JP2021138128A - Automatic fiber bundle arrangement device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a configuration for reducing a change of a path length of fiber bundles extending from a guide mechanism to an introduction part upon the arrangement of the fiber bundles, with respect to an automatic fiber bundle arrangement device which includes: an articulated robot moving an arrangement head, as an articulated robot having the arrangement head having an introduction part for introducing a plurality of fiber bundles, and arranging each of the introduced fiber bundles on an arrangement type, and an arm attached with the arrangement head; a head turning mechanism for making the articulated robot change a position of the introduction part relative to the tip of the arm; and a guide mechanism including a plurality of toe guides provided correspondingly with each of the fiber bundle so as to guide the fiber bundles to the arrangement head.SOLUTION: A guide mechanism comprises a position changing mechanism as a position changing mechanism including a support member for supporting toe guides, displacing the toe guides in accordance with a change in a position of an introduction part by a head turning mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention provides a supply device configured to send out fiber bundles from each bobbin in which a plurality of bobbies around which fiber bundles are wound are set, and an introduction unit for introducing each fiber bundle supplied from the supply device. An arrangement head for arranging each fiber bundle on the arrangement type, which is provided and introduced, and an articulated robot having an arm to which the arrangement head is attached and moving the arrangement head for arrangement. An articulated robot is provided with a head swivel mechanism for changing the position of the introduction portion with respect to the tip of the arm, and a plurality of robots corresponding to each fiber bundle to guide the fiber bundle from the supply device toward the placement head. The present invention relates to an automatic fiber bundle arranging device including a guide mechanism including a toe guide.

As an automatic fiber bundle arranging device, an AFP (Automated Faber Placement) device for arranging a narrow fiber bundle on an arrangement mold is known. In the present application, the "fiber bundle" refers to a material such as a so-called tow prepreg formed in a tape shape by impregnating a bundle of a plurality of reinforcing fibers (carbon fiber, glass fiber, etc.) with a matrix resin. .. Further, as the AFP device, there is a device configured to arrange the fiber bundle on the arrangement type by using an articulated robot.

In Patent Document 1, as such an AFP device, an unwinding mechanism configured to unwind (send) a fiber bundle from a bobbin around which the fiber bundle is wound, and an attachment as an arrangement head for performing the arrangement. A device comprising a head and an articulated robot having an arm to which the sticking head (arrangement head) is attached is disclosed. Further, in Patent Document 1, as a prior art thereof, a fiber bundle sent out from an unwinding mechanism provided separately from the articulated robot is guided to the arrangement head in a form of passing above the articulated robot (arm). The device configured to be such is disclosed. Then, the AFP device (articulated robot) is attached to the arm of the articulated robot as a configuration for guiding the fiber bundle as described above (although there is no specific description in Patent Document 1). It has a guide mechanism provided in the form of a robot.

Further, Patent Document 2 also includes, as an AFP device, a displacement system as an articulated robot and a fiber-attached head as a placement head, which is attached to the end of the articulated robot, and is impregnated with resin. An apparatus is disclosed in which a wide band (fiber bundle) composed of flat fibers is arranged by a fiber sticking head (arrangement head). Further, in Patent Document 2, the AFP device is provided with a creel (supply device) as a fiber storage means provided separately from the articulated robot, and a plurality of spools (bobbins) in which a fiber bundle is wound around the creel are provided. It is disclosed that a plurality of fiber bundles are set and supplied toward the placement head. On top of that, the AFP device of Patent Document 2 is provided with a flexible tube connecting the supply device and the arrangement head, and is configured so that the fiber bundle is guided through the flexible tube.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2019-130914 Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-511781

By the way, in the AFP device as described above, in the above arrangement, when the arrangement head is moved by the articulated robot and the fiber bundle is arranged on the arrangement type having a complicated shape, the arrangement head is arranged in the articulated robot. An operation (swivel operation of the arrangement head) such that the arrangement head is rotated, such as rotating the arm to which the robot is attached or rotating the arrangement head with respect to the arm, may be performed. The fiber bundle supplied to the arrangement head is introduced into the arrangement head via the introduction part in the arrangement head, but as the rotation operation of the arrangement head is performed as described above, the position of the introduction part is Changes relative to the tip of the arm.

However, in the AFP device of Patent Document 1, the fiber bundle is guided by a guide mechanism attached to the arm of the articulated robot on the upstream side thereof. The position for guiding the fiber bundle by the guide mechanism is a position that is relatively fixed to the arm. Therefore, when the arrangement head is swiveled and the position of the introduction portion is changed as described above, the path length of the fiber bundle suddenly changes between the guide mechanism and the introduction portion, which is the arrangement. May have an adverse effect on. Further, the fiber bundle may interfere with the arm or the like and be damaged due to the displacement of the introduction portion in the arrangement head as described above. Therefore, the AFP device that guides the fiber bundle by the guide configuration using the guide mechanism as in Patent Document 1 has a problem that the operation of the arrangement head is restricted, that is, it cannot correspond to the arrangement type having a complicated shape.

Further, in an AFP apparatus in which an arrangement head as disclosed in Patent Document 2 is configured to perform the arrangement of a plurality of fiber bundles, when a guide configuration as in Patent Document 1 is adopted, the arrangement head is used. On the other hand, since a plurality of fiber bundles are supplied (introduced), the above-mentioned problems are more likely to occur.

In the AFP device of Patent Document 2, as described above, the fiber bundle is guided through the flexible tube connecting the supply device and the arrangement head. Therefore, in the case of performing the above-mentioned arrangement, even if the arrangement head is made to perform a complicated operation, the above-mentioned problem is unlikely to occur. However, in a device that guides a plurality of fiber bundles with a guide configuration using such a flexible tube, the flexible tube is provided for each fiber bundle, so that the guide configuration becomes complicated. Further, in the case of the configuration, since the inside of the flexible pipe becomes dirty or clogged due to the passage of the fiber bundle as described above, it is necessary to perform maintenance work in the flexible pipe on a regular basis. Further, the maintenance work as described above has to be performed individually for each flexible tube provided for each fiber bundle, which has a problem that a great deal of labor and time are required.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention arranges a plurality of fiber bundles on the arrangement mold in an automatic fiber bundle arrangement arrangement including a guide mechanism for guiding a plurality of fiber bundles from the supply device toward the arrangement head. In the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide the structure of the guide mechanism which does not cause the above-mentioned problem.

The present invention provides a supply device configured to send out fiber bundles from each bobbin in which a plurality of bobbies around which fiber bundles are wound are set, and an introduction unit for introducing each fiber bundle supplied from the supply device. An arrangement head for arranging each fiber bundle on the arrangement type, which is provided and introduced, and an articulated robot having an arm to which the arrangement head is attached and moving the arrangement head for arrangement. An articulated robot is provided with a head swivel mechanism for changing the position of the introduction portion with respect to the tip of the arm, and a plurality of robots corresponding to each fiber bundle to guide the fiber bundle from the supply device toward the placement head. It is assumed that an automatic fiber bundle arranging device including a guide mechanism including a toe guide is provided.

Further, in the automatic fiber bundle arranging device that is the premise of the present invention, the guide mechanism is a position changing mechanism including a support member that supports the toe guide, and responds to a change in the position of the introduction portion by the head turning mechanism. It is characterized in that it is provided with a position changing mechanism that displaces the toe guide.

However, the "head swivel mechanism" referred to here is a mechanism for rotating the arm in an articulated robot around its central axis, and between the arm and the placement head so that the placement head is supported by the tip of the arm. A mechanism that rotates the placement head around the axis of its support, or a mechanism that is also placed between the arm and the placement head and causes the placement head to extend in the extending direction of the arm. It is a mechanism that gives an operation such as turning to the arrangement head on the tip side of the arm, such as a mechanism that swings the robot. When the arrangement head performs the swivel operation as described above, the introduction portion of the fiber bundle in the arrangement head is displaced so that its position is changed with respect to the tip of the arm.

Further, in such an automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to the present invention, the position changing mechanism may be configured to include a displacement mechanism that displaces at least a portion of the support member that supports the toe guide by using an actuator as a drive source. good. Further, the displacement mechanism may be a vertical swing mechanism that swings the support member in the extending direction of the arm.

In the automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to the present invention, the guide mechanism includes a position changing mechanism for displacementing the toe guide supported by the support member in response to the change in the position of the introduction portion by the head turning mechanism. As a result, even if the introduction portion is displaced as described above, the change in the path length of the fiber bundle can be reduced.

More specifically, in the automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to the present invention, the guide mechanism is configured so that the toe guide is displaced via the above-mentioned position changing mechanism. Then, according to the configuration of such a guide mechanism, even if the position of the introduction portion changes with respect to the tip of the arm due to the rotation of the arrangement head by the rotation mechanism, the toe guide is displaced by the position change mechanism. , It is possible to reduce the change in the path length of the fiber bundle from the toe guide to the introduction part. Thereby, the adverse effect on the arrangement due to the change in the path length is excluded as much as possible.

Moreover, according to such a guide mechanism, the toe guide is displaced according to the displacement of the introduction portion, so that the fiber bundle is less likely to interfere with the arm or the like of the articulated robot. Therefore, according to the configuration, it is possible to cause the arrangement head to perform a turning operation such as rotation without providing a flexible tube for guiding the fiber bundle as in the prior art.

As described above, according to the automatic fiber bundle arrangement device of the present invention, it is possible to stably perform the arrangement even for an arrangement type having a complicated shape, and further, the guide configuration of the fiber bundle is complicated. It is also possible to avoid a configuration that requires a great deal of labor for maintenance work.

Further, the above-mentioned position changing mechanism is provided with a displacement mechanism using an actuator as a drive source, and the portion of the support member that supports the toe guide is positively displaced so as to respond to the turning operation of the arrangement head. The displacement of the said portion can be performed more reliably. Thereby, the above-mentioned effect is more surely ensured.

Further, the displacement mechanism in the position changing mechanism is a vertical swing mechanism configured so that the support member is positively swung in the extending direction of the arm, so that the displacement mechanism is relatively simple. It can be configured like this. More specifically, as a configuration for displace the toe guide as described above, it is conceivable to configure a displacement mechanism so that the portion of the support member that supports the toe guide is displaced linearly. On the other hand, if the displacement mechanism is configured to swing the support member as described above, the displacement mechanism is relatively simple as compared with the displacement mechanism configured to linearly displace the toe guide. It can be configured like this. Therefore, since the guide configuration for displacementing the toe guide can be realized with a relatively simple one, it is possible to avoid complicating the configuration of the automatic fiber bundle arranging device.

It is a side view which shows an example of the automatic fiber bundle arrangement apparatus by this invention. It is a perspective view which shows around the guide mechanism of the automatic fiber bundle arrangement apparatus by this invention. It is a top view of the guide mechanism shown in FIG. It is a side view of the guide mechanism shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1 is placed on the supply device 4 on which the bobbin 3 around which the fiber bundle 2 is wound is set, and the arrangement type 5 of the fiber bundle 2 supplied from the supply device 4. It is provided with an arrangement head 6 for arranging the above and an articulated robot 7 for moving the arrangement head 6 for the arrangement. In this embodiment, the automatic fiber bundle arrangement device 1 is configured so that the arrangement of 16 fiber bundles 2 can be performed at the same time. Therefore, although only the four bobbins on the front side are shown in the figure, the supply device 4 is provided with 16 bobbins 3.

Further, the supply device 4 includes a guide unit 9 that guides the fiber bundle 2 drawn from each bobbin 3 toward the articulated robot 7. The guide portion 9 includes a guide member (not shown) provided for each fiber bundle 2 to guide each fiber bundle 2 individually, and the guide member makes each fiber bundle 2 higher than the articulated robot 7. It is configured to guide you by position. In the supply device 4, a dancer common to each fiber bundle 2 is used as a configuration for adjusting the tension of each fiber bundle 2 in the path of the fiber bundle 2 between each bobbin 3 and the guide portion 9. It has a roll 8. According to the configuration, each fiber bundle 2 is adjusted to an appropriate tension between the bobbin 3 and the guide portion 9, and is pulled out to the articulated robot 7 side in an appropriate tension state.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the articulated robot 7 is provided with a guide mechanism 20 for guiding each fiber bundle 2 guided by the guide unit 9 as described above. The guide mechanism 20 is attached to an arm 7a (a portion on the tip side of the joint portion 7b) on the tip side of the articulated robot 7. Further, the guide mechanism 20 includes toe guides provided for each fiber bundle 2 in order to guide each fiber bundle 2 individually, and each toe guide is supported by the support member 24. The guide mechanism 20 is provided so that the support member 24 extends upward above the arm 7a and guides each fiber bundle 2 on the tip end side of the support member 24.

Therefore, in the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1, the fiber bundles 2 pulled out from each bobbin 3 are pulled out from the supply device 4 (guide portion 9) at a position higher than that of the articulated robot 7 in the vertical direction, and then many. The guide mechanism 20 is reached by passing above the joint robot 7. Then, each fiber bundle 2 is turned so as to be guided by the guide mechanism 20, and is guided to the arrangement head 6 attached to the tip of the arm 7a in the articulated robot 7.

Then, each fiber bundle 2 thus guided toward the arrangement head 6 is introduced into the arrangement head 6 and arranged on the arrangement mold 5. Therefore, the arrangement head 6 has an introduction portion 6a for introducing each fiber bundle 2 into the inside in a form provided for each fiber bundle 2.

In this embodiment, the arrangement head 6 is attached to the arm 7a of the articulated robot 7 via a rotation mechanism 10 as a head rotation mechanism referred to in the present invention. The rotation mechanism 10 has a rotation portion 10a that is driven to rotate, and the arrangement head 6 is attached to the rotation portion 10a. As a result, the arrangement head 6 is provided so as to be rotationally driven by the rotating mechanism 10 on the tip end side of the articulated robot 7.

In the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1 configured as described above, the guide mechanism 20 includes a support member 24 that supports the toe guide and a support mechanism that supports the support member 24, and the support mechanism automatically supports the support member 24. It is configured to be displaceable in the width direction of the fiber bundle arranging device 1. Further, in the present embodiment, the support mechanism is a drive mechanism for positively displaces the support member 24, and is configured to include a drive mechanism using a drive motor as a drive source. On top of that, the guide mechanism 20 of the present embodiment includes a vertical swing mechanism as a displacement mechanism in the present invention, and the support member 24 is supported by the guide mechanism 20 in the vertical swing mechanism. The configuration of such a guide mechanism 20 will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4.

As described above, the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1 of the present embodiment is configured so that 16 fiber bundles 2 can be arranged. Therefore, the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1 includes 16 toe guides 22 corresponding to each fiber bundle 2. In this embodiment, each toe guide 22 is composed of a hollow cylindrical member having a collar portion. On top of that, the 16 toe guides 22 are supported by the support member 24.

The support member 24 is mainly composed of a pair of side plates 24a and 24a. More specifically, each side plate 24a is a plate-shaped member, and has a rectangular shape in which the dimension in the long side direction is sufficiently larger than the dimension in the short side direction when viewed in the plate thickness direction. It is a formed member. In the support member 24, the pair of side plates 24a and 24a are provided so as to face each other and are separated from each other.

Further, the support member 24 has a support shaft 24b provided so as to be erected on both side plates 24a and 24a. In other words, the pair of side plates 24a, 24a are connected by their support shafts 24b. Four support shafts 24b are provided on one end side of the side plate 24a in the long side direction (= longitudinal direction of the side plate 24a), which is a shaft for supporting the toe guide 22. The 16 toe guides 22 are provided so that four of them are supported by each support shaft 24b. The tow guide 22 is supported by the support shaft 24b by inserting the support shaft 24b into the hole of the hollow cylindrical toe guide 22, and each toe guide 22 can rotate with respect to the support shaft 24b. It has become.

Incidentally, in the illustrated example, the support member 24 also has a reinforcing member 24c that connects the side plates 24a and 24a. The reinforcing member 24c connects the side plates 24a and 24a so as to be erected in the vicinity of the intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction of the side plate 24a.

On top of that, the support member 24 is supported by a support mechanism 26 attached to the arm 7a of the articulated robot 7. However, the guide mechanism 20 (support mechanism 26) of this embodiment has a vertical swing mechanism 50 (details will be described later) that swings the support member 24 in the extending direction of the arm 7a. The support member 24 is supported by the support mechanism 26 via the vertical swing mechanism 50. Therefore, the support member 24 is attached to the vertical rocking mechanism 50 so that the vertical rocking mechanism 50 is located between the side plates 24a and 24a on the other end side of the side plate 24a in the longitudinal direction.

Regarding the support mechanism 26 that supports the support member 24 in this way, in this embodiment, the support mechanism 26 supports the support member 24 and actively displaces the support member 24 using the drive motor 31 as a drive source. A guide support structure 40 that supports the 30 and its drive mechanism 30 with respect to the arm 7a is provided. Further, the drive mechanism 30 includes a rail member 32 that is supported with respect to the arm 7a via the guide support structure 40, and a movable member 33 that is a movable member that is displaced on the rail member 32 and to which the support member 24 is attached. , It is composed of a driving means 34 for displacing the movable member 33 on the rail member 32.

More specifically, with respect to each component of the drive mechanism 30, the rail member 32 is mainly composed of a plate-shaped base portion 32a as a base. However, the base portion 32a is formed in an arc shape of about 2/3 circle when viewed in the plate thickness direction. Further, the base portion 32a is formed so that the inner diameter thereof is such that the arm 7a of the articulated robot 7 can be arranged inside the base portion 32a.

Further, the rail member 32 has a guide rail 32b for guiding the displacement of the movable member 33, and a rack 32c that functions as a part of the driving means 34. Among them, the guide rail 32b is a rail-shaped portion having a substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape and extending on the surface which is one end face in the plate thickness direction of the base portion 32a. However, the guide rail 32b is formed in an arc shape so as to extend along the peripheral edge of the base portion 32a. The guide rail 32b is provided on the surface of the base portion 32a so as to be located on the outer peripheral edge side of the base portion 32a and extend over a range in the arc direction of the base portion 32a.

Further, the rack 32c is a so-called rack in which teeth that mesh with the pinion are formed, and is provided so as to extend on the surface of the base portion 32a like the guide rail 32b. Further, the rack 32c is also formed in an arc shape so as to extend along the peripheral edge of the base portion 32a, like the guide rail 32b. However, the rack 32c is formed so that the teeth face the inside of the arc. The rack 32c is provided on the surface of the base portion 32a so as to be located on the inner peripheral edge side of the base portion 32a apart from the guide rail 32b and extend over a range in the arc direction of the base portion 32a. There is.

The movable member 33 engages with the support 33a, which is the main body of the movable member 33 and supports the support member 24, and the guide rail 32b of the rail member 32 in order to guide the displacement of the support 33a on the rail member 32. It is composed of a matching engaging member 33b. Further, the drive means 34 for displacing the support 33a (movable member 33) in this way uses the drive motor 31 as a drive source as described above, and the drive motor 31 is supported by the support 33a. .. The details of these configurations are as follows.

The support 33a is a plate-shaped member, and is a member having a rectangular shape when viewed in the plate thickness direction (both plate surfaces in the plate thickness direction form a rectangular shape). However, the support 33a has a dimension in the long side direction of both plate surfaces sufficiently larger than the distance between the guide rail 32b and the rack 32c in the rail member 32 (a dimension about twice the distance). It is formed like this.

Further, the engaging member 33b is a block-shaped member formed in a thick plate shape. The engaging member 33b is attached to the support 33a in a direction in which the thickness direction coincides with the plate thickness direction of the support 33a, and one of both end faces in the thickness direction is an attachment surface. ..

Further, the engaging member 33b has a guide groove 33b1 formed so as to open to the other end face of the both end faces and also to open both sides in the long side direction of the other end face. ing. However, the guide groove 33b1 is formed so as to form an arc with the same curvature as the guide rail 32b in the rail member 32. Further, the guide groove 33b1 is formed in a size so that the guide rail 32b can be engaged with the guide rail 33b1. That is, the guide groove 33b1 is formed to have a size such that the groove width substantially matches (slightly large) the width of the guide rail 32b. The depth dimension of the guide groove 33b1 is smaller than the height dimension of the guide rail 32b, which is about half in the illustrated example.

Then, the engaging member 33b is attached by a screw member or the like in a state where the mounting surface is in contact with one of the two plate surfaces of the support 33a. However, regarding the mounting thereof, the engaging member 33b is located near the intermediate portion in the long side direction of the plate surface of the support 33a (= the long side direction of the support 33a), and the mounting surface of the engaging member 33b. The attachment is performed in a state where the long side direction of the support 33a and the short side direction of the plate surface of the support 33a are aligned with each other.

The drive means 34 is composed of a drive motor 31 which is a drive source, a pinion 31a attached to an output shaft of the drive motor 31, and a rack 32c that meshes with the pinion 31a. That is, the rack 32c provided on the rail member 32 also functions as a part of the drive means 34.

In the drive means 34, the drive motor 31 is provided so as to be supported by the support 33a as described above, and a screw member or the like is provided with respect to the other plate surface of the two plate surfaces of the support 33a. Is attached by. The mounting is performed so that the axial direction of the output shaft of the drive motor 31 coincides with the plate thickness direction of the support 33a. Therefore, the support 33a is formed with a through hole that allows the output shaft to pass through the portion corresponding to the output shaft at the position where the drive motor 31 is attached. However, the mounting position is the position on the inner peripheral side of the arc-shaped guide groove 33b1 in the engaging member 33b with respect to the long side direction of the support 33a in the positional relationship with the engaging member 33b which is also mounted on the support 33a. Therefore, the distance between the output shaft of the drive motor 31 and the guide groove 33b1 of the engaging member 33b is set to be substantially the same as the distance between the guide rail 32b and the rack 32c in the rail member 32.

Then, in the state where the drive motor 31 is attached to the support 33a as described above, the output shaft of the drive motor 31 penetrates the support 33a, and the tip end portion thereof is the one plate surface of the support 33a. It is in a state of being located on the side. On top of that, a pinion 31a is attached to the tip of the output shaft. As described above, the pinion 31a is meshed with the rack 32c of the rail member 32. Therefore, the mounting position of the drive motor 31 with respect to the support 33a is the pinion 31a mounted on the drive motor 31 in a state where the engaging member 33b mounted on the support 33a is engaged with the guide rail 32b of the rail member 32. The position is such that the rack 32c and the rack 32c mesh with each other.

Then, the drive mechanism 30 provided with each of such components engages the engaging member 33b in the movable member 33 with the guide rail 32b in the rail member 32 in the guide groove 33b1, and the movable member 33 and the rail member. It has a configuration in which 32 and 32 are combined. In the state where the engaging member 33b and the guide rail 32b are engaged with each other in this way, the drive motor 31 in the driving means 34 is attached to the support 33a at the above-mentioned position. The member 32 is located closer to the rack 32c than the guide rail 32b. In that state, the drive mechanism 30 is in a state in which the pinion 31a attached to the drive motor 31 and the rack 32c of the rail member 32 are in mesh with each other.

On top of that, the drive mechanism 30 is supported by the arm 7a of the articulated robot 7 via the guide support structure 40 as described above. The guide support structure 40 is configured to support the drive mechanism 30 by a pair of support bars 40a and 40a. Each of the support bars 40a is a prismatic member in this embodiment.

Further, the guide support structure 40 is an attachment portion 40b for attaching each support bar 40a to the arm 7a, and has a pair of attachment portions 40b and 40b attached to the arm 7a. Each of the attachment portions 40b is attached to the rear end portion of the arm 7a on the side opposite to the front end portion to which the arrangement head 6 is attached. Further, the pair of mounting portions 40b, 40b are provided so as to extend from both side portions of the arm 7a toward both sides of the arm 7a. Each support bar 40a is attached to the attachment portion 40b at one end thereof so as to extend from the rear end portion of the arm 7a to which the attachment portion 40b is attached toward the tip end side of the arm 7a. Yes (supported). In the state where each support bar 40a is attached in this way, the other end thereof is located above the arm 7a, and the extending direction of the arm 7a is the extending direction of the arm 7a when viewed from the side. It is provided so as to form an angle of about 30 ° with respect to the relative.

Further, in the illustrated example, the guide support structure 40 has a reinforcing member 40d that connects both support bars 40a and 40a. The reinforcing member 40d connects the support bars 40a and 40a so as to be erected near the other end of the support bar 40a.

Further, the guide support structure 40 is a support portion 40c provided at the other end of each support bar 40a, and a drive mechanism 30 (rail member 32) is attached to each support bar 40a to support the drive mechanism 30 on both support bars. It has a pair of support portions 40c and 40c that are supported by the 40a and 40a.

Each of the support portions 40c is formed so that two plate-shaped portions 40c1 and 40c1 made of a plate material face each other. Each plate-shaped portion 40c1 has a rectangular portion attached to the support bar 40a and a triangular portion formed so as to extend from one side edge of the rectangular portion in the short side direction. It is formed in an L shape. Further, the triangular portion is formed so that its inclined side edge forms an obtuse angle with respect to the one side edge of the rectangular portion, and the angle is approximately 140 ° in the illustrated example. There is. Further, although not shown, each plate-shaped portion 40c1 has a plate surface extending in the plate thickness direction from the inclined side edge in the triangular portion.

On top of that, the two plate-shaped portions 40c1 and 40c1 constituting the support portion 40c have a rectangular portion with the plate surface facing the support bar 40a with respect to the side surface of the corresponding support bar 40a. It is attached at the end face. Therefore, in the state where each plate-shaped portion 40c1 is attached in this way, the two plate surfaces face the support bar 40a and form an angle of approximately 140 ° with respect to the extending direction of the support bar 40a. It will be in the form of existence. Then, the two plate surfaces serve as surfaces (mounting surfaces) on which the drive mechanism 30 (rail member 32) is mounted on the support portion 40c.

Then, the drive mechanism 30 guides the rail member 32 with the back surface of the base portion 32a (the end surface on the side opposite to the side on which the guide rail 32b or the like is provided) in contact with the mounting surface of each support portion 40c. It is attached to the support structure 40.
The guide support structure 40 is attached so that the support bars 40a and 40a (arms 7a) are located inside the base portion 32a, and the center of the base portion 32a is centered on the arm 7a in a plan view. It is done in a matched state. Then, in such an attached state, the drive mechanism 30 views the arm 7a from the side, and the base portion 32a forms an angle of about 70 ° with respect to the extending direction of the arm 7a to position the arm 7a. It is in a state of extending upward from.

Further, the drive mechanism 30 (support mechanism 26) has a vertical swing mechanism 50 that swings the support member 24 in the extending direction of the arm 7a as described above. On top of that, the support member 24 is supported by the vertical swing mechanism 50 with respect to the drive mechanism 30. The vertical swing mechanism 50 is a pair of a swing drive mechanism 51 for swinging the support member 24 using a drive motor 51a as an actuator as a drive source, and a pair of the swing drive mechanism 51 and the support member 24. The swing arms 52 and 52 are included. The combination of the longitudinal swing mechanism 50 and the support member 24 configured in this way corresponds to the position change mechanism referred to in the present invention.

More specifically, the swing drive mechanism 51 is based on a substantially rectangular parallelepiped support housing 51b, and is attached to the support 33a in the movable member 33 in the support housing 51b. There is. The support housing 51b is attached to the support 33a on the side opposite to the drive motor 31 side with respect to the engagement member 33b in the long side direction of the support 33a, and the one plate surface (engagement member) of the support 33a. It is attached to the plate surface on the side to which 33b is attached). The support housing 51b has its end face abutted against the support 33a, and two of the four side surfaces orthogonal to the end face abutting the support 33a are parallel to the long side direction of the support 33a. It is attached to the support 33a in such an orientation as to form.

On that basis, the drive motor 51a is provided with a screw member or the like on the side surface of the support housing 51b that is orthogonal to the long side direction of the support body 33a and is far from the engaging member 33b. It is installed. That is, in the support housing 51b, the side surface thereof is the motor mounting surface. Further, the drive motor 51a is attached to the support housing 51b in a state where the output shaft is aligned with the long side direction of the support 33a and the output shaft penetrates the side wall including the motor mounting surface of the support housing 51b. It is attached to the other.

Further, the swing drive mechanism 51 has a swing shaft 51c provided on the support housing 51b in a direction parallel to the motor mounting surface of the support housing 51b. The swing shaft 51c penetrates the side walls including the lateral side surfaces of the support housing 51b with respect to two side surfaces (lateral sides) of the support housing 51b parallel to the long side direction of the support body 33a, and both sides thereof. It is supported by the wall. That is, the swing shaft 51c is supported by the support housing 51b, and both ends thereof are provided in the swing drive mechanism 51 so as to project from the lateral side surface of the support housing 51b.

On top of that, in the swing drive mechanism 51, the output shaft of the drive motor 51a and the swing shaft 51c are connected to each other inside the support housing 51b by using a gear mechanism (not shown). Since the output shaft of the drive motor 51a and the swing shaft 51c are orthogonal to each other in the axial direction, the gear mechanism thereof uses a bevel gear or the like. With such a configuration, the swing drive mechanism 51 swings and drives the swing shaft 51c by driving the drive motor 51a in the forward and reverse directions.

Each swing arm 52 is a thick plate-shaped member, and is a member formed in a rectangular shape when viewed in the plate thickness direction. Further, each swing arm 52 has a split tightening mechanism formed at one end in the longitudinal direction thereof. The pair of swing arms 52, 52 are attached to both ends of the swing shaft 51c in the swing drive mechanism 51 by split tightening so that they cannot rotate relative to each other. In addition, in the attachment of each swing arm 52 to the swing shaft 51c, the phases of both swing arms 52 and 52 are matched with respect to the swing shaft 51c, and each swing arm 52 is driven from the position of the swing shaft 51c. It is carried out so as to extend toward the motor 51a side.

The support member 24 is attached to the pair of swing arms 52, 52 and is supported by the vertical swing mechanism 50 in the drive mechanism 30. The support member 24 is attached to the swing arm 52 in a state where the pair of side plates 24a, 24a of the support member 24 have the longitudinal direction of the side plates 24a aligned with the extending direction of the swing arm 52. It is attached at the other end of each of the 24a in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, the support member 24 is in a state of being supported by the vertical swing mechanism 50 in such a form that the side plate 24a extends from the vertical swing mechanism 50 (swing shaft 51c) in the extending direction.

On top of that, the longitudinal rocking mechanism 50 is included in the drive mechanism 30 of the support mechanism 26 as described above, and the movable member 33 is opposed to the movable member 33 provided on the rail member 32 of the drive mechanism 30. It is supported by the support 33a in the above. Since the drive mechanism 30 is supported by the arm 7a of the articulated robot 7 by the guide support structure 40, the support member 24 is supported by the support mechanism 26 including the guide support structure 40 and the drive mechanism 30. It is in a state of being supported by.

In the state of being supported by the arm 7a in this way, the support member 24 makes an angle of about 70 ° toward the tip end side of the arm 7a with respect to the extending direction of the arm 7a when the arm 7a is viewed from the side. The rail member 32 supported by the arm 7a is in a state of extending toward the tip end side of the arm 7a in a direction substantially along the surface of the rail member 32. The toe guides 22 provided according to the number of fiber bundles 2 (16 in this embodiment) so as to directly guide the fiber bundles 2 are supported by the arm 7a in the above manner. It is supported by the tip side of the pair of side plates 24a, 24a in the member 24. Incidentally, the position of the toe guide 22 supported in this way is a state in which the movable member 33 is located at the center of the rail member 32 (base portion 32a) in the width direction as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 in this embodiment. Therefore, it is above the front of the tip of the arm 7a.

Then, according to the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1 provided with the guide mechanism 20 (support mechanism 26) configured as described above, the articulated robot 7 (arm 7a) is operated according to a preset program. The arrangement of the plurality of fiber bundles 2 on the arrangement mold 5 is performed. Further, in the above-mentioned arrangement, the rotating mechanism 10 (rotating portion 10a) in which the arrangement head 6 is attached to the arm 7a is swiveled according to the shape on the arrangement mold 5 in which the fiber bundle 2 is arranged. As a result, the arrangement head 6 may be driven to rotate around the axis of the rotating portion 10a. When such an arrangement head 6 is swiveled, the position of the introduction portion 6a in the arrangement head 6 changes (changes) relative to the tip of the arm 7a in the articulated robot 7.

Then, as the arrangement head 6 is swiveled in this way, the drive motor 31 in the drive means 34 is driven in order to displace the movable member 33 on the rail member 32 in the drive mechanism 30 in the support mechanism 26. Will be done. When the drive motor 31 is driven, the pinion 31a attached to the output shaft meshes with the rack 32c on the rail member 32, so that the support 33a and the support 33a in the movable member 33 to which the drive motor 31 is attached The engaging member 33b attached to the support 33a is displaced in the arc direction of the rail member 32 along the guide rail 32b in a form of being guided by the engaging member 33b to the guide rail 32b on the rail member 32. The drive (drive timing, etc.) of the drive motor 31 is also preset in the program in accordance with the turning drive of the arrangement head 6. Therefore, the displacement drive of the movable member 33 is executed in accordance with the turning drive of the arrangement head 6.

Then, when the movable member 33 is driven so as to be displaced in this way, the support member 24 attached to the movable member 33 is displaced along the rail member 32 in accordance with the turning operation of the arrangement head 6. Since the rail member 32 is provided with respect to the arm 7a as described above, the displacement is performed so that the position of the support member 24 changes in the width direction. As a result, it is possible to prevent the fiber bundle 2 from interfering with the arm 7a or the like of the articulated robot 7 due to the turning operation of the arrangement head 6, so that the restriction on the operation of the arrangement head 6 can be reduced as much as possible.

Further, the drive mechanism 30 in the guide mechanism 20 (support mechanism 26) has a vertical swing mechanism 50 configured as described above, and the support member 24 is a rail member via the vertical swing mechanism 50. It is supported by 32 (movable member 33). The pair of swing arms 52, 52 to which the support member 24 is attached in the vertical swing mechanism 50 are swing-driven by the drive motor 51a in the extending direction of the arm 7a. Therefore, by swinging the pair of swing arms 52, 52, the support member 24 swings in the extending direction of the arm 7a around the position of the swing shaft 51c in the vertical swing mechanism 50. Driven.

Therefore, by driving the vertical swing mechanism 50 in response to the turning drive of the arrangement head 6, the position of the toe guide 22 supported by the support member 24 changes from the position of the introduction portion 6a as described above. The arm 7a changes in the extending direction according to the above. As a result, as described above, the position of the introduction portion 6a with respect to the tip of the arm 7a changes with the operation such as turning of the arrangement head 6, but the path length of the fiber bundle 2 from the toe guide 22 to the introduction portion 6a changes. Is reduced. Therefore, the adverse effect on the arrangement due to the change in the path length is suppressed as much as possible, so that the arrangement is stably performed. Moreover, in the guide mechanism 20 of the present embodiment, the vertical swing mechanism 50 is configured to positively drive the support member 24 to swing by the drive motor 51a, whereby the arrangement head 6 is swiveled. The displacement of each toe guide 22 according to the operation is performed more reliably.

Incidentally, the vertical swing mechanism 50 of this embodiment includes a swing detection device 53 that detects that the swing of the support member 24 exceeds the permissible range. The swing detection device 53 includes a body to be detected 53a attached to the swing arm 52 and a detection mechanism 53b for detecting the body to be detected 53a.

More specifically, the rocking detection device 53 is a member formed of a thin plate material and mainly in the shape of a disk. Further, the detected body 53a has a protruding portion (projecting portion) 53a2 formed so as to extend in the radial direction from the outer peripheral edge of the main disc-shaped portion (disk-shaped portion) 53a1. The protruding portion 53a2 is a portion detected by the detection mechanism 53b, and is a detected portion in the detected body 53a. The body to be detected 53a is attached to the other end of the swing arm 52 by a plurality of screw members.

However, the mounting is performed at a position where the center of the disk-shaped portion 53a1 coincides with the axial center of the swing shaft 51c when viewed in the axial direction of the swing shaft 51c to which the swing arm 52 is mounted. Therefore, as the swing arm 52 is swing-driven, the protruding portion (detected portion) 53a2 of the detected body 53a is centered on the axis of the swing shaft 51c, and the swing amount of the swing arm 52 is increased. Swing as much as. Further, in the illustrated example, the body to be detected 53a is attached to the swing arm 52 in a phase in which the protruding portion 53a2 faces the support 33a.

Further, the detection device 53b is composed of a pair of detectors 53b1 and 53b1 and an attachment mechanism for attaching both detectors 53b1 and 53b1 to the support 33a so as to be supported. Further, the mounting mechanism includes a mounting plate 53b2 to which both detectors 53b1 and 53b1 are mounted, and a mounting bracket 53b3 for mounting the mounting plate 53b2 on the support 33a. The pair of detectors 53b1 and 53b1 are arranged so as to face the outer peripheral surface of the disk-shaped portion 53a1 of the detected body 53a at a position on the support 33a side with respect to the detected body 53a, and the support 33a is provided by the mounting bracket 53b3. It is attached to the attachment plate 53b2 supported by the above by a plurality of screw members.

Each detector 53b1 detects that the detected body 53a (detected unit 53a2) has reached the position of the detector 53b1 in the detection unit. The arrangement of both detectors 53b1 and 53b1 with respect to the detected body 53a is such that the detection unit of each detector 53b1 is located on the path of the swing of the detected portion 53a2 accompanying the swing of the swing arm 52. It is set to the position. Further, the arrangement of both detectors 53b1 and 53b1 is such that the position of the detected portion 53a2 corresponding to both swing limits in a preset permissible swing range (allowable range) for the swing of the swing arm 52 (the position of the detected portion 53a2). The boundary position) is set to a position beyond the boundary position in the swing direction of the detected portion 53a2.

Then, the swing detection device 53 refers to the control device (not shown) in the automatic fiber bundle arrangement device 1 as the detector 53b1 in the detection mechanism 53b detects the detected body 53a (detected unit 53a2). , The detection signal is output. As a result, for example, when an abnormality occurs in the drive portion of the vertical swing mechanism 50 and the swing arm 52 (support member 24) swings beyond the above-mentioned allowable range, the swing detection device 53 causes the swing detection device 53 to swing. It is detected and the detection signal is output to the control device. Therefore, since the control device grasps that the above-mentioned abnormality has occurred by the detection signal, it is possible to cause the control device to perform appropriate processing (stop, etc.) related to the control of the articulated robot 7. can.

In the above, one embodiment of the automatic fiber bundle arrangement apparatus to which the present invention is applied (hereinafter, referred to as “the above-mentioned embodiment”) has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to the one described in the above-described embodiment, and can be implemented in another embodiment (modification example) as described below.

(1) Regarding the position changing mechanism for displacementing the toe guide (support member), in the above-described embodiment, the position changing mechanism includes a displacement mechanism for displacementing the support member 24 using an actuator as a drive source. That is, the position changing mechanism of the above embodiment is configured to include a displacement mechanism that positively displaces the toe guide 22 (support member 24). On top of that, in the above embodiment, the displacement mechanism is a vertical rocking mechanism 50 that swings and drives the support member 24 in the extending direction of the arm 7a. However, in the present invention, even when the position changing mechanism includes the displacement mechanism as described above, the displacement mechanism is not limited to the one configured as in the above embodiment, and the support member extends from the arm. It may be configured to be displaced linearly in the direction.

For example, the displacement mechanism is displaced in the longitudinal direction of the side plate of the support member having the same configuration as that of the embodiment with respect to the portion supported by the arm 7a (movable member 33 in the embodiment). It shall be configured to be supported by a linear motion guide configured to be possible. On top of that, the displacement mechanism may be configured to include a ball screw mechanism that displaces the support member thus displaceably supported in the longitudinal direction.

Specifically, it is assumed that a drive motor as a drive source is fixed to the linear motion guide portion with its output shaft directed toward the support member in the longitudinal direction. Then, it is assumed that a ball screw is attached to the output shaft of the drive motor, and a nut screwed to the ball screw is attached so as not to rotate relative to the support member. According to the displacement mechanism configured in this way, the drive motor is driven in the forward and reverse rotations, so that the support member is displaced in the longitudinal direction while being guided by the linear motion guide portion, and the toe guide is linear. Will be displaced to.

Further, when the position changing mechanism is configured to linearly displace the toe guide, the position changing mechanism can also be configured to passively displace the toe guide. Is. For example, in the configuration in which the support member is supported by the linear motion guide portion as described above, the position changing mechanism is directed toward the toe guide side in the longitudinal direction of the support member between the linear motion guide portion and the support member. It may be configured to be provided with a spring member that elastically biases.

Then, according to the position changing mechanism configured in this way, the position of the introduction portion is displaced in the turning direction according to the turning operation of the placement head, so that the fiber bundles guided by the toe guides respectively. It will be pulled. As a result, the toe guide supported by the support member displaceable in the longitudinal direction is linearly displaced according to the rotation of the arrangement head. As described above, the position changing mechanism in the present invention is not limited to the one provided with the displacement mechanism using the actuator as the drive source to positively displace the toe guide, and the displacement of the toe guide is passively performed. It may be configured to be displaced.

(2) Regarding the guide mechanism provided with the position changing mechanism, in the above embodiment, the guide mechanism 20 is configured so that the toe guide 22 (support member) can be displaced in the width direction of the automatic fiber bundle arranging device 1. ing. Then, as a configuration (width displacement mechanism) for realizing such displacement in the width direction, the guide mechanism 20 displaces the rail member 32 supported with respect to the arm 7a and the rail member 32 in the width direction. The movable member 33 is configured to include a movable member 33 and a driving means 34 for displacing the movable member 33 on the rail member 32. On top of that, the position changing mechanism including the combination of the support member 24 and the displacement mechanism (longitudinal swing mechanism) is supported by the arm 7a via the width displacement mechanism, and is displaced in the width direction as well. It has become.

However, the guide mechanism in the present invention may be configured such that the toe guide is displaced according to the rotation of the arrangement head, and in the configuration provided with the position changing mechanism, the width displacement mechanism as described above may be used. It can be omitted. When the guide mechanism does not have such a width displacement mechanism, the support member is supported on the arm by, for example, attaching an appropriate bracket or the like to the arm and attaching a position changing mechanism to the bracket or the like. You can do it.

(3) Regarding the head swivel mechanism for changing the position of the introduction portion, in the above embodiment, the head swivel mechanism includes a swivel mechanism 10 interposed between the arm 7a and the arrangement head 6. The rotation mechanism 10 is configured to swivel drive the arrangement head 6 around its axis. However, in the present invention, the head turning mechanism is not limited to the one configured as in the above embodiment.

For example, the head swivel mechanism may be a mechanism configured to rotate the arm around its central axis. In the case of this configuration, the arm is rotationally driven so that the arrangement head is oscillated and displaced around the central axis, and the introduction portion is displaced relative to the tip of the arm. However, in the case of that configuration, when the automatic fiber bundle arranging device is configured so that the support member is supported by the arm as in the above embodiment, the arm is placed in the portion to be rotated as described above. In addition, it is necessary to have a portion (fixed portion) that is not rotationally driven as a portion that supports the support member.

Further, the head swivel mechanism may be a mechanism interposed between the arm and the arrangement head and configured to swing and displace the arrangement head with respect to the arm. The head swivel mechanism described above is not limited to being provided independently, and the head swivel mechanism may be configured by combining two or more types of mechanisms.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made as long as the gist of the present invention is not deviated.

1 Automatic fiber bundle placement device 2 Fiber bundle 3 Bobbin 4 Supply device 5 Placement type
6 Arrangement head 6a Introductory part 7 Articulated robot 7a Arm 7b Joint part 8 Dancer roll 9 Guide part 10 Rotating mechanism 10a Rotating part 20 Guide mechanism 22 Toe guide 24 Support member 24a Side plate 24b Support shaft 24c Reinforcing member 26 Support mechanism 30 Drive mechanism 31 Drive motor 31a Pinion 32 Rail member 32a Base part 32b Guide rail 32c Rack 33 Movable member 33a Support 33b Engagement member 33b1 Guide groove 34 Drive means 40 Guide support structure 40a Support bar 40b Mounting part 40c Support part 40c1 Plate Part 40d Reinforcing member 50 Vertical swing mechanism 51 Swing drive mechanism 51a Drive motor 51b Support housing 51c Swing shaft 52 Swing arm 53 Swing detection device 53a Detected body 53a1 Disc-shaped part 53a2 Protruding part (detected part)
53b Detection mechanism 53b1 Detector 53b2 Mounting plate 53b3 Mounting bracket

Claims (3)

A supply device configured to send out the fiber bundle from each of the bobbins in which a plurality of bobbies around which the fiber bundle is wound is set, and an introduction unit for introducing each of the fiber bundles supplied from the supply device. An articulated robot having an arrangement head for arranging each of the fiber bundles provided and introduced on the arrangement type and an arm to which the arrangement head is attached, and moving the arrangement head for the arrangement. Each of the articulated robots includes a head swivel mechanism for changing the position of the introduction portion with respect to the tip of the arm, and the articulated robot for guiding the fiber bundle from the supply device toward the arrangement head. In an automatic fiber bundle arranging device including a guide mechanism including a plurality of toe guides provided corresponding to the fiber bundle.
The guide mechanism is a position changing mechanism including a support member that supports the toe guide, and includes a position changing mechanism that displaces the toe guide in response to a change in the position of the introduction portion by the head turning mechanism. A featured automatic fiber bundle placement device. The automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to claim 1, wherein the position changing mechanism includes a displacement mechanism that displaces at least a portion of the support member that supports the toe guide by using an actuator as a drive source. The automatic fiber bundle arranging device according to claim 2, wherein the displacement mechanism is a longitudinal swing mechanism that swings the support member in the extending direction of the arm.

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