JP2566744Y2 - Self-propelled linear guide device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a self-propelled linear guide device in which a slider itself can directly drive a driving means and can travel on a guide rail.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A slider of a conventional linear guide device is
It smoothly moves on the guide rail through the rolling of rolling elements such as balls and rollers interposed between the guide rail and, for example, a tool post table of a machine tool or a table of an XY table device. And supports and guides a table driven by ball screw driving means or rack and pinion driving means.

A table feeder of this type utilizing a rack and pinion is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 2-150134. In this conventional example, a guide rail of a linear guide device is fixed on a groove-shaped base in parallel with an axial direction across a groove, and a plurality of sliders are fitted to each guide rail. . A table suspended across the groove of the base is supported by the sliders, and a motor serving as a rotary driving means is mounted on the lower surface of the table, and a pinion is mounted on the motor output shaft.
On the other hand, a rack is fixed on the bottom of the groove of the base in the axial direction, and is engaged with the pinion. Then, the pinion is rotationally driven by the motor, and the table is linearly driven through the action of the pinion & rack. At that time, the slider of the linear guide device supports the table and guides it while moving on the guide rail.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional table feeder, the linear guide device mounted on the base only supports and guides the table on which the driving means is mounted. The slider is not self-propelled with its own driving means. Also, in the case of a known table feeder using a ball screw driving means instead of the rack and pinion driving means, the table is driven in the same manner, and the slider of the linear guide device is self-propelled with the driving means. Not something.

[0005] That is, in each case, the table driven by the driving means is supported on a base via a linear guide device. Since the base is an essential component, the number of parts is increased accordingly. Not only takes time and effort to assemble and adjust the device, but also the space occupied by the base itself is limited and the compactness is limited, making it unsuitable for use as an actuator in places where space is limited. there were.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems. By mounting driving means on the linear guide device itself, the number of parts can be reduced, and an extremely compact self-propelled vehicle can be realized. It is intended to provide a linear guide device of the type.

[0007]

According to the present invention, there is provided a guide rail extended with axial rolling element rolling grooves on both side surfaces,
It is loosely fitted on the guide rail across the guide rail, and has rolling element rolling grooves on the inner surface opposed to the rolling element rolling grooves of the guide rail, and is inserted into both opposed rolling element rolling grooves. And a slider that is movable in the axial direction of the guide rail through the rolling of a large number of rolling elements, and has a rolling element rolling groove of the guide rail.
With a rack which extends in the axial direction on one side provided integrally with the guide rails that, in the table-shaped protruding portion provided integrally with the one side surface of the slider, a pinion shaft having a pinion meshing with said rack A rotation drive means for driving the pinion shaft is provided.

[0008]

The rack on the side of the guide rail meshes with the pinion attached to the slider, and the pinion is driven to rotate forward and reverse by driving means mounted on the slider, so that the slider (or guide rail) is relatively moved. Runs both forward and backward.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 show a first embodiment of the present invention. A slider 2 is mounted on a guide rail 1 so as to be able to move in the axial direction so as to straddle the rail. The guide rail 1 has ball rolling grooves 3A having a substantially semicircular cross section on both side surfaces thereof, and a 1/4 circular ball rolling groove 3B at a ridge portion between the side surface and the upper surface. It is provided long. Furthermore, ball rolling grooves 3A on one side of the guide rail 1
The lower part of the side surface having 3B protrudes outward substantially over the entire length of the guide rail 1 in the axial direction.
A rack 15 is formed at the end of A. 1B is an insertion hole for a fixing bolt for fixing the guide rail 1 to a machine base or the like.

On the other hand, the main body 2A of the slider 2 straddling the guide rail 1 in a U-shape,
Ball rolling grooves 5A and 5B are formed so as to face the ball rolling grooves 3A and 3B, and the ball rolling paths (load paths) 6A and 6B are formed by these two opposing grooves 3A, 5A and 3B and 5B.
Is configured. The ball return passages 7A, which have a circular cross-section and are axially penetrated in parallel with the ball rolling paths 6A, 6B, in the thicknesses of the sleeve portions 4, 4 of the slider body 2A.
7B is formed.

In this embodiment, the distance A between the ball rolling grooves 5A and 5B provided on the slider 2 is slightly smaller than the distance B between the ball rolling grooves 3A and 3B provided on the guide rail 1. and small (a <B), which employs a so-called self-aligning type (see FIG. 2). This type has an advantage that a large elastic displacement can be obtained with respect to the moment load M acting on the slider 2 because the intersection Q of the ball contact line S of each groove is close to the center line of the guide rail 1.

End caps 8, 8 which are injection molded products of a synthetic resin material are respectively joined to both front and rear ends in the axial direction of the slider body 2A. End cap 8
Has a substantially U-shaped cross section. A semicircular curved path 10 is formed in each of the sleeves on the side of the joint end face 8a that contacts the end face 2a of the slider body 2A. The curved path 10 communicates the load path 6A (6B) with the ball return path 7A (7B). The curved path 10 is located at the end faces of both sleeves of the end cap 8 and at the center of each curved path 10 described above. It has a semi-cylindrical return guide 11 and is formed in a semi-doughnut shape. A number of balls B as rolling elements are loaded in an infinite circulation path formed by the load path 6A (6B), the front and rear curved paths 10 and the ball return path 7A (7B). 9 in FIG. 1,
A side seal fixed to the end face of the end cap 8 with a screw, the upper face and the side face of the guide rail 1 and the ball rolling groove 3
A contact between the grooves A and 3B prevents entry of foreign matter. The fixing screw for the end cap 8 or the end cap 8
The grease nipple and the like attached to the end face are not shown.

On one side surface of the slider body 2A, an overhang portion 16 which projects horizontally outward from the table is provided with a slider.
It is provided integrally with the main body 2A . The overhang portion 16 is formed at the center position with a shaft insertion hole 17 penetrating the overhang portion 16 in the thickness direction. The pinion shaft 1 is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 17.
8 and are rotatably supported via rolling bearings 19. And the lower end of the pinion shaft 18, a pinion 20 meshing with a rack 15 which is provided integrally on the side surface of the guide rail 1 that is attached. Also, the upper end of the pinion shaft 18 is SeMMitsuru to the output shaft 22a of the pinion driving motor 22 via a coupling 21. Pinion 2
The pinion drive motor 22, which is a zero-rotation drive means, is fixed to the upper surface of the overhang 16 by a mounting plate 23.

[0014] The connection between the pinion shaft 18 and pinion drive motor 22, rather than couplings 21 may be performed via a bevel gear, horizontally pinion driving motor 22 that case on the projecting portion 16 Fixed, its output shaft 22
a and the pinion shaft 18 are arranged so as to be orthogonal to each other. Next, the operation will be described.

When a pinion drive motor 22 mounted on the projecting portion 16 of the slider 2 is energized through a driver (not shown) to rotate the pinion shaft 18 in a predetermined direction, the rotation of the pinion shaft 18 is controlled by the rack 15 and the pinion 20. , And the slider 2 moves forward on the guide rail 1 by itself. At this time, the ball B inserted into the load path 6A (6B) moves in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the slider 2 with respect to the slider 2 while rolling along with the movement of the slider 2. And at the rear end of the slider 2,
The direction is changed by being guided by the ball scooping protrusion 10 d provided on the end cap 8, and the U-turn is made along the curved path 10. Subsequently, the ball return passage 7A of the slider body 2A
The curved path 1 of the end cap 8 on the opposite side through (7B)
It is U-turned again by 0 and ball rolling path 6A (6B)
And the circulation that moves while rolling in the load path 6A (6B) is repeated again.

If the pinion drive motor 22 is driven to rotate in the opposite direction, the slider 2 moves backward on the guide rail 1. In this way, the slider 2 on the guide rail 1 can be freely moved back and forth by itself to convey a load such as a table to a predetermined position. According to this embodiment, the following various effects can be obtained. The guide rail 1 can be directly fixed on the machine base without the intermediary of the base to allow the slider 2 to run on its own, and a large base as in the prior art can be omitted, so that the number of parts can be reduced. At the same time, assembly and adjustment of the device are simplified, and a compact device with a small installation space can be provided.

Further, by using the rack and pinion, there is no need to set a limit on the rotational speed in order to avoid a resonance phenomenon based on the natural frequency of the screw shaft as in the case of using a ball screw. Therefore, the traveling speed of the slider 2 is not restricted, and high-speed feeding can be realized. Moreover, unlike the screw shaft, sufficient rigidity can be secured in the axial direction, so that a long-stroke device can be provided.

Further, since the self-aligning type is adopted as the linear guide device, as shown in FIG. 3, even if the shaft center 18a of the pinion shaft 18 falls, no excessive load is generated on the guide rail 1 and the slider 2. Therefore, machining errors and mounting errors of the pinion shaft 18 can be absorbed. Further, even if a preload is applied between the rack 15 and the pinion 20, no excessive load similarly occurs. Therefore, a configuration in which a constant pressure preload is applied to the pinion 20 prevents backlash, thereby ensuring the operation accuracy of the slider 2. It is. In the present invention, it is not always necessary to employ a self-aligning linear guide device, but the self-centering type linear guide device has the above advantages and is convenient.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the guide rail 1 is fixed and the slider 2 is moved has been described. On the contrary, a usage mode in which the slider 2 is fixed and the guide rail 1 is moved forward and backward is also possible. It is possible. 4 and 5 show the pinion and
A second embodiment in which the clearance is eliminated from the rack is shown. In this embodiment, two pinion shafts 18 are attached to the projecting portion 16 of the slider 2, a pinion 20 that meshes with the rack 15 on the side surface of the guide rail 1 is attached to the lower end of each pinion shaft 18, and the upper end of each shaft is Each has a bevel gear 30 attached.
A pinion drive motor 22 is mounted on the overhang portion 16 at a position between the two pinion shafts 18 with a bolt 33 via an elastic member 32 such as a disc spring. An output shaft 22 protruding from both sides of the pinion drive motor 22
A bevel gear 31 is attached to a, and is engaged with the bevel gear 30 of the pinion shaft 18. In this case, at least one of the shaft insertion holes 17 of the projecting portion 16 through which the pinion shaft 18 is inserted is formed as a long hole extending in the direction of the other pinion shaft 18 so that the distance L between the two pinion shafts 18 is reduced. Some adjustments are made. Thereby, the clearance between the two sets of the rack 15 and the pinion 20 is eliminated, and the two are preferably engaged with each other.

The elastic member 32 has an anti-vibration function, and adjusts the tightening of the bolt 33 to move the motor mount 22A up and down, so that the bevel gear 30,
It also has a function of preventing a gap from being generated in the meshing between the members 31. In the figure, reference numeral 34 denotes a table mounted on the upper surface of the slider 2. 6 and 7 show a third embodiment. In this embodiment, a slider 2 has a pinion 20 and a drive motor 22 as shown in the first or second embodiment.
And a plurality of slider units 42 provided with a driver 40 for the pinion drive motor 22 and a microcomputer 41 having a microprocessor, a memory, an I / O port, and the like. Are distributed on the guide rail 1. Each slider unit 42
Connect the CPU to the central controller 43 via the I / O ports, control output from the position information and the central control unit 43 from the position cell <br/> capacitors outside diagram provided in each slider unit 42 By performing the parallel processing based on the information, the operation of each slider unit 42 is totally controlled and independently controlled. Reference numeral 44 denotes a power supply for driving the pinion drive motor 22.

According to this embodiment, it is possible to operate each slider unit 42 to an arbitrary position with each moving amount and moving speed, and it is preferable to use the slider unit 42 as an actuator of a multi-degree-of-freedom robot, for example. Can be.
Although the linear guide device of each of the above embodiments uses a ball as a rolling element, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to a linear guide apparatus using a roller as a rolling element. It is.

[0022]

[0023]

As described above, the linear guide device of the present invention is provided with a rack extending in the axial direction on one side of the guide rail having a rolling element rolling groove, and a slider integrated with the guide rail. A table-shaped overhang is provided integrally on one side surface, and a pinion shaft provided with a pinion that meshes with the rack and a rotation drive unit that drives the pinion shaft are arranged on the overhang, and are self-propelled. A linear guide device was used. By mounting the driving means on the linear guide device itself in this way, it is possible to omit a base that has been frequently used to use the conventional linear guide device. As a result, the number of parts can be reduced, and The advantage is that a compact self-propelled linear guide device can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view for explaining the operation in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main part of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view taken in the direction of the arrow V in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a plan view schematically showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a control block diagram of the one shown in FIG. 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Guide rail 2 Slider 3A, 3B Rolling element rolling groove (of guide rail) 5A, 5B Rolling element rolling groove (of slider) 15 Rack 16 Projection 18 Pinion shaft 20 Pinion 22 Rotation driving means B Rolling element

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A guide rail extended with axial rolling element rolling grooves on both side surfaces, and a rolling element rolling groove of the guide rail which is loosely fitted on the guide rail across the guide rail. The inner surface of each of the rolling element rolling grooves facing each other is movable in the axial direction of the guide rail through the rolling of a large number of rolling elements inserted in the two rolling element rolling grooves facing each other. A linear guide device including a slider, wherein a rack extending in the axial direction is integrally provided on one side of the guide rail with a rolling element rolling groove, and the rack is integrally provided on one side of the slider. A self-propelled linear guide device, wherein a pinion shaft provided with a pinion that meshes with the rack and a rotary drive unit that drives the pinion shaft are arranged on the table-shaped projection.