JPH0561054B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a component feeding device for a component driving device, and particularly to a device for feeding specially shaped components such as expansion nuts.

In general, an expansion nut N as a part to be supplied to a component driving device has a substantially rectangular nut base 1, as shown in FIGS. A screw hole 2 for screwing is provided, and a pair of elastically deformable leg pieces 3 are provided opposite each other in the central portions of both sides of the nut base 1, and each leg piece 3 has a slight gap from its base to the center. It is formed by projecting outward and bending inward from the center to the tip, and a gap 5 narrower than the shaft diameter of the screw 4 is formed between the tip of each leg 3. There is.

For example, when screwing assembly parts such as various instruments to a resin-made base such as an instrument panel I, the expansion nut N is inserted into the mounting hole 6 formed in the instrument panel I. The piece 3 is inserted and fitted to form the threaded part of the screw 4. In this case, the thread 4 is threaded into the threaded hole 2 of the expansion nut N.
Since the tip of the screw 4 presses into the gap 5 between the leg pieces 3, the leg pieces 3 expand outward and the base of the leg piece 3 comes into pressure contact with the edge of the mounting hole 6. Thus, the screw 4 is securely fixed to the instrument panel I via the expansion nut N. This makes it possible to prevent deformation of the instrument panel I that occurs when the screws 4 are directly screwed into the instrument panel I, and to increase its strength.

By the way, when attaching such an expansion nut N to the above-mentioned instrument panel I, there is a demand for a system in which a parts driving device is attached to an automatic machine and the attachment of the expansion nut N is automated by this robot. has been done.

In such a system, a method for supplying expansion nuts to the component driving device is to connect a parts feeder fixed at a predetermined location and a component setting portion of the component driving device with a flexible hose. It is conceivable to continuously supply the expansion nut N to the component driving device through this hose, but in this method, since the expansion nut N has a special shape, the expansion nut N is supplied in the hose. This may cause problems such as the locking nut N getting caught.

Therefore, conventionally, a method has been adopted in which the expansion nuts N are supplied one by one to the component driving device. However, in such a conventional method, when driving a plurality of expansion nuts N into an instrument panel etc., when the driving operation of one expansion nut N is completed, the driving operation of the next expansion nut N is started. N
In order to supply the expansion nut N, the automatic machine must first remove the component driving device from the driving work stage and then move it to the supply location of the expansion nut N. There is a problem in that it takes a lot of time to drive the expansion nut using a machine.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned viewpoints, and its purpose is to temporarily supply a necessary amount of parts to a parts driving device, and to provide a series of parts by an automatic machine. An object of the present invention is to provide a component supply device for a component driving device that shortens the time required for component driving.

The basic configuration of the present invention includes a parts feeder P fixed at a predetermined position for storing parts, a shooter 50 for aligning and feeding the parts in the parts feeder P, and a distal end of the shooter 50 restraining movement of the parts. , a stopper 55 for releasing the parts, and a stopper 55 installed in the parts driving device A attached to the automatic machine to temporarily align and store the parts supplied from the shooter 50 as parts to be supplied to the parts driving device A. A stocker 60 having a component stopper 55 that temporarily holds a predetermined number of parts when parts are supplied from the shooter 50; and a positioning mechanism E that connects the ends of the shooter 50 and the stocker 60 against each other.
A component feeding device to a component driving device A is provided with the following.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the entire system of the expansion nut driving process using the component supply device according to the present invention. In the figure, the instrument panel I as a parent body is a frame 10.
It is positioned and fixed to a frame 10, is transported to a predetermined position by a shuttle bar 11 together with a frame 10, and is rotatably supported by a rotation device 12 via the frame 10. On the other hand, a robot R as an automatic machine equipped with an arm Ra movable in a horizontal direction is installed on a work stage located near the instrument panel I that has been transported. Component driving device A is installed. A component supply device K is provided on a work stage near the robot R and a part of the component driving device A.

In this embodiment, the basic structure of the component driving device A is as shown in FIGS. It is comprised of a driving member 30 that can be mounted, and a mounting head 40 that is provided at the tip of the driving member 30 and positions and holds the expansion nut N.

The base member 20 is composed of a fixed base 21 and a movable base 22, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The fixed base 21 includes a lower base 21c extending in the horizontal direction, and a lower base 21c extending in the horizontal direction.
Connection base 21 rising upward from one end of 1c
b, from the upper end of this connection base 21b to face the lower base 21c, and from the lower base 2
The connecting base 21b is connected and fixed to the robot arm Ra via a support bracket 26. On the other hand, the movable base 2
The movable base 2 is disposed so as to face the lower base 21c, and is slidably mounted along a guide column 23 extending between the lower base 21c and the upper base 21a.
2 is a piston rod 25a of an air cylinder 25 supported on a fixed base 21 via a bracket 24.
is connected to.

Further, the driving member 30 is a member extending in the vertical direction, and is fitted into the driving rod 31 and has a protrusion and a groove (not shown) engaged with the driving rod 31. It is composed of a driving pipe 32 that slides relative to each other in the vertical direction depending on the timing. The driving rod 31 passes through the hole 27 of the movable base 22, and its upper end is connected to the movable base 22.
The upper end of the driving pipe 32 is connected to the piston rod 34a of a driving air cylinder 34 attached to the movable base 22 via a support 33, while the upper end of the driving pipe 32 is in contact with the lower surface of the movable base 22 through a spring 35. The driving pipe 32 is arranged to pass through a guide bush 36 attached to the lower base 21c. Furthermore, a limit switch 37 is disposed on the movable base 22 to operate the piston rod 34a of the driving air cylinder 34, and when the driving pipe 32 moves upward from the normal position, the upper end of the driving pipe 32 The limit switch 37 is activated by the flange 38 pushing up the roller switch piece 39 of the limit switch 37.

Further, the mounting head 40 is constituted by a driving rod 31 and a driving pipe 32, particularly as shown in FIG. That is, a positioning protrusion 41 into which the screw hole 2 of the expansion nut N is fitted is protrudingly provided at the center of the tip of the driving rod 31, and around the tip of the driving pipe 32, there is a positioning projection 41 that does not fit in the normal position. A positioning protrusion 42 is formed that protrudes downward from the tip end surface of the insertion rod 31, and this positioning protrusion 42 has a shape that fits into the outer edge of the expansion nut N. On the other hand, a magnet 43 for attracting and holding the upper surface of the nut base 1 of the expansion nut N is provided on the distal end surface of the driving rod 31. Also, the lower base 21c located near the mounting head 40
A set state detector 44 is attached to the lower surface of the mounting head 40 to detect whether or not the expansion nut N is set in the mounting head 40. These are so-called photo couplers arranged opposite to each other so as to sandwich the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40, and detect the set state of the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40 depending on whether or not the light receiving element receives light. When the expansion nut N is set on the mounting head 40, a component setting completion signal is sent from the setting state detector 44 to a control device (not shown).

Further, in this embodiment, the above-mentioned component supply device K has, as shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 8,
It has a parts feeder P that accommodates a large number of expansion nuts N as parts, and this parts feeder P is installed via a pedestal 13 on a work stage located near the robot R. The parts feeder P is provided with a shutter 50 that aligns and supplies the expansion nuts N in the parts feeder P, and this shutter 50 is mounted on the mount 13 as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10. It is supported via a stay 51,
It is arranged to extend diagonally downward from the parts feeder P. The shooter 50 also includes side rails 52 that are arranged opposite to each other so as to sandwich the legs 3 of the expansion nut N, and that slidably support the flange portions 1a of the nut base 1 that protrude from both sides of the legs 3. The upper rail 53 extends along the upper part between the side rails 52 so as to prevent the expansion nut N from floating up.

Further, a stopper 55 for restraining and releasing the movement of the expansion nut N is provided at the tip of the shooter 50.
An air cylinder 57 is attached to the upper rail 53 of the shooter 50 via a bracket 56, and is fixed to a piston rod 57a of the air cylinder 57. And this stopper 55 is
Particularly, as shown in FIG. 10, it consists of a U-shaped member that faces the upper surface of the side rail 52 of the shooter 50 and straddles the upper rail 53 of the shooter 50, and when the piston rod 57a protrudes, it holds the nut base 1 of the expansion nut N. While being pressed and held between the expansion nut N and the side rail 52, when the piston rod 57a retreats, it is spaced apart from the side rail 52 and released from the holding state of the expansion nut N.

Furthermore, the fixed base 21 on the side of the component driving device A
As shown in Figures 3, 4 and 8,
A stocker 60 for temporarily aligning and storing expansion nuts N is attached via a support arm 61, and as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, this stocker 60 has the same slope as the shooter 50. It consists of a side rail 62 and an upper rail 63 which are arranged at an angle and have the same configuration as the constituent members of the shooter 50 described above. A full detector 64 is attached to the end of the stocker 60 on the shooter 50 side for detecting that the amount of expansion nuts N stored in the stocker 60 is full. , is a so-called photo coupler in which a light emitting element and a light receiving element are arranged facing each other so as to sandwich the expansion nut N in the stocker 60, and the storage amount of the expansion nut N is determined depending on whether or not the light receiving element receives light. When the storage amount of expansion nuts N in the stocker 60 becomes full, the Manrin detector sends a full detection signal to a control device (not shown). I'm starting to do that.
Note that reference numeral 65 is a light transmission hole opened in the side rail 62 facing the light emitting element and the light receiving element.

Furthermore, a positioning mechanism E is provided between the stay 51 that supports the shooter 50 and the stocker 60, and this positioning mechanism E is attached to the stocker 60 via a bracket 66, as shown in FIG. Connecting member 67 and this connecting member 67
and a connected member 68 attached to the stay 51 facing the above-mentioned stay 51. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 13, the connecting member 67 is provided with a connecting protrusion 67a having a conical guide surface, while the connected member 68 is provided with an eighth connecting convex portion 67a.
As shown in the figure and FIG. 14, the connecting convex portion 67
A coupling recess 68a into which the stocker 68a is fitted is provided so that the stocker 60 is abutted and coupled to the shooter 50 when the two are fitted. and again,
The stay 51 has a switch piece 69a that can move forward and backward.
A connection switch 69 is installed,
A switch piece 69a of this connection switch 69 is arranged to protrude from the bottom of the connection recess 68a,
When the coupling protrusion 67a is fitted into the coupling recess 68a, it is pushed back by the coupling protrusion 67a, and in this case, the coupling switch 69 is turned on and the stopper 55 is released through a control device not shown. It is designed to be moved into position.

Further, in this embodiment, the stocker 60
In the area facing the lower opening of the
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the stocker 6
A setting member 70 is provided as a parts stopper for setting the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40. This setting member 70
includes a receiving part 71 that positions and receives the expansion nut N from the stocker 60, and a supporting arm part 72 that integrally extends from the receiving part 71, and the supporting arm part 72 is connected to the lower base 2.
The shaft pin 74 is attached to the support bracket 73 attached to 1a.
A setting preparation position S 1 where the receiving portion 71 receives the expansion nut N from the stocker 50 and a setting position S ₂ where the expansion nut N is set on the mounting head ₄₀ (see Fig. 16). It is possible to reciprocate between the two along a predetermined rotational trajectory. A protrusion 75 is formed near the rotation axis of the support arm 72 and projects radially with respect to the rotation axis, and the end of this protrusion is attached to the fixed base 21 via a bracket 76. The piston rod 77a of the air cylinder 77 is connected to the piston rod 77a. Also, the setting member 70
A stopper portion 78 is formed adjacent to the receiving portion 71, and this stopper portion 78 faces the lower opening of the stocker 60 when the receiving portion 71 is moved from the set preparation position _S1 . It has a curved surface shape that follows the rotation locus of the setting member 70.

Therefore, according to the component supply device according to this embodiment, the component supply device K supplies a fixed number of expansion nuts N to the component driving device A. In this process, first, the expansion nut N in the parts feeder P is fed into the shooter 50 by the operation of the parts feeder P. At this time, the piston rod 57a of the air cylinder 57 is operated to protrude in response to a command signal from a control device (not shown), and the stopper 55 is brought into contact with the side rail 52. Therefore, the expansion nuts N fed into the shooter 50 are blocked by the stopper 55 and are fed into the shooter 50 in a sequentially aligned state.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 8, the parts loading device A approaches the parts feeder P based on the teaching information of the robot R, and the stocker 60 moves toward the shooter 50 of the parts feeder P. . At this time, even if the teaching accuracy of the robot R is not so high, the connecting protrusion 67a that constitutes the positioning mechanism E fits into the connecting recess 68a in a self-centripetal manner, so the stocker 60 and the shooter 50 are reliably connected. When the connection switch 68 is turned on, the robot R is stopped by a command signal from a control device (not shown).

Then, the piston rod 57a of the air cylinder 57 moves backward, and the stopper 55, which was in contact with the side rail 52, moves backward. At this time, the shutter 5 that was blocked by the stopper 55
The expansion nuts N in 0 sequentially slide into the stocker 60, and from the setting member 70, the expansion nuts N are aligned and stored. When the storage amount of expansion nuts N in the stocker 60 becomes full, the air cylinder 57 is activated by the function of the full detector 64.
The piston rod 57a operates to protrude, and the stopper 55 restrains and holds the expansion nut N between it and the side rail 52. This results in
The supply of expansion nuts N from the shooter 50 to the stocker 60 is stopped, and the empty shooter 50 is replenished with expansion nuts N by the operation of the parts feeder P. In this state, the process of supplying the expansion nut N to the component driving device A is completed, and the robot R is started for the next process.

When the robot R starts to start up, one of the expansion nuts N in the stocker 60 is set in the mounting head 40. In this setting process, as shown in FIG.
It rotates counterclockwise in the figure with the center of rotation at . At this time, one expansion nut N is positioned and received in the receiving portion 71 of the setting member 70, and as the setting member 70 rotates, the expansion nut N moves to the setting preparation position S ₁ ( (see Figure 15) to set position S ₂
The expansion nut N is then supplied to the mounting head 40. In this state, the expansion nut N is positioned by the positioning protrusion 41 and the positioning protrusion 42 of the mounting head 40, and is protected by suction by the magnet 43, so that the expansion nut N is prevented from tilting. It is set on the mounting head 40 while maintaining a predetermined posture. On the other hand, as the setting member 70 rotates, the receiving part 71 of the setting member 70 moves from the setting preparation position _S1 , but the expansion nut N in the stocker 60 is moved from the stopper part of the setting member 70. 78, the expansion nut N in the stocker 60 will not fall out from within the stocker 60. In addition, if the expansion nut N is not set in the mounting head 40, the setting member 70 is set until the expansion nut N is set in the mounting head 40 by the action of the setting state detector 44. Continue working. When the expansion nut N is set on the mounting head 40, preparation for the driving operation is completed.
In response to a command signal from the control device based on a signal from the set state detector 44, the robot R is activated for the next step.

After that, the robot R places the component driving device A at the upper position corresponding to the mounting hole 6 of the instrument panel I based on the teaching information, and the component driving device A performs the driving operation of the expansion nut N. Start. At this stage, a control device (not shown) issues a command signal to start the driving operation, and the component driving device A begins to operate. That is, air cylinder 2
The piston rod 25a of No. 5 operates to project, and the movable base 22 moves downward by a predetermined amount.
Then, as shown in FIG. 17, the driving member 30 descends, and when the expansion nut N position in the mounting head 40 matches the mounting hole 6 position of the instrument panel I, As shown in FIG. 18a, the leg piece 3 of the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40 is slightly inserted into the mounting hole 6 of the instrument panel I. In this state, the positioning protrusion 42 provided on the driving pipe 32 reaches the edge of the mounting hole 6 of the instrument panel I, as shown in FIG. 18b. At this time, the driving pipe 32 is elastically supported by the spring 35 with respect to the movable base 22, and the downward movement of the driving pipe 32 is restrained, so the driving pipe 32 compresses the spring 35. The drive rod 31 slides upward relative to the drive rod 31, and the drive pipe 32 opens the mounting hole 6.
There is no situation where excessive force is applied to the edges. At this time, since the driving pipe 32 approaches the movable base 22 relatively, the limit switch 37 is activated, which causes the piston rod 34a of the driving air cylinder 34 to protrude, causing the driving rod 31 to protrude downward. Operate. Then, the 18th
As shown in FIG. c, the expansion nut N is pushed into the driving rod 31 and securely fitted into the mounting hole 6 to be mounted.

On the other hand, if the setting position of the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40 is tilted, or if the teaching accuracy of the robot R is not so high, the position of the expansion nut N in the mounting head 40 may not be aligned with the above mounting hole. 6 position, but in this state, when the movable base 22 moves downward and descends a predetermined amount, the leg piece 3 of the expansion nut N will first come into contact with the edge of the mounting hole 6. Therefore, even if the edge of the mounting hole 6 bends slightly, the driving pipe 32 will not reach the edge of the mounting hole 6, and the limit switch 37 will not operate. Therefore, the piston rod 34a of the driving air cylinder 34 does not operate to protrude, and the situation where the expansion nut N is forced into the mounting hole 6 and the edge of the mounting hole 6 is damaged does not occur. In this case, the component driving device A corrects the position of the expansion nut N based on a command from a control device (not shown), and then performs the driving operation of the expansion nut N again.

Then, when the driving rod 31 reaches the lowest point,
A driving operation completion signal is issued from the control device, and the piston rod 3 of the driving air cylinder 34 is
4a moves backward, the piston rod 25a of the air cylinder 25 moves backward, and the driving member 30 moves upward while separating from the expansion nut N. At this stage, the process of driving one expansion nut N is completed.

Thereafter, based on the teaching information of the robot R, the component driving device A sequentially places the expansion nuts N stored in the stocker 60 in positions corresponding to the plurality of mounting holes 6 of the instrument panel I. After the expansion nuts N are set in the mounting head 40 via the setting member 70, the expansion nuts N are successively driven and fixed into the mounting holes 6. During this time, it is no longer necessary to supply the expansion nut N to the component driving device A, and the robot R uses the component driving device A between the expansion nut N driving stage and the supply stage. No reciprocation occurs.

In the above embodiment, the shooter 50 and the stocker 60 are composed of a pair of side rails and an upper rail, but they are not necessarily limited to this, and the shutter 50 and the stocker 60 are configured to movably guide the expansion nut N. If it is, you can change the design as appropriate. Further, the stopper 55 is not necessarily limited to that shown in the above embodiment, and may be configured to directly open and close the opening at the tip of the shooter 50. Furthermore, the positioning mechanism E is not limited to that shown in the above embodiments, and for example, the positional relationship between the connecting protrusion 67a and the connecting recess 68a may be reversed, or the connecting protrusion 67a may be formed into a simple protrusion shape. You may change the design as appropriate.
Furthermore, it goes without saying that the design of each component of the component driving device A can be changed as appropriate. Further, in the above embodiment, the expansion nut N is used as an example of the part, but the invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that any part having a special shape can be selected as appropriate.

As explained above, according to the component supply device for a component driving device according to the present invention, when supplying a specially shaped component to the component driving device, the parts necessary for a series of component driving operations are supplied. Since it is possible to supply parts temporarily and reliably, there is no need to supply parts to the component driving device each time during each component driving operation, and the component driving device can be transferred to the component supply stage accordingly. The robot operation can be reduced, and the time required for the robot to drive a series of parts can be shortened.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of an expansion nut, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing the installation state of the expansion nut, and FIG. FIG. 4 is an overall schematic diagram showing an embodiment of the component feeding device according to the present invention; FIG. 5 is a front explanatory view of the component loading device; FIG.
The figure is a view in the direction of the arrow in Figure 5, Figure 7 is a perspective view of the main parts showing the relationship between the mounting head and parts, and Figure 8
The figure is an explanatory diagram showing the state before parts supply of the parts supply device according to the present invention, and FIGS. 9 to 14 are arrow views as seen from the direction, direction, direction, direction, direction, and direction in FIG. Fig. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the parts supplying device according to the present invention when parts are being supplied, Fig. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the parts driving device when parts are set, and Fig. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the parts driving device when parts are being set. FIGS. 18A to 18C are cross-sectional explanatory views of main parts showing the state of parts being driven in during the component driving operation. A... Parts driving device, E... Positioning mechanism, I
...Instrument panel (part to be assembled), K
... Parts supply device, N ... Expansion nut (parts), R ... Robot as automatic machine, P
... Parts feeder, 20 ... Base member, 30
... Drive member, 40 ... Mounting head, 50 ... Shooter, 55 ... Stopper, 60 ... Stopper,
67a...Connecting convex portion, 68a...Connecting recess.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In a parts supply device K that supplies specially shaped parts to a parts driving device A attached to an automatic machine R, a parts feeder P for storing parts fixed at a predetermined position, and a parts feeder P inside this parts feeder P are fixed at a predetermined position. a shutter 50 for aligning and supplying the parts; a stopper 55 for restraining and releasing the movement of the parts at the tip of the shutter 50;
The components supplied from the shutter 50 provided in the component driving device A attached to the automatic machine are temporarily aligned and stored as parts to be supplied to the component driving device A, and when the components are supplied from the shutter 50. a stocker 60 having a component stopper 70 for temporarily holding a predetermined number of the components; and the shooter 50.
and a positioning mechanism E for abutting and connecting the ends of the stocker 60. 2 The positioning mechanism E has a connecting convex portion 67a having a conical guide surface protrudingly provided on one of the stocker 60 and the shooter 50, and a connecting concave portion into which the connecting convex portion 67a fits into the other. 68
A component feeding device for a component driving device A according to claim 1, further comprising: a.