JPH0557572A - Control method for conveyor system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the productivity by heightening the operation rate of a machine tool and the conveying efficiency of a conveyor route. CONSTITUTION:A conveyor system 1 is so constituted that a pallet 4 with a work mounted is made so as to be traveled to a conveyor route 3 or numerically controlled machine tool 2, through each work charging standby spot 7 being on standby of charging into this machine tool 2 and each delivery standby spot 8 standing by delivery into the conveyor route 3, between plural units of these NC machine tools 2 and the conveyor route 3 installed along these machine tools 2. In this system, when either of these work charging standby sport 7 is emptied, it is detected, thus the pallet 4 on the conveyor route 3 is carried into the work charging standby spot 7 in a state of being emptied at random.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention is applicable to a plurality of machine tools.
The present invention relates to a method of controlling a transfer system for processing and assembling a workpiece.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A plurality of NCs that are numerically controlled when a work such as drilling, thread cutting, and cutting are continuously performed on a work
There is known an automatic processing system in which machine tools are arranged in the order of processing steps and connected by a conveyor, and by this conveyor, a pallet on which a work is placed is sequentially fed to an NC machine tool for processing.
This system is generally called an FMS (Flexible Manufacturing System) and is used as having both the versatility of NC machine tools and the productivity of transfer machines.

[0003]

However, such a configuration has a drawback that the entire system is stopped when any one of the machine tools is disturbed. In addition, since the work is conveyed in sequence and the processing time of the machine tool is different, it is possible to reduce the efficiency of the machine such that some machine tools become empty or the pallet stays on the conveyor or machine tool. It was bad.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to minimize the empty space of a machine tool to increase the movability and to increase the transfer efficiency of the transfer path. It is to provide a work transfer system with improved productivity.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a first aspect of the present invention is to provide a plurality of machine tools on a pallet on which a work is placed, and a conveying path provided along these machine tools. Between a work system and a work system, which is configured to move to a work path or a machine tool through a work input stand-by area that waits for input to a machine tool and a pay-out stand-by area that waits for delivery to a transfer path. The control method is such that when any one of the above-mentioned work input standby areas is vacant, this is detected and the pallets on the transport path are carried into the empty work input standby area. ..

In the second invention, the pallet on which the work is placed is awaited for processing by the machine tool between a plurality of machine tools and a transport path arranged along these machine tools. A method of controlling a transfer system, wherein a pallet is moved to a transfer path or a machine tool through a work input standby area and a payout standby area that waits for delivery to a transfer path. Further, the pallets are sequentially delivered according to the processing steps, and the pallets are delivered to the transport path from any of the delivery standby areas of these machine tools.

Further, in the third invention, the pallet on which the work is placed is waited for to be loaded into the machine tool between the plurality of machine tools and the transport path arranged along the machine tools. Work
A method for controlling a transfer system, wherein the transfer system is configured to move to a transfer path or a machine tool through a standby position for charging and a standby position for discharging that waits for a transfer to a transfer route.
When one of the waiting areas for loading the work is vacant, this is detected, and the pallets on the transport path are loaded into the waiting area for the work loading in an empty state. Also, the pallets are paid out to the transport path.

[0008]

In the structure of the first aspect of the invention, the pallets located on the transport path or the machine tool are transported at random depending on the respective empty states. Further, by sending the pallets on the transport path to the work loading standby area, unnecessary pallets do not stagnate on the transport path, and the transport efficiency of the transport path is improved.

In the second aspect of the present invention, the pallet of the processing machine is sent to the payout waiting area so that the pallets unnecessary for the processing machine do not stagnate and the operating rate of the processing machine increases. Further, by delivering the processed pallets to the transport path from any of the delivery standby areas, it becomes possible to process the work with different numbers of processing on one transport system.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the pallets can be loaded into the processing machine and delivered to the transportation path freely using both standby areas, and the operating rate of the processing machine and the transportation efficiency of the transportation path can be improved. It is getting higher.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In the work transfer system 1 shown in FIG. 2, a transfer path 3 is arranged along a plurality of NC machine tools 2, and a work (not shown) is transferred to a pallet 4 on the transfer path 3. Be transported. The NC machine tool 2 is, for example, a machining center equipped with a plurality of machining tools on an ATC (auto tool changer), and all of the NC machine tools 2 perform the same machining or each machine a different work. Is set to. The pallet 4 on which the unworked work is arranged is directly inserted into any of the NC machine tools 2 from the transport path 3 and one NC machine tool 2 completes all the machining steps.

The transport path 3 is a guide path only for a frame having no transport power, such as a conveyor having a transport power such as a chain or a roller, and the pallet 4 is a mutual feed line and a return line. It can be transported in any direction. On the other hand, as the pallet 4, a driven type that is conveyed on the conveying path 3 having a driving force or a self-propelled type that has power is used in combination with the conveying path 3. Fixing jigs are provided on one pallet 4 according to the number of works, and the works are fixed to these jigs by a fixing means such as a chuck.

At one end of the transport path 3, the work on the pallet 4 is carried out.
A setup station 5 for attaching and detaching the plug is provided.
A stocker 6 is installed in parallel on one side of the setup station 5, and a pallet 4 to which a work is assembled in the setup station 5 or a setup station 5 in the transport path 3. The pallet 4 returned to the store can be temporarily stored in this stocker 6.

Between each NC machine tool 2 and the transport path 3, N
A work waiting stand-by 7 for waiting the pallet 4 to be loaded into the C machine tool 2 and a pay-out waiting place 8 for waiting for the pallet 4 to be delivered to the transport path 3 are provided. A junction 9 is set between the two waiting areas 7 and 8, and the pallet 4 located in the waiting area 7 for entering the work is sent from the junction 9 to the work table 2a of the NC machine tool 2. Also, the pallet 4 that has been processed by the work table 2a is sent from the junction 9 to the payout waiting area 8.

The transfer system 1 has a control device (not shown) such as a computer. The NC machine tool 2 and the pallet 4 described above are automatically operated by a program stored in the control device, and With this controller,
The position of the pallet 4 is detected, the movement command is given, and the priority is decided. Further, each pallet 4 is provided with a receiving device or the like so that it can be individually called by the control device.

Next, the operation of the transport system 1 of the present embodiment thus constructed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, when the power is turned on in step S1,
The transport system 1 is activated in step S2. One empty pallet 4 is waiting in the setup station 5, and the unworked work is assembled to the pallet 4 manually or automatically in step S3, and further in step S4. Are automatically clamped to the pallet 4.

In step S5, the clamp state of the work is checked. If the work is not clamped properly, the process returns to step S4 and the clamp is performed again.
If the clamp is normal, the process goes to step S6, and the setup station 5 waits for delivery to the stocker 6.
Next, in step S7, the movement to the stocker 6 is instructed, and the flow enters step S8 to check the empty state of the stocker 6.

In step S8, if there is no free space in the stocker 6, the process returns to step S6 to continue the standby, and if it is free, the process goes to step S9 to execute the setup step.
The pallet 4 on the section 5 is moved to the stocker 6, and the call to the transport path 3 is awaited in step S10.

In step S11, movement to the work input waiting area 7 is instructed, and then, in step S12, the empty states of all the work input waiting areas 7 and the transport path 3 are checked. If there is no space in any of the work input waiting areas 7, the process returns to step S10 to continue the waiting. In addition, if there is an empty space in any of the work input waiting areas 7, and further there is an open space in the feed line to the work input waiting area 7, that is, in the forward path of the transport path 3 leading to the standby area 7, Step S
In step S14, the pallet 4 on the stocker 6 is transferred to the vacant work loading standby area 7 on the transfer path 3 and the loading of the pallet 4 on the NC machine tool 2 is awaited in step S14.

In step S12, when a plurality of work input waiting areas 7 are vacant, the priority order is determined and the transportation is performed at random. For example, Stocker-6
By prioritizing the pallet 4 on the side closer to the
Since it can be used in a short time, the transportation efficiency is improved. Therefore, by determining the priority order in step S12, all the NCs in the pallet 4 of the stocker 6 from step S13 are determined.
Although it is controlled so that it can be moved to the machine tool 2, in this embodiment, NO. The description will be continued on the assumption that the work machine waiting place 7 of the NC machine tool 2 of 1 is given the highest priority.

In step S15, the vacancy of the junction 9 and the work table 2a is checked. Here, if the junction 9 and the work table 2a are empty, the process goes to step S16, the pallet 4 is moved to the junction 9, and the work table 2 is further moved to step S17.
throw in a. If the pallet 4 is present at the junction 9, the process returns to step S14 and the loading standby is continued. Next, in step S18, the preparation for machining on the NC machine tool 2 is checked.

The processing preparation check carried out in step S18 is to check whether the work has no flaws, no different work has been assembled, there is no abnormality in the clamp, or there is an unprocessed part. If it is a re-check and is repelled by this check, the process skips steps S19 and S20 and moves to step S21.
Returned to. If the processing preparation is normal, the process proceeds to step S19, the work on the pallet 4 is processed, and the processing is finished in step S20. In step S21, the processed pallet 4 is moved to the junction 9, and in step S22, the pallet 4 is waited for movement to the payout waiting area 8.

In step S23, the payout waiting area 8
Is checked, and if it is free, step S
24, the pallet 4 is moved to the payout waiting area 8, and in step S25, the payout to the transport path 3 is waited. However, in the NC machine tool 2, since the work on one pallet 4 is processed in a plurality of times and it takes a long processing time, the junction 9 and the payout waiting area 8 are always in an empty state at the processing end stage. Is becoming

Next, in step S26, a setup step is performed.
The presence or absence of the pallet 4 between the section 5 and the transport path 3,
When the pallet 4 is present, the process returns to step S25 and waits for payout. If the return line to the setup station 5, that is, the return path of the transport path 3 to the setup station 5, is empty, the process proceeds to step S27, and the pallet 4 located in the payout waiting area 8 is removed. The carriage 5 is moved to the station 5 on the conveying path 3, the processed work is removed in step S28, one cycle is completed, and the process returns to step S3. In this step S26, a plurality of payout waiting areas 8
When the pallet 4 is waiting, the control device determines the priority order and the conveyance is performed randomly.

In this embodiment, as described above, the pallet 4 which has conventionally been standing by on the conveying path or the machine tool is made to stand by on the stocker 6, the work inserting waiting area 7 and the payout waiting area 8, and the conveying path By making 3 dedicated to transport, more pallets 4 can be used than before, and unnecessary pallets 4 do not stagnate on the transport path 3 or work table 2a, so that the NC machine tool 2 The operating rate and the transfer efficiency of the transfer path 3 are increased, and the productivity can be improved.

Furthermore, since the pallets 4 can be sequentially and randomly loaded from the empty NC machine tools 2 by using the transport path 3 and the control device, some NC machine tools 2 can be broken or damaged. Even when it is stopped, it is not necessary to stop the entire transport system 1.

Further, by prioritizing the transportation of the pallets 4 by the control device, the efficiency of the NC machine tool 2 and the transportation path 3 can be further enhanced. Further, in the present embodiment, the pallet 4 moves the conveying path 3 in the mutual direction, but it is also possible to simultaneously convey a plurality of pallets 4 in the same direction or in the opposite direction by the control device.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show a second embodiment in which a plurality of NC machine tools 2 are used to process a work in multiple stages.
The pallet 4 on which the work is placed is sent from the NC machine tool 2 to the primary process → secondary process ...

The feed line to these NC machine tools 2 is, as shown in FIG. 4, a waiting place 7 for entering the work of each NC machine tool 2.
The junction 9 and the payout waiting area 8 are connected in series. In addition, the stocker 6 is directly connected to the work standby waiting area 7 of the adjacent NC machine tool 2 for the primary process so that the pallet 4 after setup does not pass through the transfer path 3. Is dedicated to the return line from the NC machine tool 2 for the nth process on the other end side to the setup station 5.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the same operation as in the first embodiment is carried out from the power-on in step S1 until the stocker 6 in step S10 waits for a call to the transport path 3. next,
By the step S11, the work of the NC machine tool 2 for the primary process is performed.
Instructed to move to the charging waiting area 7, step S12
The availability of the waiting area 7 is checked at. If there is no space in the work input standby area 7 for the primary process, the process returns to step S10 to continue the standby. If there is a space in the waiting area 7, the process proceeds to step S13, the pallet 4 on the stocker 6 is transported to the waiting area 7 for inserting the work, and in step S14, the NC machine tool 2 for the primary process is used. Wait for input to.

In step S15, the vacancy of the junction 9 and the work table 2a is checked. Here, when the junction 9 and the work table 2a are empty, the process goes to step S16, the pallet 4 is moved to the junction 9, and the work table 2 is further moved to step S17.
throw in a. If the pallet 4 is present at the junction 9, the process returns to step S14 and the loading standby is continued. Then, in step S18, the same processing preparation check as in the first embodiment is performed.

If an abnormality is found in the machining preparation in step S18, steps S19 and S20 are skipped, the process proceeds to step S21, and the process is returned to the setup station 5 in step S3. If the processing preparation is normal, step S19
The work on the pallet 4 is processed to step S
Processing ends at 20. In step S21, the processed pallet 4 is moved to the junction 9, and in step S22, the pallet 4 waits for movement to the payout waiting area 8. In step S23, the empty state of the payout waiting area 8 is checked, and if it is empty, step S2
4, the pallet 4 is moved to the payout waiting area 8.

Next, in step S26, N for the secondary process is used.
The C machine tool 2 is instructed to move to the work-in standby area 7, and the empty state of the standby area 7 is checked in step S27. If there is no space in the work input standby area 7 for the secondary process, the process returns to step S10 to continue the standby. If there is a space in the waiting area 7, the process of the NC machine tool 2 for the secondary process starts.

Then, the pallet 4 which finishes all the machining with the NC machine tool 2 for the final n-th process and stands by in the payout waiting area 8 in step S28, and the pallet of the setup station 5 in step S29. When the presence or absence of the pallet 4 is detected and the pallet 4 is present, the process returns to step S28 and waits for the payout. If the setup station 5 is empty, the process proceeds to step S30 and the payout waiting area 8
Move the pallet 4 located in position 1 to the station 5 in the conveying path 3 and remove the processed work in step S31 to
The cycle is ended and the process returns to step S3.

In this embodiment, by separating the feed line and the return line and connecting both ends, the transport system serves as a circuit circuit, and a large number of pallets 4 can be continuously used. In addition, it is possible to use a combination of processing man-hours that finishes up to the third process and those that perform more than the fourth process, and if the number of processing man-hours is small, the pallet 4 may be in the middle of the feed line. Since it can also be paid out onto the conveying path 3 which is a return line, it is excellent in versatility.

FIG. 5 shows a third working example of the present invention, which is an example of mixed working in which the same working of the first embodiment and the multi-step working of the second embodiment are mixed.

As a precondition for the present embodiment, a plurality of NC machine tools 2 for performing the same process and a plurality of NC machine tools 2 for multi-step machining for performing each of the primary to n-th processes are provided in the transfer system. To mix. Further, in describing the present embodiment, FIGS. 1 to 4 used in the first and second embodiments will be referred to. The latter half of the carrying operation according to the present embodiment is a combination of the first and second embodiments, and the details have already been described. Therefore, in the flowchart of FIG. 5, only the first half of the carrying operation is shown. ..

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. From power-on in step S1 to stocker 6 in step S10
Thus, the same operation as in the first and second embodiments is performed until the call to the transport path 3 is waited. In step S11, movement to the work input waiting area 7 is instructed, then the type of processing is determined in step S12, and further it is determined in step S13 whether it is the same processing or multi-step processing.

When the same machining is discriminated in step S13, the process proceeds to step S14, in which the movement of the NC machine tool 2 for the same machining to the work input waiting area 7 is supported.
When it is confirmed at 15 that any of the work-in standby areas 7 is empty, step S13 in FIG. 1 is entered to continue the subsequent operation.

On the other hand, when the multi-step machining is discriminated in step S13, the process proceeds to step S16, in which the movement of the NC machine tool 2 for the primary machining to the work input waiting area 7 is supported, and in step S17, the above-mentioned work is performed. -If it is confirmed that there is an empty space in the charging input waiting area 7, the operation proceeds to step S13 of FIG. 2 to continue the subsequent operation. If it is determined in steps S15 and 17 that there is no space in the work input standby area 7, the process returns to step S10 and the standby in the stocker 6 is continued.

In this embodiment, since the same processing and the multi-step processing are combined in this way, the operating rate of the entire transfer system is further increased.

In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the NC machine tool provided with the working tool is used, but in the present invention, the work machine may be used for assembling the work.

[0046]

As described above, according to each of the methods of the present invention, it becomes possible to use more pallets in the transfer system than in the conventional one, and unnecessary pallets in the transfer path and machine tool are stagnant. Since it does not occur, the operating rate of the machine tool and the transfer efficiency of the transfer path are increased, and the productivity can be improved.

Further, the pallets can be loaded and unloaded randomly, and the efficiency of the machine tool and the transport path can be further enhanced. Further, since it is possible to perform a combination of the same processing and multi-step processing or different processing steps on the transfer system, it is excellent in versatility.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart using the transfer system of FIG.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a transfer system according to the first embodiment.

3 is a flow chart using the transfer system of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a transfer system according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the third embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Conveying system, 2 ... NC machine tool, 2a ... Work table, 3 ... Conveying path, 4 ... Pallet, 5 ... Setup station, 6 ... Stocker, 7 ... Work input waiting area, 8 … Payment waiting area, 9… junction

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A work loading system in which a pallet carrying a work is placed between a plurality of machine tools and a conveyance path arranged along the machine tools to wait for loading into the machine tools. A waiting area for
A method for controlling a transfer system, wherein the transfer system or the machine tool is moved through a payout waiting area for waiting for payout to a transfer path, when either of the work input waiting areas is empty. This is a control method for a transport system that detects this and carries the pallet on the transport path to an empty work standby area. 2. A pallet on which a work is placed is placed between a plurality of machine tools and a conveying path arranged along the machine tools, and the work is put on standby for processing by the machine tools. A waiting area for
A method for controlling a transfer system, which is configured to move to a transfer path or a machine tool through a payout waiting area for waiting for a transfer to a transfer path, wherein the pallets are sequentially fed to the processing machine according to a processing step, Furthermore, the control method of the transfer system, in which the pallet is transferred to the transfer path from any of the transfer standby areas of these machine tools. 3. A pallet on which a work is placed is placed between a plurality of machine tools and a conveyance path arranged along the machine tools, and a work is placed on the machine tool on standby. A waiting area for
A method for controlling a transfer system, wherein the transfer system or the machine tool is moved through a payout waiting area for waiting for payout to a transfer path, when either of the work input waiting areas is empty. Detecting this, the pallets on the transport path are loaded into the empty work loading standby area, and the pallets are delivered to the transport path from any of the emptying standby areas of each machine tool. How to control the system.