JP2019199203A - Vehicle assembly facility - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle assembly facility which can reduce an occupied area of the facility.SOLUTION: A vehicle assembly facility 1 includes: a tool placing table 20 on which a plurality of assembly tools 40 are placed according to a type of a vehicle assembled on a vehicle assembly line 30; and an arm robot 10 which conveys the assembly tool 40 according to the type of the vehicle during assembly and installs it in a processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30. A base table 11 of the arm robot 10 is arranged so as to be adjacent to the vehicle assembly line 30 on one side of a width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The tool placing table 20 is arranged around the arm robot 10 on one side of the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30. Each of the assembly tools 40 is placed on the tool placing table 20 so as to orient a first direction on a front or back side of the arm robot 10 in an extension direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The arm robot 10 conveys the assembly tool 40 so that the assembly tool 40 orients a second direction in the processing area S.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present disclosure relates to a vehicle assembly facility.

  In a vehicle assembly line of a vehicle assembly factory, a vehicle assembly facility is known in which an assembly jig corresponding to the type of vehicle being assembled among a plurality of assembly jigs is transported and installed on a vehicle assembly line by an arm robot ( For example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-146261 A

  By the way, in the vehicle assembly line, for example, it is desired to reduce the occupation area of the vehicle assembly facility by reducing the operation area of the arm robot, and to improve the space efficiency in the vehicle assembly factory. However, in the conventional vehicle assembly facility as described in Patent Document 1, there is room for improvement in reducing the occupied area of the vehicle assembly facility.

  Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a vehicle assembly facility that can reduce the area occupied by the facility.

  A vehicle assembly facility according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a jig mounting table on which a plurality of assembly jigs according to a vehicle type assembled in a vehicle assembly line is mounted, and an assembly according to a vehicle type being assembled in the vehicle assembly line. An arm robot that conveys the jig from the jig mounting table onto the vehicle assembly line and installs the jig in a processing area on the vehicle assembly line, and the base base of the arm robot is on one side in the width direction of the vehicle assembly line. The jig mounting table is arranged around the arm robot on one side in the width direction of the vehicle assembly line, and each of the plurality of assembly jigs is an extension of the vehicle assembly line. Before and after the arm robot in the current direction, the arm robot is placed on the jig mounting table so as to have a predetermined first direction. As Tatsuchi device is in the opposite direction to the direction of the second orientation in the extending direction of the vehicle assembly line and the first direction, carrying the assembly jig from the jig table on the vehicle assembly line.

  According to various aspects of the present disclosure, the area occupied by the facility can be reduced.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a situation in which an arm robot acquires an assembly jig placed on a jig placement table in the vehicle assembly facility according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the positional relationship among the arm robot, the jig mounting table, and the vehicle assembly line. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a situation where the arm robot transports the assembly jig onto the vehicle assembly line. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a situation where the arm robot installs the assembly jig on the vehicle assembly line. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the arm robot has retreated from the vehicle assembly line. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the transport process of the assembly jig by the arm robot.

  Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a situation in which the arm robot 10 acquires the assembly jig 40 placed on the jig placement table 20 in the vehicle assembly facility 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a positional relationship between the arm robot 10, the jig mounting table 20, and the vehicle assembly line 30. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle assembly facility 1 is attached to the vehicle assembly line 30 in a vehicle assembly plant 100 capable of assembling a plurality of vehicle types (parallel production) on the same vehicle assembly line 30, for example. In other words, the assembly jig 40 is installed on the vehicle assembly line 30. The vehicle assembly facility 1 includes an arm robot 10 and a jig mounting table 20.

  First, the vehicle assembly line 30 provided with the vehicle assembly facility 1 and the assembly jig 40 used in the vehicle assembly line 30 will be described. In each figure, the vehicle assembly line 30 shows only the vicinity of the vehicle assembly facility 1.

  The vehicle assembly line 30 is a line for performing processing such as welding on the vehicle M being assembled while the vehicle M being assembled is traveling in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The vehicle assembly line 30 extends, for example, in a straight line. The vehicle M being assembled is, for example, a state in which components such as a vehicle floor, a side panel, and a lower back are temporarily assembled with each other. In addition, the vehicle M during assembly may be in a state of a pre-process than the state described above, or may be in a state of a post-process.

  The vehicle assembly line 30 includes support columns for supporting the assembly jig 40 before and after the region where the vehicle M is being assembled. The support column has, for example, a pair of front support columns 31 and 31 and a rear support column 32. The front support columns 31 are provided on both sides in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30 on the front side (downstream side) of the vehicle M being assembled in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The rear support column 32 is provided at the center in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30 on the rear side (upstream side) of the vehicle M being assembled in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  Around a part of the vehicle assembly line 30, an assembly jig 40 is attached to the vehicle M being assembled that has traveled along the vehicle assembly line 30, and the vehicle M being assembled with the assembly jig 40 attached thereto is attached. A processing area S for performing processing such as welding is provided. Here, the processing area S is provided on the downstream side of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  The assembly jig 40 is a jig having a clamp device for positioning the components of the vehicle M being assembled with each other, and is mounted on the jig mounting table 20. In the vehicle assembly facility 1, the assembly jig 40 corresponding to the vehicle type being assembled in the vehicle assembly line 30 is selected and used from among a plurality of assembly jigs 40 corresponding to the vehicle type assembled in the vehicle assembly line 30. The assembly jig 40 has a long shape, and is attached to the vehicle M during assembly so that the longitudinal direction is along the vehicle front-rear direction of the vehicle M during assembly.

  The assembly jig 40 has a pair of front supported parts 41 and 41 and a rear supported part 42. Each front-side supported portion 41 is positioned on both sides in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle M being assembled on the vehicle front side of the vehicle M being assembled when the assembly jig 40 is attached to the vehicle M being assembled. Is provided. The rear supported portion 42 is provided so as to be positioned at the center in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle M being assembled on the vehicle rear side of the vehicle M being assembled when the assembly jig 40 is attached to the vehicle M being assembled. It has been.

  In the assembly jig 40, when the assembly jig 40 is attached to the vehicle M during assembly, the front supported part 41 is supported by the front support pillar 31 of the vehicle assembly line 30, and the rear supported part 42 is By being supported by the rear support column 32 of the vehicle assembly line 30, the vehicle assembly line 30 and the vehicle M being assembled are positioned (see FIG. 4). Then, the components of the vehicle M being assembled are clamped by the clamping device of the assembly jig 40 so that the components are held in a predetermined positional relationship. After processing such as welding is performed on the vehicle M during assembly in this state, the assembly jig 40 is removed from the vehicle M during assembly and returned to the jig mounting table 20.

  The arm robot 10 is an articulated robot. The arm robot 10 conveys an assembly jig 40 corresponding to the vehicle type being assembled in the vehicle assembly line 30 from the jig mounting table 20 onto the vehicle assembly line 30, and a processing area S (more specifically, on the vehicle assembly line 30). Specifically, it is installed in the assembling vehicle M) located in the processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30. The arm robot 10 includes a base base 11, an articulated arm portion 12, and a grip portion 13. In FIG. 2, only the base 11 of the arm robot 10 is shown.

  The base 11 is a base of the arm robot 10 and is fixed to the floor surface of the vehicle assembly factory 100. The base 11 is arranged so as to be adjacent to the vehicle assembly line 30 on one side in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30 (here, the right side in the traveling direction of the vehicle assembly line 30). Note that “adjacent” does not necessarily mean that the base 11 is not in contact with the vehicle assembly line 30, as long as the arm robot 10 can transport the assembly jig 40 onto the vehicle assembly line 30. .

  The articulated arm 12 is connected to the base 11 at the base end. The articulated arm portion 12 is rotatable with respect to the base 11 around a vertical axis passing through the base end. The articulated arm portion 12 holds the grip portion 13 at the other end that is the end opposite to the base end fixed to the base base 11.

  The grip portion 13 is a mechanism for gripping the assembly jig 40. The gripping part 13 is held at the other end of the articulated arm part 12 and is rotatable with respect to the articulated arm part 12 around a vertical axis passing through the other end of the articulated arm part 12.

  The jig placing table 20 is a jig placing table on which a plurality of assembly jigs 40 corresponding to the vehicle types assembled in the vehicle assembly line 30 are placed. The jig mounting table 20 is arranged around the arm robot 10 on one side in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30 (here, on the right side in the traveling direction of the vehicle assembly line 30). The jig placement table 20 has a plurality of jig placement areas 21 which are areas where the assembly jig 40 is actually placed. Each jig placement area 21 is set before and after the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  A part of the plurality of jig placement areas 21 may be set upstream of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D <b> 1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. When there are a plurality of jig placement areas 21 set upstream of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D <b> 1 of the vehicle assembly line 30, the plurality of jig placement areas 21 are arranged in the vehicle assembly line 30. May be set in a line along the width direction D2.

  Further, the remaining part of the plurality of jig placement areas 21 may be set downstream of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D <b> 1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. When there are a plurality of jig placement areas 21 set on the downstream side of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30, the plurality of jig placement areas 21 are arranged in the vehicle assembly line 30. May be set in a line along the width direction D2.

  Here, there are a plurality of jig placement areas 21 set on the upstream side of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The plurality of jig placement areas 21 are divided into a plurality of stages so as to be positioned in the upper stage as they are separated from the vehicle assembly line 30 along the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30, and are set in a line. Yes. In addition, there are a plurality of jig placement areas 21 set downstream of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. The plurality of jig placement areas 21 are divided into a plurality of stages so as to be positioned in the upper stage as they are separated from the vehicle assembly line 30 along the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30, and are set in a line. Yes. As described above, the plurality of jig placement areas 21 are set to be divided into a plurality of stages so as to be positioned at the upper stage as they are separated from the vehicle assembly line 30, so that the assembly jig 40 separated from the vehicle assembly line 30 is provided. The operation acquired by the arm robot 10 becomes easy. Further, the assembly jigs 40 adjacent in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30 can be arranged so as to partially overlap each other. As a result, the distance from the vehicle assembly line 30 to the assembly jig 40 can be shortened and the arm robot 10 can be downsized.

  Each assembly jig 40 is placed on the jig placement area 21 of the jig placement base 20 so as to be in a first direction determined in advance. The “first direction” means that the front supported portion 41 of the assembly jig 40 is located on the upstream side in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30 and the rear supported portion 42 of the assembly jig 40 is assembled in the vehicle. It is the direction located on the downstream side in the extending direction D1 of the line 30. That is, the first direction is opposite to the direction when the assembly jig 40 is used for assembling the vehicle on the vehicle assembly line 30.

  As will be described later, the arm robot 10 has a second direction in which the assembly jig 40 is opposite to the first direction in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30 in the processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30. Then, the assembly jig 40 is transported from the jig mounting table 20 onto the vehicle assembly line 30 while being inverted. The “second direction” means that the front supported portion 41 of the assembly jig 40 is positioned on the downstream side in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30 and the rear supported portion 42 of the assembly jig 40 is assembled in the vehicle. This is the direction positioned on the upstream side in the extending direction D1 of the line 30. In other words, the second direction is the same as the direction in which the assembly jig 40 is used for assembling the vehicle in the processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30.

  Then, the specific conveyance process of the assembly jig 40 by the arm robot 10 is demonstrated with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a situation in which the arm robot 10 carries the assembly jig 40 onto the vehicle assembly line 30. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which the arm robot 10 installs the assembly jig 40 on the vehicle assembly line 30. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the arm robot 10 is retracted from the vehicle assembly line 30. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the transportation process of the assembly jig 40 by the arm robot 10.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in step S <b> 10, the vehicle assembly facility 1 includes the vehicle assembly line 30 among the plurality of assembly jigs 40 placed on the jig placement table 20 by the grip portion 13 of the arm robot 10. The assembly jig 40 corresponding to the vehicle type being assembled is selected and gripped (see FIG. 1). The assembly jig 40 is placed on the jig placement area 21 of the jig placement base 20 so as to be in a first direction determined in advance. When the vehicle assembly facility 1 grips the target assembly jig 40 with the grip portion 13, the vehicle assembly facility 1 proceeds to step S12.

  In step S <b> 12, the vehicle assembly facility 1 operates the articulated arm unit 12 of the arm robot 10 to process the assembly jig 40 held by the holding unit 13 from the jig mounting table 20 on the vehicle assembly line 30. Transport to area S. At this time, the vehicle assembly facility 1 reverses the direction of the assembly jig 40 held by the holding unit 13 so that the assembly jig 40 is in the second direction in the processing area S (see FIG. 3). When the assembly jig 40 is transported from the jig mounting table 20 to the processing area S while reversing the direction of the assembly jig 40, the vehicle assembly facility 1 proceeds to step S14.

  In step S <b> 14, the vehicle assembly facility 1 installs the assembly jig 40 gripped by the grip portion 13 of the arm robot 10 in the processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30. More specifically, the vehicle assembly facility 1 supports the front supported portion 41 of the assembly jig 40 gripped by the gripping portion 13 on the front support pillar 31 of the vehicle assembly line 30 and also supports the rear supported. The assembly jig 40 is positioned and attached to the vehicle M being assembled that has traveled along the vehicle assembly line 30 by supporting the portion 42 on the rear support column 32 of the vehicle assembly line 30 (see FIG. 4). When the assembly jig 40 is installed in the processing area S, the vehicle assembly facility 1 proceeds to step S16.

  In step S <b> 16, the vehicle assembly facility 1 retracts the arm robot 10 from the vehicle assembly line 30 onto, for example, the jig mounting table 20. When the arm assembly 10 is retracted from the vehicle assembly line 30, the vehicle assembly facility 1 ends the current transportation process. In this state, processing such as welding is performed on the vehicle M during assembly. Thereafter, the vehicle assembly facility 1 removes the assembly jig 40 attached to the vehicle M being assembled by the arm robot 10 and reverses the direction of the assembly jig 40 in a procedure reverse to the above-described transportation process. Then, the assembly jig 40 is transported from the vehicle assembly line 30 to the jig placement table 20 and placed on the jig placement area 21 of the jig placement table 20 so as to be in the first direction. Then, the transportation process described above is repeated from step S10 for the next vehicle M that is traveling along the vehicle assembly line 30.

  Here, in the conventional vehicle assembly equipment, there is a case where the assembly jig is placed on the jig placement table so as to be in the same direction as that used when assembling the vehicle on the vehicle assembly line. is there. In this case, the arm robot transports the assembly jig from the jig mounting table onto the vehicle assembly line by largely moving the assembly jig. In order for the arm robot to move the assembly jig greatly in parallel, for example, it is necessary to advance or retract the arm robot, increase the number of joints of the articulated arm part of the arm robot, or increase the range of motion of the joint. For this reason, a sufficient area is required as an operation area of the arm robot. As a result, the conventional vehicle assembly facility invites an increase in the occupied area.

  On the other hand, in the vehicle assembly facility 1 described above, the arm robot 10 and the jig mounting table 20 are disposed on one side in the width direction D2 of the vehicle assembly line 30, and the vehicle mounting line 30 includes the vehicle assembly line 30. Each assembly jig 40 is placed so as to be in the first direction. Then, the arm robot 10 moves the assembly jig 40 to the jig mounting table 20 so that the assembly jig 40 is in the second direction opposite to the first direction in the processing area S on the vehicle assembly line 30. To the vehicle assembly line 30. For this reason, according to the vehicle assembly facility 1, the arm robot 10 simply rotates the articulated arm 12 with respect to the base 11 while holding the assembly jig 40 by the grip 13. In the vicinity of 30, the assembly jig 40 can be in the second direction. Therefore, the arm robot 10 translates the assembly jig 40 by a minute distance so that the assembly jig 40 is installed at the position of the vehicle M during assembly, thereby processing the assembly jig 40 on the vehicle assembly line 30. It can be set as the 2nd direction which is a direction at the time of being used for the assembly of a vehicle in the area S. Therefore, according to the vehicle assembly facility 1, it is not necessary for the arm robot 10 to largely translate the assembly jig 40 as compared with the conventional arm robot. Therefore, according to the vehicle assembly facility 1, for example, it is not necessary to advance or retract the arm robot 10, increase the number of joints of the articulated arm portion 12 of the arm robot 10, or increase the range of motion of the joint. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the operation area required by the arm robot 10 from expanding. As a result, the vehicle assembly facility 1 can reduce the area occupied by the facility.

  Moreover, in the vehicle assembly facility 1, it is possible to reduce the area occupied by the facility, so that the space efficiency in the vehicle assembly plant 100 is improved. As a result, in the vehicle assembly facility 1, it is possible to expand the processing area S for performing processing such as welding on the vehicle M being assembled, and to shorten the overall length of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  Further, since the vehicle assembly facility 1 employs the arm robot 10, it is possible to modify a general-purpose arm robot and use it as the arm robot 10, thereby reducing facility investment. Furthermore, since the vehicle assembly facility 1 generally employs the arm robot 10 that can be fixed to the floor surface of the vehicle assembly factory 100, it is not necessary to fix the robot or the like to the beam of the building of the vehicle assembly factory 100. Less susceptible to equipment design constraints due to building strength.

  The above-described embodiments can be implemented in various forms with various changes and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

  For example, the first direction may not be parallel to the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30 and may be slightly inclined. In this case, the first direction and the second direction differ by an angle slightly deviated from 180 degrees.

  Each jig placement region 21 may be set only on the downstream side (front side) of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. That is, each assembly jig 40 may be placed only on the downstream side of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  Each jig placement region 21 may be set only on the upstream side (rear side) of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30. That is, each assembly jig 40 may be placed only on the upstream side of the arm robot 10 in the extending direction D1 of the vehicle assembly line 30.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle assembly equipment, 10 ... Arm robot, 11 ... Base stand, 20 ... Jig mounting base, 30 ... Vehicle assembly line, 40 ... Assembly jig, S ... Processing area.

Claims (1)

A jig mounting table on which a plurality of assembly jigs according to the vehicle type assembled in the vehicle assembly line are mounted;
An arm robot that conveys the assembly jig corresponding to the type of vehicle being assembled in the vehicle assembly line from the jig mounting table onto the vehicle assembly line and installs the assembly jig in a processing area on the vehicle assembly line. ,
The base of the arm robot is arranged so as to be adjacent to the vehicle assembly line on one side in the width direction of the vehicle assembly line,
The jig mounting table is disposed around the arm robot on the one side in the width direction of the vehicle assembly line,
Each of the plurality of assembly jigs is placed on the jig placement table so as to be in a first predetermined direction before and after the arm robot in the extending direction of the vehicle assembly line,
The arm robot moves the assembly jig in the machining area so that the assembly jig is in a second direction opposite to the first direction in the extending direction of the vehicle assembly line. Vehicle assembly equipment for transporting from the equipment mounting table onto the vehicle assembly line.

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