JP5014917B2 - Clamp - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a clamp capable of gripping and fixing a workpiece, and more particularly to a clamp that grips an outer clamp gripping portion and an inner clamp gripping portion by using a thrust of a cylinder.

  Conventionally, various types of clamps have been conceived depending on the purpose of gripping work. For example, there are clamps that use a hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder and operate a gripping part to be clamped.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a conventional clamp.
W is a workpiece to be clamped. Some workpieces W are used as parts in automobile manufacturing, and operations such as welding and assembly of other parts are performed by gripping and fixing the workpiece W during a manufacturing process by flow work.
During this manufacturing process, the workpiece W is positioned and held and fixed by the clamp 100.

  The clamp 100 is attached to a stand 130 for fixing the clamp 100 by a clamp grip 120 that is gripped by the cylinder 110.

The stand 130 is fixed to a base (not shown) or the like, an arm part 131 for fixing the cylinder 110 is extended, and the cylinder 110 is fixed to the tip of the arm part 131.
The cylinder 110 has a cylinder body 111 fixed to the tip of the arm 131, and a movable grip 121 of the clamp grip 120 is swingably attached to the tip of a cylinder rod 112 slidable with respect to the cylinder body. It has been. Further, the cylinder body 111 is provided with a fixed grip portion 122 that is positioned to face the movable grip portion 121 and grips the workpiece W with the thrust of the cylinder 110 between the movable grip portion 121 and the cylinder body 111.

In the conventional clamp 100 configured as described above, the workpiece W is moved and the stand 130 is moved by a material handling robot (not shown) or the like, and the workpiece W and the clamp 100 are positioned at the workpiece W gripping position. At this time, the fixed grip portion 122 of the clamp grip portion 120 has already been moved to the workpiece W grip position.
Next, at this position, the cylinder 110 of the clamp 100 is operated to move the cylinder rod 112, and the movable gripping part 121 of the clamp gripping part 120 is moved to the fixed gripping part 122 side with the workpiece W interposed therebetween. Then, the movable gripper 121 grips the workpiece W with the thrust of the cylinder 110 between the movable gripper 121 and the fixed gripper 122.

  In addition, the fixed grip portion 122 is configured to be movable, and a crank mechanism that enables the fixed grip portion 122 to be moved by the cylinder 110 is provided in the fixed grip portion 122 and the movable grip portion 121, and both the grip portions 121 and 122 are moved. Some were configured to be clamped and fixed as possible.

However, since both the gripping parts 121 and 122 are operated by one cylinder 110, a sufficient gripping force cannot be obtained, and when the work W to be clamped and fixed is not well aligned, the clamps are not fully clamped. There was a problem that there was no case.
Furthermore, in order to solve this problem, instead of moving both gripping parts 121 and 122 at the same time, one gripping part 121 is moved first and moved to the position of the one gripping part 121 moved. There was also a clamp configured to grip the workpiece W by moving the other gripping portion 122 with a time difference. However, in this mechanism, in order to move the gripping portions 121 and 122, In addition, it is necessary to prepare a cylinder for moving the fixed gripping part 122, and the configuration of the clamp 100 requires two cylinders, which increases the overall size of the apparatus and increases unnecessary power sources. The problem was that it itself became complicated.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a clamp that can position both gripping portions with a time difference in order to ensure the work holding position accurately, and can move the gripping portion with only one cylinder.

The present invention, as one of the gripping portions by using only one cylinder is stationary by moving mechanically, the other gripper is moved by the cylinder, and, to enable gripping the workpiece by the thrust of the cylinder It is.

The clamp of the present invention includes a cylinder capable of supplying a thrust for clamping a workpiece, a base portion to which the cylinder is fixed, and a movable clamping portion that is fixed to the cylinder head of the cylinder and clamps the workpiece. A movable clamp gripping part that is formed at the tip and movable with the cylinder head as the cylinder expands and contracts, and a swinging clamping part that clamps the workpiece together with the movable clamping part are formed on one end side, and a copying roller is formed on the other end side. And a rocking clamp gripping part that forms a rocking base part that is pivotally locked to the base part, and is fixed to the cylinder head of the cylinder and can be moved along with the cylinder head. A scanning guide groove that is provided on a scanning guide and guides the swinging movement of the swing clamp gripping portion by inserting a scanning roller. The scanning guide groove of the scanning guide has an angular relationship with the moving direction of the cylinder head. And a parallel portion provided in parallel with the moving direction of the cylinder head. As the cylinder head moves, first, the copying roller of the swing clamp gripping portion is moved to the inclined portion of the copying guide groove. The swing clamp gripping portion is swung and guided, and then the copying roller is guided to the parallel portion of the scanning guide groove so that the swing clamp gripping portion does not swing and the swing clamping portion is The movable clamping part of the movable clamp gripping part is positioned at the opposite position, and thereafter the workpiece is clamped together with the swinging clamping part of the swinging clamp holding part.

Clamp provided by the present invention this is previously workpiece is installed clamping between the movable clamping gripper and the swinging clamp gripper is performed. Then, as the cylinder is operated and the cylinder head is extended, the movable clamping portion of the movable clamp gripping portion approaches the workpiece. At the same time, the copying guide moves as the cylinder head extends.
Then, the scanning roller of the swing clamp gripping portion moves along the scanning guide groove along with the movement of the scanning guide, and thus moves along the inclined portion of the scanning guide groove. At this time, the rocking clamp gripping part is rocked with the rocking base as a rocking end because the rocking base formed in the intermediate part is fixed to the base so as to be rockable.
When the cylinder head is further extended, the copying roller of the swing clamp gripping part eventually enters the parallel part, and the swinging operation of the swing clamp gripping part is completed as the parallel part enters. The position of the rocking clamp holding part of the rocking clamp gripping part at the position where the rocking operation is completed becomes the work pinching reference position.

On the other hand, the movable clamp gripping part continues to move as the cylinder head moves. Therefore, the swinging holding part of the swinging clamp gripping part has reached the workpiece holding reference position first.
Further, the cylinder head is extended, and the movable clamping part of the movable clamp gripping part comes into contact with the work, and the work is clamped and fixed between the movable clamping part and the swinging clamping part with the thrust of the cylinder.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, when the workpiece is clamped, the movable holding portion presses and holds the workpiece to the swing holding portion side with the thrust of the cylinder, and the swing holding portion is placed on the parallel portion of the copying guide. Since the cylinders are in contact with each other and receive a holding force due to the thrust of the cylinder, all the thrusts of the cylinder can be used for the holding force of the workpiece. In addition to this, the swinging holding part first reaches the holding position, and the copying roller of the swinging clamp gripping part receives the pressing force from the movable holding part by the thrust of the cylinder on the parallel part side wall. The position can be set as the holding reference position, and the position of holding the workpiece can be accurately determined.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an upper perspective explanatory view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an upper perspective explanatory view showing a workpiece holding state, and FIG. 3 is a side perspective explanatory view showing a workpiece holding state.

  1 is a clamp. The clamp 1 can clamp and fix the workpiece between the movable clamp gripping portion 2 and the swinging clamp gripping portion 3. The clamp 1 is used by being fixed to the tip of a material handling robot (not shown), a work machine table (not shown), or the like by the base part 4. The base portion 4 includes a fixed portion 41 and leg portions 42 erected from the fixed portion 41. The cylinder 5 is fixed to the leg part 42 of the base part 4. Note that the cylinder 5 may be fixed to the fixing portion 41 without being fixed to the leg portion 42, and may be fixed so that the relative position with respect to the base portion 4 does not move. Further, a fixing plate 43 is provided on the distal end side of the leg portion 42 of the base portion 4 so as to intersect with the standing direction of the leg portion 42. The swing clamp grip 3 is fixed to the tip of the fixed plate 43 so as to be swingable.

  The cylinder 5 is formed of an air cylinder, and a cylinder rod 52 can be expanded and contracted with respect to the cylinder body 51, and a cylinder head 53 is provided at the tip of the cylinder rod 52. The expansion / contraction direction of the cylinder rod 52 is the same as the standing direction of the leg portion 42 of the base portion 4, but is not particularly limited to this direction, and the workpiece W is clamped when the clamp 1 holds the workpiece W. As long as it can be held.

  On the cylinder head 53, the movable clamp holding portion 2 capable of holding the workpiece W by the movement of the cylinder head 53 is fixed upright in the extending direction of the cylinder rod 52, that is, on the side opposite to the cylinder body 51. Then, the tip of the standing movable clamp gripping portion 2 comes into contact with the workpiece W to form the movable clamping portion 21 that clamps the workpiece. Therefore, the shape of the movable holding portion 21 is formed in accordance with the shape of the workpiece to be held.

The copying guide 6 is fixed to the cylinder head 53. The copying guide 6 has a strong plate state and is fixed to the side of the cylinder head 53. A copying guide groove 61 is formed on the surface of the copying guide 6. The copying guide groove 61 swings the swing clamp gripping portion 3. The copying guide groove 61 is continuous with an inclined portion 62 provided obliquely from the extending side to the expanding / contracting side of the cylinder head 53, and a contraction side of the cylinder head 53 of the inclined portion 62, and the expansion / contraction of the cylinder head 53. It consists of the parallel part 63 provided in parallel with a direction. Further, the position of the scanning guide groove 61 that is changed from the inclined portion 62 to the parallel portion 63 is that the movable clamp gripping portion 2 fixed to the cylinder head 53 is in the middle of extension before reaching the workpiece W. The part 3 is provided so as to follow the guide.
Accordingly, the copying guide groove 61 is configured such that when the swing clamp gripping portion 3 is guided by the inclined portion 62, the swing clamp gripping portion 3 is swingably moved, and when the swing clamp gripping portion 3 is guided by the parallel portion 63, the swing clamp gripping portion 3 is swung. The grip portion 3 can be guided so as not to swing, and the swing clamp grip portion 3 finishes swinging before reaching the clamp position of the movable clamp grip portion 2 and reaches the clamp position. It can be controlled.

  The swing clamp gripping portion 3 is provided with a swing base portion 32 in the middle of the curved arm portion 31. The swing base portion 32 is pivotally locked to the end portion of the fixed plate 43. In this embodiment, in this embodiment, a pin is provided on the swing base 32 and a fitting hole is provided at the end of the fixed plate 43 so that the pin can be loosely engaged. However, there is no particular limitation, and the rocking base 32 and the fixed plate 43 may be locked in any manner as long as they are rotatably locked.

At one end of the arm portion 31, a copying roller 33 is provided in a state of being inserted into the copying guide groove 61, and is positioned in the copying guide groove 61. Accordingly, the copying roller 33 can be guided and moved in the copying guide groove 61 when the copying guide 6 moves as the cylinder head 53 expands and contracts.
Further, the other end of the arm portion 31 forms a swing holding portion 34. The swing pinching portion 34 is a movable pinching portion of the movable clamp gripping portion 2 fixed to the cylinder head 53 when the copying roller 33 is guided by the copying guide 6 and positioned in the parallel portion 63 of the copying guide groove 61. 21 and is provided with such a position against direction, the workpiece W is clamped fixed with the movable holding portion 21. The shape of the swing holding part 34 is provided in accordance with the holding position shape of the workpiece W.

Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as described above will be described.
FIG. 1 shows a state before the clamp 1 clamps the workpiece W, and the workpiece W is positioned between the movable clamp gripping portion 2 and the swinging clamp gripping portion 3.
In this state, the cylinder 5 is in a contracted state, and the movable clamping part 21 of the movable clamp gripping part 2 is in a state where the cylinder head 53 is not extended, so that the movable clamping part 21 has not yet reached the clamping position. The copying guide 6 is also in the reduced position where the cylinder head 53 is located.
Accordingly, the copying roller 33 of the swing clamp gripping portion 3 is also positioned on the inclined portion 62 of the scanning guide 6, and the swing clamp gripping portion 3 has not yet reached the pinching position.

From the state of FIG. 1, when thrust is applied to the cylinder 5 and the cylinder rod 52 moves to the extended state and the cylinder head 53 moves, the movable clamp gripping portion 2 and the copying guide 6 fixed to the cylinder head 53 are also moved. The Rukoto. With this movement, the movable clamp gripping part 2 moves in a direction in which the movable clamping part 21 approaches the workpiece W clamping position. Similarly, since the copying guide 6 also moves, the copying roller 33 of the swing clamp gripping portion 3 that has been located in the inclined portion 62 of the copying guide groove 61 follows the inclination as the position of the inclined portion 62 moves. Move and gradually move away from the cylinder 5.
When the copying roller 33 moves away from the cylinder 5, the swing clamp gripping portion 3 swings the arm portion 31 around the swing base 32, and the swing clamping portion 34 approaches the workpiece W clamping position. It will be.

When the cylinder 5 further expands, the copying roller 33 eventually reaches the parallel portion 63 of the copying guide groove 61. Therefore, until the copying roller 33 reaches the parallel part 63, the power source of the swing operation of the swing clamp gripping part 3 is covered by the thrust of the cylinder 5.
When the copying roller 33 enters the parallel part 63 of the copying guide groove 61, the parallel part 63 is provided in parallel with the expansion / contraction direction of the cylinder rod 52, so that the swing clamp gripping part 3 does not swing thereafter. Accordingly, in the swing clamp gripping portion 3, the swing clamping portion 34 does not move thereafter at the position where the copying roller 33 enters the parallel portion 63, so that the position is the workpiece clamping position of the swing clamping portion 34. Become.

On the other hand, at the position where the copying roller 33 enters the parallel part 63, the movable clamping part 21 of the movable clamp gripping part 2 has not yet reached the workpiece W clamping position.
When the cylinder rod 52 further expands, the movable clamping part 21 of the movable clamp gripping part 2 eventually reaches the workpiece W clamping position. The copying guide 6 also moves with the extension of the cylinder rod 52. However, since the copying roller 33 of the swing clamp gripping portion 3 has already entered the parallel portion 63, the swing clamp gripping even if the scanning guide 6 moves. The position of the part 3 does not change. FIG. 2 shows the state at this time.

  In the state shown in FIG. 2, the cylinder rod 52 tries to extend further, but the movable clamping portion 21 has already reached the workpiece W clamping position and is in contact with the workpiece W, so that the swinging clamping portion 34 is in contact with it. Since the workpiece W is held, the cylinder rod 52 is prevented from extending, and the workpiece W is held and supported by the thrust of the cylinder 5.

When the work on the workpiece W is completed in a state where the workpiece W is held and supported, the clamp 1 moves the cylinder 5 in the direction in which the cylinder rod 52 is contracted. Then, the gap between the movable holding portion 21 and the swinging holding portion 34 is widened, and the workpiece W is released from being held.
Then, the movable clamp gripping portion 2 and the swinging clamp gripping portion 3 follow the process opposite to that when the cylinder rod 52 is extended as described above, and return to the state before the workpiece W is held again.

As described above, the clamp 1 provides power for swinging and moving the swing clamp gripping portion 3 until reaching the workpiece W sandwiching position. Since the scanning roller 33 enters the parallel portion 63 of the scanning guide groove 61 and finishes swinging after reaching this position, the thrust of the cylinder 5 does not serve to pinch the swinging clamp gripping part 3.
Then, the oscillating clamp gripping portion 3 reaches the workpiece W nipping position first, enters a standby state at the workpiece W nipping position, and the movable clamp gripping portion 2 moved by the cylinder rod 52 later is moved. Since the part 21 reaches the work W and pinches the work W, the holding position of the work W is accurately determined by the swing clamp gripping part 3.
Further, when the movable sandwiching portion 21 and the swinging sandwiching portion 34 sandwich the workpiece W, only the movable sandwiching portion 21 is operated by the thrust of the cylinder 5, and the swinging sandwiching portion 34 is movable. The nipping portion 21 follows the thrust of the cylinder 5 holding the work W, and the roller 33 receives the nail on the side wall of the copying guide groove 61.

In this embodiment, a contact portion 35 that receives the thrust of the cylinder 5 is provided between the arm portion 31 and the swing holding portion 34 of the swing clamp gripping portion 3, and the contact portion 35 is provided on the fixed plate 43 . Similarly, the stopper 44 is also provided at a position opposite to the position where the contact roller 35 and the stopper 44 come into contact with each other at the position where the copying roller 33 enters the parallel portion 63 of the copying guide groove 61. The thrust of the cylinder 5 is not received by the copying roller 33 and the copying guide groove 61 but is received by the stopper 44 via the contact portion 35. The contact portion 35 and the stopper 44 are not essential, and may be received by the copying roller 33 and the copying guide groove 61, or may be formed so as to receive the thrust of the cylinder 5 by other methods.

  The present invention configured as described above can be used in all manufacturing processes such as mechanical products, electrical products, shipbuilding, and automobile manufacturing.

Upper perspective explanatory view showing an embodiment of the present invention Explanatory view of upper perspective view showing workpiece clamping state Side perspective view showing workpiece clamping state Perspective explanatory view showing a conventional example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Clamp 2 Movable clamp holding part 21 Movable clamping part 3 Oscillating clamp holding part 31 Arm part 32 Oscillating base 33 Copying roller 34 Oscillating clamping part 35 Abutting part 4 Base part 41 Fixing part 42 Leg part 43 Fixing Plate 44 Stopper 5 Cylinder 51 Cylinder body 52 Cylinder rod 53 Cylinder head 6 Scanning guide 61 Scanning guide groove 62 Inclined portion 63 Parallel portion

Claims (1)

A cylinder capable of supplying thrust for clamping the workpiece ;
A base unit which cylinder is fixed,
Fixed to the cylinder of the cylinder head, and formed at the tip of the movable holding portion for holding a word over click, a movable movable clamping gripper with the cylinder head due to expansion and contraction of the cylinder,
Forming a swinging holding portion for holding the workpiece with the movable clamping portion at one end, provided with a mimic have rollers at the other end, swinging the intermediate portion to be engaged rotatably to the base portion A rocking clamp gripping part formed with a base,
Fixed to the cylinder of the cylinder head is subjected to the scanning guide Ru movable der with the Shirindahe' de, a copying guide groove is inserted the copying rollers to guide the oscillating motion of the oscillating clamp gripping portion,
Consists of
Copying the guide groove of the copying guide is formed from an inclined portion providing a moving direction and angle of the cylinder head, the parallel portion provided in parallel with the moving direction of the cylinder head,
As the cylinder head is moved, first, copying rollers of the swing clamp gripper is guided by the inclined portion of the mimic have guide grooves swinging clamp gripper swings moved, the guide groove profiling rollers copying after the The swing clamp holding portion is positioned so as not to swing and the swing clamp portion faces the movable clamp portion, and then the movable clamp portion of the movable clamp grip portion is moved to the swing clamp grip portion. clamp according to claim Rukoto Soo clamping the workpiece with the swinging clamping portion.

Images