JPH0243673Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to a transport unit used for automatic transport of articles, such as automatically transporting a workpiece stored in a magazine etc. to a predetermined position for the next process, and in particular, it relates to a transport unit that is used for automatic transport of articles, such as automatically transporting a workpiece stored in a magazine etc. to a predetermined position for the next process. The present invention relates to an improvement in a transport unit having a pair of claws that can be opened and closed mutually to hold an object to be transported between the two.

This type of transport unit is suitably used, for example, in the processing process of electronic circuit boards, where a magazine containing an appropriate number of boards is sent to the next process, or a board that has completed a certain process is stored in a magazine. In some cases, the board taken out from the magazine is placed on the support base of the station at a predetermined position on the guide, which is the movement path of this unit, and the board is held by a pair of claws of the unit, and as the unit moves, other The station is reached and the substrate is opened by opening the claws on the support and placed in that position. Conventionally, the opening and closing of the claws of the unit when holding or releasing an article such as a board is performed by an electric drive unit or an air cylinder provided in the transport unit, and therefore, the claws are opened and closed using an electric drive unit or an air cylinder provided in the transport unit. The unit had to be connected to a power source. Therefore, the unit must always be moved by dragging electric wires or piping, which is not desirable in terms of safety and has the disadvantage that the range of movement of the unit is narrowly limited.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and therefore provides a conveyance unit that is preferable in terms of safety and allows for a long conveyance distance.

The feature of this invention is that there is no need for electric wires or piping to connect the unit to a power source, and the claws are opened/closed and moved up and down by a device outside the unit. An example will be explained below.

FIG. 1 shows the use of the transport unit 10, in which the unit is moved along a guide 1 such as a rail, and a groove 2 extending in the longitudinal direction of the guide is provided in the running section 11 of the unit 10. The wheels are engaged and moved in a fixed position. The movement is performed by a looped wire 3 or the like, which is connected to the unit 10 at an appropriate position, and one pulley on which the wire is hung is driven by a motor. A suitable position of the unit 10, in the example shown at the bottom, is provided with a pair of pawls 12, 13, which pawls are configured to open and close with respect to each other, i.e., to be close to or separated from each other to some extent, in order to hold the article between them. has been done.

The features of the conveying unit according to the present invention are that the guide 1
unit 10 at a predetermined position along
is to apply a mechanical action to the unit 10 by means of a pusher provided in a station for holding or unloading articles, thereby opening and closing a pair of claws, and for this purpose, FIGS. As shown in the figure, the unit 10 is provided with a pair of racks 14 and 15 arranged parallel to each other and a common pinion 16 that is located between them and meshes with the racks, and the pinion 16 is fixed to a main shaft 17. ing. A mounting plate 18, 19 is fixed to the back of each rack 14, 15, and each mounting plate is formed with a pair of recesses 20a, 20b, each of which can partially receive a ball 21 pressed by a spring. It's becoming like that.

Each pawl is attached to a mounting plate 22 or 23, respectively, and these pawls are opened and closed by rotation of the main shaft 17 via a suitable transmission mechanism 24. Therefore,
This transmission mechanism may be of any type as long as it converts rotational motion into linear motion. Preferably, it may be a rack-pinion mechanism as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6; in this case, ,
A pair of parallel racks 25 and 26 are connected to the rack 1.
A pinion 27 is fixed to the main shaft 17, disposed perpendicularly to the racks 4, 15 and fixed to the corresponding pawl mounting plates, and meshing between the racks.
Alternatively, as a transmission mechanism, as shown in Figure 7,
A cam 28 fixed to the main shaft 17 and each mounting plate 2
It can also be configured with a pair of followers 29 and 30 connected to each other.

Each claw of this unit 10 is configured to be movable up and down, so that the frame that supports the claw and its opening/closing mechanism is slidably attached to a plurality of supports 32 attached to the upper plate 31 through the respective bushes 33. A tension spring 34 provided in the vicinity of each support column 32 constantly pulls the support frame upward, and provides a lowered position of the support frame. As shown in FIG. 2, the lowering device may be composed of a follower 36 that engages with a cam 35 attached to the upper plate 31, and when lowering the claw, the cam 35
5 is pushed by a pusher provided at the station, thereby pushing down the follower 36. It is preferable to use air cylinders as pushers for pushing the racks 14 and 15 and the cam 35. In this case, the station is equipped with three air cylinders 5, one of which 5b is used for moving the rack 14, and the other 5c is used for moving the rack 14. Easy 1
5 is used for moving the cam 35, and another one 5a is used for moving the cam 35.

When an article on the support base 4 of station A is to be held between the claws during operation, the unit 10 is moved to the station A position with the claws 12 and 13 open, and the first The pusher 5a pushes the cam 35 and moves the claw 1 through the follower 36.
2 and 13 to the position of the support stand 4a and maintain that state. Then, when the rack 14 is pushed by the second pusher 5b, the other rack 15 is moved in the opposite direction via the pinion 16, and the pinion 16 is rotated in the direction of arrow c in FIG. Then, the lower pinion 27 is rotated in the direction D in FIG. 6 to bring the pawls 12 and 13 closer together, and the article S is held between them as shown in FIG. In this case, the rack mounting plates 18 and 19 also move, and the
As shown, the recess 20a engages the ball 21 and locks the closed position. Therefore, even when the second pusher returns, the closed position is maintained. When the article is held between the pawls, the first pusher is retracted and at the same time the cam 35 returns to its original position and the spring 34 lifts the support frame of the pawls. Then, via wire 3, unit 10 is moved to station B,
Similarly, the pair of pawls are lowered by the pusher at that position, the other rack 15 is pushed by the pusher, the pinion 16 is rotated in the opposite direction of C in FIG. 4, and the pinion 27 is also rotated in the opposite direction of D. The claw 1 rotates in the direction shown by the imaginary line in FIG.
2 and 13 move to the open position, release the held item, and place it on the support stand 4b. When the pawl opens, the ball 21 engages with the other recess 20b, thereby locking the open position. Next, the cam 35 is returned to its original position by retracting the pusher, and the unit is raised.
Place unit 10 on station A with the claws open.
and the previous action is repeated. Note that the drive motor for the wire 3 and the pushers for each station are connected to an appropriate controller (not shown) and are operated by commands from there, so they are automatically operated, and therefore automatic transport is possible. It is done.

Therefore, according to the present invention, when an article is moved from one position to another by the conveying unit, the pair of claws provided on the unit can be opened/closed and moved up and down by the pusher serving as the actuating part at that position. Therefore, there is no need to equip the unit with a drive section. Therefore, at a certain position, an object is held between the claws of the unit by external mechanical action, and while this state is maintained, the unit is moved to another position, and the same external device is applied at that position. Since the item can be released by opening the pair of claws on the unit, there is no need to connect the unit and the power source with electric wires or flexible piping. Therefore, since only the unit is moved, safety can be improved, and even if the distance to be transported is long, it can be transported easily, which is a remarkable effect.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conveying unit to which the present invention relates, Fig. 2 is a side view of a conveying unit according to an example of the present invention, Fig. 3 is a front view thereof, and Fig. 4 is a line A-A in Fig. 2. Figure 5 is a partial elevational view seen from direction C in Figure 2, Figure 6 is a view taken along line B in Figure 5.
-B sectional view, FIG. 7 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 6 showing another embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the opening and closing state of the claw. In the diagram, 1... Guide, 5... Pusher, 1
2,13...nail, 14,15...lack, 16...
... Pinion, 17 ... Main shaft, 18, 19 ... Mounting plate, 20 ... Recess, 21 ... Ball, 34 ... Spring,
35...cam, 36...fuoroa.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] (1) A pair of claws that can be moved along a guide such as a rail and can be opened and closed mutually in order to hold an object to be transported between them, and the opening and closing of the claws is caused by rotation of the main shaft. In the conveying unit made by the above-described method, the unit includes a pair of juxtaposed racks that can be pushed by a pair of pushers provided at a predetermined position on one side along the guide, and a pair of racks located between the racks. a common pinion meshing with the racks and mounted on said main shaft;
Further, the support frame of the claw is biased upward by a spring, and a cam is moved by a pusher provided at a predetermined position similar to the pusher, and a follower installed in the support frame engages with the cam. 1. A conveyance unit characterized in that it is adapted to be lowered by a predetermined distance by means of a conveyance unit. (2) Utility Model Registration The unit according to claim 1, wherein the pusher is an air cylinder. (3) Utility Model Registration In the unit as set forth in claim 1, a pair of recesses are provided on the back surface or the mounting plate of each of the racks in order to lock the pawls in the open position and the closed position, and the recesses are A transport unit adapted to receive a portion of a spring biased ball in position.