to the end plate 25. In FIG. 8, the solid line arrows indicate the flow of the coolant existing on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23 when the moving block 22 moves on the track rail 23 in the direction of the white arrow. ing.

  As described above, in the linear guide 21, even when the coolant exists on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23 when the moving block 22 moves on the track rail 23, the end plate 25 and the track are aligned. The seal member 30 prevents the coolant from entering the gap between the rail 23. However, at this time, the seal member 30 slides on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23, whereby the coolant on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23 is wiped by the seal member 30, so that the coolant becomes the seal member. 30 and moves sideways on the upper surface 233 (that is, the coolant is moved by the seal member 30 in the moving direction of the moving block 22 while being moved by the seal member 30). It ’s going to face sideways.) Then, as shown in FIG. 8, the coolant that has moved sideways on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23 flows down the side surface 234 of the track rail 23.

  When such coolant movement is repeated on the track rail 23, the gap between the side surface 234 of the track rail 23 and the end plate 25 is obtained even if the seal member 30 is mounted on the end plate 25. There is a risk that coolant containing foreign matter may invade into the water, albeit little by little. When coolant containing foreign matter enters the gap between the side surface 234 of the track rail 23 and the end plate 25, the ball rolling surface 231 formed on the side surface 234 of the track rail 23 and the ball rolling In some cases, foreign matter may enter with the coolant between the ball rolling on the surface 231. Thus, if a foreign object enters between the ball rolling surface 231 and the ball, it may affect the linear motion operation of the moving block 22. That is, problems such as increased vibration and progress of damage such as wear when the moving block 22 moves on the track rail 23 are likely to occur.

In order to solve the problems in the conventional linear guide as described above, in the linear guide 1 according to this embodiment, the foreign substance removing device 10 is attached to the end of the end plate 5 in the moving direction of the moving block 2. Yes. Hereinafter, the configuration of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 will be described based on FIGS. 2 to 4 in addition to FIG. 1. 2 to 4 are perspective views for explaining the internal structure of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 as viewed from obliquely above. FIG. 3 is a top view of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 as viewed from above. FIG. 4 is a perspective cross-sectional view of the moving block 2, the track rail 3, and the foreign matter removing device 10 cut along the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3. 2 and 3, the solid arrow indicates the moving block 2.
Represents the flow of the coolant existing on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 when moving on the track rail 3 in the direction of the white arrow.

  The foreign matter removing device 10 is in contact with the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 so as to surround the upper surface 33 and downward from both side ends of the upper portion 10a so as to surround both side surfaces 34 of the track rail 3. The side part 10b extends. The side portion 10b extends to a position on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 so as to surround at least a portion where the lower ball rolling surface 31 of the two ball rolling surfaces 31 is formed. Yes. In addition, the structure which the side part 10b encloses to the lower end of the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 may be sufficient.

  The upper portion 10a of the foreign substance removing device 10 is formed with an intake portion 11 and a discharge passage 12 that are formed as an internal space. The taking-in part 11 has an opening part 11a that opens to a wall surface on the opposite side to the wall surface connected to the end plate 5 in the upper part 10a. Furthermore, the taking-in part 11 has the inclination part 11b which inclines downward toward the opening part 11a from the inner side. The lower end portion of the inclined portion 11b is in contact with the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 in the opening portion 11a. Further, at the lower end portion of the inclined portion 11b, a seal member 11c that seals a gap between the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 along a portion in contact with the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 (a first member according to the present invention). 1 seal member). Since the capturing part 11 is formed in this way, the foreign substance removing device 10 moves together with the moving block 2 in the direction in which the opening part 11a is formed (that is, the direction indicated by the white arrow in FIGS. 2 and 3). At this time, when the coolant exists on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3, the coolant is scooped up by the seal member 11c. Then, the coolant scooped up by the seal member 11c is taken into the taking-in portion 11 along the inclined portion 11b.

  Even if the seal member 11c is not provided at the lower end portion of the inclined portion 11b, the coolant on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 can be scooped up by the lower end portion of the inclined portion 11b. Therefore, it is not essential to provide the seal member 11c at the lower end of the inclined portion 11b. However, by providing the seal member 11 c at the lower end of the inclined portion 11 b, the coolant on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 can be scooped up more reliably and taken into the take-in portion 11. Further, if the coolant on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 is scooped up and the coolant can be taken into the intake portion 11, the bottom surface of the intake portion 11 is not necessarily inclined like the inclined portion 11b. Good. For example, the bottom surface of the capturing unit 11 may be curved.

  Further, a discharge passage 12 is communicated with each of both side portions of the intake portion 11. That is, two discharge passages 12 are formed in the upper portion 10 a of the foreign substance removing device 10. Each discharge passage 12 has a discharge port 12a that opens on each side surface of the upper portion 10a. That is, the discharge port 12a of the discharge passage 12 opens at a position outside the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3 on the wall surface of the foreign substance removing device 10. Yes. By forming the discharge passage 12 in this way, as shown by solid line arrows in FIGS. 2 and 3, the coolant taken into the intake portion 11 is discharged from the discharge port 12 a to the outside through the discharge passage 12. The

And the coolant discharged | emitted from the discharge port 12a opened to the side surface of the upper part 10a to the exterior of the foreign material removal apparatus 10 flows down below along the side part of the upper part 10a of the intake part 11, and the side part 10b. . At this time, since the discharge port 12a is located outside the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3, the side surface of the upper portion 10a and the side portion 10b. Thus, the coolant flowing down along the side of the track rail 3 is suppressed from passing over the ball rolling surface 31 on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3. further,
In the foreign matter removing apparatus 10, the side portion 10 b is a portion in which the ball rolling surface 31 that is positioned at the lower side of at least the two ball rolling surfaces 31 on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 is formed. It surrounds. Even with such a configuration, the coolant flowing down along the side surface of the side portion 10 b is suppressed from passing over the ball rolling surface 31 on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3. That is, in the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, the discharge port 12a is opened at a position where the coolant discharged from the discharge port 12a does not pass on the ball rolling surface 31 of the track rail 3.

  When the foreign material removing device 10 configured as described above is attached to the end of the moving plate 2 in the moving direction of the end plate 5 so that the coolant containing the foreign material exists on the upper surface of the track rail 3. Even so, the coolant is taken into the take-in portion 11 and discharged through the discharge passage 12 to the outside of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10. At this time, the coolant discharged to the outside of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 is suppressed from being transferred through the ball rolling surface 31 of the track rail 3. Therefore, it is possible to prevent foreign matter from entering with the coolant between the ball rolling surface 31 of the track rail 3 and the ball.

<Modification>
In addition, the opening position of the discharge port 12a of the discharge passage 12 in the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 is a position outside the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3, It does not necessarily have to be the side surface of the upper part 10a. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, in the foreign substance removing apparatus 10, the discharge passage 12 is formed so as to extend from the upper portion 10a to the side portion 10b, and the discharge port 12a opens to the lower end surface of the side portion 10b. It is good also as a structure. As in FIG. 2, in FIG. 5, the solid line arrows also exist on the upper surface 233 of the track rail 23 when the moving block 22 moves on the track rail 23 in the direction of the white arrow. Represents the coolant flow. Moreover, it is good also as a structure that the discharge port 12a of the discharge passage 12 opens in the side surface of the side part 10b. In the foreign matter removing apparatus 10, the side portion 10 b is a portion in which the ball rolling surface 31 that is positioned at the lower side of at least the two ball rolling surfaces 31 on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3 is formed. Therefore, even in such a configuration, the coolant discharged from the discharge port 12a flows down without passing over the ball rolling surface 31 on the side surface 34 of the track rail 3.

  6 and 7 are diagrams illustrating a schematic configuration of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The foreign matter removal apparatus 310 according to the present embodiment is provided with a foreign matter detection apparatus 6 that detects a predetermined foreign matter contained in the coolant taken into the take-in portion 11, and thus the foreign matter removal apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment. Is different. However, the configuration other than this point is the same as that of the foreign matter removing apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment. Therefore, the description other than the configuration related to the foreign object detection device 6 is omitted.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view for explaining the internal structure of the foreign matter removing apparatus 310, and is a perspective sectional view when the track rail 3 and the foreign matter removing apparatus 310 are cut along the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3. Although the illustration of the moving block 2 is omitted in FIG. 6, the foreign matter removing device 310 is also attached to the end portion of the end plate 5 in the moving direction of the moving block 2 in this embodiment. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the foreign matter removing device 310 cut along the longitudinal direction of the track rail 3. Accordingly, FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the foreign matter removing device 310 as viewed from the side of the linear guide 1. The end plate 5 to which the foreign matter removing device 310 is attached is located on the left side of the foreign matter removing device 310 in FIG. Will exist.

The foreign matter detection device 6 is a device provided in the upper part 310a of the foreign matter removal device 310,
This is a device that enables detection of a foreign substance containing a magnetic material such as iron by using a magnetic circuit formed by utilizing a magnetic flux from a permanent magnet 15. The foreign object detection device 6 includes a permanent magnet 15, a first yoke part 61, a second yoke part 62, and a bypass yoke part 63 as a configuration for forming a magnetic circuit. The permanent magnet 15 functions as a magnetic flux supply source for detecting foreign matter including a magnetic material. The permanent magnet 15 in this embodiment is formed in a rectangular shape, and the permanent magnet 15 and the first yoke portion 61 are in contact with each other so that the surface 152 as one surface is completely covered with the first yoke portion 61. Placed in the state. Further, in the permanent magnet 15, the permanent magnet 15 and the second yoke portion 62 are arranged such that the surface 151 opposite to the surface 152 covered by the first yoke portion 61 is completely covered by the second yoke portion 62. The two are in contact and adjacent to each other.

  The first yoke portion 61 is a plate-like yoke member having a certain thickness (the vertical dimension in FIG. 7). The plate-like first yoke portion 61 has one surface 611 covering the surface 152 of the permanent magnet 15 as described above, and the other surface 612 is an end portion of the second yoke portion 62 as will be described later. It faces the 62b and the bypass yoke 63.

  Next, the second yoke portion 62 has the same constant thickness as the first yoke portion 61 and has a U-shaped curved shape in the cross section shown in FIG. In the U-shaped shape, the inner surface is referred to by reference numeral 621 and the outer surface is referred to by reference numeral 622. Therefore, the surface 621 of the second yoke portion 62 is in contact with the surface 151 of the permanent magnet 15. More specifically, the inner surface 621 of the second yoke portion 62 is in contact with and covers the surface 151 of the permanent magnet 15 at one end 62a in the cross section. The second yoke portion 62 extends a predetermined length from the end portion 62a in a direction away from the end plate 5 (right direction in FIG. 7), and further downward in the upper portion 310a of the foreign matter removing device 310. The straight part 62c is formed by curving and extending. The length of the linear portion 62c is such that the lower end is located further below the first yoke portion 61 in the cross section shown in FIG. Further, the second yoke part 62 is bent and extended in the direction approaching the end plate 5 from the end of the straight part 62c (left direction in FIG. 7), that is, in the direction of the first yoke part 61. To the other end 62 b of the second yoke portion 62. At the end portion 62 b, the inner surface 621 of the second yoke portion 62 is placed in a positional relationship facing the surface 612 of the first yoke portion 61. In other words, the surface 621 of the end portion 62b of the second yoke portion 62 is positioned so as to be separated from the surface 612 of the first yoke portion 61 with the reference space R0 interposed therebetween.

  Next, the bypass yoke part 63 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. In the cross section shown in FIG. 7, the surface 631 of the bypass yoke 63 is placed in a positional relationship facing the surface 612 of the first yoke 61. In other words, the surface 631 of the bypass yoke portion 63 is placed in a positional relationship away from the surface 612 of the first yoke portion 61 with the first bypass space R1 interposed therebetween. The facing position where the bypass yoke part 63 faces the surface 612 of the first yoke part 61 is different from the facing position where the end 62b of the second yoke part 62 faces the surface 612. Further, in the cross section shown in FIG. 7, a surface 632 adjacent to the surface 631 of the bypass yoke portion 63 and having a direction different by approximately 90 degrees is placed in a positional relationship facing the end surface 623 of the end portion 62 b of the second yoke portion 62. In other words, the surface 632 of the bypass yoke 63 is placed in a positional relationship away from the end surface 623 of the end 62b of the second yoke 62 across the second bypass space R2.

  In the first bypass space R1 between the first yoke part 61 and the bypass yoke part 63, the Hall element 16 capable of detecting the magnetic flux density is disposed. The output of the Hall element 16 is sent to a detection circuit (not shown), and a detection signal corresponding to the detected magnetic flux density is generated. That is, the Hall element 16 functions as a sensor element for detecting foreign matter. In addition, if it is a device which can detect magnetic flux density, it can replace with the Hall element 16 and can also be employ | adopted as a sensor element.

  And the 2nd detour space R2 is located above the inclination part 11b in the taking-in part 11 currently formed in the upper part 310a of the foreign material removal apparatus 310. FIG. Therefore, in the opening portion 11a of the intake portion 11, the coolant existing on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3 is scooped up by the seal member 11c, and when the coolant is taken into the intake portion 11, the coolant is In the middle of flowing from the intake portion 11 toward the discharge passage 12, the second bypass space R2 is passed. Here, since the second bypass space R2 is generally located below the permanent magnet 15, the magnetic force of the permanent magnet 15 is likely to act in the second bypass space R2. Therefore, when the foreign material containing a magnetic material is mixed in the coolant passing through the second bypass space R2, the foreign material is easily held in the second bypass space R2. As a result, the coolant from which foreign matter has been removed flows through the discharge passage 12.

  Here, in the foreign object detection device 6, two magnetic circuits indicated by a one-dot chain line arrow and a solid line arrow in FIG. 7 are formed. Specifically, the former magnetic circuit S1 is a magnetic circuit formed through the permanent magnet 15, the second yoke portion 62, the reference space R0, and the first yoke portion 61, and is referred to as a reference magnetic circuit S1. The latter magnetic circuit S2 is a magnetic circuit formed through the permanent magnet 15, the second yoke portion 62, the second bypass space R2, the bypass yoke portion 63, the first bypass space R1, and the first yoke portion 61. This is referred to as a detour magnetic circuit S2. The Hall element 16 described above is disposed on the bypass magnetic circuit S2. For this reason, the permanent magnet 15 also has a function of forming two magnetic circuits together with a function of holding foreign matter in the second bypass space R2.

  Here, the reference magnetic circuit S1 and the bypass magnetic circuit S2 will be described. In the reference magnetic circuit S1, the magnetic resistance mr0 in the reference space R0 in the configuration forming the circuit S1 is higher than the magnetic resistance in the first yoke portion 61 and the second yoke portion 62. Therefore, the flow of magnetic flux in the reference magnetic circuit S1 is easily affected by the magnetic resistance mr0 in the reference space R0. Further, in the bypass magnetic circuit S2, the magnetic resistance mr1 in the first bypass space R1 and the magnetic resistance mr2 in the second bypass space R2 in the configuration forming the circuit S2 (a foreign material including a magnetic material in the second bypass space R2). The magnetic resistance in a state where it is not held is higher than the magnetic resistance in the first yoke portion 61, the second yoke portion 62, and the bypass yoke portion 63. Accordingly, the flow of magnetic flux in the bypass magnetic circuit S2 is easily affected by the magnetoresistance mr1 of the first bypass space R1 and the magnetoresistance mr2 of the second bypass space R2. Accordingly, the magnetic circuits S1 and S2 will be described by paying attention to the magnetic resistance mr0 in the reference space R0, the magnetic resistance mr1 in the first bypass space R1, and the magnetic resistance mr2 in the second bypass space R2.

In the foreign object detection device 6, the following relationship is established for the magnetic resistance mr0 in the reference space R0, the magnetic resistance mr1 in the first bypass space R1, and the magnetic resistance mr2 in the second bypass space R2.
mr1 <mr0 <mr1 + mr2 Formula 1

  According to the above formula 1, the relationship that the magnetic resistance mr0 of the reference space R0 is smaller than the sum of the magnetic resistance mr1 of the first bypass space R1 and the magnetic resistance mr2 of the second bypass space R2 is satisfied (relationship that satisfies mr0 <mr1 + mr2). The state in which the foreign material containing the magnetic material is not held in the second bypass space R2 represents the relationship between the magnetic flux flowability in the reference magnetic circuit S1 and the magnetic flux flowability in the bypass magnetic circuit S2. . Therefore, when the foreign material including the magnetic material is not held in the second bypass space R2, a situation is formed in which the magnetic flux from the permanent magnet 15 is more likely to flow through the reference magnetic circuit S1 than the bypass magnetic circuit S2. Will be.

On the other hand, according to Equation 1, the state in which the magnetic resistance mr1 of the first bypass space R1 is smaller than the magnetic resistance mr0 of the reference space R0 (a relationship that satisfies mr1 <mr0) is established in the second bypass space R2. The state where the foreign material containing a magnetic material is hold | maintained is assumed. That is, when the amount of foreign matter held in the second bypass space R2 increases, the magnetic resistance of the second bypass space R2 decreases. When the second bypass space R2 is occupied by foreign matter, the magnetic resistance of the second bypass space R2 approaches the magnetic resistance in the second yoke portion 62 and the bypass yoke portion 63, and finally the same degree. It becomes a magnetic resistance. Such a state can be said to be a state in which the magnetic resistance of the second bypass space R2 can be ignored magnetically by holding foreign matter in the second bypass space R2. In such a state, when the magnetic resistance mr1 of the first bypass space R1 is smaller than the magnetic resistance mr0 of the reference space R0, the magnetic flux from the permanent magnet 15 is greater in the bypass magnetic circuit S2 than in the reference magnetic circuit S1. The situation that is easy to flow is formed.

  As described above, when there is no foreign substance in the second bypass space R2, the presence of the magnetic resistance in the second bypass space R2 and the magnetic resistance in the first bypass space R1 which are larger than the magnetic resistance in each yoke portion. As a result, a large amount of magnetic flux flows toward the reference magnetic circuit S1 including the reference space R0. In such a case, the detection value by the Hall element 16 provided in the first bypass space R1 is relatively low. On the other hand, when a foreign substance enters the second bypass space R2 and its holding amount increases, the magnetic resistance of the second bypass space R2 approaches the magnetic resistance in each yoke portion, so that the first bypass space R1 A lot of magnetic flux flows toward the detour magnetic circuit S2 including the magnetic flux. In such a case, the detection value by the Hall element 16 provided in the first bypass space R1 is larger than that in the case where no foreign substance exists in the second bypass space R2. As described above, in the foreign object detection device 6, when the amount of foreign object retained in the second bypass space R2 increases to some extent, the detected value of the Hall element 16 changes greatly as the flow of magnetic flux is largely switched. Therefore, based on the detection value of the hall element 16, it is possible to detect the foreign substance holding state in the second bypass space R2.

  That is, as in the present embodiment, by providing the foreign matter detection device 6 in the upper portion 310a of the foreign matter removal device 310, it is confirmed that the foreign matter including the magnetic material is mixed in the coolant taken in the take-in portion 11. Can be detected. Further, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, only the foreign matter is held in the foreign matter detection device 6, and the coolant excluding the foreign matter can be discharged to the outside of the foreign matter removing device 310 through the discharge passage 12.

  In the first and second embodiments, the foreign matter removing devices 10 and 310 are provided in the moving blocks 3 and 23, taking as an example the case where coolant containing foreign matter exists on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3. Explained the action and effect. However, according to the foreign matter removing devices 10 and 310, the foreign matter can be removed not only when the foreign matter is contained in the coolant but also when the foreign matter itself exists on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3. That is, when foreign matter is present on the upper surface 33 of the track rail 3, when the foreign matter removing devices 10 and 310 are moved together with the moving block 2 in the direction in which the opening 11a is formed, it is inclined from the opening 11a. The foreign matter is taken into the taking-in part 11 along the part 11b. Furthermore, the foreign matter taken into the taking-in part 11 is discharged | emitted outside through the discharge channel 12 from the discharge port 12a. And according to the structure of the foreign material removal apparatuses 10 and 310 which concern on the said Examples 1 and 2, the foreign material discharged | emitted from the discharge port 12a at this time passes on the ball rolling surfaces 31 and 231 of the track rail 3. Is suppressed. Therefore, it can suppress that a foreign material enters between the ball rolling surfaces 31 and 231 of the track rail 3 and the ball. Further, according to the configuration of the foreign matter removing apparatus 310 according to the second embodiment, the predetermined foreign matter taken into the take-in unit 11 can be detected by the foreign matter detecting device 6.

1, 21 ... Linear guide 2, 22 ... Moving block, 3, 23 ... Track rail, 4 ... Block body, 5, 25 ... End plate, 6 ... Foreign object detection device, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,310 ... Foreign substance removal apparatus, 10a ... Upper part, 10b ... Side part, 11 ... Taking-in part, 11a ... Opening part, 11b ... Inclined part, 11c, 30. ..Seal member, 12 ... discharge passage, 12a ... discharge port, 15 ... permanent magnet, 31,231 ... ball rolling surface, 32 ... bolt mounting hole, 33,233 -Upper surface, 34, 234 ... Side, 61 ... First yoke part, 62 ... Second yoke part, 63 ... Detour yoke part, R0 ... Reference space, R1 ... First Detour space, R2 ... Second detour space

Claims (9)

A linear guide comprising a linearly formed track member and a moving member that is assembled to the track member and relatively moves along the longitudinal direction of the track member, wherein the moving member is the track A linear guide that is assembled to the track member with a plurality of rolling elements sandwiched between the rolling surface formed on the side surface of the member, and is attached to an end of the moving member in the moving direction. A foreign matter removing device that moves along the longitudinal direction of a member,
An upper part surrounding the upper surface while being in contact with the upper surface of the track member, and a side part extending downward from both side end parts of the upper part,
The upper portion is a space having an opening opening on a wall surface on the opposite side to the wall surface connected to the moving member in the upper portion, and foreign matter or liquid existing on the upper surface of the track member A capturing part to be taken in is formed,
Furthermore, the space member is a space communicating with the intake portion, and is a discharge passage for discharging foreign matter or liquid taken into the intake portion to the outside of the foreign matter removing device, and the track member on the wall surface of the foreign matter removing device A discharge passage having a discharge port opened at a position outside the side surface of the track member in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the track member is formed.
Foreign matter removal device.   The said side part is extended toward the downward direction from the both-sides edge part of the said upper part, and surrounds at least the part in which the said rolling surface is formed in the both sides | surfaces of the said track member. Foreign matter removal device. The intake portion is an inclined portion that is inclined downward from the inside of the intake portion toward the opening, and has an inclined portion whose lower end abuts on the upper surface of the track member in the opening.
The foreign matter removing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. A first seal member that seals a gap between the upper surface of the track member is provided at a lower end portion of the inclined portion of the take-in portion along a portion that contacts the upper surface of the track member.
The foreign matter removing apparatus according to claim 3.   The foreign matter removing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the discharge port of the discharge passage is open to a side surface of the upper part or the side part.   The foreign matter removing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a discharge port of the discharge passage is open to a lower end surface of the side portion. The foreign matter removing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The track member;
The moving member,
Linear guide. A second seal member that seals a gap between the moving member and the track member is provided at an end in the moving direction of the moving member.
The linear guide according to claim 7. A foreign matter detection device provided in the foreign matter removing device, further comprising a foreign matter detection device for detecting a predetermined foreign matter taken into the taking-in part,
The linear guide according to claim 7 or 8.

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