JPH0494312A - Work alignment device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten a work-gathering distance on a carrier, reduce noise and improve quality degradation by housing works in a pocketer, carrying the same to the rear end of alignments and opening a supporting plate, so that the works dropped on the carrier can be gathered to the front side in carrying next time. CONSTITUTION:When a work 22 is put into a pocketer 21, a gear motor 36 positively runs after timer-metering the lapse of a preset time to move a moving arm 13 forward, so that a damper 20 at a gathering position is moved along a chute 5 in a traceable manner. Next, when the arm 13 is moved forward to put the damper 20 in contact with a damper stopper 43, the damper 20 is rotationally moved and then bounded to an escape position. At this time, a back plate 29 is open and the work 22 in the pocketer 21 is dropped on the chute 5 at the rear side of the damper 20. In accordance with a signal from an optical sensor 27 which detects time bounding of the damper 20, the gear motor 36 is stopped and them reversely runs to move the arm 13 backward. The arm 13 is moved to the final end of the chute 5 and put in contact with a roller 30a to return the plate 29 to a lock position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a workpiece aligning device for aligning products (workpieces) manufactured by various manufacturing devices, processing devices, etc.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, works such as nuts or other parts manufactured by various manufacturing equipment, processing equipment, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as manufacturing equipment) are stored in appropriate stockers, work storage boxes, etc. It was dropped and stored. When storing such workpieces, if a workpiece produced from manufacturing equipment or processing equipment is dropped onto a workpiece already stored in a stocker, etc., the workpieces collide with each other and the workpieces are damaged. There is a problem in that scratches such as dents and scratches are formed on the workpiece, and the quality of the workpiece is deteriorated.

Therefore, the same applicant proposed a work alignment device in the earlier application No. 61-22404 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-180.816) to improve the above problem.

The workpiece aligning device of the earlier application has a moving body that is movable forward and backward along a workpiece holder that accommodates the workpieces, a scraping position that hangs down from the moving body, and a retraction position that is raised almost horizontally to the rear. a scraping plate rotatably provided between two positions; an elastic means for selectively elastically holding the scraping plate in two positions, the scraping position and the retracted position; It consists of a plate rotation member that rotates the scraping plate in the scraping position.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, according to the device of the prior application, the distance that the scraping plate scrapes the workpieces from the drop-in place until the workpieces are aligned changes depending on the amount of aligned workpieces. That is, when the amount of aligned workpieces is small, the raking distance is long (and as the amount of workpieces increases, the distance becomes shorter).

If the raking distance is short, there is almost no problem, but if the distance is long, noise due to rubbing noise may increase depending on the shape or material of the workpiece, or the workpiece may be worn, resulting in a decrease in workpiece quality. There are problems such as

Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to reduce the scraping distance of the workpiece on the workpiece pedestal, thereby reducing scraping noise and preventing wear of the workpiece. The object of the present invention is to provide a workpiece alignment device that can perform the following tasks.

[Means for Solving the Problems] A workpiece aligning device of the present invention that solves the above-mentioned problems comprises: a movable body that is movable forward and backward along a workpiece holder that accommodates the workpieces; and a scraper that is substantially hanging down from the movable body. A scraping plate is rotatably provided between two positions: a pulling position and a retracted position that is flipped up almost horizontally rearward, and the scraping plate can be selectively moved between the scraping position and the retracted position. A gate member is provided with an elastic means for elastically holding the movable body and is movable between two positions: a closed position for receiving a workpiece from a manufacturing device, etc., and an open position for dropping the workpiece to a rear position of a scraping plate. The present invention is provided with a pocket starter, an interlocking member that interlocks the gate member and the scraping plate, and a return member that returns the scraping plate and the gate member when the movable body retreats.

[Function] According to the above means, the workpiece is thrown into the pocketer with the scraping plate placed at the scraping position. Thereafter, as the movable body is moved forward, the scraping plate moves to trace the workpiece receiving table. During this movement, the workpiece that was dropped onto the workpiece tray during the previous operation is scraped forward. Then, when the lower end of the scraping plate is locked by the scraped workpiece, the scraping plate is rotated against the elasticity of the elastic means as the movable body moves forward, and the scraping plate is rotated by the elasticity of the elastic means. It is lifted up to the retreat position. At the same time, the gate member is opened via the interlocking member, so that the workpiece is dropped onto the workpiece tray at the rear position of the scraping plate.

Subsequently, when the movable body is retreated, the scraping plate and the gate member are both operated to return via the interlocking member by the return member. The movement of the moving body is stopped.

By repeating this process, the workpieces are successively accommodated on the workpiece holder in an aligned state.

[Example] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In addition, Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of the main part of the workpiece alignment device, Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a schematic side view of the entire workpiece alignment device, and Fig. 4 is its plane. The overall perspective view is shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 8, respectively.

In Figures 1 and 2, the frame 1 includes left and right side frame members 1a extending in parallel in the front-rear direction, an appropriate number of lower support members 3 installed on the lower surfaces of both side frame members 1a, and both side frames. It is framed by a suitable number of upper support members 2 installed on the upper surface of the member 1a. Note that each site frame material 1a is made of a channel material, and is arranged so that the groove surface or the right side surface thereof is formed.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, support plates 50 are respectively protruded from the lower corners of the frame l in the front-rear direction, and reher bolts 41 are screwed vertically to the support plates 50, respectively.

The frame 1 is placed in a horizontal position by screw adjustment (screwing forward and backward) of the level hold 41.

A chute 5 having a rectangular shape and a shallow barrel shape is placed on the frame 1 (see FIG. 8). Note that the chute 5 corresponds to the workpiece pedestal in the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vertical position of the chute 5 can be adjusted by means of vertical position adjustment bolts 6.7 appropriately arranged on the upper part of the upper support member 2 and the side frame member 1a. can.

Further, the left and right positions of the chute 5 can be adjusted by means of side position adjustment bolts 8 disposed on the end faces of the upper support member 2.

In FIG. 2, a kite rail 9, which has an I-shaped cross section, is supported horizontally through a plurality of kite rail brackets 4 in the groove of the right frame member 1a.

A moving arm 13 as a moving body that moves forward and backward along the chute 5 has an inverted shape and is movably attached to the guide rail 9 in a cantilevered manner as follows. Note that the moving arm 13 corresponds to a moving body in the present invention.

In FIG. 2 and FIG. 7, which is a cross-sectional view of the mounting portion of the moving arm viewed from the left side, the proximal end of the kite rail 9 (
A substantially U-shaped guide rail holder 10 is fixed to the lower end. A kite rail 9 is positioned in the groove of this rail holder IO. Guide rail holder 1
Guide rollers 11 are rotatably attached to the upper and lower protruding pieces of the guide rail 9 via shafts 11a, two on the front and the rear for each surface, respectively, for moving on both left and right sides and the upper and lower surfaces of the guide rail 9. Note that a commercially available ball bearing is used for the guide roller 11 in this example, and its outer race rolls on the surface of the guide rail 9 as the movable arm 13 moves.

Both ends of the chain 12 are connected to the upper protruding piece of the kite rail holder 10 via chain joints 47, respectively. Therefore, the chain 12 is formed into an endless shape via the kite rail holder 10.

The chain 12 is hung around a pair of front and rear sprockets 37, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The front sprocket 37 is attached to the front end of the frame 1 via a chain bracket 38. Further, the rear sprocket 37 is attached to the output shaft of a gear motor 36 installed on the frame 1. The gear motor 36 can rotate in forward and reverse directions, and this rotational drive causes the chain 12 to rotate in the forward and reverse directions, thereby moving the moving arm 13.
is moved forward and backward. Specifically, in FIG. 3, the chain 12 is rotated clockwise by the forward rotation of the car motor 36, so that the moving arm 13 moves forward, and the chain 12 is rotated counterclockwise by the reverse rotation of the motor 8. Moving arm 1 by being made
3 retreats.

Nao, the front end of frame 1 has a guide rail holder I.
A rail fore stopper 40 is provided to restrict the forward movement of the kite rail 9, and a rail back stopper 3 is provided at the rear end of the guide rail 9 to restrict the backward movement of the kite rail holder 10.
9 is provided.

In FIG. 1.2, the distal arm portion of the movable arm 13 faces above the chute 5, and a pair of left and right hair ring brackets 14 protrude from the lower surface thereof. A substantially square bar-shaped rolling block 15 is rotatably attached between the hair ring brackets 14 by a bearing fixing nut 16. Note that a joint stay 17 is attached to the lower surface of the rolling block 15.

A damper 20 that partitions the interior of the chute 5 into front and rear parts is fixed to the front surface of the rolling block 15 in a hanging manner. This damper 20 corresponds to the scraping plate according to the present invention. The mounting portion of the damper 20 is shown in a side view in FIG. Further, a light reflecting plate 26' is attached to the back end of the damper 20.

In FIG. 5, the rolling block 15 is provided with a front stopper 24 on its top surface and a back stopper 25 on its back surface. Each stopper 24, 25 limits the rotation range of the rolling block I5 to a predetermined angle, for example, about 85 degrees, by coming into contact with the protrusions 13a, 13b on the lower surface of the distal end arm of the moving arm 13.

When the stopper 24 comes into contact with the protrusion 13a, the damper 20 becomes the scraping position, and the back stopper 25
When the damper 20 comes into contact with the protrusion 13b, the damper 20 becomes the retracted position. This state is shown in FIG.

Also number 1. In FIG. 2, a pocketer 21 for receiving a workpiece 22, which will be described later, is attached to the distal arm portion of the moving arm 13. The pocket star 21 is formed in the shape of a square turret, and its bottom plate is V-shaped. An opening 21a for dropping the workpiece 22 to a rear position of the damper 20 is provided in the rear bottom plate. An upper edge portion of a back plate 29 that closes the opening 21a is attached to the bottom plate via a hinge 23. The back plate 29 is rotatable between two positions: a closed position and an open position. Note that the back plate 29 corresponds to the gate member in the present invention.

The back plate 29 and the joint stay 17 include
Both ends of the left and right link plates 18, which extend across both sides of the pocket star 21, are rotatably linked via shafts 18a. The link plate 18 is connected to the damper 2
0 and the back plate 29 are interlocked,
When the damper 20 rotates to retreat, the back plate 29
When the back plate 29 is rotated to open and the back plate 29 is rotated to close, the damper 20 is rotated back. Note that the link plate 18 corresponds to the interlocking member in the present invention.

Also, the spring support rod 28 at the front left end of the pocket holder 21
Both ends of a left-side tension spring 19A are hung on the shaft 18a of the link plate 18 located below the link plate 18a. Also, the spring support rod 28b on the right side of the pocket starter 21 and the spring support rod 28c of the link plate 18 below it.
Both ends of the right side tension spring 19B are hung on the .

Due to the elasticity of both of the tension springs 19A and 19B, the damper 20 is selectively held elastically in two positions, the raking position and the retracted position (see FIGS. 5 and 6). Furthermore, the tension spring 19
A and 19B correspond to the elastic means in the present invention.

A flip-up resistance adjustment mechanism 52 for adjusting the flip-up resistance force of the damper 20 is provided on the left side surface of the pocket starter 21. Furthermore, the flip-up resistance adjustment mechanism 52
In addition to FIG. 5, an enlarged front view thereof is shown in FIG. 9, and a side view of FIG. 9 is shown in FIG. 10, respectively. In the figure,
A vertically elongated adjustment base 44 is fixed to the side surface of the pocket starter 21 by welding or the like. The upper and lower ends of the adjustment plate 32 are fastened to the adjustment base 44 with bolts 34 at the upper and lower ends. Between the adjustment base 44 and the adjustment plate 32, a rolling plate 31 is provided with a lower stopper rotatable about the axis of the bolt 34.

A vertically elongated hole 3Ia is formed at the lower end of the rolling plate 31. The link plate 1 is provided in the vertical hole 31a.
A protruding pin 18b is engaged with the side surface of the central portion of 8.

Further, a ball plunger 46 is screwed to the upper end of the adjustment plate 32 by rotation of the adjustment knob 33. In addition, the adjustment plate 32 and adjustment knob 3
3, a presser spring 45 is interposed.

The surface of the rolling plate 31 facing the ball 46a of the ball plunger 46 has a groove 31b into which a part of the pole 46a is fitted via its biasing means (not shown).
is formed. Further, on that surface, there is a guide slope 31c for guiding the ball 46a when the rolling plate 31 rotates back (counterclockwise rotation in FIG. 9).
is formed. The cross-sectional view taken along the line XI-XI in FIG. 10 is shown in FIG. 11.

Therefore, when the low link plate 31 is rotated by the forward movement of the link plate 18 as the damper 20 in the raking position is retracted and rotated, the ball 46a is pushed into the concave groove against the elasticity of the ball plunger 46. 31b
Transfer from The sum of the resistance force generated at this time and the elastic forces of the tension springs 19A and 19B is the flip-up resistance force of the damper 20. Further, when the rolling plate 31 is rotated back by the return movement of the link plate 18 accompanying the closing rotation (return rotation) of the back plate 29, the ball 46a moves on the guide slope 31c due to the elasticity of the ball plunger 46. It rolls against the resistance and finally fits into the groove 31b.

In addition, the force required for rotating the rolling plate 31 is
The flip-up resistance force of the damper 20 is adjusted by increasing or decreasing it by rotating the adjustment knob 33. For this reason,
A splash resistance force corresponding to the material, shape, weight, etc. of the workpiece 22 can be obtained.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the frame 1
A support post 1b is erected at the rear end portion, and a return rod 30 that projects forward is attached to the support post 1b.

As shown in Figure 6, the return rod 30 has a rotatable roller 30a attached to its front end via a shaft 30b. The return rod 30 is connected to the moving arm 1
3, the rear surface of the back plate 29 which is in the open position is pressed and rotated back. Note that the return lot 30 corresponds to the return member in the present invention.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, a dam plate 5 with a damper stopper 43 projecting rearward is provided on the front end surface of the chute 5.
is provided. The damper stopper 43 presses the front surface of the damper 20 in the scraping position when the movable arm 13 moves forward, and rotates the damper 20 to retreat. This damper stopper 43 acts until the amount of workpieces on the chute 5 exceeds a predetermined amount, that is, the rear end of the aligned workpieces 22 is behind the tip of the stopper 43, and assists the retracting rotation of the damper 20.

Appropriate manufacturing equipment (not shown) is installed on the rear part of the chute 5.
A discharge chute 35 is arranged.

The distal end of the discharge chute 35 is directed into the interior of the pocket starter 21 from above when the movable arm 13 is in the retracted position. A workpiece (for example, a nut) 22 manufactured by the manufacturing device is thrown into the pocketer 21 from the discharge chute 35 .

An optical sensor 27 is provided at the rear end of the frame 1 and faces a light reflecting plate 26 of the damper 20 via a suitable bracket or the like (not shown).

The optical sensor 27 emits light toward the light reflecting plate 26, and depending on the presence or absence of the light reflected by the light reflecting plate 26, the damper 2
The position of 0 is detected and the signal is input to a control circuit (not shown).

This control circuit is configured so that the workpiece 22 is transferred from the manufacturing device to the chute 5.
Each time the damper 20 is turned on, the gear motor 36 is rotated in the forward direction after a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the timer means has been turned on, and the moving arm 13 is advanced, and the damper 20 is rotated to retreat from the optical sensor 27. Based on the signal detected, the gear motor 36 is stopped and then reversed to move the movable arm 13 backward. Note that when the movable arm 13 moves backward, the gear motor 36 is stopped based on a signal from the optical sensor 27 that detects that the damper 20 has rotated back.

For example, in order to collect processing oil adhering to the workpiece 22 accommodated on the chute 5, an oil passage is provided between the dam plate 5 and the chute 5, and at the front end of the chute 5. An oil receiver 42 is provided.

Next, the operation of the workpiece alignment device will be described. Third
, 4, when the workpiece 22 is put into the pocketer 21, the gear motor 36 is rotated forward after a predetermined time has elapsed via the timer means, and the moving arm is rotated along with the rotation of the chain 12. 13 is advanced. As the movable arm 13 moves forward, the damper 20 at the scraping position moves so as to trace over the chute 5.

When the movable arm 13 is moved forward and the damper 20 comes into contact with the damper stopper 43, the damper 20 moves against the elastic force of the tension springs 19A, 19B and the resistance force of the flip-up resistance adjustment mechanism 52 as the movable arm 13 moves forward. After being rotated, it is flipped up to the retracted position by the elasticity of the tension springs 19A and 19B. Accordingly, the back plate 29 is opened via the link plate 18, and the workpiece 22 in the pocketer 21 is dropped onto the chute 5 at the rear position of the damper 20.

Based on a signal from the optical sensor 27 that detects that the damper 20 has been raised, the gear motor 36 is stopped and then reversed, thereby causing the movable arm 13 to retreat.

When the moving arm 13 moves to the rearmost part of the chute 5, the roller 30a of the return rod 30 comes into contact with the back plate 29 in the open position.

Then, as the movable arm 13 retreats, the back plate 29 is rotated back against the elasticity of the tension springs 19A and 19B, and then returned to the closed position by the elasticity. Accordingly, the damper 20 is returned to the scraping position via the link plate 18, and the flip-up resistance adjustment mechanism 52 is returned to its original state. The car motor 36 is stopped based on a signal from the optical sensor 27 that detects the return of the damper 20.

Therefore, the workpiece 22 that was previously dropped onto the chute 5 is transferred to the damper 2 when the movable arm 13 moves forward next time.
0, it is swept to the front of chute 5.

By repeating this process, the works 22 from the manufacturing apparatus are sequentially arranged on the chute 5 until a predetermined amount is reached.

Then, the amount of workpiece becomes more than a predetermined amount, that is, workpiece 2
After the rearmost end of the workpiece 22 is located behind the tip of the damper stopper 43, the operation is the same as described above, except that the rearmost end of the workpiece 22 flips up the damper 20 instead of the damper stopper 43. By repeating this process, the works 22 from the manufacturing apparatus are sequentially arranged on the chute 5.

When the chute 5 is filled with the works 22 in this way, the operation of the work aligning device is stopped, and the aligned works 22 are carried out to the next process as appropriate.

According to the workpiece alignment device of this example, there is no need to provide control devices such as switches and electric devices on the movable arm 13 side, so it can be manufactured at a low cost with a simple structure, and it is possible to install control devices. The failure rate can be significantly reduced and the durability of the device can be improved.

In addition, since the chute 5 is removably attached to the receiving frame 5 of the frame l, the chute 5 can be replaced with a pallet type, making it easier to transport the workpiece 22 to the next process and improving work efficiency. can do.

Furthermore, since the moving arm 13 is moved backward by the optical sensor 27 when the damper 20 is raised, unnecessary driving operations can be reduced compared to the case where the moving arm 13 is moved to the frontmost position and then moved back as in the previous application. , the operating time can be shortened.

Since the movable arm 13 is of a cantilever type, the apparatus can be made smaller and lighter than the double-end type of the previous application.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, the workpiece is temporarily stored in the pocket picker and transported to near the rear end of the alignment, where the receiving plate is opened and the workpiece is dropped onto the workpiece receiving stand. Since the workpiece is scraped forward by the scraping plate when the next workpiece is transported, the scraping distance of the workpiece on the workpiece holder can be shortened, and the noise caused by the scraping sound of the workpiece can be reduced. Quality deterioration due to workpiece wear is improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of the main part of the workpiece alignment device, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is the entire workpiece alignment device. Schematic side view of 4th
The figure is a plan view, Figure 5 is a side view of the damper in the scraping state, Figure 6 is a side view of the damper in the retracted state, Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of the mounting part of the moving arm, and Figure 8 is the workpiece alignment. FIG. 9 is an enlarged side view of the flip-up resistance adjustment mechanism of the interlocking member, FIG. 10 is a side view thereof, and FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the device.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line XI-XI of FIG. 5... Chute (work holder) 13... Moving arm (moving body) 18... Link plate (interlocking member) 19... Tension spring (elastic means) 20... Damper (raking plate) 21 ... Pocket starter 22 ... Work 29 ... Back plate (gate member) 30 ... Return rod (return member) Applicant Ito Seimitsu Seisakusho Co., Ltd. Agent Patent attorney Hidehiko Okada (3 others)

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] A movable body that is movable forward and backward along a workpiece holder that accommodates a workpiece, and a scraping position that is substantially hanging down from the movable body and a retraction position that is raised almost horizontally to the rear of the movable body. A scraping plate rotatably provided between two positions; an elastic means for selectively elastically holding the scraping plate in two positions, a scraping position and a retracted position; and a manufacturing device, etc. provided on a moving body. A pocketer has a gate member that is movable between two positions: a closed position for receiving a workpiece from the raking plate and an open position for dropping the workpiece to a rear position of the raking plate, and the gate member and the raking plate are interlocked so as to be interlocked. A work aligning device comprising: an interlocking member for returning the scraping plate and the gate member when the movable body retreats; and a return member for returning the scraping plate and the gate member.