JP5981472B2 - Laser welding equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a laser welding apparatus for welding a butt interface of workpieces by laser irradiation.

  Wire harnesses are frequently used for in-car wiring of automobiles. The wire harness is a collective part of a plurality of covered electric wires according to the specifications of in-vehicle wiring. A terminal for connection (hereinafter referred to as a crimp terminal) is crimped to the end of each covered electric wire. When connecting the crimp terminal to the wire end of the wire harness, peel off the insulation coating layer of the wire end to expose the core wire, and crimp the core wire barrel of the crimp terminal to the core wire exposed part to crimp the wire end. Electrical connection with the terminal is made. And the connection part of a crimp terminal and an electric wire terminal is resin-sealed in order to prevent the corrosion of the core wire by the penetration | invasion of the water | moisture content from the connection part with a crimp terminal to the inside of an electric wire (patent document 1, patent document 2).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-167821 JP2012-0669449

  However, resin-sealing the connection portion between the crimp terminal and the wire terminal is a factor that increases the manufacturing cost of the wire harness. This is because the resin itself used is expensive, and it takes time for the resin to be poured and cured in the resin molding process or the coating process.

  Therefore, the crimping part (wire connection part) of the crimping terminal is bent into a cylindrical shape by press molding, and the entire butt interface at both ends of the plate material formed in the cylindrically bent part is joined by laser welding to seal the crimping part. Attempts have been made to structure.

  However, if the type of work piece such as a crimp terminal is changed or a worn die is replaced, the laser irradiation position in laser welding and the relative position of the butt interface of the work piece may shift.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a laser welding apparatus that allows variation in the position of a butt interface of a workpiece and laser-welds the butt interface to seal a crimping portion. .

In order to solve the above problems, the laser welding apparatus of the present invention is:
A laser that supplies a workpiece having a butt interface, which is a butt portion of a crimping portion of a crimp terminal in a chain terminal supported by a carrier , to a welding position, and welds the butt interface of the workpiece by laser irradiation. A welding device,
Prior to the start of the irradiation of the laser beam, a displacement detection means for detecting a displacement between the irradiation position of the laser beam and the position of the butt interface;
It is determined whether or not the positional deviation is larger than a predetermined allowable error. If the positional deviation is equal to or smaller than the allowable error, no correction is performed. Irradiation position correction means for correcting the irradiation position of light to the position of the butt interface;
And laser sweep irradiation means for irradiating the butt interface with laser light.

According to the laser welding apparatus of the present invention, the relative positional deviation between the position of the butting interface which is the butting portion of the crimping portion of the crimping terminal in the chain terminal supported by the carrier portion in a cantilever manner and the irradiation position of the laser beam has a predetermined tolerance. Since it has a function to determine whether or not the error is larger than the error, the correction is not performed when the positional deviation is less than the allowable error, and the correction is performed when the positional deviation is larger than the allowable error . Since it is possible to weld while allowing variation in the position of the butt interface, and the crimping portion can be sealed, the butt interface can always be laser-welded with high quality.

The laser welding apparatus of the present invention further comprises a feed roller for supplying the workpiece to the welding position,
On the outer peripheral surface of the feed roller, feed claws that engage with feed holes provided in the carrier portion at a constant pitch corresponding to the interval between the crimp terminals protrude in the circumferential direction at equal intervals. desirable.
In the laser welding apparatus of the present invention,
The positional deviation detecting means is
Imaging means for imaging the workpiece;
Image processing means for detecting the displacement based on an image picked up by the image pickup means;
An optical device for positional deviation observation that guides an image of the workpiece to a light receiving unit of the imaging unit;
A part of the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device is:
It is desirable that the laser beam be disposed coaxially with the optical path of an optical device for guiding the laser beam to the butt interface.

According to the laser welding apparatus configured as described above, the outer peripheral surface of the feed roller that supplies the workpiece to the welding position is provided on the carrier portion at a constant pitch corresponding to the interval between the crimp terminals. Since the feed claw that engages with the feed hole protrudes at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, the crimping caused by a slight gap between the feed roller and the carrier portion every time the feed claw and the feed hole are engaged. A shift in the transport amount of the terminal can be prevented.
According to the laser welding apparatus configured as described above, at least a part of the optical path axis of the misalignment observation optical device that guides the image of the workpiece to the light receiving unit of the imaging unit is irradiated to the butt interface. By being arranged coaxially with the incident light path, it is possible to reliably capture an image of the workpiece including the position where the laser light is actually irradiated. Then, based on the captured image, a relative displacement between the irradiation position of the laser beam and the position of the butt interface of the workpiece is detected, and the irradiation position of the laser beam is corrected to eliminate the displacement. can do. In addition, by using the laser beam epi-illumination path as part of the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device, the imaging means is placed at a position that is not affected by scattered particles or smoke generated at the laser beam irradiation position. Thus, an image of the workpiece can be taken in a clean environment at all times.

  Since the laser welding apparatus of the present invention has a function of correcting the relative positional deviation between the irradiation position of the laser beam and the position of the butt interface, it allows variation in the position of the butt interface of the workpiece. Since welding is possible and the crimping part can be sealed, the butt interface can always be laser-welded with high quality.

Device configuration diagram of the first embodiment of the present invention (A) Conceptual diagram illustrating the workpiece having a gap at the butt interface and the configuration of the clamping device in a state before the workpiece is sandwiched. (B) The workpiece in a state in which the workpiece is sandwiched by the clamping device. Conceptual diagram illustrating the state in which laser light is irradiated to the butt interface of the workpiece The flowchart which illustrates the flow of the welding processing operation by the laser welding apparatus of this invention The apparatus block diagram of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention The apparatus block diagram of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention Device configuration diagram of the fourth embodiment of the present invention The apparatus block diagram of other embodiment of this invention The perspective view of the crimp terminal welded by the laser welding apparatus of this invention Process drawing which shows the outline of the manufacturing process of the crimp terminal of FIG. System configuration diagram showing a laser welder

Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.
In this embodiment, an apparatus configuration for manufacturing the crimp terminal 80 illustrated in FIG. 8 will be described. As shown in FIG. 9, the crimp terminal 80 is (a) a belt-shaped metal plate 81 that is fed forward at a constant pitch in the longitudinal direction (direction of arrow A), and (b) the carrier portion 82 and the unfolded state. (C) A plate material that can be formed into a crimping portion 85 by integrally molding the box-shaped connector portion 84 and the cylindrical crimping portion 85 by punching and bending the terminal material 83. It is manufactured through a series of steps of joining the butted interface 86 at both ends and the overlapping portion 100 of the tip sealing portion by laser welding. Here, the abutting interface refers to a portion where one end surface in the bending direction of the plate material constituting the crimping portion and the other end surface are abutted and brought into contact with each other. Laser welding is performed so that the middle in the longitudinal direction of the overlapping portion 100 is welded in the terminal width direction.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing a first embodiment of a laser welding apparatus of the present invention. The laser welding apparatus 10 is an apparatus that sequentially supplies unwelded crimp terminals 87, which are workpieces, to a welding position, and welds a butt interface 86 of a crimp portion 85 of the crimp terminals 87 by laser irradiation. The crimp terminal 87 is sequentially fed to the welding position P in the form of a chain terminal 88 that is cantilevered and supported by the carrier portion 82 at a constant interval as shown in FIG. 9C, and is subjected to welding by laser irradiation. Is done.

  The laser welding apparatus 10 includes a laser light source 20, a laser irradiation optical device 30, a feeding device 40, a clamping device 50, a misalignment detection device 60, and a control device 70.

  The laser light source 20 is a known fiber laser, and oscillates a laser beam having a wavelength in the near-infrared region using a quartz optical fiber doped with a rare earth element as a laser medium.

  The laser irradiation optical device 30 is an optical device for guiding the laser beam output from the laser light source 20 to the welding position P. The laser irradiation optical device 30 includes an optical path axis shift optical device 31, a galvano scanner (laser sweep irradiation means) 32, and a condenser lens 33.

  The optical path axis shift optical device 31 is an optical device that reflects the laser light outputted in the horizontal direction from the laser light source 20 a plurality of times and shifts the optical path axis of the laser light upward in parallel. In this example, it is composed of two dielectric multilayer flat mirrors 31A and 31B which are arranged in parallel with each other and vertically spaced from each other with an incident angle of 45 °.

  The galvano scanner 32 is a two-axis (XY) type galvano scanner, and sequentially reflects the laser light from the optical path axis shift optical device 31 by two mirrors 32X and 32Y whose angles are controlled synchronously around axes orthogonal to each other. By doing so, the laser light LB is swept to the butted interface 86 and the overlapping portion 100 of the crimp terminal 87 stopped at the welding position P. The galvano scanner 32 is driven and controlled by a galvano control system 34. The irradiation position of the laser beam LB in the horizontal plane can be adjusted by controlling the angles of the mirrors 32X and 32Y, and the sweep speed of the laser beam LB can be adjusted by controlling the rotation speed of the mirrors 32X and 32Y. .

  The condensing lens 33 is an optical coupling system that condenses the laser light from the galvano scanner 32 at the position of the butt interface 86 of the crimp terminal 87. As the condenser lens 33, a telecentric lens or an fθ lens is used.

  The feeding device 40 is a device that sequentially supplies the crimp terminals 87 to the welding position P by feeding the chain terminals 88 at a constant pitch corresponding to the interval L where the crimp terminals 87 are arranged. The feeding device 40 has twin rollers 41 and 42 that rotate while sandwiching the carrier portion 82 of the chain terminal 88 from above and below in the vicinity of the upstream side and the downstream side of the welding position P in the feed direction of the chain terminal 88. Yes. The twin rollers 41 and 42 include feed rollers 41A and 42A that are in contact with the lower surface of the carrier portion 82, and pressing rollers 41B and 42B that are in contact with the upper surface. The pressing rollers 41B and 42B are driven to rotate while pressing the carrier portion 82 from above. The feed rollers 41A and 42A are rotationally driven at a constant speed by a drive mechanism (not shown). Feeding claws 45 project from the outer peripheral surfaces of the feeding rollers 41A and 42A at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. The feed claw 45 engages with a feed hole 89 (see FIG. 9) of the carrier portion 82. Each time the feed rollers 41 </ b> A and 42 </ b> A rotate by a certain angle, the feed claw 45 engaged with the feed hole 89 of the carrier portion 82 moves the chain terminal 88 by an interval L where the crimp terminals 87 are arranged.

  The clamp device 50 is a device for accurately positioning the crimp terminal 87 supplied to the welding position P. The clamp device 50 includes an upper clamp jig 51, a lower clamp jig 52, and an illumination device 53 that emits light from the back side of the crimp terminal 87 (the back side of the clamp jig 52). The tools 51 and 52 are sandwiched from above and below so as to contact the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 at least at three points. For this reason, the clamp jig 51 is formed with, for example, a substantially C-shaped portion 51 a that abuts and presses against the crimping portion 85 at two points. On the other hand, the clamp jig 52 is formed with a substantially flat contact surface 52a that contacts the crimping portion 85 at one point. By sandwiching the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 from above and below by the clamp jigs 51 and 52, the butt interface 86 of the crimping portion 85 is placed at a position where the laser beam LB can be irradiated as shown in FIG. Can be positioned. Further, the upper clamp jig 51 is formed with a slit 51b so as not to obstruct the irradiation of the laser beam LB to the butt interface 86.

  The positional deviation detection device 60 is a detection device for detecting a relative positional deviation between the irradiation position of the laser beam LB and the position of the butt interface 86 prior to the start of laser beam irradiation. The misalignment detection device 60 captures an image of the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 supplied to the welding processing position P, an illumination device 62 that illuminates the welding processing position P, and an image of the crimping portion 85. An optical device 63 for observing misalignment that is guided to the light receiving unit of the image pickup device 61 and forms an image; and an image processing system 64 for detecting the position of the butt interface 86 based on the image picked up by the image pickup device 61. ing.

  For the imaging device 61, an image sensor using a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD (Carge-Cupled Dice) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) is used. For the lighting device 62, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) lamp, a halogen lamp, or the like is used.

  Most of the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device 63 is arranged coaxially with the optical path of the laser irradiation optical device 30. In this example, an optical path 35 from one dielectric multilayer flat mirror 31B of the optical path axis shift optical device 31 to the galvano scanner 32 and an incident light path 36 of the laser irradiation optical device 30, that is, from the galvano scanner 32 to the welding processing position P. The reaching optical path is used as the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device 63. An imaging lens 65 is disposed between the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 31B and the imaging device 61. With this configuration, the image of the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 supplied to the welding position P sequentially passes through the condenser lens 33, the galvano scanner 32, the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 31B, and the imaging lens 65, and then the imaging device. An image is formed on the light receiving portion 61. The imaging device 61 captures a received light image and outputs the obtained image data. The image data output from the imaging device 61 is input to the image processing system 64. The image processing system 64 detects the position of the butt interface 86 of the crimp terminal 87 by performing edge detection processing or the like on the input image data.

  The control device 70 is a computer system that performs overall control of the overall operation of the laser welding apparatus 10. The control device 70 functions as an irradiation position correction unit that corrects the irradiation position of the laser beam LB based on the data from the image processing system 64.

  The operation of the laser welding apparatus 10 configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart illustrated in FIG. The laser welding apparatus 10 clamps the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 with the clamp device 50 (S2) each time the unwelded crimping terminal 87 is supplied to the welding position P by the feeding device 40 (S1). In the state where the positioning is performed, the crimping portion 85 is imaged (S3). Based on the image data obtained by imaging, the position of the butt interface 86 existing in the crimping portion 85 is detected (S4). The distance D between the detected position of the butt interface 86 and the irradiation position (current set position) of the laser beam LB is measured (S5), and the measured distance D is larger than the allowable error (threshold value) ΔD. Whether or not (S6). If the measured distance D is equal to or smaller than the allowable error ΔD (No in S6), laser welding is performed by irradiating the laser beam LB at the current set position (S7). On the other hand, if the measured distance D is larger than the allowable error ΔD (Yes in S6), it is determined that a relative positional deviation has occurred between the irradiation position of the laser beam LB and the position of the butt interface 86, and the laser beam After correcting the irradiation position of LB to the position of the butt interface 86 (S8), laser welding is performed (S7). Thereafter, the clamp is released (S9), and the process returns to the process (S1) of supplying the unwelded crimp terminal 87 to the welding position P.

  As described above, the laser welding apparatus 10 performs a process of detecting a relative displacement between the irradiation position of the laser beam LB and the position of the butt interface 86 before starting the irradiation of the laser beam LB. When the positional deviation is detected, the irradiation position of the laser beam LB is corrected to the position of the butt interface 86, and then the irradiation of the laser beam LB is started to perform laser welding. Therefore, according to the laser welding apparatus 10, variations in the positions of the butt interfaces 86 of the crimp terminals 87 that are successively supplied to the welding position P are allowed, and the butt interfaces 86 of all the crimp terminals 87 are of high quality. Laser welding is possible.

Further, according to the laser welding apparatus 10 of this embodiment, a part of the optical axis of the misalignment observation optical device 63 that guides the image of the crimping portion 85 to the light receiving portion of the imaging device 61 is irradiated to the butt interface 86. By being arranged coaxially with the incident light path 36 of the laser beam LB, it is possible to reliably capture an image of the crimping portion 85 including the position where the laser beam LB is actually irradiated. Then, based on the captured image, a relative positional shift between the irradiation position of the laser beam LB and the position of the butt interface of the crimping portion 85 is detected, and the irradiation position of the laser beam LB to eliminate the positional shift. Can be corrected. Further, by using the incident light path 36 of the laser beam LB as a part of the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device 63, an image is picked up at a position not affected by scattered particles or smoke generated at the irradiation position of the laser beam LB. By arranging the device 61, an image of the crimping portion 85 can be taken in a clean environment at all times.
Since the feed claws 45 project from the outer peripheral surfaces of the feed rollers 41 </ b> A and 42 </ b> A, the feed claws 45 engage with the feed holes 89 of the carrier portion 82 when the crimp terminal 87 is conveyed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a shift in the conveyance amount of the crimp terminal 87 caused by a slight gap between the feed rollers 41A and 42A and the carrier portion 82, and highly accurate positioning can be performed.
In addition, since the backlight 53 is provided on the back side of the clamp device 50, the outline of the crimp terminal 87 becomes clearer by the irradiation of light from the backlight 53, so that more accurate positioning can be performed.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 4 is a system configuration diagram showing a second embodiment of the laser welding apparatus of the present invention. In the following, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. In the first embodiment, the illumination device 62 is provided in the vicinity of the welding position P, and the crimping portion 85 is directly illuminated by the illumination light of the illumination device 62. However, in the second embodiment shown in FIG. An illuminating device 66 is provided so as to face the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 31A of the optical path axis shift optical device 31, and the illumination light emitted from the illuminating device 66 passes through the optical path axis of the laser irradiation optical device 30 and is welded. P is led. That is, in this example, the optical path 37 between both multilayer film plane mirrors 31A and 31B of the optical path axis shift optical device 31, the optical path 35 from the dielectric multilayer film plane mirror 31B to the galvano scanner 32, and the laser irradiation optical device 30 The incident light path 36 is used as an optical path for illumination light. By using the incident light path 36 of the laser light LB as the optical path of the illumination light, the illumination device 66 can be disposed at a position that is not affected by scattered particles or smoke generated at the irradiation position of the laser light LB. In addition, the material surface can be reliably illuminated evenly, and positional interference with the feeding device 40 and the clamping device 50 can be avoided.

[Third Embodiment]
FIG. 5 is a system configuration diagram showing a third embodiment of the laser welding apparatus of the present invention. In the first embodiment, the galvano scanner 32 is provided, and the laser light LB from the laser light source 20 is shaken in the XY direction (horizontal direction) by the two mirrors 32X and 32Y in the galvano scanner 32, thereby matching the crimp terminal 87. Although the configuration in which the laser beam LB is swept along the interface 86 is adopted, the third embodiment shown in FIG. 5 includes a laser processing head 90, and the laser processing head 90 itself is XY direction (horizontal direction). The laser beam LB is swept by moving to. In the laser processing head 90, a dielectric multilayer flat mirror 91 that reflects the laser beam LB from the laser light source 20 downward at right angles and falls on the welding processing position P, and a laser from the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 91. A condensing lens 92 that condenses the light LB at the position of the butt interface 86 of the crimp terminal 87 is provided. Further, in the laser processing head 90, an imaging device 61 and an imaging lens 65 are provided. The imaging device 61 and the imaging lens 65 are arranged coaxially with the incident light path 36, and the image of the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 at the welding position P is a condensing lens 92, a dielectric multilayer flat mirror 91, The light passes through the imaging lens 65 in order and forms an image on the light receiving portion of the imaging device 61.

  Also in the laser welding apparatus 10 of the third embodiment, a part of the optical path axis of the misalignment observation optical device 63 that guides the image of the crimping portion 85 to the light receiving portion of the imaging device 61 is irradiated to the butt interface 86. By being arranged coaxially with the incident light path 36 of the laser beam LB, it is possible to reliably capture an image of the crimping portion 85 including the position where the laser beam LB is actually irradiated. Then, based on the captured image, a relative positional shift between the irradiation position of the laser beam LB and the position of the butt interface of the crimping portion 85 is detected, and the irradiation position of the laser beam LB to eliminate the positional shift. Can be corrected.

[Fourth Embodiment]
FIG. 6 is a system configuration diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the laser welding apparatus of the present invention. In 3rd Embodiment, although the illuminating device 62 is provided in the vicinity of the welding process position P and it is made to illuminate the crimping | compression-bonding part 85 directly with the illumination light of the illuminating device 62, in 4th Embodiment shown in FIG. An illumination device 66 is provided in the vicinity of the laser light source 20 far from the welding processing position P. In the vicinity of the laser light source 20, a dielectric multilayer flat mirror 67 that reflects the laser light LB output from the laser light source 20 and guides it to the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 91 in the laser processing head 90 is provided. The illuminating device 66 is arranged coaxially with both dielectric multilayer flat mirrors 67 and 91. The illumination light emitted from the illumination device 66 is guided to the welding processing position P through the optical path axis of the laser irradiation optical device 30. That is, in this example, the optical path 38 between the multilayer mirrors 67 and 91 of the laser irradiation optical device 30 and the incident light path 36 are used as the optical path of illumination light. By using the incident light path 36 of the laser beam LB as the optical path of the illumination light, the illumination device 66 can be disposed at a position that is not affected by scattered particles or smoke generated at the irradiation position of the laser beam 63.

[Other Embodiments]
The configuration of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment. For example, the arrangement of mirrors and lenses can be changed as appropriate. In the above example, the case where a fiber laser is used as the laser light source 20 has been described. However, the laser light source 20 is not limited to a fiber laser. In the above example, the misregistration detection device 60 includes the illumination devices 62 and 66. However, the images of the crimping portion 85 of the crimping terminal 87 supplied to the welding position P are obtained from the dielectric multilayer flat mirrors 31B and 91. , And the illumination devices 62 and 66 can be omitted. The workpiece is not limited to the crimp terminal.

  FIG. 7 is a device configuration diagram in which the clamp device 50 is omitted from the configuration of the first embodiment shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, when the clamping device 50 is omitted, misalignment occurs in the engagement between the feed rollers 41 </ b> A and 42 </ b> A and the feed hole 89 of the carrier portion 82. It is possible to perform laser irradiation while performing image processing of the crimp terminal and correcting the positional deviation of the butt interface. Moreover, the clamping process of a crimping | compression-bonding part can be skipped, and the work efficiency from conveyance of a crimping terminal to welding can be improved.

  FIG. 10 is a system configuration diagram showing the laser welding machine 210. The laser welder 210 sequentially supplies unwelded crimp terminals 287, which are workpieces, to welding positions, and welds the butt interface 286a of the crimp portion 285 and the overlapping portion 286b of the crimp terminal 287 by laser irradiation. Device. The crimp terminals 287 are sequentially fed to the welding position P in the form of chain terminals 288 that are cantilevered and supported by the carrier portion 282 at regular intervals, and are subjected to welding by laser irradiation.

  The laser welder 210 includes a laser light source 220, a laser irradiation optical device 230, a feeding device 240, a workpiece holding mechanism 250, and a control device 270.

  The laser irradiation optical device 230 is an optical device for guiding the laser beam output from the laser light source 220 to the welding position P. The laser irradiation optical device 230 includes an X / Y axis scanner 231, a Z axis scanner 232, and a condenser lens 233.

  The X / Y-axis scanner 231 is a two-axis (XY) type galvano scanner, and sequentially includes two mirrors 231X and 231Y whose angles are controlled in synchronization with each other around axes orthogonal to each other. By reflecting the laser beam LB, the laser light LB is swept onto the butt interface 286a and the overlapping portion 286b of the crimp terminal 287 stopped at the welding position P.

  The Z-axis scanner 232 is an optical device for adjusting the focal position in the irradiation direction (Z-axis direction) of the laser beam LB scanned by the X / Y-axis scanner 231. The Z-axis scanner 232 is provided on the optical path of the laser beam LB incident on the X / Y-axis scanner 231.

  The X / Y axis scanner 231 and the Z axis scanner 232 are driven and controlled by a galvano control system 234. The irradiation position of the laser beam LB in the horizontal plane can be adjusted by controlling the angles of the mirrors 231X and 231Y, and the sweep speed of the laser beam LB can be adjusted by controlling the rotation speed of the mirrors 231X and 231Y. .

  The condensing lens 233 is an optical coupling system that condenses the laser light LB from the X / Y-axis scanner 231 at the positions of the butt interface 286 a and the overlapping portion 286 b of the crimp terminal 287. As the condenser lens 233, a telecentric lens or an fθ lens is used.

  The feeding device 240 is a device that sequentially supplies the crimp terminals 287 to the welding position P by feeding the chain terminals 288 at a constant pitch corresponding to the interval L where the crimp terminals 287 are arranged. The feeding device 240 has twin rollers 241 and 242 that rotate while sandwiching the carrier portion 282 of the chain terminal 288 from above and below in the vicinity of the upstream side and the downstream side of the welding position P in the feed direction of the chain terminal 288. Yes. The twin rollers 241 and 242 include feed rollers 241A and 242A that are in contact with the lower surface of the carrier portion 282, and pressing rollers 241B and 242B that are in contact with the upper surface. The pressing rollers 241B and 242B are driven to rotate while pressing the carrier portion 282 from above. The feed rollers 241A and 242A are rotationally driven at a constant speed by a drive mechanism (not shown). Feed claws 245 project from the outer peripheral surfaces of the feed rollers 241A and 242A at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. The feed claw 245 engages with the feed hole of the carrier portion 282. Each time the feed rollers 241A and 242A rotate by a certain angle, the feed claw 245 engaged with the feed hole of the carrier portion 282 moves the chain terminal 288 by the interval L where the crimp terminals 287 are arranged.

The workpiece holding mechanism 250 is a device for holding the crimp terminal 287 supplied to the welding position P in an appropriate position and posture and eliminating the gap at the butt interface 286a.
Note that the Z-axis focusing system combined with the coaxial observation system may be located between the laser light source and the galvano scanner or the laser processing head. Specifically, between the laser light source 20 of FIGS. 1, 4 and 7 and the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 31A, between the laser light source 20 of FIG. 5 and the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 91, and the laser light source of FIG. 20 and the dielectric multilayer flat mirror 67 may be installed.
That is, the present invention can be applied to a laser welding apparatus for all workpieces having a butt interface between metal plate materials.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Laser welding apparatus 20 Laser light source 30 Laser irradiation optical apparatus 31 Optical path axis shift optical apparatus 32 Galvano scanner (laser sweep irradiation means)
33 Condensing lens 36 Epi-illumination light path 40 Feed device 50 Clamp device (gap elimination device)
60 Misalignment Detection Device 61 Imaging Device 63 Misalignment Observation Optical Device 64 Image Processing System 70 Control Device (Irradiation Position Correction Means)
80 Crimping terminal 85 Crimping part 86 Butt interface 87 Crimping terminal (workpiece)
LB Laser beam P Welding position

Claims (3)

A laser that supplies a workpiece having a butt interface, which is a butt portion of a crimping portion of a crimp terminal in a chain terminal supported by a carrier , to a welding position, and welds the butt interface of the workpiece by laser irradiation. A welding device,
Prior to the start of the irradiation of the laser beam, a displacement detection means for detecting a displacement between the irradiation position of the laser beam and the position of the butt interface;
It is determined whether or not the positional deviation is larger than a predetermined allowable error. If the positional deviation is equal to or smaller than the allowable error, no correction is performed. Irradiation position correction means for correcting the irradiation position of light to the position of the butt interface;
Laser sweep irradiation means for irradiating the butt interface with laser light;
Laser welding apparatus comprising a. Feed roller for supplying the workpiece to the welding position
Further comprising
A feed claw that engages with a feed hole provided in the carrier portion at a constant pitch corresponding to the interval between the crimp terminals protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the feed roller at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. Item 2. The laser welding apparatus according to Item 1. The positional deviation detecting means is
Imaging means for imaging the workpiece;
Image processing means for detecting the displacement based on an image picked up by the image pickup means;
A misalignment observation optical device for guiding an image of a butt interface of the workpiece to a light receiving unit of the imaging unit;
At least a part of the optical path of the positional deviation observation optical device is:
Wherein and a laser beam is disposed in the optical path coaxial with the optical device for guiding the butt interface, the laser welding apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 wherein.