JP4151972B2 - Endless belt element inspection method and inspection apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a metal endless belt (hereinafter referred to as “CVT belt”) used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission (belt-type CVT), and more particularly, to an inspection method and an inspection device for an element which is a component thereof.

  FIG. 6 is an external view of the CVT belt. In this figure, a CVT belt 1 is composed of a plurality of (for example, about 400) metallic elements 3a on a double ring-shaped laminate 2 composed of a plurality of (for example, about 12) metal rings 2a. The element laminate 3 is assembled and assembled.

  FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the element 3a. The element 3a is a steel block (metal piece) formed by punching a metal plate into a predetermined shape, for example, a shape reminiscent of the upper body image of the human body, that is, the head 3b and the chest 3c and their It is molded into a shape having a neck 3d that connects between the head 3b and the chest 3c.

  A protrusion 3e is formed on one side of the head 3b, and a recess 3f is formed on the other side. The elements 3a are aligned with each other by fitting the protrusions 3e and the recesses 3f of the adjacent elements 3a. The two ring-shaped laminates 2 are fitted into recesses 3g formed between the head 3b and the chest 3c of the element 3a, respectively.

  As described above, the CVT belt 1 includes, for example, an element laminated body 3 composed of about 400 elements 3a corresponding to one ring of the ring-shaped laminated body 2 composed of about 12 metal rings. It is assembled by being supported and assembled. In the CVT belt 1 having such a structure, for example, a part of the elements 3a is excessively insufficient (see symbol a in FIG. 7B) or the adjacent protrusions 3e and the recesses 3f are not properly fitted. If something is mixed, after the CVT belt 1 is assembled to the automatic transmission, it receives the pressing force of the belt clamping portion (pulley) in the transmission and receives the defective element 3a and the adjacent element. There is an inconvenience that stress concentration occurs between them or slip occurs.

  Therefore, for example, “an apparatus for measuring straightness of an endless metal belt and a method thereof” as described in Patent Document 1 are known. In this prior art, a large number of elements 3a before being assembled to the CVT belt 1 are stacked, and this is the end metal strip having the same thickness and width as the metal ring 2a (referred to as "simulated hoop" in the same document). In addition, it is set in a measuring apparatus in a state where the support is held by a guide (corresponding to a jig 31 in an embodiment described later), and required measurement is performed. In this measurement, when a predetermined tension is applied to the simulated hoop and a predetermined pressing force is applied to the plurality of elements 3a carried on the simulated hoop in the stacking direction, how much the element 3a is stacked in the stacking direction. It is to check whether it deviates (displaces).

Tomohiro Miyaji “Extracting the Performance of the Ideal Transmission CVT”, [online], [Search August 25, 2002], Internet <URL: http://www.idemitsu.co.jp/lube /cvt/cvtbody2.html> Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2003-83736 ([0055] and FIG. 6)

  However, in the above-described prior art, the necessary measurement is performed in a state where a large number of elements 3a are carried on a "simulated hoop" (a metal strip having the same thickness and width as the metal ring 2a). Therefore, there are the following problems.

  The measurement result appears as a displacement amount of the element 3a supported by the “simulated hoop”, but this displacement amount is also influenced by the hardness (lateral stiffness) of the “simulated hoop”. There is a problem that not only the displacement amount of 3a but sufficient measurement accuracy cannot be obtained.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an endless belt element inspection method and an inspection apparatus that can measure the displacement amount of only a pure element.

The present invention provides an inspection method for an element which is a component part of a metal endless belt used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission, and applies pressure in the stacking direction of an element stack formed by stacking a large number of the elements. A holding step for holding the element laminate, a setting step for adjusting the pressure, and setting an inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both sides of the element when mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission; A measuring step of measuring a displacement amount on one end side of the element laminate by applying a predetermined bending force to one end side of the element laminate in a state where the inspection load is applied, and the displacement amount is greater than a predetermined amount A determination step of determining a defect of the element laminate when it is larger or smaller than a predetermined amount .

In this invention, when pressure is applied in the stacking direction of an element stack formed by stacking a number of elements to hold the element stack, and the pressure is adjusted and mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission. An inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both sides of the element is set, and a predetermined bending force is applied to one end side of the element laminate in a state where the inspection load is applied, so that one end of the element laminate is provided. And determining the quality of the element laminate based on the measurement result. Specifically , a predetermined bending force is applied to one end of the element laminate in a state where the inspection load is applied. When the displacement amount on the one end side of the element laminated body is larger than the predetermined amount or smaller than the predetermined amount, the defect of the element laminated body is determined.
Therefore, since only a pure element that does not include extra parts, such as a simulated hoop of the prior art, is measured, the measurement accuracy can be improved. In addition, since it is not necessary to assemble the element to the simulated hoop, it is possible to save labor during inspection.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the specific details or examples in the following description and the illustrations of numerical values, character strings, and other symbols are only for reference in order to clarify the idea of the present invention, and the present invention may be used in whole or in part. Obviously, the idea of the invention is not limited. In addition, a well-known technique, a well-known procedure, a well-known architecture, a well-known circuit configuration, and the like (hereinafter, “well-known matter”) are not described in detail, but this is also to simplify the description. Not all or part of the matter is intentionally excluded. Such well-known matters are known to those skilled in the art at the time of filing of the present invention, and are naturally included in the following description.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual configuration diagram of an endless belt element inspection apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as an inspection apparatus) 10 in the present embodiment. In addition, this figure is an overhead view when the inspection apparatus 10 is looked down from directly above. The main components of the inspection apparatus 10 are as follows.

  First, the inspection apparatus 10 includes two drive mechanisms 11 and 12 (a holding unit, a setting unit, and a measurement unit). Hereinafter, when these drive mechanisms 11 and 12 are referred to as a first drive mechanism 11 and a second drive mechanism 12 for convenience, the first drive mechanism 11 is connected to a motor 13 and a shaft 14 of the motor 13. The metal block 15 to be screwed, the first drive unit 16 for driving the motor 13, the polarity reversing switch 17 for switching the rotation direction of the motor 13, the drive switch 18 for turning on / off the drive of the motor 13, and the drive current of the motor 13 The first measuring unit 19 that measures the load force of the motor 13 from the size of the motor and the load force display unit 20 that displays the measurement result of the first measuring unit 19 are provided.

  Here, a helical screw hole is cut inside the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11, and a male screw formed on the outer periphery of the shaft 14 of the motor 13 is screwed into the screw hole. Yes. For this reason, the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 moves in the axial direction of the shaft 14 (arrow A direction) with the rotation of the motor 13 (more precisely, the rotation of the shaft 14). Hereinafter, when the motor 13 rotates forward, the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 moves to the right in the drawing (moves to the right), and when the motor 13 rotates reversely, the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 moves. It moves to the left of the drawing (move left).

  Next, the second drive mechanism 12 includes a motor 21, a metal block 23 that is screwed onto the shaft 22 of the motor 21, a second drive unit 24 that drives the motor 21, and a polarity that switches the rotation direction of the motor 21. The reversing switch 25, the driving switch 26 for turning on / off the driving of the motor 21, the second measuring unit 27 for measuring the load force of the motor 21 from the magnitude of the driving current of the motor 21, and the measurement results of the second measuring unit 27 are shown. And a load force display unit 28 for displaying.

  Here, a helical screw hole is also cut inside the metal block 13 of the second drive mechanism 12, and a male screw formed on the outer periphery of the shaft 22 of the motor 21 is screwed into the screw hole. Yes. For this reason, the metal block 13 of the second drive mechanism 12 moves in the axial direction of the shaft 22 (direction of arrow B) with the rotation of the motor 21 (more precisely, the rotation of the shaft 22). Hereinafter, when the motor 22 rotates in the forward direction, the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 moves downward (moves downward) in the drawing, and when the motor 21 rotates in the reverse direction, the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 moves in the drawing. It is assumed to move upward (moving upward).

  As described above, the two drive mechanisms 11 and 12 have different movement directions of the metal blocks 15 and 23. That is, the movement direction of the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 is the left-right direction of the drawing, whereas the movement direction of the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 is the vertical direction of the drawing. To do. Further, the second drive mechanism 12 that moves in the vertical direction is also different in that a movement amount measuring unit 29 for measuring the movement amount of the metal block 23 and displaying the measured value is provided.

  As shown in the figure, the metal blocks 15 and 23 of the two drive mechanisms 11 and 12 are opposed to each other with a gap (hereinafter referred to as an inspection space) 30 having a predetermined length (length in the horizontal direction in the drawing) interposed therebetween. Has been placed. The movement direction (see arrow A) of the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 is the longitudinal direction of the inspection space 30, and the movement direction (see arrow B) of the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 is inspection. It is a direction perpendicular to the short direction of the space 30, that is, the moving direction of the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 (see arrow A).

  The inspection space 30 is a space for inspecting a large number of elements 3 a before being assembled to the CVT belt 1. In the inspection space 30, a jig 31 whose details will be described below is set in the inspection.

  2A and 2B are external views of the jig 31. Specifically, FIG. 2A is a diagram showing how the element laminate is placed on the jig 31, and FIG. 2B is a diagram showing the element laminate 32. FIG. It is a figure which shows the jig | tool 31 of the mounted state. The jig 31 is formed by forming a groove 31a continuous from one end side to the other end side of the column member on the upper surface of a hard rectangular column member having a length L equal to or slightly shorter than the length of the inspection space 30. In this groove 31a, an element laminated body 32 composed of a large number (for example, about 100) of elements 3a can be placed.

3 and 4 are diagrams showing an inspection procedure.
<Set of jig 31>... FIG. 3 (a)
First, the motor 13 of the first drive mechanism 11 is reversed (the polarity reversing switch 17 is set to the reverse position and the driving switch 18 is turned on), the metal block 15 is moved to the left, and the inspection space 30 is opened. And the jig | tool 31 which mounted the element laminated body 32 in this open | released inspection space 30 is set.

<Removing the jig 31> FIG. 3 (b)
Next, the motor 13 of the first drive mechanism 11 is rotated forward (the polarity reversing switch 17 is set to the normal rotation position and the drive switch 18 is turned on), and the metal block 15 is moved to the right. By this rightward movement, the metal block 15 comes into contact with the left end surface of the element stack 32 placed on the jig 31, and further, the metal block 15 continues to move rightward (that is, the first drive mechanism). 11), the right end surface of the element stack 32 placed on the jig 31 finally comes into contact with the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12.

  At this time, since both end faces of the element laminate 32 are sandwiched between the metal blocks 15 and 23 of the two drive mechanisms (first and second drive mechanisms 11 and 12), the first drive mechanism 11 The forward rotation of the motor 13 is continued a little further, and the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 is moved slightly to the right to apply “pressure” (clamping force) in the stacking direction of the element stack 32. The element stack 32 can be firmly held between the metal blocks 15 and 23 of the two drive mechanisms (first and second drive mechanisms 11 and 12).

  As described above, the element laminate 32 in the state of being firmly held between the metal blocks 15 and 23 of the two drive mechanisms (first and second drive mechanisms 11 and 12) no longer requires the jig 31. Yes, the jig 31 can be removed at this stage. The above-mentioned “pressure” should be a value that can firmly hold the element laminate 32 between the metal blocks 15 and 23 of the two drive mechanisms (first and second drive mechanisms 11 and 12). It may be appropriate.

<Inspection load setting>... FIG.
An appropriate inspection load Pa in the stacking direction is set for the element stack 32 from which the jig 31 has been removed. Here, the “inspection load” is a load applied to both surfaces of the element 3 a when the element 3 a is assembled to the CVT belt 1.

  The inspection load Pa is set by rotating the motor 13 of the first drive mechanism 11 in the forward direction (turning the polarity switch 17 to the forward position and turning on the drive switch 18), and moving the metal block 15 to the right. Do by. The pressing force accompanying the rightward movement of the metal block 15 becomes the inspection load Pa, and this pressing force becomes the load force of the motor 13 of the first drive mechanism 11. Here, since there is a certain correlation between the drive current of the motor and the load force of the motor, by measuring the magnitude of the drive current of the motor 13 of the first drive mechanism 11, The load force, and hence the inspection load Pa can be measured quantitatively. The first measurement unit 19 and the load force display unit 20 of the first drive mechanism 11 are measuring means for the inspection load Pa based on such a principle.

<Inspection of element laminate 32> FIG. 4 (a), (b)
When an appropriate inspection load Pa is set, next, a predetermined bending force Pb is applied to the element laminate 32, the deformation amount of the element laminate 32 corresponding to the bending force Pb is measured, and the deformation amount is within an appropriate range. Inspect whether it fits.

  The actual inspection will be described specifically. First, the motor 21 of the second drive mechanism 12 is reversed (the polarity reversing switch 25 is set to the reversing position and the driving switch 26 is turned on), and the metal block 23 is moved upward. At this time, since the metal block 23 is in strong contact with the right end surface of the element stack 32 with the inspection load Pa, the right end surface of the element stack 32 is forcibly moved in the same direction as the metal block 23 moves upward. Be made. As a result, the element stack 32 is curved and deformed with the left end surface in contact with the metal block 15 of the first drive mechanism 11 as a fulcrum and the right end surface in contact with the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 as a swing point. Thus, the amount of deformation is measured by the movement amount measuring unit 29 as the amount of movement of the second drive mechanism 12 upward of the metal block 23.

  The bending force Pb acts as a forcible upward moving force of the right end surface of the element stack 32 as the metal block 23 of the second drive mechanism 12 moves upward. This bending force Pb is also the load force of the motor 21 of the second drive mechanism 12, and by measuring the magnitude of the drive current of the motor 21 of the second drive mechanism 12, the load force of the motor 21, and therefore The bending force Pb can be quantitatively measured. The second measurement unit 27 and the load force display unit 28 of the second drive mechanism 12 are measuring means for the bending force Pb based on such a principle.

  In the above inspection, the right end surface of the element laminate 32 is forcibly moved upward, and the amount of movement of the right end surface of the element laminate 32 (the amount of movement of the metal block 23) at that time is measured. In order to ensure accuracy, it is desirable to measure the amount of movement change in the reverse direction. That is, the motor 21 of the second drive mechanism 12 is normally rotated (the polarity reversing switch 25 is set to the normal rotation position and the drive switch 26 is turned on), the metal block 23 is moved downward, and the element laminate at that time It is also desirable to measure the amount of movement of the right end face 32 (the amount of movement of the metal block 23). The bending force at this time is Pc.

  Now, since the element laminate 32 is a laminate of a large number of elements 3a, the element laminate 32 is not a single hard rod, but a little flexibility that allows a slight displacement (deformation) in a direction perpendicular to the lamination direction. It is the laminated body which has.

  FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram showing a displacement amount of the element laminate 32 to which a predetermined inspection load Pa is applied in the lamination direction. In this figure, the vertical axis represents the amount of displacement (the amount of upward or downward movement of the metal block 32), and the horizontal axis represents the bending forces Pb and Pc.

  As understood from this characteristic diagram, the displacement amount of the element laminated body 32 to which a predetermined inspection load Pa is applied in the laminating direction increases as the bending forces Pb and Pc increase, and there are bending forces Pb and Pc. Saturates when the value is reached.

  The characteristic line C is an ideal value in design, and the characteristic lines D and E are NG values greatly deviating from the ideal value. The NG values (characteristic lines D and E) are both “the displacement amount of the element laminated body 32 to which a predetermined inspection load Pa is applied in the laminating direction increases as the bending forces Pb and Pc increase, and the bending forces Pb and Pc increase. However, one of the NG values (characteristic line D) has an excessively high saturation level with respect to the ideal value (characteristic line C). The value (characteristic line E) has a too low saturation level.

  This suggests that one of the NG values (characteristic line D) with respect to the ideal value (characteristic line C) indicates that the element laminate 32 is excessively flexible (that is, “too soft”), and Similarly, the other NG value (characteristic line E) with respect to the ideal value (characteristic line C) suggests that the element laminate 32 is insufficiently flexible (that is, “too hard”).

  The cause of excessive flexibility or insufficient flexibility is, for example, that some elements 3a are excessively or insufficient in thickness (see symbol a in FIG. 7B), or that adjacent protrusions 3e and recesses 3f are correctly fitted. This is because things that are not matched are mixed.

  When the CVT belt 1 including such a defective element 3a is assembled to an automatic transmission, it receives a pressing force of a belt clamping portion (pulley) in the transmission, and between the defective element 3a and an adjacent element. Since there is an inconvenience that stress concentration occurs or slip occurs, it must be replaced with a good element 3a in advance.

  In the present embodiment, a forced upward movement force (bending force Pb) or downward movement force (below) is applied to the right end surface of the element laminate 32 to which a predetermined inspection load Pa is applied in the stacking direction by the inspection procedure. The bending force Pc) is applied, the amount of displacement (the amount of displacement above or below the metal block 23) at that time is measured, and the measurement result is applied to the characteristic diagram (FIG. 5), whereby the element laminate 32 is obtained. The degree of hardness can be quantitatively grasped, and the presence of the defective element 3a in the element laminate 32 can be detected.

  In addition, in this inspection procedure, the element stack 32 consisting of only a large number of elements 3a is the object to be inspected, and therefore does not include an unnecessary inspection object such as the simulated hoop in the above-described prior art. Therefore, the displacement amount of only the pure element laminated body 32 can be measured, and a special effect that inspection quality can be improved is obtained. Furthermore, since it is not necessary to assemble the element 3a to the simulated hoop at the time of inspection as in the prior art, the labor can be greatly reduced, and the inspection cost can be reduced.

  In the above embodiment, the motors 13 and 21 are used as drive sources for the first drive mechanism 11 and the second drive mechanism 12, but this is only an example. For example, other drive sources such as a hydraulic actuator may be used instead of the motors 12 and 21.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the defect determination of the element laminate 32 is performed artificially. That is, the element laminate 32 is forcedly applied to the right end surface of the element laminate 32 to which a predetermined inspection load Pa is applied in the lamination direction. An upward movement force (bending force Pb) or a downward movement force (bending force Pc) is applied to measure the amount of displacement (upward or downward displacement amount of the metal block 23) at that time. Although the quality of the element laminated body 32 is determined by applying to the figure (FIG. 5), this determination can also be automated. For example, the display value of the load force display unit 20 (inspection load Pa), the display value of the load force display unit 28 (bending forces Pb and Pc), and the display value (displacement amount) of the movement amount measurement unit 29 can be extracted with electrical signals. Thus, these electric signals are input to an electronic device such as a personal computer, and determination processing based on the characteristic diagram (FIG. 5) may be performed inside the electronic device. Specifically, when the inspection load Pa is at a predetermined value, the display value (displacement amount) of the movement amount measuring unit 29 when the bending forces Pb and Pc become a predetermined magnitude is a predetermined value (in FIG. 5). It may be determined whether or not it matches the characteristic line C) or falls within a predetermined allowable range. In such a case, the electronic device and the processing function executed inside the electronic device together constitute the determination means described in the gist of the present invention.

1 is a conceptual configuration diagram of an endless belt element inspection apparatus 10 in the present embodiment. 3 is an external view of a jig 31. FIG. It is a figure which shows a test | inspection procedure. It is a figure which shows a test | inspection procedure. It is a characteristic view which shows the displacement amount of the element laminated body 32 to which the predetermined inspection load Pa was added to the lamination direction. It is an external view of a CVT belt. It is an enlarged view of the element 3a.

Explanation of symbols

Pa Inspection load Pb Bending force Pc Bending force 1 CVT belt (metal endless belt)
3a Element 10 Inspection device (Element inspection device for endless belt)
11 First drive mechanism (holding means, setting means, measuring means)
12 Second drive mechanism (holding means, setting means, measuring means)
32 element laminate

Claims (4)

In an inspection method for elements that are components of a metal endless belt used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission,
A holding step of holding the element stack by applying pressure in the stacking direction of the element stack configured by stacking a large number of the elements;
A setting step of adjusting the pressure and setting an inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both surfaces of the element when mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission;
A measuring step of measuring the amount of displacement of one end of the element stack giving a predetermined bending force to one end of the element stack in a state in which the test load is applied,
And a determination step of determining a defect of the element laminate when the displacement amount is larger than a predetermined amount or smaller than a predetermined amount . In an inspection apparatus for elements that are components of a metal endless belt used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission,
Holding means for holding the element stack by applying pressure in the stacking direction of the element stack formed by stacking a large number of the elements;
A setting means for adjusting the pressure and setting an inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both surfaces of the element when mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission;
Measuring means for applying a predetermined bending force to one end side of the element laminated body in a state where the inspection load is applied and measuring a displacement amount on one end side of the element laminated body ;
An element inspection device for an endless belt , comprising: a determination unit that determines a defect of the element laminate when the displacement amount is larger than a predetermined amount or smaller than a predetermined amount . In an inspection method for elements that are components of a metal endless belt used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission,
Holding to hold the element stack between the two metal blocks by applying a clamping force between two metal blocks arranged at both ends of the element stack formed by stacking a large number of the elements. Process,
A setting step of adjusting the clamping force and setting an inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both surfaces of the element when mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission;
A measurement step of measuring a displacement amount on one end side of the element laminate when a lateral movement force is applied to a metal block located on one end side of the element laminate in a state where the inspection load is applied ;
And a determination step of determining a defect of the element laminate when the displacement amount is larger than a predetermined amount or smaller than a predetermined amount . In an inspection apparatus for elements that are components of a metal endless belt used in a belt-type continuously variable transmission,
Holding to hold the element stack between the two metal blocks by applying a clamping force between two metal blocks arranged at both ends of the element stack formed by stacking a large number of the elements. Means,
A setting means for adjusting the clamping force and setting an inspection load corresponding to an actual load applied to both surfaces of the element when mounted on a belt-type continuously variable transmission;
Measuring means for measuring a displacement amount on one end side of the element laminate when a lateral movement force is applied to a metal block located on one end side of the element laminate in a state where the inspection load is applied ;
An element inspection device for an endless belt , comprising: determination means for determining a defect of the element laminate when the displacement amount is larger than a predetermined amount or smaller than a predetermined amount .

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