JP3606084B2 - Electric wire switching device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a wire switching device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As represented by a wire harness, an automatic electric wire processing apparatus for manufacturing a product in which a large number of electric wires are combined is widely used. A general automatic electric wire processing device continuously feeds and adjusts the electric wire, cuts and strips the end of the cut electric wire, and crimps the terminal as necessary, It is for attaching a rubber stopper for sealing.
[0003]
When feeding electric wires to such an automatic electric wire processing apparatus, recently, a carrying member capable of carrying a plurality of electric wires arranged in one direction (for example, a horizontal direction) and the carrying member in the one direction An electric wire selection unit provided with a selection mechanism that selectively selects one to be supplied to the automatic electric wire processing apparatus from a plurality of electric wires carried by being displaced along a direction (that is, a direction orthogonal to the electric wire) Are arranged in parallel with the above-mentioned automatic electric wire processing apparatus, and it is required to realize a variety and small-quantity production by the automatic electric wire processing apparatus.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In an automatic electric wire processing apparatus equipped with an electric wire selection unit as described above, when processing of the covered wire of the current lot is completed and the covered wire of the next lot is supplied, the next method is performed by soldering or twisting. It has been practiced to connect the covered wire of the lot to the covered wire of the current lot.
[0005]
However, whatever method is used to connect the covered wires, the connecting process itself is a time-consuming preliminary process. For this reason, in the conventional apparatus, it takes time and effort to change over the covered electric wires, which has been an obstacle to high-mix low-volume production.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an electric wire switching device capable of switching electric wires as easily and quickly as possible.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the present invention
It has a wire selection unit for alternatively selecting a plurality of types of covered wires to be fed against the electric wire processing apparatus, giving an covered wire selected by the wire selection unit to the automatic electric wire processing apparatus An electric wire switching device for
A feed nozzle provided near the wire supply port of the wire processing device, for feeding the coated wire to the wire processing device;
An electric wire conveying means configured to be capable of reciprocating between the feeding nozzle and the electric wire selection unit, and conveying the feeding end of the covered electric wire selected by the electric wire selection unit to the feeding nozzle;
A pair of feeding rollers that receives the conveyed covered electric wire from the electric wire conveying means and feeds the coated electric wire to the electric wire processing device via a feeding nozzle ;
The wire conveying means is
A timing belt extending along the wire feed line;
A slider provided on the timing belt and reciprocally moved between the upstream side and the downstream side in the electric wire feeding direction by rotation of the timing belt;
An electric wire switching device including a pair of fingers provided in a slider and capable of holding a covered electric wire on an electric wire feeding line .
[0007]
In the invention including this specific matter, the covered electric wire selected by the electric wire selection unit is conveyed by the electric wire conveying means, delivered to the pair of feeding rollers, and then fed to the electric wire processing apparatus via the feeding nozzle. It becomes possible. Therefore, it is not necessary to connect the covered wire of the next lot to the covered wire of the current lot.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a side view of a wire switching device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the wire switching device 10 of FIG.
[0009]
First, referring to these drawings, in the illustrated embodiment, a wire switching device 10 is attached upstream of the wire processing device 1 in the wire feeding direction.
Wire switching device 10 includes, along the conductive line feed line PH, the wire selection unit 20, the slide dancer 40, feed rollers 50, delivery nozzle 60 are arranged in this order. Further, in the illustrated example, known scraping roller units 70 and 80 are disposed adjacent to the upstream side of the slide dancer 40 and the feed roller pair 50, respectively.
[0010]
The electric wire selection unit 20 is a known unit in which a plurality of electric wire grips 22 are equally arranged on an endless conveyor 21 that circulates around a horizontal axis, and a covered electric wire W is carried for each electric wire grip 22. Then, by rotating the endless conveyor 21 in one direction or the other direction so that the specific wire grip 22 is along the wire feeding line PH, the covered wire W held by the wire grip 22 is selected. Thus, it is configured so that it can be fed along the electric wire feeding line PH.
[0011]
Further, the wire selection unit 20 is provided with an air nipper 24 (shown only in FIG. 2). The air nipper 24 is for cutting the covered wire W of the current lot that is being fed to the wire processing apparatus 1 at a predetermined timing to be described later.
Although not specifically shown, the electric wire selection unit 20 is provided with an electric wire measuring unit for measuring the extended length of the supplied covered electric wire W. By the electric wire measuring unit, the air nipper 24 is provided. It is possible to accurately measure the length of the covered electric wire W that has been fed out to the cutting blade (not shown) of the electric wire processing apparatus 1.
[0012]
The slide dancer 40 includes a pillar 41 and a dancer 42 that moves up and down along the pillar 41. The dancer 42 is covered with a covered electric wire W and extends along a feed line PH in a V shape with respect to a horizontal line. By changing the length, the length (reserved amount) of the covered electric wire W fed on the feeding line PH is changed to adjust the feeding amount and tension to the downstream side.
[0013]
The dancer 42 is capable of changing the feeding locus of the covered electric wire W into a V shape by slidingly contacting the electric wire from the upper side to the lower side of the covered electric wire W along the horizontal line. Specifically, the dancer 42 may be a roller type as shown in the figure, or a bowl-shaped one obtained by bending a metal bar.
With reference to FIG. 1, the pillars 41 are provided with sensors 43 that are equally distributed in the vertical direction, and the vertical positions of the dancers 42 can be detected by these sensors 43. Then, as the dancer 42 reaches a higher position, the feeding roller pair 44 provided on the upstream side of the pillar 41 is set to feed the covered electric wire W on the feeding line PH to the downstream side at a higher speed. Thereby, the covered electric wire W is always sent to the downstream side from the slide dancer 40 with a constant tension.
[0014]
When the wire is replaced, the dancer 42 is forcibly levitated to the uppermost position, the covered wire W of the current lot is released, and the covered wire W of the next lot is locked to the dancer 42. Is provided with a forced drive unit including a motor 45 and a chain (not shown) driven by the motor 45.
FIG. 3 is a partial schematic view showing an enlarged main part of FIG.
[0015]
Referring to FIG. 3, the feed roller pair 50 is disposed above the feed line PH, and is disposed below the follower roller 51, which can be displaced vertically, and driven to rotate by a motor 53. The driven roller 51 is attached to an air cylinder 55 for driving the driven roller 51 up and down. Then, the air cylinder 55 drives the driven roller 51 from the illustrated path open state and sandwiches the covered electric wire W between the rollers 51 and 52, thereby transmitting the rotational driving force of the driving roller 52 to the covered electric wire W. The electric wire W can be fed downstream.
[0016]
A feed nozzle 60 is connected to the downstream side of the feed roller pair 50. The feeding nozzle 60 is attached to an air cylinder 61 mounted on a structure 101 of the electric wire transport unit 100 described later, and is attached so as to be able to advance and retreat in the feeding direction of the covered electric wire W. An introduction pipe 62 for introduction, a sliding pipe 63 connected to the downstream end of the introduction pipe 62, and an air cylinder 64 for moving the sliding pipe 63 forward and backward relative to the introduction pipe 62. ing.
[0017]
Both the introduction pipe 62 and the sliding pipe 63 extend horizontally and concentrically so that the covered electric wire W can be fed horizontally to the roller pair 1a serving as the feeding port of the electric wire processing apparatus 1. The upstream end 62a of the introduction pipe 62 has a tapered shape that opens widely on the upstream side so that the covered electric wire W fed from the pair of feeding rollers 50 can be reliably introduced into the inside, and is slid The downstream end 63a of the pipe 63 is narrowed so that the covered electric wire W introduced into the introduction pipe 62 can be reliably transferred between the roller pair 1a of the electric wire processing apparatus 1. The introduction pipe 62 and the sliding pipe 63 as a whole fulfill the function of delivering the covered electric wire W from the feed roller pair 50 to the electric wire processing apparatus 1 while preventing buckling.
[0018]
In order to fulfill this function, in the illustrated embodiment, both the air cylinders 61 and 64 are set so that the downstream end 63a of the sliding tube 63 extends to a position where it enters between the roller pair 1a.
Next, the conveyance unit 100 for conveying the covered electric wire W will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, and FIGS. 4 and 5.
[0019]
4 is an enlarged view showing a main part of the transport unit 100 employed in the wire switching device 10 of FIG. 1, FIG. 5 shows a wire clamp of the transport unit 100 of FIG. 4, and FIG. A top view and (B) are side views.
With reference to these drawings, the transport unit 100 has a structure 101 extending along the electric wire feeding line PH.
[0020]
The structure 101 is embodied by a steel material installed horizontally by a pair of pillars 102.
And as shown in FIG. 4, the clamp conveyance motor 103 is attached to the longitudinal direction one end part (in the example of illustration, an electric wire feeding direction upstream) of the structure 101. As shown in FIG. A pulley 104 is attached to the shaft 103 a of the clamp conveyance motor 103, and the timing belt 105 is connected to be driven via the pulley 104.
[0021]
The timing belt 105 is an endless belt that is stretched around guide pulleys 106 and 107 that are provided around the clamp conveyance motor 103 and a pulley 109 that is attached to the other end of the structure 101 via a bracket 108. The clamp conveyance motor 103 is rotated clockwise or counterclockwise. The timing belt 105 is provided with a slider 106 and disposed on the upper surface of the structure 101. Then, the rotation of the timing belt 105 allows the slider 106 to reciprocate between the upstream side and the downstream side in the electric wire feeding direction. The bracket 108 can adjust the mounting position of the pulley 109 in the longitudinal direction of the structural body 101 by a bolt 108b inserted through a long hole 108a formed in the bracket 108.
[0022]
An electric wire clamp 110 for clamping the covered electric wire W is attached to the slider 106.
With reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B, the electric wire clamp 110 includes a substrate 111 erected on the slider 106. The substrate 111 is a member formed in a rectangular shape whose horizontal direction is perpendicular to the structure 101, that is, in the direction perpendicular to the electric wire feeding line PH, and whose width direction is vertically oriented. A pair of fingers 112 are pivotally supported on the part by a shaft 113 so as to be openable and closable. The free ends 112a of the fingers 112 are opposed to each other with the electric wire feeding line PH interposed therebetween, so that the covered electric wire W on the electric wire feeding line PH can be held. The free end 112a of the finger 112 is set to be thin, so that when the roller pair of each unit described above is opened, the covered wire W is inserted along the wire feed line PH through the roller pair. It can be transported.
[0023]
Further, a rod 115 is connected to the base end portion of these fingers 112 via a link 114. The rod 115 is slidably held in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 111 via a sleeve case 116 attached to the opposite end of the substrate 111 on the side opposite to the electric wire. By the biasing force of the coil spring 118 that is interposed between the flange member 117 and the flange member 117 that is attached to the flange member 117, the coil spring 118 is constantly biased in the direction away from the wire feed line PH.
[0024]
As a result, the rods 115 are biased in the direction of closing each other via the links 114, and each finger 112 clamps the covered electric wire W in the free state as shown in FIG.
On the other hand, by pushing the rod 115 against the urging force of the coil spring 118 toward the electric wire feeding line PH, each finger 112 rotates around the shaft 113 to cover the covered electric wire W as indicated by the phantom line. To release.
[0025]
In order to drive the rod 115 and open the finger 112, the structure body 101 is provided with two pressing units 120 (see FIG. 2). The position where the pressing unit 120 is provided is an electric wire supply position when the covered electric wire W of the next lot is clamped, and an electric wire delivery position between the supply roller pair 50 and the supply nozzle 60.
[0026]
Each pressing unit 120 has a stay 121 attached to the structure 101, an air cylinder 122 carried on the stay 121, and an advancing / retracting body 123 that moves forward and backward in the longitudinal direction of the rod 115 by the air cylinder 122. By driving the air cylinder 122 with the pressure roller 124 attached to the advance / retreat body 123 facing the end surface of the rod 115, the rod 115 is pushed by the pressure roller 124 via the advance / retreat body 123. ing.
[0027]
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 140 denotes a control box for controlling the interlocking of each unit described above. Reference numeral 150 denotes a liquid crystal panel on which the operating state and operation buttons of the electric wire switching device 10 are displayed. By operating the liquid crystal panel 150, each part performs the switching operation of the covered electric wire W according to the following procedure under the control of the control box 140.
[0028]
FIG. 6 is a timing chart of the wire switching device 10 of FIG.
First, when there is a request to replace the current lot of covered wires W processed by the wire processing device 1, the wire selection device 10 performs a wire selection operation. In this wire selection operation, the air nipper 24 of the wire selection unit 20 is at the current cutting length and the length in the wire feed line PH of the wire switching device 10 (between the cutter of the wire processing device 1 and the air nipper 24). It operates when the length of the covered electric wire W reaches a length several times before the number of expired lots, and cuts the covered electric wire W of the current lot. Thereafter, the operation of selecting the covered wire W of the next lot is performed by the endless conveyor 21 of the wire selection unit 20. The electric wire processing apparatus 1 continues to operate until the cut covered electric wire W is processed, and temporarily stops when the processing is completed. Therefore, in the illustrated embodiment, the electric wire processing process and the electric wire selection process are performed in parallel. Then, when the electric wire processing apparatus 1 stops, the feeding unit (the feeding roller pair 44 of the slide dancer 40, the scooping roller units 70 and 80) opens the electric wire feeding line PH.
[0029]
On the other hand, the electric wire clamp 110 for transporting the covered electric wire W stands by at an electric wire delivery position between the feed roller pair 50 and the feed nozzle 60 in the initial state, and is pressed by the pressing unit 120 corresponding to this position. It remains open. And when the electric wire processing apparatus 1 stops and the said feeding parts 44,70,80 open the electric wire feeding line PH, the electric wire clamp 110 is the electric wire supply set to the upstream of the electric wire feeding line PH. Displace to position.
[0030]
When the wire clamp 110 arrives at the wire supply position, the upstream pressing unit 120 corresponding to the wire supply position is operated, and the wire clamp 110 is opened to wait for the next lot of covered wires W to be selected. When the covered wire W of the next lot is selected, the pressing unit 120 is driven again, the wire clamp 110 is closed, and the selected covered wire W of the next lot is clamped by the wire clamp 110.
[0031]
When the wire clamp 110 clamps the covered wire W of the next lot, the clamp conveyance motor 103 moves the wire clamp 110 from the wire supply position to the wire delivery position again. Thereby, the covered electric wire W of the next lot is conveyed along the electric wire feeding line PH.
When the electric wire clamp 110 arrives at the electric wire delivery position, the feeding roller pair 50 sandwiches the covered electric wire W conveyed by the electric wire clamp 110, and the delivery operation is performed. Thereafter, when the corresponding downstream pressing unit 120 is operated to open the wire clamp 110 and transfer is performed, the air cylinders 61 and 64 of the supply nozzle 60 are simultaneously operated, thereby supplying the supply nozzle. 60 extends, and the downstream end 63a of the sliding tube 63 enters between the roller pair 1a. Next, the drive motor 53 of the feed roller pair 50 is driven, and the covered electric wire W is fed from the feed roller pair 50 through the feed nozzle 60 to the feed roller pair 1a of the wire processing apparatus 1.
[0032]
Thereafter, the feed nozzle 60 returns to the original fully contracted posture, and the supply roller pair 1 is closed in the process, and the covered wire W of the next lot is transferred to the wire processing apparatus 1. When this delivery is completed, the electric wire processing apparatus 1 restarts and each part of the electric wire switching apparatus 10 returns to the initial state.
As described above, in the illustrated embodiment, the coated wire W selected by the wire selection unit 20 is transported by the wire clamp 110 as the wire transport means and delivered to the feed roller pair 50, and then the feed nozzle. The covered electric wire W can be fed to the electric wire processing apparatus 1 via 60. Therefore, since it is not necessary to connect the covered wire W of the next lot to the covered wire W of the current lot, the covered wire W can be supplied to the wire processing apparatus 1 without forming a useless wire connecting portion. Further, since the wire replacement work is automatically performed, the operator can perform other work after operating the liquid crystal panel 150, and the setup time is shortened and the operating rate is improved.
[0033]
In addition, since a plurality of covered electric wires W can be handled in a fixed manner, it is not necessary to select the covered electric wires W and transport the electric wire bundle, thereby reducing the work load. The above-described embodiments are merely preferred specific examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments.
For example, a pair of electric wire feeding rollers may be further provided between the electric wire selection unit 20 and the slide dancer 40 so that the coated electric wire W can be more reliably fed. Moreover, the slide dancer 40 and the wire scooping roller units 70 and 80 can be omitted as appropriate.
[0034]
Alternatively, an opening / closing air cylinder may be attached to the electric wire clamp 110 itself so that the conveyance timing of the electric wire clamp 110 can be changed.
It goes without saying that various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims of the present invention.
[0035]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, there is a remarkable effect that the electric wires can be switched as easily and quickly as possible.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view of an electric wire switching device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of the electric wire switching device of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a partial schematic view showing an enlarged main part of FIG. 1;
4 is an enlarged view showing a main part of a transport unit employed in the electric wire switching device of FIG. 1. FIG.
5A and 5B show an electric wire clamp of the transport unit of FIG. 4, in which FIG. 5A is a plan view and FIG. 5B is a side view.
6 is a timing chart of the electric wire switching device of FIG. 1. FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1a Feed roller pair 1 Electric wire processing apparatus 10 Electric wire switching apparatus 20 Electric wire selection unit 21 Endless conveyor 24 Air gripper 50 Feed roller pair 52 Driving roller 53 Motor 60 Feed nozzle 100 Electric wire conveyance unit 110 Electric wire clamp 120 Press unit 150 Liquid crystal panel PH Wire supply line W Coated wire

Claims (1)

It has a wire selection unit for alternatively selecting a plurality of types of covered wires to be fed against the electric wire processing apparatus, giving an covered wire selected by the wire selection unit to the automatic electric wire processing apparatus An electric wire switching device for
A feed nozzle provided near the wire supply port of the wire processing device, for feeding the coated wire to the wire processing device;
An electric wire conveying means configured to be capable of reciprocating between the feeding nozzle and the electric wire selection unit, and conveying the feeding end of the covered electric wire selected by the electric wire selection unit to the feeding nozzle;
A pair of feeding rollers that receives the conveyed covered electric wire from the electric wire conveying means and feeds the coated electric wire to the electric wire processing device via a feeding nozzle ;
The wire conveying means is
A timing belt extending along the wire feed line;
A slider provided on the timing belt and reciprocally moved between the upstream side and the downstream side in the electric wire feeding direction by rotation of the timing belt;
An electric wire switching device comprising a pair of fingers provided in a slider and capable of sandwiching a covered electric wire on an electric wire feeding line .

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