JPH07178357A - Coating applicator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the ease and efficiency of a series of operations of a coating stage and to eliminate throw-away masking materials by automatically executing mounting of a material to be coated on a masking means, applying, removing and further washing. CONSTITUTION:A coating applicator 10 is arranged below a car body B suspended on a transporting conveyor 11 and moves on a plate 12 along rails. A robot R is disposed on the plate 12 and a washing device 13 is disposed near the robot. The robot R mounts and dismounts masking jigs 14 for simultaneously masking the plural parts of the car body B where coating is not necessary to and from the car body B and applies a coating material for under coating to the car body B. The washing device 13 removes the residual coating materials sticking by under coating to the masking jigs 14 carried in by the robot R. Magnets and engaging pins for positioning are disposed as means for preventing the deviation in the jigs for attracting the masking jigs 14 to the car body B.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is suitable for performing coating while masking unnecessary portions of the coating which are inconvenient for the coating to adhere, such as undercoating of automobiles, to prevent the coating from adhering. It relates to a coating device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In addition to the undercoating process, in the automobile coating process, a soundproofing coating (sound-proofing paint) is used in order to impart soundproofing and chipping resistance to the lower part of the vehicle body including the wheel house part. Donor) or thick film coating such as chipping resistant coating is performed.

In particular, in the undercoat coating of the wheel house part, the film thickness of the paint is relatively large, and it is difficult to adhere the paint to holes such as parts mounting holes in the wheel house part. Therefore, it is necessary to mask unpainted parts such as holes.

Conventionally, in the above-mentioned automobile undercoat coating process, when masking unnecessary portions, for example, a masking material supplying robot and a masking setting robot are combined to form a molded product such as Styrofoam. The supplying robot sets a masking material coated with an adhesive on one side to a setting jig, and the setting robot uses the jig to attach the masking material to an unnecessary portion of the coating (for example,
(See JP-A-63-171662, etc.).

[0005]

However, in the conventional masking method, since the masking material is disposable, a large amount of the masking material is consumed and the material cost is high, and the masking material is not supplied or replenished. Since it requires a lot of manpower and cost for inventory control, peeling work after painting, and disposal of used masking material, there is a problem that running cost must be high. Resolving such problems has been an issue for reducing the cost of the painting process.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and can automatically mask a large number of unnecessary portions of coating at one time without using a disposable masking material. It is an object of the present invention to provide a coating apparatus that can easily deal with changes and can automatically perform cleaning of a masking jig.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a coating spray gun for applying a coating material to an object to be coated, and a plurality of unpainted portions of the object to be coated simultaneously. A plurality of masking heads are provided and suction means for adsorbing themselves to the object to be coated is provided,
A masking means for simultaneously masking the plurality of portions not to be coated, a gripping means for gripping and releasing the masking means, and a hand portion provided with the coating spray gun, and the masking gripped by the gripping means. Means for bringing the masking head of the means into contact with each of the undesired portions and adsorbing the suction means to the object to be coated, and the masking means gripped by the gripping means of the robot are carried into the masking means. On the other hand, it is a coating device having a cleaning means for removing residual paint.

Further, the masking means is an application device having an engagement pin which engages with the object to be coated and positions the masking means with respect to the object to be coated.

The gripping means is an applicator provided so as to be movable relative to the hand part.

Further, the cleaning means is a coating device having a vibrating means for vibrating the carried-in masking means and a blowing means for ejecting a fluid toward the masking means.

[0011]

In the coating apparatus thus constructed, the robot grips the masking means with the gripping means provided on the hand part thereof, and brings the masking head of the masking means into contact with the unnecessary portion of the coating, while using the suction means. The masking means is adsorbed on the object to be coated. As a result, a plurality of unneeded portions of the object to be coated are simultaneously masked by the masking head of the masking means. After masking in this way, the robot applies paint to the object to be painted with the spray gun for painting provided in its hand part, but since the unnecessary part is masked by the masking head, No paint is applied. After painting, the used masking means are
It is gripped by the gripping means of the robot and carried into the cleaning means,
The residual paint is removed by this cleaning means.

As described above, from the attachment of the masking means to the object to be coated, the coating, the removal of the masking means from the vehicle body, and the washing of the used masking means,
It is done automatically without any human intervention. Furthermore, since the masking means provided with a plurality of masking heads simultaneously masks the unpainted portion, the masking work can be performed quickly. Moreover, since the masking means is reused, a disposable masking material is unnecessary.

Further, the masking means is positioned with respect to the object to be coated by engaging the engaging pin with the object to be coated.

Further, since the gripping means is provided so as to be movable relative to the hand portion, even when the position of the portion to be coated, for example, the stop position is deviated from the design position,
The gripping means grips the masking means while absorbing this positional deviation.

The residual paint attached to the masking means carried into the cleaning means is peeled off by the vibration applied by the vibrating means, and is wiped off by the fluid ejected from the blowing means.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration when the coating apparatus according to the present invention is applied to an undercoat coating process of a front wheel house portion in a coating line of an automobile.

First, the structure of the coating apparatus will be outlined. The coating device 10 is arranged below a vehicle body B as an object to be coated that is suspended and carried in by a conveyor 11, and is provided on a plate 12 that is movable in the transportation direction of the vehicle body B along a rail (not shown). ing. The coating device 10 includes a robot R provided on the plate 12 and a cleaning device 13 (cleaning means) provided near the robot R on the plate 12. The robot R is a masking jig 1 for simultaneously masking a plurality of unnecessary parts of the vehicle body B.
4 (corresponding to masking means) is attached to or removed from the vehicle body B, and the undercoat paint is applied to the vehicle body B. Cleaning device 13
Is a masking jig 1 carried in by the robot R
4 is for removing the residual paint adhered by the undercoat painting operation. Although not shown, a jig stand for detachably holding the plurality of masking jigs 14 is provided at a position where it does not interfere with the conveyed vehicle body B, and the robot R is held by the jig stand. The masking jig 14 according to the type of the vehicle body B being transported is selected and held from among the plurality of masking jigs 14 being carried.

As shown in FIG. 2, the front wheel house W has a plurality of component mounting holes for mounting components, a harness hole P, a strut mounting hole F of a strut housing H, and a brake tube for mounting a brake tube. A bracket 15 and the like are provided. These parts are unpainted parts that are inconvenient when a mist of paint adheres.

3A, the masking jig 14 masks the unpainted portions shown by hatching, and the unpainted portions are simultaneously masked by the masking jig 14 as shown in FIG. 3B. It As shown in FIGS. 4 (A) and 4 (B), the masking jig 14 is provided with a plurality of masking heads 16 that come into contact with unpainted portions at the same time. Further, the masking jig 14 itself is attracted to the vehicle body B to prevent the jig from being displaced.
An engagement pin 18 for positioning the vehicle body No. 4 with respect to the vehicle body B is provided. The detailed configuration of the masking jig 14 will be described later with reference to FIGS.

As shown in FIG. 5, the robot R includes a jig holder 20 as a gripping means for gripping and releasing the masking jig 14, and a known spray gun for coating the vehicle body B with a paint. 21 and a hand portion 22 provided with. The jig holder 20 is provided so as to be slidable relative to the hand portion 22 along the XYZ directions shown in FIG. 1, and has a configuration capable of absorbing an error in the stop position of the vehicle body B. ing. The detailed configuration of the jig holder 20 will be described later with reference to FIGS.

The detailed structure of the cleaning device 13 will be described later with reference to FIG.

Next, the detailed structures of the masking jig 14, the jig holder 20, and the cleaning device 13 will be described in order.

The masking jig 14 masking jig 14, as shown in FIG. 6, has a first pipe 26 connected to the column 25, a second pipe 27 connected to the first pipe 26, A main frame 28 is formed by the first and second pipes 26 and 27. A reinforcing pipe 29 is provided between the support 25 and the first pipe 26. A grip 30 held by the jig holder 20 is provided at the lower end of the column 25.
Is provided so as to match the center of gravity of the masking jig 14. As shown by phantom lines in the figure, the grip 3
To prevent the paint from adhering to 0, a collar-shaped anti-adhesion device 3
1 may be provided. First, second and reinforcing pipes 26,
Round pipes are used for 27 and 29, and square pipes are used for the column 25 and the grip 30.

A plurality of masking heads 16 corresponding to the shape of the unpainted portion and covering the unpainted portion are attached to the main frame 28 via the sub-frame 32. Each sub-frame 32 has a length corresponding to the length from the main frame 28 to the unpainted portion, and is bent so that the masking head 16 can face the unpainted portion.

The masking heads 16 are roughly classified into flat plate type heads 16a to 16d and dish type head 16.
e, which is used properly according to the shape of the unnecessary portion for painting. The configurations and usage patterns of the four flat plate type heads 16a to 16d will be described below with reference to FIGS.
An example of the configuration and usage of the dish head 16e will be described with reference to FIG. 7A to 11A, the outer shapes of the masking heads 16a to 16e are shown together with the subframe 32, and FIG. 7B conceptually shows the usage pattern.

Each of the flat plate type heads 16a to 16d is formed of an aluminum plate or an iron plate. The masking head 16a shown in FIG. 7A is composed of a flat rectangular plate 33 whose one side is an arc edge. This masking head 16a
As shown in FIG. 2B, when used, it is abutted against the vehicle body B so as to face the strut housing H, and prevents the paint mist from being fogged on the back of the strut housing H or the component mounting surface. .

Masking head 1 shown in FIG.
6b is composed of a plate 34 having a bent surface. This masking head 16b is in contact with the vehicle body B so as to face the dash lower 35 in use, as shown in FIG. 2B, to prevent the fog of paint mist on the dash lower 35 and the harnel hole P. To do.

Masking head 1 shown in FIG. 9 (A)
6c is composed of a plate 36 bent at 90 °. As shown in FIG. 2B, the masking head 16c is brought into contact with the vehicle body B so as to face the strut tower when in use, and covers the Harnell hole P formed in the strut tower with the fog of paint. To prevent.

The masking head 16d shown in FIG. 10A is composed of a plate 37 having a U-shaped cross section. This masking head 16d is, as shown in FIG. 2B, used when the brake tube bracket 15 is used.
The brake tube bracket 15 is abutted against the vehicle body B so as to surround it and prevents the paint mist from fogging on the brake tube bracket 15.

The dish type head 16e is formed of a cup member 38 having a circular bowl shape, as shown in FIG. 11 (A). This kind of masking head 1
6e, when used, the cup member 38 is in contact with the vehicle body so as to surround the weld nut 39 and the component mounting hole P, and paints the weld nut 39 and the like. Prevent fogging of mist.

The masking head 16 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, there is also one in which a plurality of cup members 28 are provided by branching from one sub-frame 32 via the sub-frame 32.

As described above, each masking head 16 is connected to the main frame 28 via the sub frame 32, and the base end portion of the sub frame 32 is connected to the main frame 28 by welding. As described above, the masking jig 14 has a branched shape in which the sub-frame 32 extends from the main frame 28, but it is necessary to have a branch structure in which the paint is hard to adhere.
Below, the connection state of the main frame 28 and the sub-frame 32 will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 15.
In addition, each of (A) in FIGS. 7 to 11 shows a defect example, and (B) shows an improvement example.

As shown in FIG. 12 (A), when the welding angle between the large-diameter round bar and the small-diameter round bar is 45 ° or less, the paint represented by dots is likely to accumulate between the round bars. Therefore, the welding angle between the round bars is 4 as shown in FIG.
The angle is more than 5 ° and 90 ° or less, preferably 90 °. Therefore, it is preferable that the main frame 28 and the sub frame 32 be connected to each other so as to form an angle of 90 °.

As shown in FIG. 13 (A), when a small-diameter round bar is welded to the upper side of a large-diameter round bar, the paint is likely to collect in this portion, and the small-diameter round bar faces the paint spray surface 40 to reduce the coating area. It will be narrowed down. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3B, it is preferable to weld a small-diameter round bar to the side of the large-diameter round bar facing the spray gun 21. Therefore, the sub-frame 32 is preferably connected to the side of the main frame 28 on the side facing the spray gun 21.

As shown in FIG. 14 (A), when the welding angle between the round bars is 45 ° or less and a plurality of branches are sequentially formed along the longitudinal direction of one round bar, the paint is spread on the branched parts. It becomes easy to collect. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3B, it is preferable that the branching from one round bar is performed at a position near the tip. Therefore, in the case where the sub-frame 32 is further branched into the sub-frame 32 (see FIG. 11A), it is preferable to perform it at a position near the tip of the sub-frame 32 connected to the main frame 28.

As shown in FIG. 15 (A), when a plurality of small-diameter round bars are closely packed and welded to a large-diameter round bar, the welded portion of the large-diameter round bar and the small-diameter round bar and the adjacent small-diameter round bar Paint tends to accumulate between the rods. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6B, when branching, it is preferable to separate the round rods serving as branches from each other. Therefore, when a plurality of sub-frames 32 are branched from the main frame 28, it is preferable to set the interval between the adjacent sub-frames 32, 32 to a predetermined dimension L, for example, 20 mm or more.

As shown in FIG. 6, a magnet 17 for attracting the masking jig 14 to the vehicle body B is attached to one end (right end in the figure) of the first pipe 26 of the main frame 28 via a bracket 41. ing. Further, at the other end (upper left end in the figure) of the first pipe 26, an engagement pin 18 that engages with a hole formed in the vehicle body B and positions the masking jig 14 with respect to the vehicle body B has a sub-frame 32. Is attached through. Further, the masking jig 14 is attached to the vehicle body B.
The first pipe 26 is also provided with a positioning restraining plate 42 or a positioning restraining pin that abuts on the vehicle body B in order to fix the jig posture when the is mounted.

As shown in FIG. 16, the engaging pin 18 has a flat plate type masking head 16 for covering the harness hole P formed in the panel 43 of the vehicle body B, and a pin portion 44 inserted into the harness hole P. The pin portion 4 is integrally provided and configured.
4, a concave portion 45 that engages with the inner peripheral edge of the harness hole P is formed.

The engaging pin 18 is engaged with the panel 43 of the vehicle body B as follows. First, the engagement pin 18 is brought close to the harness hole P as shown by the solid arrow in FIG. Next, as shown by a solid arrow in FIG. 3B, the pin portion 44 is inserted into the harness hole P and pressed in the + X direction in the drawing by a predetermined dimension, for example, about 15 mm. And
When the engaging pin 18 is lowered in the −Z direction by a predetermined dimension, for example, about 15 mm, the recess 45 of the pin portion 44 engages with the inner peripheral edge of the harness hole as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, the engagement pin 18 engaged with the panel 43 of the vehicle body B is removed by a procedure reverse to the above procedure. That is, first, the engaging pin 18 engaged with the inner peripheral edge of the harness hole is pushed up in the + Z direction by a predetermined dimension, for example, about 15 mm, as shown by the dashed arrow in FIG. And disengages the harness hole inner peripheral edge. Next, as shown by the broken line arrow in FIG. 6B, if the predetermined dimension, for example, about 15 mm is pulled in the −X direction, the engagement pin 18 is pulled out from the panel 43 of the vehicle body B as shown in FIG. Be done.

In order to attach the entire masking jig 14 to the vehicle body B, first, as shown in FIG. 17, the entire masking jig 14 is tilted as shown by the broken line and brought close to the vehicle body B (FIG. State). Next, the engaging pin 18 is inserted into the harness hole P while the entire masking jig 14 is tilted, and is pressed by a predetermined dimension in the + X direction as it is, and the entire masking jig 14 is lowered by a predetermined dimension in the -Z direction (the same). The state of FIG. Then, as shown in FIG. 7C, when the masking jig 14 is erected vertically, the masking jig 14 is positioned by the engagement pin 18 engaging the panel 43, and the magnet 17 is fixed to the panel 43. It is fixed to the vehicle body B by preventing it from being displaced.

When mounting the masking jig 14 in this manner, the masking surface of the jig 14, that is, the masking head 16 does not interfere with the panel 43 of the vehicle body B, and the engagement pin 18 comes into contact with the panel 43 first. It is supposed to do.

In the present embodiment, the masking jig 14
Is attached to the vehicle body B without performing a correction work for correcting the stop position of the vehicle body B. The stop position accuracy error that occurs when the vehicle body B is stopped is caused by the engagement pin 18 and the harness hole P. It is designed to be absorbed by plugging in. That is, of the XYZ directions shown in FIG. 1, the errors in the Y and Z directions are corrected by the engagement pins 18, and the errors in the X direction are obtained by pressing the masking jig 14 against the panel surface of the vehicle body B. Absorb by. The vehicle body stop position accuracy error that can be absorbed is determined by the inner diameter of the harness hole P into which the engagement pin 18 is inserted. For example, when the diameter of the harness hole P is 30 mm, the vehicle body stop position accuracy error is ± 12 in each of the XYZ directions shown in FIG.
It can absorb in the range of mm. If the diameter of the harness hole P is 50 mm, the vehicle body stop position accuracy error can be absorbed in the range of ± 22 mm in each of the XYZ directions.

In other words, taking the case where the diameter of the harness hole P is 30 mm as an example, in other words, the stop position accuracy of the vehicle body B is ± 12 mm with respect to the reference position in both the XYZ directions.
Within the range, the masking jig 14 can be set at a predetermined position of the vehicle body B without correcting the stop positions of the vehicle body B and the robot R. In this example, the vehicle body B
If the stop position accuracy is greater than ± 12 mm in both the XYZ directions, some measure is taken to improve the stop position accuracy of the vehicle body B, or the stop position of the robot R is corrected using a vehicle body position correction sensor or the like. Feedback control for compensating for the above is required.

Jig holder 20 The jig holder 20 includes a gripping unit 5 for gripping the grip 30 of the masking jig 14 as schematically shown in FIG.
0, and a slider unit 51 which holds the gripping unit 50 slidably in the Z direction in the drawing and is attached to the hand portion 22 of the robot R so as to be slidable in the XY directions. Therefore, the entire jig holder 20 is slidable relative to the hand portion 22 along the XYZ directions.

As shown in FIGS. 18 to 20, the grip unit 50 of the jig holder 20 has a box 52 having a bottomed box shape with an open upper end surface and for receiving the grip 30 of the masking jig 14. There is. In this embodiment, the grip 30 received in the box 52 is fixed in two directions (X direction and Y direction in the drawing) to fix the grip 30, and the grip 30 is positioned with respect to the box 52. There is. Therefore, as is clear from FIG. 20, one end surface 5 of the box 52 along the X direction is
A first jig lock cylinder 53 attached to 2a,
A second jig lock cylinder 54 attached to one end surface 52c of the box 52 along the Y direction is provided.
Each jig lock cylinder 53, 54 is composed of, for example, an air cylinder. A first pressing pad 57 that holds the grip 30 with the other end surface 52b of the box 52 along the X direction is attached to the tip of the operating rod 55 of the first jig lock cylinder 53. Similarly, at the tip of the actuation rod 56 of the second jig lock cylinder 54, a second pressing pad 58 for sandwiching the grip 30 with the block 59 attached to the other end surface 52d side of the box 52 along the Y direction. Is attached. Second pressing pad 58
Has a width dimension smaller than the width dimension of the grip 30, and the second pressure pad 58 can press the grip 30 even after the first pressure pad 57 presses the grip 30. .

22A and 22B show the masking jig 1.
4A and 4B are views showing a procedure for gripping the grip 30 of FIG. 4, in which FIG. 4A shows a state in which the grip 30 of the masking jig 14 is received in the box 52 of the gripping unit 50, and FIG. Shows a state in which is locked. When the masking jig 14 is fixed to the vehicle body B or the like, the position of the grip 30 is also fixed. On the other hand, as will be described later, the gripping unit 50 has an X-
It is movable in the YZ directions. Therefore, when the actuating rod 55 of the first jig lock cylinder 53 is driven forward from the state of FIG. 11A and the side surface of the grip 30 in the X direction is pressed by the first pressing pad 57, it is shown in FIG. As described above, the box 52 of the grip unit 50 moves in the X direction, and the grip 30 is sandwiched between the other end surface 52 b of the box 52 and the first pressing pad 57. Almost simultaneously with the driving of the first jig lock cylinder 53, the operation rod 56 of the second jig lock cylinder 54 is also driven forward, and the second pressing pad 58 presses the side surface of the grip 30 in the Y direction in the same manner as described above. With this, the box 52 of the grip unit 50 moves in the Y direction, and the grip 30 is sandwiched between the block 59 and the second pressing pad 58.

Slide unit 54 of jig holder 20
18 and 19, as shown in FIG. 18 and FIG.
0 is slidably held in the Z direction in the figure, and the slider plate 60 is attached to the X-
The base plate 61 is slidably held along the Y direction and is fixedly connected to the hand portion 22 of the robot R. As shown in FIG. 21, the shaft fixing portions 62 provided at both ends of the slider plate 60 in the Y direction.
The X-direction shafts 63 extending along the X-direction are inserted into and fixed to the shafts. Also, the base plate 6
The Y direction shafts 65 extending along the Y direction are inserted into and fixed to the shaft fixing portions 64 provided at both ends in the X direction.

The X-direction shaft 63 and the Y intersecting at right angles.
The directional shaft 65 is, as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, an X-direction holding hole 66 for slidably holding the X-direction shaft 63 and a Y-direction holding hole 67 for slidably holding the Y-direction shaft 65. Are connected via the four connecting members 68 in which are formed. When the X-direction shaft 63 slides in the X-direction holding hole 66 of the connecting member 68, the slider plate 60 slides along the X direction relative to the base plate 61. Further, the slider plate 60 slides along the Y direction relative to the base plate 61 by the connecting member 68 sliding on the Y direction shaft 65 inserted through the Y direction holding hole 66.

Further, in order to determine the reference position of the slider plate 60 in the X direction with respect to the base plate 61, as shown in FIGS. 19 and 21, between the connecting member 68 and the shaft fixing portion 62 of the slider plate 60, X direction positioning springs 69 are attached respectively. When a load along the X direction is not applied to the slider plate 60, the slider plate 60 is held at a position where the elastic forces of the X direction positioning springs 69 are balanced.

Similarly, in order to determine the reference position of the slider plate 60 in the Y direction with respect to the base plate 61, as shown in FIGS. 18 and 21, between the connecting member 68 and the shaft fixing portion 64 of the base plate 61,
Y-direction positioning springs 70 are attached respectively. When no load is applied to the slider plate 60 along the Y direction, the X direction shaft 63 connected to the Y direction shaft 65 via the connecting member 68 is connected to each Y direction.
The directional positioning springs 70 are moved to a position where the elastic forces of the directional positioning springs 70 are balanced, and as a result, the slider plate 60 is held at a position where the elastic forces of the Y-directional positioning springs 70 are balanced.

As shown in FIGS. 18 and 20, a guide plate 73 extending in the vertical direction is attached to the support plate 72 provided on the slider plate 60. The linear guide 74 attached to the grip unit 50 is slidably fitted to the guide plate 73, so that the grip unit 50 is guided by the guide plate 73 and slidable in the Z direction in the drawing.

A pair of upper and lower plates 75 and 76 are attached to the end surface of the gripping unit 50 in the Y direction. Both ends of a Z direction shaft 77 extending along the Z direction are attached to the upper and lower plates 75 and 76, respectively. Each part is fixed. On the other hand, the support plate 7 of the slider plate 60
A holding plate 78 having a holding hole for slidably holding the Z-direction shaft 77 is attached to the unit 2.

Further, in order to determine the reference position of the gripping unit 50 in the Z direction with respect to the slider plate 60,
Z direction positioning springs 71 are attached between the upper and lower plates 75 and 76 and the holding plate 78, respectively. Therefore, when a load along the Z direction is not applied to the gripping unit 50, the gripping unit 50 is held at a position where the elastic force of each Z direction positioning spring 71 and the own weight of the gripping unit 50 are balanced.

Grasping unit 50 and slide unit 51
By configuring and as described above, the entire jig holder 20 is slidable relative to the hand portion 22 along the XYZ directions. Especially the so-called W
Since the reference position in each direction is determined by the spring method, the reproducibility of the reference position becomes extremely good in the three directions of XYZ.

Further, since the jig holder 20 is slidable in the XYZ directions, when the jig lock cylinders 53 and 54 are operated to grip the grip 30 of the masking jig 14, the jig holder 20 slides according to the stop position of the vehicle body B, and the stop position error of the vehicle body B can be absorbed. Further, even when the masking jig 14 set on the vehicle body B is removed, even if the masking jig 14 is displaced for some reason, the grip 30 can be accurately gripped.

The allowable amount by which the jig holder 20 can slide is set in accordance with the stop position error of the target vehicle body B. For example, the stop position error of the vehicle body B is XY-
If each Z direction is ± 10 mm, the slide movement allowable amount of the slide unit in the XY direction and the grip unit 5
The allowable slide movement amount in the Z direction of 0 is set to about ± 15 mm.

Since the stop position error of the vehicle body B is indirectly detected by detecting the movement amount of the jig holder 20 from the reference position, the slide movement amount of the slide unit 51 in the X direction is determined as shown in FIG. A pair of X-direction switches S to detect
W1 and a pair of Y-direction switches SW2 for detecting the amount of slide movement of the slide unit 51 in the Y-direction are attached to the base plate 61 via brackets (not shown). Further, as shown in FIG. 18, a pair of Z-direction switches SW3 for detecting the amount of sliding movement of the gripping unit 50 in the Z-direction are attached to the support plate 72 via brackets (not shown). Each of the switches SW1 to SW3 is, for example, a proximity switch. Further, the pair of switches SW1 to SW3 are arranged at positions equidistant from the detection target site.

The amount of movement of the slide unit detected by the switches SW1 to SW3 is a specified amount, for example ± 15 mm.
If it exceeds the limit, it is recognized that the stop position error of the vehicle body B exceeds the allowable range. In this case,
Since the gripping of the masking jig 14 may become unstable, a control means such as a computer (not shown) displays or issues an alarm to prompt the operator to warn.

[0060] washing apparatus 13 cleaning device 13, as shown in FIG. 23, upper opening 82
Has a cleaning chamber 81 in which a lid 80 is opened and closed,
The masking jig 14 used for undercoat coating is carried into the cleaning chamber 81 by the robot R. In the plate 83 provided near the upper end opening 82,
A jig clamper 84 for detachably holding the carried-in masking jig 14 is provided, and a vibration generator 85 as a vibrating means for vibrating the plate 83 is further provided. The plate 8 is activated by operating the vibration generator 85.
By vibrating 3, the vibration is applied to the masking jig 14 held by the jig clamper 84. The lid 80 is opened and closed by an air cylinder 86, for example.

An air pipe 87 is provided in the cleaning chamber 81 and in the lid 80, and a plurality of air blow nozzles 88 are connected to the air pipe 87. The air-blowing nozzle 88 extends toward the masking jig 14 held by the jig clamper 84, and functions as a blowing unit that ejects air as a fluid toward the masking jig 14.

A tank 89 for containing the residual paint removed from the masking jig 14 is arranged below the cleaning chamber 81, and is opened and closed at the side of the cleaning chamber 81 when the tank 89 is taken out. A door 90 is provided.

When the residual paint adhered to the masking jig 14 is removed, the used masking jig 14 is
The robot R removes it from the vehicle body B, the air cylinder 86 carries the lid 80 into the open storage chamber 81, and the jig clamper 84 holds the lid 80. Next, after the air cylinder 86 is operated to close the lid 80, the vibration generator 85 is driven to apply a slight vibration to the masking jig 14, and at the same time, the masking jig 14 is arranged at the upper and lower positions. Air is ejected from the plurality of air blowing nozzles 88 toward the masking jig 14. Then, the masking head 16 of the masking jig 14 and the frame 2
Residual paint adhered to 8, 32 and the like is peeled off by slight vibration and blown off by air blow. The residual paint thus removed from the masking jig 14 is stored in the tank 89.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

When the vehicle body B is carried into the undercoat coating process by the conveyor 11, the robot R starts its operation and is carried in from among a plurality of masking jigs 14 stored in a jig stand (not shown). The masking jig 14 according to the vehicle type of the vehicle body B is selected, and the grip 30 of the masking jig 14 is held by the gripping unit 5 of the jig holder 20.
Accept within 0. When the grip 30 enters the box 52 of the gripping unit 50, the first and second jig lock cylinders 53 and 54 are actuated to move the operation rods 55 and 56 forward, and the grip 30 of the selected masking jig 14 is moved. Are pressed and fixed to the inner surface of the box 52. As a result, the masking jig 14 is gripped by the robot R.

After that, as shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B, the robot R approaches the vehicle body B while keeping the masking jig 14 tilted, and the engagement pin 18 is inserted into the harness hole P to perform the masking treatment. The tool 14 as a whole is lowered slightly, and the engaging pin 1
The concave portion 45 of No. 8 is engaged with the peripheral edge of the harness hole. As a result, the masking jig 14 is positioned at a predetermined position on the vehicle body B. Of the stop position errors that occur when the vehicle body B is stopped, errors in the Y and Z directions are corrected by the engagement pins 18, and errors in the X direction are corrected by pressing the masking jig 14 against the panel 43 of the vehicle body B. Has been absorbed.

Next, when the masking jig 14 is erected vertically, the magnet 17 of the masking jig 14 is fixed to the vehicle body B while the magnet 17 is attracted to the vehicle body B to prevent the displacement. Further, the positioning suppressing plate 42 provided on the masking jig 14 is also brought into contact with the vehicle body B to fix the jig posture. As a result, the unpainted portion is simultaneously covered with the plurality of masking heads 16 to mask the portion.

At this time, the springs 69, 70, 71 provided on the jig holder 20 are elastically deformed and the jig holder 20 is stopped by the hand portion 22 at a predetermined position.
By sliding in the −YZ direction, the stop position error of the vehicle body B is absorbed. In addition, the masking jig 14
The shocks when mounting the
It is absorbed by elastic deformation of 70 and 71.

Next, as shown in FIG.
The operating rod 55 of the second jig lock cylinder 53, 54,
56 is moved backward, the gripped state of the grip 30 is released, and the robot R is separated from the masking jig 14.
After that, the robot R takes a posture for applying the undercoat by the spray gun 21 provided in the hand portion 22. Then, as shown in FIG.
The undercoat paint is applied to a predetermined position of the vehicle body B from the above to perform undercoat painting.

When the painting is completed, the robot R moves to the vehicle body B.
The grip 30 of the masking jig 14 fixed to the gripping unit 50 is received in the gripping unit 50, the first and second jig lock cylinders 53 and 54 are operated to press the grip 30 against the inner surface of the box 52, and the masking jig 14 is fixed. Grip again. Also in this case, the jig holder 20 slides in the XYZ directions, so that the masking jig 14 attached to the vehicle body B having a stop position error can be reliably gripped, and an impact at the time of gripping can be obtained. Be absorbed.

Thereafter, the robot R operates the masking jig 1
4 is tilted to release the magnet 17 from the vehicle body B to release the attracting state between the masking jig 14 and the vehicle body B, and the entire masking jig 14 is slightly raised, so that the engagement pin 18 and the vehicle body B are separated from each other. The engagement is released, and then the masking jig 14 is separated from the vehicle body B while being tilted.

Masking jig 1 removed from vehicle body B
The robot 4 is moved toward the cleaning device 13 while being held by the robot R, carried into the cleaning chamber 81 where the lid 80 is opened by the air cylinder 86, and held by the jig clamper 84. The robot R once releases the grip of the masking jig 14. Next, after closing the lid 80, the vibration generator 85 is driven to apply a slight vibration to the masking jig 14, and at the same time, the plurality of air blow nozzles 88 arranged at the upper and lower positions of the masking jig 14 are driven. Air is ejected from the masking jig 14 toward the masking jig 14. As a result, the residual paint that has adhered to the masking head 16 of the masking jig 14 and the frames 28 and 32 is peeled off by microvibration and is blown off by the air blow and stored in the tank 89. The cleaning may be performed while the robot R holds the masking jig 14.

When the masking jig 14 is washed, as described above, not only the vibration but also the air blow is performed, so that the washing performance becomes extremely excellent. In particular,
The round bowl-shaped masking head has excellent cleaning properties.

When the cleaning is completed, the holding of the masking jig 14 by the jig clamper 84 is released, and the masking jig 14 is gripped by the robot R and carried out of the cleaning chamber 81. Then, the masking jig 14 is returned to the initial position of the jig stand and stored.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the process of attaching the masking jig 14 to the vehicle body B, coating, removing the masking jig 14 from the vehicle body B, and cleaning the used masking jig 14 are performed. , Can be automatically performed without any human intervention, and the series of operations performed in undercoat painting can be facilitated and made more efficient.

Further, since the masking jig 14 provided with a plurality of masking heads 16 simultaneously masks the unpainted portions, the masking work can be facilitated and made more efficient.

Moreover, since the masking jig 14 is reused, a disposable masking material is unnecessary, running costs can be suppressed, and the cost of the undercoat coating process can be reduced.

Further, from among the plurality of masking jigs 14 prepared for each vehicle type, the masking jig 14 corresponding to the vehicle type is selected.
Since it is selected and attached to the vehicle body B, the masking work can be performed corresponding to the change of the vehicle type, and the new vehicle type can be handled only by newly producing the masking jig 14. Therefore, the present embodiment can be applied to any of the tact transfer / continuous transfer line.

Although the example in which the present invention is applied to the undercoat coating step has been described, the present invention is not limited to this case. The object to be coated is not limited to the vehicle body B either.

[0080]

As described above, according to the coating apparatus of the present invention, the masking jig is attached to the object to be coated, the coating is performed, the masking jig is removed from the vehicle body, and the used masking jig is used. Since the cleaning can be automatically performed without any human intervention, a series of operations performed in the painting process can be facilitated and made more efficient.

Furthermore, since the masking jig provided with a plurality of masking heads simultaneously masks the unpainted portion, the masking work can be facilitated and made efficient in this respect as well.

Moreover, since the masking jig is reused, a disposable masking material is not required, running costs can be suppressed, and the cost of the coating process can be reduced.

Further, even if the type of the object to be coated is changed, it can be easily dealt with by simply changing the shape of the masking jig, and also from this point, the cost of the coating process can be reduced.

Further, since the gripping means is provided so as to be movable relative to the hand portion, even when the position of the portion to be coated, for example, the stop position is deviated from the design position,
The gripping means can absorb this positional deviation and securely grip the masking jig.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration when a coating apparatus according to the present invention is applied to an undercoat coating process of a front wheel house portion in a coating line of an automobile.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a front wheel house portion.

FIG. 3 (A) is a view showing a portion of the front wheel house where painting is unnecessary by hatching, FIG. 3 (B).
[Fig. 4] is a view showing a state in which an unpainted portion is simultaneously masked by a masking jig.

FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B are a front view and a side view showing an outline of a masking jig.

FIG. 5 is a front view conceptually showing a jig holder and a coating spray gun as gripping means provided in the hand portion of the robot.

FIG. 6 is a front view showing details of a masking jig.

FIG. 7 (A) is a diagram showing an outer diameter shape of a masking head provided on a masking jig, and FIG. 7 (B) is a diagram showing the same.
It is a figure which shows notionally the usage type of the masking head shown by the figure (A).

FIG. 8A is a diagram showing an outer diameter shape of a masking head provided on a masking jig, and FIG. 8B is a diagram showing the same.
It is a figure which shows notionally the usage type of the masking head shown by the figure (A).

FIG. 9 (A) is a diagram showing an outer diameter shape of a masking head provided on a masking jig, and FIG. 9 (B) is a diagram showing the same.
It is a figure which shows notionally the usage type of the masking head shown by the figure (A).

FIG. 10 (A) is a view showing an outer diameter shape of a masking head provided on a masking jig, and FIG. 10 (B).
FIG. 6 is a diagram conceptually showing a usage pattern of the masking head shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 (A) is a diagram showing the outer diameter shape of a masking head provided on a masking jig, and FIG. 11 (B).
FIG. 6 is a diagram conceptually showing a usage pattern of the masking head shown in FIG.

12A and 12B are views provided for explaining a connection state of a main frame and a sub frame in a masking jig.

13 (A) and 13 (B) are views for explaining a connection state of a main frame and a sub frame in a masking jig.

14 (A) and (B) are diagrams for explaining a connection state of a main frame and a sub frame in a masking jig.

15 (A) and 15 (B) are diagrams for explaining a connection state of a main frame and a sub frame in a masking jig.

16 (A) to 16 (C) are views for explaining an engagement procedure of an engagement pin provided on a masking jig.

FIG. 17 is a diagram which is used for explaining when the entire masking jig is attached to the vehicle body.

FIG. 18 is a front view showing details of a jig holder.

FIG. 19 is a side view showing details of a jig holder.

FIG. 20 is a plan view showing in detail a main part of a jig holder.

FIG. 21 is a plan view showing details of a slider unit of the jig holder.

22 (A) and 22 (B) are views for explaining a procedure for gripping and fixing a grip of a masking jig by a jig holder.

FIG. 23 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a cleaning device.

24 (A) to 24 (C) are diagrams showing an operating state of the robot for explaining the operation.

[Explanation of symbols]

13 ... Cleaning device (cleaning means), 14 ... Masking jig (masking means), 16 ... Masking head,
17 ... Magnet (adsorption means), 18 ... Engagement pin,
20 ... Jig holder (grasping means), 21 ... Spray gun for painting 22 ... Hand part, 50 ... Gripping unit, 51 ... Slider unit, 53,
54 ... First and second jig lock cylinders, 69, 70, 7
1 ... X-direction, Y-direction, Z-direction positioning springs, 85 ... Vibration generator (vibrating means), 88 ... Air blow nozzle (blowing means), B ... Vehicle body (object to be coated),
R ... robot.

Front Page Continuation (72) Inventor Hiroaki Tsushima 2 Takaracho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (72) Hideya Kinoshita 2 Takara-cho, Kanagawa, Yokohama, Kanagawa Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A spray gun for coating that applies paint to an object to be coated, and a plurality of masking heads that simultaneously contact a plurality of undesired portions of the object to be coated, and sucks itself onto the object to be coated. A gripping means for simultaneously masking the plurality of undesired parts, a gripping means for gripping and releasing the masking means, and a hand section provided with the spray gun for painting. A robot that brings the masking head of the masking means gripped by the means into contact with each of the unneeded portions and sucks the suction means onto the object to be coated; and the masking means gripped by the gripping means of the robot. A cleaning device that is carried in and that removes residual paint from the masking device. Place 2. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the masking means has an engagement pin that engages with the object to be coated and positions the masking means with respect to the object to be coated. 3. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gripping means is provided so as to be movable relative to the hand portion. 4. The coating according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning means includes a vibrating means for vibrating the carried-in masking means and a blowing means for ejecting a fluid toward the masking means. apparatus.