JPH04334678A - Conveyor device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To cope with the conveyance of many kinds of workpieces by one kind of fingers so as to heighten the general use of a conveyor device. CONSTITUTION:Sliders 4 are provided slidably at a shuttle bar 1, and a supporting rod 11 with a finger 13 provided at its tip is supported in the vertically movable state on each slider 4. The movement of the slider 4 and the supporting rod 11 is constrained by braking units 5, 10. Finger position switching units 23 are provided below the shuttle bar 1. At the time of switching the position of the finger 13, the supporting rod 11 and an arm 17 are gripped by a rod gripper 30 and an arm gripper 31, and after releasing the braking force of the respective braking units 5, 10, the slider 4 is slide and the supporting rod 11 is vertically moved by the movement on the finger position switching unit 23 side.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a shuttle bar type conveying device used, for example, in tact feeding of vehicle bodies on an automobile body assembly line.

0002

[Prior Art] In a shuttle bar-type conveying device used in an automobile body assembly line, the vehicle body is positioned and supported by a plurality of fingers provided on the shuttle bar, and then the vehicle body is moved by linear reciprocating motion of the shuttle bar. 1
Basically, tact feed is performed in stages.

[0003] In order to enable the above-mentioned fingers to be used in common for a plurality of types of car bodies, for example, as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG.
102b or two workpiece receiving parts 103a and 103b as shown in FIG.
By rotating 03 according to the car model, its position can be changed and used (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62
-261582). 104 is a shuttle bar.

In the example of FIG. 7, for example, when transporting a vehicle body B1 of model A, the workpiece receiving parts 101a and 102a position and support the vehicle body B1, while when transporting a vehicle body B2 of model B, the workpiece receiving part The vehicle body B2 is positioned and supported by 101b and 102b.

In the example shown in FIG. 8, for example, when transporting a car body of car type C, the workpiece receiving portion 103a of the finger 103 located at the solid line position positions and supports the car body.
When transporting the vehicle body of the D vehicle type, the vehicle body is positioned and supported by the work receiving portion 103b of the finger 103 located at the imaginary line position.

[0006]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the conventional conveying devices as described above, each finger is provided with a plurality of receiving portions, so that the finger can be used in common for conveying a plurality of car bodies. However, there are only about two types of vehicles that can be used in common, and the types of vehicles that can be transported are severely restricted. Therefore, it is not necessarily sufficient in terms of versatility as a transport facility, and in particular cannot be applied to a so-called multi-car mixed production system in which many types of car bodies flow on the same line.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and by moving the fingers in the longitudinal direction and the vertical direction of the shuttle bar depending on the type of workpiece to be transported, it is possible to transport various types of workpieces. An object of the present invention is to provide a conveyance device that can handle the conveyance of.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems The conveying device of the present invention includes a slider provided on the shuttle bar so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar, and a slider provided on the slider to move the slider in any direction in the sliding direction. A slider lock mechanism that autonomously locks in the position and unlocks by supplying fluid pressure from the outside, and a finger that is supported by the slider so as to be movable up and down, and a finger that directly supports the workpiece is attached to the upper end. a finger support provided on the slider, a finger lock mechanism that autonomously locks the finger support at any position in the vertical direction thereof and unlocks the finger support by supplying fluid pressure from the outside; and the shuttle. A gripper is provided below the bar so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar and is movable up and down to grip the finger support, and the gripper grips the finger support and slides to shuttle the slider. It is composed of a finger position switching unit that positions the bar at an arbitrary position in the longitudinal direction and also positions the finger support at an arbitrary position in the vertical direction by vertical movement of the gripper.

[0009]

[Operation] According to this structure, each locking mechanism is unlocked after gripping the finger support with the gripper.
The type information of the workpiece to be transported is given to the finger position switching unit. When workpiece type information is given to the finger position switching unit, the finger position switching unit itself slides to the specified position, and the gripper moves up and down to the specified position. As a result, the longitudinal and vertical positions of the shuttle bar with respect to the fingers are switched.

0010

[Example] Figures 1 to 5 are diagrams showing an example of the present invention.
An example of a conveyance device used in an automobile body assembly line is shown.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, a pair of guide rods 3 are provided along the shuttle bar 1 via a bracket 2 on the upper surface of the shuttle bar 1 that moves linearly. Above is the guide rod 3
A pair of sliders 4 are provided which slide while being guided by.

The slider 4 is provided with a brake unit 5 as a slider lock mechanism that also serves as a slide guide. The brake unit 5 autonomously clamps and locks the guide rod 3 using the force of a built-in spring, as will be described later, and unlocks only when compressed air is introduced from the port 6. By unlocking the brake unit 5, each slider 4 can be slid along the guide rod 3 to any desired position. Note that 7 is a guide roller that guides the slider 4, and 8 and 9 are guide rollers that guide the shuttle bar 1.

The slider 4 is provided with a brake unit 10 similar to the above as a finger lock mechanism, and a support rod 11 as a finger support is inserted into the brake unit 10 so as to be movable up and down. Fingers 13 shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 are attached to the upper end of the support rod 11 via a bracket 12, and each finger 13 is formed with a receiving surface 14 that can be used commonly for multiple vehicle types. There is. therefore,
The vehicle body B is positioned and supported by the receiving surface 14 of the finger 13 and is transported by the reciprocating motion of the shuttle bar 1.

Furthermore, each slider 4 is equipped with an air cylinder 15.
The piston rod 16 of this air cylinder 15 is connected to the bracket 12 together with the support rod 11. The above air cylinder 15 is the finger 1
3, and also serves to lower the finger 13, which has been raised to a predetermined height position, to the lowering limit position, as will be described later.

An arm 17 is integrally fixed to the lower end of the slider 4, and a joint member 19 that forms a quick joint 18 together with a joint member 32 on the arm gripper 31 side, which will be described later, is provided at the lower end of the arm 17. There is. Therefore, by supplying compressed air to each brake unit 5, 10 through the quick joint 18, passage 20, and port 6 or 21, each brake unit 5, 10 is unlocked.

Here, one brake unit 10 is provided with a port 22 that communicates with the air cylinder 15 side in addition to the port 21, and when compressed air is introduced into the air cylinder 15, the brake unit 10 is simultaneously
Compressed air is introduced to the brake unit 10, and this also releases the brake state of the brake unit 10.

A finger position switching unit 23 is provided below each slider 4 as shown in FIG. The finger position switching unit 23 includes a slide table 26 that is slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar 1 along a rail 25 on a base 24, and a slide table 26 that is slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar 1.
Multi-point stop type gripper cylinder 2 installed on 6
7 and a gripper holder 28 which is also provided on the slide table 26.

A rod gripper 30 for gripping the support rod 11 is provided at the tip of the piston rod 29 of the gripper cylinder 27, while an arm gripper for gripping the arm 17 is provided at the tip of the gripper holder 28. 31 is provided, and the arm gripper 31 is further provided with a joint member 32 for supplying compressed air to each brake unit 5, 10 as described above.

The slide table 26 is configured to slide in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar 1 by the operation of a multi-point stop type feed cylinder 33. therefore,
As will be described later, after gripping the support rod 11 with the rod gripper 30 and gripping the arm 17 with the arm gripper 31, the brake state of each brake unit 5, 10 is released and the slide table 26 is slid. The position of the slider 4 on the shuttle bar 1 can be switched to any desired position.

Here, each of the above-mentioned brake units 5, 1
0 will be explained in detail based on FIG. 6. A piston 37 having a tapered surface 36 is inserted into the housing 35 of the brake unit 5, 10, and the piston 37 is inserted into the housing 35 of the brake unit 5, 10, and is slidable on the guide rod 3 or the support rod 11 in FIG. A plurality of contacting brake shoes 38 are provided. A steel ball 39 is interposed between the plurality of brake shoes 38 and the tapered surface 36 on the piston 37 side, and as the piston 37 is biased by a compression coil spring 40, the piston 37 pushes the brake shoe 38. It is pressed against the guide rod 3 or support rod 11 to prevent relative movement between the guide rod 3 or support rod 11 and the housing 35 (brake state).

On the other hand, by introducing compressed air from the port 6 or 21 into the chamber 41 formed by the housing 35 and the piston 37, the pressing force of the brake shoe 38 by the piston 37 is released. Alternatively, relative movement between the support rod 11 and the housing 35 is allowed.

Next, the operation of the shuttle bar type conveyance device constructed as described above will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 2, when transporting the vehicle body B using the shuttle bar 1, the arms 17 of each slider 4
And the support rod 11 is separated from the finger position switching unit 23 of FIG. 1, the slider 4 is locked by the brake unit 5, and the support rod 11 is also locked by the brake unit 10. Therefore, after the vehicle body B is positioned and supported by the fingers 13 of each slider 4, the shuttle bar 1 moves forward by one stage, thereby transporting the vehicle body B to the next process.

In the next step, a jig (not shown) for receiving the vehicle body B is prepared, and when the shuttle bar 1 reaches the forward limit position, compressed air is introduced into the air cylinder 15, and at the same time, compressed air is introduced from the port 22 into the brake unit 10. Compressed air is also introduced. As a result, the braking state by the brake unit 10 is released, and the finger 13 is lowered by a predetermined amount in response to the contraction operation of the air cylinder 15. As the finger 13 descends, the vehicle body B, which had been supported by the finger 13, is transferred to the other jig, and
The finger 13 is separated from the vehicle body B. Thereafter, the shuttle bar 1 retreats to its original retraction limit position.

When the shuttle bar 1 has retreated to the reverse limit position as described above, the finger position switching unit 23 operates to switch the position of the finger 13 according to the type of vehicle to be transported next in response to the information on the type of vehicle to be transported next. do.

That is, when the shuttle bar 1 retreats to the backward limit position, the finger position switching unit 23, which has been waiting at the home position until then, slides to a position directly below the slider 4 by the operation of the feed cylinder 33. Then, the gripper cylinder 27 is extended and the rod gripper 30 grips the lower end of the corresponding support rod 11, and at the same time, the arm gripper 31 grips the lower end of the arm 17.

When the arm gripper 31 grips the arm 17, the joint members 19 and 32 forming the quick joint 18 fit together, and compressed air is introduced from the ports 6 and 21 of the brake units 5 and 10. The brake state of each brake unit 5, 10 is released. As a result, the slider 4 can slide in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar 1 while being guided by the guide rod 3, and the support rod 11 can also move up and down.

When the braking state of each brake unit 5, 10 is released, the finger position switching unit 2
3 slides along the guide rail 25 by the operation of the feed cylinder 33, slides the slider 4 along the guide rod 3 via the arm 17 gripped by the arm gripper 31, and moves the slider 4 to the corresponding car model. Position it at the appropriate predetermined position.

At the same time, the gripper cylinder 27 expands and contracts, moving the support rod 11 to which the finger 13 is fixed in the vertical direction, thereby positioning the finger 13 at a predetermined height position necessary to support the corresponding vehicle type.

At this time, the port 42 of the air cylinder 15 is open to the atmosphere, and when the support rod 11 is moved by the gripper cylinder 27, the air cylinder 1
The piston rod 16 of No. 5 also moves up and down.

When the position of the finger 13 is switched as described above, the arm gripper 31 releases the arm 17, and the joint members 19, 32 are immediately disengaged from each other, thereby preventing the supply of compressed air to each brake unit 5, 10. By cutting off the supply, each brake unit 5, 10 returns to the braking state. This locks the slider 4 in a predetermined position and also locks the support rod 11 in a predetermined height position.

After the arm gripper 31 releases the arm 17, the rod gripper 30 releases the support rod 11, and each finger position switching unit 23 returns to its original home position.

With the above steps, the switching of the position of the finger 13 is completed, and the finger 1 is removed from the mating jig (not shown).
When the corresponding vehicle body B is transferred and positioned on 3,
The shuttle bar 1 moves forward to transport the vehicle body B to the next process.

Here, in the above embodiment, the rod gripper 3
0 grips the support rod 11 and the arm gripper 31 grips the arm 17. However, as long as the rigidity of the support rod 11 can be ensured, the desired purpose can be achieved even if the arm 17 and arm gripper 31 are eliminated. .

[0035]

As described above, according to the present invention, the fingers provided on the shuttle bar are configured to be movable in the two-dimensional directions of the longitudinal direction and the vertical direction of the shuttle bar,
Depending on the type of work to be transported by the shuttle bar, the position of the fingers is switched by a finger position switching unit installed outside the shuttle bar, which increases the degree of freedom in the position of the fingers, making it easier to transport workpieces than before. There is no restriction on the number of types, increasing the versatility of the conveyance equipment. As a result, it is possible to flexibly respond to a multi-car mixed production system, such as an automobile assembly line where many types of car bodies flow on the same line.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration explanatory diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a finger.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory plan view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of the right side of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the brake unit.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a main part of an example of a conventional conveyance device.

FIG. 8 is a configuration explanatory diagram of main parts showing another example of a conventional conveyance device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1... Shuttle bar 4... Slider 5... Brake unit (slider lock mechanism) 10... Brake unit (finger lock mechanism) 11... Support rod (finger support body) 13... Finger 23... Finger position switching unit 27... Gripper cylinder 30... Rod Gripper 31...Arm gripper 33...Feed cylinder B...Car body

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A shuttle bar type conveyance device in which a workpiece to be conveyed is positioned and supported by fingers attached to a shuttle bar, and the workpiece is conveyed in tact by reciprocating motion of the shuttle bar. A slider is provided to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar, and the slider is provided to autonomously lock the slider at any position in the sliding direction, and is unlocked by external fluid pressure supply. a slider lock mechanism that is supported by the slider in a vertically movable manner and has a finger attached to its upper end that directly supports a workpiece; a finger lock mechanism that autonomously locks in any position of the shuttle bar and unlocks by supplying fluid pressure from the outside; a finger lock mechanism that is provided below the shuttle bar so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar; and the finger support; The gripper grips the finger support and slides to position the slider at any position in the longitudinal direction of the shuttle bar, and the gripper moves up and down to support the finger. and a finger position switching unit that positions the body at an arbitrary position in the vertical direction.