JP2515395B2 - Work transfer device - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an improvement of a work transfer device in which a work is gripped by fingers and is transferred by a pitch to a processing means arranged at a constant pitch. .

(Prior Art) Various shapes of works such as automobile parts are subjected to cutting work using a cutting tool, welding work using a welding device, and the like.

When this work is to be mass-produced like an automobile part, the work is sequentially conveyed by a work conveying device having fingers, and the work is conveyed to the processing means such as a welding device arranged at a constant pitch by the pitch, Predetermined processing is performed by the device, and the work is conveyed to the next processing means.

A work transfer device of this type is shown in FIG.

The illustrated work transfer device 1 is a lift-and-carry type work transfer device, and includes a finger unit 3 having a pair of fingers 4 for holding a work W and a shaft 6 connected to a lower end surface thereof, and a shaft 6. And a reciprocating mechanism (not shown) for moving the finger unit 3 forward and backward. Further, the illustrated work transfer device 1
Is referred to as a conventionally known center bar type conveying device, and the shaft 6 is a finger unit 3
The vertical movement mechanism A is connected to the substantially central portion of the lower end surface of the device, and the vertical movement mechanism A is also provided at the approximately central portion of the apparatus body 2. Then, the work transfer device 1 moves upward from the initial position, moves forward, and moves forward.
By sequentially repeating the downward movement and the backward movement, the work is conveyed to the welding device or the like arranged at constant pitches by the pitch.

The device body 2 is provided with a finger unit 3 that moves up and down.
A pair of fingers 4 for holding a predetermined position of the work W are fixed to both ends of the. The finger 4 is provided with a recess 5 corresponding to the end shape of the work W.

Shaft 6 connected to the finger unit 3
Is movable up and down with respect to the apparatus main body 2, and a rack 7 is formed on a part of the shaft 6. A pinion 9 that is rotated by the reciprocating movement of the rod of the drive cylinder 8 meshes with the rack 7. The shaft 6, the rack 7, the drive cylinder 8, the pinion 9 and the like constitute a vertical movement mechanism A. Therefore, as the rod of the drive cylinder 8 reciprocates, the finger unit 3 moves up and down, and the finger 4 moves accordingly.
The work W gripped by the robot also moves up and down.

The device main body 2 is driven by a motor provided in a reciprocating mechanism (not shown) to move forward and backward along the pit 10. The pit 10 is formed to have a predetermined depth L so as not to hinder the vertical movement of the shaft 6.

Next, the operation of the lift-and-carry type work transfer device 1 will be described with the initial position of the finger unit 3 shown by the solid line in FIG.

First, the operation of the drive cylinder 8 provided in the vertical movement mechanism A causes the finger unit 3 to start rising from the initial position via the pinion 9 and the rack 7. With this rise, the work W is gripped by the fingers 4, and thereafter,
Ascends to the transport position indicated by the two-dot chain line in the figure.

Next, when the work W is raised to the transport position, the apparatus main body 2 is driven by a motor of a reciprocating mechanism (not shown) to move forward while maintaining this state.

When the forward movement for the predetermined pitch is completed, the drive cylinder 8 operates in the opposite direction to that described above, and the finger unit 3 starts to descend from the transport position. By the lowering of the finger unit 3, the work W held by the fingers 4 is delivered to the jig 11 such as a welding device. The finger unit 3 that has delivered the work W continues to descend, and reaches a descending position having the same height as the initial position.

Then, the apparatus main body 2 is driven by the motor of the reciprocating mechanism to move backward while maintaining this state, and moves backward by the pitch and returns to the initial position.

In this way, the work transfer device 1 is moved from the initial position to the ascending movement (conveying position) to the forward movement to the descending movement (the descending position).
By sequentially repeating the operations of the backward movement and the initial position, the work W is grasped by the fingers 4 and conveyed at a predetermined pitch.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) Since the work transfer device 1 is moved backward as described above, it is necessary to prevent the finger unit 3 and a part of the welding device or the like from interfering with each other during this movement. I won't. For that purpose, the trajectory of the backward movement of the finger unit 3 needs to pass below a part of the welding device.

As a result, the vertical stroke of the finger unit 3 and the shaft 6 is increased, and the depth L of the pit 10 must be increased to cope with this. As described above, by making the pit 10 deeper, there is a problem in that the entire transporting device is increased in size or the installation space is increased.

Further, when the work W is an automobile part, it is desirable that parts of different vehicle types can be mixed and conveyed in order to improve production efficiency. However, since the fingers 4 are fixed to both ends of the unit 3, in order to repeat parts of a plurality of vehicle types, it is necessary to take measures such as forming a common cross section in the parts. Further, when there is no common cross section, the fingers themselves have to be exchanged, which hinders improvement in production efficiency.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the problems and drawbacks of the above-mentioned conventional techniques, and aims to reduce the size of the transfer device by making the pits shallow, and to transfer the components of a plurality of vehicle types in a mixed state. An object of the present invention is to provide a work transfer device that contributes to the improvement of production efficiency by making it possible.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention for achieving the above object includes a finger unit including at least a pair of fingers for gripping a work, and a shaft connected to a substantially central portion of a lower end surface of the finger unit. And a reciprocating mechanism that moves the finger unit forward and backward, and a reciprocating mechanism that moves the finger unit forward and backward. By repeating each movement of movement and backward movement,
In a lift-and-carry type work transfer device that transfers the work to the processing means arranged at constant pitches by the pitch, the pair of fingers are arranged along a horizontal direction orthogonal to the transfer direction of the work. Is provided in the finger unit so that it can be expanded and contracted freely, and an expansion and contraction mechanism that expands and contracts the finger is provided in the finger unit. The expansion and contraction mechanism is such that the finger unit moves forward to convey the work. When moving, it operates so that the fingers are in an expanded state, and when moving backward, it operates so as to reduce the fingers to a substantially central position, and when the finger unit moves forward, the expansion and contraction amount of the pair of fingers can be adjusted. The trajectory of the finger in the backward movement is The work transfer device is characterized in that it does not pass below the processing means and passes through a substantially central position that does not interfere with the processing means.

(Operation) In the lift-and-carry type work transfer device configured as described above, when the finger unit is moved forward by the reciprocating mechanism, the pair of fingers movably provided on the finger unit expands. The mutual distance is expanded by the opening / closing mechanism. On the other hand, when the finger unit moves backward, the pair of fingers are in a state in which the distance between them is reduced to a substantially central position by the expansion / contraction mechanism.
When the finger unit is moved backward, the pair of fingers is in a contracted state in a substantially central position, the locus during the backward movement of the fingers does not pass below the processing means, and
Since it passes through a substantially central position that does not interfere with the processing means,
It is not necessary to lower the finger unit more than necessary in order to avoid interference between the processing means and the fingers after the work is handed over. This reduces the vertical stroke of the finger unit and shaft,
Along with this, the work transfer device becomes smaller.

Further, since the trajectory of the backward movement of the fingers passes through a substantially central position where it does not interfere with the processing means, the dimension along the horizontal direction orthogonal to the work transfer direction does not become large, and from this point also the work transfer device. Becomes smaller.

Further, when the finger unit moves forward to convey the work, the expansion / contraction mechanism adjusts the expansion / contraction amount of the pair of fingers and moves them. Therefore, even when the types of works are different and the portions to be gripped by the fingers are different, it is possible to convey different types of works simply by adjusting the expansion and contraction amount of the fingers.

(Example) Hereinafter, one example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a work transfer apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the principle of the main part of the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is an operation of the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cycle diagram showing a state, in which members common to those shown in FIG. 4 are designated by common reference numerals, and description thereof will be partially omitted.

The illustrated work transfer device 1a is a lift-and-carry type work transfer device, and, like the conventional work transfer device 1, has a finger unit 3 and a vertical movement mechanism A.
And a reciprocating mechanism (not shown). Further, the work transfer device 1a of the present embodiment is also referred to as a center bar type transfer device, and the shaft 6 is connected to the substantially central portion of the lower end surface of the finger unit 3 to move up and down.
Is also provided at a substantially central portion of the device body 2. The work transfer device 1a also transfers the work W at a predetermined pitch by sequentially repeating the upward movement (conveyance position) → forward movement → lowering movement (lower position) → reverse movement from the initial position.

Further, in the work transfer device 1a of the present embodiment, a pair of movable fingers 12 configured to be movable in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the transfer direction are attached to the finger unit 3. The movable finger 12 is provided with a recess 5 corresponding to the shape of the end of the work W in order to ensure gripping of the work W.

The principle of the expansion / contraction mechanism B provided in the finger unit 3 for expanding and contracting the movable finger 12 will be described with reference to FIG.

The rotation of the motor M is transmitted to the pair of movable fingers 12 via the rack and the pinion, and the pair of movable fingers 12 are configured to be extendable and retractable in equal amounts in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the work W.

More specifically, the drive gear 13 is attached to the rotation shaft of the motor M.
The driven gear that meshes with the drive gear 13
14 are provided in the finger unit 3. A guide bar 16a having a rack is meshed with the driven gear 14, and the shaft 1 is attached to the other end of the guide bar 16a.
A bearing portion 18 that rotatably supports the 7 is formed. A gear 19 having a diameter d (hereinafter referred to as a small diameter gear 19) is connected to one end of the shaft 17, and a gear 20 having a diameter D larger than the diameter d (hereinafter referred to as a large diameter gear 20) is connected to the other end. Say)
Are connected. In addition, the finger unit 3 includes
The finger bar 22 having the one movable finger 12 fixed to the end thereof is movably held in a horizontal direction orthogonal to the transport direction. And, the small diameter gear 19,
The large-diameter gear 20 meshes with a fixed rack 21 fixed to the finger unit 3, and the large-diameter gear 20 meshes with a rack formed on the lower end surface of the finger bar 22.

Although not shown, the other movable finger 12 has the same configuration as described above, and the other movable finger 12
The guide bar 16b for the gear meshes with the driven gear 15 that meshes with the driven gear 14.

Therefore, when the rotation shaft of the motor M rotates in the direction shown by the arrow in the drawing, the rotation of the motor M is transmitted to the guide bars 16a and 16b via the driven gears 14 and 15, respectively, and both guide bars 16a and 16b move in mutually opposite directions indicated by arrows. Since the small diameter gear 19 meshes with the fixed rack 21, the movement of the guide bars 16a and 16b is reliably transmitted to the finger bar 22 via the large diameter gear 20, and each movable finger 1
2 and 12 are spread by the same distance in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the transport direction.

When the rotation shaft of the motor M rotates in the opposite direction, the rotation of the motor M is transmitted in the same manner as described above, and the movable fingers 12 and 12 return by the same distance.

When the moving stroke of the guide bars 16a and 16b is s, the stroke S of expansion and contraction of each movable finger 12 is
There is a relationship of S = (D / d + 1) s.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The state shown by the solid line in FIG.
The initial position of.

First, under the condition that both movable fingers 12 are expanded by the expansion / contraction mechanism B, the operation of the drive cylinder 8 provided in the vertical movement mechanism A causes the finger unit 3 to move to the initial position via the pinion 9 and the rack 7. Rise from. Along with this ascent, the work W is gripped by the movable finger 12, and then ascends to the carrying position indicated by the chain double-dashed line in the figure.

When the work W moves up to the transfer position, the apparatus main body 2 is driven by a motor of a reciprocating mechanism (not shown) to move forward while maintaining this state.

When the forward movement for the predetermined pitch is completed, the drive cylinder 8 operates in the opposite direction to that described above, and the finger unit 3 starts to descend from the transport position. By the lowering of the finger unit 3, the work W gripped by the movable finger 12 is gripped by the jig 11 such as a welding device at the delivery position. The finger unit 3 that has delivered the work W continues to descend, and descends to a descending position having the same height as the initial position.

When the finger unit 3 is lowered to the lowered position, both movable fingers 12 are driven by the motor M of the expansion / contraction mechanism B and returned to the central position shown by the dotted line in the figure. Then, the apparatus main body 2 is driven by a motor of a reciprocating mechanism (not shown) to move backward while maintaining this state, and moves backward by the pitch and returns to the initial position.

When the device body 2 returns to the initial position, both movable fingers 12
Spreads again, and stands by for transporting the next work W.
Then, by sequentially repeating the above-described operation cycle, the work W is gripped by the movable fingers 12 and conveyed at a predetermined pitch.

Thus, when the work transfer device 1 moves backward from the lowered position to the initial position, both movable fingers 12 are
Since the movable finger 12 provided in the finger unit 3 is retracted in the middle position, the trajectory of the movable finger 12 in the backward movement does not pass below the welding device, the work transfer device 1a.
Does not interfere with welding equipment. Therefore, since the vertical stroke of the finger unit 3 and the shaft 6 can be reduced, it is not necessary to increase the depth L of the pit 10, resulting in an increase in the size of the entire conveying device or an increase in the installation space. Is gone.

Further, since the trajectory of the backward movement of the fingers 12 passes through the substantially central position where it does not interfere with the jig 11 of the welding device or the like, the dimension along the horizontal direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the work W does not become large, From this point as well, the transport device has become smaller.

Further, in the case of mixing and transporting components of a plurality of vehicle types, when these different components have different horizontal lengths orthogonal to the transport direction of the work, and have a common cross section, the amount of expansion and contraction of the movable finger 12 is increased. Only by adjusting, it is possible to mix and convey parts of a plurality of vehicle types, and it is possible to achieve improvement in production efficiency.

Further, when two different parts having no common cross section are mixed and conveyed, a pair of movable fingers 12 in which the recess 5 for one part is formed and the recess 5 for the other part are formed. If a pair of movable fingers 12 are attached to the finger unit 3 along the work transfer direction, it is possible to easily deal with them. That is, when carrying the one component, the work carrying device 1a is operated in a state where one movable finger 12 is expanded and the other movable finger 12 is contracted, and conversely, when the other component is carried,
The work transfer device 1a may be operated with the one movable finger 12 contracted and the other movable finger 12 expanded. By doing so, even two or more parts of a plurality of vehicle types can be mixed and conveyed, and the production efficiency can be further improved.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, in the work transfer device of the present invention, the pair of fingers is provided in the finger unit so as to be extendable and retractable along the horizontal direction orthogonal to the transfer direction of the work, and the fingers are expanded and contracted. The expanding / reducing mechanism for moving is provided in the finger unit.
When the finger unit moves forward, it operates so that the finger is in an expanded state, and when it moves backward, it operates so that the finger is in a contracted state, and the trajectory at the time of backward movement of the finger does not pass below the processing means, Moreover, since it passes through a substantially central position where it does not interfere with the processing means, it is not necessary to move the finger unit downward more than necessary in order to avoid interference between the processing means and the fingers after the work is handed over. As a result, the stroke of the vertical movement of the shaft is reduced, and the work transfer device can be miniaturized.

Furthermore, since the trajectory of the backward movement of the fingers passes through the substantially central position where it does not interfere with the processing means, the dimension along the horizontal direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the work does not become large, and from this point as well. The work transfer device can be downsized.

Moreover, since the expansion / contraction mechanism moves the pair of fingers so that the expansion / contraction amount of the fingers can be adjusted when the finger unit moves forward to convey the work, the production efficiency when the components of plural vehicle types are mixed and conveyed. It becomes possible to improve.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a work transfer apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the principle of the main part of the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is an operation of the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a cycle diagram showing a state, and FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conventional work transfer device. 1, 1a ... Work transfer device, 3 ... Finger unit, 6 ... Shaft, 10 ... Pit, 11 ... Welding device (processing means), etc. jig 12 ... Movable finger (Finger), A ... Vertical movement mechanism, B ... Expansion / reduction mechanism, W ... Work.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A finger unit provided with at least a pair of fingers for gripping a work and having a shaft connected to a substantially central portion of a lower end surface thereof, and an ascending / descending movement of the finger unit by vertically moving the shaft. And a reciprocating mechanism for moving the finger unit forward and backward, and by sequentially repeating the operations of ascending movement, forward movement, descending movement, and backward movement of the finger unit, a fixed pitch In a lift-and-carry type work transfer device that transfers the work to the processing means arranged at a predetermined pitch by the pitch, the pair of fingers is expanded and contracted along a horizontal direction orthogonal to the transfer direction of the work. It is movably installed on the finger unit and expands and contracts the finger. An expanding / reducing mechanism for moving the finger unit is provided, and the expanding / reducing mechanism puts the fingers in an expanded state when the finger unit moves forward to convey the work, and moves the finger backward when moving backward. The finger unit operates so as to be in a contracted state at a substantially central position, and when the finger unit moves forward, the expansion and contraction amounts of the pair of fingers are adjustable, and the trajectory when the finger moves backward However, the work transfer device does not pass below the processing means, and passes through a substantially central position that does not interfere with the processing means.