JPH06647Y2 - Linear guide device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of application] The present invention relates to a linear guide device provided with an endless circulation path for rolling balls interposed between a guide rail and a slider freely traveling on the guide rail. In particular, it relates to an improvement of a cage for holding a ball.

[Conventional technology]

A conventional linear guide device of this type is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 53-21346.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, this is a raceway 1 (guide rail) which has axial raceway surfaces 10 (ball rolling grooves) formed on both sides and is extended in the axial direction, and a raceway. A guide case having a raceway surface 11 (ball rolling groove) facing the raceway surface 10 of the raceway and a clearance hole 9 (ball passage) formed of a through hole parallel to the raceway surface 11 so as to be movably straddled on the platform 1. 2 (slider body) and a lid 4 (half-doughnut-shaped groove 14 (ball circulation path) fixed on both end faces of the guide case 2 and connecting the clearance holes 9 and the clearance holes 9 to each other. End cap), a large number of rolling elements 3 (balls) rotatably inserted between the raceway surfaces 10 and 11, the groove 14 and the clearance hole 9, and a plate-shaped retainer for holding the rolling elements 3. 5 and.

The cage 5 prevents the rolling elements 3 from falling out of the ball rolling grooves 2 of the slide table when the guide case 2 is removed from the raceway 1. At both ends of the lid 4 having a curved portion that is continuous with the groove 14 of the lid, the fitting is fixed in the mounting square groove formed in the lid 4. In the state where the guide case 2 is fitted into the track way 1, the guide case 2 is housed in a cage escape groove 7 formed of a square groove formed in the groove bottom of the ball raceway surface 10 of the track way 1 to prevent interference with the raceway surface 10. To prevent it.

When the guide case 2 moves relative to the raceway 1 in the axial direction, the rolling element 3 circulates through the clearance hole 9 and the semi-doughnut-shaped groove 14 provided in the lid 4, and the raceway surface 10, 1
1, the guide case 2 smoothly moves in the axial direction through the rolling of the rolling element 3.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional linear guide device, the attachment structure of the cage 5 is such that a deep groove having a width dimension such that the plate-shaped cage 5 fits in the lid 4 is engraved and held in this groove. The both ends of the container 5 are fitted, and the knock pin 6 is driven into a round hole formed in the plate of the holder 5 in a direction perpendicular to the plate and stopped.

Therefore, there is a problem in that the attachment structure of the cage 5 is complicated, the number of steps is large, and an inexpensive product cannot be provided.

Further, once assembled, it is not possible to remove only one of the lids 4 screwed to both ends of the guide case 2 while the balls 3 are held by the cage 5, so that preload adjustment is performed after assembly. Therefore, if the ball size needs to be changed, there is another problem that it cannot be easily performed.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to solve the conventional problems by providing a linear guide device in which the retainer can be easily attached and the end caps can be easily attached and detached even with the retainer attached.

[Means for solving problems]

The linear guide device of the present invention which achieves the above object is
A guide rail extending in the axial direction by forming a ball rolling groove in the axial direction and a cage escape groove along the groove bottom on both sides, and movably straddling the guide rail and A slider body having a ball rolling groove facing the ball rolling groove and a through hole as a ball passage parallel to the ball rolling groove, and an end cap joined to the end of the slider body having a semi-doughnut-shaped ball circulation path. In the linear guide device including a large number of balls rotatably inserted in the ball rolling groove and a retainer that holds the balls, a linear portion that is inserted into the retainer escape groove,
A retainer is formed of a plate material and has a circular arc portion formed at both ends of the straight line portion and adapted to the half donut-shaped ball circulation path, and a mounting portion extending from the end of the circular arc portion in parallel with the straight line portion. Also, the mounting portion of the retainer is fitted into the base of the ball scooping projection that is provided at the end of the ball circulation path of the end cap and that fits closely into the ball rolling groove of the guide rail. The holding hole is formed.

[Action]

The ball retainer filled in the ball rolling groove of the slider body prevents the ball from falling off. Since the linear portion of the cage is housed in the cage escape groove formed in the ball rolling groove, it does not interfere with the slider body. To attach the retainer to the slider, it suffices to insert the attaching portions extending at both ends of the retainer in parallel with the straight portions into the retaining holes of the end caps, and the retainer can be easily fixed in a very short time. Moreover, if it is necessary to change the ball size after the assembly is completed for adjusting the preload, the ball can be easily taken in and out with only one end cap removed from the end surface of the slider body.

Further, since the cage is made of a thin plate having a rectangular cross section, the groove width of the cage escape groove may be narrow, and the ball rolling surface may not be reduced so much by the cage escape groove.

〔Example〕

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

1 to 6 show an embodiment of the present invention, in which a slider 22 as a slide base having a substantially U-shaped cross section is laid across a guide rail 21 so as to be relatively movable. ing. The guide rail 21 is provided on its side surface with a ball rolling groove 23A having a substantially V-shaped cross section in the axial direction, and a ball rolling groove 23B having a circular cross section at its corner portion between the side surface and the upper surface. It is provided. A cage escape groove 33A made of a narrow U-shaped groove is provided along the axial direction at the groove bottom of the ball rolling groove 23A.

On the other hand, a ball rolling groove 25A facing the ball rolling groove 23A and a ball rolling groove 25B corresponding to the ball rolling groove 23B are provided on the inner surfaces of the sleeves 24 of the main body 22A of the slider 22. Each of them is formed, and the ball rolling paths 26A and 26B are constituted by these opposing grooves. A ball passage hole 27A having a circular cross section and a ball passage hole 27B parallel to the ball rolling passage 26B are formed in both sleeve portions 24 of the slider main body 22A. Has been formed.

On the other hand, half donut-shaped ball circulation paths 29A and 29B are formed in the end caps 28 joined to the front and rear ends of the slider body 22A, respectively. The ball circulation passage 29A connects the ball rolling passage 26A of the slider body 22A and the ball passage hole 27A, and the ball circulation passage 29B connects the ball rolling passage 26 of the slider body 22A.
B and the ball passage hole 27B are communicated with each other.

An infinite circulation path formed by the ball rolling path 26A, the ball circulation path 29A, and the ball passage hole 27A, and the ball rolling path 26B, the ball circulation path 29B, and the ball passage hole 2
A large number of balls B are loaded in the infinite circulation path formed by 7B.

Of the semi-doughnut-shaped ball circulation paths 29A, 29B,
A semicircular cross-section is projected at the end of the part that guides the rolling ball B to the outside, and the sharp tips are fitted into the ball rolling grooves 23A and 23B of the guide rail 21, respectively. Ball scooping protrusions 30A and 30B are formed. This is a semi-doughnut-shaped ball circuit 29
A and 29B in the ball rolling groove 23 of the guide rail 21
This is because by connecting the balls B as close as possible to the bottoms of the balls A and 23B, the ball B is reliably scooped and the circulation of the ball B is smoothly performed.

Further, the bases of the ball scooping protrusions 30A and 30B are provided with a holding hole 31 formed of a square hole or a round hole extending in the axial direction and penetrating the outer end surface of the end cap 28, and the ball scooping protrusion is also provided. Retainer mounting recesses 32 that communicate with the holding holes 31 from the tips of the portions 30A and 30B are provided side by side with the ball circulation paths 29A and 29B. The cage mounting recess 32 has a circular arc portion 3 of a cage 33, which will be described later.
5 and the projecting portion 36 are fitted together.

The cage 33 includes a straight line portion 34 for holding the ball B in the ball rolling groove 25 formed on the inner surface side of the main body 22A of the slider 22, a circular arc portion 35 at both ends thereof, and the circular arc portion 3 thereof.
5, an extension portion 36 formed by extending the linear portion 34, and an attachment portion 37 extending axially parallel to the linear portion 34 from the end of the arc portion 35 and fitted into the holding hole 31 of the end cap 28. The sheet metal is punched by precision pressing to form a thin plate having a rectangular cross section.

In FIG. 1, 40 is a bolt insertion hole for fixing the guide rail 21 to a base (not shown) when using the linear guide device, and 41 is a bolt for fixing a driven body such as a table to the slider 22. It is a screw hole for. Further, 42 is the ball rolling grooves 23A, 2 of the guide rail 21,
It is molded with a wiper seal made of synthetic rubber, which is attached to the end cap 28 with a screw 43 in order to wipe off 3B and prevent foreign matter from entering. 44 is a screw hole of the screw 43, and 45 is a grease nipple.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be described.

However, one ball row will be described and the other ball rows will not be described.

When the slider 22 on the guide rail 21 is moved in the axial direction, the ball B inserted in the ball rolling path 26A rolls along with the movement of the slider 22, and the moving direction of the slider 22 is opposite to that of the slider 22. Move in the direction. Then, at the end of the slider 22, the direction is changed by being guided by the ball scooping protrusion 30A provided on the end cap 28, and makes a U-turn along the ball circulation path 29A. Subsequently, the circulation is repeated through the ball passage hole 27A of the slider body 22A, the U-turn again by the ball circulation passage 29A of the end cap 28 on the opposite side, the return to the ball rolling passage 26A, and the movement while continuing the rolling.

At the time of ball circulation, in the ball rolling groove 23A,
The straight portion 34 of the cage 33 is a cage escape groove 33A at the bottom of the groove.
It's inside and out of the way.

Since the cage 33 of the present invention is made of a thin plate, the width W of the cage escape groove 33A formed along the groove bottom of the ball rolling groove 23A of the guide rail can be reduced. as a result,
Conventionally, it is possible to prevent a phenomenon in which an edge of an escape groove having a wide groove width (a line of intersection with a bottom surface of a ball rolling groove) generally hits the ball surface, and thereby the ball surface is easily damaged.

In addition, since the cage 33 is formed by pressing instead of bending, the machining accuracy is improved, and the arcuate portions 35 and the projecting portions 36 at both ends of the cage 33 are provided on the injection-molded end cap 28. Retainer mounting recess 32
It fits tightly inside and the assembly accuracy is high. Further, since the overhanging portion 36 is provided, the ball scooping protrusion 30
In the vicinity of A, the rigidity is improved against the pressing force applied to the cage 33 by the ball movement. as a result,
The retainer 33 does not loosen or rattling during the rolling of the ball B, the ball B rolls in a stable state, and the circulation is smoothly performed, which greatly improves the operability of the linear guide device. To be done.

Further, even when the slider 22 is removed from the guide rail 21, the retainer 33 does not loosen, so that the ball B is reliably retained.

Furthermore, the mounting portion 37 is configured to be inserted into the retainer holding hole 31 of the end cap 28 from the axial direction. Therefore, when the ball size is changed after the assembly is completed due to the necessity of preload adjustment, only one end cap 28 and the screw 4
It is possible to remove 3 from the end surface of the slider body 22A, and the ball B can be easily taken in and out.

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the present invention.

This invention is designed so that the protruding portion 36A at the end of the cage 33 is
Is different from the case of the first embodiment described above. This has the advantage that the rigidity of the cage 33 can be further increased.

[Effect of device]

As described above, according to the present invention, the straight line portion that is inserted into the cage escape groove, the arcuate portions formed at both ends of the straight line portion, and extending from the end of the arcuate portion in parallel with the straight line portion. Of the ball scooping protrusion that is formed of a plate material and that is provided at the end of the ball circulation path of the end cap and that fits closely into the ball rolling groove of the guide rail. A holding hole into which the attachment portion of the cage is fitted is formed in the base portion. Therefore, it is possible to provide an inexpensive product having a simple holder mounting structure. In addition, the end caps can be easily attached and detached without being interfered with by the cage, and it is possible to provide a linear guide device that can easily perform the work of changing the ball size for preload adjustment after assembly.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 to 6 are views showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway front view, FIG. 2 is a partial rear view of an end cap, and FIG. 3 is a second view. III-III sectional view of the figure, FIG. 4 is a plan view of the cage, FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a part of it in the section V-V of FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a detailed view of the VI portion of FIG. (However, balls are omitted.) FIG. 7 is a plan view of a cage according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 8 is a front sectional view of a conventional linear guide device, and FIG. 9 is IX-IX of FIG. FIG. B is a ball, 21 is a guide rail, 22 is a slider, 2
2A is a slider body, 23A, 23B, 25A, 25B
Is a ball rolling groove, 24 is a sleeve portion, 27A and 27B are ball passage holes, 28 is an end cap, 29A and 29B are ball circulation passages, 30A and 30B are hole scooping protrusions, 31
Is a holding hole, 32 is a retainer escape groove, 33 is a retainer, 34 is a straight line portion, 35 is an arc portion, 36 is a projecting portion, and 37 is a mounting portion.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A guide rail extending in the axial direction with a ball rolling groove in the axial direction and a cage escape groove along the groove bottom formed on both side surfaces, and a guide rail movably supported on the guide rail. The slider body has a ball rolling groove facing the ball rolling groove of the guide rail and a through hole as a ball passage parallel to the ball rolling groove, and a semi-doughnut-shaped ball circulation path at the end of the slider body. In a linear guide device including a joined end cap, a large number of balls rollably inserted in a ball rolling groove, and a cage that holds the balls, the linear guide device is inserted into the cage escape groove. A cage having a straight line portion, an arc portion formed at both ends of the straight line portion and adapted to the semi-doughnut-shaped ball circulation path, and a retainer extending from the end of the arc portion in parallel with the straight line portion. And a retainer mounting portion at the base of the ball scooping protrusion that is formed of a material and that protrudes from the end of the ball circulation path of the end cap and that fits closely into the ball rolling groove of the guide rail. A linear guide device having a holding hole into which is inserted.