JP3256363B2 - 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 linear guide device used for a slide portion of various industrial machines, and more particularly, to a linear guide device which circulates a ball sandwiched between a slide table and a track rail. The present invention relates to an improvement of a linear guide device in which a slide table performs a linear motion with an infinite stroke along a track rail.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a linear guide device of this type is known, for example, from Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-51930. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17, a track rail 100 provided on a fixed portion (not shown) such as a bed, and a slide block 1 moving along the track rail 100
01, a pair of lids 102 fixed to both front and rear end surfaces of the slide block 101, and a ball rolling groove 103 of the track rail 100 and a load ball groove 104 of the slide block 101 to apply a load. And a number of balls 105 that roll while loading. A ball return hole 106 is formed in the slide block 101 in parallel with the load ball groove 104, while the cover 1
An arc-shaped ball reversing path 107 connecting the load ball groove 104 and the ball return hole 106 is formed at the end of the load ball groove 104 via the ball reversal path 107 and the ball return hole 106. It circulates between.

FIGS. 18 and 19 show details of a ball reversing path 107 formed in the lid 102. FIG. The ball reversing path 107 has an inner diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the ball 105, and has an outer ball guide surface 107a having a semicircular cross section formed on the lid body 102a.
An inner ball guide surface 107b having a semicircular cross section formed on the return piece 102b fitted into the return ball 2a is formed to face each other. That is, the cross section of the ball reversing path 107 is circular and the inner diameter is formed to be larger than the diameter of the ball 105, so that the ball 105 rolls in the ball reversing path 107 without load. A tongue 108 protrudes from an end of the outer ball guide surface 107 a on the load ball groove 104 side, and the ball 105 rolling in the ball rolling groove 103 of the track rail 100 is transferred to the ball reversing path 107. It is designed to be scooped up.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-46015 discloses a linear guide device in which the ball reversing path and the ball return hole are formed by a continuous tube, and the ball is circulated inside the tube. I have. A tongue piece is also formed at the end of the tube body on the load ball groove side, so that the ball rolling in the ball rolling groove of the track rail is scooped up into the tube body. Further, the tube body is not directly fixed to the slide block, but is fitted to a mounting cover which is positioned and fixed to the slide block.

[0005]

However, in this type of linear guide device, a plurality of ball rows are sandwiched between a track rail and a slide block, and the former linear guide device (Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-51930, etc.) is used. In (2), since a plurality of ball reversing paths are formed in the lid, if the formability of the lid is poor, all ball reversing paths are not correctly connected to the corresponding ball return holes and load ball grooves, and There was a problem that circulation was hindered.

If the cover has poor formability, the tongue formed at the end of the ball reversing path does not properly correspond to the loaded ball groove. There is also a problem that the ball rolling in the loaded ball groove collides with the tongue to generate noise.

On the other hand, the latter linear guide device (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Sho 62-62)
No. 46015), since the ball reversing path and the ball return hole are formed by a continuous tube, the ball circulation is somewhat better than that of the former linear guide device using a lid. However, since the tube body is fixed to the slider via the mounting cover, if the formability of the mounting cover is poor, the tube body and the load ball groove will not be correctly connected, and the ball circulation will also be hindered. I was holding it. In order to solve such problems, it is only necessary to correctly position each tube body with respect to the slide block.If the moldability of the mounting cover that covers the tube body is finally poor, the mounting cover will be positioned. Since the tube body thus displaced is disturbed, the positioning of the tube body is ruined, and the above problem cannot be solved.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to improve the mounting accuracy of a tube body to a slide block, so that balls can be circulated smoothly. It is to provide a linear guide device.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a linear guide device according to the present invention comprises: a track rail having a plurality of ball rolling grooves formed in a longitudinal direction; It has a load ball groove that sandwiches the ball together,
A slide block that moves along the track rail, a plurality of pipes for circulating the ball between both ends of the load ball groove, and a groove in which these pipes fit,
In a linear guide device comprising a pipe cover that is fixed to the slide block so as to cover the pipe body, the pipe body has a positioning portion that engages with the slide block, while the pipe cover has a concave groove. It is characterized in that it is formed to fit with a pipe body with a degree of freedom in a plane orthogonal to the moving direction of the slide block.

In the above technical means, the fact that the concave groove of the pipe cover is fitted to the pipe body with a degree of freedom in a plane orthogonal to the moving direction of the slide block means that the pipe body positioned with respect to the slide block. Even if there is a slight error between the mounting position of the pipe cover and the position where the groove of the pipe cover is formed, the pipe body is not displaced in a plane orthogonal to the moving direction of the slide block. The concave groove absorbs the above error and fits with the pipe body. Thus, the positioning state of the pipe body with respect to the slide block is maintained even after the pipe cover is attached.

As a specific configuration for fitting the concave portion of the pipe cover and the pipe body with a degree of freedom, a pipe
Formed in an easy soft rubber material deforms the cover, configuration is conceivable to absorb the error of the formation position of the concave grooves of the mounting position and the pipe cover of the pipe by deformation of the pipe cover.
If the pipe cover is made of a soft rubber material as described above, it is preferable that a seal for sealing a gap between the track rail and the slide block is formed integrally with the pipe cover. Conventionally, the seal of this type is manufactured as a separate part, because it was fixed to the slide block with mounting cover of the lid or the tube body, manufacturing, although management and assembly is troublesome, according to this proposal , These problems can be eliminated.

Further, as another configuration for fitting the concave groove of the pipe cover and the pipe body with a degree of freedom,
The concave groove of the pipe cover may be formed slightly larger, and the concave groove and the pipe body may be loosely fitted. However,
In this case, in order to prevent the pipe from being displaced in the groove, it is necessary to inject and solidify the fluid into the gap formed between the groove and the pipe.

[0013]

According to the present invention, even if a slight error occurs between the mounting position of the pipe body already positioned with respect to the slide block and the forming position of the concave groove of the pipe cover, Since the concave groove of the pipe cover fits with the pipe body with a degree of freedom in a plane perpendicular to the moving direction of the slide block, the positioning of the pipe body with respect to the slide block is not broken by fixing the pipe cover, and the slide is prevented. The load ball groove of the block and the ball reversing path of the pipe body are accurately communicated and connected.

[0014]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a linear guide device according to the present invention. 1 and 2 show a first embodiment of the present invention. In these figures, reference numeral 1 denotes a track rail, and a total of four ball rolling grooves 11 are formed on both side surfaces and an upper surface thereof in the longitudinal direction, and mounting holes 12 for fixing bolts are provided at appropriate intervals. Is provided. Reference numeral 2 denotes a slide formed in a channel shape and laid on the track rail 1, and has a mounting surface 21 for a movable body (not shown) formed on the upper surface thereof, A bolt hole 22 into which a bolt (not shown) is screwed is provided.

As shown in the sectional views of FIGS. 3 to 5, the slide table 2 includes a slide block 20 in which a load ball groove 23 and a ball return hole 24 are formed, and a circle at both ends in the moving direction of the slide block. It comprises a pipe body 30 forming an arc-shaped ball reversal path, and a pipe cover 40 fixed to the slide block 20 so as to cover the pipe body 30.

The load ball grooves 23 formed on the slide block 20 are formed so as to face the ball rolling grooves 11 formed on the track rail 1. A large number of balls 3 are sandwiched between them. In this embodiment, the contact angle of the ball 3 rolling on each ball rolling groove 11 is such that the contact angle of the ball 3 rolling on both side surfaces of the track rail 1 is 30 ° with respect to the thrust direction. The contact angle of the ball 3 rolling on the upper surface of the rail 1 matches the radial direction.

The ball return holes 24 are formed in parallel with the respective load ball grooves 23 and open at both end surfaces in the moving direction of the slide block 20. Openings at both ends of the ball return hole 24 are connected to both ends of the load ball groove 23 through a pair of pipes 30 to form an infinite circulation path of the ball 3 as shown in FIG.

The pipe body 30 is formed by combining a half pipe 31 shown in FIG. 6 and a half pipe 31 having a mirror image relationship with the half pipe 31. Each half pipe 31 has a ball inversion having a substantially semicircular cross section. The path 32 is formed in an arc shape.
Further, a boss (positioning portion) 33 for positioning is protruded from the half pipe 31 so that the ball return hole 24 is formed.
The positioning boss 33 is configured to fit into the boss hole 25 formed around the opening (see FIG. 3).

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the pipe cover 40 substantially conforms to the cross-sectional shape of the slide block 20 in the moving direction, and the pipe body 30 is fitted on the inner surface side in contact with the end surface of the slide block 20. Recessed recesses 41 are formed corresponding to the respective load ball grooves 23 on the slide block 20 side. In the figure, reference numeral 44 denotes a through hole of the coupling bolt 43 screwed to the slide block 20.

The pipe cover 40 is made of a material such as hard rubber or engineering plastic. When the pipe cover 40 is attached to the end surface of the slide block 20 and simultaneously covers the four pipe bodies 30, one pipe body 30 is formed.
Is prevented from being transmitted to another pipe body 30 and adversely affecting its positioning. As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 or FIG. 10, a seal portion 42 that is in close contact with the track rail 1 is formed to protrude from the outer surface side of the pipe cover 40 so that dust enters the slide table 2. Is prevented from doing so.

As shown in FIG. 8, the slide table 2 constructed as described above is constructed by combining a pair of half pipes 31 facing each other to form a pipe body 30, and then positioning the pipe body 30. Boss 33 slide block 2
The pipe body 30 is attached to the slide block 20 by fitting it into the boss hole 25 of the No. 0, and finally the pipe cover 40 is fixed to the slide block 20 from above the pipe body 30 by the connecting bolt 43 and assembled. As a result, the ends of the load ball groove 23 and the ball return hole 24 of the slide block 20 are connected by the ball reversing path 32, and an infinite circulation path of the ball 3 is formed on the slide 2.

FIG. 9 shows the rolling state of the ball 3 inside the pipe body 30 constituted by combining the half pipes 31, 31. The ball reversing path 32 on which the ball 3 rolls is formed of an outer ball guide surface 32a located outside the arc drawn by the ball 3 and an inner ball guide surface 32b located inside. As shown in FIG. 10, the ball 3 contacts the outer ball guide surface 32a at two points, while the ball 3 contacts the inner ball guide surface 32b at one point, and is supported from three different directions. As a result, it is positioned in the ball reversing path 32 without fluctuation. Therefore, the ball 3 rolls on the ball reversing path 32 along a constant arc-shaped trajectory as shown by a chain line in FIG. In this embodiment, the contact angle of the ball 3 with the outer ball guide surface 32a is set to 30 °.

The outer ball guide surface 3 of the pipe body 30
2a is cut out at the entrance on the side of the load ball groove 23 in parallel with the ball rolling groove 11 of the track rail 1 to form a semi-elliptical ball scooping portion 34 as shown in FIG. As a result, the ball 3 that has rolled in the load ball groove 23 enters the ball reversing path 32 such that both sides of the spherical surface can be gradually scooped from below. At this time, if the ball scooping portion 34 is formed so that the contact trajectory of the ball with the outer ball guide surface 32a is continuous over the entire area of the ball reversing path 32 formed in an arc of 180 °, the ball 3 is Since the arc-shaped trajectory shown by the dashed line in FIG. 9 is drawn irrespective of the presence or absence of the portion 34, the trajectory of the ball 3 rolling on the load ball groove 23 and the trajectory of the ball 3 rolling on the ball reversing path 32 are smooth. Continuous.

Therefore, the ball 3 rolling in the load ball groove 23 is transferred to the ball scooping portion 34 formed in the pipe body 30.
And the ball 3 entering the load ball groove 23 from the ball reversing path 32 does not collide with the ball rolling groove 11 of the track rail 1.

In the first embodiment, the pipe body 30 is formed by combining a pair of half pipes 31, 31 having symmetrical shapes. However, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the outer ball guide surface is formed. Outer piece 3 on which 32a is formed
5 and the inner piece 36 having the inner ball guide surface 32b may be combined to form the pipe body 30. When the pipe body 30 is divided along the circumferential direction in this manner, the ball scooping portion 34 located at the end of the outer ball guide surface 32a can be formed with high accuracy.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing the features of the linear guide device according to the second embodiment, and corresponds to the sectional view of the first embodiment shown in FIG. In the figure, reference numeral 5 is a track rail, and reference numeral 6
Is a slide table. The slide table 6 includes a slide block 60 having a load ball groove 61 formed therein and a ball reversing path 72.
And a pipe body 70 integrally formed with a ball return hole 73
And a pipe cover 80 for fixing the pipe body 70 to the slide block 60. Since the track rail 5 and the pipe cover 40 are the same as the track rail 1 and the pipe cover 40 described in the first embodiment, the description is omitted here. The appearance of the linear guide device according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIGS.

The pipe body 70 has arc-shaped ball reversal paths 72 at both ends of a linear ball return hole 73, and is assembled from four half pipes formed in a substantially J shape. . As shown in FIG. 15, the half pipe has two types of large and small half pipes 71 a, 71 b having different lengths of the straight portion. The pipe 70 is formed by connecting these half pipes 71 a, 71 b to the slide block 60. It is inserted and assembled from both ends of the pipe body mounting hole 62 formed therethrough.

When assembling the slide table 6, as shown in FIG. 16, half pipes 7 having different lengths of linear portions are used.
1a and 71b are combined and fitted to both ends of the pipe body mounting hole 62 of the slide block 60, and a pipe cover 80 that covers the pipe body 70 is mounted on an end face of the slide block 60 by a connecting bolt 81.

By forming the pipe body by combining the half pipes having different linear portions with each other, the seam of the half pipe in the longitudinal direction of the ball return hole has different positions in the left and right directions of the ball rolling direction. As a result, the impact of the ball over the seam of the half pipe is reduced, and as a result, the ball can be smoothly circulated.

In this embodiment, the pipe 70
The inner diameters of the ball reversing path 72 and the ball return hole 73 formed in the first embodiment are the same as the inner diameters of the ball reversing path 32 shown in the first embodiment, that is, those shown in FIG. Further, the shape of the ball scooping portion 74 formed at the entrance of the ball reversing path 72 on the load ball groove 61 side is also the same as the shape of the ball scooping portion 34 shown in the first embodiment, that is, the shape shown in FIG. .

For this reason, in the present embodiment, the rolling state of the ball 3 is the same in the ball reversing path 62 and the ball return hole 63, so that the trajectory of the ball 3 in these paths is smoothly continuous, As described in the embodiment, the trajectory of the ball 3 rolling on the load ball groove 61 and the trajectory of the ball 3 rolling on the ball reversing path 32 smoothly continue.

As a result, in this embodiment, it is possible to achieve smooth circulation of the balls and to reduce noise during the traveling of the slide.

[0033]

As described above, according to the linear guide device of the present invention, the pipe body is positioned with respect to the slide block, while the groove of the pipe cover is perpendicular to the moving direction of the slide block. The fitting of the pipe body to the slide block is not broken by fixing the pipe cover in the plane where the pipe body is fixed, so the mounting accuracy of the pipe body to the slide block is improved, and the ball is smoothed. Can be circulated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment of a linear guide device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the linear guide device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the linear guide device according to the first embodiment, and a slide table is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a front view showing a half pipe according to the first embodiment,
It is a side view and a sectional view.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a pipe cover according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the slide table according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a ball circulation state in the slide table according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a view showing a ball scooping part of the pipe body according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view showing a modified example of the pipe body according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a modification of the pipe body according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a side view showing a second embodiment of the linear guide device of the present invention, and a slide table is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line III-III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 15 is a side view showing a half pipe according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of a slide according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a conventional linear guide device (a partially cutaway view).

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view showing a lid of a conventional linear guide device.

19 is a sectional view taken along line XIX-XIX in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Track rail, 3 ... Ball, 11 ... Ball rolling groove, 2
0: slide block, 23: load ball groove, 25: boss hole, 30: pipe body, 32: ball reversal path, 33: positioning boss (positioning portion), 40: pipe cover, 4
2. Seal part

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References Japanese Utility Model Showa 50-330 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Utility Model 3-55952 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Utility Model 3-155 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Utility Model 3- 123115 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F16C 29/06

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A track rail having a plurality of ball rolling grooves formed in a longitudinal direction, and a load ball groove for sandwiching a ball in cooperation with the ball rolling grooves, and the ball is moved along the track rail. A slide block, and a plurality of pipes for circulating the ball between both ends of the load ball groove,
A linear guide device having a concave groove in which these pipe bodies are fitted, and a pipe cover fixed to the slide block so as to cover the pipe bodies; while having a part, grooves of the pipe cover is slightly larger formed so that the pipe is loosely fitted, according pie
In the plane perpendicular to the slide block movement direction
3. The linear guide device according to claim 1, wherein the fluid guide is fitted into the pipe body with a degree of freedom , and a fluid is injected and solidified into a gap formed between the concave groove and the pipe body.