JP6144223B2 - Transfer cart - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a transfer carriage that moves a workpiece from a high position to a low position or vice versa by moving a movable table up and down.

  For example, the members constituting the power engine of the transportation equipment often have a complicated shape. For this reason, it is difficult to obtain the member by a single plastic working (for example, forging), and in general, the member is manufactured through a plurality of plastic workings. At this time, when there is a distance from the first plastic working apparatus that performed the previous plastic working to the second plastic working apparatus that performs the next plastic working, the work is temporarily stored in a stock yard or the like. . That is, the movement of the workpiece such as carrying in from the first plastic working device to the stock yard and carrying out from the stock yard to the second plastic working device is performed. The same applies to the case of sequentially assembling an assembly by combining a plurality of members.

  Carry-in and carry-out are performed via a transport carriage loaded with workpieces. That is, for example, a workpiece that has been subjected to plastic working by the first plastic working device is paid out from the payout conveyor and transferred to the transport carriage. Thereafter, the workpiece is transferred to the stock yard along with the transfer carriage.

  Here, the transfer from the payout conveyor to the transport carriage may be performed manually by a worker (manpower). However, most of the members and assemblies as described above are made of a metal material and have a large shape. Therefore, it is also heavy. For this reason, in most cases, a plurality of workers are required for transfer.

  Various automatic transfer devices have been proposed in order to reduce the load on the operator. As the automatic transfer device, an appropriate type is selected according to the size of the workpiece and the size of the weight. That is, if the work is a lightweight cardboard case or the like, a robot or the like having a gripping hand is adopted, and if it is a large plastic case or wooden box, a lift (elevator) or the like is adopted.

  This type of automatic transfer device requires a power source such as electric power. Therefore, it is difficult to save power, in other words, to reduce the cost required for transfer.

  Patent Document 1 proposes a transport carriage (transfer device) that employs a link mechanism and is capable of transferring a workpiece from a high place to a low place under the action of the link mechanism. The link mechanism in this transport cart operates without requiring a power source. Therefore, it is considered that the cost required for transfer can be reduced.

JP 2009-107429 A

  In the transport cart described in Patent Document 1, when the loading mechanism is lowered by causing the link mechanism to function, the roller conveyor constituting the loading platform is inclined with respect to the horizontal direction. For this purpose, the work slides along the roller conveyor and is transferred to the roller conveyor in the warehouse.

  In this case, when the weight of the workpiece is large, the momentum caused by gravity is applied to the sliding motion when the roller conveyor of the loading platform is inclined. Depending on the degree of momentum, there is a concern that the workpiece may fall beyond the roller conveyor in the warehouse. For this reason, it is difficult to employ | adopt as a conveyance trolley for transferring the member etc. which comprise the motive power engine of transport equipment. This is because the members and the like constituting the power engine of the transportation equipment have a large shape and a large weight as described above, and therefore, momentum is easily generated when sliding on the roller conveyor of the loading platform.

  In addition, when the workpiece is a laminate in which a plurality of containers are stacked, there is a concern that the container collapses when the loading platform is inclined.

  Further, as can be understood from the above, the workpiece may be, for example, a first intermediate paid out from the first plastic working device or a second intermediate paid out from the second plastic working device. There are multiple types, such as bodies and assemblies. In this case, for example, the height position may be different between the transfer destination of the first intermediate and the transfer destination of the second intermediate. In this case, it is originally desirable to be able to change the descending amount of the loading platform according to the height position of the transfer destination (in other words, the type of workpiece). However, Patent Document 1 does not describe a configuration for making the amount of lowering variable, and as a result, can only deal with a single type of workpiece.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and can be easily transferred even when the workpiece is heavy or laminated, and the lifting amount is changed according to the type of workpiece. In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a transfer carriage that can reduce the cost required for transfer.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a movable table on which a workpiece is placed, and the movable table is moved up and down to move the workpiece from a high position to a low position or vice versa. A transfer carriage for transferring the workpiece from the movable table to a transfer destination arranged at a movement position of
A base that supports the movable base to be movable up and down;
An elevating mechanism connected to the movable table and the base, and capable of moving the movable table up and down;
A stop mechanism for stopping the movable table;
With
The stop mechanism has a guide member that extends and can rotate along the ascending / descending direction of the movable table, and the rotation of the guide member raises the movable table according to the height of the transfer destination. It is possible to stop at any one of a plurality of positions different in length.

  In this configuration, for example, after placing the work on the movable table, the movable table is lowered. Along with this, the work placed on the movable table also descends. And when a movable stand will be in a predetermined position, it will stop under the action of a stop mechanism. By setting the stop position to be approximately the same as the height of the transfer destination, for example, the workpiece can be easily transferred from the movable table to the transfer destination.

  Then, by moving the movable table after the work is transferred to the transfer destination, the transfer operation to the transfer destination can be repeated.

  Or, conversely, the movable table may be raised after placing the workpiece on the movable table. Along with this, the work placed on the movable table also rises. Then, when the movable table reaches a predetermined position, the movable table is stopped under the action of the stop mechanism. By setting the stop position to be approximately the same as the height of the transfer destination, for example, the workpiece can be easily transferred from the movable table to the transfer destination.

  In this case, the transfer operation to the transfer destination can be repeatedly performed by lowering the movable table after the work is transferred to the transfer destination.

  In this configuration, the movable base only moves up and down, and the movable base does not tilt. Therefore, when the workpiece is transferred to the transfer destination, the workpiece is not momentum due to gravity. For this reason, the concern that the workpiece falls from the transfer destination is eliminated. Moreover, even if the workpiece is a laminate, there is no fear of collapsing.

  The stop mechanism can be configured to include, for example, a stopper pin that is provided on the movable base and can be advanced and retracted. In this case, the stopper pin moves up and down following the movement of the movable table. And when a movable stand raises or descends to a predetermined position, a stopper pin advances and engages with an engagement recess provided on the base. By this engagement, the movable base can be stopped.

  In this case, although the structure is extremely simple, it is easy to stop, in other words, position and fix the movable base.

  In the case of adopting this configuration, there is provided an engagement releasing means for retracting the stopper pin that has entered the engaging recess against the elastic urging force of the elastic member and releasing the engagement of the stopper pin with the engaging recess. It is preferable. By this disengagement means, it becomes remarkably easy to re-displace the movable base by retracting the stopper pin and detaching it from the engaging recess.

  In order to allow the movable base to stop at a plurality of positions having different heights by the stop mechanism, for example, a plurality of engagement recesses are formed, one of which faces the stopper pin. What should I do? In short, in this case, the movable base can be stopped at a plurality of positions having different heights by engaging the stopper pin with one of the plurality of engaging recesses having different height positions. It becomes possible.

  More specifically, the plurality of engaging recesses are formed in the guide member so as to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle and have different height positions. For example, when the lowering amount of the movable base is reduced, the guide member is rotated so that the engaging concave portion located above faces the stopper pin. On the other hand, when the lowering amount of the movable base is increased, the guide member is rotated so that the engaging recess located below faces the stopper pin.

  The guide member is preferably provided with a grip member that can be gripped by an operator. In this case, the operator can easily rotate the guide member.

  Furthermore, it is preferable to provide a rotation restricting means for blocking the guide member and preventing further rotation of the guide member. For example, when two engaging recesses are formed, the rotation of the guide member is stopped when one engaging recess and the stopper pin face each other, and when one remaining engaging recess and the stopper pin face each other. When the rotation of the guide member is stopped, the rotation of the guide member is stopped at the position where the engaging recess faces the stopper pin. For this reason, it becomes easy to engage the stopper pin with the engaging recess reliably, and thereby to position and fix the movable table reliably at a predetermined height.

  In the above, it is preferable that the elevating mechanism is composed of elastic means that exhibits elasticity. Specific examples of the elastic means include a coil spring and an air damper. These are all commercially available products, are easily available, and are inexpensive.

  When the elastic means is employed, when a work is placed on the movable table, a predetermined load is applied to the elastic means based on the weight of the work. For this reason, the movable base descends while sliding on the base. On the other hand, when the workpiece is removed from the movable table, the movable table rises under the elastic action of the elastic means.

  Thus, when the lifting mechanism is an elastic means, the lifting speed is set according to the balance between the weight (load) of the workpiece on the mounting table and the strength of the elastic force of the elastic means, and the movable table is lifted and lowered at this lifting speed. To do. Therefore, a power source such as electric power is not particularly required. For this reason, further power saving can be achieved. Further, the cost required for transfer can be reduced.

  In addition, when an air damper is employ | adopted, the fall amount of a movable stand can be easily adjusted by setting the number of air dampers, or the expansion-contraction amount of a rod. That is, for example, when the number of air dampers is increased, or when the amount of expansion and contraction of the rod is set to be small, the amount by which the movable base is lowered can be reduced. On the contrary, when the number of air dampers is reduced, or when the amount of expansion / contraction of the rod is set to be large, the descending amount of the movable table, that is, the movable range can be increased.

  When a coil spring is employed, a spring constant that allows the movable table to descend by a desired lowering amount (movement distance) when the work is placed may be selected.

  By doing in this way, the movable range of a movable stand can be made variable. Therefore, it is possible to cope with a plurality of transfer destinations having different heights by one transfer table. That is, it is not particularly necessary to prepare a plurality of transfer carriages, and therefore, a large space is not required to store a plurality of transfer carriages.

  According to the present invention, prior to moving the workpiece from a high position to a low position or vice versa by moving up and down the movable table on which the workpiece is placed, the movable table is moved to a height by rotating the guide member. It is possible to stop at one of a plurality of stop positions whose positions are different from each other. Therefore, by setting the stop position of the movable table according to the height of the transfer destination, for example, the workpiece can be easily transferred from the movable table to the transfer destination.

  Thus, even when the transfer destinations have different heights, it is possible to cope with one transfer cart. For this reason, the capital investment can be reduced, and the cost for transfer can be reduced.

  In addition, in this configuration, the movable table only moves up and down while receiving the elastic force, and the movable table does not tilt. Therefore, when the workpiece is transferred to the transfer destination, the workpiece is not momentum due to gravity. For this reason, the concern that the workpiece falls from the transfer destination is eliminated. Moreover, even if the workpiece is a laminate, there is no fear of collapsing.

It is the simple top view which showed typically the workpiece transfer system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is an overall schematic perspective view of a transfer table (transfer cart) included in the workpiece transfer system of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an overall schematic perspective view of a base constituting the transfer carriage of FIG. 2. It is a whole schematic perspective view of the movable stand which comprises the trolley | bogie for transfer of FIG. It is a partially omitted front view showing a bar member (guide member) provided on the transfer carriage and a rotation restricting means for restricting the rotation of the bar member. It is a principal part schematic perspective view which shows the vicinity of the site | part in which the stopper pin which comprises a stop mechanism was provided. It is a principal part expanded sectional view which shows the state which the stopper pin engaged with respect to the engagement recessed part formed in the said bar member. FIG. 8A to FIG. 8D are flowcharts showing a process of transferring a workpiece from a transfer carriage to a transfer carriage (transfer destination), and the solid line is transferred to a transfer carriage having a placement portion at a high position. The imaginary line represents a case where the placement unit is transferred to a transport carriage at a low position. It is a partially-omission front view which shows another structural example of a rotation control means.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a workpiece transfer system according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a simplified plan view schematically showing the workpiece transfer system 10. The workpiece transfer system 10 includes, for example, a transfer carriage 14 (transfer table) and a transfer carriage 14 according to the present embodiment that receive a container 12 (work) delivered from a predetermined device. It has a transport carriage 16 that receives the container 12, a first guide rail 18 (guide means) that guides the transfer carriage 14, and a second guide rail 20 that guides the transport carriage 16.

  The container 12 includes a storage container made of a rectangular parallelepiped casing and a lid member that closes the storage container (both not shown). In the storage container, for example, a forged intermediate product or molded product, an assembly, or the like is stored, and then a lid member is placed thereon. The outer dimensions, volume, color, and the like of the container 12 are different corresponding to the different contents to be stored. That is, there are multiple types of containers 12 that are works.

  The transfer carriage 14 receives the container 12 delivered from the predetermined apparatus to the delivery conveyor 24 at the work station 22 and then passes it to the transportation carriage 16. That is, the container 12 is transferred from the delivery conveyor 24 to the transfer carriage 16 via the transfer carriage 14.

  First, the first guide rail 18 and the second guide rail 20 will be described. The first guide rail 18 is configured by a first track member 26a and a second track member 26b facing each other. The first track member 26a and the second track member 26b are spaced apart from each other at a predetermined interval, and two of the four wheels 28a to 28d (wheels 28a) of the transfer carriage 14 are formed in a clearance formed thereby. 28d) is inserted.

  End portions of the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b are bent in directions away from each other. For this reason, the inlet or outlet of the first guide rail 18 has a shape that is expanded with respect to other parts.

  The first track member 26a and the second track member 26b are positioned and fixed to the floor 30 (see FIG. 2) of the work station 22 by, for example, bolts (not shown). The first track member 26a and the second track member 26b (first guide rail 18) are removed from the floor 30 by screwing the bolt in the disengagement direction. That is, the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b are detachably installed on the floor 30 of the work station 22.

  The remaining second guide rail 20 is configured according to the first guide rail 18 except that the remaining second guide rail 20 includes the third track member 32a and the fourth track member 32b. For this reason, detailed description is omitted. Two of the four wheels 33a to 33d (wheels 33a and 33d) of the transport carriage 16 are inserted into the clearance between the third track member 32a and the fourth track member 32b.

  Next, the transfer carriage 14 will be described in detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the transfer carriage 14 includes a base 34 and a movable base 36 supported by the base 34 so as to be movable up and down. Below the base 34, four wheels 28 a to 28 d that allow the transfer carriage 14 to slide on the floor 30 of the work station 22 are provided. That is, the wheels 28a to 28d function as moving means for moving the base 34 and the movable base 36. Note that the wheels 28a to 28d are not provided with a rotation mechanism that can rotate about the mounting shaft. For this reason, the transfer carriage 14 can only go straight.

  In this Embodiment, the base 34 and the movable stand 36 consist of a frame formed by connecting the round pipe which is a hollow tube member. In short, the base 34 and the movable base 36 are configured by connecting round pipes via joints. Each round pipe is preferably made of a resin-coated steel pipe unless otherwise specified.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom of the base 34 is configured by connecting two lower short pipes 40a and 40b and lower long pipes 42a and 42b so as to form a rectangle. The wheels 28a to 28d are arranged at the four corners of the bottom, that is, below the connecting portion (lower joint 43) of the lower short pipes 40a and 40b and the lower long pipes 42a and 42b. It is attached to the bottom part of the base 34 by being fitted in the fitting hole.

  Further, two first horizontal reinforcing pipes 44a and 44b are bridged between the lower short pipes 40a and 40b, and one lower fixing pipe 46 is bridged between the lower long pipes 42a and 42b. .

  Support pillars 48a to 48d are erected on the four corners of the bottom, that is, above the connecting portion (lower joint 43) of the lower short pipes 40a and 40b and the lower long pipes 42a and 42b. In the vicinity of the support columns 48a to 48d, sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are arranged in parallel with the support columns 48a to 48d.

  In the present embodiment, stainless steel pipes are employed as the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d. These sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are slightly smaller in diameter than structural pipes such as support columns 48a to 48d. This is because the sliding pipe 104 of the movable table 36 described later can easily slide.

  The support columns 48a to 48d and the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are connected through the lower joint 43 and the upper joints 51a and 51b. An upper short pipe 52a is bridged between the sliding contact pipes 50a and 50b via an upper joint 51a, and an upper joint is interposed between the sliding contact pipes 50c and 50d and between the support columns 48c and 48d. Upper and short pipes 52b and 52c are bridged via 51b.

  The base 34 further includes a second horizontal reinforcing pipe 54a bridged to the support columns 48a and 48d, and a second horizontal reinforcing pipe 54b bridged to the support columns 48b and 48c. Above the second lateral reinforcement pipes 54a and 54b, third lateral reinforcement pipes 56a and 56b are provided so as to be parallel to the second lateral reinforcement pipes 54a and 54b.

  The second horizontal reinforcing pipes 54a and 54b are positioned vertically above the first horizontal reinforcing pipes 44a and 44b, and are positioned vertically lower than the third horizontal reinforcing pipes 56a and 56b. The lower long pipe 42a and the second horizontal reinforcing pipe 54a are passed through the two-hole bracket 58a, and the lower long pipe 42b and the second horizontal reinforcing pipe 54b are passed through the two-hole bracket 58b.

  A support pipe 60 is coupled to the support columns 48a and 48b at a position vertically above the third lateral reinforcing pipes 56a and 56b. The support pipe 60 is provided with a lever 64 for retracting a stopper pin 62 (see particularly FIG. 6) described later.

  Furthermore, L-shaped pipe units 66a and 66b having a substantially L shape are connected to the support pipe 60 and the upper short pipe 52a. Support plates 68a and 68b are provided between the first horizontal reinforcing pipes 44a and 44b and between the L-shaped pipe units 66a and 66b, respectively. A bar member 70 (guide member) for switching is rotatably supported. For example, a bearing (not shown) or the like is interposed between the support boards 68a and 68b and the bar member 70.

  Referring to this bar member 70, as shown in FIG. 5, a rotation restricting pin 72 is provided on the side peripheral wall so as to protrude outward in the diameter direction. In addition, a first damming pin 74a and a second damming pin 74b are erected on the support board 68a so as to sandwich the rotation regulating pin 72 therebetween. When the bar member 70 is rotated by a predetermined angle, the rotation regulating pin 72 contacts either the first damming pin 74a or the second damming pin 74b. As a result, the bar member 70 is blocked to prevent further rotation. As can be understood from the above, the rotation restricting pin 72, the first damming pin 74a, and the second damming pin 74b constitute rotation restricting means.

  The bar member 70 is formed of a spline pipe, and two of the grooves extending along the longitudinal direction (vertical direction) of the side peripheral wall are used as the guide grooves 76a and 76b. On the bottom wall of the guide groove 76a (the wall on the diametrically inner side of the bar member 70), an engagement recess 78a is formed that is recessed toward the diametrically inner side of the bar member 70. Similarly, the guide groove 76b is formed. An engaging recess 78b is formed in the bottom wall of the bar member 70. The engaging recess 78b is recessed inward in the diameter direction of the bar member 70.

  The guide grooves 76a and 76b are formed at positions separated by a predetermined angle (for example, about 30 ° to 45 °) with the center of the bar member 70 as a reference. Therefore, the engagement recesses 78a and 78b are also separated from each other at the same angle. The engaging recess 78b is formed vertically above the engaging recess 78a.

  As shown in FIG. 5, when the rotation restricting pin 72 comes into contact with the first damming pin 74a and is dammed, the engaging concave portion 78a has the first damming pin 74a and the second damming pin 74b. The guide groove 76 a faces the stopper pin 62. On the other hand, when the rotation restricting pin 72 abuts against the second damming pin 74b and is dammed, the engaging recess 78b is positioned above the middle between the first damming pin 74a and the second damming pin 74b. The guide groove 76b faces the stopper pin 62.

  A handle 80 (gripping member) is provided on the upper end surface of the bar member 70. The operator can easily rotate the bar member 70 by holding the handle 80.

  As shown in FIG. 4, one movable base 36 includes four lower pipes 82a to 82d, upper pipes 84a to 84d, lower pipes 82a to 82d, and upper pipes 84a that are substantially equal in length. To 84d are connected to each other. The lower pipe 82a and the upper pipe 84a are parallel to the lower long pipe 42a of the base 34, and the lower pipe 82b and the upper pipe 84b are parallel to the lower short pipe 40a of the base 34. The lower pipe 82c and the upper pipe 84c are parallel to the lower long pipe 42b of the base 34, and the lower pipe 82d and the upper pipe 84d are parallel to the lower short pipe 40b of the base 34.

  In addition, two positioning pipes 88a and 88b are bridged on the lower pipes 82b and 82d. As shown in FIG. 6, the positioning pipes 88 a and 88 b are provided with stopper pins 62 that constitute a stop mechanism together with the bar member 70. The distal end portion of the stopper pin 62 moves up and down relatively in the guide grooves 76a and 76b while being guided by one of the guide grooves 76a and 76b.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the vicinity of the middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the shaft portion of the stopper pin 62 is accommodated in a hollow tube 90 that is closed by a lid member 89 screwed to the opening end portion. The hollow tube 90 is held by a stay 92 provided on the positioning pipe 88b (see FIG. 6), and the stopper pin 62 faces the bar member 70.

  A coil spring 94 (a resilient member) is accommodated in the hollow tube 90. The coil spring 94 is seated on the lid member 89 and a flange portion 95 provided on the stopper pin 62. As the cover member 89 is fixed to the positioning pipe 88a, the stopper pin 62 is elastically biased toward the bar member 70 by the elastic action of the coil spring 94.

  The lever 64 is connected to the stopper pin 62 via a wire 96. From the lever 64 to the wire 96, it is comprised according to the brake for bicycles. Since the configuration of the bicycle brake is known, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

  In order to disengage the stopper pin 62 engaged with the engagement recess 78a (or engagement recess 78b) from the engagement recess 78a (or engagement recess 78b), the lever 64 is directed to the support pipe 60 side. And rotate. Accordingly, when the wire 96 is pulled, the stopper pin 62 moves backward, and as a result, the stopper pin 62 is detached from the engaging recess 78a (or the engaging recess 78b). That is, the lever 64 and the wire 96 constitute an engagement release unit that releases the engagement of the stopper pin 62 with respect to the engagement recess 78a (or the engagement recess 78b).

  On the other hand, an upper fixing pipe 98 is bridged between the upper pipes 84a and 84c (see FIG. 4). Further, two roller conveyors 100a and 100b are provided so as to be bridged on the upper pipes 84a and 84c. The upper fixing pipe 98 is located between the roller conveyors 100a and 100b.

  In the above configuration, the lower joint 101 connecting the lower pipes 82a to 82d and the upper joint 102 connecting the upper pipes 84a to 84d hold the sliding pipe 104 provided with the sliding hole 103, respectively. ing. The sliding pipe 104 is preferably made of resin. Specific examples thereof include various engineering plastics such as polyamide.

  As shown in FIG. 2, any one of the sliding contact pipes 50 a to 50 d is slidably passed through the sliding hole 103 of each sliding pipe 104. That is, the sliding pipe 104 is a first engaging portion that engages with the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d, and the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are the first engagement parts with which the sliding pipe 104 is slidably engaged. 2 engaging portions.

  The inner peripheral wall of the sliding hole 103 of the sliding pipe 104 and the outer peripheral wall of the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are in sliding contact with each other. That is, the inner peripheral wall of the sliding hole 103 and the outer peripheral wall of the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are sliding contact surfaces.

  The lower fixing pipe 46 and the upper fixing pipe 98 are bridged with two air dampers 106a and 106b (elevating mechanism) which are elastic means. Each rod of the air dampers 106a and 106b is retracted (lowered in this case) only when a predetermined load is applied.

  The workpiece transfer system 10 according to the present embodiment is basically configured to include the transfer carriage 14 configured as described above. The relationship with the operation of the carriage 14 will also be described.

  First, the transfer carriage 16 and the transfer carriage 14 are transported to the vicinity of the discharge conveyor 24 in order to transfer the container 12 as a workpiece from the discharge conveyor 24 (see FIG. 1) to the transfer carriage 16. Since both the transport carriage 16 and the transfer carriage 14 are provided with wheels (wheels 28a to 28d, wheels 33a to 33d), this transportation is easy.

  Between the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b constituting the first guide rail 18, two of the four wheels 28a to 28d provided on the transfer carriage 14, that is, the lower short pipe A wheel 28a provided at the intersection of 40a and the lower long pipe 42a and a wheel 28d provided at the intersection of the lower long pipe 42a and the lower short pipe 40b are inserted. At this time, since the entrance of the first guide rail 18 is expanded, the two wheels 28a and 28d can be easily inserted between the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b.

  At this time, the container 12 is not placed on the transfer carriage 14. Therefore, the rods of the air dampers 106a and 106b extend and are located at the forward end, and therefore the movable base 36 is located at the top dead center.

  Similarly to the above, between the third track member 32a and the fourth track member 32b constituting the second guide rail 20, the wheels 33a and 33d among the four wheels 33a to 33d provided in the transport carriage 16 are arranged. Two are inserted. Since the entrance of the second guide rail 20 is expanded, the two wheels 33a and 33d can be easily inserted between the third track member 32a and the fourth track member 32b.

  For example, in the case where the height of the transport carriage 16 is relatively large and the level difference from the delivery conveyor 24 is relatively small, the lowering amount of the movable carriage 36 may be reduced in the transfer carriage 14. Therefore, the operator holds the handle 80 provided on the bar member 70 and rotates the bar member 70 together with the handle 80 so that the guide groove 76b in which the engagement recess 78b is formed faces the stopper pin 62.

  It should be noted that the handle 80 and the support board 68b are preferably provided with an index in advance at a position where it can be recognized that the guide groove 76b or the guide groove 76a and the stopper pin 62 face each other. The operator can make the descending amount of the movable table 36 small (the movable table 36 stops at a high position) or the descending amount becomes large (the movable table 36 stops at a low position) by matching the indices. Can be easily recognized.

  When the bar member 70 is rotated until the guide groove 76b and the stopper pin 62 face each other, the rotation regulating pin 72 provided on the bar member 70 comes into contact with the second damming pin 74b and is dammed. This damming prevents the bar member 70 from rotating further. At this time, the guide groove 76b faces the stopper pin 62 as described above. In this manner, the guide groove 76b and the stopper pin are not particularly noticed by the operator by only rotating the bar member 70 until the rotation restricting pin 72 contacts the second damming pin 74b. 62 can be easily opposed.

  Further, when the guide groove 76b and the stopper pin 62 face each other, the stopper pin 62 is elastically biased, and the tip thereof enters the guide groove 76b. Even at this time, since a predetermined load is not applied to the air dampers 106a and 106b, the movable base 36 is maintained in a state of being located at the top dead center.

  Next, as simply shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the container 12 delivered to the delivery conveyor 24 is transferred to the roller conveyors 100 a and 100 b constituting the transfer carriage 14. At this time, since the needle rollers constituting the roller conveyors 100 a and 100 b rotate, it is easy to transfer the container 12 to the transfer carriage 14. Further, since the wheels 28a and 28d are sandwiched between the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b, the transfer carriage 14 is prevented from moving in an unexpected direction.

  When the container 12 is placed on the roller conveyors 100a and 100b, the load of the container 12 is applied to the air dampers 106a and 106b disposed below the movable table 36. By applying this load, each rod of the air dampers 106a and 106b moves backward (lowers). Therefore, as shown by a solid line in FIG. 8C, the movable table 36 is lowered. Since the air dampers 106a and 106b cushion the lowering of the movable table 36, the movable table 36 descends relatively slowly.

  When the movable base 36 is lowered, the inner peripheral wall of the sliding hole 103 of the sliding pipe 104 and the outer peripheral wall of the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are in sliding contact with each other. In the present embodiment, the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d are made of stainless steel, and the sliding pipe 104 is made of an engineering plastic such as polyamide. That is, one of the sliding surfaces is a metal, and the other is an engineering plastic having a small friction coefficient and excellent wear resistance. For this reason, wear powder is less likely to be generated, so that the smooth sliding (movement) of the movable table 36 due to the wear powder biting in the sliding hole 103 is avoided.

  When the movable table 36 is lowered, the stopper pins 62 provided on the positioning pipes 88a and 88b of the movable table 36 are lowered while being guided by the guide groove 76b. For this reason, it is avoided that the movable stand 36 raise | generates position shift with respect to the pipes 50a-50d for sliding contact. Eventually, the movable table 36 can be lowered smoothly while maintaining a horizontal posture. Of course, the same applies to the rise.

  In the middle of the lowering of the movable table 36, the stopper pin 62 reaches the position of the engaging recess 78b formed in the guide groove 76b. At this time, the stopper pin 62 is further urged by the elastic force of the coil spring 94 to advance further, and the tip portion thereof enters the engaging recess 78b. That is, the stopper pin 62 engages with the engaging recess 78b. For this reason, the positioning pipes 88a and 88b provided with the stopper pin 62, and consequently the movable base 36 are prevented from further descending and stopped. That is, the movable base 36 is positioned and fixed at the position of the engaging recess 78b.

  This position is a height at which the roller conveyors 100a and 100b substantially coincide with the placement portion of the carriage 16. Therefore, when the operator slides the container 12 on the roller conveyors 100a and 100b, the container 12 can be easily transferred from the transfer carriage 14 to the transfer carriage 16 as shown in FIG. 8C. . For this reason, one person is enough, and even a woman can easily perform the work.

  As described above, the wheels 28a and 28d of the transfer carriage 14 are held between the first track member 26a and the second track member 26b, and the wheels 33a and 33d of the transfer carriage 16 are set to the third track member 32a and the second track member 26a. It is sandwiched between the four track members 32b. For this reason, when the container 12 is transferred from the transfer carriage 14 to the transfer carriage 16, the transfer carriage 14 and the transfer carriage 16 are prevented from moving in an unexpected direction.

  In this manner, the roller conveyors 100a and 100b of the transfer carriage 14 are inclined with respect to the horizontal direction until the container 12 is transferred from the delivery conveyor 24 to the transfer carriage 16 via the transfer carriage 14. Never do. Therefore, it is avoided that the container 12 sliding on the roller conveyors 100a and 100b is given momentum due to gravity. For this reason, the container 12 can be easily transferred onto the transport carriage 16. In other words, the concern that the container 12 falls beyond the transport carriage 16 is wiped out.

  Moreover, even if it is a case where the container 12 is laminated | stacked two or more, the concern which collapses is wiped off. This is because the roller conveyors 100a and 100b of the transfer carriage 14 are not inclined with respect to the horizontal direction as described above.

  After the container 12 is transferred to the transport carriage 16 as described above, the operator holds the lever 64 provided on the support pipe 60 of the base 34 and points the lever 64 toward the support pipe 60. To rotate. Along with this, the stopper pin 62 moves backward and separates from the engagement recess 78b.

  At this point, since the transfer from the transfer carriage 14 to the transfer carriage 16 has already been completed, the container 12 does not exist on the roller conveyors 100a and 100b. That is, the load acting on the air dampers 106a and 106b is removed. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 8D, each rod of the air dampers 106a and 106b moves forward (rises), and the movable table 36 rises following this. When the rod is positioned at the forward end, the ascent of the movable table 36 is finished. That is, it returns to the original height.

  When it is possible to place a plurality of containers 12 on the carriage 16, the above operation may be repeated.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, without using a power source such as electric power, the container 12 is transferred to the roller conveyors 100a and 100b of the transfer carriage 14, the movable table 36 is lowered, and the movable is lowered. It is possible to transfer the container 12 from the platform 36 to the transport cart 16 and raise the movable platform 36. For this reason, power saving can be achieved.

  Moreover, the transfer carriage 14 can be configured by appropriately using commercially available products such as pipes, joints, wheels 28a to 28d, and bicycle brakes as described above. For this reason, capital investment is low.

  In combination with the above, the cost required for transfer can be sufficiently reduced.

  After the predetermined amount of the container 12 is transferred to the transfer carriage 16, the container 12 can be transferred to a predetermined stockyard or the like by moving the transfer carriage 16.

  In the case of transferring contents different from the contents accommodated in the container 12, for example, another container 110 having different external dimensions, volume, color, etc. (see phantom lines in FIGS. 8A to 8D). Is used to facilitate the distinction of the contents. At this time, as indicated by phantom lines in FIG. 8A, a transfer carriage 112 having a different leg height (that is, a height from the floor 30 to the placement portion) is used instead of the transfer carriage 16. It is done.

  The conveying cart 112 shown in FIG. 8A is lower than the conveying cart 16. Therefore, in this case, the lowering amount of the movable table 36 is increased.

  Therefore, the operator holds the handle 80 provided on the bar member 70 and rotates the bar member 70 together with the handle 80 so that the guide groove 76a in which the engagement recess 78a is formed faces the stopper pin 62. . At this time, if the above-described index is provided, the operator can easily recognize that the movable base 36 is lowered so that the amount of lowering is large (the movable base 36 stops at a low position). Therefore, it is preferable.

  When the bar member 70 is rotated until the guide groove 76a and the stopper pin 62 face each other, the rotation regulating pin 72 provided on the bar member 70 comes into contact with the first damming pin 74a and is dammed (see FIG. 5). This damming prevents the bar member 70 from rotating further. At this time, the guide groove 76a faces the stopper pin 62 as described above. That is, in this case, the operator is not particularly aware of the same as described above, by rotating the bar member 70 until the rotation regulating pin 72 contacts the first damming pin 74a. In both cases, the guide groove 76a and the stopper pin 62 can be easily opposed to each other.

  Further, when the guide groove 76a and the stopper pin 62 face each other, the stopper pin 62 is elastically biased, and the tip thereof enters the guide groove 76a. As described above, the movable base 36 does not descend at this point.

  Next, as simply shown in FIG. 8B, the containers 12 delivered to the delivery conveyor 24 are transferred to the roller conveyors 100a and 100b. As a result, the load of the container 12 is applied to the air dampers 106a and 106b disposed below the movable base 36, and the rods of the air dampers 106a and 106b are retracted (lowered). Accordingly, the movable base 36 is lowered. Since the air dampers 106a and 106b cushion the lowering of the movable table 36, the movable table 36 descends relatively slowly.

  When the movable table 36 is lowered, the stopper pin 62 is lowered while being guided by the guide groove 76a. For this reason, also in this case, it is avoided that the movable stand 36 is displaced with respect to the sliding contact pipes 50a to 50d.

  In the middle of the lowering of the movable table 36, the stopper pin 62 reaches the position of the engaging recess 78a formed in the guide groove 76a. At this time, the stopper pin 62 is further elastically biased under the elastic action of the coil spring 94 and further advances, and the tip thereof enters the engaging recess 78a. That is, the stopper pin 62 engages with the engaging recess 78a. For this reason, the descent of the positioning pipes 88a and 88b provided with the stopper pin 62 stops, and the movable base 36 stops following this. That is, the movable base 36 is positioned and fixed at the position of the engaging recess 78a.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the engagement recess 78a is positioned below the engagement recess 78b in the vertical direction. For this reason, the lowering amount of the movable table 36 becomes larger than the lowering amount when the movable table 36 is positioned and fixed at the position of the engaging recess 78b. That is, the movable stand 36 stops at a position lower than the above.

  And the stop position of the movable stand 36 by the engagement recessed part 78a is the height which the roller conveyors 100a and 100b and the mounting part of the conveyance trolley | bogie 112 substantially correspond, as shown with a virtual line in FIG. 8C. Therefore, when the operator slides the container 12 on the roller conveyors 100a and 100b, the container 12 can be easily transferred from the transfer carriage 14 to the transfer carriage 112.

  After the container 12 is transferred to the transport carriage 112 as described above, the operator holds the lever 64 provided on the support pipe 60 of the base 34 and points the lever 64 toward the support pipe 60. To rotate. Along with this, the stopper pin 62 moves backward and separates from the engagement recess 78b. By this separation, the restraint of the base 34 with respect to the movable base 36 is released. Therefore, as indicated by the phantom line in FIG. 8D, the movable base 36 rises following the advance (rise) of the rods of the air dampers 106a and 106b.

  Finally, when the rod is positioned at the forward end, the ascent of the movable table 36 is finished. That is, it returns to the original height. When a plurality of containers 12 can be placed on the transport carriage 112, the above operation may be repeated.

  Even in this case, it is needless to say that the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  The amount by which the movable table 36 is lowered can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the number of air dampers. That is, when the number of air dampers is increased, the amount by which the movable base 36 is lowered is reduced. On the other hand, when the number of air dampers is reduced, the amount by which the movable table 36 is lowered increases.

  Alternatively, the stroke amount (expansion / contraction amount) of the rods of the air dampers 106a and 106b may be adjusted. That is, when the stroke amount of the rod is set to be small, the descending amount of the movable base 36 is small. On the other hand, when the stroke amount of the rod is set large, the descending amount of the movable table 36 becomes large.

  Further, the rod may be replaced with an air damper having a different stroke amount (expansion / contraction amount) for a predetermined load. That is, when an air damper having a smaller stroke amount (expansion / contraction amount) with respect to the weight of the containers 12 and 110 than that of the air dampers 106a and 106b is used, the lowering amount of the movable table 36 is reduced. On the contrary, if an air damper having a larger stroke amount (expansion / contraction amount) than the air dampers 106a and 106b is used with respect to the weight of the containers 12 and 110, the amount of lowering of the movable base 36 is increased.

  The increase or decrease or replacement of the air damper may be performed when the movable base 36 is incorporated into the base 34. Since the base 34 and the movable base 36 are composed of a frame body in which pipes are connected, the operation of increasing and decreasing the air damper and the replacement work are easy.

  The present invention is not particularly limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  For example, in the above embodiment, by forming the two engagement recesses 78a and 78b, the stop position of the movable base 36 can be selected in two stages, that is, the low position and the high position. By setting the number to three or more, it becomes possible to further select the number of steps of the stop position. The three or more engaging recesses may be formed on the side peripheral wall of the bar member 70 so as to be separated at a predetermined angle with respect to the center of the bar member 70.

  Further, the rotation restricting means of the bar member 70 is constituted by the rotation restricting pin 72, the first damming pin 74a, and the second damming pin 74b. However, as shown in FIG. The formed stopper cover 116 may be attached to the bar member 70, and the rotation restricting pins 72 may be dammed at each longitudinal end of the elongated hole 114. In this case, the rotation restricting means is constituted by the rotation restricting pin 72 and the stopper cover 116.

  The rotation of the bar member 70 may be confirmed by rotating the bar member 70 in this way by the elastic biasing force of the coil spring 94 to the stopper pin 62 that has entered the engaging recesses 78a and 78b.

  Furthermore, the workpiece is not particularly limited to the containers 12 and 110, and it is needless to say that the workpiece may be an intermediate body, a molded product, or an assembly subjected to forging.

  In addition, the workpiece transfer source to the transfer cart 14 is not limited to the delivery conveyor 24, and the workpiece transfer destination from the transfer cart 14 is not limited to the transport cart 16. Absent. For example, the transfer carriage 14 may be used when transferring a workpiece from a transfer carriage at a high position to a payout conveyor at a low position.

  Furthermore, a hydraulic cylinder may be used as the lifting mechanism. In this case, the workpiece can be easily moved from the high position to the low position or vice versa by moving the rod of the hydraulic cylinder up and down.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Work transfer system 12, 110 ... Container 14 ... Transfer cart 16, 112 ... Transfer cart 18, 20 ... Guide rail 22 ... Work station 24 ... Discharge conveyor 26a, 26b, 32a, 32b ... Track member 28a- 28d, 33a to 33d ... wheel 30 ... floor 34 ... base 36 ... movable stand 48a-48d ... support column 50a-50d ... sliding pipe 62 ... stopper pin 64 ... lever 70 ... bar member 72 ... rotation restricting pin 74a , 74b ... Damping pins 76a, 76b ... Guide grooves 78a, 78b ... Engaging recesses 80 ... Handle 94 ... Coil spring 96 ... Wires 100a, 100b ... Roller conveyor 103 ... Sliding holes 104 ... Sliding pipes 106a, 106b ... Air dampers 114 ... long hole 116 ... stopper cover

Claims (7)

A movable table on which the workpiece is placed; the workpiece is moved from a high position to a low position or vice versa by moving the movable table up and down; and the workpiece is moved to a transfer destination arranged at the moving position of the movable table. Is a transfer carriage for transferring from the movable table,
A base that supports the movable base to be movable up and down;
An elevating mechanism connected to the movable table and the base, and capable of moving the movable table up and down;
A stop mechanism for stopping the movable table;
With
The stop mechanism has a guide member that extends and can rotate along the ascending / descending direction of the movable table, and the rotation of the guide member raises the movable table according to the height of the transfer destination. A transfer carriage characterized in that it can be stopped at any one of a plurality of positions having different lengths.   The transfer carriage according to claim 1, wherein the stop mechanism includes a stopper pin that is provided on the movable base and is elastically biased by the elastic member, and a guide member on which the stopper pin slides. When the movable table reaches a predetermined position, the stopper pin moves forward by being elastically biased by the elastic member, and engages with an engagement recess formed in the guide member, thereby the movable table. A transfer carriage characterized by stopping the operation.   3. The transfer carriage according to claim 2, wherein the stopper pin that has entered the engaging recess is retracted against a resilient biasing force of the resilient member, and the stopper pin is engaged with the engaging recess. A transfer carriage further comprising engagement release means for releasing the movement.   The transfer carriage according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a plurality of the engaging recesses are formed in the guide member, the plurality of engaging recesses are separated from each other by a predetermined angle, and the position in the height direction is set. A transfer cart characterized by the difference between the two.   5. The transfer carriage according to claim 4, further comprising a gripping member for gripping when the guide member is rotated.   6. The transfer carriage according to claim 4 or 5, further comprising a rotation restricting means for blocking the guide member to prevent further rotation of the guide member.   The transfer carriage according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the elevating mechanism includes an elastic means that exhibits elasticity.

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