JPH0222235Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] (Field of industrial application) The present invention is a chuck device attached to a conveying device for grasping material workpieces loaded on a pallet, etc., and positioning and placing them at a designated position. Regarding.

(Prior art) In a conveyance device that takes out raw workpieces stacked on a pallet or the like one by one and sends them to a specified processing process, etc., the position of the workpieces to be taken out is usually determined in advance. The teaching robot is used, and the robot is configured to sequentially grip and send out the workpieces at the taught positions.

However, with such devices, if materials that do not sit well are piled up on a pallet, the positions of the workpieces may shift during the transportation process, making it difficult for the teaching robot to grip the workpieces. In addition,
Even if a robot is equipped with a sensor that detects a part of the workpiece, if the object to be gripped is a raw material workpiece, parts of the workpiece such as burrs on which the true position cannot be determined may be detected, and the robot may constantly detect parts of the workpiece. The problem is that it is not possible to grasp the object accurately.

(Purpose) This invention was made in view of the above problems.
The object is to provide a chuck device with a simple structure that can firmly grip a workpiece and accurately position and place it at a designated position even if there is some positional deviation.

(Means for Achieving the Object) In other words, in order to achieve the object, the present invention includes a main shaft that is attached to the conveyance mechanism and has a flange-like portion at the lower end, and a bulge that makes frictional contact with the inner wall surface of the workpiece on the outer periphery. A chuck body comprising a retractable prada and having a flange-like portion at the upper end and a guide portion having a substantially inverted triangular cross section at the lower end; A chuck device comprising a coupling member held slidably in both directions, and a positioning member mounted slidably in the axial direction within the main shaft and fitted into an engagement hole provided at the upper end of the chuck body. be.

(Example) The details of the present invention will be explained below based on the illustrated example.

Figures 4 and 5 show the entire structure of the device of the present invention, and the reference numeral 10 in the figures is a manipulator that is movably mounted on the gate-shaped base cover 18, and is oriented perpendicular to the traveling direction. Manipulator 1 that expands and contracts
A chuck device 20, which will be described later, is attached to the arm 11 of 0 through a plate 13, and the chuck device 20 sequentially loads pallets 15, which have been placed on the positioning member 14 on the floor via the engaging portion 16, here. It is configured to grasp workpieces W such as cylinder blocks stacked on top of each other and transport them onto a jig 17 of a processing device.

1 to 3 show details of the above-mentioned chuck device 20, which is a characteristic part of the present invention.
A rod 1 extending downward from the arm 11 of the manipulator 10
A plate 13 is integrally fixed to the lower end of the chuck 2, and one or more chuck devices 20 are attached thereto depending on the number of holes a on the workpiece W to be gripped.

Reference numeral 21 in the figure denotes a main shaft that is slidably attached to a cylindrical body 22 fixed on a plate 13 while receiving a downward biasing force from a spring 23. A disc-shaped flange 24 is integrally attached to the chuck body 40, which will be described later, via a cylindrical coupling member 30, and this flange 24 is connected to the coupling member 30 partitioned by a partition wall 31. Upper chamber 3
2, and its upper and lower surfaces are covered with a disk-shaped retainer 3.
It is held by a large number of balls 34 . There is.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned cylindrical coupling member 30 is attached to the main shaft 21 through at least three springs 35 stretched radially on the upper surface so that its axis always coincides with the main shaft 21, and is partitioned by a partition wall 31. In the lower chamber 36 of the ivy, a flange 41 fixed to the upper end of the chuck body 40 is attached to disk-shaped retainers 37, 37.
The chuck body 4 is clamped by a large number of poles 38 held by the chuck body 4 through the flange 41.
0 is assembled immovably in the axial direction and slidably in the planar direction.

On the other hand, the chuck body 40 is assembled to the cylindrical coupling member 30 via the disc-shaped flange 41.
is held so that its axis always coincides with the coupling member 30 by at least three springs 39 stretched radially on the lower surface of the coupling member 30, and when the workpiece W is lifted, the coupling member 30
A hole 41a provided at the center of the upper end flange 41 is always held in a state drawn into the cylinder of the main shaft 21 by an upward spring 25 so that the main shaft 21 and the shaft center are held at a coincident position through the upper spring 25. The lower end of the locating rod 26 is configured to engage with the lower end of the locating rod 26. By the way, this chuck body 4
The main body part of 0 is attached to the flange 4 through bolts 42.
It is composed of a block 43 fixed below 1 and a prada 44 coated thereon as a shape-retaining body. Inflate Prada 44 with pressurized air,
The workpiece W is configured to be gripped by bringing the Prada 44 into close contact with the inner wall surface of the hole a formed in the workpiece W. Furthermore, the chuck body 40 configured in this manner has an inverted triangular cross section at the lower end. A guide member 47 having a shape is integrally fixed to the lower end of the bolt 42, and is configured so that when the chuck body 40 is lowered, it can be smoothly inserted into the hole a of the workpiece W using this guide member 47 as a guide. .

Note that the reference numeral 29 in the figure indicates the head 2 at the upper end of the main shaft 21.
air intake ports 30a, 30b communicating with the upper part of the cylinder in the main shaft 21 via a flow path 28 provided in the main shaft 21;
1 and 2 show large diameter holes provided in the upper and lower surfaces of the cylindrical coupling member 30, respectively, for inserting the lower end of the main shaft 21 and the bolt 42 of the chuck body 40 with sufficient play.

Next, the operation of the device configured as described above will be explained.

When the pallet 15 on which the workpiece W has been positioned is placed on the positioning member 14 on the floor, the manipulator 10 that has been waiting on the pallet 15 runs on the gate-shaped base 18 and extends and contracts the arm 11 to move the manipulator 10 up and down. A chuck device 20 hanging downward is positioned above the workpiece W to be transported.

Next, when a cylinder (not shown) is operated to lower the chuck device 20, the guide member 47 attached to the lower end of the chuck body 40 is inserted into the hole a of the workpiece W using its tapered side as a guide ( Figure 1).

When the chuck device 20 driven by a cylinder (not shown) further descends, even if there is a slight deviation in the placement position of the work W, the guide member 4
7 is in contact with the edge of the hole a of the workpiece W, while moving the chuck body 40 integrated therewith to the left in the figure while resisting the spring 39.
insert it inside.

By the way, this chuck body 40 has a flange 41 integral therewith located in the lower chamber 36 of the cylindrical coupling member 30 and is assembled so as to be slidable in the surface direction with respect to the coupling member 30. To move the body 40 to the left, first the connecting member 30
If the positional deviation between the main shaft 21 and the workpiece W is larger, the lower end of the main shaft 21 located in the upper chamber 32 is attached to the connecting member 30 as shown in FIG. While sliding in the plane direction with respect to the flange 24, move it to the left in the figure.

In this way, when the chuck body 40 completely enters the hole a of the workpiece W at a position deviated from the axis of the main shaft 21, pressurized air sent between the block 43 and the prada 44 from the air intake port 45 causes Since the prada 44 expands and its surface frictionally engages with the inner wall surface of the hole a, the cylinder (not shown) is operated again at this stage to pull up the workpiece W.

Then, when the lifted work W breaks contact with the mounting surface and becomes free, the main shaft 21 and the cylindrical coupling member 30, and the cylindrical coupling member 30 and the chuck body 40 are connected to each other.
A plurality of springs 35..., 39... are stretched radially on the upper and lower surfaces of the coupling member 30, respectively.
... is aligned on the axis of the main shaft 21 due to the tension of the main shaft 21. Next, pressurized air is fed into the cylinder inside the main shaft 21 from the air intake port 29 provided in the head 27 at the upper end of the main shaft 21, and the positioning rod is moved against the spring 25. 26 and its lower end into the chuck body 4.
The chuck body 40 is positioned and fixed on the same axis as the main shaft 21 by inserting it into the hole 41a provided in the flange 41 of the main shaft 21.

Finally, the work W that has been positioned and held is transferred to the next processing device by the manipulator 10, and the work W that has been taught in advance is transferred to the next processing device.
When the PRADA 44 is placed on the jig 17, the supply of air to the air intake port 45 is stopped.
shrinks and the workpiece W is removed due to its own weight.

Further, the positioning rod 26 that held the chuck body 40 on the axis of the main shaft 21 is moved to the air intake port 29 while the chuck device 20 is being transferred onto the next workpiece W to be transported by the manipulator 10.
The chuck body 40 returns to its free state again by cutting off the air supply to the chuck body 40.

Note that if the positional deviation of the workpiece W is abnormally large and a situation occurs in which the guide member 47 at the lower end does not enter the hole a of the workpiece W when the chuck device 20 is lowered, the rod 12 Only the pressed plate 13 moves down against the spring 23. In such a case, a proximity switch (not shown) or the like detects this state and stops the operation of the device.

(Effects) As described above, according to the present invention, the main shaft attached to the conveyance mechanism and the chuck body having the guide member having an inverted triangular cross section at the lower end can be connected to each other by the connecting member provided between them. Since it is attached so that it can be slid in the direction, even if the workpiece to be transported is placed with a large positional shift, the connecting member can be slid against the main axis as a reference, and the chuck body can be moved relative to this connecting member. By sliding the chuck body, it is possible to greatly slide the chuck body with respect to the main shaft and grip the workpiece reliably. Moreover, a plurality of springs are stretched radially between the coupling member and the main shaft and between the coupling member and the chuck body,
Since the coupling member is always biased in the axial direction of the main shaft and the chuck body is always biased in the axial direction of the coupling member,
If you grasp the workpiece and raise the chuck device,
The main shaft and the chuck body can be automatically positioned on the same axis via the coupling member, and the positioning rod on the main shaft and the hole on the chuck body can be easily and accurately fitted, making it possible to create new It is possible to accurately position the workpiece at the position where it should be placed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 3 are cross-sectional views of a chuck device showing an embodiment of the present invention, showing the gripping operation in order, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are a side view and a front view showing an example of a manipulator equipped with the above device. It is. 10... Manipulator, 15... Palette, 1
7... jig, 20... chuck device, 21... main shaft, 24... flange, 26... positioning rod, 30... joint body, 40... chuck body, 41
...Flange, 44...Prada, 47...Guide member, W...Work.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] The main shaft is attached to the conveyance mechanism and is equipped with a positioning rod that can freely protrude and retract from the shaft center, and has a hole at the upper end into which the positioning rod fits, and a guide member having a substantially triangular cross section at the lower end. A connecting member located between the expandable chuck body, the main shaft and the chuck body, and capable of coupling and holding the flange provided at the lower end of the main shaft and the flange provided at the upper end of the chuck body so as to be slidable in the plane direction. and a large diameter hole is provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the coupling member through which the main shaft and the chuck body pass, and between the coupling member and the main shaft and between the coupling member and the chuck body. A chuck characterized in that a plurality of springs are each stretched radially to bias the coupling member in the axial direction of the main shaft and the chuck body in the axial direction of the coupling member. Device.