JP4705907B2 - Method and apparatus for laying fine wires on plastic substrate - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for laying thin wires on a plastic substrate, and has the characteristics of the preamble of claim 1. The invention further relates to an apparatus particularly suitable for carrying out this method.

  Over a long period of time, antennas, decorations or anti-corrosions made mainly from conductive wires mechanically deposited on the adhesive layer of laminated glass according to a predetermined pattern on laminated glazing for vehicle or building heating systems. It has been known to incorporate electromagnetic screens. In order to bring these wires into electrical contact with the outside (heating voltage capture, antenna signal transmission), current collectors are often provided at the two ends of the wires and the conductors are soldered Or electrically connected to all wires by a conductive adhesive or the like.

  U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,280 describes a method for laying fine wires and a corresponding device, whereby the wires are laid on an adhesive film or the like. The method is such that the membrane to be mounted is fixed to a rotating drum that acts to position the membrane under the wiring unit, and the wiring unit is movable by mutual movement parallel to the axis of the rotating drum. It is characterized by having a high degree of alignment like a drawing table. Thus, the wires can in principle be laid out in any desired layout, in particular a curved layout, and their mutual spacing need not be constant. However, the rotation direction and rotation speed of the drum remain constant.

  The wiring unit moves by mutual movement using a longitudinal spindle driving device capable of accurate position adjustment, but the movement is basically relatively slow when large movement is involved. Using this method, the current collecting conductor on the drum can be fixedly connected to the wire and the wire can be cut.

  An old-style device known from German Offenlegungsschrift 4,201,620 for laying fine wires on a thermoplastic membrane comprises one or more laying units which can move in the axial direction of a rotating drum on which the membrane is placed. In this device, the wire is finally wound helically around the drum. This is not a disadvantage in the finished product. This is because the angle of inclination between wires laid out at very short intervals is very small. This method, after all, operates faster than the technique described above, but it cannot route the wire along the contour.

  What the two known types of devices have in common is that the membrane is fixed to the drum as a result of applying a pressure differential. A hole is made in the side surface of the drum, and the pressure in the internal space of the hollow drum is reduced with respect to atmospheric pressure by air suction.

  It is also known to place wires on a flat stationary support using a device similar to a drawing table. Although this device can use virtually any alignment line, it is nevertheless relatively slow.

  EP 613769 discloses a method for cutting a heating wire arranged continuously on a substrate, while EP 656257 discloses a heating wire arranged parallel to each other. A method of making electrical contact using an assembly conductor oriented in a transverse direction with respect to the heating wire is described.

  The object of the present invention is to combine the advantages of known devices, in particular to provide a method that allows a high wiring speed and at the same time flexibly follows the layout and proposes a device that is particularly suitable for carrying out the method. It is.

  According to the invention, this problem with respect to the method is solved by the features of claim 1. The features of claim 11 show a corresponding device. The features of the dependent claims depending on each independent claim represent advantageous embodiments of these inventions.

  A particular feature of this method according to the invention is that in the case of the invention the support is reversible (with advancement or reversal of the direction of rotation) and the support is driven at an adjustable speed. . This offers a remarkably wide range of possibilities for laying wires on the substrate on the one hand and other tools on the other hand. A flat or curved support is used for this purpose, the support has the smallest possible mass and is driven very accurately by means of an alignment drive, preferably a play-free direct drive with a very short reaction time. And can be aligned. Such a direct drive device itself is known. These do not necessarily have to be actuated electrically, but instead hydraulic or pneumatic positioning devices may be used.

  Instead of the preferred direct gearless drive, it is also possible to use a drive with a distributed function by appropriate compensation of gears and possible play.

  The first step according to the invention is achieved by moving the tool transverse to the direction of movement of the support by using a fast and accurate linear drive method, preferably an electrical method. For this linear drive, it is necessary to have at least one guide rail with drive magnets and at least one traveler functioning as a tool holder or as configured so depending on the situation.

  At this time, a plurality of traveler can be arranged on the same guide rail and / or a plurality of guide rails distributed over the entire working surface can be provided. If necessary, the function of the tool (wiring, electrical connection, wire and, if necessary, cutting of the substrate) can be distributed on different guide rails or on several linear drives.

  However, unlike the above application, the linear motor used is also driven by a fluid (pneumatic or hydraulic) and servos that can adjust the tool or tools in synchronization and parallel each other by their adjusting members each time It may be a motor. This method can also achieve high adjustment speed and accurate position adjustment.

  With complete control of the machine, it can be programmed so that only the control program currently in progress needs to be modified in order to change the wiring diagram.

  Such a procedure and wiring technique can generate a unique wiring pattern for each customer, for example, a series of wires in a substantially wedge shape. That is, as has been done so far, the fact that the wires are not routed exactly in parallel, but with a slight inclination to each other, will eventually cause the wire to have a nearly trapezoidal surface. cover. This effect is also constant, variable or gradual in the central area of the surface as before, for example by directing the wires exactly parallel to each other and in the edge area of the non-rectangular surface to be mounted. It can also be obtained by laying a portion of the wire at increasing intermediate angles between adjacent wires.

  Thus, for example, in the automotive industry, even if the heating wire extends between the two long sides of such a glazing (at the location attached between the upper or lower edge of the roof), the heating of the entire surface is prevented. It is possible to meet the needs of customers who wish to cover the surface of the windshield or backlight so that it can be partially viewed in a substantially trapezoidal shape.

  According to yet another embodiment of the method, the amount of corrugation of the wired wires may eventually change. It is known per se to wire the wire with wavy lines, but nevertheless known means (plastically deformed between two meshing gear wheels just before the wire is laid on the substrate). Produces only a uniform waveform. However, this waveform is visually inconspicuous, and the wire is sufficiently hidden visually.

  On the other hand, in the method according to the present invention, the corresponding device can wire the wire with a variable wavelength and / or amplitude by appropriately controlling the movement of the wiring unit and the support. By this method, the resistance, and therefore the heating power of the individual wires, also uses wire materials having different dimensions / thickness or different specific resistances by laying longer or shorter length wires. It can be varied within a wide range without need. In particular, for a given glazing contour, a wire that only needs to cross a relatively short distance between the current collectors has an appropriate corrugation (and consequently has a longer actual wire length). ), Active resistances at least close to these resistances can be obtained which are the same as, or in any case, the resistance of “longer” wires electrically connected in parallel in the visible state.

  This requirement can be met by replacing a known wiring unit mechanical drive, such as a stepper motor or other suitable servo control. It goes without saying that the control of these drive units / stepping motors is synchronized with the control of the support. Thereby, variable electron distribution is performed.

  The tool movement Z-axis, ie its components oriented substantially perpendicular to each of the working surface or the surface of the substrate, can be mounted for translational or rotational movement. For this last variant, for example, a hollow shaft electric drive may be provided, this electric drive can initially be moved along the linear guide mechanism and adjusted in position, and further a tool held by the drive, For example, with respect to the action of a cutting or marking tool, it can be rotated about an axis parallel to a translational movement or a linear guide mechanism.

  The cutting tool can be incorporated into the apparatus to cut the wired wire itself to a predetermined length (tongue, short-circuit electrode) and to cut a substrate, for example, a thermoplastic resin adhesive film (knife), It can also be controlled by the method according to the invention. For example, it can be envisaged to combine a wiring unit with a cutting tool, in which case it starts wiring the next wire (adjacent wire if appropriate) after wiring the correct length of wire Properly cut immediately before doing. In this particular case, unlike known methods and devices, the wires can be sequentially routed in opposite wiring directions.

  If desired, a corrugated layout of wires can also be formed without interrupting and replacing the device.

  Other details and advantages of the present inventive subject matter will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments.

  Exemplary embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which are greatly simplified.

  In FIG. 1, a drum-shaped rotary support 1 is provided with a directly-coupled reversible electric drive device 2 that is mounted on a fixed position of the frame and operates on a rotation shaft 3 of the support 1. On the one hand, the support can be driven in two directions of rotation about the rotation axis 3, and on the other hand, the support can be controlled and adjusted with a predetermined movement profile. A plastic substrate 4 is fixed to the surface of the support 1 by suitable means (of a known type).

  Two wiring units 5 of the same type are shown on the support 1. The wiring unit 5 is configured to wire a thin wire 6 on the plastic substrate 4. The unit is fixed to the traveler 7 and can slide along a guide rail 8 fixed to the frame, perpendicular to the plane of the figure.

  Furthermore, another tool 5 'is also shown graphically on the left side next to the support. The further tool is guided on a cylindrical guide rail 8 ', the traveler 7' having a hole that fits into the guide rail 8 '. This traveler not only slides along the guide rail 8 'but can also rotate around the guide shaft (hollow shaft rotation drive), in which case the corresponding tool 5' is placed on the guide rail with respect to the support 1 and the plastic substrate. It can also move up (rotate) around. Therefore, it can be adjusted to move back and forth between a rest position (highly drawn with a solid line) and an operating position (drawn with a dotted line in contact with the plastic substrate). The tool may be, for example, a heating tool, a cutting tool and / or a writing tool, which comes into contact with the plastic substrate only when its function is actually needed.

  The wiring units 5 can likewise be adjusted in height with respect to their traveler 7, in particular to move the traveler together with their block 9 to an exact position on the surface of the substrate. Needless to say, the wire reel can be adjusted in order to facilitate replacement and insertion of a new wire 6.

  FIG. 2 shows the relative mobility of the wiring unit 5 and the support 1 together with the plastic substrate 4 in more detail. For simplicity, only one guide rail 8 is shown in FIG. However, in addition to the wiring unit 5 and the traveler 7, this rail also carries two other travelers 7, drawn in dotted lines, with other tools of the type described above. The guide rail 8 extends parallel to the axis 3 and thus perpendicular to the actual direction of action of the support 1.

  On the left side of the device, a programmable control unit C is shown to ensure the coordination of the movement of the traveler 7 with the support 1 and the wiring unit and other tools. The control unit C is connected to the direct drive device and each of the guide rail or the traveler coupled to the guide rail using the control line and the supply line as indicated by the symbol.

  The laying unit 5 is suitable for laying the wire 6 in an accurate and reliable position and can be routed independently of the relative direction of movement between the support on the one hand and the traveler on the other hand. Here, this is reproduced in a very simplified manner, in which the wire 6 is guided by the block 9 and the lower surface of the block is placed as close as possible to the surface of the plastic substrate 4.

  In order to at least partly reproduce a plurality of functions that can be performed individually, the plastic substrate 4 is now divided into three parts over the entire width of the support 1 by two sets of dashed lines drawn vertically.

  Further, on the left side, the wire portion 6 wired on the plastic substrate 4 is slightly inclined with respect to the support shaft 3 but is simply wired in a straight line, but is currently processed by the wiring unit 5. The wire 6 being routed is routed along the corrugated line and its amplitude increases downward from the top. The direction in which the undulated wire extends generally forms a small intermediate angle with respect to the left laid wire.

  This is possible by vibrating the traveler 7 together with the wiring unit 5 back and forth on the guide rail 8 according to a predetermined waveform layout as indicated by a double arrow. At this time, the support 1 is placed directly below. It is burned. Obviously, in this way, the wires can be routed according to any desired layout, in a straight line, corrugated or looped or curved, and parallel and / or at an intermediate angle between which they are constant or variable.

  In order to continuously wire the wire 6, if the direct drive device 2 that moves the support 1 itself by longitudinal vibration (also shown on the left side by a double arrow) at the same time is arbitrarily used, Layout is possible. This variant is shown in the center of the plastic substrate 4, in which case the wire 6 generates a corrugated pattern at the edge of the plastic substrate. This pattern spreads parallel to the axis 3 of the support 1 simply as a result of the vibration of the support 1 and at the same time the parallel movement of the traveler 7 carrying the wiring unit in addition to the block 9.

  Substantially all wire patterns can be placed on a plastic substrate if the option to superimpose similar traveler vibrations on top of the support vibrations, and they do not function electrically at all, for example, In addition, it may be produced purely for decorative purposes.

  Finally, on the right side of the plastic substrate 4, a cutting line 10 is seen, the cutting being here made using another traveler 7 mounted on a cutting tool 5 ′ to divide the plastic substrate 4. .

FIG. 2 is a side view of an apparatus for performing the method according to the present invention. It is a top view of the same apparatus.

Claims (17)

At least one wiring unit for laying wires on a substrate surface on a plastic substrate that is movable by a first driving device, specifically fixed to a drum-shaped support, using the second driving device A method of wiring a heating, antenna and / or decoration wire to a movable support using a wiring unit that is movable on the substrate surface independently of the support,
The first drive device used is a reversible position adjustment drive device that adjusts the position of the support,
Second driving device to be used, Ri Oh at least one linear motor with a guide mechanism for at least one traveler aligning at least one of the wiring units,
A rotating device, in particular a hollow shaft drive (7 ', 8'), is provided for adjusting the tool in the normal direction of action perpendicular to the substrate surface, and at least one traveler (7) is connected to the guide mechanism (8). A wiring method, characterized in that it can be moved and aligned with a straight line along it and can be tilted about the axis of the guide mechanism .   2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the position adjustment drive used is a direct electric drive, in particular a torque motor.   A plurality of travelers that can be aligned independently of each other are used to align at least one wiring unit or at least one other tool with one or more linear motors The method according to claim 1 or 2.   4. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one second guiding mechanism for independently guiding a traveler carrying the tool is used.   5. A first guiding mechanism is used for guiding a wire routing unit, and a second guiding mechanism is used for guiding other tools, in particular a cutting tool. The method according to any one of the above.   6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least a part of the quantity of wires is sequentially arranged in a non-parallel manner.   7. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least a part of the wire portion is wired with a variable waveform, i.e. a variable wavelength and / or amplitude.   8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least a part of the wire part is cut with a suitable length immediately after wiring.   9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least some amount of adjacent wire portions are laid out as wire portions adjacent to each other in alternating directions each time.   10. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least a part of the wire part is laid out in a wavy shape without breaks. It is movable by a first drive device (2) for fixing a substrate, in particular a drum-shaped support (1), and at least one wiring unit (5) for wiring a wire (6) on the substrate surface. A wiring unit that can be reversibly moved independently of the substrate with respect to the movable substrate by using the second driving device (7, 8), and thereby can be adjusted on the surface of the substrate. A device for using a heating, antenna and / or decorative wire on a plastic substrate (4), comprising:
The support (1) is reversibly movable and can be position-adjusted using the position adjustment drive (2).
At least one of the wiring units Ri movable der using at least one linear motor with a guide mechanism (8) for the wiring unit (5) at least one traveler mounting (7),
A rotating device, in particular a hollow shaft drive (7 ', 8'), is provided for adjusting the tool in the normal direction of action perpendicular to the substrate surface, and at least one traveler (7) is connected to the guide mechanism (8). A device characterized in that it can be moved and aligned in a straight line along and can be tilted about the axis of the guide mechanism .   12. Device according to claim 11, characterized in that the operating shaft of the linear motor is arranged substantially transversely to the direction of action of the support, preferably at an angle of 90 degrees.   Device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the linear motor comprises a fluidic, ie pneumatic or hydraulic control device.   Device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the linear motor comprises an electric drive.   15. A device according to claim 14, characterized in that the linear motor has a guiding mechanism (8) for a plurality of travelers (7) that can move independently of one another and can be adjusted in position.   Proximity to at least one wiring unit (5), another tool (5 ') with different functions, in particular a heating tool, a cutting tool or a writing tool, further comprises a traveler (7) and a linear motor. 16. Device according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that it can be actuated on the substrate and wire (6) by being used and aligned on the substrate (4). 17. A device according to any one of claims 11 to 16 , characterized in that the position adjustment drive is a direct-coupled electric drive, in particular a torque motor.

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