JP4583321B2 - Tool pot - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a tool pot that is mounted on a tool magazine and holds a tool detachably in a machining center or the like, and more particularly, to a tool pot that is provided with a lock function to prevent the tool from dropping.

A machine tool such as a machining center has a tool magazine and an automatic tool changer, and the tool magazine includes a tool pot for holding a tool.
As such a tool pot, it is fixed in a cylindrical tool pot main body, a ball holding body for freely holding a plurality of balls in the radial direction, and inserted into the ball holding body slidably in the axial direction, A slide pin that moves backward by an urging force of a spring and moves forward by an external force, and a cam that is provided at the tip of the slide pin and engages a ball engaging groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank of the tool by moving the slide pin backward And a clearance portion that allows the ball to be detached from the ball engaging groove by advancing the slide pin (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Also, a ball holder that is fixed inside the cylindrical tool pot body and that loosely holds a plurality of balls engaged and disengaged in a ball engaging groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank of the tool, and this ball holding A slide pin (ball pusher) that is slidably inserted in the body in the axial direction and is urged forward by a spring, and is moved forward by a piston rod in a direction perpendicular to the axis inside the tool pot body and retracted by a spring The pin that is placed on the slide pin or the taper provided on the end of the pin is pressed against the rear end of the slide pin by retreating the pin, and the tool is locked in the holding position and advanced by the piston rod. Some tool pots are designed to release the lock (for example, see Patent Document 2).
Japanese Patent No. 2983154 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-37695

  However, in the tool pot described in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent No. 2983154, the taper-shaped cam moves the ball outward from the loose-fitting portion due to the retraction of the slide pin by the biasing force of the spring, and the tool pot shank portion. Since the tool is held by being engaged with the provided ball engagement groove, in recent machining centers where the weight and speed of tools are increasing, the holding force is limited only by the spring force, so the tool may fall. There is a problem of lack of reliability.

In addition, since the tool pot described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-37695 is provided with a lock mechanism independently at the rear part of the tool pot, the structure of the tool pot is complicated, and the assembling process takes time and costs increase. There is a problem.
In addition, if the relative positional relationship between the lower end position of the slide pin (ball pusher) and the insertion position of the pin is not accurate, the advance / retreat distance of the slide pin will be inaccurate, the lock will be unstable, and the clamp of the tool will become unstable. There is also a problem that the reliability is lowered and the tool may be dropped.
Further, since the lock is released by pressing the pin with the piston rod from the side of the tool pot, there is a problem that if the tool pot rotates, the position with respect to the piston rod shifts and the lock cannot be released.

  Therefore, the present invention solves the problems of the prior art as described above, that is, the object of the present invention is to hold the tool accurately and stably by holding and locking the tool with the same member. In addition, a tool pot is provided that prevents the tool from falling and further reliably releases the lock.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a ball holding body fixed in a cylindrical tool pot main body and loosely holding a plurality of balls so as to be movable in a radial direction, and freely slidable in the axial direction on the ball holding body. A slide pin inserted into the slide and urged backward by a spring, and a cam provided at the tip of the slide pin for engaging the ball with a ball engagement groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank portion of the tool by the slide pin retreating And a play pot for separating the ball from the ball engaging groove by advancing the slide pin, wherein the cam is a flat portion connected to the tapered portion and a tapered portion reduced in diameter to the rear. The ball is positioned at the tapered portion and engaged with the ball engaging groove by the retraction of the slide pin, and the slide pin is clamped and fixed by pressing the tapered portion. When the tool is held by the tool and the tool is about to be removed from the tool pot, the ball moves from the taper portion of the slide pin to the flat portion and engages with the ball engaging groove, and the flat portion is pressed. The above-described problems are solved by preventing the tool from falling by sandwiching and fixing the slide pin.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration according to the first aspect, the slide pin includes a tip member provided with the cam and a slide pin main body connected to the tip member, and the slide pin The main body has a smaller diameter than the flat portion of the cam, and the clearance is formed between the front outer peripheral surface of the slide pin main body and the inner peripheral surface of the ball holder, thereby solving the problem. .

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cam provided at the tip of the slide pin includes a taper portion having a diameter reduced rearward and a flat portion connected to the taper portion, and the ball is moved to the taper portion by the retreat of the slide pin. It is positioned and engaged with the ball engagement groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank part of the tool, and the taper part is pressed in the radial direction to clamp and fix the slide pin, so that the cam and the ball have the function of holding the tool When the tool is subjected to a force larger than the spring bias force due to the vibration of the machine and the tool tries to remove from the tool pot, the ball moves from the taper portion of the slide pin to the flat portion. Moves forward, and the ball engages with the ball engaging groove and presses the flat portion to clamp and fix the slide pin, thereby exerting a lock function to lock the tool in the holding position.
As a result, the tool can be held with high accuracy and stability, the locking mechanism is simplified, the reliability is increased, and the tool can be reliably prevented from falling.
Moreover, since a separate locking mechanism is not required, a tool pot having a locking function can be obtained at a low cost.
In addition, unlocking means that the external force of the piston rod or the like pushes the rear end surface of the slide pin in the axial direction, so even if the tool pot rotates, there is no deviation from the pressing means such as the piston rod, and a tool such as a detent Since the pot rotation prevention means is not required, the cost of the magazine can be reduced in combination with the cost reduction of the tool pot.

  In the invention according to claim 2, in addition to the effect of the invention according to claim 1, the slide pin is composed of a tip member provided with a cam and a slide pin body connected to the tip member. The main body has a smaller diameter than the flat portion of the cam, and the clearance between the front outer peripheral surface of the slide pin main body and the inner peripheral surface of the ball holder is a clearance portion, so there is no need to provide a separate clearance portion. The cost can be reduced.

  The tool pot of the present invention is fixed in a cylindrical tool pot body, and a ball holder for loosely fitting and holding a plurality of balls so as to be movable in the radial direction, and inserted in the ball holder so as to be slidable in the axial direction. A slide pin that is biased backward by a spring, a cam that is provided at the tip of the slide pin, and that engages a ball engaging groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the tool shank by the backward movement of the slide pin; The cam has a taper portion with a diameter reduced rearward and a flat portion connected to the taper portion, and the ball is moved by retraction of the slide pin. The tool is positioned at the taper and engages with the ball engagement groove, and the taper is pressed and the slide pin is clamped and fixed to hold the tool accurately and stably. At this time, the ball moves from the taper portion of the slide pin to the flat portion, so that the slide pin moves forward, the ball engages with the ball engaging groove, and the flat portion is pressed to hold the slide pin. As long as it is possible to prevent the tool from dropping and to be surely unlocked by fixing, any specific form may be used.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, FIG. 1 is a side view showing the tool pot of the present embodiment in a partial cross section, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the tool pot body of the present embodiment in partial cross section, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a partial cross-section of the slide pin of this embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the tool pot of this embodiment. FIG. 6 is a side view showing a part of the tool pot of the present embodiment in which the tool is locked, and FIG. It is a side view which shows the tool pot of the present Example made into the locked state in a partial cross section.
In FIGS. 1 and 5 to 7, only one ball is shown, and the other balls are omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the tool pot 100 of this embodiment includes a cylindrical tool pot main body 110 and a ball that is fixed in the tool pot main body 110 and loosely holds a plurality of balls 130 so as to be movable in the radial direction. A holding pin 120, a slide pin 140 that is slidably inserted into the ball holding member 120 from the axial direction and is urged backward by a spring 160, and provided at the tip of the slide pin 140. A cam 143 that engages the ball 130 with a ball engaging groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank portion of the tool, and a play portion 150 that separates the ball 130 from the ball engaging groove when the slide pin 140 advances. 143 is comprised from the taper part 143a diameter-reduced back, and the flat part 143b connected with the taper part 143a.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cylindrical tool pot main body 110 is formed with a flange 111 a that receives the front portion of the ball holding body 120 on the front side of the inner peripheral surface 111 so as to fix the ball holding body 120 inside. On the rear side, an inner peripheral groove 111b for mounting a retaining ring 113 for locking the rear portion of the ball holder 120 is formed.
Further, on both sides of the outer peripheral surface 112, step portions 112a and 112a for mounting the outer link plate and the inner link plate are formed, and at the ends of the step portions 112a and 112a, a stopper for preventing the attached link plate from coming off is formed. Outer peripheral grooves 112b and 112b for mounting the wheel are formed. Further, a resin taper sleeve 114 that supports the base end of the shank of the tool is attached to the front end opening.

As shown in FIG. 3, the ball holder 120 includes a large-diameter cylindrical portion 121 having an outer diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the tool pot main body 110, and a small-diameter cylindrical portion 122 provided at the front end of the cylindrical portion 121. An insertion hole 123 that penetrates in the front-rear direction so as to slidably mount the slide pin 140 is provided at the center.
Further, the insertion hole 123 has a rear half portion with a large diameter, and serves as a mounting portion 123 a for the spring 160.

The small-diameter cylindrical portion 122 has an outer peripheral surface 122 a as a guide surface for the shank portion of the tool, and an opening portion 122 b in which the tip end portion of the slide pin 140 is movable in the front-rear direction is provided in communication with the insertion hole 123. ing.
Further, a plurality of ball holding holes 122c for loosely fitting and holding the plurality of balls 130 are provided at equal intervals on the front side, and the ball holding holes 122c penetrate from the opening 122b to the outer peripheral surface 122a. .
Each ball holding hole 122c prevents each ball 130 from jumping out of the outer peripheral surface 122a of the cylindrical portion 122 and falling, and allows the upper part of the ball 130 to protrude from the outer peripheral surface 122a. The hole diameter is slightly smaller than the diameter of the ball 130.

As shown in FIG. 4, the slide pin 140 includes a slide pin main body 141 and a tip member 142, and the tip member 142 engages the ball 130 with a ball engagement groove formed on the inner surface of the shank portion of the tool. A cam 143 is provided, and the cam 143 includes a conical tapered portion 143a having a diameter reduced rearward and a disk-like flat portion 143b connected to the tapered portion 143a.
Further, the slide pin main body 141 is a cylindrical body having a smaller diameter than the flat portion 143b, and a flange portion 141b protruding outward is provided on the rear side so as to receive the rear end portion of the attached spring 160. The tip member 142 is connected by a bolt 144.
A gap between the outer peripheral surface of the front portion 141 a of the slide pin 141 and the inner peripheral surface of the opening 122 b provided in the small-diameter cylindrical portion 122 of the ball holding body 120 is defined as a clearance portion 150.
In the gap portion 150, the tip member 142 may be provided with a flat portion having a smaller diameter than the flat portion 143a, and the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the flat portion and the inner peripheral surface of the opening 122b may be used as the gap portion 150. .

The tool pot main body 110, the ball holding body 120, and the slide pin 140 configured as described above are assembled as follows, for example.
First, the ball holder 120 was inserted into the tool pot body 110, and the front end surface of the large-diameter cylindrical portion 121 of the ball holder 120 was brought into contact with the flange 111a provided on the inner surface 111 of the tool pot body 110. Thereafter, a retaining ring 113 is fitted into a circumferential groove 111 b provided in the rear portion, and the rear end portion of the ball holder 120 is locked and fixed in the tool pot main body 110.
Next, when the spring 160 is arranged on the spring holding portion 123a of the ball holding body 120 and the slide pin main body 141 is inserted from the rear portion of the insertion hole 123, the tip of the spring 160 abuts on the front end of the spring holding portion 123a, The rear end portion comes into contact with the flange portion 141 b provided on the slide pin main body 141.
Thereafter, the tool 130 shown in FIG. 1 is assembled by placing the ball 130 in the ball holding hole 122 c provided in the ball holding body 120 and screwing the tip member 142 to the slide pin main body 141 with the bolt 143.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the assembled tool pot 100 fits the outer link plate L1 and the inner link plate L2 of the chain to the step portions 112a and 112a provided on the outer peripheral surface 112 of the tool pot main body 110, By fitting the retaining ring R into the outer peripheral grooves 112b and 112b formed at both ends, a tool magazine M composed of a chain provided with the tool pot 100 of this embodiment is obtained.

Next, the operation of the tool pot 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS.
5 to 7, only the shank portion S is shown as a tool.
In order to attach the tool to the tool pot 100 from the state shown in FIG. 5, when the end surface of the slide pin 140 is pushed forward in the axial direction by a piston rod (not shown), the taper portion 143 a is applied by the biasing force of the spring 160. Since the movement of the ball 130 pressed against the inner surface of the ball holding hole 122c via the ball is restricted by the ball holding hole 122c, the ball 130 moves onto the flat portion 143b by the advancement of the slide pin 140. From the flat portion 143b to the front portion 141a of the slide pin main body 141, that is, the play portion 150, the upper surface of the ball 130 is immersed in the ball holding hole 122c as shown in FIG.
Therefore, using the outer peripheral surface 122a of the small-diameter cylindrical portion 122 of the ball holder 120 as a guide, the shank portion S of the tool is inserted into the tool pot 100 and inserted until the end surface of the flange F of the shank portion S contacts the taper sleeve 114. .

Next, when the piston rod is retracted, the slide pin 140 is retracted by the urging force of the spring 160, and the ball 130 positioned on the play portion 150 on the front portion 141 a of the slide pin main body 141 is held by the ball holder 120. As shown in FIG. 6, the flat portion 143b of the cam 143 pushes up the ball 130 and retreats, so that the ball 130 is transferred to the tapered portion 143a. Let
The ball positioned at the taper portion 143a is protruded from the outer peripheral surface 122a of the cylindrical portion 122 and engaged with the ball engagement groove V provided in the shank portion S, and the ball engagement groove V is caused by the backward biasing force of the spring. The rear end portion V1 is pressed to hold the tool, and the taper portion 143a is pressed to clamp and fix the slide pin 140.
Further, a force larger than the backward biasing force by the spring is applied to the tool due to the vibration of the machine, and when the tool tries to escape from the tool pot 100, the force acts to push down the ball 130. The ball 130 moves from the taper portion 143a to the flat portion 143b while engaging with the ball engaging groove V, and presses the flat portion 143b downward in the radial direction to clamp and fix the slide pin 140. Since it is locked, it is possible to reliably prevent the tool from dropping due to slipping out.

Next, a case where a tool is taken out from the tool pot 100 at the time of tool replacement will be described.
As shown in FIG. 7, when the slide pin 140 is pushed forward by the piston rod P, the ball 130 holding the tool by the taper portion 143a is moved in the front-rear direction by the ball holding hole 122c of the ball holding body 120. Since it is regulated, the flat part 143b is passed to the loose fitting part 150 on the front part 141a of the slide pin main body 141, and the upper surface of the ball 130 is submerged in the ball holding hole 122c so that it is unlocked. The tool is easily removed from the tool pot 100.

  When the tool is taken out from the tool pot 100 and the piston rod P is retracted, the slide pin 140 is retracted by the urging force of the spring 160 and the ball 130 located in the clearance portion 150 on the front portion 141a of the slide pin main body 141. As shown in FIG. 5, since the upper portion of the ball 130 protrudes from the outer peripheral surface 122a of the small-diameter cylindrical portion 122 and is pressed against the inner surface of the ball holding hole 122c, as shown in FIG. Retreat stops.

  In the above-described embodiment, the tool pot 100 is a connecting pin between the pair of outer link plates L1 and the pair of inner link plates L2, and the magazine M is used. However, the outer link plate and the pair of inner link plates are formed by hollow connecting pins. You may mount in the hollow connection pin of the connected chain, and you may attach to a link plate directly or via an attachment.

  As described above in detail, the tool pot of the present invention has a cam provided at the tip portion of the slide pin, which is composed of a taper portion having a diameter reduced rearward and a flat portion connected to the taper portion. By retreating, the ball is positioned at the tapered portion or the flat portion and engages with the ball engaging groove provided in the shank portion of the tool, and the slide pin is clamped and fixed by pressing the tapered portion or the flat portion in the radial direction. Because the tool can be held and locked with the ball and cam, the tool can be held with high precision and stability, and the locking mechanism is simplified to increase the reliability and prevent the tool from dropping. In addition, the unlocking has a remarkable effect that the unlocking can be surely performed because the external force of the piston rod or the like presses the rear end of the slide pin in the axial direction. Than is.

The side view which shows the tool pot of a present Example in a partial cross section. The perspective view which shows the tool pot main body of a present Example in a partial cross section. The perspective view which shows the ball holding body of a present Example in a partial cross section. The perspective view which shows the slide pin of a present Example in a partial cross section. The side view which shows the principal part of the magazine using the tool pot of a present Example in partial cross section. The side view which shows the tool pot of the present Example which made the tool the locked state in a partial cross section. The side view which shows the tool pot of the present Example which unlocked the tool in a partial cross section.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Tool pot 110 ... Cylindrical tool pot main body 111 ... Inner peripheral surface 111a ... Gutter part 111b ... Inner peripheral groove 112 ... Outer peripheral surface 112a ... Step part 112b ··· Outer groove 113 ··· Retaining ring 114 ··· Tapered sleeve 120 ··· Ball holder 121 · · · Large diameter cylindrical portion 122 · · · Small diameter cylindrical portion 122a · · · Outer peripheral surface 122b ··· Opening part 122c ... Ball holding hole 123 ... Insertion hole 123a ... Spring mounting part 130 ... Ball 140 ... Slide pin 141 ... Slide pin main body 141a ... Front part 141b ...鍔 142 ··· Tip member 143 ··· Cam 143a · · · Tapered portion 143b ··· Flat portion 144 · · · Bolt 150 · · · Spacing portion 16 ... spring M ··· tool magazine L1 ··· outside link plate
L2 ... Inner link plate R ... Retaining ring

Claims (2)

A ball holder that is fixed in a cylindrical tool pot body and loosely holds a plurality of balls so as to be movable in the radial direction, and is inserted into the ball holder so as to be slidable in the axial direction, and is biased backward by a spring. A slide pin, a cam provided at the tip of the slide pin, and engaged with a ball engagement groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the shank portion of the tool by retreating the slide pin, and by the advance of the slide pin In a tool pot provided with a play portion for separating the ball from the ball engaging groove,
The cam is composed of a taper portion having a diameter reduced rearward and a flat portion connected to the taper portion, and the ball is positioned at the taper portion and engaged with the ball engagement groove by the retreat of the slide pin. At the same time, when the tool is held by pressing the taper portion and pinching and fixing the slide pin, and the tool tries to remove from the tool pot, the ball moves from the taper portion of the slide pin to the flat portion, and the ball engagement. A tool pot, wherein the tool is prevented from dropping by engaging with a mating groove and pressing the flat portion to clamp and fix the slide pin.   The slide pin includes a tip member provided with the cam and a slide pin main body connected to the tip member. The slide pin main body has a smaller diameter than a flat portion of the cam, and is arranged in front of the slide pin main body. The tool pot according to claim 1, wherein a gap between the outer peripheral surface of the part and the inner peripheral surface of the ball holding member is a play portion.

Images