JPH05124547A - Manufacture of automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To realize accurate assembly of an upper body structure with the standards of an inner panel and implement automatization of an equipment fitting works thereto in the manufacture of an automobile where the upper body structure and an underbody structure are assembled separately, and united after coating and fitting the equipment separately to the respective structures. CONSTITUTION:A number of positioning devices P1-P5 and a number of clamping devices C1-C11 are provided to a fabricating jig unit JU which is carried along a body assembling line, and the upper body structure BU is assembled with high accuracy by fabricating, positioning and fixing a front body, a rear body, a body side panel, a front header, a rear header, a roof outer panel or the like, in a consecutive manner.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing an automobile, and more particularly, to a method of separately assembling an underbody structure mainly composed of a main floor panel and an upper body structure, and then separately mounting the structure. Regarding

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, an automobile manufacturing process is basically composed of four processes including a press molding process, a vehicle body assembly process, a painting process and a vehicle assembly process. In the vehicle body assembly process, the sub-assembled floor panel, front body, and rear body are supplied to the body assembly line, positioned and fixed on a pallet on the body assembly line, and then temporary welding and additional welding are performed to remove the underbody. Assemble and then supply the body parts such as body side panel and roof panel, which are pre-assembled to the underbody, and position and fix these body parts using the special positioning jig with the reference surface of the outer panel as the reference. Then, tentative welding and additional welding are applied to assemble the body shell.

In the coating process, the body shell manufactured as described above is subjected to chemical conversion treatment, undercoat coating, intermediate coating, and top coating, and undercoat for chipping resistance before or after the intermediate coating. Coat coating (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-163297, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 61-163297)
4562). However, when painting with a lid member such as a bonnet or side door temporarily attached to the body shell, after the required painting is completed, the lid member is generally removed from the body shell and Outfitting is done using a dedicated outfitting line.

In the vehicle assembly process, screw grommets, fasteners, harnesses, trims, floor mats, instrument panels, seats,
Assemble automobiles by assembling seat belts and other outfittings, assembling engine, suspension, tires, fuel tanks and other underbody parts, and bonnets and side doors.

In order to simplify the work of assembling the body shell in the vehicle body assembling process, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64-1667 discloses a holding device for assembling the body shell. In this holding device, a main frame is pivotably attached to two pillar members on one side of the four pillar members erected on the floor of the factory so that the main frame can swing vertically, and the four pillar members can horizontally support the main frame. , This main frame is provided with three pairs of vertical inner frames corresponding to the body cowl portion, the body central portion and the body rear portion so as to be swingable and openable in the vehicle width direction, and each of the inner frames is provided with a plurality of clamps. It is equipped with tools and tools.
Then, with respect to the roof opening of the partially assembled body shell (which seems to be a state in which the underbody and the left and right side inner panels are at least temporarily assembled) before the roof is assembled, the main part of the holding device is arranged from above. The frame is oscillated downward so that the three pairs of narrowly closed inner frames are brought close to the left and right inner sides of the body shell, and the remaining body assembling work is performed through the plurality of clamps and tools.

On the other hand, recently, in order to greatly simplify the work in the vehicle assembling process, an underbody structure mainly composed of a floor panel of the body shell and an upper body structure other than that are separately assembled. A method of manufacturing an automobile has been proposed, which is carried into a vehicle assembly line to improve the assemblability of the outfitting components to the upper body structure, and at the same time to improve the assembling properties of the underbody member and the outfitting components to the underbody structure. There is. For example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 63-265779, after the necessary coating is applied to the body member and the lid member that form both body structures, the upper body structure and the underbody structure are separately assembled, Described is a method of manufacturing an automobile in which the lid member and the fittings are assembled to the upper body structure, and the underbody structure is assembled to the underbody structure, and then the both are joined. Has been done.

[0007]

In the conventional method of assembling the body shell, the outer panel is assembled with the outer panel as a reference, but the outer panel has low rigidity and includes the spring back, and the positioning is performed by simply receiving the panel surface. Since it is the main body, the assembly accuracy will decrease, various assembly jigs depending on the vehicle type are also required, the versatility of the assembly device is lacking, and the low assembly accuracy is a factor that reduces the efficiency of outfitting work and the outfitting work. There are problems such as obstacles to automation of the above. Furthermore, when assembling the upper body structure and the underbody structure separately and flowing them separately to the coating process, the number of coating lines increases, the coating process becomes complicated, and the number of transporting devices for transporting the body structure increases. Therefore, there is a problem in that it is economically disadvantageous in terms of equipment and that it is difficult to match the coating quality of both body structures.

An object of the present invention is to improve the assembling accuracy of the upper body structure, to automate the outfitting work for the upper body structure and the underbody structure, to improve the efficiency, and to manufacture an automobile which is economical in terms of equipment. It is to provide a method.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle manufacturing method, which comprises separately assembling an underbody structure mainly including a main floor panel and an upper body structure other than the underbody structure. In a method of manufacturing an automobile in which an automobile is assembled through a painting process of painting both body structures and a vehicle assembly process of fitting both body structures, a plurality of clamps are used when assembling the upper body structure in the car body assembly process. Means and a plurality of positioning means, the assembling jig unit is arranged vertically from below in a space corresponding to the space inside the upper body structure, and at least left and right body side panels with respect to the assembling jig unit. After fixing the roof panel and the roof panel with these inner panels as the reference, fix the left and right body side panels and roof panel. The upper body structure and the underbody structure in the painting process, and the upper body structure and the underbody structure in the vehicle assembling process. Assemble the fittings separately on the line, then assemble the underbody structure relative to the upper body structure from below and combine them, and assemble them into a unit before or after combining the body structures. A lower unit including a suspension, an exhaust system, and the like is attached to at least one of both body structures.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automobile manufacturing method according to the first aspect, wherein the upper body structure and the underbody structure are conveyed by the same conveying means in at least a part of the coating step. The feature is that the necessary painting is performed while doing so.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automobile manufacturing method according to the second aspect, wherein in the painting step, the underbody structure is removed from the conveying means before intermediate coating. Is.

[0012]

In the method of manufacturing an automobile according to claim 1,
When assembling the upper body structure, the assembling jig unit having a plurality of clamping means and positioning means is arranged vertically from below in a space corresponding to the space inside the upper body structure, and Since at least the left and right body side panels and roof panel are positioned and fixed based on those inner panels and then assembled, the left and right body side panels and roof panel are combined to assemble, resulting in high rigidity and less error factors in springback. The upper body structure can be assembled accurately based on the panel. The shape of the inner panel does not change as much as the outer panel, even if the body structure is different for different vehicle types, so it can be used for assembling multiple body types of upper body structure with a common assembly jig unit, and is therefore highly versatile.

Further, after the necessary coating is applied to the upper body structure and the underbody structure in the painting process, the upper body structure and the underbody structure are individually rigged in dedicated rigging lines in the vehicle assembly process. Assembling the parts, and then assembling the underbody structure from below relative to the upper body structure and connecting them, it is possible to outfit the upper body structure with the floor side open. Also, the underbody structure can be outfitted with the upper part open. Therefore, the outfitting work of both body structures can be easily automated, and the assembling accuracy of the upper body structure is also improved, which is advantageous in automating the outfitting work. A suspension that is assembled to both body structures, then assembled and joined with the underbody structure relative to the upper body structure from below, and assembled into a unit in advance before or after joining both body structures. Since the lower unit including the exhaust system and the exhaust system is assembled to at least one of both body structures, it is possible to improve the work efficiency of the assembly of the suspension and the exhaust system and the like, and to shorten the main outfitting line.

In the method of manufacturing an automobile according to the second aspect, basically the same action as that of the first aspect can be obtained. In addition, in at least a part of the painting process, the upper body structure and the underbody structure are carried by the same carrying means while performing the necessary painting, so that the painting line and carrying means in the painting process are not complicated. It is possible to prevent this, which is advantageous in terms of equipment economy, and it is possible to make the coating quality uniform for both body structures.

In the automobile manufacturing method according to the third aspect of the present invention, the underbody structure is removed from the conveying means before the intermediate coating in the coating step. Therefore, the steps prior to the intermediate coating in the coating step are basically In addition, the same effect as the second aspect can be obtained, and unnecessary coating such as intermediate coating and top coating can be omitted for the underbody structure.

[0016]

As described in the above section, the following effects can be obtained. According to the vehicle manufacturing method of claim 1, by assembling the upper body structure with the inner panel as a reference, the assembly accuracy of the upper body structure can be significantly improved, and a common assembly jig unit can be used for multiple vehicle types. Since it can be used for assembling the upper body structure of, it has excellent versatility. Since the assembling accuracy of the upper body structure is improved, it is advantageous in automating the outfitting work of assembling the outfitting parts to the upper body structure. Moreover, since the two body structures are joined together after the outfitting to both body structures, it is easy to automate the outfitting work for the upper body structure and the underbody structure, and the efficiency of the outfitting work can be improved. It can be fitted to the body structure of. By assembling a lower unit that includes a suspension and an exhaust system that have been assembled into a unit in advance, the work efficiency of assembling the suspension and the exhaust system and other outfitting components can be improved, and the main outfitting line can be shortened. You can also

According to the automobile manufacturing method of the second aspect, basically the same effect as that of the first aspect can be obtained. In addition, the upper body structure and the underbody structure are separately assembled, and then both body structures are conveyed by the same conveying means while the necessary painting is applied to them, which complicates the painting line and conveying means in the painting process. It is possible to prevent this from happening, which is advantageous in terms of equipment economy, and it is possible to make the coating quality uniform for both body structures.

According to the automobile manufacturing method of the third aspect, basically the same effect as that of the second aspect can be obtained in the steps before the intermediate coating in the coating step, and the underbody is applied before the intermediate coating. Since the structure is taken out from the conveying means, unnecessary coating such as middle coating and top coating can be omitted for the underbody structure.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present embodiment is an example in which the present invention is applied to a method for manufacturing a four-door sedan vehicle, and the description will be given by defining front, rear, left and right with reference to the front, rear, left and right of the vehicle body. As shown in Figure 1,
The automobile manufacturing process basically includes a press molding process (not shown), a vehicle body assembly process, a painting process, and a vehicle assembly process.

[Vehicle Assembly Step] First, the vehicle assembly step will be described with reference to the vehicle assembly line BL shown in FIG. The outline of the vehicle body assembly line BL will be described. For the assembling jig unit JU which is sequentially transferred by the transfer device through the stations S1 to S5,
The body members are sequentially positioned and fixed with reference to their inner panels, these body parts are joined to assemble the upper body structure BU, and then the upper body structure BU is separated from the assembly jig unit JU at the station S6. Then, it is transferred to the station S7, a lid member is temporarily erected on the upper body structure BU at the station S7, and then the lid member is subassembled at the station S8 with the temporarily installed upper body structure BU and the subline SL5. One body structure BU / BD including the underbody structure BD is set on the same hanger 33 (see FIG. 5) and transferred to the coating line. Assembling jig unit J
It is assumed that a plurality of types of U are prepared according to the vehicle type and are made to stand by at the jig stock station ST, and the transfer device is a linear or lift & carry type transfer device having a general configuration.

Here, a vehicle body member supplied to the vehicle body assembly line BL will be briefly described with reference to FIG. The front body 1 includes left and right front frames, left and right wheel aprons, a dash panel lower, a dash lower member, a cowl / dash coupling member, and the like, and is sub-assembled in the first sub line SL1. The cowl / dash coupling member includes a cowl panel and a dash panel upper, which are sub-assembled and then sub-assembled and coupled to the front body 1. The rear body 2 includes a rear floor panel, left and right rear frames, a fourth cross member, a rear package tray, left and right wheel house inners, and the like.
Subassembly is performed on the subline SL1. still,
The trunk floor, the rear end cross member, and the rear end panel are sub-assembled as a rear end body (not shown) in the first sub-line SL1 and supplied to the second station S2 for assembly.

The left and right side inner panels 3 are sub-assemblies of the inner panel body, roof rail inner, impact bracket, wheel house, suspension reinforcement, etc. in the second sub-line SL2. The left and right side outer panels 4 are outer panels. The main body, front hinge reinforcing material, rear hinge reinforcing material, center pillar reinforcing material, rear striker reinforcing material, corner plate, etc. are sub-assembled in the second sub line SL2, and the left and right body side panels 5 are side inner panels 3 and side outer panels respectively. 4 and 4 are sub-assembled and assembled in the second sub-line SL2. However, the side inner panel 3 and the side outer panel 4 are not sub-assembled as the body side panel 5, but they are individually supplied to the assembling jig unit JU to supply the left and right side inner panels 3 and the left and right side outer panels 4 respectively. It is also possible to assemble in the order of. The front header 7 and the rear header 8 as the roof inner panel of the roof panel are
A header inner panel and a header outer panel are sub-assembled and assembled in the sub line SL2. The roof outer panel 9 is the second sub line SL.
In 3, the outer panel body and the roof bow are sub-assembled and assembled.

With respect to the lid member, the bonnet 10, the trunk lid 11, the left and right front side doors 12, the rear side doors 13, and the front fenders 14 are respectively sub-assembled and assembled in the fourth sub line SL4. Although the lid member is mainly composed of a metal member, it may have a composite structure of a metal member and an FRP member.
Further, the structure may be mainly composed of FRP members.
The underbody structure BD includes a front floor panel, a second cross member, a shaft tunnel, a third cross member, and a center floor panel, and is sub-assembled and assembled in the fifth sub line SL5. The front floor panel and the center floor panel correspond to the main floor. The underbody structure BD is mainly composed of a metal member, but may be a structure mainly composed of an FRP member.

Next, the vehicle body assembly process will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG. However, the various vehicle body members are previously sub-assembled in the sub-lines SL1 to SL5 prior to the assembly of the following upper body structure BU. When assembling the upper body structure BU on the vehicle body assembly line BL, the assembling jig unit JU is sequentially installed over the stations S1 to S5 of the vehicle body assembly line BL.
Is transferred and the vehicle body member is assembled to the assembly jig unit JU and assembled, so that the contents of the assembly work in each of the stations S1 to S8 will be described in order from the upstream side. The assembling jig unit JU in the stations S1 to S5 in the figure is omitted.

In the first station S1, the front body 1 and the rear body 2 are fed from the first sub-line SL1 and positioned and fixed to the assembly jig unit JU transferred from the jig stock station ST and positioned. .. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the front body 1
The four positioning pins 20 and 4 of the assembly jig unit JU
The rear body 2 is accurately positioned and fixed to the assembling jig unit JU via one clamp device C1 and a pair of left and right clamp devices C2, and via the four positioning pins 21 and four clamp devices C3.

At the second station S2, the assembling jig unit J is moved and positioned from the first station S1.
After supplying the left and right body side panels 5, front header 7, and rear header 8 to U from the second subline SL2, they are positioned and fixed. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, three sets on one side and six sets of positioning devices P1 to P3
The left and right body side panels 5 are respectively positioned with respect to the assembling jig unit JU on the basis of the side inner panel 3, and the clamp levers 22 of the clamp devices C4 to C8 of 5 sets on each side are set to the side inner. It is inserted through the opening 3a formed in the panel 3, the side inner panel 3 is sandwiched, and the left and right body side panels 5 are accurately positioned and fixed to the assembly jig unit JU. Further, the front header 7 is arranged via a pair of left and right positioning devices P4 and a clamp device C9, and the rear header 8 is arranged between a pair of left and right positioning devices (not shown) and a clamp device C1.
The header inner panel is used as a reference, and the side inner panel 3 and the assembly jig unit JU are accurately positioned and fixed in the same manner as the side inner panel 3.

At the third station S3, with respect to the assembly jig unit JU positioned at that station,
The roof outer panel 9 is supplied from the third sub-line SL3, and the roof outer panel 9 is accurately positioned and fixed via the pair of left and right positioning devices P5 and the clamp device C11. In this way, the upper body structure BU
When assembling the assembly, the assembly jig unit JU having a plurality of clamping means and positioning means is provided in the upper body structure BU.
Inside the corresponding space, the body side panel 5, the front header 7, the rear header 8 and the roof outer panel 9 are supplied to the assembling jig unit JU from the bottom, and the inner panel is used as a reference. Since it is assembled, the upper body structure BU can be assembled with high accuracy on the basis of the inner panel which has high rigidity and a simple shape and which causes no springback error. In this way, since the assembling accuracy of the upper body structure BU becomes high, it is possible to smoothly perform the outfitting without trouble when the outfitting parts are assembled by the automatic machine in the vehicle assembling process. Even if the inner panel has a body structure of a different model, the shape of the outer panel does not differ from that of the outer panel.
Since it can be used for assembling the upper body structure BU of various car types with U, it has excellent versatility.

Next, the left and right side inner panels 3 are temporarily welded to the front body 1 and the rear body 2 by the two welding robots 30 provided in the third station S3, and the roof outer panel 9 is left and right side outer panels 4. Temporarily weld to. The clamp devices C1 to C1
As shown in FIG. 4, reference numeral 1 is a toggle clamp device having a general structure including a substantially crank-shaped clamp lever 22 and an air cylinder 23 for rotationally driving the clamp lever 22, and the positioning devices P1 to P5 are , Positioning pin 24
And an air cylinder 25 for driving the positioning pin 24 forward and backward. 4th station S
In 4, the two welding robots 31 perform the primary over-welding on the joints of the front body 1, the rear body 2, the left and right body side panels 5, and the roof outer panel 9.

At the fifth station S5, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the clamp devices C4 to C6 and the positioning device P are used.
1, P2, the clamp devices C2, C7, C8 and the positioning device P3 are driven to move to the retracted position on the central side of the assembly jig unit JU via the movable frame 26 and the movable base 27, respectively, and at the stations S1 to S4. The assembled upper body structure BU is lifted by a lifting device (not shown) to pull out the assembling jig unit JU from the upper body structure BU toward the lower side, and the assembling jig unit JU to the jig stock station ST. The upper body structure BU is transferred and placed on the pallet of the sixth station S6.

At the sixth station S6, two welding robots 32 external to the upper body structure BU subjected to the primary over-welding at the fourth station S4 and the pallet at the sixth station S6 are installed. Second internal over-welding is performed by the internal one welding robot (not shown). As described above, since the welding robot is arranged inside the upper body structure BU to perform welding, the efficiency of the welding operation can be improved and the number of stations for welding can be reduced.

The seventh and eighth stations S7 and S8 are
Actually, the upper body structure BU is linearly extended with respect to the stations S1 to S6 on the upstream side, and the upper body structure BU is transferred from the sixth station S6 to the seventh station S7 by a lifting device (not shown). In the seventh station S7, the left and right rear side doors 13, the left and right front side doors 12, the bonnet 10, and the left and right front fenders 1 as lid members supplied from the fourth subline SL4.
4 and the trunk lid 11 are temporarily installed on the upper body structure BU via a pin member (not shown) for temporary assembly, respectively.

At the eighth station S8, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, an upper body structure B having a lid member built therein.
U is set in the middle part of the hanger 33 of the overhead conveyor type transport device, and the underbody structure BD supplied from the fifth sub-line SL5 is set in the lower part of the hanger 33, and the body structure BU / BD for one unit is set.
Is hung on the same hanger 33 and transferred to the coating line in the coating process.

[Coating Process] Next, the body structure BU / BD
The coating process for the above will be described with reference to FIG. Since the coating itself performed in this coating step is well known, it will be briefly described. In the chemical conversion treatment step, the body structure BU / BD suspended on the hanger 33 is degreased with, for example, an alkaline degreasing agent, and then a zinc phosphate-based chemical conversion film is formed by a continuous spraying method, and then, sufficiently. Wash with water.

In the undercoating step, the body structure BU / BD is dipped together with the hanger 33 in a paint tank containing, for example, an epoxy type electrodeposition paint, and a voltage of 200 to 400 V is applied as the body structure BU / BD as a cathode. After cationic electrodeposition coating, thoroughly wash with water after electrodeposition coating, then 170
Bake and dry at 25 ° C. for 25 minutes. In this way, in the chemical conversion treatment step and the undercoating step, the chemical conversion treatment and the undercoating are performed together while the body structures BU and BD are hung on the same hanger 33, which complicates the coating line and transports the hanger 33. This is advantageous in terms of equipment cost because it can prevent the apparatus from becoming complicated, and is also advantageous in terms of running cost since the carry-out amount (consumption amount) of the electrodeposition paint adhering to the hanger 33 can be reduced.

Next, the underbody structure BD is taken out from the hanger 33 and transferred to a transfer device (not shown), the body structures BU and BD are transferred separately, and the following work is performed, and then the vehicles are separately mounted. Transfer to the assembly line. Explaining the upper body structure BU, first, in the undercoat application step, urethane or PVC-based materials are applied to the lower outer surface of the upper body structure BU, the lower outer surfaces of the side doors 12 and 13, and the outer surface of the lower rear end side of the front fender 7. A chipping resistant coating is applied by spraying and dried to form a chipping resistant coating having a thickness of 100 to 200 μm, for example.

Next, in the intermediate coating step, the upper body structure BU is grounded and, for example, an epoxy ester type coating material is charged to -60 to -90 kV and electrostatically coated, and setting is performed for 5 to 10 minutes after coating. After that, the solvent is evaporated, and then baked and dried at 140 to 150 ° C. for 20 to 25 minutes. Next, in the top coating step, the upper body structure BU is grounded and, for example, a melamine / alkyd resin or acrylic resin-based coating material is -60 to -90.
After electrostatically coating by charging to kV, setting the solvent for 5 to 10 minutes after coating to evaporate the solvent, and then 140 to
Bake and dry at 150 ° C. for 25 minutes.

Explaining the underbody structure BD, first, in the undercoat applying step, urethane or PVC-based chipping-resistant paint is applied by spraying on the lower surface of the underbody structure BD and dried, for example, 100 to 200 μm. To form a chipping-resistant coating film.
Next, in the underbody structure processing step, a necessary part of the underbody structure BD is filled with a sealant, and a hole cover is attached to the hole formed in the underbody structure BD.

Here, a modification of the coating process will be described. According to the vehicle type and specifications, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The undercoat structure BD may be taken out from the hanger 33 and transferred to the underbody structure processing step after the coat application step, or as shown by the three-dot chain line in FIG.
The undercoat structure BD is removed by removing the underbody structure BD from the hanger 33 after performing the undercoating process and the overcoating process after the undercoating process while suspending and transporting the undercoat structure on the hanger 33. It may be transferred to the process.

[Vehicle Assembly Process] Next, the vehicle assembly process will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 7 to 14. In the lid removing process, the bonnet 10 and the trunk lid 11 are transferred from the upper body structure BU transferred from the painting line.
Remove the left and right side doors 12 and 13 and the left and right front fenders 14.

In the lid fitting process, while carrying the lid member along the dedicated fitting line, after black-painting, applying secondary rust preventive oil, attaching a molding and rubber to the lid member, Install fittings such as harnesses and lamps. As described above, since the fittings and the like are assembled in the exclusive fitting line with the lid member removed from the upper body structure BU, the work efficiency of these can be remarkably improved.

In the upper body structure mounting step, as shown in FIG.
While set to 0 and transported along the dedicated outfitting line,
Two robots 41 provided on the carriage device 40.
42, for the portion of the upper body structure BU on the passenger compartment 15 side, a screw grommet, fastener, harness, drain hose, instrument panel, trim, weather strip, seat belt, top sealing, assist handle, sun visor, etc. Assembling the fittings, and fittings such as a harness and a battery to the engine room 16. Regarding equipments such as instrument panel, trim, weather strip, seat belt, top sealing, assist handle, sun visor, rear seat, etc., the upper body structure BU is transferred to another carrier vehicle and rotated by a predetermined angle. Alternatively, the floor side opening 17 may be in the sideways state, and the line side robot may outfit the floor opening 17.

The transport carriage device 40 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, a self-propelled transport carriage 43 that runs along the outfitting line is provided, and the upper body structure BU is mounted on the transport carriage 43. A plurality of support pillars 44 for vertically positioning and holding the vehicle are provided upright, and a first robot 41 that is inserted into the vehicle compartment 15 of the upper body structure BU from the floor opening is provided at the center of the vehicle carriage 43. In the front of the engine room 16 of the upper body structure BU
A second robot 42 to be inserted into
1 and 42 are installed on the carriage 43 via a guide base 45 so that they can move a predetermined distance in the front-rear direction.

Sub-pallets 46 are provided on both the left and right sides of the first robot 41 and behind the second robot 42. A plurality of outfittings are set in a predetermined arrangement on each sub-pallet 46, and the sub-pallets 46 of the first robot 41 are set. Left side and second robot 4
A tool installation table 47 is provided on the right side of 2, and the hands 41a and 42 of the robots 41 and 42 are provided on both tool installation tables 47.
A plurality of tools detachably attached to a are set in a predetermined arrangement. Since the robots 41 and 42 are articulated robots having a general configuration, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Two robots 4 are provided at the rear of the carriage 43.
Two control boxes 4 to control 1.42
8.49 is provided, and this control box 48.
The robots 41 and 42 are respectively controlled based on a command from 49, and the necessary outfitting components are sequentially assembled to the upper body structure BU while moving the transport carriage 43. Thus, the underbody structure BD
Since the outfittings are assembled to the upper body structure BU in a state where the first robot 41 is separated, the first robot 41 can be inserted from the floor opening 17 of the upper body structure BU.
The work of assembling the fittings into the vehicle interior 15 can be greatly automated to efficiently carry out the fittings. Further, since the fittings are assembled to the upper body structure BU without the shroud panel and the nose unit being assembled, the second robot 42 is inserted into the engine room 16 from the front end portion of the upper body structure BU. It is possible to improve the work efficiency of assembling the fittings to the room 16. Further, since the upper body structure BU is outfitted while the transport carriage 43 is being moved, there is almost no dead time for inter-station transport in the outfitting line. However, it is of course possible to assemble the outfitting equipment while intermittently moving the carrier vehicle 43 over a plurality of stations. Moreover, assembling the upper body structure BU on the basis of the inner panel using the assembling jig unit JU as described above makes it possible to maintain the assembling accuracy at a high level, and the robots 41 and 42 are provided with the upper body structure B.
Since the robots 41 and 42 are installed together with U on the carriage 43, the positioning accuracy of the robots 41 and 42 with respect to the upper body structure BU can be maintained at a high level, so that automatic outfitting by the robots 41 and 42 can be smoothly performed. In addition, since the robots 41 and 42 and the transport carriage 43 can be removed from the outfitting line when they are out of order, it is possible to prevent a decrease in the operating rate of the outfitting line, and to outfit them when changing the outfitting contents due to a model change. Robot 41 outside the line
-It is possible to change 42. Furthermore, trials can be performed outside the outfitting line when the robots 41, 42 and the carriage 43 are newly installed or repaired.

On the other hand, in the underbody structure fitting process,
The underbody structure BD transferred from the painting process is assembled with necessary fittings on a dedicated fitting line.
As shown in FIG. 10, with the underbody structure BD positioned and fixed on a pallet (not shown), the underbody structure BD is sequentially transferred over a plurality of stations on the outfitting line, and first, the floor mat 60 is transferred to the underbody structure BD. Attach the rear seat belt 61 and the outfittings such as the rear console 62,
Next, small members such as fasteners and bolts are assembled by a robot (not shown), then the left and right front seats 63 are assembled by a robot (not shown), and then four seat protectors 64 that cover the feet of the front seat 63 are attached. Then, the rear seat 65 is temporarily placed on the underbody structure BD as shown in FIG. Thus, the upper body structure B
Since the equipment is attached to the underbody structure BD in a dedicated equipment line in a state where it is separated from U, the work efficiency of the equipment attachment can be significantly improved by adopting a robot.

In the next underbody structure connecting step, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the upper body structure BU to which the outfittings are attached is supported from below by the supporting arm 50 of the lifting device (not shown) from the connecting station. The underbody structure BD, which is transferred to CS1 and is equipped with fittings, is assembled relative to the upper body structure BU from below, and both body structures BU and BD are mounted by the fastening device 51 provided at the lower part of the joining station CS1. To join. As the connection structure, a bolt / nut connection, an adhesive connection, a weld connection, or a combination of these is adopted. Incidentally, the nose unit including the shroud panel is assembled to the upper body structure BU after the combination of both body structures BU and BD.

In the lower unit assembling process, as shown in FIG. 13, an engine 66, a transmission (not shown) front and rear suspensions 67, an exhaust pipe 68, a fuel tank, which are positioned and fixed on the pallet P in advance by sub-lines, are provided. The lower unit 70 including 69 and the like is transferred onto the conveyor 52 of the combining station CS2, and the body shell B composed of both body structures BU and BD is supported by a supporting arm 53 of a lifting device (not shown) to combine the station C.
By moving to S2 and lowering the body shell B, the lower unit 70 is assembled relative to the body shell B from below, and the lower unit 70 is lowered by the two fastening robots 54 provided at the lower part of the coupling station CS2. The unit 70 is attached to the body shell B with bolts or the like. Since the lower unit 70 is assembled to the highly rigid body shell B formed by connecting the two body structures BU and BD in this manner, the lower unit 70, which greatly affects the running performance, can be assembled accurately. ..

In the lid building process, the lid building device installed on the line side of the lid building line installs a lid fitting process on the body shell B carried into the lid building line by the conveyor 52. The left and right rear side doors 13, the left and right front side doors 12, the bonnet 10, the left and right front fenders 14, and the trunk lid 11 which are respectively outfitted with are assembled and adjusted, and then assembled. in this way,
Since the lid member is assembled after the lower unit 70 is assembled, when the lower unit 70 is assembled to the body shell B at the joining station CS2, interference with the lid member does not occur, and the bonnet 10 and the trunk lid 1 are provided.
The holding device for holding 1 in an open state can be omitted, which is advantageous in terms of equipment economy, and the work efficiency of assembling the lower unit 70 can be improved, and at the same time, the conveyor 52 extending from the joining station CS2 can be used for the body shell. The lid members can be assembled in sequence while conveying B. As the lid building device, for example, in the building device for the left and right front side doors 12, as shown in FIG. 14, the front side doors 12 are sequentially fed by a pair of left and right door feeding robots 55. The upper and lower hinge members 71 of 12 are fastened to the side outer panel 4 by the nut runner 57 of the fastening device 56. The door supply robot 55 is an articulated robot having a known configuration, and a hand 55a thereof is provided with a frame body 59 having a pair of toggle clamp devices 58, and a clamp lever 58a of the clamp device 58 from a window opening. And the clamp lever 58a holds the door sash.
The vehicle manufacturing method of the present application is not limited to the four-door sedan vehicle, but can be applied to various four-door or two-door automobiles or open-body type automobiles.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a manufacturing process diagram of an automobile.

FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram of a vehicle body assembly line.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an assembly jig unit.

FIG. 4 is a front view of an assembly jig unit.

FIG. 5 is a front view of a hanger and body structure.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a hanger and body structure.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a carrier device and an upper body structure.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a carrier system and an upper body structure.

9 is a sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG.

FIG. 10 is an overall perspective view of an underbody structure outfitting line.

FIG. 11 is a front view of a joining station.

FIG. 12 is a side view of the combining station.

FIG. 13 is a side view of the lower unit joining station.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a lid building device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 BU Upper body structure BD Under body structure JU Assembly jig unit C1 to C11 Clamping device P1 to P5 Positioning device 3 Side inner panel 4 Side outer panel 5 Body side panel 7 Front header 8 Rear header 9 Roof outer panel 33 Hanger 40 Transporter device 66 Engine 67 Suspension 68 Exhaust pipe 70 Lower unit

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Hiroaki Inoue 3-1, Shinchi, Fuchu-cho, Aki-gun, Hiroshima Mazda Motor Corporation

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle body assembly step of separately assembling an underbody structure mainly composed of a main floor panel and an upper body structure other than this underbody structure, a painting step of painting both body structures, and both body structures. A vehicle manufacturing method for manufacturing an automobile through a vehicle assembling step of fitting to a vehicle body, comprising: a plurality of clamping means and a plurality of positioning means for assembling an upper body structure in the vehicle body assembling step. The unit is installed vertically in a space corresponding to the inner space of the upper body structure from below, and at least the left and right body side panels and roof panel are positioned relative to the assembly jig unit with reference to those inner panels. After fixing, combine the left and right body side panels and roof panel to assemble the upper body structure, In the course of the above, necessary coating is applied to the upper body structure and the underbody structure, and in the vehicle assembly process, the upper body structure and the underbody structure are separately assembled with the respective outfitting lines by their own outfitting lines, Next, the underbody structure is assembled relative to the upper body structure from below, and the two are joined together. Before or after joining the both body structures, a lower unit including a suspension and an exhaust system that are preassembled into a unit shape. Is assembled to at least one of both body structures. 2. The automobile according to claim 1, wherein in at least a part of the coating step, necessary coating is performed while the upper body structure and the underbody structure are conveyed by the same conveying means. Manufacturing method. 3. The method of manufacturing an automobile according to claim 2, wherein in the coating step, the underbody structure is removed from the transport means before the intermediate coating is applied.