JP6094341B2 - Material feeder - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a material feeding device that conveys a plate material to a press device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a material feeding device that conveys a plate material to be press-molded to a press device is known. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-87830 describes a press feeding device that feeds a sheet-like member to a pressing device. The press feeding device of the publication includes a first roller and a second roller for feeding a sheet-like member (paragraph 0012). Further, the second roller of the publication nips the sheet-like member with the first roller by biasing the swing arm downward by the action of a spring (paragraph 0013). Further, the press feeding device of the publication has a release mechanism for releasing the nip state of the first roller and the second roller (paragraph 0014).
JP 2001-87830 A

  In this type of press feeding device, when the thickness of the fed sheet-like member changes, the height position of the second roller that contacts the sheet-like member changes. For this reason, it is necessary to correct the timing and lift amount of the release operation by the release mechanism. The correction is conventionally performed by manually turning an adjustment bolt provided on the swing arm (see paragraph 0017 of the above publication). However, the work of manually correcting the position of the adjustment bolt according to a subtle difference in the plate thickness is heavy on the user. Also, the correction results tend to vary depending on the operator performing the correction.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a material feeding device capable of performing correction with less burden on the user and less variation when the thickness of the plate material is changed.

  An exemplary first invention of the present application is a material feeding device that transports a plate material along a transport path, and includes a frame, a first cylindrical roller that is rotatably supported with respect to the frame, A substantially cylindrical second roller disposed on the opposite side to the first roller with respect to the transport path, a first drive source for rotating at least one of the first roller and the second roller, and the second roller And a lever that is rotatable within an angle range regulated with respect to the frame, a pressure mechanism that pressurizes the lever toward the conveyance path, and the lever. A release mechanism that pushes back in a direction away from the conveyance path, and the release mechanism generates a contact portion that contacts the lever and a power for moving the contact portion toward the lever. A correction mechanism that corrects an initial position that is a starting point of the movement of the contact portion, and the correction mechanism generates a power for displacing the initial position of the contact portion based on an input signal. A material feeder having a drive source.

  According to the first exemplary invention of the present application, the initial position of the contact portion can be automatically corrected by the power from the third drive source. For this reason, the burden of correction work by the user can be reduced. Further, correction with little variation can be performed.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a material feeding apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the material feeding apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the material feeding device at the position AA in FIG. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the material feeding device at the BB position in FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a block diagram conceptually showing the structure of the control system according to the second embodiment.

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

<1. First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a material feeding apparatus 1A according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The material feeding device 1A is a device that conveys the plate material 9A along the conveyance path 90A. As shown in FIG. 1, the material feeding apparatus 1A includes a frame 10A, a first roller 21A, a first drive source 211A, a second roller 22A, a lever 30A, a pressure mechanism 40A, and a release mechanism 50A. The frame 10A has a carry-in port 11A into which the plate material 9A is carried in and a carry-out port 12A from which the plate material 9A is carried out.

  Each of the first roller 21A and the second roller 22A extends in a substantially cylindrical shape in the horizontal direction. The first roller 21A is supported so as to be rotatable with respect to the frame 10A. When the first drive source 211A is operated, the first roller 21A is rotated by the power of the first drive source 211A. The second roller 22A is disposed on the opposite side to the first roller 21A with respect to the transport path 90A. The second roller 22A is rotatably held by the lever 30A. The lever 30A is attached to the frame 10A so as to be rotatable within a restricted angle range. Thereby, the second roller 22A can approach and retract from the first roller 21A.

  The lever 30A is pressurized toward the conveyance path 90A by the pressure mechanism 40A. When conveying the plate material 9A in the material feeding apparatus 1A, the plate material 9A is sandwiched between the first roller 21A and the second roller 22A by the pressure of the pressure mechanism 40A. Then, by rotating the first roller 21A in this state, the plate material 9A is conveyed to the carry-out port 12A side.

  The release mechanism 50A is a mechanism that pushes back the lever 30A in a direction away from the transport path 90A. The release mechanism 50A includes a contact portion 614A and a second drive source 63A. When the second drive source 63A is operated, the contact portion 614A moves to the lever 30A side by the power of the second drive source 63A. When the contact portion 614A comes into contact with the lever 30A, the lever 30A is pushed in a direction away from the transport path 90A. As a result, the second roller 22A is released from the first roller 21A or the plate material 9A.

  Further, the release mechanism 50A of the material feeding device 1A includes a correction mechanism 70A that corrects an initial position that is a starting point of the movement of the contact portion 614A. For this reason, the initial position of the contact portion 614A can be corrected according to the thickness of the plate 9A, and the distance between the contact portion 614A and the lever 30A at the initial position can be kept constant.

  In particular, the correction mechanism 70A has a third drive source 71A. The third drive source 71A generates power for displacing the initial position of the contact portion 614A based on the input signal. For this reason, the initial position of the contact portion 614A can be automatically corrected by the power from the third drive source 71A. Therefore, the burden of correction work by the user can be reduced. Further, correction with little variation can be performed.

<2. Second Embodiment>
<2-1. Overall Configuration of Material Feeder>
Subsequently, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the material feeding apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the material feeding apparatus 1 at the position AA in FIG. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the material feeding apparatus 1 at the BB position in FIG.

  This material feeding apparatus 1 is an apparatus that is attached to a press apparatus and conveys a metal plate material 9 to be press-formed to the press apparatus. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the material feeding apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a frame 10, a driving roller 21, a driven roller 22, a lever 30, a lever air cylinder 40, and a release mechanism 50.

  The frame 10 is a substantially box-shaped frame that is installed adjacent to the press device. The drive roller 21, lever 30, lever air cylinder 40, and release mechanism 50 of the material feeding device 1 are supported by the frame 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the frame 10 is provided with a carry-in port 11 and a carry-out port 12. The plate material 9 is carried into the inside of the frame 10 from the carry-in port 11, and is horizontally conveyed to the carry-out port 12 side along a conveyance path 90 provided between the carry-in port 11 and the carry-out port 12.

  The drive roller 21 is a cylindrical roller that actively rotates below the conveyance path 90. In the present embodiment, the driving roller 21 corresponds to the first roller. The drive roller 21 extends horizontally in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the plate material 9. As shown in FIG. 4, both ends of the drive roller 21 are rotatably supported by the frame 10 via bearings. The drive roller 21 is connected to a first motor 211 serving as a first drive source. When the first motor 211 is operated, the driving roller 21 rotates about the rotating shaft 210 that extends horizontally.

  The driven roller 22 is a cylindrical roller disposed on the upper side of the conveyance path 90, that is, on the side opposite to the driving roller 21 with respect to the conveyance path 90. In the present embodiment, the driven roller 22 corresponds to a second roller. Similar to the drive roller 21, the driven roller 22 extends horizontally in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the plate 9. However, in this embodiment, the diameter of the driven roller 22 is smaller than the diameter of the driving roller 21. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, both end portions of the driven roller 22 are held by the lever 30 via bearings. During conveyance of the plate material 9, the driven roller 22 contacts the upper surface of the plate material 9 and is driven to rotate in accordance with the movement of the plate material 9.

  The lever 30 is a member that moves up and down while holding the driven roller 22 rotatably. The lever 30 includes a base end portion 31 disposed on the carry-out port 12 side from the driven roller 22 and a distal end portion 32 disposed on the carry-in port 11 side from the driven roller 22. A push bolt 33 is provided at the distal end portion 32. The base end portion 31 is connected so as to be rotatable within an angle range regulated with respect to the frame 10. For this reason, as indicated by an arrow 91 in FIG. 2, the lever 30 rotates within a restricted angular range around the base end portion 31. Further, when the lever 30 rotates, the driven roller 22 and the push bolt 33 move up and down together with the lever 30.

  The lever air cylinder 40 is a pressurizing mechanism that pressurizes the lever 30 downward. The lower end portion of the rod 41 of the lever air cylinder 40 is in contact with the upper surface of the lever 30. When compressed air is supplied to the lever air cylinder 40, downward pressure is generated on the rod 41 due to the air pressure. As a result, the lever 30 is pushed downward, that is, toward the transport path 90. As a result, the driven roller 22 comes into contact with the driving roller 21 or the plate material 9.

  However, the “pressurizing mechanism” of the present invention is not necessarily an air cylinder. Instead of the air cylinder, various spring mechanisms may be used to give the lever 30 elastic pressure downward.

  The release mechanism 50 is a mechanism that pushes back the lever 30 upward, that is, in a direction away from the conveyance path 90 in order to pull the driven roller 22 away from the driving roller 21 or the plate material 9. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the release mechanism 50 of this embodiment includes a release member 61, a cam 62, and a second motor 63.

  The release member 61 is a member that transmits power between the cam 62 and the lever 30 by rotating within a restricted angular range. The release member 61 has a first arm portion 611 extending from the rotation center 610 toward the cam 62 side, and a second arm portion 612 extending from the rotation center 610 toward the push bolt 33 side. A cam follower 613 that contacts the cam 62 is provided at the tip of the first arm 611. A contact portion 614 that contacts the lower end portion of the push bolt 33 is provided at the tip of the second arm portion 612.

  Note that downward pressure is applied to the second arm portion 612 of the release member 61 by a release member air cylinder (not shown). Thereby, the cam follower 613 of the release member 61 is always in contact with the cam 62.

  The cam 62 is a member that rotates around the rotation shaft 620 and thereby moves the cam follower 613 up and down. As the cam 62, a plate-like member having a bias in the distance from the rotation shaft 620 to the outer peripheral surface is used. In the present embodiment, the outer peripheral surface of the cam 62 includes an arcuate reference surface 621 centered on the rotation shaft 620 and a protruding surface 622 that protrudes outward from the reference surface 621.

  The second motor 63 is a second drive source that rotates the cam 62. When the second motor 63 is operated, the power is transmitted to the cam 62, and the cam 62 rotates about the rotation shaft 620. Further, when the cam 62 rotates, the cam follower 613 moves up and down according to the contact position of the cam 62 with the cam follower 613. Then, as shown by an arrow 92 in FIG. 2, the contact portion 614 of the release member 61 moves up and down as the release member 61 rotates within the restricted angular range.

  Here, the position of the contact portion 614 when the reference surface 621 of the cam 62 is in contact with the cam follower 613 is referred to as an “initial position”. When the contact portion 614 is disposed at the initial position, a gap exists between the lower end portion of the push bolt 33 and the contact portion 614. Further, when the cam 62 rotates and the projecting surface 622 contacts the cam follower 613, the cam follower 613 is lowered. If it does so, the contact part 614 will move upward from the initial position used as the starting point, and will contact the lower end part of the push bolt 33. FIG. As a result, the lever 30 rises against the pressure of the lever air cylinder 40. Thus, the second motor 63 generates power for moving the contact portion 614 to the push bolt 33 side.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, a coupling 64 with a different axial center is interposed between the rotating shaft 630 of the second motor 63 and the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62. The misaligned coupling 64 connects the rotating shaft 630 of the second motor 63 and the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 while allowing relative movement of both shafts. For this reason, when the correction mechanism 70 described later is operated, the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 can be displaced up and down, and the power of the second motor 63 can be transmitted to the cam 62.

  In this embodiment, the distance from the rotation center 610 of the release member 61 to the contact portion 614 is shorter than the distance from the rotation center 610 to the cam follower 613. For this reason, by the action of the lever, the cam 62 can push down the cam follower 613 with a force smaller than the force required for the contact portion 614 to push up the push bolt 33. Therefore, the release mechanism 50 can be operated with a smaller force. Further, since the pressure applied to the cam 62 is reduced, it is possible to suppress the positional deviation of the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62.

  Further, the material feeding apparatus 1 includes a control unit 80 and an input unit 81 that receives input of information to the control unit 80. FIG. 5 is a block diagram conceptually showing the configuration of the control system including the control unit 80 and the input unit 81. As shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 80 includes an input unit 81, the above-described lever air cylinder 40, a release member air cylinder, a first motor 211, a second motor 63, a third motor 71 described later, and a later described. The brake mechanism 73 is electrically connected to each other.

  The control unit 80 may be configured by a computer having an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU and a memory, or may be configured by an electronic circuit board. The input unit 81 may be configured with a keyboard or a mouse, or may be configured with a touch panel display. Based on a preset program and an input signal from the input unit 81, the control unit 80 includes a lever air cylinder 40, a release member air cylinder, a first motor 211, a second motor 63, a third motor 71, and The operation of the braking mechanism 73 is controlled. Thereby, the conveyance operation of the board | plate material 9, release operation | movement, and correction | amendment operation | movement in the material feeder 1 are performed.

  In the material feeding device 1, the plate material 9 carried in from the carry-in port 11 is conveyed to the carry-out port 12 side by the rotation of the drive roller 21 while being sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the driven roller 22. Further, when the plurality of plate members 9 are continuously conveyed, a release operation is performed in which the driven roller 22 is retracted upward from the upper surface of the plate member 9 at regular time intervals. The release operation is realized by operating the second motor 63 of the release mechanism 50 and raising the lever 30 via the cam 62 and the release member 61.

  If a servo motor is used for the second motor 63, the rotational speed of the cam 62 can be arbitrarily adjusted. Therefore, the rising / lowering timing of the driven roller 22 can be controlled by the second motor 63.

<2-2. Correction mechanism>
Next, the correction mechanism 70 included in the release mechanism 50 will be described. The correction mechanism 70 is a mechanism that corrects the initial position of the contact portion 614 by displacing the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 up and down when the thickness of the sheet 9 to be conveyed is changed. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the correction mechanism 70 of the present embodiment includes a third motor 71, a belt mechanism 72, a braking mechanism 73, a ball screw 74, a block 75, and a linear guide 76.

  The third motor 71 is a third drive source that generates power for operating the correction mechanism 70. In the present embodiment, the third motor 71 is disposed on the top surface of the top plate portion of the frame 10. The third motor 71 generates power according to the drive signal from the control unit 80. The power of the third motor 71 is transmitted to the ball screw 74 via the belt mechanism 72 and the braking mechanism 73. However, the belt mechanism 72 and the braking mechanism 73 may be omitted, and the rotation shaft of the third motor 71 and the ball screw 74 may be directly connected.

  The ball screw 74 extends vertically within the frame 10. A spiral thread groove is formed on the surface of the screw shaft of the ball screw 74. The block 75 is fixed to a nut 751 assembled in the thread groove. Further, the block 75 holds the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 via a bearing so as to be rotatable. When the power of the third motor 71 is transmitted to the ball screw 74, the ball screw 74 rotates about the vertical axis. Then, the nut 751, the block 75, and the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 are displaced up and down as a unit.

  The linear guide 76 has a pair of rails extending in parallel with the ball screw 74. The block 75 is guided up and down along the pair of rails. Thereby, the nut 751, the block 75, and the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 can be displaced up and down with high accuracy. Further, the swing of the block 75 due to the moment load can be suppressed.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, a servo motor is used as the third motor 71. The servo motor can output the power corresponding to the input signal with high responsiveness. Therefore, the nut 751, the block 75, and the rotation shaft 620 of the cam 62 can be displaced up and down with higher accuracy.

  The braking mechanism 73 is a mechanism for preventing unnecessary rotation of the ball screw 74. For the braking mechanism 73, for example, an electromagnetic brake can be used. When an external force against the active power from the third motor 71 is applied to the rotation shaft 620 of the cam 62, the braking mechanism 73 limits the rotation of the ball screw 74 by the external force. As a result, unintended displacement of the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 is prevented.

  When the thickness of the plate 9 to be conveyed is changed, first, the user of the material feeding apparatus 1 inputs information indicating the thickness of the plate 9 to the input unit 81. The information input to the input unit 81 may be a numerical value of the thickness of the plate 9 itself, or may be a number or a symbol corresponding to the thickness.

  The control unit 80 operates the third motor 71 based on the information input from the input unit 81. As a result, the ball screw 74 is rotated, and the nut 751, the block 75, and the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 are integrally displaced up and down. Then, the cam follower 613 moves up and down according to the displacement of the cam 62. As a result, the release member 61 rotates within the restricted angular range, and the position of the contact portion 614 of the release member 61 moves up and down.

  As described above, in the material feeding apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the user can automatically correct the initial position of the contact portion 614 simply by inputting information indicating the thickness of the plate 9 to the input portion 81. Thereby, irrespective of the thickness of the plate material 9, the distance between the contact portion 614 and the lower end portion of the push bolt 33 at the initial position can be kept constant. If the distance between the lower end of the push bolt 33 and the contact portion 614 is kept constant, the period of the release operation caused by the rotation of the cam 62 can be kept substantially constant.

  Further, the correction mechanism 70 is operated by the power from the third motor 71. Therefore, it is not necessary to manually correct the distance between the lower end portion of the push bolt 33 and the contact portion 614. For this reason, the burden of correction work by the user can be reduced. Further, correction with little variation can be performed.

  Here, in order to correct the distance between the push bolt 33 and the contact portion 614, it is conceivable to provide a correction mechanism on the lever 30 side. However, if a correction mechanism is provided in the lever 30 which is a movable part, the inertia of the lever 30 increases. On the other hand, in this embodiment, the correction mechanism 70 is provided not on the lever 30 but on the release mechanism 50 side. For this reason, the gap between the push bolt 33 and the contact portion 614 can be corrected without increasing the inertia of the lever 30. In addition, a highly reliable correction mechanism 70 can be realized at low cost by displacing the rotation shaft of the cam that has been conventionally fixed.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the distance from the rotation center 610 to the contact portion 614 of the release member 61 is shorter than the distance from the rotation center 610 to the cam follower 613. For this reason, during the operation of the correction mechanism 70, the displacement amount of the contact portion 614 is smaller than the displacement amount of the cam 62. Therefore, the initial position of the contact portion 614 can be corrected more precisely.

<3. Modification>
As mentioned above, although exemplary embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said embodiment.

  For example, when the thickness of the plate 9 is changed, not only the initial position of the contact portion 614 but also the operation timing of the second motor 63 may be changed. Specifically, the control unit 80 may change the operation timing of the second motor 63 based on information input from the input unit 81. If it does so, release operation | movement can be performed at the more suitable timing according to the thickness of the board | plate material 9. FIG.

  In the above embodiment, the initial position of the contact portion 614 is corrected by displacing the rotating shaft 620 of the cam 62 up and down. However, the initial position of the contact portion 614 may be corrected by displacing other portions of the release mechanism 50. For example, the initial position of the contact portion 614 may be corrected by moving the rotation center 610 of the release member 61 up and down.

  In the above embodiment, the first drive source rotates the first roller. However, the first drive source may rotate the second roller instead of the first roller. Further, the first drive source may rotate both the first roller and the second roller. That is, the first drive source may be any device that rotates at least one of the first roller and the second roller in order to convey the plate material.

  In the above embodiment, separate motors are used for the first drive source, the second drive source, and the third drive source, respectively. However, two or three of these motors may be realized by a single motor. That is, the power obtained from one motor may be distributed to a plurality of locations via a power transmission mechanism such as a gear.

  Moreover, about the detailed shape of each member, you may differ from the shape shown by each figure of this application. Moreover, you may combine suitably each element which appeared in said embodiment and modification in the range which does not produce inconsistency.

  The present invention can be used for a material feeding device that conveys a plate material to a press device.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,1A Material feeder 9, 9A Plate material 10, 10A Frame 11, 11A Carry-in port 12, 12A Carry-out port 21 Drive roller 21A First roller 22 Driven roller 22A Second roller 30, 30A Lever 33 Push bolt 40 Air cylinder for lever 40A Pressurizing mechanism 50, 50A Release mechanism 61 Release member 62 Cam 63 Second motor 63A Second drive source 64 Coaxial coupling 70, 70A Correction mechanism 71 Third motor 71A Third drive source 72 Belt mechanism 73 Braking mechanism 74 Ball screw 75 Block 76 Linear guide 80 Control unit 81 Input unit 90, 90A Transport path 211 First motor 211A First drive source 613 Cam follower 614, 614A Contact unit 751 Nut

Claims (9)

A material feeding device for conveying a plate material along a conveyance path,
Frame,
A substantially cylindrical first roller supported rotatably with respect to the frame;
A substantially cylindrical second roller disposed on the opposite side of the first roller with respect to the transport path;
A first drive source for rotating at least one of the first roller and the second roller;
A lever that rotatably holds the second roller and that is rotatable within a restricted angular range with respect to the frame;
A pressure mechanism that pressurizes the lever toward the conveyance path;
A release mechanism that pushes back the lever in a direction away from the transport path;
Have
The release mechanism is
A contact portion that contacts the lever;
A second drive source for generating power for moving the contact portion toward the lever;
A correction mechanism that corrects an initial position that is a starting point of movement of the contact portion;
Have
The correction mechanism includes a third drive source that generates power for displacing the initial position of the contact portion based on an input signal. The material feeder according to claim 1,
The release mechanism is
A cam rotated by the second drive source;
A release member that moves the contact portion by rotating within a restricted angular range according to the rotational position of the cam;
Have
The correction mechanism is a material feeding device that displaces the rotation shaft of the cam by the third drive source. The material feeder according to claim 2,
The material feeding device further comprising a misalignment coupling that couples the rotation shaft of the second drive source and the rotation shaft of the cam while allowing relative movement of both shafts. The material feeding device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein
The third drive source is a material feeding device which is a servo motor. A material feeding device according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
The correction mechanism is
A ball screw rotated by the third drive source;
A block that is movably attached to the ball screw and that rotatably holds the cam;
A linear guide extending parallel to the ball screw;
Have
A material feeding device in which the block moves along the linear guide. A material feeding device according to any one of claims 2 to 5,
The material feeding device, wherein the correction mechanism further includes a braking mechanism that restricts displacement of the rotating shaft of the cam against the active operation of the third drive source. A material feeding device according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
The release member has a cam follower that contacts the cam;
The distance between the rotation center of the release member and the contact portion is shorter than the distance from the rotation center of the release member to the cam follower. A material feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
An input unit for receiving input of information indicating the thickness of the plate material;
A control unit that controls the operation of the third drive source based on information input from the input unit;
A material feeding device further comprising: The material feeding device according to claim 8, wherein
The said control part is a material feeding apparatus which further controls the operation timing of a said 2nd drive source based on the information input from the said input part.

Images