JPH0426442A - Button supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To allow the center of a button to match exactly with the center of a holding part of a button holding arm, and to surely hold the button holding arm by providing adjacent supporting point shafts, and a pair of connecting shafts provided on the same connecting link so that they are positioned in the apexes of a parallelogram, respectively. CONSTITUTION:A button B which drops down onto opening/closing plates 43, 44 is pressed by positioning parts 71A, 72A and 73A of positioning levers 71, 72 and 73 and moved to the center position P1, and finally held from three sides by the positioning parts 71A, 72A and 73A. In this case, each positioning lever 71, 72 and 73 forms a four-node link mechanism for forming a parallelogram together with connecting links 74, 75 and 76, therefore, they are all rotated at the same angle. Accordingly, in a positioning state, each positioning part 71A, 72A and 73A are brought into contact at an equal interval with the outside peripheral surface of the button B, and the center of the button B can be allowed to match exactly with the center part P1. When the positioning levers 71, 72 and 73 move to the positioning position of the button B, a rotary position detecting sensor 84 detects a detecting plate 82 and outputs a turn-on signal.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention provides a button holding section of a button sewing machine by sequentially horizontally transporting buttons carried out from a button supply section by a horizontal transport mechanism and a button holding arm. The present invention relates to a button supply device configured to supply buttons.

[Prior Art] The present applicant has previously proposed and implemented a button supply device as shown in FIGS. 6 to 11.

This button feeding device is completely different from the concept of conventional button feeding devices, in which buttons are conveyed by sliding and falling diagonally downwards due to their own weight, and the buttons fed from the button feeding section are conveyed along a horizontal conveying path. It was designed to be forcibly transported.

An outline of this prior art will be explained below based on the drawings.

The button B sent out from the outlet 13c of the button supply section 13 is first fed to the notch 1 formed in the first rotary plate 14.
4a one by one, and the lower surface thereof is attached to the first support body 16.
Supported by And those buttons B are AC
The first horizontal arcuate path 01 (see FIG. 7) is created by the intermittent rotation of the first rotary plate 14 by the intermittent drive of the motor 15.
180 from the outlet 13c.
At the time of zero rotation, it reaches the first discharge port 16a1, falls downward from there, fits into the through hole 2Ia of the second rotary plate 21, and is supported by the second support body 23. Thereafter, this button B is moved to the unloading position of the second horizontal arcuate path 02, that is, the second It reaches the discharge port 23a and falls onto a pair of opening/closing plates 43 and 44 provided directly below it. At this point, the centripetal mechanism described below operates and 1. The button holding arm 28 (button holding part 28a formed by the button holding arm 28) is waiting at the center of the button B and below the opening/closing plate 43.
The center of is made to coincide with P1. Thereafter, due to the operation of the cylinder 32 and the motor 35, the button rotating member 29 located above the second discharge 023a rotates and descends.
Rotate while pressing button B downward. As a result, the locking pin 28al provided in the button holding part 28a of the button holding arm 28 projects from the opening formed by the opening/closing i43, 44, and the locking pin 28al is inserted into the button supply part. At this point, the opening/closing plate 4344 is in the open state, and the button B is completely fitted into the locking pin and firmly held by the button holding arm 28.

Thereafter, the button B is fitted between the button holding parts 12b, 12b of the button sewing machine 12 by rotation of the button holding arm 28 by the motor 26, and is held therein.

By the way, as shown in above 2, the center of the button B sent out from the second outlet 23a onto the opening/closing plate 43.44 and the center P of the button holding part 28a provided on the button holding arm 28
In R, a centripetal mechanism as shown in FIG.
Fulcrum shafts 51a, 52a, 53a provided on the upper surface of 6
Three positioning levers are rotatably attached to the opening/closing plates 43 and 44, respectively.
Positioning parts 48a, 49a, 50 having the same arc shape
a is formed. In addition, the support, 6 shafts 51a, 52
a, 53a is the rotation center axis 1i of the button rotation member 29
They are arranged at equal intervals on a circumference centered on P1, and the positioning parts 48a, 49a, and 50a are set to be thicker than the through hole 21a formed in the second rotary plate 21. 54 is the positioning lever 48,
Connect each outer end of 49.50 to the connecting shaft 51b.

It is an arc-shaped positioning link connected by 52b and 53b, and one end thereof is connected to the operating lever 55°, the link lever 569, and the rotating shaft 57. It is connected to an operating rod 60a of a solenoid 60 via a connecting lever 58 and a link 59. When the actuating rod 60a is attracted by the operation of the solenoid 60, the connecting lever 58. The link lever 56 rotates together with the rotation shaft 57 in the direction of arrow G, and the actuating lever 55 moves in the direction H to move the positioning link 54 counterclockwise. This results in
The positioning levers 48, 49, 50 are simultaneously connected to the fulcrum shaft 51a.
, 52a, 53a in the counterclockwise direction, and the positioning parts 48a, 49a, 50a move inward to close the opening/closing plate 4.
3.44 Press the button B ejected upward from three sides by operating the positioning levers 48°, 49.50, and place the button in the center P1 of the holding part of the button holding arm 28 located on the rotation center axis of the button rotation member 29. Match the center of B.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] However, in the above prior art, when the centripetal mechanism is activated, the center P1 of the holding part of the button holding arm 28 is
A slight positional shift occurs in the direction of movement of the positioning levers 48, 49.5o relative to the positioning levers 48, 49.5o, and the button B may not be properly positioned. This is the positioning lever 48.
49, positioning link 54, and positioning lever 49
．． As shown in FIG.
b, 52b, and the fulcrum shaft 52a.

53a and the connecting shafts 52b, 53b form trapezoidal four-bar links abcd, cedf, and the actuating lever 55
This is because the other positioning levers 49 and 50 rotate at different angles about the fulcrum shafts 52a and 53a relative to the rotation angle of the positioning lever 48. This deviation causes a slight deviation in the set position of the button B, and even if the button B is subsequently rotated by the button rotation member 29, the button sewing hole Ba does not fit, resulting in a problem of supply failure. .

For this reason, each fulcrum shaft 51a, 52a, 5 of the centripetal mechanism
Screw 3 for fixing the mounting plate 36 to which 3a is fixed
6a is inserted through the long hole (not shown), and when in use, the fixing position of the attachment root 36 is adjusted within the range of the long hole, and the button B and the positioning parts 48a, 49a, 50a are fixed.
Efforts were also made to keep the contact points at equal intervals. (See Figure 8) However, in this case, the mounting position of the mounting plate 36 must be readjusted every time the diameter of the button B used changes, which requires a lot of time and effort. This caused a decrease in productivity.

Further, since the operating lever 55 for rotating the positioning levers 48, 49, 50 is directly moved forward and backward by the solenoid 60, the positioning lever 48,
49. When 50 holds button B from three sides, button B
There was also the problem that a large impact was applied to the button B, causing the button B to rise as shown in FIGS. 11(b) and 11(c) instead of as shown in FIG. 11(a), resulting in a supply failure.

This invention was made with attention to the above-mentioned problem, and it is possible to accurately position the button conveyed by the button conveyance means at the ejection position, and to ensure that the button is
The object of the present invention is to provide a button feeding device that can be passed to a holding arm.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides a method for transferring the button transported to the unloading position by the button transporting means to the button holding arm waiting directly below the unloading position, and transporting the button to the button holding section of the sewing machine. The button feeding device is provided with a centripetal mechanism that aligns the center of the button that has reached the unloading position with the center of the button holding portion of the button holding arm, the button feeding device comprising: comprises at least three positioning members having the same shape, each of which is rotatably held by a fulcrum shaft set at equal intervals on a circumference concentric with the button holding portion, and an inner portion formed in each of the positioning members. a positioning portion protruding toward the direction, and a connecting member connecting adjacent positioning members at the same interval, and connecting adjacent fulcrum shafts among the fulcrum shafts and a pair of connecting shafts in the same connecting member, A four-bar link #11 structure is formed by adjacent positioning members and a connecting member connecting them, each of which is positioned on the apex of a parallelogram, and one of the positioning members is driven by a driving means to a fulcrum shaft. It is designed to rotate around the center.
The driving means is provided with a driving source for reciprocating the actuating member connected to the positioning member, and a control means for reducing the moving speed of the actuating member immediately before the positioning member contacts the outer periphery of the button. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the button from rising as shown in FIGS. 11(b) and 11(c) when the centripetal mechanism is activated. a cam plate that rotates and reciprocates around a shaft and has a long groove extending in a direction intersecting the direction of rotation; a cam plate having a fitting protrusion movably fitted in the long groove at one end; It is conceivable that the actuating member is rotatably connected to the positioning member.

Furthermore, in order to prevent the button from standing up, it is also desirable to form a stepped portion covering the upper surface of the peripheral edge of the button at the position where the positioning portion provided on the positioning member contacts the button.

[Function] In the centripetal mechanism of the present invention, each fulcrum shaft and connecting shaft of each four-bar link mechanism constituted by adjacent positioning levers and connecting links are arranged so as to be located at the vertices of a parallelogram. When one positioning lever is rotated by a predetermined angle around the fulcrum shaft by the operating link, each four-bar link moves in parallel in accordance with the rotation. Therefore, each positioning lever rotates at the same angle at the same time, each positioning part moves equally toward the center of the holding part of the button holding arm, and each positioning part contacts the outer circumference of the button at equal intervals to position it. I do. Therefore, the center of the button precisely matches the center of the holding part of the button holding arm, and the button is held securely by the button holding arm.

In addition, the operating speed of the actuation 1 button is controlled by the driving means (unloading, and the positioning bar is in direct contact with the button).
By reducing the moving speed of the operating link in step 11, the impact when the button and the positioning lever come into contact can be made into the α phase, and it is possible to prevent the button from rising due to the positioning portion of the positioning lever.

Further, by forming a stepped portion covering the top surface of the button at the position where the positioning portion of the positioning bar contacts the button, it is possible to more reliably prevent the button from rising.

[Embodiment of the Invention] An embodiment of the invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. In each figure, the same parts as those in the prior art are given the same reference numerals.

In the figure, 70 is a centripetal mechanism that positions the button B that has fallen onto the opening/closing plate 43, 44 from the carry-out position of the second conveyance path, and is configured as follows. That is,
71, 72, 73 is the fulcrum shaft 7 on the lower surface of the second support body 23.
1. Three positioning levers (positioning members) having the same shape and rotatably attached by c, 72c, and 73C form positioning parts 71A, 72A, and 73A each having an arcuately curved inner surface, and further On the inner surface of these positioning parts, there is a stepped part 71 as shown in FIG.
Al, 72A+, 73Al are formed, and the periphery of button B, which has the largest thickness among the buttons used, can be fitted into these stepped portions 71Al, 72A173A1. 71c, 72c, 73
c are arranged at equal intervals on the horizontal circumference of the mounting plate 36 centered on the center position P1 of the button holding part 28a of the button holding arm 28 waiting below the carry-out position. (See Figure 9) The diameter of this circumference is set to be larger than the maximum button diameter to be used, and each positioning lever 71, 72, 73 is set to its maximum position as shown in Figure 1. The button B, which has the largest diameter in the enlarged state, can be inserted into each positioning lever 71, 72, 73.

74, 75, 76 are the respective positioning levers 71, 72.
73, and the connecting shafts 71a, 71
b, 72a, 72b.

Positioning levers 71.72.73 by 73a and 73b
Both ends are rotatably connected. Three four-bar link mechanisms are formed by adjacent positioning levers and connecting links connecting them, and the connection points of each four-bar link mechanism, that is, the fulcrum shaft and the connecting shaft, are located at the vertices of the parallelogram. It is supposed to be done. For example, the fulcrum shaft 71c
, 72c and the connecting shafts 71b, 72a are successively connected to form a parallelogram as shown by the dashed line in FIG. Note that the same applies to other four-bar link mechanisms.

77 connects one end to the positioning lever 71 with a shaft 71d
A roller 77a is protruded from the other end thereof, and the roller 77a is movably fitted into an arcuate long groove 80a formed in the cam plate 80. The cam plate 80 is rotatably supported horizontally by a support shaft 81 and is integrally fixed to one end of the actuation plate 79 inserted through the support shaft 81. and,
The long groove 80a is formed in a direction intersecting a circumference centered on the support shaft 81. A long hole 79a is formed at the other end of the actuating plate 79, and a bottle 78al protruding from one end of the actuating rod 78a of the solenoid (drive source) 78 is connected to the long hole 79a. It is inserted freely. The operating link 77 and the cam plate 80 constitute a control means, and the control means and the solenoid 78 constitute a drive means.

Further, 82 is inserted through the support shaft 81 and the cam plate 8
This is a detection plate fixed to the top surface of 0 with screws 83, and the mounting position can be adjusted within the range of an arc-shaped elongated hole 82a formed in this detection plate. 84 is the detection plate 82
It is a rotational position detection sensor that detects the rotational position of the sensor, and when the detection plate 82 is at the initial position shown in FIG. 1, it sends an OFF signal, and when the detection plate 82 is at the positioning position shown in FIG. 2, it sends an ON signal. It is designed to send out.

Note that the other configurations are the same as those of the above-mentioned prior art.

Next, the operation will be explained based on the above configuration.

Similar to the prior art, the button B sent out from the button supply section 13 is the first button. The first rotary plate 14°21
．． It reaches the unloading position via the second horizontal arcuate path O1°o2 and falls onto the opening/closing plate 43°44. Then, the solenoid 78 is actuated, and the actuating rod 78a in the protruding tube is sucked to the position shown in FIG. As a result, the actuating plate 7
9 and the cam plate 80 are pulled by the operating rod 78a and rotate about the support shaft 81 in the direction of arrow M in FIG.
The operating link 77 is moved in the direction of the arrow via the rollers 77a fitted in the rollers 77a. By this movement of the operating link 77, the positioning lever 71 is moved to the first position around the fulcrum shaft 71c.
Rotates counterclockwise throughout the area. The rotation of the positioning lever 71 is transmitted to the positioning lever 72.73 via the connecting link 74.75, and these levers also have the fulcrum shaft 72c,
It rotates counterclockwise around 73c. As a result, the button B that fell onto the opening/closing plate 43 and 44 was moved to the positioning lever 7.
1, 72, and 73, and moves toward the center position P1, and is finally held from three sides by the positioning parts 71A, 72A, and 73A. At this time, each positioning lever 71, 72 .
73 forms a parallelogram-shaped four-bar linkage mechanism together with the connecting links 74, 75, and 76, so that they all rotate at the same angle. Therefore, in the positioning state shown in FIG. 2, each positioning section 71A, 72A
, 73A are in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the button B at equal intervals, and the center of the button B can be accurately aligned with the center portion Pl.

Further, in the positioning operation, the cam plate 80 is rotated at a substantially constant speed by the solenoid 78, and the long groove 80a formed in the cam plate 80 extends in a direction intersecting the direction of rotation of the cam plate 80. , during rotation, the moving speed of the operating link 77 is relatively high; however,
Each positioning part 71 of each positioning lever 71, 72, 73
When A, 72A, and 73A approach the position where they touch the outer periphery of the button (positioning position), each positioning bar 71, 72
．． The moving speed of the groove 73 decreases as the position of the long groove 80a changes inward. Therefore, when the button B comes into contact with the positioning lever 71, 72, 73, a large impact is not applied to the button B, and the button B is not damaged or the button B is As shown in the figure, you can prevent the inconvenience of standing up and pressing button B.
In this embodiment, the step portions 71A1, 7 formed on the positioning portions 71A, 72A, 73A of the positioning levers 71, 72, 73 maintain the state shown in FIG.
Since the upper surfaces of 2A1 and 73A1 cover the upper surface of button B in the positioning state shown in FIG. 2, it is possible to more reliably prevent button B from rising upward.

In addition, as described above, the positioning lever 71°72.7
3 moves to the position where button B is positioned, the rotational position detection sensor 84 detects the detection plate 82 and outputs an ON signal, and a control circuit such as port 62 controls the drive circuit of the solenoid 78 in accordance with the signal. Solenoid operating rod 78
a is set in the protruding state, and the operating link 77 is moved in the L direction to return to the initial state shown in FIG.

Thereafter, similarly to the prior art, the button rotation member 29 descends onto the positioned button B, rotates the button B, and fits the button sewing hole Ba into the locking bin 28a1 waiting below the carry-out position. At the same time, the opening/closing plate 43.44
is in the open state to securely hold the button B on the button holding arm 28, and as the button holding arm 28 rotates, the button B is held in the button holding portion 12b of the button sewing machine 12 (in a suspended state).

In the above embodiment, three positioning levers 7 are used.
1, 72, 73. I explained the case using as an example, but
It is also possible to connect four or more positioning levers using a connecting link.

In addition, although the control means for controlling the operating speed of the positioning levers 71, 72, and 73 is composed of the operating link 77 and the cam plate 80 having the long groove 80a, a motor or the like is used as the driving source, and the driving speed is controlled electrically. It is also possible to change the operating speed of the operating link by controlling the operating speed.

In the above embodiment, the adjacent positioning levers 71, 72, 7
3 through the same interval 74.75.
76, but for example, connecting links 74, 76 may be used to connect adjacent positioning levers 71, 72, 73 at the same distance in FIG. 1.

In other words, the positioning levers 71, 72, and 73 are not all connected to the connecting links, but may be opened at - portions, and the same effect as in the above embodiment can be achieved.

Specifically, if the number of positioning levers is N, the number of connecting links may be (N-1,).

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, the present invention provides a centripetal l for positioning the button conveyed to a predetermined unloading position by the conveying means.
ll1l, at least three positioning members are arranged at equal intervals by support β axes, and the positioning members are connected by connecting links, and a pair of connections provided on the same connecting link are connected to adjacent supports and ton shafts. Since the shafts are arranged so that they are located on the vertices of the parallelogram, the positioning member can be accurately rotated by the same angle via the fulcrum shaft during centripetal movement, and the button that has reached the unloading position can be reliably rotated. It can be aligned with the center of the holding part of the button holding arm waiting below the carrying out position.

In addition, the movement speed of the positioning member is reduced just before it reaches a predetermined position, so positioning can be performed without applying a large impact to the button, which may cause damage to the button or cause the button to This can prevent it from rising from a horizontal position.

Further, by forming a stepped portion on the button abutting surface of the positioning member to cover the upper surface of the peripheral edge of the button, it is possible to more reliably prevent the button from rising.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the centripetal operation state of the device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged plan view of the device shown in FIG. Figure 4 is the third
FIG. 5 is an explanatory longitudinal sectional side view showing the state of the button during centripetal operation in the same embodiment, FIG. 6 is an overall perspective view showing the prior art of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged view of what is shown in the figure. 6 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 6, FIG. 8 is a front view of the device shown in FIG. 6, FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the prior art centripetal mechanism shown in FIG. 8, and FIG. FIG. 11(a) is a partially enlarged view of what is shown in the figure. (b) and (c) are explanatory longitudinal sectional side views showing the state of the button during centripetal operation according to the button shown in FIG. 10; In the figure, 12...Button sewing machine 12b...Button holding section 13...Button supply section 14...First rotary plate 21...Second Rotating plate 23a...Second discharge port 43.44...Opening/closing plate 70...Centripetal mechanism 71.72.73...Positioning lever (positioning member) 71 c, 72 c, 73 c---Fulcrum shaft 78・
... Solenoid (drive source) ... Button Pl ... Center of the holding part of the button holding arm Applicant: JUKI Co., Ltd. Figure 4 Figure 9

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) It has a button conveyance means that conveys the buttons sequentially delivered from the button supply section along a horizontal arcuate path to a predetermined delivery position, and a button holding section that holds the buttons horizontally, and the button holding section is A button holding arm that reciprocates horizontally from a button holding position set directly below the carrying out position to a button holding part of the button sewing machine, and a button holding part in the button holding arm and the center of the button that has reached the carrying out position. A button feeding device comprising a centripetal mechanism that aligns the center of the button with the center of the button, wherein the centripetal mechanism is rotatably held by fulcrum shafts set at equal intervals on a circumference concentric with the button holding part. at least 3
positioning members having the same shape, a positioning portion formed on each positioning member and protruding inward, and a connecting member connecting each adjacent positioning member at the same interval, and the adjacent fulcrums are provided. The shaft and a pair of connecting shafts in the same connecting member are each positioned on the apex of a parallelogram, and a four-bar linkage mechanism is configured by adjacent positioning members and a connecting member connecting them, and the positioning member A button feeding device characterized by being provided with a driving means for rotating around any one of the fulcrum shafts. (2) The driving means includes a drive source that reciprocates the actuating member connected to the positioning member, and a control means that reduces the moving speed of the actuating member just before each of the positioning members reaches the positioning position where it abuts the outer periphery of the button. The button supply device according to claim 1, further comprising: (3) The control means includes a cam plate that rotates and reciprocates around a predetermined pivot shaft by a drive source, and has a long groove extending in a direction intersecting the direction of rotation of the cam plate; 3. The button feeding device according to claim 2, further comprising an operating member having a fitting protrusion that movably fits into the positioning member, and the other end of which is rotatably connected to the positioning member. (4) The button feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a step portion covering the upper surface of the peripheral edge of the button is formed at a position where the positioning portion provided on the positioning member contacts the button.