JPH0885032A - Flexible production system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a flexible production system, which copes with the small-lot production of various kinds of products, is inexpensive, made in a compact size, and by which the system constitution can be facilitated. CONSTITUTION: A loop-like conveying path is formed by a carrying conveyer 40 and a conveyer 13. Further, a conveying path for connecting the respective places on the loop-like conveying path to each other is formed by a by-pass conveyer 42. Functional cells 6 capable of conducting plural kinds of assembling works are disposed on the respective places on the conveying path. The functional cell 6 to be used is changed suitably according to the kind of a product to be produced, the conveying route is changed in such a manner that the conveying distance for parts to be assembled is minimum, and only the needed parts of the conveyers 40, 13, 42 are operated. The functional cell 6 is adapted to assemble only one part a time. In the case of assembling plural parts, to be assembled are circulated plural times. After the completion, the product is sent from a discharge conveyer 44 to the next process.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flexible production system capable of producing high-mix low-volume products at low cost and easily adapting to product changes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The demand for flexible manufacturing systems has increased as the number of products in various types has been reduced and the life of products has been shortened. The flexible manufacturing system in the product assembling method is divided into a line method and an assembling cell method.

In the line system, an assembly unit and a component supply device form a pair, and the assembly line and the component supply device form a continuous production line. This method has been conventionally used for single-item or small-item, high-volume production, but recently, a technique capable of supporting multi-item production has been proposed. For example, Japan Society for Precision Engineering Vol.57
The following technologies are proposed in No. 2 (1991) p.44-47. In this proposal, the production system is composed of a supply device capable of adopting various component supply systems, a robot for assembling components, and a conveyor for conveying products to be assembled. The component supply method is determined according to the shape of the component and the like. For loose parts, a vibrating parts feeder is often used. When the number of parts in the balls of the parts feeder becomes low, the parts are manually inserted. When parts are aligned and supplied, a pallet, a magazine or the like is used. Assembling of products is performed by feeding the line (between stations) in one direction by a conveyor. The parts are assembled in order from the first station, and the assembly is completed at the last station. Although it has a line configuration, it can be separated and connected for each station. Therefore, when the product to be produced is changed, the line can be reorganized.

On the other hand, the assembly cell system comprises one robot and a parts supply system for supplying several parts. The component supply system uses a pallet for each component on which components are aligned and placed. The robot is pre-programmed with the order in which it will be assembled. The robot takes out the parts one by one from the pallet and assembles them in this order. The parts to be assembled are placed on the base.

Regarding this assembled cell system, for example,
JP-A-2-292141, JP-A-4-159038
No. 2 (1991) p.37-39.

[0006]

Information equipment, audio-visual equipment, and the like are high-mix low-volume production and have a short life cycle. Therefore, the ratio of manufacturing cost to the product price is increasing. Therefore, it has been desired to establish a flexible and low-cost production method. Among the production processes, processing machines are universal processing machines, and FA is being adapted to the processing machines. On the other hand, in the assembling process, since the assembling method varies depending on the target product, FA production is delayed as compared with machining.

In general, the line type assembly is
Since one part is assembled at the station, as many stations as the number of parts to be assembled are required. Therefore, it is not easy to respond to changes in the products produced. For example,
When the number of parts becomes larger than before, it is necessary to increase the number of stations, which requires a major equipment change. On the contrary, when the number of parts is reduced, there is a problem that the number of stations becomes excessive. If the line is not actually changed, there is a problem that the number of work-in-process parts in the line increases.

Even in this line system, the stations can be separated and recombined so that the change of the product or the model can be dealt with, but in reality, the change of the hardware part requires a large amount of cost and period. There was a problem in terms of flexibility.

On the other hand, in the assembly by the assembly cell method, since a plurality of parts are assembled in one station, the number of parts to be assembled is limited. In addition, parts supply is
The system mainly uses pallets, and a separate system for aligning and supplying parts to pallets is required. However, in practice, it is technically difficult to align and supply the parts rather than to assemble them, and in some cases, it has been forced to be performed manually.

[0010] The present invention provides a production system capable of multi-product low-volume production of products composed of relatively many parts.

An inexpensive and flexible production system is provided as an integrated system from the parts supply to the assembly.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to achieve the above object, and in a first aspect thereof, it has a loop-shaped conveying path and conveys an article to be assembled according to the conveying path. Means and a plurality of function cells for performing assembly work on each of the parts to be assembled on the transfer path, the at least one of the function cells being of two types. A flexible production system is provided which is capable of performing the above assembling work.

In this case, the determining means for determining whether or not the article to be assembled conveyed by the conveying means satisfies a predetermined condition, and the predetermined condition as a result of the judgment by the judging means. It is preferable to further include a discharging unit configured to discharge the assembly target, which has been filled with, from the transport path.

The carrying path further comprises a bypass section connecting the respective parts of the loop, and the carrying means carries the circuit parts around the assembly object according to a predetermined path of the carrying path. Preferably there is.

In a second aspect of the present invention, 1 or 2
The transporting means includes a transporting path including the above loop, and transports the article to be assembled according to a predetermined route of the transporting path, and transports the transporting path at various points of the transporting path. And a plurality of functional cells for performing an assembly operation of the assembly target article, and at least one of the functional cells is capable of performing two or more kinds of operations. A production system is provided.

In the first and second aspects, it is preferable that the conveying means can change the path.

Further, the route is set in a loop, and the determining means determines whether or not the article to be assembled conveyed by the conveying means satisfies a predetermined condition, and the determining means. As a result of the determination, it is preferable to further include a discharging unit configured to discharge, from the path, the article to be assembled, which satisfies the predetermined condition.

The predetermined condition may be the number of revolutions of the article to be assembled.

At least the function cell includes at least a pallet positioning means for positioning a pallet, which is separately loaded with components, at a predetermined position, and a predetermined assembly position for gripping the components from the pallet. Component assembling means for moving the component to the assembling object, the in-cell conveying means for conveying the assembling object, and the control means for controlling the pallet positioning means, the component assembling means and the in-cell conveying means. And is preferably included.

A stocker for containing the pallet and the parts, and a transfer means for transferring the pallet and / or the parts between the stocker and the functional cells,
It is preferable to further have

[0021]

The transporting means transports the article to be assembled around along the transporting path. When the transport path is configured to include a plurality of loops (or has a bypass section), the transport path is transported according to a predetermined route. The determination means determines whether or not the conveyed article to be assembled satisfies a predetermined condition (for example, the number of turns). When it is satisfied, the discharging means discharges the assembly target article from the loop-shaped path (or the loop-shaped transport path).

The functional cell carries out one or more assembling operations for the article to be assembled which has been transported through the transport path. 1
As a general rule, one functional cell will carry out one type of work each time the assembled product goes around. If multiple types of work are to be performed, the orbit should be repeated multiple times. 1
When it is attempted to make one functional cell perform a plurality of operations in succession, it takes time to prepare (for example, in the case of a robot, exchange of hands). However, when the preparation time is extremely short, one function cell may be made to perform a plurality of operations in succession.

When the product to be assembled is changed,
By changing the transportation route in advance,
Eliminate wasteful transportation.

The assembling work in the functional cell is performed by, for example,
This is done as follows.

Transfer means transfers the pallets and parts from the stocker to the functional cells. Pallet positioning means
The sent pallet is positioned at a predetermined position. Then, the component assembling means grips the component from the pallet and moves it to a predetermined assembling position, and assembles the component to the assembled product conveyed by the in-cell conveying means. The control means controls these series of operations in the functional cell. The pallet with all the parts unloaded is returned to the stocker by the transfer means.

[0026]

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

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the outline of the flexible manufacturing system of this embodiment. This system can be roughly divided into a component supply unit 1, an assembly unit 2, and a central control device 9.

The component supply unit 1 is a unit for managing the components to be put into the assembly unit 2 and the pallet p on which these components are placed. The component supply unit 1 includes a stocker 4 that stores components and pallets p, and a pallet conveyor 5 that conveys the pallets p to the assembly unit 2.

The pallet p is for carrying the parts in a state where they are aligned and placed. The outer shape of the pallet p is the same regardless of the type of parts to be placed. Inside the pallet p, a frame is provided for keeping the components in a fixed posture. This frame differs for each type of component. A bar code indicating the type of parts to be placed is attached to this pallet p.

The parts are arranged and put into the vacant pallet p at the parts receiving shop 7 or the mini machine shop 8. The parts receiving shop 7 is a part that receives the introduction of parts produced in another factory or the like.
The posture of the loose parts received here is judged by a device equipped with a camera and an image processing function,
The alignment robot 31 arranges the postures of the components and places them on the pallet p. The mini machine shop 8 includes a processing machine for producing parts (for example, a press 32, a molding machine 33),
And a mechanism for sequentially aligning and placing the parts produced by the processing machine on the empty pallets p. The basic configuration of the mini-machine shop 8 is similar to that of the function cell 6 of FIG. 3 described later (only the difference is whether it is directly connected to the assembly line or the component supply unit 1 and is simply an operational problem. I have only used them properly).

The pallet p on which the parts are placed is sent from the stocker 4 to the assembly unit 2 by the pallet conveyor 5. The pallet p from which all the parts have been taken out by the assembling unit 2 is similarly returned to the stocker 4 by the pallet conveyor 5.

As shown in FIG. 1, the assembling unit 2 includes a plurality of function cells 6 having a function of performing an assembling work, and a function cell 6.
And a conveyor 40 for conveying the parts to be assembled in between.

The function cell 6 has a function of performing a plurality of types of assembling work (for example, assembling, adhering, and caulking parts). In this embodiment, the function cell 6 is standardized to facilitate the construction / change of the production line.

An example of the functional cell 6 is shown in FIG.

The function cell 6 shown in FIG. 2 is of a type exclusively used for assembling parts (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "assembly cell"). The assembling cell 6 includes a pallet transfer unit 11, a pallet section 12, and an in-cell transfer conveyor 13
, A platen 14, a jig 15, and a robot 16.

The pallet transfer unit 11 is equipped with a feed conveyor 110 for transferring parts, and the pallet has been sent from another device (for example, the pallet transfer unit 11 of the function cell 6 adjacently arranged). Accept p and transfer it. The detector 18 reads the bar code c of the pallet p transferred by the pallet transfer unit 11. As a result, the pallet p is
When the pallet p has desired components placed thereon, the pusher 19 made of a stretchable cylinder is extended and pushed out to move the pallet p to a predetermined position of the pallet portion 12. The robot 16 takes out a desired part from the pallet p transferred to the pallet unit 12 and carries the semi-finished product (or the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 on the in-cell transfer conveyor 13) carried in the direction of the arrow x0. To the jig 15) on the platen 14 installed in. The robot 16 has a plurality of hands 20 corresponding to the parts to be assembled. The robot 16 replaces the hand 20 as needed to handle various parts.

After the assembly, the in-cell transfer conveyor 13
Sends this semi-finished product (in some cases, a completed product) in the direction of arrow x1. In addition, the in-cell transfer conveyor 13
Is also configured so that it can be conveyed in the opposite direction.

The in-cell transfer conveyor 13 is provided with a pusher 19 'for branching function, and if necessary, arrow x
The above semi-finished product in the direction of 2 (in some cases, finished product)
It is configured to be able to send out.

The platen 14 is provided with a flag (any specific configuration may be used). By reading the state of the flag by the information detector 46 described later, it is possible to know how many rounds the semi-finished product has traveled on the route described below. It should be noted that the mechanism for changing the flag and the contents of the flag is not shown in the drawing.

Pallet p from which all parts have been taken out
Is returned from the pallet section 12 to the pallet transfer unit 11 again by a mechanism (not shown). Then, the pallet transfer unit 11 (in this case, the reversing elevator 111, the return conveyor 112) and the transport conveyor 5 of the component supply unit 1 returns the empty pallet p to the stocker 4 again. The reversing elevator 111 is properly attached and detached according to the arrangement of the functional cells 6.

The operation of the assembly cell 6 is performed by the control device 2
1 is performed by controlling each of the above units.
Information from an information detector 46, which will be described later, is input to the control device 21. Based on this information, the control device 21 knows the assembling status of the semi-finished product (the product to be assembled) sent thereafter, and instructs the robot 16 which hand 20 to use. Control device 21
Has an interface for communicating with the control device 21 of the other functional cell 6. Therefore, by exchanging information or the like indicating the work content between the function cells 6, it is possible to know what work should be performed on the next assembly product to be sent.

The assembling cell 6 is constructed by assembling the above-mentioned respective parts to a standard frame by a build block method. Therefore, it is possible to add or remove various functions according to the required specifications. In the above description, the robot 1 is used as the assembling means.
Although 6 is taken as an example, it is also possible to use a pick-and-place unit (not shown) that performs a simple operation.
In this case, the pallet p in the pallet unit 12 is moved at a certain pitch.

Another example of the functional cell 6 is shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 shows that a part is formed in the functional cell 6 and is assembled by the robot 16 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "working assembly cell"). FIG.
The processing and assembling cell is basically the same as the assembling cell shown in FIG. 2 except that the pallet section 12 is replaced by a forming unit (hopper 22 and forming section 23).

The hopper 22 heats the material charged from the outside to soften it. Then, the softened material is extruded to the molding portion 23. The molding unit 23 uses this to mold parts and sequentially supplies the parts to the robot 16. The robot 16 assembles this part to the semi-finished product (or the jig 15 on the pallet 14) carried by the in-cell transfer conveyor 13.

As the functional cell 6, other than this, it is also possible to make a part from a hoop material and assemble the created part, although not shown. For example, a sheet metal-shaped hoop material may be pressed to punch parts having a predetermined shape, and the punched parts may be assembled by a robot.

Further, it is also possible to perform the bonding with the functional cell 6. In this case, an adhesive dispenser 24 may be installed in the functional cell 6, and the adhesive may be applied to the parts transported by the in-cell transport conveyor 13 or the like by the dispenser 24 (see FIG. 1).

In FIG. 1, a conveyor 40 conveys the product to be assembled between the functional cells 6. Although not shown in the figure, this transfer conveyor 40 also has a branching mechanism (pusher 1) similar to that of the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 described above.
9 '). However, in the section where the function cells 6 are adjacent to each other, the in-cell transport conveyor 1 of the function cells 6 is
Since the products to be assembled are directly delivered between the three, the transport conveyor 40 is not provided (in other words, the in-cell transport conveyor 13 also constitutes a part of the transport path of the transport conveyor 40). The transport path constituted by the transport conveyor 40 and the like is a loop-shaped endless route for transporting parts to be assembled when viewed as the entire system. Further, a bypass path (bypass conveyor 42) is provided between each part of the “loop”. The transfer conveyor 40, the bypass conveyor 42, and the functional cell 6 (here, the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 in particular) are
Only the necessary parts can be operated appropriately as needed. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the transport route can be appropriately changed according to the type of product to be produced. The present invention is characterized by the configuration of such a transport path.

In this embodiment, further, the discharge conveyor 44
It has. In addition, the above-mentioned transport path (transport conveyor 4
0, 13, bypass conveyor 42), a branching mechanism 45 (basically a mechanism similar to pusher 19) for branching the article to be assembled to the discharge conveyor 44. The discharge conveyor 44 and the branching mechanism 45 operate according to the detection result of the information detector 46 described later. In other words, when it is found that the assembled product placed on the platen 14 has orbited a predetermined number of times based on the detection result of the information detector 46 (that is, when it is completed), the completed product is The discharge conveyor 44 and the branching mechanism 45 are operated so as to discharge. However, in some cases, the transport path may not pass through the portion where the branching mechanism 45 is provided.
In such a case, the transport conveyors 40, 42, and 13 also play the role of the branching mechanism 45 (that is, the role of discharging the article to be assembled from the loop), as in case 3 described later. Therefore, not only the branching mechanism 45 but also the branching mechanism provided in the conveyor 40 and the like are configured to be operable according to the detection result of the information detector 46.

Since the branching / merging technique of the transporting conveyor itself, which is necessary to realize the transporting path of such a form, is a well-known technique and will not be particularly described here. This branching / merging technology is described in, for example, P of "Practical version CIM / assembly automation design guidebook" (edited by the Automation Promotion Association, published by Industrial Technology Service Center).
103.

In FIG. 1, the information detector 46 is for reading a flag provided on the platen 14. In addition, based on the reading result, the number of rounds of the loop of the article to be assembled is output to each unit (for example, the branch mechanism such as the discharge conveyor 40, the branch mechanism 45, and the function cell 6). In FIG. 1, the information detector 44 is arranged only at the entrance of the discharge conveyor 44. However, when the transportation route is changed according to the type of product, the product does not always pass through this position during assembly. Therefore, by arranging the information detectors 46 at various places on the transport path as needed, the flexibility of the flexible production system is enhanced (see Case 3 in FIG. 6 described later).

The central controller 9 in FIG. 1 controls the entire system of this embodiment. Central controller 9
Outputs from the sensors installed in the respective parts and the functional cell 6 and the like are input to the. The central controller 9 outputs an operation instruction to each of the above parts so as to maintain the matching between the above parts according to these inputs. In this embodiment, the central control unit 9 comprises a microprocessor, ROM, RAM and programs stored in these memories. Various functions of the central controller 9 are realized by the microprocessor executing this program.

The "conveying path" and "conveying means" in the claims are realized by the conveying conveyor 40, the bypass conveyor 42, and the in-cell conveying conveyor 13 in this embodiment. The “determining means” corresponds to the information detector 46 and the branching mechanism of each unit that operates based on the detection result. However, not all branching mechanisms form part of the determining means, and only some of the branching mechanisms that are determined according to the transport route that is set at that time form part of the determining means. .

The "discharging means" is realized by the discharging conveyor 44. In addition to this, the conveyor 40, the bypass conveyor 42, the branching mechanism of each part, and the like also constitute a part of the discharging means according to the transportation route set at that time.

The "pallet positioning means" corresponds to the pusher 19 or the like. The “parts assembling means” corresponds to the robot 16 or the like. The “in-cell carrying means” corresponds to the in-cell carrying conveyor 13. "Transportation means"
Is equivalent to the pallet conveyor 5 and the like.

Next, the production operation of products in this system, in particular, the transportation of parts and the products to be assembled and the change of the route thereof, which are the features of the present invention, will be described with reference to FIG. Here, three examples of product assembly using the equipment shown in FIG. 1 will be described. [Case 1]
Is an assembly of a product of 14 parts, and [Case 2] and [Case 3] are an assembly of a product of 10 parts.

As a premise in each case, the six functional cells 6a to 6f are the assembly type shown in FIG.
It is assumed that two types of parts are set to be assembled. It is assumed that the functional cell 6g is of the working assembly type shown in FIG. Further, the function cell 6h is of a type including a dispenser 24 for applying an adhesive. Further, the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 and the like are supposed to transfer the semi-finished product (assembled product) in the direction from the function cell 6e to the function cell 6a (indicated by an arrow in the figure).

[Case 1] Description will be made with reference to FIGS. 1 and 4.

Of the 14 parts, the functional cells 6a to 6f
Twelve parts to be assembled in are prepared in the stocker 4. It is assumed that the respective parts are placed on the pallet p separately for each type. A plurality of parts are placed on one pallet. Also, the remaining two (= 14-12)
The functional cell 6g is used to produce and assemble the above parts. In the following description, the parts to be assembled in the functional cell 6a are shown as parts Aa and Aa '. Similarly, the parts handled by the function cells 6b, 6c, ...
Ab ', parts Ac, parts Ac', ..., Parts Ag, parts Ag '.

The assembly of these parts is carried out while carrying on the loop-shaped route shown in FIG. 4 (hereinafter referred to as "route R1". In FIG. 4, the route R1 is shaded). The assembly starts from the function cell 6a and the route R
It is assumed that the product is completed by making two rounds of 1 (that is, each functional cell 6 performs the work twice for one product). In this case 1, the bypass conveyor 42 is not used.

The central controller 9 outputs the production command and the production quantity to the parts supply section 1 and the assembly section 2 based on the separately input production plan.

Then, the component supply unit 1 discharges the pallet p from the stocker 4. Pallet conveyor 5 is part A
A, Aa ′, ... Ae, Ae ′ are conveyed to the assembling cell 6e of the assembling unit 2. The parts Af and Af ′ are conveyed to the assembly cell 6f. It should be noted that such a difference in the conveyance destination is caused by reading the bar code c (or, even before the bar code c is read, the pallets p are arranged in advance in the stocker 4 according to the types of the mounted parts. This can be easily done by managing it.

The assembling cell 6e receives the conveyed pallet p by the pallet transfer unit 11. The assembling cell 6e is moved to the pallet p by the pallet transfer unit 11.
While the sheet is being transferred, the barcode of the pallet p is read by the detector 18. As a result, when the pallet p is the one on which the component Ae (or the component Ae ') required in the assembly cell 6e is placed, the pusher 19 is operated to take it into the pallet portion 12 (however,
When the system includes a plurality of functional cells in which the same parts are assembled, the functional cells are not always taken in by the functional cells. ). On the other hand, assembly cell 6e
In the case where a component not handled in (a component other than the components Ae and Ae ′) is placed, the pallet p is handed over to the assembly cell 6d installed adjacently as it is. In the assembly cell 6d, similarly, this pallet p
It is determined whether or not the parts are necessary (whether or not the parts are Ad and Ad ′) while being transferred by the pallet transfer unit 11. If it is the component Ad or the component Ad ′, it is similarly captured. In the case of other parts, they are further delivered to the adjacent function cell 6c. Hereinafter, in the same manner, the pallet p on which the parts are placed is attached to the assembly cell 6c,
It is taken into either 6b or 6a. The functional cell 6 with the ready parts informs the central control unit 9 accordingly.

When it is confirmed that the parts are ready in all the function cells 6 based on the signal from each function cell 6, the central control unit 9 gives an instruction to start assembling to each function cell 6. Then, first, the robot 16 of the functional cell 6a is
But, the assembly is started. Robot 16 of functional cell 6a
Attaches the first part (here, part Aa) to the platen 1
4 Assemble to the jig 15 above. When this assembling work is completed (or after a predetermined time has elapsed), the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 moves the platen 14 to which the component Aa is attached to the functional cell 6b. Similarly, in the function cell 6b, the parts Ab are assembled by the robot 16. After this, similarly, the functional cells 6c, 6
Assembly, etc. by d, 6e, 6f, 6g is performed. Further, in the function cell 6h, an adhesive is applied to fix the parts to each other.

In the portion where the function cells 6 are not adjacent to each other, the conveyor 40 conveys the article to be assembled to the next function cell 6.

After the work with the function cell 6g, the article to be assembled is carried by the carrying conveyor 40 and the information detector 46.
Reach the position. The information detector 46 reads the flag of the platen 14 and outputs the result (how many turns) to each function cell 6, the branching mechanism to the discharge conveyor 44, and the like. Here, since it is the first week and the product is not completed yet, the assembly target mounted on the platen 14 is directly conveyed to the functional cell 6a.

Thus, the work of the first week is completed,
When returning to the functional cell 6a again, seven parts (Aa, Ab, Ac, Ad, Ae, Af, Ag) are assembled. The component Ag is produced and processed by the functional cell 6g itself.

After this, the work of the second week is started, and each functional cell 6 has parts (Aa ', Ab', A) different from those of the first week.
c ', Ad', Ae ', Af', Ag ') are assembled respectively. In this case, the robot 16 of each function cell 6
Automatically replaces the hand 20 as necessary. Even the functional cell 6g (processing assembly cell) produces a part (Ag ') different from that in the first week. For example, if the functional cell 6g is a part that is produced by press working, the mold is automatically exchanged and the parts having different shapes (here, the part A
g and parts Ag ') are produced and assembled. It should be noted that which hand 20 should be used or which part should be produced is determined based on a signal from the information detector 46 (or by performing communication between the functional cells 6). There is.

In this way, the work to be assembled comes to the position of the information detector 46 after finishing the work of the second week. The branching mechanism 45 to the discharge conveyor 44 learns from the information input from the information detector 46 that the platen has already completed two weeks (that is, the product is completed), and the platen 14 is notified to the platen 14. The placed product is discharged to the discharge conveyor 44 side. And the discharge conveyor 44
Carries this to the next step.

Although not mentioned in the above description, the information detector 46 also detects the quality of the assembled product and the information on the number of manufactured products. The information detector 46 transmits these pieces of information to the central controller 9. The central control unit 9 grasps the production amount by this.

While the production is continued, some pallets p are emptied on the way. The pallet p that has become empty is returned to the return line 28 of the stocker 4 by the pallet transfer unit 11 and the pallet conveyor 5. When the empty pallet p is returned to the stocker 4, the empty pallet p
In order to replenish the same type of parts as those placed on the stocker 1, the parts feeder 1 sends out a new pallet p from the stocker 4.
The returned empty pallet p is removed from the stocker 4, and another pallet p in which the same type of parts as those put on the empty pallet is stored is loaded into the stocker 4. Alternatively, the empty pallet p is loaded with components of the same type again and returned to the stocker 4.

In this embodiment, only one component is assembled at one time, and all the components are assembled by making the route R1 go around a plurality of times (twice in the above example). However, all (here, two types) parts for which the respective function cells 6 are in charge of assembly may be assembled together at once. When the parts 20 have a relatively similar shape and only the parts that can be assembled without changing the hand 20 of the robot 16 are handled, this is easier to control. However, if it takes a long time to prepare for the next work (for example, if the hand 20 needs to be replaced for each part), one at a time is required.
It may be more advantageous in terms of tact to complete the product by orbiting multiple times while assembling the parts. Which is better may be determined for each product and for each functional cell 6 in consideration of the balance between the time required for transportation between the functional cells 6 and the time required for the preparation.

When the number of parts to be assembled is large, the number of parts to be mounted in one functional cell 6 may be increased, and the functional cell 6 may be rotated more times.

Further, the work such as assembling and inspection of the parts which are difficult to assemble with an automatic machine can be carried out manually by arranging the worker m beside the in-cell transfer conveyor 13 and the transfer conveyor 40. good.

[Case 2] A case of producing a product composed of 10 parts will be described with reference to FIG.

The production of the product is performed by the function cells 6a, 6b, 6
c, 6d, 6e, 6h, and the functional cell 6
f and 6g are not used. It is not necessary to pass the article to be assembled through the functional cells 6f and 6g. Therefore, the function cell 6
From h to the function cell 6a, by using the branching mechanism (pusher 19 ′) of the function cell 6h and the bypass conveyor 42,
It is conveyed without passing through the functional cells 6f and 6g. In FIG. 5, the loop-shaped route R2 used in Case 2 is shaded. The route is changed in advance by changing the settings of each part before the production of the product is started.

Also in this case 2, according to the number of parts to be assembled, the route R2 is circulated, and more parts than the number of function cells 6 to be used are assembled. The other points are the same as the case 1 described above.

[Case 3] In Case 3, a product including 10 parts is produced. However, the case 2 is different from the case 2 in the function cell 6 to be used and the conveyance route. In Case 3, the product is produced using only the functional cells 6c, 6d, 6e, 6f, 6g, 6h. The functional cells 6a and 6b are not used. Therefore, after the work by the function cell 6g, the assembly target article is sent to the function cell 6c by the bypass conveyor 42b (without passing through the function cells 6a, b). This loop-shaped route R3 is shaded in FIG.

The parts are assembled while rotating the route R3 once or twice or more as needed. In this case, instead of the information detector 46, the information detector 4
Use 6 '. Further, instead of the branching mechanism 45, a branching mechanism located between the bypass conveyor 42b 'and the bypass conveyor 42b is used. A product (assembled product) in which all parts have been assembled is removed from the route R3. Then, it is sent to the discharge conveyor 44 (indicated by arrow z in FIG. 6) by the bypass conveyor 42c. Then, the sheet is conveyed to the next process by the discharge conveyor 44. The other points are the same as the case 1.

In the above-mentioned cases 1, 2 and 3, the method of assembling while circulating the same route was shown. However, it is also possible to perform more efficient production by changing the route each time it goes around and assembling.

Cases 2 and 3 were based on the system shown in FIG. However, in some cases, the product having a large number of parts or the functional cell 6 in the basic configuration cannot be used. In such a case, the functional cell 6 is rearranged. The functional cell 6 has a mechanism part and a control part independent of each other, and the function cell 6 can be exchanged between the functional cells 6 only by transmitting and receiving signals.

As described above, in this embodiment, the number of work-in-process products remaining in the production line can be minimized by appropriately changing the transportation route. Since a plurality of parts are attached with one functional cell (station), the length of the entire production line can be shortened and the installation area can be reduced. In addition, the system price can be reduced. Furthermore, standardized functional cell coupling and separation is easy. Therefore, the production system of the above-described embodiment is excellent in dealing with small-lot production of a wide variety of products.

In the above embodiment, the entire conveying route is looped. However, only part of the route may be set in a loop. In this case, it is determined whether the loop portion is further revolved, or whether the loop portion is to be left and the route portion of the subsequent stage of the loop is to be traveled.

[0084]

According to the present invention, it is possible to assemble more parts than the number of functional cells. Therefore, the system price can be suppressed. In addition, a compact system with a small installation area can be provided.

Further, even if the number of parts and the assembling order are changed, the transfer route can be changed so that only the necessary functional cells are passed. Therefore, the work-in-process remaining in the conveying means can be reduced as much as possible, and efficient production is possible. In addition, it can respond to changes in the product in a short time, and is highly flexible.

Since the functional cells are easily combined and separated, the lines can be easily recombined.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of an embodiment of a flexible production system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a functional cell (assembly cell) 6 that constitutes a flexible production system.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of a functional cell (processing and assembling cell) 6 which constitutes a flexible production system.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a conveyance route R1 in Case 1;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a conveyance route R2 in Case 2;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a conveyance route R3 in Case 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Parts supply section, 2 ... Assembly section, 4 ... Stocker, 5
... Pallet conveyor, 6 ... Functional cell, 7 ... Parts receiving shop, 8 ... Mini machine shop, 9 ... Central control unit, 11 ... Pallet transfer unit, 12 ... Pallet section, 13 ... In-cell transfer conveyor, 14 ... Platen, 15 ... jig, 16 ... robot, 18 ... detector,
19 ... Pusher, 20 ... Hand, 21 ... Control device, 22 ... Hopper, 23 ... Molding part, 24 ... Dispenser, 28 ... Return line, 31 ... Robot, 3
2 ... Processing machine (press), 33 ... Robot (forming machine), 40 ... Conveyor, 42 ... Bypass conveyor, 44 ... Discharge conveyor, 45 ... Branching mechanism, 46 ...
Information detector, 110 ... Feed conveyor, 111 ... Inverting elevator, 112 ... Return conveyor, c ... Bar code, m ... Worker, p ... Pallet

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A transporting means having a loop-shaped transport path for transporting a product to be assembled according to the transport path, and to the product to be assembled having been transported through the transport path at various points of the transport path. A flexible production system, comprising: a plurality of functional cells for performing an assembly operation, wherein at least one of the functional cells is capable of performing two or more types of the assembly operations. 2. A judging means for judging whether or not the article to be assembled conveyed by the conveying means satisfies a predetermined condition, and a result of the judgment by the judging means indicates that the predetermined condition is satisfied. The flexible production system according to claim 1, further comprising: a discharging unit configured to discharge the filled assembly product from the transport path. 3. The transport path further comprises a bypass section connecting the loops to each other, and the transport means circulates the assembly object along a predetermined route of the transport path. The flexible manufacturing system according to claim 1, wherein the flexible manufacturing system is a product. 4. A transporting path comprising one or more loops, a transporting means for transporting a product to be assembled in a circulating manner according to a predetermined route of the transporting path, and at each position of the transporting path. , A plurality of function cells for performing an assembling operation of the article to be assembled that has been transported through the transport path, and at least one of the function cells is 2
A flexible production system characterized by being able to perform more than one type of work. 5. The flexible production system according to claim 3, wherein the conveying means is capable of changing the route. 6. The route is set in a loop, and the determining means determines whether or not the article to be assembled conveyed by the conveying means satisfies a predetermined condition, and the determining means. The flexible production system according to claim 3 or 4, further comprising: a discharging unit configured to discharge, from the path, the article to be assembled that has satisfied the predetermined condition as a result of the determination. 7. The flexible production system according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined condition is the number of rounds of the assembly target article. 8. The function cell comprises, at least, pallet positioning means for positioning a pallet, which has been separately loaded with components, at a predetermined position, and the component at a predetermined assembly position from the pallet. A part assembling means for moving the parts to the assembling object, an in-cell conveying means for conveying the assembling object, and a control means for controlling the pallet positioning means, the component assembling means and the in-cell conveying means. The flexible manufacturing system according to claim 1 or 4, wherein the flexible manufacturing system comprises: 9. A stocker for accommodating the pallet and the component, and a transfer means for transferring the pallet and / or the component between the stocker and the functional cell. The flexible production system according to claim 8.