JP6387577B2 - Molded article collection method and molded article collection apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a collecting direction of a molded body and a collecting device for the molded body. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of collecting a molded body and a collection device that can improve the efficiency of collecting a plurality of molded bodies that are conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered.

  Sintered bodies obtained by sintering compacts of metal powder such as iron powder are used for automobile parts and general machine parts. As a method for producing a sintered body, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for sintering a green compact. Specifically, a cellulosic adhesive is applied to each flat surface of two green compacts (molded bodies), and the two green compacts are bonded and fixed so that the flat surfaces are opposed to each other. Yes. Then, the two green compacts bonded and fixed are transported to the transport section of the mesh belt furnace, and are transported to the heating section by the mesh belt conveyor and sintered.

JP 08-246006 A

  There is a need for further improvement in the productivity of sintered bodies. As a measure to improve the productivity of sintered bodies, it is possible to improve the efficiency of collecting the compacts. To improve efficiency, it is possible to automate the work of collecting compacts. Not proposed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and one of its purposes is to provide a method of collecting a molded body that can improve the efficiency of collecting operations of the molded body.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a compacting body collecting device that can improve the efficiency of collecting the compact.

  The method of collecting a molded body according to one aspect of the present invention includes a molding process in which a metal powder is compression-molded to produce a molded body, and a sintered process in which the molded body is sintered in a sintering furnace to produce a sintered body. And a molded body collection step of collecting a plurality of molded bodies. The compact collecting process includes a compact transporting process for transporting the compact from the initial position to a predetermined position, and an adhesive for fixing a plurality of compacts to each other and applying an adhesive that is removed in a sintering furnace to the surface of the compact. Agent coating step. And a molded object collection process repeats a molded object transfer process with the automatically controlled collection apparatus, and stacks and adhere | attaches a some molded object by performing an adhesive agent application process by a molded object transfer process.

  A compact body collecting apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes a compacting device that compresses metal powder to produce a compact, and a sintering furnace that sinters the compact to produce a sintered compact. A formed body collection mechanism is provided that collects a plurality of formed bodies. The molded product collection mechanism includes a molded product transfer mechanism, an adhesive application mechanism, and a stacking control unit. The molded body transport mechanism includes a holding section that holds and places the molded body, and an arm that is connected to the holding section and moves the molded body held by the holding section from an initial position to a predetermined position. The adhesive application mechanism includes a nozzle for fixing the molded bodies to each other and discharging the adhesive removed by the sintering furnace onto the surface of the molded body, and a valve for discharging a predetermined amount of adhesive from the nozzle. The adhesive application mechanism is connected to the molded body transfer mechanism. The stacking control unit repeats a series of operations of holding, transferring, and placing the molded body by the molded body transport mechanism to stack a plurality of molded bodies, and applies the adhesive by the adhesive application mechanism to the series of the above. Let it happen during the operation.

  The above-mentioned method of collecting a compact can improve the efficiency of collecting a plurality of compacts that are conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered.

  The compacted article collecting apparatus can efficiently collect a plurality of compacts that are conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a molded product collection device according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a collection procedure of a molded article collection apparatus according to the first embodiment. It is process explanatory drawing explaining the collection procedure by the collector of the molded object which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG.

<< Description of Embodiments of the Present Invention >>
First, the contents of the embodiments of the present invention will be listed and described.

  (1) A method of collecting a compact according to one aspect of the present invention includes a molding step in which a metal powder is compression-molded to produce a compact, and the compact is sintered in a sintering furnace to produce a sintered body. Between the sintering step, a molded body collecting step of collecting a plurality of molded bodies is provided. The compact collecting process includes a compact transporting process for transporting the compact from the initial position to a predetermined position, and an adhesive for fixing a plurality of compacts to each other and applying an adhesive that is removed in a sintering furnace to the surface of the compact. Agent coating step. And a molded object collection process repeats a molded object transfer process with the automatically controlled collection apparatus, and stacks and adhere | attaches a some molded object by performing an adhesive agent application process by a molded object transfer process.

  According to said structure, the collection operation | work of the some molded object conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered can be made efficient. This is because the collection work is performed by an automatically controlled collection device. Further, by applying the adhesive in the molded body transfer step, the step of applying the adhesive and the step of transferring the molded body are performed separately as in the case of transferring the molded body after applying the adhesive. This is because the process can be simplified compared to the case. In addition, the interval from application of the adhesive to stacking of the molded bodies can be shortened as compared with the case where each step is performed separately.

  By performing the collection work with an automatically controlled collection apparatus, the adhesive application work and the molded body stacking work do not depend on the skill of the operator. Therefore, problems such as variations in the amount of adhesive applied due to the skill of the operator and misalignment of the compacts can be solved. That is, when the amount of the applied adhesive is too small, the molded product collapses due to vibration or the like until the sintering furnace, and the molded product is chipped or cracked, or the applied amount of the adhesive is too large. Thus, it can be suppressed that the compacts are too firmly fixed to make it difficult to separate the sintered bodies after sintering. In addition, the molded bodies can be prevented from shifting and overlapping.

  It is easy to prevent deterioration of the quality of the sintered body that has undergone the subsequent sintering step. As described above, the interval between the application of the adhesive and the stacking of the compacts can be shortened, so that the adhesive is dried and solidified (cured) before the compacts are stacked, and dust adheres to the adhesive. This can be suppressed. Therefore, it can suppress sintering with the dust adhering, and it is easy to suppress that the sintered compact which dust integrated is obtained.

  (2) As one form of the method for collecting the molded body, the adhesive may be mainly composed of water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol.

  According to the above configuration, after collecting the compacts, the compacts can be bonded to each other to such an extent that the compacts stacked by vibration in the process of transporting the compacts to the sintering furnace do not collapse. The adhesive hardly remains on the surface of the bonded body.

  Moreover, according to said structure, it is excellent in maintainability. Because the adhesive contains water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol as the main component, even if the adhesive solidifies in the collection device, it can be easily dissolved if immersed in water, and clogging in the device can be easily eliminated. is there.

  (3) As one form of the method of collecting the molded body, it may be mentioned that no adhesive is applied to the surface of the molded body that is stacked on the uppermost stage.

  According to said structure, it is easy to prevent the quality deterioration of the sintered compact which passed through the sintering process of a post process. This is because by not applying an adhesive to the uppermost molded body, it is possible to suppress sintering in a state where dust is adhered, and to easily obtain a sintered body integrated with dust. Since other molded bodies are exposed without being stacked on the top surface, if an adhesive is applied to the surface of the top molded body, dust containing metal material adheres to the adhesive. It becomes easy. If sintering is performed with dust attached to the adhesive, the dust is integrated with the surface of the sintered body.

  (4) A compacted article collecting apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes a molding apparatus that compresses metal powder to produce a compact, and a sintering furnace that sinters the compact to produce a sintered compact. And a compact collecting mechanism for collecting a plurality of compacts. The molded product collection mechanism includes a molded product transfer mechanism, an adhesive application mechanism, and a stacking control unit. The molded body transport mechanism includes a holding section that holds and places the molded body, and an arm that is connected to the holding section and moves the molded body held by the holding section from an initial position to a predetermined position. The adhesive application mechanism includes a nozzle for fixing the molded bodies to each other and discharging the adhesive removed by the sintering furnace onto the surface of the molded body, and a valve for discharging a predetermined amount of adhesive from the nozzle. The adhesive application mechanism is connected to the molded body transfer mechanism. The stacking control unit repeats a series of operations of holding, transferring, and placing the molded body by the molded body transport mechanism to stack a plurality of molded bodies, and applies the adhesive by the adhesive application mechanism to the series of the above. Let it happen during the operation.

  According to said structure, the several molded object conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered can be efficiently collected. This is because, by controlling the molded body transfer mechanism and the adhesive application mechanism by the stacking control unit, it is possible to automatically perform the operation of applying the adhesive to the molded body and the stacking operation of the molded bodies. In addition, by connecting the adhesive application mechanism to the molded product transfer mechanism, the adhesive can be applied to the surface of the molded product in the process of transferring the molded product, and when the application of the adhesive and the transfer of the molded product are performed separately. This is because the number of operations can be reduced as compared. In addition, the interval from application of the adhesive to the stacking of the molded bodies can be shortened.

  Since the coating operation and the stacking operation can be automatically performed, each of the operations does not depend on the skill of the worker, and the problem caused by the skill of the worker can be solved. In addition, since the adhesive application mechanism is connected to the molded product transfer mechanism, the interval from application of adhesive to stacking of molded products can be shortened, thus suppressing drying and solidification of the adhesive and adhesion of dust to the adhesive. it can.

  (5) As one form of the said molded object collection apparatus, it is mentioned that the valve is provided close to the nozzle tip.

  According to said structure, it is easy to suppress the dripping of the adhesive agent from a nozzle. This is because the distance from the valve to the nozzle tip is short, so that the amount of adhesive remaining during that time can be reduced as compared with the case where the valve is provided at a location away from the nozzle tip.

  Further, since the remaining amount of the adhesive in the nozzle is small, even if the adhesive is solidified in the nozzle, the removal operation is not likely to be complicated.

<< Details of Embodiment of the Present Invention >>
Details of embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, this invention is not limited to these illustrations, is shown by the claim, and intends that all the changes within the meaning and range equivalent to a claim are included.

Embodiment 1
The method of collecting a compact according to the first embodiment includes a molding process in which metal powder is compression-molded to produce a compact, and a sintering process in which the compact is sintered in a sintering furnace to produce a sintered compact. In the meantime, a compact body collecting step for collecting a plurality of compact bodies is provided. The molded product collection step includes a molded product transfer step of transferring the molded product from an initial position to a predetermined position, and an adhesive application step of applying a specific adhesive to the surface of the molded product. The main feature of this method of collecting a molded body is that the molded body transporting process is repeated by an automatically controlled collection device, and the adhesive coating process is performed in the molded body transporting process, thereby allowing a plurality of molded bodies to be collected. It is to stack and bond. First, the molding process for producing a molded body to be collected will be described, and then the details of the collection device will be described together with the method of collecting the molded body, followed by the sintering process.

[Molding process]
In the molding process, a metal powder is compression-molded, and a molded body that is a material of a machine part that is commercialized through sintering is produced. Examples of the mechanical parts include sprockets, oil pump rotors, gears, rings, flanges, pulleys, and the like. The material of the metal powder can be appropriately selected according to the type of the machine part, and typically includes an iron alloy. The shape of the molded body to be produced is a shape along the final shape of the mechanical part. That is, here, an appropriate molding apparatus (molding die) that can be molded into a shape in accordance with the final shape of the mechanical part is used. These mechanical parts often have a circular shaft hole formed at the center and flat surfaces on the front and back surfaces. And many said mechanical components have the outer peripheral surface of a continuous uneven surface. That is, the molded body has a circular shaft hole formed at the center, and has flat surfaces on the front and back surfaces. The molded body may further have an outer peripheral surface having a continuous uneven surface. The molded body produced in the molding process is collected before sintering in the sintering furnace. And a some molded object is conveyed to a sintering furnace at once.

[Molded product collection process]
The compact collection process includes a compact transport process and an adhesive application process. Then, the molded body transporting process is repeatedly performed by the automatically controlled collection device 1 (FIG. 1) described later, and the adhesive application process is performed in the molded body transporting process to stack and bond the plurality of molded bodies.

(Molded body transfer process)
In the molded body transfer step, the molded bodies are transferred one by one from the initial position to a predetermined position. The initial position is, for example, a position that is held by the holding unit 21 when using the collection device 1 described later. Usually, since the molded body is once taken out from the molding die and transported to a specific location by a belt conveyor or the like, the initial position is the transported location. When the molded body in the molding die is directly held, the initial position is the molding die. The predetermined position is an arrangement position of the molded body set in advance. For example, the predetermined position may be on the tray 200 (FIG. 1) for transporting the molded body to the subsequent sintering step in a stacked state. Details will be described in the control procedure described later.

  The compacts are stacked by repeating the compact transport process a plurality of times. It is preferable to stack the plurality of molded bodies so that the same surfaces of the molded bodies do not contact each other. That is, for example, the back surface of the upper molded body is overlapped with the surface of the lower molded body so that the front and back surfaces of the molded body do not contact each other. If it does so, a some molded object can be sintered uniformly by the sintering process of a post process, and it is hard to produce dispersion | variation in a sintering condition.

(Adhesive application process)
In the adhesive application step, a specific adhesive is applied to the surface of the molded body. The timing of performing the adhesive application process is during the transfer of the molded body by the molded body transfer process. The term “during transfer” as used herein refers to a period from the start of transfer of the molded body to the end of transfer of the molded body, and includes the start of transfer of the molded body and the end of transfer of the molded body. For example, when using the collection device 1 to be described later, the holding unit 21 refers to a period from when the holding unit 21 comes into contact with the molded body 100 until the holding unit 21 places the molded body 100 and releases the molded body 100. 21 at the same time as the contact with the molded body 100 and at the same time when the holding part 21 releases the molded body 100.

  The adhesive is removed (burned out) in a sintering furnace (not shown) while fixing a plurality of compacts. A specific material of the adhesive is preferably water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as a main component. The main component includes a case where PVA is diluted with a solution such as water as well as a case where it is composed of only PVA. The water-soluble PVA can adhere the compacts to the extent that the compacts stacked by vibration or the like are not collapsed during the process of transporting the compacts to the sintering furnace after the compacts are collected. In addition, the adhesive hardly remains on the surface of the sintered body due to the sintering. Moreover, water-soluble PVA is excellent in maintainability. When the adhesive solidifies in the nozzle 31 described later, the nozzle 31 is clogged (FIG. 1). For example, when collecting a molded body immediately after the molding process, the temperature of the molded body is equal to or higher than normal temperature, and the heat of the molded body may solidify the adhesive in the nozzle close to the molded body. By using water-soluble PVA as the main component of the adhesive, even if the adhesive is solidified, it can be easily dissolved by soaking in water and the clogging of the nozzle can be eliminated. In addition, if the viscosity is adjusted appropriately, it is also possible to use starch or the like for the adhesive.

  The application place of the adhesive may be one place or a plurality of places. For example, when an adhesive is applied to two locations on the surface of the molded body, the locations may be opposite to each other. If it does so, while there are few application | coating locations, it will be easy to fix compacts to such an extent that a load will not collapse in a conveyance process, and also an adhesive agent does not remain easily by sintering.

The application amount of the adhesive can be appropriately selected depending on the size and shape of the molded body. The coating amount is preferably about 0.01 (cm ³ / location) or more and 0.07 (cm ³ / location) or less, for example. By setting the coating amount to 0.01 (cm ³ / location) or more, the compacts can be fixed to the extent that they do not collapse during the conveyance process, and the coating amount is set to 0.07 (cm ³ / location) or less. The adhesive hardly remains after sintering.

  The adhesive is applied to each of the molded bodies to be stacked, but is preferably not applied to the surface of the molded body to be stacked on the uppermost stage. If it does so, it will be easy to prevent the quality deterioration of the sintered compact which passed through the sintering process of a post process. This is because by not applying an adhesive to the uppermost molded body, it is possible to suppress sintering in a state where dust is adhered, and it is easy to suppress the production of a sintered body integrated with dust. Since the other molded bodies are exposed without being stacked on the uppermost surface, if an adhesive is applied to the uppermost molded body surface, dust containing metal materials adheres to the adhesive. It becomes easy to do. If sintering is performed with dust attached to the adhesive, the dust is integrated with the surface of the sintered body. In particular, when the adhesive application process is performed at a location close to the molding process, the metal powder used in the molding process often exists as dust in that environment, and it is dust-free to apply the adhesive to the uppermost molded body. It is extremely effective in preventing adhesion of water.

  For example, this molded body collection step is mainly performed by using a molded body collection apparatus 1 shown in FIG.

(Collecting device)
The compacted body collecting apparatus 1 includes a compacting apparatus (not shown) for producing a compact 100 by compression molding metal powder, and a sintering furnace (not shown) for sintering the compact 100 to produce a sintered compact. And a molded body collecting mechanism 10 that collects a plurality of molded bodies 100. The compact collection mechanism 10 includes a compact transport mechanism 2, an adhesive application mechanism 3, and a stacking control unit 4. The stacking control unit 4 is provided in a computer, and the compact transfer mechanism 2 and the adhesive application mechanism 3 are controlled by the computer.

<Molded body transfer mechanism>
The molded body transport mechanism 2 includes a holding unit 21 that holds and places the molded body 100, and an arm 22 that is connected to the holding unit 21 and moves the molded body 100 held by the holding unit 21 from an initial position to a predetermined position. Have.

  Holding of the molded body 100 by the holding unit 21 can be performed by, for example, adsorbing with an electromagnet or a vacuum pad, or holding it with a manipulator such as a robot hand. When gripping, the outer periphery of the molded body 100 may be gripped with a force acting from the outside to the inside of the molded body 100. When the shaft hole is formed in the molded body 100, it is inserted into the shaft hole. You may hold | grip the inner periphery of the molded object 100 with the force which acts toward inner side from the inner side.

  Here, the holding | maintenance part 21 is comprised with two electromagnets 21a and 21b, and hold | maintains the molded object 100 by adsorb | sucking. The locations where the two electromagnets 21a and 21b are arranged are positions where the portions of the molded body 100 facing each other are attracted. When the coil (not shown) of the electromagnets 21a and 21b is energized to generate a magnetic force is set to “on”, and when the energization is stopped and the magnetic force is lost to “off”, the electromagnets 21a and 21b are set to “ "on" to hold the molded body 100, and "off" the electromagnets 21a and 21b to release the holding of the molded body 100 and place it. Control of “on” and “off” of the electromagnets 21 a and 21 b, that is, control of energization of the coils is performed by a holding unit control unit 41 of the stacking control unit 4 described later.

  The arm 22 is provided so that it can be driven vertically and horizontally. Specifically, the arm 22 is lowered so that the holding unit 21 approaches the molded body 100, or the molded body 100 is transferred from the initial position to a predetermined position (from left to right in FIG. 1). When the molded body 100 is disposed, the holding unit 21 is lifted away from the molded body 100, or returned from a predetermined position to an initial position (from right to left in FIG. 1). The arm 22 is driven by an actuator including, for example, a motor and a circuit that outputs a command from an arm drive control unit 42 of the stacking control unit 4 to be described later to the motor (all not shown).

<Adhesive application mechanism>
The adhesive application mechanism 3 is connected to the molded body transport mechanism 2 and includes a nozzle 31 that discharges the adhesive 110 onto the surface of the molded body 100 and a valve 32 that discharges a predetermined amount of the adhesive 110 from the nozzle 31. Here, the valve 32 is fixed to the molded body transfer mechanism 2 (arm 22).

  The tip of the nozzle 31 is disposed at a position close to the surface of the molded body 100 when the holding portion 21 holds the molded body 100 (a broken-line circle enlarged view in the upper right diagram in FIG. 3). The rear end of the nozzle 31 is connected to a material outport (not shown) of the valve 32. The length of the nozzle 31 is preferably shorter. Then, it is easy to suppress the dripping from the nozzle 31.

  The type of the valve 32 can be selected as appropriate, and a needle valve (not shown) is used here. The opening and closing of the needle valve of the valve 32 is a double-acting type, and by applying air pressure into the valve 32 from two air hoses 32a and 32b attached to two air imports (not shown) of the valve 32, respectively. Do. That is, the application amount of the adhesive 110 discharged from the nozzle 31 can be controlled by the two air hoses 32a and 32b (air import).

  The material import (not shown) of the valve 32 is connected to a liquid supply hose 34 that is connected to an adhesive tank 33 that stores the adhesive 110 and sends the adhesive 110 from the adhesive tank 33 to the valve 32. By opening the valve 32, the adhesive 110 passes through the liquid feeding hose 34 from the adhesive tank 33 and is discharged onto the surface of the molded body 100 through the nozzle 31. In order to facilitate discharge of the adhesive 110 from the nozzle 31 by opening the valve 32, it is preferable to apply air pressure to the adhesive tank 33. In this case, tank pressure control may be performed by a tank pressure control unit (not shown) included in the stacking control unit 4. The addition of air pressure may be performed constantly or only when the valve 32 is opened in conjunction with the valve 32.

  The location of the valve 32 is preferably provided close to the tip of the nozzle 31. If it does so, compared with the case where it provides in the location away from the front-end | tip of the nozzle 31, it is easy to suppress the dripping of the adhesive agent 110 from the nozzle 31. FIG. For example, when the valve 32 is disposed in the vicinity of the root of the liquid feeding hose 34 (adhesive tank 33), the valve 32 is compared with the case where the valve 32 is disposed at the distal end of the liquid feeding hose 34 (the distal end side of the nozzle 31). To the tip of the nozzle 31 becomes longer. In that case, the amount of adhesive remaining between the valve 32 and the tip of the nozzle 31 increases, and liquid dripping easily occurs. Further, when the length from the valve 32 to the tip of the nozzle 31 is increased, if the liquid feed hose 34 connecting the length is bent, the valve 32 does not exist between the tip of the nozzle 31 and the adhesive 110 is removed from the nozzle 31. The liquid is pushed out and the liquid dripping from the nozzle 31 is more likely to occur. On the other hand, since the length from the valve 32 to the tip of the nozzle 31 is short, the amount of adhesive remaining in the meantime can be reduced. In addition, even if the liquid feeding hose 34 is bent, it is possible to suppress the adhesive 110 in the liquid feeding hose 34 from being pushed out from the nozzle 31 by the valve 32, and it is possible to suppress liquid dripping accompanying the bending of the liquid feeding hose 34.

  The number of the adhesive application mechanisms 3 may be one or more. Here, the number of adhesive application mechanisms 3 is two. The arrangement | positioning location of the two adhesive application mechanisms 3 is a location where the adhesive 110 can be applied to positions facing each other in the molded body 100. Here, it is a position orthogonal to the direction in which the two holding portions 21 face each other.

<Stacking control unit>
The stacking control unit 4 repeats a series of operations of holding, transferring, and placing the molded body 100 by the molded body transport mechanism 2 to stack a plurality of molded bodies 100, and the adhesive 110 by the adhesive application mechanism 3. Is applied during the above series of operations. The stacking control unit 4 includes an input unit 40, a memory 4M, a holding unit control unit 41, an arm drive control unit 42, and a valve control unit 43. The input unit 40 inputs setting data to be stored in the memory 4M. The memory 4M stores setting data such as a predetermined location (arrangement location) of each molded body 100. The holding unit control unit 41 controls the holding and arrangement of the molded body 100 by the holding unit 21. The arm drive control unit 42 controls the transfer of the arm 22 from the initial position to the predetermined position and the return from the predetermined position to the initial position. The valve control unit 43 controls the opening and closing of the valve 32.

The control procedure by the stacking control unit 4 will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. In the description, the process explanatory diagram shown in FIG. Black arrows in FIG. 3 indicate the movement of the arm 22. First, before performing the control, the following information (α) to (δ) is input as an initial condition by the input unit 40 and stored as setting data in the memory 4M.
(Α) Arrangement area where the molded body 100 is arranged with respect to the tray 200 for collecting the molded body 100 and the number thereof (β) Set number m of the molded body 100 to be stacked in each arrangement area
(Γ) The total number n of the molded bodies 100 to be arranged (number of arrangement areas × number of arrangement stages m)
(Δ) Predetermined location (arrangement area and number of arrangement stages y) of each molded body 100 to be actually collected

  The arrangement area (α) and the number thereof are determined based on the size of the tray 200 (area on the plane) and the outer dimension (outer diameter) of the molded body 100. The set stage number m of the molded body 100 to be stacked in each arrangement area (β) is arbitrarily determined. From the above (α) and (β), the total number n (the number of arranged areas × the set number of steps m) of the molded bodies 100 arranged on one tray 200 of the above (γ) can be determined. Then, from (α) to (γ), a predetermined location of each molded body 100 actually collected in (δ), that is, in which arrangement area each molded body 100 is disposed. It is determined. Along with the above information, information on the predetermined position to be placed first, the number of stacked layers, the parallel interval between adjacent stacked molded bodies, and the number of parallel rows in the vertical and horizontal directions of the stacked molded bodies are stored as setting data in the memory 4M. Then, using this data, the arm drive control unit 42 calculates and sequentially obtains the mounting position of each molded body 100, and controls the arm 22 based on the calculation result. Specifically, it is as follows.

  First, position information of an initial position necessary for driving the arm 22, position information of a predetermined position on which the first molded body 100 is placed, and setting data such as the thickness of the molded body are read out. Then, from the state where the arm 22 is in the initial position (the upper left diagram in FIG. 3), the arm drive control unit 42 lowers the arm 22 to bring the holding unit 21 into contact with the molded body 100 (step S01). Subsequently, the holding unit control unit 41 turns the electromagnet of the holding unit 21 to “on” to hold the molded body 100 (step S02, middle diagram in the upper stage of FIG. 3). At this time, the holding number x of the molded body 100 and the arrangement step number y of the molded body 100 are counted sequentially from 1 and stored in the memory 4M.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the counted arrangement stage number y satisfies less than the set stage number m (step S03). When this condition is satisfied, the valve control unit 43 opens and closes the valve 32 to apply a predetermined amount of the adhesive 110 on the surface of the molded body 100 (step S04, enlarged view of broken line circle in the upper right diagram of FIG. 3). This application may be performed at any time from the time when the holding unit 21 comes into contact with the molded body 100 until the holding unit 21 places the molded body 100 and releases the molded body 100 as described above. Here, it is immediately after holding the molded body 100 by the holding unit 21 (step S02). On the other hand, when this condition is not satisfied, the arrangement stage number y of the molded body 100 stored in the memory 4M is reset to y = 0 (step S05). That is, the molded body 100 that does not satisfy this condition is the molded body 100 arranged at the uppermost stage, and the valve 32 is not opened and closed, and the adhesive 110 is not applied. When the arrangement step number y of the molded body 100 is reset to y = 0 in step S05, the arrangement step number y is counted again sequentially from 1 in step S01. That is, the arrangement stage number y does not exceed the set stage number m.

  Next, the arm drive control unit 42 moves the arm 22 from the initial position to the predetermined position (the arrangement area and the number of arrangement steps) based on the arrangement area and the arrangement stage number y corresponding to the holding number x of the molded body 100 of the setting data stored in advance. The number of arrangement stages y) is transferred (step S06, left figure in the lower part of FIG. 3). Subsequently, the holding unit control unit 41 places the molded body 100 by setting the electromagnet of the holding unit 21 to “off” (step S07, middle diagram in the lower stage of FIG. 3). Thereafter, the arm drive control unit 42 returns the arm 22 from the predetermined position to the initial position (step S08, lower right diagram in FIG. 3).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the counted number x of the compacts 100 has reached the set total number n (step S09). If this condition has not been reached, steps S01 to S09 are repeated until this condition is reached. When the condition of step S09 is reached, the number x of the molded body 100 stored in the memory 4M is reset to x = 0, and the control is terminated. The total number of holding numbers x may be a counter different from the counter with the arrangement stage number y, or may be obtained from the measurement result of the counter with the arrangement stage number y.

  When the above control is completed, the next tray 200 is prepared, and the above steps S01 to S09 are repeated until the condition of step S09 is reached.

[Sintering process]
The plurality of molded bodies 100 collected as described above are conveyed to a sintering furnace and sintered. As the sintering temperature, a temperature necessary for the sintering can be appropriately selected. Examples thereof include 1000 ° C. or higher, 1100 ° C. or higher, and particularly 1200 ° C. or higher. The sintering time is about 20 minutes to 150 minutes. By this sintering, the adhesive 110 that has adhered the compacts 100 to each other is completely removed (burned out). Therefore, the adhesive is not attached not only to the surface of the obtained sintered body but also to the inside thereof.

[Function and effect]
According to the first embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.

  (1) The collection work of the molded body 100 can be made efficient. This is because the operation of applying the adhesive 110 to each molded body 100 and the stacking operation of the plurality of molded bodies 100 can be performed automatically. Moreover, it is because the application | coating of the adhesive agent 110 to the surface of each molded object 100 can be performed in the transfer process of each molded object 100. FIG.

  (2) The application work and the stacking work do not depend on the skill of the worker, and problems caused by the skill of the worker can be solved. This is because the coating operation and the overlapping operation can be performed automatically.

  (3) Drying of the adhesive 110 and adhesion of dust to the adhesive 110 can be suppressed. This is because the application of the adhesive 110 to the surface of each molded body 100 can be performed in the process of transferring each molded body 100, so that the interval from the application of the adhesive 110 to the stacking of the molded bodies 100 can be shortened.

  (4) Sintering in a state where dust is attached can be suppressed, and it is easy to suppress the production of a sintered body in which dust is integrated, and thus it is easy to prevent deterioration of the quality of the sintered body. This is because the interval from the application of the adhesive 110 to the stacking of the molded bodies 100 can be shortened, and the adhesion of dust to the adhesive 110 can be suppressed. Further, the adhesive is not applied to the uppermost molded body 100.

《Test example》
Using the molded product collection apparatus 1 described in the first embodiment, a total of 4000 molded products were collected with the set stage number m = 4. Four molded bodies were bonded to each molded body by applying and stacking an adhesive mainly composed of PVA during transfer. And it conveyed with the belt conveyor to the sintering furnace, and confirmed the presence or absence of load collapse. As a result, no load collapsed, and no cracks or cracks were found in the 4000 molded bodies. Thereafter, 4000 compacts were sintered in a sintering furnace to produce a sintered body, and arbitrarily picked up 5 sintered bodies from the 4000 sintered bodies and visually observed the surface, The cross section was observed with a scanning electron microscope (SEM). As a result, it was confirmed that no adhesive remained on the surface and inside. On the other hand, as a comparative example, except that no adhesive was applied to each molded body, a total of 4000 molded bodies were collected with a set number of steps m = 4 as described above. And it conveyed with the belt conveyor to the sintering furnace, and confirmed the presence or absence of load collapse. As a result, load collapse was observed, and damage such as chipping and cracking was observed in about 2% (about 80) of the molded bodies.

  From the above results, by applying an adhesive mainly composed of PVA to each molded body and stacking them to adhere a plurality of molded bodies and collecting them, the cargo collapses in the process of transporting from the collection to the sintering furnace. Thus, it was found that damage to the molded body can be suppressed. Further, it was found that by using an adhesive mainly composed of PVA, the adhesive does not remain on the surface and inside of the sintered body after sintering, and the quality of the sintered body is not deteriorated.

  The molded object collection method according to one aspect of the present invention and the molded object collection device according to one aspect of the present invention include various general structural parts (sprockets, oil pump rotors, gears, rings, flanges, pulleys, etc. It can be suitably used for collecting materials (molded bodies) of sintered parts such as machine parts.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Molded object collection apparatus 10 Molded body collection mechanism 2 Molded body transfer mechanism 21 Holding part 21a, 21b Electromagnet 22 Arm 3 Adhesive application mechanism 31 Nozzle 32 Valve 32a, 32b Air hose 33 Adhesive tank 34 Liquid supply hose 4 Step stacking Control unit 40 Input unit 4M Memory 41 Holding unit control unit 42 Arm drive control unit 43 Valve control unit 100 Molded body 110 Adhesive 200 Tray

Claims (4)

Collecting a plurality of the compacts between a molding process in which a metal powder is compression-molded to produce a compact and a sintering process in which the compact is sintered in a sintering furnace. It has a compact collection process,
The molded body collection step includes:
A molded body transfer step of transferring the molded body from an initial position to a predetermined position;
An adhesive application step of fixing the plurality of molded bodies to each other and applying an adhesive removed by the sintering furnace to the surface of the molded body,
With the automatically controlled collection device, the molded body transfer step is repeatedly performed, and the adhesive application step is performed in the molded body transfer step, thereby stacking and bonding the plurality of molded bodies ,
The adhesive is a method for collecting a molded body mainly composed of water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol . The method for collecting a molded body according to claim 1, wherein the adhesive is not applied to a surface of the molded body that is stacked on the uppermost stage. A molded body that is provided between a molding apparatus that compresses metal powder to produce a molded body and a sintering furnace that sinters the molded body to produce a sintered body, and collects a plurality of the molded bodies. Equipped with a pickup mechanism,
The compact collecting mechanism is:
A molded body transport mechanism having a holding section for holding and placing the molded body, and an arm connected to the holding section and transporting the molded body held by the holding section from an initial position to a predetermined position;
The molding includes a nozzle for fixing the molded bodies to each other and discharging an adhesive removed by the sintering furnace to the surface of the molded body, and a valve for discharging a predetermined amount of the adhesive from the nozzle. An adhesive application mechanism coupled to the body transfer mechanism;
The series of operations of holding, transferring, and placing the molded body by the molded body transfer mechanism is repeated to stack a plurality of the molded bodies, and the adhesive application by the adhesive application mechanism is applied to the series of operations. and a stacking control section to perform during,
The adhesive ejected by the nozzle is a molded article collection device mainly composed of water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol . The said valve | bulb is a collector of the molded object of Claim 3 provided close to the said nozzle tip.

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