JP3981326B2 - Lens processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a highly versatile lens processing apparatus capable of processing a lens surface by various processing methods.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As conventional lens surface processing methods, there are known methods such as an Oscar type, an oblique axis type, a ball center swing type, and a planetary swing type. An optimum processing method is selected from these processing methods according to the shape and material of the lens, and the lens surface is processed using a dedicated lens processing apparatus that performs processing by the selected processing method.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Therefore, conventionally, since it is necessary to prepare various types of lens processing apparatuses individually, there is a problem to be solved that a large equipment cost and a large installation space are required, which is not economical.
[0004]
Further, the conventional ball-centering type lens processing apparatus for performing curved surface processing has the following problems to be solved. There are a fulcrum support type and a learning cam type as the ball center swing type lens processing apparatus. In the fulcrum support type, there is a limit to the curved surface that can be processed due to the structure.
[0005]
On the other hand, in the learning cam type, since it is necessary to replace the cam in accordance with the curved surface to be processed, it takes time to prepare for processing, and the overall work efficiency is poor. Further, the accuracy of the swinging trajectory of the lens processing tool cannot be maintained due to bounce due to rattling due to cam wear, dirt on the cam surface, biting of foreign matter into the cam surface, and the like. Therefore, a large amount of money and time are required for maintenance such as periodic cam inspection, maintenance, and replacement. Furthermore, since many types of cams must be prepared according to the curved surface to be processed, a large amount of equipment is required. In addition, since the cam used is large and heavy, it is not easy to replace the cam, there is a risk of dropping, and a special device for replacement is also required. In addition, there is a problem that machining errors occur depending on the cam mounting state, and the reproducibility of machining accuracy is poor.
[0006]
On the other hand, in both the fulcrum support type and the learning cam type, it is necessary to adjust the cutting edge position of the jig with high precision according to the curved surface of the lens to be processed. Is also necessary.
[0007]
In view of these points, an object of the present invention is to make it possible to accurately move a dish-type or cup-type lens processing tool along an arbitrary trajectory without using a cam mechanism. The object is to propose a lens processing apparatus capable of processing the surface.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the lens processing apparatus of the present invention is:
A lens holder for holding the lens to be processed;
A cup-shaped or dish-shaped lens processing tool for processing the lens held by the lens holder;
An X-axis movement mechanism for reciprocating the lens processing tool in the X-axis direction extending in the horizontal direction;
A Z-axis moving mechanism for moving the lens processing tool in a Z-axis direction extending in a vertical direction perpendicular to the X-axis;
A turning mechanism for turning the lens processing tool about a θ axis extending in a horizontal direction perpendicular to both the X axis and the Z axis;
A rotation mechanism for rotating the lens processing tool about the rotation center axis of the lens processing tool passing through the θ axis;
Drive control of the X-axis drive mechanism, the Z-axis drive mechanism, and the turning mechanism to move the lens processing tool in the X-axis direction, the Z-axis direction, and the θ axis. Drive control means for performing the rotating operation to be performed simultaneously or selectively,
The lens processing tool is disposed with its processing surface facing upward,
The lens holder is disposed downward with its central axis extending in the vertical direction and being rotatable about the central axis.
The lens holder is pressed downward along the central axis, and during processing, the lens to be processed is sucked and held by evacuation and pressed against the processing surface of the lens processing tool. It is characterized by being able to rotate following the rotation of the lens processing tool.
[0009]
In the lens processing apparatus of the present invention, the drive control means that can be configured by a microcomputer or the like allows the lens processing tool to perform the feeding operation in the biaxial directions perpendicular to each other and the turning operation about the θ axis simultaneously or selectively. Thus, the lens processing tool can be moved along an arbitrary trajectory.
[0010]
That is, in the present invention, the drive control means controls the X-axis drive mechanism and the Z-axis drive mechanism to swing the lens processing jig so as to draw a circular orbit, and the turning mechanism By turning the lens processing jig so that the rotation center axis passes through the center of the circular orbit, it is possible to realize lens processing corresponding to the conventional ball center rocking method.
[0011]
Here, the feeding operation and the turning operation in the biaxial direction can be accurately performed using a servo motor. Therefore, according to the present invention, the lens can be processed into an arbitrary curved surface, the limitation of the processing range of the fulcrum support sphere swinging method can be removed, and there is no need to use a cam mechanism. And the problem of having to have various cams can be solved.
[0012]
In addition, since the X-axis drive mechanism and the Z-axis drive mechanism can be composed of a highly rigid mechanism including a guide and a table, the movement locus of the lens processing tool can be maintained with high accuracy for a long time. Therefore, the problem of maintaining accuracy in the learning type, the cam type and the ball center swinging type can be solved.
[0013]
Next, the lens processing apparatus of the present invention preferably has a Y-axis drive mechanism that moves the lens processing tool in a Y-axis direction orthogonal to both the X-axis and the Z-axis.
[0014]
The Y-axis driving mechanism positions the lens processing tool at an arbitrary position in the Y-axis direction, and the X-axis driving mechanism reciprocates the lens processing tool in the X-axis direction at this position. The lens surface can be processed by the method. In addition, the X-axis drive mechanism, the Z-axis drive mechanism, and the turning mechanism are individually controlled to move and fix the lens processing tool to a predetermined position, so that the lens surface can be processed by a processing method corresponding to the conventional oblique axis system. Can be processed.
[0015]
As described above, according to the present invention, processing by various processing methods can be provided by a single lens processing apparatus, so that a highly versatile lens processing apparatus can be realized, and facility costs and installation space can be reduced. .
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of a lens processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a mechanism diagram showing a lens processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a typical processing operation by the lens processing apparatus.
[0017]
The lens processing device A is disposed at a height position between the lower shaft unit B, the upper shaft unit C disposed immediately above the lower shaft unit B, and the lower shaft unit B and the upper shaft unit C. A conveyor unit D, and a drive control unit E that controls the drive of each unit. The lower shaft unit B holds a lens processing tool for lens surface processing in an upward state, and the upper shaft unit C holds a lens holder for holding a lens processed by the lens processing tool in a downward state. Yes. The conveyor unit D supplies the lens to be processed to the lens holder and collects the processed lens from the lens holder.
[0018]
The lower shaft unit B includes an X-axis guide 14 extending in the horizontal direction, an X-axis table 14a slidable in the X-axis direction along the X-axis guide 14, and an X for feeding the X-axis table 14a in the X-axis direction. An X-axis moving mechanism including an axis feed screw 15 and an X-axis servomotor 16 as a drive source is provided. Further, a Z-axis guide 17 attached to the surface of the X-axis table 14a and extending in a direction perpendicular to the X-axis, a Z-axis table 17a slidable in the Z-axis direction along the Z-axis guide 17, and a Z-axis table A Z-axis moving mechanism including a Z-axis feed screw 18 for feeding 17a in the Z-axis direction and a Z-axis servo motor 19 as a drive source is provided.
[0019]
Furthermore, a θ-axis servomotor 20 is attached to the Z-axis table 14a along the direction of the θ-axis 20a that extends horizontally in the front-rear direction orthogonal to both the X-axis and the Z-axis. The rotation shaft 20b protrudes forward through the Z-axis table 17a. A θ bracket 26 is attached to the tip. The θ-axis servomotor 20 and the θ bracket 26 constitute a turning mechanism.
[0020]
Further, the θ bracket 26 supports a spindle case 25 positioned by the Y-axis microhead 21 (Y-axis movement mechanism). A spindle 22 is rotatably supported on the spindle case 25, and the spindle 22 is rotationally driven by a spindle drive motor 23. A lens processing tool, for example, a cup-shaped jig 27 is attached to the upper end of the spindle 22 upward in a coaxial state. The spindle case 25, the spindle 22 and the spindle drive motor 23 constitute a rotation mechanism.
[0021]
Next, the upper shaft unit C includes a holder shaft guide 5 extending in a direction parallel to the Z axis, and a holder shaft table 4a slidable in the Z axis direction along the holder shaft guide 5, and this holder A holder shaft base 4 is fixed to the shaft table 4a. The holder shaft table 4 a can be moved in the Z-axis direction by a feed mechanism including a holder shaft feed screw 6 and a holder shaft servomotor 7. A holder shaft 3 is supported on the holder shaft base 4 in the Z-axis direction, and the holder shaft 3 is always urged downward by a holder pressing spring 8. The pressure applied by the holder pressure spring 8 can be adjusted by a pressure adjustment bolt 9. A lens holder 2 is held at the lower end of the holder shaft 3, and the lens 1 to be processed is held by the lens holder 2.
[0022]
The lens holder 2 can be rotated by a holder drive motor 28 during processing by the dish-type or cup-type lens processing tool 27. Further, the lens processing tool 27 can be rotated to follow the rotation. Further, the lens holder 2 is pressed by a holder shaft pressing spring 8 through a holder shaft 3. In addition to the spring, the pressurizing method may be a weight, a pneumatic cylinder, or a hydraulic cylinder.
[0023]
On the other hand, the conveyor unit D includes a conveyor 11 that conveys the lens case 10 and a conveyor drive motor 12 that drives the conveyor 11 to rotate. The conveyor 11 and the conveyor drive motor 12 can be moved to a position between the upper shaft unit C and the lower shaft unit B and a position retracted therefrom by a conveyor front / rear cylinder 13.
[0024]
The conveyor 11 transports the lens case 10 at the retracted position, exchanges the lens case 10 containing the processed lens and the lens case 10 containing the unprocessed lens, and reaches the end of the conveyor. The case 10 is transferred to the conveyor of the next process, and the lens case 10 discharged from the conveyor of the previous process is received.
[0025]
Thereafter, the conveyor 11 moves forward, positions the lens case 10 below the upper shaft unit, supplies the lens 1 to the lens holder 2, or receives the processed lens 1 from the lens holder 2, and moves to the retracted position. To do.
[0026]
The upper shaft unit C positions the lens holder 2 immediately above the lens case 10 placed on the advanced conveyor 11, sucks the lens of the lens case 10 to the lens holder 2 by vacuuming , and temporarily retracts it. After the lens case 10 is moved back together with the conveyor 11, the lens case 10 is moved to a processing position by the dish-type or cup-type lens processing tool 27.
[0027]
After the processing by the dish-type or cup-type lens processing tool 27 is completed, the lens 1 is retracted from the lens processing tool 27 by the lens holder 2, and the conveyor 11 moves forward and waits for the lens case 10 to be positioned below. Then, immediately above the lens holder 10, the lens holder 2 drops the lens 1 onto the lens case 10 by suction and release by compressed air, and stores it here. Thereafter, the lens holder 2 is retracted.
[0028]
(Operation example)
An operation example by the lens processing apparatus A having this configuration, for example, an operation example in the case of performing a ball center swing type processing will be described. Referring to FIG. 2, the machining radius R (m), the left angle θL (degrees), and the right angle θR (degrees) are set as the movement conditions. With the X-axis drive mechanism, the Z-axis drive mechanism, and the turning mechanism around the θ-axis, the center of the lens processing tool 27 is centered on the center point O from the initial position X0 (m), Z0 (m), and θ0 (degrees). As a result, the angle θd (degrees) is turned to move to the next coordinate position.
X = Rsin θd (m)
Z = R (1-cos θd) (m)
[0029]
The rocking angle θd is gradually increased and moved to θL (degrees). Next, θd (degrees) is gradually decreased and moved to θR (degrees). By repeating the movement due to the increase of θd and the movement due to the decrease of θd, a swinging motion around the center point O can be performed.
[0030]
Here, an error due to wear of the dish-type or cup-type lens processing tool 27 can be corrected by decreasing the value of the processing radius R and increasing the value of the Z axis of the center point O.
[0031]
Further, the lens convex surface can be processed by giving a positive value to the processing radius R, and the lens concave surface can be processed by giving a negative value.
[0032]
On the other hand, as a condition for the movement of the lens processing tool 27 by the lower shaft unit, by setting the processing radius to infinity and setting the left angle and the right angle by distance instead of angle, only lateral movement in the X-axis direction occurs. Therefore, when combined with the movement of the Y axis, Oscar-type processing can be realized.
[0033]
Further, if the lens processing tool 27 is fixed at an arbitrary position and angle by preventing movement in the X-axis, Z-axis, and Y-axis directions and preventing rotation around the θ-axis, Diagonal axis processing can be realized.
[0034]
(Other embodiments)
When a small number of workpieces (lenses) are used, or when the outer diameter is large, or in order to construct an inexpensive and simple means, instead of the conveyor unit D, a turntable that is rotated by electric and air indexes is arranged. You may make it perform supply and collection | recovery of a workpiece | work. Of course, the workpiece may be attached and detached manually without using the workpiece changer.
[0035]
It is also possible to replace the Y-axis microhead 21 of the lower shaft unit B with a Y-axis moving mechanism including a feed screw and a servo motor. In this case, the lens surface processing by the planetary system can be realized by simultaneously driving the Y-axis moving mechanism and the X-axis moving mechanism.
[0036]
Furthermore, by changing the calculation formula for the movement position of the lens processing tool defined by coordinates consisting of angles around the X, Z, and θ axes, it is possible to process not only spherical lenses but also multiple curved surfaces such as aspherical lenses. Will also be possible.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the lens processing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to consolidate lens processing that conventionally required various lens processing apparatuses into one unit. Therefore, capital investment, installation space, and idle machines can be reduced.
[0038]
In addition, there is no restriction on the machining range, and the time required for machining preparation such as cam replacement can be greatly reduced, so that work efficiency can be improved.
[0039]
Furthermore, since there is no need to use a heavy cam mechanism, the safety of the work is increased, such as the need for cam replacement, and even a powerless worker such as a woman can prepare for machining without using a special device. be able to.
[0040]
Furthermore, since the X-axis and Z-axis moving mechanisms can be constructed by a table mechanism, the rigidity is high and the lens processing tool can be moved without generating vibration. Therefore, since the movement locus of the lens processing tool can be accurately maintained for a long time, highly reliable processing can be realized.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a mechanism diagram of a lens processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
2 is an explanatory view showing an example of lens processing of the ball center swing type by the lens processing apparatus of FIG. 1; FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lens 2 Lens holder 3 Holder shaft guide 4 Holder shaft base 5 Holder shaft guide 6 Holder shaft feed screw 7 Holder shaft servomotor 8 Holder pressurizing spring 9 Pressure adjusting bolt 10 Lens case 11 Conveyor 12 Conveyor drive motor 13 Conveyor front and rear cylinder 14 X-axis guide 14a X-axis table 15 X-axis feed screw 16 X-axis servo motor 17 Z-axis guide 17a Z-axis table 18 Z-axis feed screw 19 Z-axis servo motor 20 θ-axis servo motor 20a θ-axis 20b Motor rotating shaft 21 Y Axis micro head 22 Spindle 23 Spindle drive motor 24 Spindle drive belt 25 Spindle case 26 θ bracket 27 Lens processing tool 28 Holder shaft drive motor A Lens processing device B Lower shaft unit C Upper shaft unit D Conveyor unit E Drive control unit

Claims (5)

A lens holder for holding the lens to be processed;
A cup-shaped or dish-shaped lens processing tool for processing the lens held by the lens holder;
An X-axis movement mechanism for reciprocating the lens processing tool in the X-axis direction extending in the horizontal direction;
A Z-axis moving mechanism for moving the lens processing tool in a Z-axis direction extending in a vertical direction perpendicular to the X-axis;
A turning mechanism for turning the lens processing tool about a θ axis extending in a horizontal direction perpendicular to both the X axis and the Z axis;
A rotation mechanism for rotating the lens processing tool about the rotation center axis of the lens processing tool passing through the θ axis;
Drive control of the X-axis drive mechanism, the Z-axis drive mechanism, and the turning mechanism to move the lens processing tool in the X-axis direction, the Z-axis direction, and the θ axis. Drive control means for performing the rotating operation to be performed simultaneously or selectively,
The lens processing tool is arranged in an upward state,
The lens holder is disposed downward with its central axis extending in the vertical direction and being rotatable about the central axis.
The lens holder is pressed downward along the central axis, and during processing, the lens to be processed is sucked and held by evacuation and pressed against the processing surface of the lens processing tool. It is possible to rotate following the rotation of the lens processing tool ,
The drive control means swings the lens processing tool so as to draw a circular orbit by the X-axis drive mechanism and the Z-axis drive mechanism, and the rotation center axis is the center of the circular orbit by the turning mechanism. A lens processing apparatus, wherein the lens processing tool is turned so as to pass through . In claim 1,
A lens processing apparatus comprising a Y-axis drive mechanism for moving the lens processing tool in a Y-axis direction orthogonal to both the X-axis and the Z-axis. In claim 2 ,
The lens control tool is configured so that the rotation center axis swings about an arbitrary point by the X-axis drive mechanism , the Z-axis drive mechanism , the turning mechanism, and the Y-axis drive mechanism. A lens processing apparatus characterized by moving the lens. In any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The Z-axis drive mechanism is supported by the X-axis drive mechanism,
The turning mechanism is supported by the Z-axis drive mechanism,
The rotating mechanism is supported by the turning mechanism,
The lens processing apparatus, wherein the lens processing tool is directly supported by the rotating mechanism . In claim 4,
The Y-axis drive mechanism that moves the lens processing tool in the Y-axis direction orthogonal to both the X-axis and the Z-axis moves the swivel mechanism relative to the Z-axis drive mechanism in the Y-axis direction. The lens processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.

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