JPH05169384A - Loader unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify a lifting mechanism by making a suction head go up and down with a single lifting means. CONSTITUTION:When a plate material is attracted by suction force, a support member 20 is lowered by a lifting member 13, thereby making a suction head 12 go down. If this suction head 12 canes into contact with the plate material, the suction head 12 is stopped in a state of being contacted with the plate material as the support, member 20 supports the suction head 12 in a free state in the ascending direction, thus only the support member 20 goes down according to a down of the lifting member 13, reaching to the down end. When the plate material is uplifted, if the lifting member 13 is made up, the support member 20 goes up too in response to it. When the support member 20 is reached to a stop position of the suction head 12, the support member 20 makes this suction head 12 go up to an up end of the lifting member 13 along with the upping of the support member 20 as it restrains the suction head 12 in the down direction.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a loader device, and more particularly to a loader device for adsorbing and conveying a plate material by an adsorption head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A loader device is used to supply a plate material to the plate material processing machine when the plate material processing machine such as a punch press machine is used. This loader device includes, for example, a trolley portion that travels on a rail installed along a carriage for loading a plurality of material plates, a pantograph-shaped connecting link, and a suction device fixed below the connecting link via a fixing frame. And have. The hoist and chain provided in the trolley section raises and lowers the entire suction device. This elevating operation is performed in order to cope with the change in the height of the plate material which becomes lower as the plate material is supplied.

The suction device has a plurality of suction heads. This suction head has a vacuum pad at the lower end. The vacuum pad adsorbs the plate material. Further, each suction head can be independently raised and lowered according to the size of the plate material in order to raise the unused vacuum pad.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the above conventional configuration,
It has a connecting link, a hoisting machine, and a chain for responding to changes in the height of the material, and is further provided with a mechanism for raising and lowering each suction head, and a double raising and lowering mechanism is provided. Therefore, the structure of the lifting mechanism becomes complicated.

An object of the present invention is to adsorb a plate material by a lifting mechanism having a simple structure.

[0006]

A loader device according to the present invention conveys a plate material while adsorbing a plate material by an adsorption head, and comprises a support member and an elevating member. The support member supports the suction head in its ascending direction in a free state and restrains it in its descending direction. The elevating member raises and lowers the support member.

[0007]

In the loader device according to the present invention, when the plate material is sucked, the support member is lowered by the elevating member and the suction head is lowered. When the suction head comes into contact with the plate member, the supporting member supports the suction head in a free state in its ascending direction, so that the suction head stops while being in contact with the plate member, and only the supporting member descends the lifting member. According to
Reach the end of descent. When the plate member is lifted, if the lifting member is lifted, the support member is also lifted accordingly. When the support member reaches the stop position of the suction head, the support member restrains the suction head in its descending direction.
The suction head is lifted to the rising end of the lifting member as the support member is lifted.

As described above, since the suction head can be lifted and lowered by one elevating member, and the suction head is supported by the supporting member in a free state in the ascending direction and is restrained in the descending direction, the elevating and lowering stroke of the elevating member. Need not be controlled, and it is not necessary to detect whether or not the tip of the suction head has come into contact with the plate material. This simplifies control.

[0009]

1 shows a plate material loading / unloading system in a plate material processing line to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied. This loading / unloading system has a material cart ₁ for accommodating a material plate W ₁ , and a product cart 2 arranged below it for accommodating a processed plate W ₂ . On the material trolley 1 and the product trolley 2, a pallet P on which each plate material is loaded is placed. The carriages 1 and 2 are movable on rails 3 and 4 extending in the front-rear direction (direction perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 1), respectively. Further, the rail 3 has a sectional view L.
It is in the shape of a letter and can be moved in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing by a chain drive mechanism 5 including a chain, a sprocket, a motor and the like. A push-up pin 2a extending downward is fitted in an arm portion of the rail 3 so as to be vertically movable. A flange is formed on the upper end of the push-up pin 2a.
Is prevented from falling down. Below the product cart 2,
A lifter 6 for raising and lowering the pallet P is provided.

The upper and lower ends of the push-up pin 2a are located below and above the four corners of the material carriage 1 and the product carriage 2, respectively. There are slight gaps between the upper and lower ends of the pin 2a and the lower surface of the material carriage 1 and the upper surface of the product carriage 2, respectively, so that the carriages 1 and 2 can move independently.
The pin 2 a has a function of transmitting the lifting operation of the fixed lifter 6 to the material carriage 1. For example, when supplying the material, the lifter 6 pushes up the material carriage 1 together with the product carriage 2 through the pin 2a. On the contrary, when receiving the product, the material cart 1 is moved by the chain drive mechanism 5 together with the rail 3 to a position retracted from below the loader 8 to be described later, and only the product cart 2 is allowed to rise.

A rail 7 is horizontally installed above the material cart 1 and the product cart 2. On the rail 7,
Loader 8 for loading the plate material processing machine (arranged in Fig. 1 right) (not shown) material work sheet W ₁ in materials bogie 1 is provided to be run. The loader 8 has a horizontal frame 8a. The horizontal frame 8a is provided with a plurality of suction devices 9 for sucking the material plate material W ₁ .

Below the rail 7, a chain 40 is arranged in the left-right direction. The chain 40 is wound around sprockets 41 and 42 arranged at both ends of the chain 40, and can run. An unloader gripper 43 is attached to a part of the chain 40. The unloader gripper 43 is for taking out the processed plate material W ₂ which has been processed by the plate material processing machine from the plate material processing machine and carrying it onto the product carriage 2.

A moving roller device 50 is provided above and to the side of the material truck 1. This moving roller device 50 is composed of a chain 51 that is runnable around a plurality of sprockets and a plurality of roller groups 52 that are rotatably provided on the chain 51. The roller group 52 extends above the material carriage 1, and thereby a table surface 50a on which the processed plate material W ₂ can be placed is formed above the material carriage 1. Further, by driving the chain 51, an opening is formed in a part of the chain 51 above the material carriage 1, and the processed plate material W ₂ on the table surface 50a is placed on the product carriage 2 below from this opening. It is supposed to be dropped.

Above the material truck 1, there is provided a plate material separating device 10 for separating the material plate materials W ₁ adsorbed by the adsorbing device 9 _one by one. This plate material separation device 1
Reference numeral 0 denotes two pairs of first and second contact portions 31 and 32 (only one is shown) that are arranged to face each other with the plate material W interposed therebetween, and each contact portion 3
It is mainly composed of a drive mechanism 30 for moving 1, 32. The drive mechanism 30 includes the first and second contact portions 3
They are arranged on both sides of 1, 32, respectively.

The horizontal frame 8a, as shown in FIG.
It is composed of square pipes assembled in a grid pattern. Brackets 11 are fixed to the horizontal frame 8a at predetermined intervals. The bracket 11 has a shape straddling the horizontal frame 8a, and the suction device 9 is attached to the bracket 11, as shown in FIG. 3, the suction device 9 includes a suction head 12 and an air cylinder for moving the suction head 12 up and down. 13 and 13. The suction head 12 is a bracket 1
1, a guide shaft 15, a guide shaft 16 movably supported up and down by the guide shaft 15, and a guide shaft 16.
And a vacuum pad 14 attached to the tip of the. Above the vacuum pad 14 on the guide shaft 16,
A stopper portion 17 is provided. A bush 18 with a collar is fitted in contact with the upper portion of the stopper portion 17. A spring 19 is arranged in a compressed state between the flange portion of the flanged bush 18 and the lower surface of the guide portion 15. The spring 19 constantly urges the suction head 12 downward.

One end of the support member 20 is fitted in the guide shaft 16 with play. In addition, the guide shaft 16
A nut 21 is screwed into the upper end of the. Nut 21
Is stopped by a rotation preventing means (not shown).
With this nut 21 and the support member 20, the suction head 12
The downward movement of is constrained. Further, as described above, since the support member 20 is fitted in the guide shaft 16 with play, and there is no restraint on the lower surface of the support member 20, the suction head 12 can freely move in the ascending direction. Supported by the state.

The support member 20 is a plate-shaped member, and is screwed to the rod 22 of the air cylinder 13 at the other end. A flat plate-shaped support frame 25 is fixed to the upper surfaces of the air cylinder 13 and the guide portion 15, and the air cylinder 13 is supported by the support frame 25. Next, the suction operation of the loader 8 configured as described above will be described.

When the loader 8 arrives at the trolley 1,
4 and the air cylinder 13 becomes a rod.
22 has advanced. Rod in this state
When 22 is moved in and out, as shown in FIG.
The guide shaft 16 descends due to the urging force of the ring 19. Moth
The id shaft 16 descends, and the vacuum pad 14 at the tip is the plate material W. ₁
When it comes into contact with, the lowering of the guide shaft 16 stops. guide
Even if the lowering of the shaft 16 is stopped, the guide shaft 16 and the support member 2
0 is not restricted in this direction, so air cylinder 1
3 further retracts the rod 22 and moves to the descending end.
In the vacuum pad 14, the air cylinder 13
The suction operation is started together with the start of the descending operation. And board
Material W₁Immediately adsorb the plate material when it comes into contact with.

When the air cylinder 13 reaches the lower end,
The plate material separating apparatus 10 is operated and the ascent starts after a predetermined time. When the air cylinder 13 starts the raising operation, only the supporting member 20 rises along with the raising operation of the air cylinder 13 and the guide shaft 16 does not rise until the supporting member 20 is engaged with the nut 21. And the support member 20
When the nut abuts the nut 21, the support member 20 moves the guide shaft 1
6 is restrained, and the guide shaft 16 rises as the air cylinder 13 rises. As a result, the uppermost plate material W ₁ is separated from the other plate materials and rises. When the air cylinder 13 reaches the rising end, the loader 8 starts traveling on the rail 7 and conveys the plate material W ₁ onto the plate material processing machine. And the air cylinder 1
3 is moved down to lower the plate material W ₁ to the plate material processing machine. With this descending operation, the suction of the plate material W ₁ is released, and the plate material is placed on the plate material processing machine.

When the plate material W ₁ is continuously conveyed, the plate material W ₁
The number of sheets is reduced and the overall thickness is reduced (see FIG. 6). However, also in this case, it is sufficient to raise and lower the air cylinder 13 by the same operation as the above operation, and the control becomes simple. Other Embodiments (a) In the above embodiments, the vacuum pad is used for attraction, but an electromagnetic pad that attracts the plate material by magnetic force may be used. (B) In the above embodiment, the air cylinder is used as the lifting means, but other means such as a motor may be used.

[0021]

In the loader device according to the present invention, since the suction head is moved up and down by the single lifting means, the lifting mechanism is simplified. Further, since the support member supports the suction head in a free state in the ascending direction and restrains it in the descending direction, the lifting means is controlled at the same control regardless of the lifting stroke of the suction head. Will be better and control will be easier.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a plate material carry-in / supply system in a plate material processing line adopting an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial side view of the loader.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a suction head.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which the suction head is on standby.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a state of a suction head at the time of sucking a plate material.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a state of a suction head during suction of a plate material.

[Explanation of symbols]

8 loader 9 adsorption device 12 adsorption head 13 air cylinder 14 vacuum pad 16 guide shaft 20 support member 21 nut W ₁ material plate material

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A loader device for adsorbing and transporting a plate material by an adsorbing head, and a supporting member for supporting the adsorbing head in a free state in its ascending direction and restraining it in a descending direction; A loader device including a member.