JP3047847B2 - Pallet change and storage 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 pallet on which a workpiece is fixed in order to supply an unprocessed workpiece to a machine tool and to receive a machined workpiece from the machine tool. It relates to a device for transport and storage.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There have been developed and proposed various types of pallet transfer and storage devices. The basic form is that pallet storage shelves formed in a plurality of stages in the vertical direction are arranged around an annular shape. A pallet transfer arm is provided at the center to allow vertical movement and swiveling around the vertical column, and to hold and release the pallet. As shown in FIG. 1, a separate pallet changing device 7 (pallet changing arm) is provided on the outside between the machine body changing position or the work setup table, whereby the transfer arm 1 is gripped. The pallet 8 is transferred to the above-mentioned position and the pallet 8 is exchanged with the pallet exchange arm.

However, in such a configuration according to the prior art, the pallet changing device 7 is indispensable in addition to the transfer arm 1, and not only is the configuration complicated, but also control of both is required, so that the control itself is extremely complicated. It is.

[0004]

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

The present invention overcomes the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and eliminates the need for providing a separate pallet changer, while storing pallets in a pallet storage shelf and changing the pallets to a machine body or a work setup table. It is an object of the present invention to provide a configuration of a pallet transfer and storage device that enables pallet replacement at the position (1).

[0006]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is directed to a pallet case having a plurality of vertically formed tiers.
Arrange the storage shelves around the ring, and
Direction and swiveling around the vertical axis.
Pallet transport that can hold and release two pallets
Transfer arm, and the pallet transfer arm
And can be moved vertically and swiveled.
In feeding the saddle, the transport arm, pallet storage shelves and path
Water to move to the position where
A driving device that performs a first linear motion that moves in a horizontal direction
In the intermediate moving body, the transfer arm is
The pallet transfer position or the pallet at the work setup table
Transport to move to the position where the
A second linear motion for moving the arm horizontally
Pallet change and storage device based on the provision of the moving device .

[0007]

In the above construction, the pallet storage shelves formed in a plurality of stages in the vertical direction are arranged around the ring, the vertical movement at the center thereof and the rotation around the vertical axis are free, and the pallet is provided. This is similar to the prior art in that a transfer arm capable of gripping and detaching is provided.

[0008] The replacement position of the machine body or the work setup table
The pallet storage shelf is provided outside the annular periphery provided, and the transfer arm is provided not only at the position where the pallet is transferred on the pallet storage shelf, but also at the position where the pallet of the machine body is transferred or the work setup table, The transfer arm can be moved linearly to a position where pallets are transferred.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, (a) when the pallet 8 is transferred at the pallet storage shelf 4, (C) The transfer arm 1 is moved to the intermediate moving body so as to be able to cope with the case where the pallet 8 is transferred at the exchange position of the machine body 5 or the work setup table 6.
20 to move the intermediate moving body 20 vertically.
Supported by a transfer saddle that can move
In the support relationship, a drive device is provided on the transport saddle 2 and
The first linear motion for moving the moving body 20 in the horizontal direction is
The transfer arm is moved to the pallet storage shelf 4
And transfer to the position where pallets are transferred.
Further, a drive device is provided on the intermediate moving body 20, and the transfer arm is provided.
Is moved in a linear direction, so that the second linear motion
This enables the transfer arm to move
At the position where the pallet 8 is exchanged or at the work setup table 6
The pallet 8 to be transferred
Is showing .

Various means can be considered as means for raising and lowering the transfer arm according to the present invention. For example, a rack is provided on a support for the transfer arm, and a pinion that meshes with the rack is provided on the transfer arm side. There is a configuration in which the vertical movement is performed, or a configuration in which a ball screw is provided on the support itself and the transfer arm is vertically moved by rotation of the ball screw.

On the other hand, in order to realize the swiveling motion in the center of the transfer arm, the column itself is rotated or a plurality of circumferential racks are provided on the column corresponding to the positions of the plurality of pallet storage shelves. , A pinion that meshes with the transfer arm is provided, and the drive motor in the transfer arm rotates by itself.

The linear movement of the transfer arm according to the present invention is achieved by providing a rotary saddle on a transfer saddle, which is a support for the transfer arm, and providing a concave groove for fitting the transfer wheel on the transfer arm, or a transfer saddle. There is a configuration in which a guide rail is provided on the transfer arm, and a rotating arm engaged with the transfer arm is provided on the transfer arm.

[0013]

[Embodiment 1] In Embodiment 1, the positions (a), (b) and (c) are adjusted by a hydraulic cylinder provided on the transport saddle 2, but as shown in FIG. A first hydraulic cylinder 10 for moving the intermediate moving body 20 is provided in the transport saddle 2 that supports the arm 1 via the intermediate moving body 20 and is capable of vertical movement and turning movement. By moving the transfer arm 1, the transfer arm 1 is moved to a position where the pallet storage shelf 4 and the pallet 8 are transferred.

On the other hand, a second hydraulic cylinder 11 is provided on the intermediate moving body 20 to move the transfer arm 1, so that the transfer arm 1 transfers and receives the pallet 8 of the machine body 5 or a work setup table. The pallet 8 is moved to a position where the pallet 8 is transferred.

As mentioned above, by the hydraulic cylinder,
The positions (a), (b) and (c) can be adjusted extremely easily. In the first embodiment, the first hydraulic cylinder 10 and the second hydraulic cylinder 11 are used. However, the linear moving device that can be employed in the present invention is not limited to the hydraulic cylinder, and for example, an air cylinder is also used. be able to. Therefore, the first embodiment shows a typical example of the embodiment using the driving device that performs the first and second linear motions.

[0016]

Second Embodiment In the second embodiment, the positions (a), (b), and (c) are adjusted by the step motor 14, but as shown in FIG. 12
Groove 13 fitted in the transfer arm 1 with the rotating wheel 12
Is provided, a step motor 14 is provided as a drive source for the rotating wheel 12 in the transport saddle 2, and the transport arm 1 moves to a position for transferring the pallet 8 of the pallet storage shelf 4. A configuration is adopted in which the number of rotations of the step motor 14 is selected when the pallet 8 is moved to a position where the pallet 8 is transferred on the machine main body 5 or the work setup table 6.

This makes it possible to control the required amount of movement of the transfer arm 1 in the linear direction.

[0018]

Embodiment 3 In Embodiment 3, as shown in FIG.
The distance between the central position of one unit of the pallet storage shelf 4 forming the annular periphery and the central portion of the work setup table 6 corresponding to the pallet storage shelf 4 is determined by the distance between the center position and the annular periphery of the pallet storage shelf 4 of another unit. It is characterized by being within the range of the distance to the part.

With such a configuration, the pallet 8 is gripped by the transfer arm 1 at the work setup table 6 from the pallet storage shelf 4 of a specific unit, and the transfer arm 1 is turned to a position where another annular periphery is formed. In addition, by performing the necessary linear movement at the swiveled position, the pallet can be moved to another unit of pallet storage shelf 4 forming another annular periphery, and the adjacent pallet can be moved without providing a special transport device. The storage shelves 4 can be added.

[0020]

According to the present invention as described above, it is not necessary to provide a separate pallet changing device, which not only simplifies the structure of the invention but also makes it unnecessary to separately control the pallet changing device. Control of the exchange of pallets at the exchange position on the machine body or at the work setup is also simplified.

In particular, in the third embodiment, the pallets between the pallet storage shelves of many units can be easily moved.

As described above, the present invention has many operational advantages, and its value is enormous.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of a conventional technique.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the configuration of the present invention, in which a transfer arm and a pallet arranged on the transfer arm are displayed at upper, middle, and lower positions with respect to a vertical support, The upper position indicates the case where the transfer arm is at the position closest to the vertical axis, the middle position indicates the case where the lower transfer arm is at the position for transferring the pallet to the pallet storage shelf, and the lower position. 1 shows a case where the pallet transfer arm is at a position for transferring a pallet on the machine body or the work setup table.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are plan views illustrating a configuration of the first embodiment, where FIG. 3A illustrates a case where a transfer arm is located closest to a vertical axis, and FIG. Is in the position to exchange pallets with pallet storage shelves,
(C) shows a case where the pallet transfer arm is at a position for transferring a pallet on the machine body or the work setup table.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing the configuration of the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a configuration of a third embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Transfer arm 15 Pallet transfer arm gripping part 2 Transfer saddle 20 Intermediate moving body 3 Support 4 Pallet storage shelf 5 Machine body 6 Work setup table 7 Pallet exchange position 8 Pallet 9 Vertical drive motor 10 First hydraulic cylinder 11 Second hydraulic cylinder 12 rotating wheel 13 concave groove 14 step motor 141 mechanism part that transmits rotation of step motor to rotating wheel

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-185343 (JP, A) JP-A-61-125752 (JP, A) JP-A 7-33542 (JP, U) JP-A 6-135542 33637 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B23Q 7/00

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pallet storing a plurality of tiers formed in a vertical direction.
The shelves are arranged around the ring and the center
Movement and swiveling around the vertical axis, and
Pallet transport to enable pallet grip and release
Arm, and the pallet transfer arm is connected via an intermediate moving body.
Transport that can be supported and movable vertically and pivotally
In the saddle, the transfer arm is
Horizontal to move to the position where
A driving device for performing a first linear motion for
In the intermediate moving body, the transfer arm is
Pallet at the location where the
Transfer arm to move to the position where
Drive to perform the second linear motion for moving the robot horizontally
Pallet exchange and storage device based on the provision of the device. (2) Supports the transfer arm and moves and rotates vertically
The transfer saddle that can be moved, the transfer arm linear direction
A step motor for driving the movement of the
Transfer arm on the pallet storage shelf
The number of rotations to move to the position where pallets are
Where the transfer arm transfers and receives pallets on the machine
Or move to the position where pallets are transferred on the work setup table.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the number of rotations for selecting the rotation speed is selected.
Pallet change and storage equipment. (3) Pallet that forms one unit of annular periphery
And the work corresponding to the pallet storage shelf
The distance between the center of the work setup table and the center
Range of the distance from the annular periphery of the pallet storage shelf that forms the unit
2. The pallet exchange according to claim 1, wherein the pallet is located inside the pallet.
And storage devices.