JP5912665B2 - Sealer applicator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sealer application device for applying a sealer to a mohawk groove on an upper surface of a vehicle body.

  A roof mohawk structure is known as a kind of technique for joining a roof panel and a side panel of a vehicle body. The roof mohawk structure is a structure in which a pair of mohawk grooves extending in the front-rear direction is formed near both ends in the width direction of the upper surface of the vehicle body, and a plate joining portion of the roof panel and the side panel is provided at the groove bottom of the mohawk groove. After spot welding on the plate-joining part and joining both panels, apply a sealer to the Mohawk groove and seal the joint of both panels, and then fit the molding into the Mohawk groove to hide the joint between both panels Is.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an apparatus for automatically applying a sealer to a mohawk groove. Specifically, the coating head equipped with a nozzle that discharges the sealer can be freely slid in the vehicle width direction, and the sealer coating device is moved forward while the nozzle is in the mohawk groove. The sealer is applied to the mohawk groove by discharging the sealer from the nozzle while sliding the head in the vehicle width direction following the mohawk groove. At this time, the lower end of the nozzle is brought into contact with the groove bottom of the mohawk groove by its own weight, whereby the nozzle is positioned in the vertical direction.

JP 2002-126595 A

  However, if the lower end of the nozzle is brought into contact with the groove bottom of the mohawk groove as described above, the nozzle may be worn or deformed. In particular, since the seal coating step is performed after welding the plate joining portions of the roof panel and the side panel, unevenness due to the welded portion, spatter, or the like is formed on the groove bottom of the mohawk groove. For this reason, if the nozzle is moved forward relative to the groove bottom of the mohawk groove, the nozzle interferes with the welded portion, spatter, and the like, and there is a high possibility that the nozzle is worn or damaged. When the nozzle is worn or deformed in this way, the discharge state (discharge amount, discharge position, etc.) of the sealer deteriorates and there is a possibility that the joint of the panel cannot be reliably sealed.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to prevent the nozzle from being worn or damaged, and to securely seal the joint between the roof panel and the side panel with a sealer.

  The present invention, which has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, includes a sealer application part having a nozzle having a discharge port of a sealer at the lower end, and the sealer application part is brought into contact with the groove bottom of the upper surface of the vehicle body by its own weight. In this state, the sealer application unit discharges the sealer from the nozzle outlet while moving the sealer application part forward relative to the vehicle body, and extends to the sealer application part below the nozzle outlet, A guide member whose lower end is in contact with the bottom of the mohawk groove is provided.

  In this way, by providing a guide member extending below the nozzle discharge port and bringing the lower end of the guide member into contact with the groove bottom of the mohawk groove, the nozzle discharge port and the groove bottom of the mohawk groove are brought into contact with each other. Contact can be avoided. As a result, it is possible to prevent the nozzle from being worn or deformed due to sliding with the vehicle body, particularly interference with a welded portion or spatter. In addition, when the lower end of the guide member is in contact with the bottom of the mohawk groove, a constant vertical gap can always be provided between the nozzle outlet and the groove bottom of the mohawk groove. The state can be stabilized.

  In addition, if the front surface of the guide member is an inclined surface that is inclined downward toward the rear side, it is possible to smoothly get over the unevenness caused by welds and spatters formed on the bottom of the Mohawk groove, and the sealer The application state of can be further stabilized.

  By the way, the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101 is usually not flat, and as shown in an exaggerated manner in FIG. For this reason, when the lower surface of the guide member 9 ′ is flat as shown in FIG. 10, the intermediate portion in the front-rear direction of the guide member 9 ′ abuts on the groove bottom 101a of the Mohawk groove 101, and the discharge port 8a ′ of the nozzle 8 ′ The vertical gap δ ′ formed between the groove bottom 101a and the sealer may become unstable due to an increase in the vertical gap δ ′.

  Therefore, if the guide member has a tapered shape with the front-rear direction dimension gradually reduced downward, and the lower end of the guide member is brought close to the nozzle outlet, the contact portion between the guide member and the groove bottom is always located at the nozzle. Therefore, it is possible to stabilize the vertical gap formed between the nozzle outlet and the groove bottom, thereby further stabilizing the application state of the sealer. .

  In addition, when the sealer application part is moved away from the vehicle body, the sealer remaining at the tip of the nozzle may drip and contaminate the vehicle body. However, by bringing the lower end of the guide member close to the nozzle discharge port, It is possible to receive a sealer that hangs down from the exit, and it is possible to reduce vehicle body contamination due to the sealer.

  As described above, according to the coating apparatus of the present invention, since the contact between the nozzle and the vehicle body can be avoided, the nozzle is prevented from being worn or damaged, and the seam between the roof panel and the side panel is securely sealed with the sealer. be able to.

It is a side view which shows the production line of the motor vehicle provided with the sealer coating device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a cross-sectional view of the mohawk groove of the vehicle body. It is a side view of the said sealer coating device. It is a front view of the said sealer coating device. It is a side view of the sealer application part and arm of the sealer application device. (A) is the front view of the said sealer application part, (b) is the same side view. It is a flowchart which shows the positioning method with respect to the mohawk groove of the said sealer application part. It is a side view which shows a mode that a sealer is apply | coated to a mohawk groove in the said sealer application part. It is a fragmentary sectional front view which shows a mode that a sealer is apply | coated to a mohawk groove in the said sealer application part. It is a side view which shows a mode that a sealer is apply | coated to a mohawk groove in another sealer application part. (A) is a front view of the sealer application part which concerns on other embodiment, (b) is the same side view.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a production line in which the vehicle body 100 is transported in the direction of arrow A by the transport device and the work device is operated on the vehicle body 100. This production line is a so-called mixed flow line in which vehicle bodies 100 of different vehicle types are transported to the same line. Each vehicle body 100 is transported while being placed on the pallet P, and is transported together with an ID tag 110 that stores information relating to the vehicle body 100. In the illustrated example, an ID tag 110 is attached to the pallet P of each vehicle body 100.

  In this embodiment, the sealer is applied to the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 conveyed on the line shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 is provided at a joint portion between the roof panel 102 and the side panel 103, and extends in the front-rear direction in the vicinity of both end portions in the vehicle width direction on the upper surface of the vehicle body 100. Specifically, a plate joining portion of the roof panel 102 and the side panel 103 is provided on the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101. After joining the plate joining portions by spot welding, a joint 105 between the roof panel 102 and the side panel 103 is provided. The sealer is applied by the sealer applicator 1. The seam 105 is provided along the edge of the upper panel (the roof panel 102 in the illustrated example) of the groove bottom 101a, and is provided close to the inner wall 101b on the outer side in the width direction of the Mohawk groove 101 (right side in FIG. 2). .

  The sealer application device 1 is movable in the front-rear direction along the rail 120, and applies the sealer to the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 by discharging the sealer while proceeding in the direction of arrow B in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the sealer coating apparatus 1 includes a frame 2 that is slidably attached to the rail 120 in the front-rear direction, and a vehicle width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 4) with respect to the frame 2. A pair of base plates 3 that are slidably attached, a slide plate 4 that is slidably attached to each base plate 3 in the vehicle width direction, and a sealer application unit 5 that is provided so as to be movable up and down with respect to each slide plate 4 With. In the following description, the direction in which the sealer coating apparatus 1 travels while discharging the sealer (the direction of arrow B in FIG. 1) is referred to as the front, and the opposite side (the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1) is referred to as the rear.

  The frame 2 is driven in the front-rear direction by driving means (not shown) (for example, a hydraulic cylinder). A slide rail 2 a extending in the vehicle width direction is provided on the lower surface of the frame 2. The frame 2 is provided with a first sensor (not shown) that detects the position of the vehicle body 100 in the front-rear direction.

  The base plate 3 is attached to the slide rail 2a of the frame 2 so as to be slidable in the vehicle width direction (see FIG. 4). The base plate 3 is driven in the vehicle width direction by driving means (servo motor 6 in the illustrated example). On the lower surface of each base plate 3, a slide rail 3a extending in the vehicle width direction and a stopper 3b for restricting sliding of the slide plate 4 inward in the vehicle width direction at a predetermined position are provided. In the example of illustration, the stopper 3b is provided in the vehicle width direction inner side edge part of the slide rail 3a. The base plate 3 is provided with a second sensor (not shown) that detects the position in the vehicle width direction of the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100.

  The slide plate 4 is slidably attached to the slide rail 3a of the base plate 3 (see FIG. 4). The slide plate 4 is urged outward in the vehicle width direction with respect to the base plate 3 by the first urging means (spring 7a in the illustrated example), and is urged against the base plate 3 by the second urging means (air cylinder 7b in the illustrated example). Is biased inward in the vehicle width direction. The slide plate 4 is always urged outward in the vehicle width direction by the spring 7a. When the air cylinder 7b is turned on to extend the pin, the slide plate 4 slides inward in the vehicle width direction against the urging force of the spring 7a. Then, it stops at the position in contact with the stopper 3b. When the air cylinder 7b is turned off, the slide plate 4 slides outward in the vehicle width direction by the urging force of the spring 7a.

  The sealer application unit 5 includes a nozzle 8 that discharges the sealer and a guide member 9, and is provided so as to be movable up and down with respect to the slide plate 4. In this embodiment, the sealer application part 5 is provided at the tip of the arm 10 that is rotatably attached to the slide plate 4 (see FIG. 3). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the nozzle 8 and the guide member 9 are fixed to the distal end of the arm 10, and the vicinity of the proximal end of the arm 10 is connected to the slide plate 4 (see FIG. 5) via the rotation shaft 11 in the vehicle width direction. 5 is omitted). The arm 10 extends further to the base end side than the rotating shaft 11, and a sealer attached to the tip of the arm 10 is applied by pushing down the base end portion of the arm 10 downward by a pressing means (air cylinder 12 in the illustrated example). The part 5 rises and stops in a horizontal state by a stopper (not shown) (see the solid line in FIG. 5). When the pressing force by the pressing means is released, the tip of the arm 10 is lowered by the weight of the sealer application part 5 (see the dotted line in FIG. 5).

  The nozzle 8 has a hollow cylindrical shape having a flow path through which the sealer circulates, has a pipe (not shown) connected to the upper end, and has a discharge port 8a at the lower end. As shown in FIG. 6, the nozzle 8 of the present embodiment includes a cylindrical portion 8b extending in the vertical direction, and a flat portion 8c that is provided below the cylindrical portion 8b and is substantially parallel to a plane orthogonal to the front-rear direction. And the discharge outlet 8a is provided in the lower end of the flat part 8c. The discharge port 8a is slightly inclined rearward with respect to the directly downward direction (see FIG. 6B) and is directed in a direction inclined outward in the vehicle width direction (see FIG. 6A).

  The guide member 9 is formed of a material whose hardness is lower than that of metal, and is formed of, for example, resin. As shown in FIG. 6B, the guide member 9 has a tapered shape with a size in the front-rear direction being reduced toward the lower side, and a lower end thereof is brought close to the discharge port 8 a of the nozzle 8. The lower end of the guide member 9 is located slightly below the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 and slightly forward (left side in FIG. 6B), and contacts the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101. Side surfaces 9b on both sides of the guide member 9 in the vehicle width direction are located slightly outside the flat portion 8c of the nozzle 8 in the vehicle width direction. The front surface 9c of the guide member 9 is an inclined surface that is inclined rearward toward the lower side. In the illustrated example, the front surface 9c of the guide member 9 is composed of a flat portion 9c1 inclined substantially linearly, and a substantially arc-shaped curved surface portion 9c2 provided below the linear portion. A lower end 9 a that contacts the groove bottom 101 a of the mohawk groove 101 is provided. The rear surface 9d of the guide member 9 is an inclined surface slightly inclined rearward toward the lower side, and is an inclined curved surface along the nozzle 8 in the illustrated example.

  Hereinafter, a procedure for applying the sealer to the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 using the sealer application apparatus 1 will be described. In the present embodiment, a case is shown in which the sealer is applied by the sealer application device 1 while the vehicle body 100 is conveyed backward (in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1) at a constant speed.

  First, the sealer coating device 1 is disposed at the rear end portion (the right end portion in FIG. 1) of the rail 120. In this state, when the first sensor (not shown) of the sealer coating apparatus 1 detects a predetermined position (for example, the front end of the vehicle) of the vehicle body 100 that is conveyed toward the rear (in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1), The sealer application part 5 is disposed at a position in the vehicle width direction of the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 where the sealer is to be applied. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, positioning of the sealer application unit 5 in the vehicle width direction is performed by a first positioning step based on vehicle type information stored in the ID tag 110 and detection by a second sensor (not shown). It is divided into the second positioning step based on the result.

  In the first positioning step, first, information on the ID tag 110 of the vehicle body 100 to which the sealer is to be applied is read by the reader 111 (see FIG. 1) (step S1). This information is transmitted to a control unit (not shown) that controls the drive of the sealer coating apparatus 1, and the control unit identifies the vehicle type of the vehicle body 100 based on this information (step S2), and the vehicle body 100 in the vehicle type is identified. An ideal position in the vehicle width direction of the groove 101 is acquired (step S3). The servo motor 6 is driven and the base plate 3 is slid in the vehicle width direction so that the sealer application part 5 is disposed at this ideal position (step S4). Thereby, the sealer application part 5 is arranged at the vehicle width direction position of the mohawk groove 101 when it is assumed that the vehicle body 100 is accurately placed at a predetermined position on the pallet P.

  However, in reality, the vehicle body 100 is not accurately placed at a predetermined position on the pallet P, and is placed in a state shifted from the predetermined position. Therefore, when the first positioning process is completed, The vehicle width direction of the mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100 and the sealer application part 5 often do not match. Therefore, in the second positioning step, the vehicle width direction position of the actual mohawk groove 101 of the vehicle body 100, particularly the rear end portion (sealer application start side end portion) of the mohawk groove 101, by the second sensor provided on the base plate 3. Is detected in the vehicle width direction (step S5). The control unit obtains the actual vehicle width direction position of the mohawk groove 101 from the detection result of the second sensor (step S6), and the sealer application unit 5 is arranged at the actual vehicle width direction position of the mohawk groove 101. Then, the servo motor 6 is driven to slide the base plate 3 in the vehicle width direction (step S7). At this time, since the variation of the mohawk groove 101 due to the difference in the vehicle type of the vehicle body 100 is canceled in the first positioning step, the second sensor only needs to be able to detect the displacement due to the mounting accuracy of the vehicle body 100. An inexpensive sensor having a relatively small value can be used.

  When the sealer application part 5 and the mohawk groove 101 are aligned in the vehicle width direction in this way, the pressing force of the air cylinder 12 that pushes down the base end of the arm 10 is released, and the tip of the arm 10 is lowered by the weight of the sealer application part 5. (See dotted line in FIG. 5). Thereafter, the sealer applicator 1 is slid forward, the sealer applicator 5 is fitted into the mohawk groove 101, and the lower end 9a of the guide member 9 is brought into contact with the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101 (see FIG. 8). ). At this time, a minute vertical gap δ is formed between the discharge port 8 a of the nozzle 8 and the groove bottom 101 a of the mohawk groove 101.

  And if the 1st sensor (illustration omitted) provided in the flame | frame 2 detects the predetermined position (for example, vehicle front end part of a roof) of the vehicle body 100, the air cylinder 7b which urges | biases the slide plate 4 will be turned off. Thereby, the slide plate 4 is urged | biased to the vehicle width direction outer side by the spring 7a, and the guide member 9 of the sealer application part 5 contact | abuts to the inner wall 101b of the mohawk groove 101 outside the vehicle width direction (refer FIG. 9). At the same time, the sealer is discharged from the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 of the sealer application unit 5. At this time, the lower end 9a of the guide member 9 of the sealer application portion 5 and the side surface 9b on the outer side in the vehicle width direction slide with the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101 and the inner wall 101b on the outer side in the vehicle width, respectively. And the vehicle body 100 can be prevented from sliding, and wear and deformation of the nozzle 8 can be prevented.

  Further, since the guide member 9 is brought into contact with the inner wall 101b on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the mohawk groove 101, that is, the inner wall 101b where the seam 105 is close, the sealer application part 5 can be always disposed above the seam 105. The sealer discharged from the discharge port 8 a of the nozzle 8 can be directly applied to the joint 105. At this time, when the sealer is discharged directly from the nozzle 8, the sealer is supplied to the groove bottom 101a. Therefore, the vertical thickness of the end of the sealer in the vehicle width direction is reduced due to the viscosity of the sealer. In this case, since the seam 105 is covered with a thin portion of the sealer on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, the seam 105 may not be sealed with the sealer. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 faces obliquely downward that is inclined outward in the vehicle width direction, and thus toward the inner wall 101b of the mohawk groove 101 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction. Since the sealer is discharged, the sealer is supplied to the corner formed by the inner wall 101b and the groove bottom 101a on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and the vertical dimension of the sealer at the end of the groove bottom 101a on the outer side in the vehicle width is increased. can do. Accordingly, the seam 105 adjacent to the inner wall 101b on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the groove bottom 101a can be reliably covered and sealed with the sealer.

  Further, since the guide member 9 is in contact with the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101, the vertical gap δ (see FIG. 8) between the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 and the groove bottom 101a is kept constant. Therefore, the application state of the sealer can be stabilized. Further, since the front surface 9c of the guide member 9 is an inclined surface, the unevenness due to the welded portion and spatter formed on the groove bottom 101a can be smoothly overcome, and the application state of the sealer can be further stabilized. . In particular, in the illustrated example, since the lower end 9a of the guide member 9 is provided on the substantially arc-shaped curved surface portion 9c2, it is possible to slide on the groove bottom 101a more smoothly.

  By the way, the groove bottom 101a of the mohawk groove 101 is usually not flat and has a curved shape in which the vicinity of the central portion in the front-rear direction is increased as shown in an exaggerated manner in FIG. Is flat, the middle part in the front-rear direction of the guide member 9 ′ contacts the groove bottom 101 a of the mohawk groove 101. For this reason, the vertical gap δ ′ formed between the discharge port 8 a ′ of the nozzle 8 ′ and the groove bottom 101 a becomes large, and there is a possibility that the application state of the sealer becomes unstable.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the guide member 9 is tapered, and its lower end 9 a is brought close to the discharge port 8 a of the nozzle 8. In this case, since the contact portion between the guide member 9 and the groove bottom 101a can always be provided in the vicinity of the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8, it is formed between the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 and the groove bottom 101a. The gap in the vertical direction can be stabilized, whereby the application state of the sealer can be stabilized.

  And if the 1st sensor (illustration omitted) provided in the flame | frame 2 detects the predetermined position (for example, vehicle rear-end part of a roof) of the vehicle body 100, the discharge of the sealer from the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 will be stopped. Thereafter, the air cylinder 12 is extended to push down the base end of the arm 10, the sealer application part 5 provided at the tip of the arm 10 is raised (see the solid line in FIG. 5), and the sealer application part 5 is separated from the vehicle body 100. Thus, the sealer coating process is completed.

  When the sealer application part 5 is moved away from the mohawk groove 101, the sealer application part 5 moved along the mohawk groove 101 may interfere with the back door attached to the vehicle body 100. Since the front surface 9c of the member 9 is an inclined surface, it is possible to smoothly get over the back door.

  Further, when the sealer application part 5 is raised, the sealer attached to the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8 may drop and contaminate the vehicle body 100 and peripheral equipment. In this embodiment, the lower end of the guide member 9 is Since it is provided in the vicinity of the discharge port 8a of the nozzle 8, the sealer hanging from the discharge port 8a can be received at the lower end of the guide member 9 to prevent the sealer from dripping.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the front surface 9c of the guide member 9 is configured by the flat portion 9c1 and the curved surface portion 9c2. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, the front surface 9c may be configured by only the flat portion or only the curved surface portion. Good.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the sealer coating apparatus 1 is moved to the front side (see arrow B in FIG. 1) while the vehicle body 100 is transported to the rear side (see arrow A in FIG. 1) is shown. For example, the sealer may be applied while the vehicle body 100 is stopped and the sealer application device 1 is moved forward. Alternatively, the sealer application device 1 may be stopped and the sealer may be applied while the vehicle body 100 is conveyed to the rear side.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 11, you may provide the protrusion part 9d1 which protruded back in the vehicle width direction both ends of the rear surface 9d of the guide member 9. As shown in FIG. By covering the both sides in the vehicle width direction of the flat portion 8c of the nozzle 8 with the protruding portion 9d1, the situation where the nozzle 8 and the inner wall of the mohawk groove 101 come into contact can be more reliably avoided.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sealer coating apparatus 2 Frame 3 Base plate 4 Slide plate 5 Sealer coating part 6 Servo motor 8 Nozzle 8a Discharge port 9 Guide member 10 Arm 100 Car body 101 Mohican groove 102 Roof panel 103 Side panel 105 Seam

Claims (3)

A frame that is slidable in the front-rear direction with respect to the vehicle body, an arm that is provided so as to be rotatable with respect to the frame, has a tip that can move up and down, and a discharge port of a sealer at the lower end, and is fixed to the tip of the arm. and a sealer coating portion provided with the nozzle, the sealer coating unit, being in contact with the groove bottom of Mohawk grooves in the upper surface of the vehicle body by its own weight, is relatively moved in front of the frame relative to the vehicle body However, a sealer coating device for discharging a sealer from the nozzle outlet,
A sealer applicator, wherein the sealer applicator is provided with a guide member that is fixed to the tip of the arm, extends below the discharge port of the nozzle, and has a lower end that contacts the groove bottom of the mohawk groove.   The sealer coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the front surface of the guide member is an inclined surface inclined downward toward the rear side.   The sealer coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the guide member has a tapered shape in which a dimension in the front-rear direction is gradually reduced downward, and a lower end of the guide member is brought close to an ejection port of the nozzle.

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